Saint Francis Jerome
Saint Francis Jerome (born December 17, 1642 AD in Grottaglie, Taranto, Apulia, Italy; died May 11, 1716 AD in Naples, Italy) was an Italian Jesuit priest who spent nearly forty years as a street preacher in Naples and the surrounding villages, becoming one of the greatest popular evangelists in the history of southern Italy. He preached to thousands daily in the streets, markets, and slums of Naples, and gave missions in over 300 villages in the Kingdom of Naples. He was beatified in 1806 and canonized by Pope Gregory XVI in 1839. His feast day is May 11.
Stored in Cargo: Saint Francis Jerome
| Saint Francis Jerome | |
|---|---|
| Feast Day | May 11 |
| Profession | Jesuit priest; street preacher; missionary |
| Rel. Affiliation | Society of Jesus (Jesuits) |
| Patronage | Naples; street preachers; missionaries; southern Italy; Apulia |
| Attributes | Jesuit habit; crowd of listeners; skull (reminder of death, a preaching prop); crucifix; rope (penances) |
| Birthplace | Grottaglie, Taranto, Apulia, Italy |
| Death Place | Naples, Campania, Italy |
| Cause of Death | Natural causes; died peacefully at the Jesuit house in Naples |
| Primary Shrine | Church of the Gesù Nuovo, Piazza del Gesù, Naples — his body; the magnificent Baroque Jesuit church; his chapel with relics; a major Naples pilgrimage site |
| Liturgical Class | Optional Memorial (Roman Calendar, May 11) |
| Historic Class | Not included |
Biography
Francis Jerome (Francesco Girolamo) was born on December 17, 1642, in Grottaglie near Taranto in Apulia. He was educated by the Jesuits, ordained a priest in 1666, and entered the Society of Jesus in 1670. After studies in Rome, he was assigned to Naples in 1674 — and Naples remained his field of mission for the remaining 42 years of his life.
His method was the open-air popular mission: preaching in the streets, markets, courtyards, and prisons of the city. He set up outdoor altars and preached to crowds of thousands. He visited the galley-slaves, the prisoners, the sick in hospitals, and the dying in their homes. He gave missions in over 300 villages throughout the Kingdom of Naples. He estimated that he had given sermons to the same neighborhoods of Naples so often that he was preaching to entire generations of families.
He used dramatic props: skulls, crucifixes, dramatic renderings of the suffering of Christ, and spontaneous dialogue with the crowd. His style influenced Saint Alphonsus Liguori, who heard him preach as a boy in Naples and who founded the Redemptorists — a congregation dedicated to precisely the same kind of popular mission preaching. Francis Jerome reportedly prophesied Alphonsus's future greatness to the boy's parents.
He died on May 11, 1716, in Naples, where he was immediately acclaimed as a saint. Pope Pius VII beatified him in 1806; Pope Gregory XVI canonized him in 1839.
Significant locations
Legend
Birth location: Grottaglie, Taranto, Apulia, Italy
Death location: Naples, Campania, Italy
Notable location: His field of mission for nearly 40 years; he preached in the streets, prisons, hospitals, and galleys of Naples; the city reverenced him as a living saint; his body is in the Jesuit Church of the Gesù Nuovo in Naples (Naples, Campania, Italy)
Notable location: His birthplace in the Apulian heel of Italy; honored as a native son (Grottaglie, Taranto, Apulia, Italy)
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Known shrines
- Church of the Gesù Nuovo, Piazza del Gesù Nuovo, Naples — his body; his chapel; a major Naples pilgrimage site.
Feast day
May 11
Veneration
Saint Francis Jerome is venerated in the Roman Catholic Church with an Optional Memorial on May 11.
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