
Also
known as Filomena, Filumena, Philumena ,Philomene, Wonder Worker of the Nineteenth
Century Memorial 11 August removed
from the general calendar in 1961 by Pope John XXIII Profile Little is known of
her life, and the information was have was received by private revelation from
her. Martyred at about age 14 in the early days of the Church. In 1802 the remains
of a young woman were found in the catacomb of Saint Priscilla on the Via Salaria.
It was covered by stones, the symbols on which indicated that the body was a martyr
named Saint Philomena. The bones were exhumed, cataloged, and effectively forgotten
since there was so little known about the person. In 1805 Canon Francis de Lucia
of Mugnano, Italy was in the Treasury of the Rare Collection of Christian Antiquity
(Treasury of Relics) in the Vatican. When he reached the relics of Saint Philomena
he was suddenly struck with a spiritual joy, and requested that he be allowed
to enshrine them in a chapel in Mugnano. After some disagreements, settled by
the cure of Canon Francis following prayers to Philomena, he was allowed to translate
the relics to Mugnano. Miracles began to be reported at the shrine including cures
of cancer, healing of wounds, and the Miracle of Mugnano in which Venerable Pauline
Jaricot was cured a severe heart ailment overnight. Philomena
became the only person recognized as a Saint solely on the basis of miraculous
intercession as nothing historical was known of her except her name and the evidence
of her martyrdom. Pope Leo XII granted permission for the erection of altars and
churches in her honor. Pope Gregory XVI authorized her public veneration, and
named her patroness of the Living Rosary. The cure of Pope Pius IX, while archbishop
of Imola, was attributed to Philomena; in 1849, he named her patroness of the
Children of Mary. Pope Leo XIII approved the Confraternity of Saint Philomena,
and raised it to an Archconfraternity. Pope Pius X raised the Archconfraternity
to a Universal Archconfraternity, and named Saint John Vianney its patron. Saint
John Vianney himself called Philomena the New Light of the Church Militant, and
had a strong and well-known devotion to her. Others with known devotion to her
include Saint Anthony Mary Claret, Saint Euphrasia Pelletier, Saint Francis Xavier
Cabrini, Saint John Nepomucene Neumann, Saint Madeline Sophie Barat, Saint Peter
Chanel, Saint Peter Julian Eymard, Blessed Anna Maria Taigi, and Venerable Pauline
Jaricot. Died relics discovered on 24 May 1802; relics translated to Mugnano,
Italy on 10 August 1805 Canonized by Pope Gregory XVI Patronage
babies, barrenness ,bodily ills, children, Children of Mary ,desperate causes,
forgotten causes, impossible causes ,infants, infertility, lost causes ,Living
Rosary, newborns ,orphans ,poor people ,priests, sick people ,sickness, sterility
,toddlers ,young people, youth Representation anchor;
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