Saint Humility

Unveiling the Serene Splendor of Saint Humility: A profound Journey into the Virtues of Humbleness

The venerable founder of the Vallombrosan nuns graced this earthly realm in the year 1226, hailing from the enchanting land of Faenza in the Romagna. Her esteemed progenitors, who possessed noble lineage and abundant riches, bestowed upon her the appellation Rosana, in honor of their affiliation with the town. Nevertheless, she embraced the name Humility upon entering the sanctified path of religious devotion. At the tender age of fifteen, her parents, wielding their influence, compelled her into a matrimony with a local aristocrat named Ugoletto, a young man whose disposition was as trifling as his bride's was earnest and devout.

Alas, the heavens bestowed upon her the misfortune of losing both her beloved sons shortly after their baptism. For nine arduous years, she ardently endeavored to elicit a change of heart in her husband, to no avail. However, fate intervened when a grave affliction brought him precariously close to the abyss of death. Following his recovery, his physicians, mindful of his well-being, convinced him to acquiesce to his wife's plea that they should henceforth coexist as brother and sister. Thereafter, they took refuge in the embrace of the double monastery of Saint Perpetua, situated just beyond the borders of Faenza. He assumed the humble role of a lay-brother, while she devoted herself to the sacred chants as a choir nun.

At the age of twenty-four, Humility discerned that the monastery's rule provided her with insufficient opportunities for solitude and austerity. Thus, she sought solace first in a dwelling inhabited by the pious Poor Clares and then in a cell constructed for her by a relative whom she had miraculously cured of a debilitating foot ailment. This cell adjoined the venerable Saint Apollinaris church, featuring an aperture, known in archaeological circles as a "squint," that allowed her to partake in the holy Mass and receive the sacrament of communion. The religious services in the church were administered by devout souls from a priory affiliated with the esteemed Vallombrosan abbey of Saint Crispin. In accordance with the prescribed ceremonial protocol, the abbot, bearing a solemn countenance, formally enclosed her within the confines of her cell.

From that moment forward, her existence assumed a tenor of heroic mortification. She sustained herself on meager sustenance comprising meager portions of bread, water, and occasionally some humble vegetables. Her mortifications extended further, as she adorned her frame with a cilicium woven from bristles. The brief moments of respite she permitted herself were spent on bended knees, her head leaning against a stone wall. Having forsaken all contact with her husband since her withdrawal from the secular realm, he remained unable to banish her memory from his consciousness. In a bid to maintain a semblance of connection, he renounced Saint Perpetua's and sought refuge as a monk within the sanctified precincts of Saint Crispin's, where he breathed his last breath three years hence. 

After twelve years of austere seclusion, the sagacious abbot general of the Vallombrosans, with his persuasive eloquence, convinced Humility to emerge from her cloistered existence and undertake the noble task of establishing a sanctuary for women. On the outskirts of Faenza, in a place known as Malta, she laid the cornerstone of the inaugural Vallombrosan nunnery, assuming the exalted position of abbess. This haven, sanctified as Santa Maria Novella alla Malta, bore witness to her dedication and sanctity.

In the distant years that followed, precisely in 1501, the convent underwent relocation in order to ensure its safety, finding refuge within the heart of the city, occupying the very ground once adorned by the revered monastery of Saint Perpetua. 

Before her mortal passing, the venerable Saint Humility established a secondary abode within the vibrant city of Florence, assuming the role of abbess and ultimately drawing her final breath at the remarkable age of eighty, on the eve of May 22nd, 1310.

Legend bestows upon Saint Humility the esteemed authorship of various treatises, as it is recounted that she, without any formal study of the language, flawlessly conveyed her thoughts in the elegant Latin tongue. Among these writings, one illuminates the realm of celestial beings, wherein she poetically reflects upon her enduring communion with two heavenly entities, one of whom faithfully guarded her throughout her earthly sojourn—the ethereal essence known as her guardian angel.

Her feast is celebrated on 22nd May.

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