Hieronymus Ämiliani
Hieronymus Ämiliani ; Italian Girolamo Emiliani or Miani (* 1486 in Venice , † February 8, 1537 in Somasca near Bergamo , Italy ) was the founder of the Somaskan order and is the patron saint of orphans .
Life
Girolamo (Latin: Hieronymus) was born into the wealthy Venetian patrician family of the Miani (Latin: Aemiliani). After receiving extensive education and training, he embarked on a military career at the age of 15. In 1506 he was accepted into the Great Council (Maggior Consiglio) of his hometown. He also quickly made a career as an officer; in the Great Venetian War (1508-1511) between the Republic of Venice and the League of Cambrai , he made it to general . As commander of the fortress Castelnuovo di Quero , he had to bow to the superior French forces in 1511 and was taken prisoner of war. That is why he can often be seen with a chain in pictorial representations. According to legend, the Virgin Mary appeared to him in the dungeon and gave him a key to open the chains. Escaped from captivity, he devoted his life to becoming a priest . He also founded several orphanages in which children who had lost their parents in the war found shelter. In the following years, at the request of the local bishops, he expanded his activities to Milan , Pavia and Verona . In 1518 he was ordained a priest.
When there was a famine in Venice in 1528, which was exacerbated by the plague epidemic , Jerome gathered young men around him to help the hungry, sick and dying. In 1531 Jerome finally left his father's house. He and two of his companions, the priests Alessandro Besozzi (Latin: Besuzius) and Agostino Barili, decided on a Vita communis . In 1532 a community was established in Bergamo under the direction of Agostino Barili, and in 1534 a community in Somasca was established under the direction of Hieronymus. Her house became the mother house of the Somaskan Order.
Hieronymus Ämiliani died of the plague on February 8, 1537 .
Canonization and devotion
The Somaskers were assigned to the Augustinian order by Pope Pius V in 1568 . Jerome was beatified by Pope Benedict XIV in 1747 and by Clement XIII in 1767 . and canonized in 1928 by Pius XI. declared the patron saint of orphans and neglected young people ( Patrono universale degli orfani e della gioventù abbandonata ). His Catholic feast day is February 8th . The sanctuary of San Girolamo Emiliani was consecrated to him at the place where he died, Samasca, where his relics are also kept.
literature
- Diethard Klein (Ed.): The great house book of the saints. Reports and legends. Pattloch, Munich 2000, pp. 78-82.
- Friedrich Wilhelm Bautz : Hieronymus Aemiliani. In: Biographisch-Bibliographisches Kirchenlexikon (BBKL). Volume 2, Bautz, Hamm 1990, ISBN 3-88309-032-8 , Sp. 822.
Web links
- Entry to Hieronymus Ämiliani on order online
- Hieronymus at heiligenlexikon.de
- Hieronymus at kirchensite.de
Footnotes
- ↑ Otto Bitschnau: The life of God's saints . Benziger, Einsiedeln, 24th edition [after 1881], p. 98.
- ↑ Otto Bitschnau: The life of God's saints . Einsiedeln, 24th edition, p. 99.
- ↑ Otto Bitschnau: The life of God's saints . Einsiedeln, 24th edition, p. 100.
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Ämiliani, Hieronymus |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Emiliani San Gerolamo; Miani, Girolamo |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | Order founder and saint |
| DATE OF BIRTH | 1486 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Venice |
| DATE OF DEATH | February 8, 1537 |
| Place of death | Somasca |