Your Faith Journey with EWTN
As we deepen our relationship with the Eternal Word, Jesus Christ, we grow in grace and are transformed by His love and mercy.
March 16, 1585–January 30, 1640
Patron saint of the care of the sick; Viterbo, Italy
St. Hyacintha Mariscotti was born into a life of privilege. Feeling dejected when she was overlooked for marriage to a nobleman of high rank in favor of her younger sister, she entered a convent with no intentions of living a disciplined life. Yet God’s grace led her to live a life of sanctity.
St. Hyacintha, named Clarice at birth, was born into the noble Mariscotti family and educated at the convent of St. Bernardine in Viterbo. As a young woman, she was lively and frivolous, hoping for marriage and social advancement. When her family arranged a match for her sister instead, St. Hyacintha entered a convent out of disappointment. For ten years, she lived there with minimal discipline, maintaining many of her worldly habits and comforts.
When St. Hyacintha fell seriously ill, her confessor visited her and was shocked by her privileged lifestyle. He admonished her to be more faithful to the vows she pledged. Moved to repentance, St. Hyacintha underwent a profound conversion. She began to live with sincere humility and commitment to penance and service. She devoted herself to caring for the poor and the sick, establishing two confraternities, one of which assisted prisoners, the elderly, and the poor.
St. Hyacintha’s profound piety inspired others to deepen their faith. She died on January 30, 1640. The people of Viterbo mourned the saint who had lived among them. She was canonized by Pope Pius VII in 1807.
St. Hyacintha Marescotti’s conversion of heart transformed a life of self-indulgence into one of self-giving through God’s immense mercy.
St. Hyacintha Mariscotti established two confraternities, or organizations of laywomen, who served the needy. Members were known as the Oblates of Mary or Sacconi. One confraternity focused on providing assistance and alms to the poor, prisoners, and convalescents. It provided food, clothing, and other support to those in need, similar to the Society of St. Vincent de Paul. The second association dedicated itself to finding homes for the elderly.
St. Hyacintha belonged to the Third Order Regular of St. Francis at the convent of St. Bernardine in Viterbo. She was a Franciscan tertiary who initially was not faithful to the order’s rules, which required members to live in obedience, poverty, and chastity as a way of penance. Members were to persevere in faith, observe a life of prayer and humility, and serve God through works of charity, often by performing daily tasks and ministering to others. St. Hyacintha entered the convent of the Third Order Regular of St. Francis, but for the first 10 years, she did not observe the rules for members. She lived a very comfortable life, using her own funds for personal luxuries. A serious illness prompted a spiritual crisis and a profound conversion, leading to a life of penance, holiness, and service.
St. Hyacintha Mariscotti’s relics are preserved in a tomb for public veneration at the church of her former monastery in Viterbo, Italy. During her wake, her habit had to be replaced three times because people kept cutting pieces off as relics. Her incorrupt body is located in the church of Santa Giacinta Mariscotti in Viterbo. Smaller relics are preserved in reliquaries and displayed for veneration of the saint. Some of these include a piece of the cord she used for whipping and a piece of her habit.
We hope this special eBook will draw you closer to our Blessed Mother and her Son, Jesus Christ. We trust that the following pages will bring your heart under her mantle, as we share a few of the beautiful and befitting names bestowed upon the Blessed Virgin Mary.
As we deepen our relationship with the Eternal Word, Jesus Christ, we grow in grace and are transformed by His love and mercy.
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