Deepertruth: Stand in the Gap with us and Saint Rose of Viterbo

 Stand in the Gap with us and Saint Rose of Viterbo 9/4/2023

St. Rose was born in Viterbo (present day Italy) around 1233 C.E. Little is known about her life. She was born to a poor but devout family. Since a child, she held a deep love and passion for prayer and serving poor.

At the age of 10, the Blessed Virgin Mary was said to have told Rose to join the Third Order of St. Francis (a Franciscan lay order). So she donned the habit of the T.O.S.F. and as instructed by the Blessed Virgin, preached and emphasized penance and loyalty to the Catholic Church.

At the age of 10, she became a Secular Franciscan and soon began preaching in the streets about sin and the sufferings of Jesus. Viterbo, her native city, was then in revolt against the pope. When Rose took the pope's side against the emperor, she and her family were exiled from the city.

She is the patron saint of embroiderers, gardeners, florists, people who are harassed for their piety, and those suffering family problems. She is the patroness of the Americas, the indigenous people of the Americas, and of Peru, India, and the Philippines.

Rose was also known to be a visionary. On December 5, 1250, she foretold the death of the emperor which was fulfilled 8 days later on December 13. According to surviving evidence, Rose went to the city of Vitorchiano which was possessed by a sorceress. She not only converted the whole town, but the sorceress herself when she stood unharmed on a burning pyre for three hours.

Even as a child, Rose had a great desire to pray and to aid the poor. While still very young, she began a life of penance in her parents’ house. She was as generous to the poor as she was strict with herself. At the age of 10, she became a Secular Franciscan and soon began preaching in the streets about sin and the sufferings of Jesus.