``Where
the Bishop is, there let the multitude of believers be;
even as where Jesus is, there is the Catholic Church'' Ignatius of
Antioch, 1st c. A.D
St. Gerard Majella
St. Gerard
Majella ("San Gerardo Maiella" in Italy), was born in a
little town called Muro (now called Muro Lucano) in Basilicata, Italy,
about an hour's drive southeast
from Naples, on April 6, 1726. He was a very pious child, prone to
extreme temperance and spending his time mimicking priests, playing
at conducting holy rituals -- and when he did, miraculous things would
happen. Once, while pretending to lead a procession, he attached a
cross to a tree and asked his friends to venerate it. As they did, the
cross began to glow with a divine light. He also played with the Child
Jesus, and received Communion from Him and from Our Lady and St.
Michael.
His father died when Gerard was young, and his impoverished mother
apprenticed him to a tailor. One can get a sense of his spirit of
humility by reading this, from "The Life, Virtues, and Miracles of St.
Gerard of Majella":
His master loved
him and was careful not to reprove him. Not so, however, the foreman.
He looked upon such piety with a suspicious eye. One day, he dragged
Gerard from the place in which he was praying, and began to beat him
severely. "Strike, strike" said the holy apprentice, "you are right in
doing so."
On an other occasion, the cruel man dealt him blows so
violent that Gerard fell unconscious to the ground. Pannuto, appearing
unexpectedly on the scene, indignantly demanded an explanation. The
foreman, pointing to his victim, replied, "Let him say. He
knows very well. "I fell from the table," said the youth gently.
Another time the brutal man gave him a rude blow on the ear, to which
Gerard only responded by a quiet smile. "What! you are laughing!"
exclaimed the barbarian in wrath, and seizing an iron instrument, he
pitilessly struck the boy. The tender martyr, throwing himself at his
feet, said in a tone full of sweetness: "I freely forgive you for the
love of Jesus Christ."
One morning, Gerard happened to arrive a little
late, which fact furnished a pretext to this madman to beat him with
fury. A sweet smile was all that he drew from the child. "What!
you are laughing!" cried his infuriated assailant. "Tell me, why are
you laughing." "It is because the hand of God has struck me," answered
the angel of patience.
All during his work as a tailor's apprentice, Gerard wanted to be a
religious. He first tried to become a Capuchin Friar, then a hermit,
but was refused, being told that he was too physically frail 1
to endure
the religious life. In the meanwhile, as he kept trying to gain
acceptance by various religious orders, he spent his time serving the
poor.
He was finally accepted as a lay brother by the Congregation of the
Most Holy Redeemer.
There, he was a model of obedience, and a man of such virtues and
graces that he was granted many supernatural gifts, among them "infused
knowledge of the highest order, ecstatsies, prophecy, discernment of
spirits, and penetration of hearts, bilocation, and with what seemed an
unlimited power over nature, sickness, and the devils," even predicting
the day and hour of his death. 2 During his ecstasies, he
would be seen levitating, buoyed by Divine Love.
His life, though, was marked by a grave injustice: a woman who'd joined
a convent and found that the religious life wasn't for her made up a
story to defend her leaving: she falsely accused Gerard of impropriety
with the daughter of a family in whose house Gerard was often a
guest during his missionary travels. Called before St. Alphonsus, the
head of the Remptorists, to answer to the accusations, Gerard did
nothing to defend himself, speaking not even a word to clear his name.
He bore the injustice with perfect equanimity and charity, even when
St. Alphonsus, having no other choice, disciplined him by confining him
to a monastery and depriving him of Holy Communion. Later, when
his accuser lay dying, she wrote to St. Alphonsus and told him she'd
made the story up.
Not long before St. Gerard died, he paid a visit to a family and
accidentally left his handkerchief behind. One of the young girls of
the family ran after him to return it, but he told her to keep it
because she might need it someday. That day came when, years later,
long after Gerard's death, the girl was in severe pain and close to
dying in childbirth. After she had St. Gerard's handkerchief brought to
her and pressed it against her belly, her pain disappeared immediately
and she bore a healthy child. Because of this and his patronage of
pregnant women generally, many images of St. Gerard are labeled with
the words Insignis parturientium
protector” (notable protector of childbirth).
He died of tuberculosis on October 16, 1755, at the young age of
twenty-nine. His relics can be venerated at the Sanctuary of San
Gerardo Maiella in Materdomini -- a suburb of Caposele -- in the
Province of Avellino, Campania,
Italy. There, you'll find the "Room of Bows" -- a room filled with pink
and blue ribbons and bows left by parents grateful for his
intercession.
St. Gerard is the patron saint of mothers, childbirth, the unborn, the
falsely accused, and good confessions.
Customs
Some Catholics will prepare for this feast by praying the Novena to St.
Gerard starting on October 7 and ending on October 15, the eve of
his
feast. St. Joseph's Redemptorist Church, Dundalk, Ireland holds a great
communal novena before his feast each year, and thousands of pilgrims
-- especially women wanting children -- come from all over to attend.
Because of his importance to childbirth,
pregnant women, and women
desiring to become pregnant, may make special devotions to St. Gerard
today. Handkerchiefs
touched to his relics are especially valued by women of childbearing
age, and they can be acquired from his shrines in Materdomini, Italy
and in Newark, New Jersey in the United States. A special prayer for
those wanting to become mothers:
O good St.
Gerard,
powerful intercessor before God
and Wonder-worker of our day,
I call upon thee and seek thy aid.
Thou who on earth didst always fulfill God’s design
help me to do the Holy Will of God.
Beseech the Master of Life,
from Whom all paternity proceedeth
to render me fruitful in offspring,
that I may raise up children to God in this life
and heirs to the Kingdom of His glory in the world to come.
Amen.
And a prayer for those who are already pregnant:
O great Saint
Gerard, beloved servant of Jesus Christ, perfect imitator of thy meek
and humble Savior, and devoted child of the Mother of God, enkindle
within my heart one spark of that heavenly fire of charity which glowed
in thee and made thee a seraph of love.
O glorious Saint Gerard, because when falsely accused of crime, thou
didst bear, like thy Divine Master, without murmur or complaint, the
calumnies of wicked men, thou hast been raised up by God as the patron
and protector of expectant mothers.
Preserve me from danger and from the excessive pains accompanying
childbirth, and shield the child which I now carry, that it may see the
light of day and receive the lustrial waters of baptism, through Jesus
Christ our Lord.
Amen. (pray nine Aves)
Because of St. Gerard's importance to Italians, you may find big
celebrations
taking place at Italian and Italian-American parishes. For ex., St.
Lucy's Church in Newark, New Jersey,3 which houses the
National Shrine
of St. Gerard, has grand celebrations in his honor on or around his
feast day, with Masses, processions, music, and, of course, food. This
parish also offers a "St. Gerard Mass" each month for pregnant women,
and for women who desire to become pregnant (the Mass is undoubtedly a
Novus Ordo Mass, alas).
In parts of Italy, candles are lit outside windows and left to burn
throughout the night on the eve of his feast. The tall glass votives
one can find in most grocery stores would be good for the purpose.
There's also a lovely but plaintive song that can be sung in his honor
as well. An mp3 of this
song, with lyrics below:
Sono Pellegrino;
Canto a San Gerardo Maiella
(I am a Pilgrim; I sing to St. Gerard Majella)
Sono pellegrino,
non risento del cammino
San Gerardo mio, prega per me!
Vengo alla tua chiesa,
l'alma mia d'incanto è presa;
San Gerardo mio, prega per me!
Alla Madonnina
tu n'andavi ogni mattina;
San Gerardo mio, prega per me!
Bianco il bel panino,
te lo dava il Dio bambino;
San Gerardo mio, prega per me!
Scese l'angioletto,
ti portò Gesù diletto;
San Gerardo mio, prega per me!
Stretto al Crocifisso
l'occhio avevi in alto fisso;
San Gerardo mio, prega per me!
Tutto amor divino,
apparivi un serafino;
San Gerardo mio, prega per me!
Fosti gambe santo
alla Vergine d'accanto.
San Gerardo mio, prega per me!
Nostro Protettore,
tu ci porti nel tuo cuore;
San Gerardo mio, prega per me!
Tergi il nostro pianto,
tu l'ascolta il mesto canto;
San Gerardo mio, prega per me!
Vispi fanciulletti,
Deh, li serba a Dio diletti;
San Gerardo mio, prega per me!
Quanti derelitti
sono mille i cuori afflitti;
San Gerardo mio, prega per me!
Dona tu Beato,
la salute all'ammalato;
San Gerardo mio, prega per me!
Leggi nel mio cuore,
qui nascosto è il mio dolore;
San Gerardo mio, prega per me!
Nostro gran tesoro
benedici ogni lavoro.
San Gerardo mio, prega per me!
Scendi dal tuo trono
ed impetraci il perdono.
San Gerardo mio, prega per me!
Dona il tuo sorriso,
gioia sei di Paradiso;
San Gerardo mio, prega per me!
Torno alla mia casa,
l'alma mia di grazie è invasa.
San Gerardo mio, prega per me!
I am a pilgrim,
I am not bothered by the journey
My Saint Gerard, pray for me!
I come to your church,
my soul is enchanted;
My Saint Gerard, pray for me!
To the Madonna
you went every morning;
My Saint Gerard, pray for me!
The beautiful white bread,
the Child God gave it to you;
My Saint Gerard, pray for me!
The little angel came down,
beloved Jesus brought to you;
My Saint Gerard, pray for me!
Close to the Crucifix
your eyes fixed high on it;
My Saint Gerard, pray for me!
All divine love,
appeared to you as a seraph;
My Saint Gerard, pray for me!
Your holy legs brought you
near to the Virgin.
My Saint Gerard, pray for me!
Our Protector,
you carry us in your heart;
My Saint Gerard, pray for me!
Wipe away our tears,
listen to the sad song;
My Saint Gerard, pray for me!
Bright little children,
Oh, keep them beloved for God;
My Saint Gerard, pray for me!
How many derelicts
there are a thousand afflicted hearts;
My Saint Gerard, pray for me!
Give you Blessed,
health to the sick;
My Saint Gerard, pray for me!
Read in my heart,
hidden here is my pain;
My Saint Gerard, pray for me!
Our great treasure
bless all our labors.
My Saint Gerard, pray for me!
Get off your throne
and ask that we be pardoned.
My Saint Gerard, pray for me!
Give your smile,
joy you are from Heaven;
My Saint Gerard, pray for me!
I go back to my house,
my soul filled with thanks.
My Saint Gerard, pray for me!
St. Gerard's
hometown of Muro Lucano holds a two-week celebration in honor of him in
late August.
1 St. Gerard was a likely sufferer
of Marfan Syndrome. From the Mayo Clinic:
Marfan syndrome
is an inherited disorder that affects connective tissue — the fibers
that support and anchor your organs and other structures in your body.
Marfan syndrome most commonly affects the heart, eyes, blood vessels
and skeleton.
People with Marfan syndrome are usually tall and thin with
unusually long arms, legs, fingers and toes. The damage caused by
Marfan syndrome can be mild or severe. If your aorta — the large blood
vessel that carries blood from your heart to the rest of your body — is
affected, the condition can become life-threatening.
Dr. Jorge A. Brenes-Salazar, in an article in Volume 3, Issue 1 of Historia Medicinae, writes of the
Saint that "Phenotypic examinations of contemporary portraits and
scattered hagiographic clues such as the description of his pectus
excavatum have raised our suspicion that he may have suffered Marfan
syndrome; this however, remains as an intriguing speculation."
3 Those curious about the great St.
Gerard's Day celebrations in the American East and what they mean to
the Italian American people might be interested in reading "The Feast
of St. Gerard Maiella, C.Ss.R. : A Century of Devotion at St. Lucy's,
Newark" by Reverend Thomas D. Nicastro, The History Press (October 9,
2012).
