Saint Jean-Joseph de la
Croix, prêtre
Charles Gaëtan Calosinto
nait à Naples en 1654 dans une famille dont cinq enfants se consacreront à
Dieu. A 17 ans, il entre dans l’Ordre des Frères Mineurs et prend le nom de
Jean-Joseph de la Croix. Modèle de piété et de compassion, il sait aussi gérer
les affaires, en étant gardien du couvent puis provincial. A ce titre, il sut
rétablir la discipline régulière dans beaucoup de couvents de la province de
Naples. Pauvre selon saint François, il porte une tunique toute rapiécée, qui
le fait surnommer 'le Père Cent-Pièces'. Il meurt octogénaire en 1734, calme et
joyeux, en admirant une dernière fois un portrait de la Sainte Vierge.
Saint Jean-Joseph de la
Croix
Frère Franciscain à
Naples (+ 1734)
Né dans l'île d'Ischia en Italie, il est Frère mineur à seize ans. Pendant une trentaine d'années il s'efforcera de répandre la réforme de son Ordre selon les règles rétablies par saint Pierre d'Alcantara, puis il se retira à Naples dans la prière et l'effacement.
Il est resté célèbre par ses extases et ses lévitations publiques et même son don de bilocation.
Il fut surtout un père spirituel voué à la direction des âmes. Il mourut à
Naples où il est grandement vénéré.
Jean-Joseph de la Croix (1654 – 1734): A Naples, Charles Gaëtan Calosinto naît
dans une famille dont 5 enfants se consacreront à Dieu.
A 17 ans, il entre dans l’Ordre des Frères Mineurs et prend le nom de Jean-Joseph de la Croix.
Modèle de piété et de compassion, il sait aussi gérer les affaires, en étant gardien du couvent puis provincial.
Pauvre selon saint François, il porte une tunique toute rapiécée, qui le fait surnommer 'le Père Cent-Pièces'.
Il meurt octogénaire, calme et joyeux, en admirant une dernière fois un portrait de la Sainte Vierge. (Source: diocèse de Sion)
À Naples, l’an 1734, Saint Jean-Joseph de la Croix (Charles-Gaétan Calosinto), Prêtre de l’Ordre des Mineurs, qui suivit les traces de saint Pierre d’Alcantara et rétablit la discipline régulière dans beaucoup de couvents de la province de Naples.
Martyrologe romain.
En savoir plus sur http://reflexionchretienne.e-monsite.com/pages/vie-des-saints/mars/saint-jean-joseph-de-la-croix-pretre-o-f-m-1654-1734-fete-le-05-mars.html#r6sug5X6F9hEQYtL.99
SOURCE : http://nominis.cef.fr/contenus/saint/11499/Saint-Jean-Joseph-de-la-Croix.html
Saint Jean-Joseph de
la Croix
Prêtre o.f.m.
(1654-1734)
Giovanni Giuseppe della
Croce (dans le siècle Carlo Gaetano Calosinto) naquit dans l'île d'Ischia, près
de Naples, le jour de l'Assomption, 1654.
Tout enfant, il aimait la
retraite, le silence et la prière, et fuyait les jeux de son âge, aimant mieux
consacrer le temps de ses récréations à visiter des églises et à y adorer le
Sauveur.
Marie avait, après Jésus, toute sa prédilection ; il dressa dans sa
chambre un petit autel, récitait chaque jour les offices de la Mère de Dieu et
jeûnait en son honneur tous les samedis et aux vigiles de ses fêtes.
Dès ce temps, il aimait
les pauvres au point de leur distribuer tout l'argent dont il pouvait disposer.
C'est à dix-sept ans qu'il entra chez les Frères Mineurs réformés de
Saint-Pierre d'Alcantara. Il s'acquitta avec succès des missions les plus
difficiles ; à vingt-quatre ans, il était maître des novices, puis gardien
d'un couvent ; mais il n'accepta jamais les honneurs qu'avec une humble
crainte et les quitta toujours avec joie.
Il aimait Dieu d'un ardent amour : « Quand il n'y aurait ni ciel ni
enfer, disait-il, je voudrais néanmoins aimer Dieu toujours. »
Dieu opérait de nombreuses merveilles par les mains de ce fidèle disciple de
saint François d'Assise et de saint Pierre d'Alcantara.
Prophéties, visions,
extases, bilocation, sont des preuves étonnantes de sa sainteté. Il fut surtout
un père spirituel voué à la direction des âmes.
Il mourut à Naples, où il
est grandement vénéré, le 5 Mars 1734.
Jean-Joseph de la Croix a été Béatifié par Pie VI (Giovanni Angelo
Braschi, 1775-1799), le 24 mai 1789, et Canonisé, par Grégoire XVI
(Bartolomeo Mauro Alberto Cappellari, 1831-1846), le 26 Mai 1839.
Saint Jean-Joseph de la
Croix naquit dans l'île d'Ischia, près de Naples, le jour de l'Assomption,
1654. Ses parents, Joseph Calosirto et Laure Garguilo le baptisèrent le jour
même sous le patronage de Charles-Cajétan, Ils étaient tous deux d'une grande
piété et d'une foi ferme, et il est bon de relever que notre Saint se distingua
par sa piété au-dessus de ses frères dont cinq au moins embrassèrent la vie
religieuse. Tout enfant, il aimait la retraite, le silence et la prière, et
fuyait les jeux de son âge, aimant mieux consacrer le temps de ses récréations
à visiter des églises et à y adorer le Sauveur. La très sainte Vierge Marie
avait, après Notre Seigneur Jésus-Christ, toute sa prédilection ; il dressa
dans sa chambre un petit autel, récitait chaque jour les offices de la Mère de
Dieu et jeûnait en son honneur tous les samedis et aux vigiles de ses fêtes.
Dès ce temps, il aimait les pauvres au point de leur distribuer tout l'argent
dont il pouvait disposer. A cet âge où l'enfant suit si facilement les premiers
mouvements de la colère, on le vit, un jour, se mettre à genoux dans la boue et
réciter le Pater pour un de ses frères qui l'avait souffleté.
C'est à dix-sept ans qu'il entra chez les Frères Mineurs réformés de
Saint-Pierre d'Alcantara. A dix-neuf ans, il s'acquitta avec succès des
missions les plus difficiles ; à vingt-quatre ans, il était maître des novices,
puis gardien d'un couvent ; mais il n'accepta jamais les honneurs qu'avec une
humble crainte et les quitta toujours avec joie. Sa mortification la plus
extraordinaire fut une longue croix d'un pied environ, garnie de pointes
aiguës, qu'il s'attachait sur les épaules au point qu'il s'y forma une plaie
inguérissable. Il en portait une autre plus petite, sur la poitrine. Rarement
il dormait, et pendant trente ans, il s'abstint de toute espèce de liquide. Il
avait coutume de dire à ses compagnons ou à tous ceux qui le sollicitait sa
charité lors d'une épreuve :" Espérons en Dieu, et nous serons
certainement consolés. Dieu est un tendre père qui aime et secourt tous ses enfants.
N'en doutez point, espérez en Dieu, il pourvoiera à vos besoins. "Ou
encore :" Qu'est-ce que cette terre, sinon de la boue, un morceau de
poussière, un pur néant. Le paradis, le ciel : Dieu est tout. Ne vous attachez
point aux biens de ce monde, fixez vos affections en haut ; pensez à ce bonheur
qui durera éternellement, tandis que l'ombre de ce monde s'évanouira. "Il
aimait Dieu d'un ardent amour :" Quand il n'y aurait ni Ciel ni enfer,
disait-il, je voudrais néanmoins aimer Dieu toujours."
Sa charité pour les pauvres fut plusieurs fois l'occasion de multiplication de
pains ; son dévouement pour les malades le porta à demander à Dieu de faire
retomber sur lui les souffrances des autres, demande qui fut quelquefois
exaucée. Dieu opérait de nombreuses merveilles par les mains de ce fidèle
disciple de saint François d'Assise et de saint Pierre d'Alcantara. Prophéties,
visions, extases, bilocation (présence en deux lieux à la fois), sont des
preuves étonnantes de sa sainteté.
Comme dans ses vieux ans on lui recommandait de se ménager à raison de ses
infirmités, et particulièrement quant à son dévouement aux malades et aux
pauvres, il dit un jour :" Je n'ai point d'infirmité qui m'empêche de
travailler ; mais quand même, ne devrais-je pas sacrifier ma vie pour la même
fin pour laquelle Notre Seigneur Jésus-Christ à été crucifié. "Il
s'étudiait à cacher et à dissimuler le don des miracles et de prophétie dont
Dieu l'avait favorisé à un si haut degré, attribuant les miracles qu'il opérait
par la foi de ceux en faveur desquels ils étaient opérés, ou bien à
l'intercession des Saints auprès desquels il se recommandait. Souvent, il
ordonnait à ceux auxquels il rendait la santé de prendre quelque médecine, afin
que la guérison pût être attribuée à un remède purement naturel. Quant à ses
prophéties, qui sont en grand nombre, il affectait de juger d'après l'analogie
et l'expérience. Ainsi, pendant l'épouvantable tremblement de terre qui eut
lieu à la saint André en 1735 à Naples, comme les religieuses de plusieurs couvents
n'osaient pas aller à leurs dortoirs, il les rassura en leur disant qu'après
quelques secousses seulement, il cesserait sans causer le moindre préjudice à
la ville ou à ses habitants. Quelqu'un lui ayant demandé quelle raison il avait
de s'exprimer d'une manière aussi positive, il dit :" Je suis sûr qu'il en
arrivera ainsi parce que c'est ainsi qu'il en est arrivé précédemment."
Dans la pratique de toutes ces vertus et favorisé de grâces toutes
privilégiées, sur lesquelles ce n'est pas le lieu ici de s'étendre (nous
renvoyons le lecteur à la notice que lui consacrent les Petits bollandistes :http://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/bpt6k30733g),
notre Saint passa ainsi les jours de son pèlerinage ici-bas, glorifiant Dieu,
donnant l'aumône, secourant les malades et faisant le bien, jusqu'au moment où
il plut à Notre Seigneur de mettre un terme à sa carrière, non sans lui avoir
fait connaître à l'avance les circonstances et le temps de sa mort. Le temps où
elle arriva, un de ses neveu lui écrivit de Vienne pour lui dire qu'il serait
de retour à Naples au mois de mai suivant. Notre Saint lui répondit qu'il ne le
trouverait pas vivant. Une semaine avant de passer, il s'entretenait avec son
frère François et lui dit :" Jusqu'ici, je ne vous ai encore rien demandé,
faites moi la charité de prier le Tout-Puissant pour moi vendredi prochain,
vous entendez ? Vendredi prochain, souvenez-vous en, n'oubliez pas. "Ce fut
le jour même de sa mort. A peine eût-il rendu l'âme qu'il se manifesta à
plusieurs personnes dans un état glorieux. A l'heure de son départ, le duc de
Monte-Lione, qui se promenait dans son appartement, aperçut saint Jean-Joseph
dans son salon, en parfaite santé, environné d'une lumière toute surnaturelle,
et quoiqu'il l'eut laisser très malade à Naples quelques jours plus tôt lors de
la dernière visite qu'il lui avait faite. Le duc s'écria :" Quoi ! Père
Jean-Joseph, êtes-vous donc si subitement rétabli ?"A quoi le Saint
répondit avant de disparaître :" Je suis bien et heureux."
Après son inhumation, des miracles sans nombres attestèrent les vertus et la
gloire de notre Saint. Ces prodiges déterminèrent le pape Pie VI à l'inscrire
au catalogue des bienheureux le 15 mai 1789 ; Pie VII reconnut deux nouveaux
miracles le 27 avril 1818 ; Léon XII donna le décret, le 29 septembre 1824,
permettant de procéder à sa canonisation ; et Grégoire XVI en fit la cérémonie
solennelle le 26 mai 1839.
SOURCE :
Saint John Joseph of the
Cross
Also known as
Carolo Gaetano Calosinto
Giovan Giuseppe della Croce
Giovanni Giuseppe
Calosinto of the Cross
John Joseph Calosinto
Profile
Joined Franciscans at
age 16. Ascetic.
First Italian to
follow the reform movement of Saint Peter
Alcantara who sought to make the Order more
devoted to penance and austerity. John had such a reputation for holiness that
his superiors put him in charge of establishing a new friary before he
was ordained.
He joined the work crew, serving as a hod carrier, then a mason. Novice
master, guardian, and provincial of the Order.
When his term as provincial expired, he dedicated himself to hearing confessions and
practising mortification, two concerns contrary to the spirit of the dawning
Age of Enlightenment. Had the gifts of prophecy and healing,
and would swoon into ecstasies;
known to levitate and bilocate.
Born
15
August 1654 at Ischia, Naples, Italy as Carolo
Gaetano Calosirto
5
March 1734 of
natural causes
26 May 1839 by Pope Gregory
XVI
Additional
Information
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Readings
How do you think that
with a bone only three fingers high we should understand the meanings of the
designs of God? – Saint John
Joseph, tapping his forehead
MLA
Citation
“Saint John Joseph of the
Cross“. CatholicSaints.Info. 15 February 2020. Web. 5 March 2022. <https://catholicsaints.info/saint-john-joseph-of-the-cross/>
SOURCE : https://catholicsaints.info/saint-john-joseph-of-the-cross/
St. John Joseph of the Cross
Born on the Island of
Ischia, Southern Italy,
1654; d. 5 March, 1739. From his earliest years he was given to prayer and virtue.
So great was his love of poverty that
he would always wear the dress of the poor,
though he was of noble birth. At the age of sixteen years he entered
the Order of St. Francis at Naples, amongst the Friars of
the Alcantarine Reform, being the first Italian to join
this reform which had been instituted in Spain by St.
Peter of Alcantara. Throughout his life he was given to the greatest austerity:
he fasted constantly,
never drank wine, and slept but three hours each night. In 1674 he was sent to
found a friary at Afila, in Piedmont;
and he assisted with his own hands in the building. Much against his will,
he was raised to the priesthood.
As superior, he always insisted upon performing the lowliest offices in the
community. In 1702 he was appointed Vicar Provincial of
the Alcantarine Reform in Italy.
He was favoured in a high degree with the gift
of miracles, people of every condition being
brought to him in sickness. His zeal for souls was
such that even in sickness he would not spare any labour for them. His
great devotion was to our Blessed
Lady, and he was urgent with his penitents that they also should cultivate
this. He was beatified in
1789, and canonized in
1839.
Sources
Compendium Vitae. .
.B. Joannis Josephi a Cruce (Rome, 1839); Vita di S. Gian Giuseppe
della Croce, dal P. Diodata dell' Assunta (Rome, 1839); MANNING, Lives of
the Saints and Blessed of the Three Orders of St. Francis (London, 1886).
Hess,
Lawrence. "St. John Joseph of the Cross." The Catholic
Encyclopedia. Vol. 8. New York: Robert Appleton
Company, 1910. 4 Mar.
2022 <http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/08466a.htm>.
Transcription. This
article was transcribed for New Advent by Michael T. Barrett. Dedicated to
the memory of Mother Teresa of Calcutta.
Ecclesiastical
approbation. Nihil Obstat. October 1, 1910. Remy Lafort, S.T.D.,
Censor. Imprimatur. +John Cardinal Farley, Archbishop of New York.
Copyright © 2021 by Kevin Knight.
Dedicated to the Immaculate Heart of Mary.
SOURCE : http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/08466a.htm
ST. JOHN JOSEPH OF THE
CROSS—1654-1734
Feast: March 5
St. John Joseph of the
Cross was canonized on Trinity Sunday, May 26th, 1839. His biography was
written by the reverend postulator who conducted the process of his
canonization, from authentic documents In his possession, and published at Rome
in 1838, In a work entitled—Compendio della Vita di Giangiuseppe della Croce.
The following account of the life of this eminent saint is compiled from the
English translation of the above work, and thought worthy of being incorporated
in this edition of the "Lives of the Saints."
He was born on the Feast
of the Assumption, in the year of our Lord 1654, at the town of Ischia, in the
island of that name, belonging to the kingdom of Naples, of respectable
parents, Joseph Calosirio and Laura Garguilo, and was upon the same day
christened Charles Cajetan. He early discovered the seeds of those virtues that
in a special manner enriched his soul, and sanctified his life in the religious
state, humility, sweetness, obedience, and an incomparable modesty; and at the
same time manifested a marvellous inclination to silence, retirement, and
prayer. Wherefore, even in childhood, he made choice of a room in the most
secluded quarter of the house, and therein fitting up a little altar to Our
blessed Lady, (onwhose great festival he had the happiness to be born, and
towards whom, through life, he cherished a tender and filial devotion,) he
spent his whole time in study and pious exercises. Here, too, he early
manifested his attachment to the cross, sleeping upon a narrow hard bed, and
fasting on appointed days during the week; and as he mortified the flesh betimes,
so also he checked all pride, by wearing constantly mean clothes,
notwithstanding his birth and station, in despite of remonstrances and
reproach. His horror of sin was equal to his love of virtue, so that his mind,
from the first dawn of reason, shrunk like a delicate plant from the very
shadow of guilt, and was all-imbued with zeal for God's glory. Idleness,
levity, vanity, and falsehood, even in trivial matters, were censured by him as
faults severely reprehensible. And when his efforts to check sin drew upon him
the hostility of others, he was so far from losing patience, that he therein
only discovered a fresh opportunity of practicing virtue. Towards the poor he
overflowed with tenderness, reserving for them the choicest portion of his
meals, and devoting to their use the pocket-money he received
The sanctity of his
boyhood merited for him the grace of a divine call to a state of holiness; and
feeling an interior movement to quit the world, he sedulously sought counsel
from the Father of lights, as to the manner in which he should obey this
inspiration. For this end he redoubled his ordinary devotions and
mortifications, performed a novena to the Holy Ghost and threw himself upon the
tender patronage and powerful intercession of Our Lady. God hearkened to his
fervent appeal; for his providence so disposed that at this period the renowned
servant of God, Father John da San Bernardo, a Spanish Alcantarine, came into
the country of our saint, with the view of establishing his order in the
kingdom of Naples. The mean habit and devout demeanor of this holy man and his
companions, touched and won the heart of Joseph; he desired to imitate what he
beheld and doubted not but the desire came from God. Wherefore he journeyed to
Naples, that he might impart to the fathers of the order his inclination; and
they, having prudently considered his vocation, admitted him to the novitiate.
He manifested so much ardor, that the superiors deemed it fitting to clothe him
with the habit before the usual time had expired. This happy consummation of
his wishes took place before he had completed his sixteenth year. He adopted
the name of John Joseph of the Cross, and on the feast of St. John the Baptist,
in the year of our Lord 1671, he completed his edifying novitiate, and took the
solemn vows of his order; whose holy founder, St. Francis of Assisi, and St.
Peter of Alcantara, he proposed to himself as models.
In obedience to the
express desire of his superior, our saint submitted to receive the dignity of
the priesthood, and was appointed to hear confessions; in which task he
displayed a profound theological learning, which he had acquired solely at the
foot of the cross. But, carried onward by an ardent love of the cross, whose
treasures he more and more discovered as he advanced in the dignity and
functions of the sacred ministry, he resolved to establish in the wood
adjoining his convent a kind of solitude, where, after the manner of the
ancient Fathers of the Desert, he might devote himself entirely to prayer and
penitential austerities, and give to the Church an illustrious and profitable
example of the sacerdotal spirit exercised in a perfect degree. There was found
in the wood a pleasant fountain, whose waters healed the sick; and hard by he
erected a little church, and round about it, at intervals, five small
hermitages, wherein, with his companions, he renewed the austere and exalted
life of the old anchorites, and advanced greatly in spirituality. And in order
that no care or worldly thought might ruffle the sublime tranquillity of this
contemplative life, the convent had charge of daily supplying the holy solitary
with food.
But the superiors, who
knew the rich treasure they possessed in our saint, when he had attained the
age of twenty-four, chose him for master of the novices; in which new office,
so far from allowing himself the smallest dispensation, he was foremost in
setting the example of a scrupulous observance of every rule; assiduous in his
attendance in choir, constant in silence, in prayer, and recollection. He was
careful to instil into the hearts of those under his charge an ardent love of
Our Lord Jesus, and a desire of imitating him; as also a special veneration
for, and tender attachment to His blessed mother.
From Naples, where he was
employed as master of the novices, our saint was transferred to Piedimonte, and
invested with the office of guardian. The zeal which this new and more
responsible charge called for, was surpassed only by the profound humility its
exercise demanded. Ever a rigid enforce. of the rule, he was careful to make
his enactments agreeable to others, by being the first to observe them himself.
The beneficial result of such conduct was soon made manifest, for he thereby
won the hearts of all the religious, who under him advanced with rapid strides
towards the most heroic perfection. Still his humble and gentle spirit sighed
to be disburdened of so heavy a charge, and having, after two years, obtained
the de" sired release, turned its charitable energies to the direction of
souls, the assistance and alleviation of the dying and distressed, and the
conversion of sinners.
When he was released from
his post of guardian, it was only to reassume that of master of the novices,
which he held for four successive years, and exercised partly in Naples, and
partly in Piedimonte. But now succeeded the accustomed visitation of crosses,
to be afterwards followed by an increase of grace and supernatural favors, an
alternation which checkered the whole course of his life. He was summoned to
his native country, Ischia, in order to discharge the painful duty of filial
affection, and receive the last sighs of his dying mother. Her death ensued,
full of hope, and calm, in the presence of her beloved; and, stifling the
swelling emotions of sensible grief, this incomparable son followed her remains
to the church, and offered up for her soul the sacrifice of propitiation. Who
shall adequately conceive his feelings during the celebration of that mass? Was
his grief less filial, less poignant, because it was reasonable and Christian?
and because, instead of breaking into wild laments and barren demonstrations,
it remained pent up in the recesses of his strong heart, and left free play and
exercise to calm judgment and the salutary measures of Christian charity? Christian
fortitude requires that we should bear up against the stroke of death not
despondingly, because inevitable, but firmly and cheerfully, because it is the
season of better hope, whereby we plant the ensign of salvation upon the grave.
'This will be no unnatural check to those emotions, which it is so great and
yet so painful a consolation to indulge. They will flow no less freely, and far
more profitably, when the calls of religion have first been satisfied. Was St.
Bernard a violator of the sentiments of humanity, when he followed with
tearless eyes and calm countenance the body of his brother to the grave,
assisting at all the offices of religion, and officiating thereat himself? Was
that great heart insensible, when its uncontrollable grief burst out in the
midst of a discourse on other topics, into an impassioned address to his
departed brother, and a magnificent tribute to the virtues of this partner of
his soul and affections? Or does not such an instance of Christian fortitude
and magnanimity favorably contrast with the pusillanimous and almost heathen
despondency and desolation which overwhelm many at the sight or news of death,
even as the Catholic faith-warm, generous, and confident cheers beyond that
cold and gloomy creed, that bids farewell to hope at the brink of the grave?
In the provincial chapter
of 1690, he was appointed to the office of definitor, in addition to that which
he already held. The difficulties of these two functions, requiring a union of
the virtues of the active and contemplative life, our saint marvellously and
happily surmounted. But now an event happened which well-nigh extinguished the
institute to which he belonged, in Italy, and which gave occasion to an
illustrious evidence of his exceeding utility to the order. The Spanish
Alcantarines, having some differences with the Italian, procured from the
apostolic see their dismemberment from the latter, who, being thus abandoned,
recurred to our saint for succor. Suffering himself to be overcome by their
entreaties he undertook the advocacy of their cause with the pontiff, and
succeeded, in a congregation held in 1702, in changing the sentiments of the
cardinals and bishops. previously disposed.to their suppression; so that on the
day after the feast of St. 'Thomas the Apostle, a decree was issued by which
the order was established in Italy under the form of a province. A chapter was
convoked, "in which the arduous task of government was, by the unanimous
voice of all, forced upon the humility of our saint, who, surmounting incredible
hardships and obstacles, had at length the satisfaction of seeing the necessary
means provided, and the order firmly established. Before the chapter-general of
the order met, he was named definitor by the provincial chapter; but on his
remonstrances at being thus so often compelled to assume offices, in spite of
his repugnance, he at length obtained a papal brief, exempting him from all
charges, and annulling even his active and passive vote in the chapter. During
the course of the year 1722, another brief made over to the Alcantarines the
convent of St. Lucy, in Naples, and thither our saint retired, never afterwards
to be brought out into the public light, which he so much shunned, but left to
edify his brethren during the remainder of his life, and to build up the fabric
of those extraordinary virtues, of which we shall now proceed to give a sketch
Faith, like the keystone
of the arch, is that which gives the fabric of Christian virtue solidity and
stability. Of the attachment of our saint to this necessary virtue, it would be
superfluous to say any thing, as his whole life was a speaking evidence of that
attachment, as well as of the eminent degree in which it pleased God to enable
him to appreciate its consoling mysteries. But he was content to thank God for
having admitted him to the truth, without rashly or profanely lifting the veil
of the sanctuary, and scrutinizing that which is within. He was persuaded that
the attempt to fathom the secrets of God, or to measure his designs, would
prove as hopeless as it would be impious, and therefore he bowed to the truths
of faith with implicit submission. From this attachment of our saint to the
virtue of faith, proceeded his zeal to instruct the ignorant in the mysteries
of religion, as well as the force. fervor, and clearness, with which he
expounded the sublime dogmas of the Trinity and Incarnation, and even of
predestination and grace; the gift he possessed of quieting doubts respecting
faith; and finally, that constant exercise of the presence of God which he
practiced uninterruptedly, and constantly recommended, saying: "whoever
walks always in God's presence, will never commit sin, but will preserve his
innocence and become a great saint."
Hope in God rendered our
saint of even temper in the midst of the various contradictions he experienced
in establishing his order in Italy. He used to say to his companions, when they
were dismayed by the persecutions they suffered, "Let us hope in God, and
doubtless we shall be comforted: "and to the distressed who flocked to
him, "God is a tender father, who loves and succors all;" or,
"Doubt not; trust in God, He will provide." Hence his heart enjoyed a
peace which no sufferings could molest, and which did not desert him even when
he lay under the stroke of apoplexy that terminated in his death. For his hope
was based upon the Catholic principle, that God, who destined him for an
eternal kingdom, would not refuse the succors necessary to attain it. Still,
though his hopes, through the merits of our Lord's blessed passion, knew no
bounds, yet was he tremblingly sensible of the guilt of sin, and the awful
character of God's judgments; whence were derived that intense grief with which
sin inspired him, and that astonishing humility which led him to bewail
unceasingly his want of correspondence to divine grace, to proclaim himself
everywhere a sinner, and implore the prayers of others.
To complete the crown of theological virtues, charity in both its branches
preeminently characterized our saint. This divine virtue burned so warmly in
his heart, as to be transfused through his features, over which it spread a
superhuman and celestial glow, and gays to his discourse a melting tenderness.
"Were there neither heaven nor hell," he would say, "still would
I ever wish to love God, who is a father so deserving of our love." Or
"Let us love our Lord, love him verily and indeed, for the love of God is
a great treasure. Blessed is he that loveth God."
Our saint, who so
ardently loved God, whom he saw not, was not without bowels of tenderness for
his neighbor, whom he beheld. It was the constant practice of his life to feed
the poor; and when he was superior, he ordered that no beggar should be
dismissed from the convent gate without relief: in time of scarcity he devoted
to their necessities his own portion, and even that of the community, relying
upon Providence to supply their wants, and when he was only a private monk, he
earnestly recommended this charity to the superiors.
But it was towards the
sick that his charity displayed itself. He used to attend the infirm in his
convent with unwearied assiduity; nor was he less anxious to serve those who
were without, but generously sought them out, and visited them, even during the
most inclement seasons. And as God maketh his sun to shine upon the wicked as
well as the good, so our saint would not exclude even his enemies from the
boundless range of his charity. For one who had insulted him he once labored
strenuously to procure some advantageous post; and being warned that the man was
his enemy, he replied, "that therefore he was under the greater obligation
of serving him." Besides these general virtues, he possessed in the
highest degree those which belonged to his religious state, especially a prompt
and implicit obedience to all commands, however painful or difficult. That
obedience which he practiced himself, he was careful to enforce upon others,
which his office of superior made it his duty, for he justly regarded this
virtue as essential to a religious. Nor was his love of poverty less
remarkable. A rough seat and a table, a bed, consisting of two narrow planks,
with two sheep-skins and a wretched woollen coverlet, a stool to rest his
wounded legs upon, these, with his breviary, formed the whole furniture of his
cell. And although the order allowed each one to possess two habits, yet during
the forty-six years that he was a member of it, he never had any other than
that which he put on in the novitiate. But it was in his vigilant guard over
chastity, that our saint was most remarkable. His unremitting mortifications,
his extreme modesty, and perpetual watchfulness over all his senses, preserved
him from the slightest breath of contamination. Never during the sixty years of
his life was he known to look any one not of his own sex in the face. His every
word and action bespoke purity, and inspired the love thereof. Our saint, so
solidly grounded in this virtue, was not without its only sure
foundation—humility. He delighted in performing menial offices in the convent,
and when the task allotted to him was finished, he was anxious to fulfil that
of others. Hence he also avoided all posts and honor, as much as was consistent
with his vow of obedience. When he journeyed through Italy as provincial, he
would not make himself known at the inns, where he lodged, lest any distinction
should be paid him. To the same cause may be ascribed his unwillingness to
revisit his native country, his aversion to being in company with the great,
when their spiritual affairs did not require it, his not accepting the
invitations of the viceroy and his consort to the palace, his calling himself,
as he was wont, the greatest sinner in the whole world, ungrateful to God for
his benefits, a worm on the face of the earth; his custom of frequently kissing
the hands of priests; his unwillingness to declare his opinion in council; his
care to break off every discourse touching upon his birch or connections, his
gratitude to God for enlightening those who disparaged him; his never being
scandalized at the sins of others, how great soever; and finally, his never
evincing the smallest resentment at any insult or injury. He was studious to
conceal and dissemble the great gifts of miracles and prophecy with which God
favored him; ascribing the miracles he performed to the faith of those in whose
be. half they were wrought, or to the intercession of the saints. Not
unfrequently he desired those whom he restored to health, to take some certain
medicine, that the cure might be attributed to a mere natural remedy and with
regard to his prophecies, which were numerous, he affected to judge from
analogy and experience. To the numerous penitential austerities enjoined by his
order, he added as many more as an ingenious self-denial could devise. Silent
as long as possible, when he spoke, it was in a low voice. Bareheaded in all
seasons, he wore under his rough and heavy habit divers hair-shirts and chains,
which he was careful to vary to keep the sense of torment ever fresh. Besides,
he used the discipline to a severe degree; and when, at the age of forty, his
superior obliged him to wear sandals, he placed between them and his feet a
quantity of small nails; but the most tremendous instrument of torture, which
he devised against himself, was a cross about a foot in length, set with rows
of sharp nails, which he fastened tight over his shoulders, so as to open there
a wound which never afterwards closed. In sooth, these things would appear
incredible, did we not remember that St. John Joseph of the Cross had taken up
the instrument of our Lord Jesus' blessed passing, and was miraculously
supported under its weight. If we are not blessed with equal strength, still we
are all capable of enduring much more than is demanded of us for gaining
heaven. Is not the life of a worldling more irksome and more painful than that
of a mortified religious man? How many heart-burnings, and aching heads, and
palled appetites, and disordered faculties, and diseased frames could bear out
this assertion—that the way to heaven would be easy on the score of mortification,
if men could consent to sacrifice to virtue but one half what they sacrifice to
feed their passions?It was usual for our saint to be absorbed and rapt in
heavenly ecstasies and visions. In this state he was lost to all that passed
around him, seeing hearing, and feeling nothing, he stood like a statue of
marble, and when he was awakened, his countenance glowed like a burning coal.
In a condition so closely resembling that of the blessed, he was, from time to
time, made a partaker of their glories. Thus, during prayer a halo of light
often encircled his head; and, during mass, a supernatural brightness
overspread his countenance. In the practice of every virtue, and in the
enjoyment of sublime graces, our saint passed the days of his pilgrimage,
glorifying God and giving alms and doing good, until it pleased the Lord to
close his career on earth, not without a previous forewarning as to the time
and circumstances of his death. In the year when it occurred, his nephew
writing to him from Vienna, that he would return home in May, he sent back
answer that he would not then find him living. And only a week before his
departure discoursing with his brother Francis, he said, "I have never
asked a boon of you till now; do me the charity to pray to Almighty God for me,
next Friday, do you hear? mind, do not forget." It was the very day he
died. Two days before his last mortal attack, accosting Vincent of Laines,
"We shall never," said he, "meet on earth again." Now, upon
the last day of February, after hearing mass, and receiving communion with
extraordinary fervor, he betook himself to his room, to deliver to the crowds
that resorted to him his last paternal admonitions. He continued without
interruption till mid-day, and at that hour precisely, turning to the
lay-brother that assisted him, said, "Shortly a thunderclap will lay me
prostrate on the ground, you will have to raise me thence, but this is the last
I shall experience." Accordingly, at two hours and a half after sunset, an
apoplectic stroke threw him on the ground. At first the nature of his disease
was mistaken. It was thought that over-fatigue had brought on giddiness but the
next day the symptoms manifested themselves alarmingly, and spread in defiance
of remedies. Yet though he was thus, to all appearances, senseless during the
five days that ho survived, doubtless his soul was occupied in interior
ecstasies and profound contemplation; as indeed his countenance, his lips. and
gestures, expressive of the tenderest devotion, indicated. His eyes, generally
shut, opened frequently to rest upon the mild image of Our Lady, whose picture
was opposite him: Sometimes, too, he turned them towards his confessor, as if
demanding absolution, according to what had been previously concerted between
them. A pressure of the eyes and an inclination of the head were also
perceptible, and he was seen to strike his breast when he received, for the
last time, the sacramental absolution from the hands of the superior. At length
the morning dawned, which was to witness the passage of our saint from this
vale of tears and land of sorrow to a better life. It was Friday, the 5th of
March, a day yet unoccupied in the calendar, as if purposely left for him. He
had spent the previous night in unceasing fervent acts of contrition,
resignation, love, and gratitude, as his frequent beating of his breast,
lifting his hands towards heaven, and blessing himself, testified. Before the
morning was far advanced, turning to the lay-brother that attended him, as if
awoke out of an ecstasy, he said, "I have but a few moments to live."
Hereupon the lay-brother ran in all speed to give notice to the superior, who,
with the whole community, at that moment in choir, hastened to the cell of the
dying man. The recommendation of a departing soul was recited with an abundance
of tears. The father-guardian perceiving he was in his agony, imparted to him
the last sacramental absolution; which he, bowing his head to receive,
instantly raised it again; opened, for the last time, his eyes, now swimming in
joy, and inebriated with heavenly delight; fixed them, just as they were
closing, with a look of ineffable tenderness, upon the image of Our blessed
Lady, and composing his lips to a sweet smile, without farther movement or
demonstration, ceased to breathe.
Thus expired, without a
struggle, John Joseph of the Cross, the mirror of religious life, the father of
the poor, the comforter of the distressed, and the unconquerable Christian
hero: but when death came to pluck him from the tree he dropped like a ripe
fruit, smiling, into his hands; or, even as a gentle stream steals unperceived
into the ocean, so calmly that its surface is not fretted with a ripple, his
soul glided into eternity. To die upon the field of battle, amidst the shouts
of victory, in presence of an admiring throng, surrounded by the badges of
honor and respect, bequeathing to history a celebrated name, may merit the
ambition of the world, or to perish in some noble cause, buoyed up by
enthusiasm, conscious worth, and the certainty of having the sympathy and
applause of all from whom meed is valuable, may make even selfishness generous,
and cowardice heroic: but to suffer during life the lingering martyrdom of the
cross; and then to expire, not suddenly, but like a taper, burnt out; to fall
like a flower, not in its prime and beauty but gradually shedding its leaves
and perfume, and bearing its fibres to the last, till it droops and lies
exhaled and prostrate in the dust; is a death too pure, too self-devoted, too
sublime, for any but the annals of Christian heroism to supply. And assuredly a
day will come when the conqueror's crown shall not be brighter than the
Christian's halo, nor the patriot's laurel-branch bear richer foliage than the
palms of Paradise, which the humblest denizen of heaven shall carry. A day will
come that will give to all their proper measure and dimensions; yet even before
that day shall God glorify those who have died the peaceful death of the just,
by embalming their memory and rendering their tombs and relics illustrious, so
that, for the one who shall have heard of the hero, thousands shall bless and
invoke the saint
He alone is a perfect
Christian who is crucified to the world, and to whom the world is crucified,
and who glorieth in nothing save the cross of our Lord Jesus. Nor without
embracing the cross at least in heart and affection, can any one belong to the
religion of Christ. Upon entering life we are marked with the cross; through
the various vicissitudes thereof our every step is encountered by it—go whithersoever
thou wilt and thou shalt find it impossible to escape the cross—and it
accompanies us even unto death and the grave. For a Christian dieth pressing
the cross to his lips; and the cross is engraver upon his tomb that it may bear
witness of his faith and hope. But if Our Lord has said, in general terms,
"Whosoever will be my disciple, let him take up his cross and follow
me;" and if it be true that through many tribulations it is necessary to
enter into the kingdom of heaven, then are all without exception called upon to
assume this burden. It is not strange, then, that saints should have delighted
to blend their names with the cross wherewith their hearts were so closely
entwined; or that men, after their departure to glory, should have designated them
by the title of that whereof they were so deeply enamored
(Taken from Vol. I
of "The Lives or the Fathers, Martyrs and Other Principal
Saints" by the Rev. Alban Butler, the 1864 edition published by D.
& J. Sadlier, & Company
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SOURCE : http://www.ewtn.com/library/MARY/JOHNJOE.HTM
Saint John Joseph of the Cross
(San Giovanni della Croce)
Feast Day – March 5
The Island of Ischia is
the flower among the beautiful islands with which the Gulf of Naples is
surrounded. In this earthly paradise a saint was born, Saint John Joseph of the
Cross, on the feast of the Assumption of Our Blessed Lady in the year 1654.
Saint John Joseph was a man who sacrificed himself to God in a life of rigorous
penance and contempt of all earthly comforts. Even as a boy he practiced
extraordinary virtue and self-denial. At the age of sixteen, he proved to be
the first Italian to enter the reform movement of St Peter of Alcantara, a
convent which had been established in Naples.
In his novitiate Saint John Joseph of the Cross exercised himself in humility
and poverty according to the example of their holy Father St Francis, and
strove to nourish the spirit of mortification and prayer in imitation of St
Peter of Alcantara.
Ere long Saint John Joseph of the Cross attained to so high a degree of
perfection that, even before he was ordained a preist, he was commissioned with
the building of a new convent. Wherever there was hard work to perform during
the construction, he was the first at hand to do it; he worked now as a
hod-carrier, now as a mason. The building itself was arranged to the
strictest povert.
Like St Francis, John Joseph preferred not to become a priest, but obedience
compelled him to receive holy orders. Because he gave evidence of great
theological knowledge and experience in the ways of spiritual life, he was
entrusted with the direction of the novices, into whose youthful hearts he was
able to inculcate so admirable a religious spirit that several of his novices
became distinguished for their sanctity.
Several times Father Joseph was obliged to accept the office of guardian. When
the convents in Italy were no longer dependent on the Spanish houses, but were
formed into a separate province, he was appointed provincial in spite of all
the objections he raised.
Just as every good work meets with many obstacles in the beginning, so it
happened to the new province. In the spirit of humility Father Joseph had not
put himself forward, but it was in this position that his humility had to
contend with the severest tests. Nevertheless, he bore all with heroic patience
and constancy, and thus drew down blessings and success on the holy work.
When his term of office expired, Saint John Joseph of the Cross lived as a
simple subject in the convent at Naples, where he devoted all his time to the
care of souls and the practices of piety. Among them was Saint
Mary Frances of the Five Wounds. His mortifications were exceptionally
rigorous, so that no one may venture to imitate him without a special grace
from God. He wore several iron crosses, studded with sharp points, on his
shoulders, his back, and on his chest. Daily he scourged himself to the blood.
He went either entirely barefoot or wore sandals in which small nails stood
out.
During the last thirty years of his life he abstained from drink of every sort
in honor of the thirst of our Lord. But he was still more intent on interior
mortification. In order to keep his soul recollected, he kept a strict guard
over all his senses; he strove constantly to deny his own will in order to do
only the will of his superiors and thus fulfill the will of God. He emphasized
this point also when giving advice to those who came to him for guidance.
An optician named Vincent Lainez was a penitent and a great admirer of our
saint. He had a little son, five months old, who was very sick and near death.
Full of grief Lainez came to Father Joseph and begged him to obtain the
recovery os his child by his prayers.
“But Vincent,” said Father John Joseph, “God calls him to Himself.”
“No, no!” said the distressed father, “He must leave this child to me. Last
year He took my daughter, that is enough; one for Him and the other for me.”
Reluctantly Father Joseph answered: “You should submit to the will of God; but
since you will not, very well! You will suffer the consequences.”
The child recovered, but it ceased growing; it attained its third year, but
gave no signs of intelligence. The unhappy father, whom Father Joseph evaded
during this time, could stand it no longer; he went to the cell of the Father,
cast himself contritely at his feet and acknowledged his sin. After praying a
while, the saint turned to him with sincere compassion and said:
“You deprived God of the honor, and the child of the happiness which it should
have enjoyed in heaven during all this time in praising God. So God punished
you, but now He sees your sorrow, and the punishment is at an end. Return to
your home.”
Arriving there, the father beheld his child in the throes of death. The boy
turned his little face toward his father with a sweet smile, the first ever to
be seen, and then a moment later his innocent soul took its flight to heaven.
As an old man, Saint John Joseph of the Cross was severely troubled with ulcers
on his legs, so that he could hardly make a step without the use of a cane. One
day when he was in the cathedral, to venerate the blood of the holy martyr
Januarius (which is miraculously liquefied each year when the vial containing
the blood is placed near the head of the saint), Father Joseph’s cane was lost
in the crowd that pressed about him. He was obliged to support himself at the
walls until he arrived at the church door. There he paused while he asked the
saint to return his cane to him.
A distinguished gentleman, who had come to the church in his carriage, asked
Father Joseph what had happened. Raising his hand, Saint John Joseph of the
Cross said:
“My hobby-horse has run away, but St Januarius will bring him back.”
At that moment the people in church began to cry aloud:
“A miracle! A miracle!” The cane was seen passing through the air until it
reached his hand. Later on, a cardinal asked the favor of possessing the object
of so charming a miracle; he had it encased in a precious shrine.
At the age of eighty, Saint John Joseph of the Cross died, like an innocent and
beautiful child, his final glance resting on a picture of the Blessed Virgin
Mary. It was on March 5, 1734. His grave at Naples is a constant object of
great veneration; many miracles still occur there.
Pope Pius VI beatified him, and Gregory XVI solemnly canonized Saint John
Joseph of the Cross on Trinity Sunday in the year 1839.
*from: The Franciscan Book of Saints, ed. by Marion Habig, OFM
SOURCE : http://www.roman-catholic-saints.com/john-joseph-of-the-cross.html
St. John Joseph of the Cross
The Saint of the Day for March 5 is St. John
Joseph of the Cross.
Saint John Joseph of the Cross was born on the feast
of the Assumption in 1654, on the island of Ischia in the kingdom of Naples. From
his childhood he was a model of virtue, and in his sixteenth year he entered
the Franciscan Order of the Strict Observance, or Reform of Saint Peter of
Alcantara, at Naples. Such was the edification he gave in his Order, that
within three years after his profession he was sent to found a monastery in
Piedmont. He assisted in its
construction himself and established there the most perfect silence and
monastic fervor.
One day Saint John Joseph
was found in the chapel in ecstasy, raised far above the floor. He won the
hearts of all his religious, and became a priest out of obedience to his
Superiors. He obtained what seemed to be an inspired knowledge of moral
theology, in prayer and silence. He
assisted at the death of his dear mother who rejoiced and seemed to live again
in his presence, and after he had sung the Mass for the repose of her soul, saw
her soul ascend to heaven, to pray thereafter their God face to face.
With his superiors’
permission he established another convent and drew up rules for the Community,
which the Holy See confirmed. Afterward he became a master of novices vigilant
and filled with gentleness, and of a constantly even disposition. Some time
later he was made Provincial of the Province of Naples, erected in the
beginning of the 18th century by Clement XI. He labored hard to establish in
Italy this branch of his Order, which the Sovereign Pontiff had separated from
the same branch in Spain. His ministry brought him many sufferings, especially
moral sufferings occasioned by numerous calumnies. Nonetheless, the Saint
succeeded in his undertakings, striving to inculcate in his subjects the double
spirit of contemplation and penance which Saint Peter of Alcantara had
bequeathed to the Franciscans of the Strict Observance. He gave them the
example of the most sublime virtues, especially of humility and religious
discipline. God rewarded his
zeal with numerous gifts in the supernatural order, such as those of prophecy
and miracles.
Finally, consumed by
labors for the glory of God, he was called to his reward. Stricken with
apoplexy, he died an octogenarian in his convent at Naples, March 5, 1734. Countless posthumous miracles confirmed the sanctity
and glory of the Saint, and he was canonized in 1839 by Pope Gregory XVI.
Excerpted from Lives of
the Saints for Every Day of the Year, edited by Rev. Hugo Hoever, S.O. Cist.,
Ph.D.
San Giovan Giuseppe
della Croce (Carlo Gaetano Calosirto) Sacerdote dei Frati Minori
Ischia, Napoli, 15 agosto
1654 – Napoli, 5 marzo 1734
Carlo Gaetano Calosirto
nacque a Ischia il 15 agosto 1654. A sedici anni entrò nel convento napoletano
di Santa Lucia al Monte dei Frati Minori Alcantarini, dove condusse vita
ascetica. Insieme a undici frati fu mandato poi nel santuario di Santa Maria Occorrevole
di Piedimonte d’Alife, per la costruzione di un nuovo convento. Successivamente
fu a Napoli come maestro dei novizi e a Piedimonte come padre guardiano.
Quando, agli inizi del Settecento, dal ramo spagnolo si formò la nuova
provincia alcantarina italiana, padre Giovan Giuseppe ne fu eletto primo
provinciale. Morì il 5 marzo 1734. Fu canonizzato nel 1839 con Alfonso Maria
de’ Liguori e Francesco de Geronimo, dei quali era stato consigliere
spirituale. Le sue spoglie, inizialmente venerate nella chiesa del convento di
Santa Lucia al Monte a Napoli, sono venerate dal 30 settembre 2003 nella chiesa
conventuale dei Frati Minori di Sant’Antonio alla Mandra, in Ischia Ponte.
Patronato: Napoli,
Ischia, Alife
Martirologio
Romano: Sempre a Napoli, san Giovanni Giuseppe della Croce (Carlo Gaetano)
Calosirto, sacerdote dell’Ordine dei Frati Minori, che, sulle orme di san
Pietro di Alcántara, ripristinò la disciplina religiosa in molti conventi della
provincia napoletana.
Le doglie colgono donna Laura Gargiulo il 15 agosto 1654, mentre sta passeggiando nel borgo di Ischia Ponte, ad una certa distanza dal signorile e fortificato palazzo in cui abita. Così Carlo Gaetano, il suo terzo figlio, viene alla luce nella modesta stanzetta di una donna del popolo che generosamente e prontamente accoglie la partoriente. Quasi un segno che, quel bambino, non è destinato ad abitare a lungo nel palazzo dei Calosirto, una delle famiglie più in vista a facoltose di Ischia.
Sarà per inclinazione naturale, sarà per “colpa” della famiglia profondamente religiosa in cui si prega molto, si digiuna a pane e acqua in ogni vigilia di festa comandata, e dove si respira una grande devozione alla Madonna, ma quel bambino sembra davvero portato alla vita religiosa, complici anche i padri agostiniani cui i genitori affidano la sua preparazione culturale e religiosa.
Ma non è da questi che il ragazzino si rivolge, a sedici anni, per realizzare la sua vocazione: ha conosciuto nel frattempo i frati alcantarini e si sente attratto dall’austerità di vita di questi Francescani che si ispirano alla riforma attuata da san Pietro d’Alcántara.
A sedici anni entra così nel loro convento napoletano di Santa Lucia al Monte; qui, insieme al nuovo nome di Giovan Giuseppe della Croce, riceve una forte spinta verso la vita ascetica, grazie ad un Maestro dei novizi particolarmente ispirato.
Dopo la professione religiosa, insieme a undici confratelli si trasferisce a Piedimonte d’Alife, per costruire un nuovo convento nelle vicinanze del santuario di Santa Maria Occorrevole. È giovanissimo, ed è qui che si innamora: del silenzio abitato da Dio, della preghiera lunga e fervorosa, della meditazione prolungata e trasformatrice.
Come sempre avviene per i santi autentici, meditazione e preghiera non riescono ad estraniarlo dal mondo, ma gli donano una sensibilità maggiore per scoprire, soprattutto fra le pieghe della sua Napoli, le mille contraddizioni e le tante miserie, nelle quali egli si muove perennemente scalzo, anche e ben al di là della sua Regola, con qualsiasi tempo e malgrado le intemperie.
Tanto che una volta si ammala, così gravemente da temere per la sua vita; appena guarito, eccolo nuovamente per strada, instancabile tra un malato da curare ed un moribondo da assistere. Perché padre Giovan Giuseppe, non aspetta che i poveri arrivino a lui, preferisce andarseli a cercare direttamente nei tuguri e nelle soffitte.
Cadono su di lui le responsabilità della sua famiglia religiosa: umilmente le svolge, e anche con successo, come dimostra la delicata situazione che porta alla spaccatura tra gli Alcantarini di Spagna e quelli d’Italia.
Di questi ultimi egli diventa superiore, ma continuando a lavorare per la riunificazione della famiglia alcantarina che riesce ad attuare dopo vent’anni, durante i quali colleziona critiche e calunnie capaci di smontare chiunque. Ma non lui, che nel silenzio al quale si è votato trova il suo più prezioso alleato per non rispondere male per male e per generosamente perdonare anche il più accanito calunniatore.
Sulla sua strada fioriscono miracoli: parlano di bilocazioni, lievitazioni, profezie, guarigioni, moltiplicazioni, addirittura della risurrezione di un bambino. Prima di ogni cosa è autenticamente prete, ricercato per la confessione e la direzione spirituale anche da santi autentici, come Alfonso Maria de’ Liguori e Francesco de Geronimo, insieme ai quali (quando si dice scherzi della Provvidenza!) padre Giovan Giuseppe della Croce verrà canonizzato nel 1839.
Ma santo nel cuore della gente lo era già da vivo e soprattutto da quel 5 marzo
1734 in cui, ottantenne, aveva chiuso gli occhi, nello stesso convento
napoletano in cui era entrato 65 anni prima.
Autore: Gianpiero Pettiti
Carlo Gaetano Calosirto nacque a Ischia il 15 agosto 1654, terzo figlio del nobile Giuseppe e di donna Laura Gargiulo. Venne alla luce nella casa di una popolana di Ischia Ponte perché sua madre, mentre stava rientrando a casa, fu colta dalle doglie.
Di carattere mite, incline all’obbedienza, frequentò nell’isola i padri agostiniani, da cui ricevette la prima formazione umanistica e religiosa. A quindici anni si sentì attratto dalla vita austera dei Frati Minori Scalzi della Riforma di San Pietro d’Alcántara, detti Alcantarini, dipendenti dal convento di Santa Lucia al Monte a Napoli.
Nel giugno 1670 fu accolto in quel convento. Il 23 dello stesso mese cominciò il noviziato, sotto la guida ascetica di padre Giuseppe Robles. Cambiò nome in fra Giovan Giuseppe della Croce. Il 24 giugno 1671 emise la professione religiosa.
Il 12 luglio 1674 fu inviato, il più giovane in un gruppo di undici frati, presso il santuario di Santa Maria Occorrevole a Piedimonte d’Alife, per la costruzione di un nuovo convento. Divenne sacerdote il 18 settembre 1677. Durante la sua permanenza a Piedimonte, fece costruire in una zona più nascosta del bosco un altro conventino detto “La Solitudine”, ancora oggi meta di pellegrinaggi, per poter pregare più in disparte.
A partire dal 1697, fu maestro dei novizi a Napoli e guardiano (ossia superiore) del convento di Piedimonte d’Alife. Ebbe poi lo stesso incarico a Santa Lucia al Monte e a Santa Maria Capua Vetere. Oltre a questo, si adoperò per la costruzione del convento di San Pasquale al Granatello a Portici, in provincia di Napoli.
Agli inizi del 1700 il Movimento Francescano subì una tempesta organizzativa dovuta ai forti dissensi sorti fra gli Alcantarini spagnoli e quelli italiani, circa duecento, che erano la maggioranza. Con l’approvazione pontificia, avvenne la separazione in Provincie religiose: gli spagnoli ottennero i conventi di Santa Lucia al Monte e di San Pasquale.
Padre Giovan Giuseppe, il 16 aprile 1703, fu eletto ministro provinciale degli Alcantarini italiani. Cercando di superare le difficoltà che venivano poste dai confratelli spagnoli, richiamò gli altri a una vita più rispettosa della alla Regola e riordinò gli studi.
Scaduto il suo mandato dopo tre anni, ebbe dall’arcivescovo di Napoli, il cardinale Francesco Pignatelli, l’incarico di dirigere settanta fra monasteri e ritiri napoletani. Uguale incarico ebbe anche dal cardinale Innico Caracciolo per la diocesi di Aversa.
Il suo saio rattoppato divenne proverbiale, tanto da attribuirgli il soprannome di “frate cento pezze”. Essendo qualificato direttore di coscienze, a lui si rivolsero celebri ecclesiastici e nobili illustri. Gli furono attribuiti doni singolari, come apparizioni della Madonna e di Gesù Bambino, la bilocazione, la profezia, la lettura dei cuori e la levitazione: fu visto passare per le strade di Napoli sollevato di un palmo da terra, in stato di estasi. Chiamato poi al capezzale del marchesino Gennaro Spada, gli ridiede la vita.
Il 22 giugno 1722, con decreto pontificio, i due rami degli Alcantarini furono riuniti. Quindi, anche il convento di Santa Lucia al Monte ritornò ai frati italiani. In quel luogo padre Giovan Giuseppe visse per altri dodici anni e morì il 5 marzo 1734. La sua tomba posta nel convento divenne centro di devozione dei napoletani, che lo elessero loro compatrono nel 1790.
Beatificato da papa Pio VI il 24 maggio 1789, fu canonizzato da papa Gregorio XVI il 26 maggio 1839, insieme ad altri quattro Beati: Francesco de Geronimo, Alfonso Maria de’ Liguori (entrambi l’avevano conosciuto e avevano ricevuto i suoi consigli), Pacifico di San Severino e Veronica Giuliani.
L’isola d’Ischia, che sempre l’ha venerato e amato come suo carissimo e grande figlio, lo onora come suo compatrono insieme a santa Restituta. La sua festa patronale cade la prima domenica di settembre. Proprio per il suo legame con Ischia, dove tornò solo due volte (una per assistere la madre malata, una per le proprie ragioni di salute), è stato richiesto che sue spoglie venissero trasferite da Santa Lucia al Monte al convento ischitano dei Frati Minori.
Così, dopo una peregrinazione temporanea nel 1985, le sue reliquie sono state definitivamente traslate il 30 settembre 2003 nella chiesa conventuale dei Frati Minori di Sant’Antonio alla Mandra, in Ischia Ponte.
A lui sono poi intitolate una cappella nel Castello Aragonese di Ischia e una chiesa parrocchiale, risalente agli anni ’80 del secolo scorso, nel borgo Tofari di Alife, di cui pure è patrono. Anche la casa dove nacque è meta di pellegrinaggi. Infine, l’Unità Pastorale di Alife porta il suo nome.
Autore: Antonio Borrelli ed Emilia Flocchini
SOURCE : http://www.santiebeati.it/dettaglio/90659
SAN GIOVANNI GIUSEPPE
DELLA CROCE
Questo piccolo sacerdote
dell’Ordine dei Frati Minori, cresciuto ricalcando le orme di San Pietro
d’Alcantara ha, tra gli altri, il merito di aver ripristinato la disciplina
religiosa in molti conventi del Napoletano. Molto legato all’isola di Ischia,
in cui tornerà solo due volte, oggi ne è compatrono assieme a Santa Restituta.
Viene canonizzato da Gregorio XVI nel 1839, assieme a Francesco de Geronimo e
Alfonso Maria de’ Liguori che in vita lo avevano conosciuto e gli avevano
chiesto consiglio.
Un fiore di bontà
Nascere in una famiglia
benestante è spesso un vantaggio, ma lo è ancora di più nascere in una famiglia
religiosa, dove la fede non è qualcosa di astratto, ma una compagna di vita
presente nella quotidianità con la preghiera, il digiuno e la devozione. I
Calosirto, inoltre, mandano il loro Carlo Gaetano a studiare dagli Agostiniani
di Ischia, in modo che la sua formazione religiosa sia più completa. E hanno
ragione. È qui che il piccolo si innamora di Gesù ed è qui che Gesù gli fa
sentire la sua voce che lo chiama a dedicargli tutta la sua vita.
Umile e grande figlio di
San Francesco
A soli 16 anni il giovane
entra nel convento di Santa Lucia al Monte di Napoli, cambiando il suo nome in
Giovan Giuseppe della Croce il giorno della sua professione religiosa: il 24
giugno 1671. Qui vive tra i Frati Minori Scalzi della Riforma di San Pietro
d’Alcantara, detti Alcantarini, dei quali lo attira la regola che rende ancora
più austera scegliendo di non possedere mai un paio di scarpe. Chiamato a fondare
un nuovo monastero a Piedimonte, qui fa costruire anche un piccolo eremo ancora
oggi meta di pellegrinaggi, soprannominato “La Solitudine”. Durante la sua vita
deve assistere alla spaccatura tra gli Alcantarini di Spagna e quelli d’Italia,
di cui diventerà Provinciale, lavorando per vent’anni prima di vedere la
famiglia riunificata e non senza subire critiche ingiuste e addirittura
calunnie, alle quali risponde facendo voto di silenzio. “Tutto quello che Dio
permette, lo permette per il nostro bene”, era la sua consolazione.
“Frate cento pezze”
Ma Giovan Giuseppe si
sente prima di tutto un prete, e un prete in missione. Lui, che sa imitare alla
perfezione Sorella Povertà, i poveri che assiste se li va a cercare, scovandoli
non solo agli angoli delle strade, ma anche nei tuguri e nelle soffitte. Per
tutta la vita avrà un solo saio, ben presto ridotto con tantissime toppe, ma
del quale si fregerà sempre, paragonandole ai galloni dei cavalieri. Per questo
sarà soprannominato “frate cento pezze”. Gli vengono attribuiti anche fenomeni
che denotano il particolare soffio della grazia che spira in lui: bilocazioni,
profezie, letture dei cuori, levitazioni, guarigioni miracolose e addirittura
una resurrezione.
La predilezione per la
Madonna
Fin da bambino, il giovane Calosirto impara in casa la grande devozione per Maria, che crescerà in lui per tutta la vita, assieme alla vocazione e alla santità. Invocherà la Madonna sempre, cercandone il consiglio e il conforto nelle situazioni più difficili, e lei, madre premurosa e fedele, lo circonderà di affetto e a volte anche di prodigi. Da Superiore degli Alcantarini terrà sempre una piccola immagine di Maria sulla scrivania e la guarderà a lungo rivolgendosi a lei nella preghiera prima di qualunque decisione o pronunciamento. “Non sapeva vivere se non per essa”, sostengono i suoi biografi e molte sono le testimonianze dei frati ai quali raccomandava di omaggiarla perché lei “vi consolerà, vi aiuterà, vi toglierà dagli affanni”. E per Maria saranno anche le sue ultime parole, consegnate in punto di morte – il 5 marzo 1734 – al fraticello che lo vegliava: “Ti raccomando la Madonna”, disse, e possiamo considerare questo il suo testamento spirituale.
Con questa preghiera, il Santo viene invocato per avere forza nelle prove:
San Giovan Giuseppe della Croce ottienici la tua gioia e serenità nelle
malattie e anche nelle prove, pensando che la sofferenza è un grande dono di
Dio e va offerta al Padre pura, senza essere rovinata dai nostri lamenti.
Seguendo il tuo esempio vogliamo sopportare tutto con pazienza senza far pesare
il nostro dolore agli altri. Chiediamo la forza e ringraziare il Signore non
solo quando ci dona la gioia ma anche quando permette le malattie e le diverse
prove.
SOURCE : https://www.vaticannews.va/it/santo-del-giorno/03/05/san-giovanni-giuseppe-della-croce.html
GIOVANNI
GIUSEPPE Della Croce, santo
di Piero Doria - Dizionario Biografico degli Italiani -
Volume 56 (2001)
GIOVANNI GIUSEPPE Della
Croce, santo. - Nacque a Ischia il 15 ag. 1654 da Giuseppe Calosirto e da Laura
Gargiulo, terzogenito di otto figli, di cui sei maschi e due femmine.
Battezzato con il nome di
Carlo Gaetano, ricevette dalla madre, donna di severi costumi, un'educazione
religiosa ispirata ai principî del pietismo. Grande influenza esercitarono su
G. i continui contatti con i padri agostiniani presenti sull'isola; alla loro
scuola, presso S. Maria della Scala, apprese le principali conoscenze
umanistiche, il latino, la retorica e, probabilmente, la lingua spagnola. Fu
intorno al 1669, all'età di quindici anni, che si verificò la vera svolta nella
vita di G.: l'incontro con due padri francescani dell'Ordine dei frati minori
di S. Pietro d'Alcantara. Attratto dalla vita che essi conducevano, G. decise
nel 1670 di recarsi a Napoli presso il convento di S. Lucia al Monte. Vestito,
il 18 giugno, l'abito di novizio e assunto il nome di fra Giovanni Giuseppe
della Croce, trovò in G. Robles, maestro dei novizi, una valida e sicura guida.
Pronunciò la professione il 24 genn. 1671 e il 15 luglio 1674 fu inviato,
insieme con undici confratelli, presso il santuario di S. Maria Occorrevole a
Piedimonte d'Alife (Caserta), dove partecipò alla costruzione del convento.
Fu in quegli anni che la
chiesa del monastero divenne meta di pellegrinaggio da parte di fedeli e
curiosi, attirati dalla crescente fama delle estasi e delle levitazioni di
Giovanni Giuseppe. Ordinato diacono il 19 sett. 1676 e sacerdote il 18 sett.
1677 dal vescovo di Alife Giuseppe de Lazara, due anni più tardi, nel 1679, fu
chiamato a Napoli come maestro dei novizi e il 16 sett. 1680 fu eletto
guardiano del convento di Piedimonte.
Furono questi, per G.,
anni di intensa attività, dedicati soprattutto all'apostolato e alla cura dei
poveri e degli infermi. Probabilmente a questo periodo risale anche la
composizione di un trattato di teologia morale che, rimasto manoscritto, è
andato smarrito. Tra il 1687 e il 1690 fu impiegato dal provinciale
dell'Ordine, in diversi periodi, come guardiano a S. Maria Occorrevole e come
maestro dei novizi a Napoli. Nel 1693 fu eletto, per la terza volta, guardiano
del convento di Piedimonte d'Alife. Nel 1696 fu quindi trasferito a Napoli,
presso il convento di S. Lucia al Monte, senza un preciso incarico. In questi
anni continuò a dedicarsi alla cura dei malati e dei poveri, divenendo guida
spirituale per numerosi fedeli.
Le mortificazioni
corporali e i lunghi digiuni ai quali costantemente si sottoponeva ridussero G.
quasi in fin di vita; parzialmente ristabilitosi, dopo un breve periodo
trascorso a Ischia, rientrò a Napoli e il 25 apr. 1699 fu eletto definitore
provinciale.
Nel 1702, nel corso del
capitolo generale della provincia (22 maggio) scoppiò una grave crisi in seno
alla Congregazione tra spagnoli e italiani, che costrinse il papa, Clemente XI,
a promulgare un breve pontificio, il 15 sett. 1702, che sanciva la definitiva
separazione tra i frati delle due nazioni. Alla cura pastorale degli spagnoli
furono affidati i conventi napoletani di S. Lucia al Monte e di Portici,
aggregati alla provincia di S. Pietro d'Alcantara di Castiglia. Agli italiani
andarono le restanti otto case e la facoltà di costituirsi in provincia (22
dic. 1702), di aprire nuovi conventi e accogliere novizi. In seguito a questi
avvenimenti, G. fu trasferito nel convento di S. Maria di Capua.
Nel corso del capitolo
del 1703, riunito a Grumo Nevano (Napoli) dal 16 al 20 aprile, gli alcantarini
italiani elessero all'unanimità G. loro primo provinciale. Superate alcune
difficoltà iniziali, egli si trasferì a Napoli nel 1704.
Durante il suo governo G.
prestò particolari cure alla riforma dei costumi e della disciplina
ecclesiastica, richiamò i confratelli alla esatta osservanza della regola;
nominò persone degne e preparate ai diversi uffici e visitò i conventi che
ricadevano sotto la sua giurisdizione. Inoltre, probabilmente avvalendosi della
collaborazione dell'archeologo A.S. Mazzocchi, riordinò il corso degli studi.
Quindi, nel 1706, dopo aver richiesto e ottenuto dalla congregazione dei
Vescovi e regolari il decreto apostolico che lo privava della voce attiva e
passiva in seno all'Ordine, rinunciò alla carica di provinciale.
G. poté così finalmente
dedicarsi a tempo pieno alla sua missione prediletta: soccorrere le famiglie
più povere, visitare e consolare gli infermi. In questi anni ricevette
dall'arcivescovo di Napoli, Francesco Pignatelli, l'incarico di guida
spirituale dei monasteri femminili della Chiesa metropolitica. Analogamente
fece, poco dopo, il cardinale Innico Caracciolo, vescovo di Aversa, in seguito
al trasferimento di G. nel convento di S. Caterina a Grumo. In questi anni la
fama delle estasi e dei miracoli di G. cresceva in misura considerevole e a lui
si rivolgevano numerose personalità del clero e della nobiltà napoletana che lo
scelsero come guida spirituale, come Alfonso Maria de' Liguori, Francesco de
Geronimo e il filosofo Giambattista Vico.
Il 22 giugno 1722
Innocenzo XIII emanò il breve con il quale riunificava i due rami dell'Ordine,
spagnolo e italiano, in un'unica provincia: G. raggiungeva così il suo ambito
obiettivo, perseguito sin dal 1702.
Rientrato nel convento
napoletano di S. Lucia al Monte, nonostante le precarie condizioni fisiche lo
riducessero all'immobilità, egli continuò la sua instancabile opera dal
confessionale. Degno rappresentante di quella spiritualità che si rifaceva a s.
Pietro d'Alcantara e soprattutto a s. Francesco d'Assisi, G. dedicò la sua vita
alla costante ricerca del contatto con le persone più umili e più povere, fino
a rinunciare per esse a ogni incarico in seno alla Congregazione. L'apostolato,
l'assoluta povertà (indossò per tutta la vita il saio che aveva ricevuto al
momento dell'ordinazione), le costanti mortificazioni corporali e le frequenti
estasi e levitazioni a lui attribuite lo fecero apparire ai contemporanei un
santo già in vita. Tuttavia, per G. manca ancora, nonostante i più recenti studi,
una biografia ragionata, e non agiografica, capace di inserire il santo nel
contesto storico-culturale napoletano della prima metà del XVIII secolo.
G. morì a Napoli il 5
marzo 1734 e fu sepolto nella chiesa di S. Lucia al Monte. Beatificato da Pio
VI il 15 maggio 1789, fu canonizzato da Gregorio XVI il 26 maggio 1839.
Fonti e Bibl.: Casimiro
di S. M. Maddalena, Vita del padre
fra G. della C., Napoli 1734; Diodato dell'Assunta, Saggio storico della vita del b. G. della C.,
Roma 1839; D. Caruso, La casa natale
di s. G. della C. al Ponte d'Ischia, Napoli 1934; I. Rostoli, Vita di s. Gian G., Roma 1939; A.M.
Salvatore, S. G. della C.,
Napoli 1954; D. Ambrasi, G. della C., in Bibliotheca sanctorum, VI, Roma 1965, coll. 1009-1012; V. Gervasi, S. G. della C.: breve profilo, Napoli
1975; S.G. della C. (1654-1734).
Studi nel 250° della morte del santo, Napoli 1988 (in partic.: G.
Mascia, S.G.G. della C.: bibliografia, pp. 1-99; T. Cerrinara, La
spiritualità di s. G. della C., pp. 240-250); Enc. cattolica, VI, col. 628, sub voce (G. Edoardi).
SOURCE : https://www.treccani.it/enciclopedia/giovanni-giuseppe-della-croce-santo_(Dizionario-Biografico)
Voir aussi : http://acatholicview.blogspot.ca/2012/03/st-john-joseph-of-cross.html
