Saint of the Month - July 2015: Saint Veronica Giuliani

St. Veronica Giuliani
A heart totally given to Christ

Feast: July 9th

In my personal opinion, the short biography that you're about to read below belongs to one of the greatest mystics in the history of the Church; she ranks among the few chosen souls who experienced a wide array of extraordinary manifestations of the Divine, while rising to the highest peaks of sanctity.  The words below, which she uttered on her deathbed, can be used to summarize her holy and prodigious life:

"I have found Love, Love has

let Himself be seen!"

Born in the Italian city of Mercatello on December 27, 1660, this Saint was originally named “Orsola (Ursula)” by her devout parents; she was the youngest of seven children in the upper middle-class Giuliani family. When she was only 7-years-old, Orsola’s mother, Benedetta, was struck with an illness that took her life. Before she died, Benedetta conceived the idea of commending her five daughters to one of the sacred wounds of Jesus Christ; Orsola was assigned the chest wound that reached deep into the Lord’s Sacred Heart.  It was a gesture that later proved to be prophetic.

As often narrated in the lives of great female mystics of the Church, Orsola was unusually pious from a very young age; she was reported to reserve a part of her daily meals as alms for the poor and was inclined to voluntary penitential practices.  She even received occasional visits from Our Lady and Christ, who came to her as a beautiful child of comparable age to her.  It goes without saying love blossomed in her little heart for her mysterious playmate. 

In the meantime, despite her budding spirituality, her father’s intent was to groom her for a suitable marriage.   Orsola resisted the idea and made known her desire to enter into consecrated life.  After repeatedly pleading her case, she convinced her father of her sincerity and firm resolve, and he relented after she fell seriously ill.  In so doing, Orsola entered the Franciscan Capuchin Monastery of Citta-di-Castello in 1677, when she was 17-years-old.  She took the name Veronica, after the enigmatic Saint who compassionately ministered to the Lord on his way to Calvary.

The Franciscan Capuchin Monastery

in Citta-di-Castello, where St. Veronica

spent her entire religious life.

In the beginning of her new life, Veronica was subjected to severe temptations of every sort, including the desire to quit the monastery.  She fought the devil’s influence by wholeheartedly embracing the Franciscan ideals of poverty and mortification, and by blindly surrendering to the guidance of her superiors.  In spite of her initial challenges, the young nun persevered and eventually thrived in her vocation, fulfilling various positions in the monastery ranging from a kitchen helper; infirmarian; doorkeeper; Novice Mistress (for 34 years); and eventually the role of Abbess (last 11 years of her life).

Extraordinary preternatural graces also began increasing in Veronica’s life: Ecstasies, Visions, Levitations, spiritual voyages into Hell and Purgatory, and profound private revelations.  This mystical escalation was preceded with haunting images of a chalice from which she was invited to drink.  It was, without a doubt, a foreshadowing of terrible trials to come.

"Many do not believe that hell exists,

and I tell you that you yourself, who have

been there, have understood nothing of

what hell is."

~ Words of Our Lady to St. Veronica,

after one of the Saint’s mystical voyages

to the abode of the damned.

In 1694, the Crown of Thorns was imprinted around Veronica’s brow… and on Good Friday, 1697, the stigmatic marks in the hands, feet, and side also appeared on her body.  The wounds opened and bled intermittently, and when they did so, a delightful fragrance emanated from them, which was enough to alert the other nuns as to when the stigmata were active.

            

Illustrated scenes from the mystical life

of St. Veronica, which included visions

of Our Lady and of Christ Crucified that

left her stigmatized.

Not surprisingly, the increasing physical signs of Veronica’s discrete mystical life soon came to the attention of her Bishop; given their highly visible nature, it simply became impossible for the nun to conceal the phenomena.  A commission was formed to examine them but, more so, to test Veronica’s spirit.

At the time of the inquiry, the Saint was Novice Mistress and was relieved of the position, after which severe moral challenges followed for her: Sr. Veronica was isolated in a remote cell and prevented from having close contact with the other nuns; she was deprived of Holy Communion and only permitted to attend Mass on Sundays and Feast Days (while standing from the chapel door); she was grilled about her spiritual life and writings; and the stigmatic wounds were rigorously examined by doctors and ecclesiastical authorities.  What was particularly unusual was the finding that her deep chest wound closed and reopened at her Bishop's command within a brief span of time!

If the above trials were not enough, the poor nun also had to contend with physical harassment from the devil, who came to her as a hideous, malshapen humanoid.  Veronica bravely stood firm against these attacks, which failed to hinder her vocation in any way.

Through every ordeal she faced - temporal and spiritual - Sr. Veronica complied with all the restrictions imposed on her and, after the period of inquiry ended, she impressed the Bishop and her superiors with her evident humility, obedience, and the inexplicable nature of the phenomena surrounding her; convincing all of the divine origin of the graces manifested in her life.  The Novice Mistress was reinstated and allowed to return to the daily routine of her community.

It’s important to note that not all of Veronica’s mystical experiences were associated with suffering; there were also many heavenly consolations that left her uplifted with sheer joy, among which was her “Mystical Marriage” to Christ.  During this vision, Jesus gifted her with a gold ring that only she could see but on occasion was seen by others.  A nun who repeatedly saw it described the ring in the following manner: “This ring encircled her ring finger as ordinary rings do.  On it there appeared to be a raised stone as large as a pea and of a red color.”

When Veronica was elected Abbess in 1716, her governance was marked with prudence and practicality.  She was an ideal example of virtue and self-sacrifice for her spiritual-daughters to emulate, but also skillfully negotiated renovations to the monastery to improve their living conditions (e.g. had plumbing installed to pipe in water).  Her rich mystical life in no way interfered with her administrative duties as Superior.

A wax image of St. Veronica in her convent

 that encloses her skull and bones.

The holy Abbess passed away on July 7, 1727, after lingering from complications due to a stroke.  She was 67-years-old and had spent 50 years of consecrated life intimately united to Christ.  It was with him, and through him, she generously ministered to the spiritual needs of the Church through prayer and sacrifice; her heart truly given over to her beloved spouse, Jesus.

"We cannot go preaching around the

world to convert souls, but we are obliged

to pray continually for all those souls who

are offending God... particularly with our

sufferings, that is with a principle of

crucified life."

~ Exhortation of St. Veronica

to her nuns

And speaking of the Saint's heart - interestingly, Veronica had often remarked to her confessor that her heart was physically imprinted with emblems of the Passion – the Cross, Nails, Crown of Thorns, etc. – so, at her confessor’s request, she had a sketch done of her heart showing the symbols that she claimed were on it... and when others were added by Christ (e.g. the Flagrum, Spear, Sponge, etc.), an updated diagram was created. 

Given the multitude of visible signs already witnessed, the Saint’s descriptions of her heart were deemed compelling.  It was decided soon after her passing that Veronica’s heart would be examined to confirm the veracity of her claims.   To the surprise and awe of those present at the autopsy, her heart was discovered to be indeed clearly "branded" with the religious images she described while alive!  Hence, the reason why this Saint is popularly depicted in her iconography as holding a heart in one hand.

Relics of St. Veronica preserved in her

monastery: framed sketches of her heart

marked with emblems of the Passion,

and a wax death mask that preserves

her actual facial features.

St. Veronica Giuliani was canonized by Pope Gregory XVI in 1839.  Her body, which was initially exhumed incorrupt, was reduced to bones by a devastating flood that inundated Citta-di-Castello, including her monastery.  The skull and bones that survived the water damage were later enclosed in a wax figure with a mask modeled after the Saint’s actual features.  These hallowed relics are now enshrined and venerated in the chapel of her Capuchin Monastery.

May St. Veronica pray for our personal needs and the needs of the universal Church.

A Reflection

God reveals Himself to those who sincerely love and seek Him.

A Short Prayer

Lord, fill our hearts with a deep love for you as you did the heart of St. Veronica Giuliani.  Amen.