St. Bernardo de Corleone - The Anti-Sonny Corleone

Born in Corleone, Sicily, 1605; died in Palermo, 1667; beatified in 1768; declared a saint in 2001. A shoemaker by trade, Philip Latini was considered "the best swordsman of Sicily."

Philip had been well instructed in the Christian faith & practice by his devout parents. While not particularly devout in his youth, he would defend old people & other helpless & defenseless persons against violence. He frequently made visits to a local crucifix, a& provided that a lamp be kept burning before it. He was a devotee of Saint Francis of Assisi.

But being strong & bold, like his town, he became a soldier. He joined the army fighting the many wars at that time. While in the army he developed a fiery temper & was quick to challenge men to a duel. His life was not noted for its moral content. He had quite a reputation in the company.

After mortally wounding another man named Canino in a duel, he fled from the police taking sanctuary in the church of the Capuchin friars at Palermo, Sicily. Here he had a chance to think over his past life. God rewarded his prayer by letting him have a real sorrow for his past life, giving him a desire to do penance. The brotherhood in the Capuchins attracted him & he was received as a novice.

He joined them as a lay-brother in 1632, changing his name to Brother Bernardo. True to his ideal, Bernardo put aside his former life & moved by the Holy Spirit set about the Novitiate to make himself as meek as a lamb among his brothers. He was noted for his extreme austerity & self-imposed penances in an attempt to atone for his earlier life.

To reform himself the brother began by taking only a little water & food. He drank only water that was bitter or hot. His scant rest was taken on a board, only about 3 hours a night. His habit & cell were the poorest in the house. He worked long hours, the sick being his special care. He kept regular fasts & it is said that it is doubtful if he ever ate a full meal in his 37 years that he was in religious life. He frequently ate only bread & water. Never would he wear a new habit or allow new furnishings in his cell. As a consequence he suffered greatly from rheumatism.

In time Bernard became gentle & sweet with all at home & out. He had the highest regard for his brothers & his superiors, he only spoke to them on bended knee. Prayer & fasting were his consolation & the Lord rewarded him abundantly.

He had the unusual gift of healing animals by prayer.

Bernard was a devotee of Mary, encouraging others in this devotion. His biographers within the church claim that Mary appeared to him & placed Jesus, as an infant, in his arms. It is also claimed that she gave him knowledge of the day of his death four months in advance. He died at Palermo on January 12, 1667.
His funeral procession was extensive, due to his fame as a saintly man. Numerous miracles reportedly occurred at his grave.

His feast is celebrated by the Franciscans on this day.

________

When I was reading about him earlier today & got to the bit about his fiery temper, I naturally thought of Santino (Sonny) Corleone from The Godfather. I couldn't help but think that had St. Bernado not sought sanctuary where he did, that his life might have ended up in a violent death like the fictional Sonny. Instead, God lead him to the Capuchins. In huge part, I'll bet, it was due to St. Francis' intercession because of his earlier devotion to the saint. & the rest, as they say, is history.

See also: Vatican biography