Angela Merici
| Saint Angela Merici | |
|---|---|
| File:Angela Merici Statue.jpg | |
| Born | 21 March 1474 at Desenzano, Lake Garda, Germany |
| Died | 24 January 1540 at Brescia, Italy |
| Venerated in | Roman Catholic Church |
| Beatified | 1768 by Pope Clement XIII |
| Canonized | 1807 by Pope Pius VII |
| Major shrine | church of Saint Afra, Brescia, Italy |
| Feast | January 27 |
| Attributes | cloak, ladder |
| Patronage | sickness, handicapped people, loss of parents |
Saint Angela Merici (1474? - 1540) was an Italian religious leader and saint born in Desenzano del Garda, Brescia, Lombardy. She founded the Order of Ursulines in 1535 in Brescia. Merici was beatified in 1768 by Clement XIII and canonized in 1807 by Pius VII. She is buried in the Church of St. Afra at Brescia and her Catholic feast day is January 27. Before the revision of the calendar of saints following the Second Vatican Council, her feast day was May 31, but moved to June 1 in 1954 when Pope Pius XII instituted the feast of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Queen.
Early life
Merici was born in Desenzano del Garda in Brescia, near the Lago di Garda. Her parents died while she was young, and she moved to Salo, Italy to live with her uncle.
Angela was concerned about the life of girls, as they were generally uneducated at that time, as well as the lives of people in slums. After trips to many places, including the Holy Land and Rome, in 1535, she and some of her friends founded the Order of Ursulines in Italy, named for its patron saint, Saint Ursula, a martyr. Merici created the regula, a list of rules for those who join the order, which includes three oaths: an oath of poverty, an oath of obedience, and an oath of holiness.
External links
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