Today we celebrate the feast day of Saint Frances of Rome!
Saint Frances was born in 1384 in Rome during the Western Schism, a time of wars between the Pope and many anti-popes. At age 11 she informed her father that she wanted to become a nun and serve God. Instead, her father gave her hand in marriage to Lorenzo Ponziani who was the commander of the papal army of Rome. This troubled her and she discussed the marriage with a priest. The priest listened and replied, “Are you crying because you want to do God’s will or because you want God to do your will?”. She responded immediately that she wanted God’s will, and married Lorenzo at the age of twelve.
Frances took care of the sick and the poor with the help of her sister-in-law, Vannozza. Together they inspired many wealthy women throughout the city to join them in serving the people and sharing the compassion of our Lord Jesus Christ. Soon after, Frances became very ill. Her husband tried to help her by calling a magician who she drove away saying, “Begone, thou servant of Satan, nor ever venture into these walls again!”. At the brink of death, she had a vision Saint Alexis who told her to choose one of two options, to recover or not. She trusted in the will of God and immediately recovered.
For forty years she embraced her marriage and was devoted to her husband. Her husband received wounds in battle, and she nursed him for his last seven years tending to his needs with great love and devotion. Now a widow, she moved in and became the superior of a monastery she founded that would later be called the Oblates of St. Frances of Rome.
Saint Frances teaches us to put our full trust in God’s will over our own will. We can follow her example by truly living the faith in our homes by putting God first instead of last like we tend to do. She once said, “A married woman must, when called upon, leave her devotions to God at the altar to find him in her household affairs”. We are called to teach our children to love Jesus Christ and serve Him by teaching our children the faith and teaching them to be humble by serving the poor and caring for the sick.
Saint Frances, you followed God’s will throughout your whole life. Please pray for us to put away our own desires and greed so that we may follow God’s will instead of our own in perfect humility. Jesus, we trust in You!
Feast Day: March 9
Born: 1384
Died: March 9, 1440
Canonized: 1608, Rome, Papal States, by Pope Paul V
Patronage: Benedictine oblates, automobile drivers, and widows.
