St. Charles of Seeze (1613-1670)
Image Courtesy: Roman Catholic Saints
John ‘Charles’ Marchioni was the son of very religious rural family according to Catholic News Agency and was born in Italy Sezze, Southeast of Rome on the 19 October, 1613 At the request of his Grandmother, she raised him and Charles acquired a Great love and prayers from his Grandmother.
Charles believed that God was calling him to be a missionary in India but he never got there–He had something better for this 17th century successor to Brother Juniper–Charles was inspired by the lives of Salvator Horta and Paschal Baylon to become a Franciscan, he did that in 1635 and says in his autobiography:
“Our Lord put in my heart a determination to become a Lay Brother with a great desire to be poor and to beg alms for his love.”
Charles served as a Cook, Porter, Sacristan, Gardener and Beggar at various Friars in Italy and in some ways, he was ‘an accident waiting to happen.’ Charles once started a huge fire in the kitchen when the oil in which he was frying onions burst into flames.
One story shows how Charles thoroughly adopted the Spirit of St. Francis–the Superior instructed Charles, then a Porter, to provide food only to traveling Friars who came to the door–Charles obeyed this direction. Simultaneously the alms to the Friars decreased. Charles convinced the Superior these two facts were related. When the Friars resumed giving to all who asked at the door, alms to the Friars increased also.
At the direction of his Confessor, Charles wrote his autobiography ‘The Grandeurs of the Mercies of God’ together with several other books and made good use of his several directors throughout the years–they helped him to discern which of his ideas or ambitions were from God. The dying Pope Clement IX called Charles to his bedside for a blessing.
Charles had a firm sense of God’s providence. Fr. Severino Gori said, “By word and example he recalled in all the need of pursuing only that which is eternal.” (Leonard Perotti, St. Charles of Sezze: An autobiography, Pg 215)
Charles died at San Francesco a Ripa in Rome and was buried there Pope Leo XIII pronounced him Blessed in 1882–Pope John XXIII canonized him in 1959
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