our sins and grant us all the graces we need (and name any special

NOVENA PRAYER TO
SAINT PHILOMENA
We beseech Thee, O Lord, to grant us the pardon of our
sins by the intercession of Saint , virgin and martyr, who
was always pleasing in Thy sight by her eminent chastity
and by the profession of every virtue. Amen.

Illustrious virgin and martyr, Saint Philomena, behold

me prostrate before the throne whereupon it has pleased
the Most Holy Trinity to place thee. Full of confidence in
thy protection, I entreat thee to intercede for me with
God, from the heights of Heaven deign to cast a glance
upon thy humble client! Spouse of Christ, sustain me in
suffering, fortify me in temptation, protect me in the
dangers surrounding me, obtain for me the graces
necessary to me, and in particular
(Here specify your petition).

Above all, assist me at the hour of my death. Saint

Philomena, powerful with God, pray for us. Amen.

O God, Most Holy Trinity, we thank Thee for the graces

Thou didst bestow upon the Blessed Virgin Mary, and
upon Thy handmaid Philomena, through whose
intercession we implore Thy Mercy. Amen.

How to pray the chaplet of Saint Philomena

1. The Apostles Creed is recited on the Crucifix or Medal to ask for the gift of Faith.
2. An Our Father is prayed on each of the three white beads in honor of the Holy
Trinity in thanksgiving for the gifts given to the Holy virgin, for in whose Honor, laid
down Her life.
3. The red beads are thirteen in number and signify the 13 years our Martyr lived on
Earth. On each of the thirteen red beads we pray: Hail, O Holy Saint Philomena, my
dear patroness. As my advocate with thy Divine Spouse, intercede for me now and at
the hour of my death. Saint Philomena, beloved daughter of Jesus and Mary, pray for
us who have recourse to Thee. (The Hail Mary may be substituted followed by St.
Philomena, pray for us)
4. Conclude the chaplet by praying the following prayer: Saint Philomena, virgin and
Martyr, pray for us that through thy powerful intercession we may obtain that purity
of mind and heart which leads to the perfect love of God. Amen. (Glory Be may be
substituted).

To Obtain a Chaplet:
 Prayer to St. Philomena

Humbly kneeling before thy throne, O great and glorious Virgin, St. Philomena, I beseech
thee to look favorably on the petitions I present to thee. My Patroness, St. Philomena, pray
for me!
Glory be … etc.

Overwhelmed with sorrow and distress, I have need of thee, great Saint. Heed my
supplications and help me in my present tribulation. O glorious Saint, pray for me and help
me!
Glory be … etc.

Inconsolable in my grief and weighed down with so many trials, I turn trustingly to thee. O
valiant Saint, beseech God to have compassion on me. My powerful advocate, pray for me
and help me!
Glory be … etc.

Courageous Martyr, well do I know that my grievous sins deserve God’s severe
punishment. Good St. Philomena, beseech God to pardon me all my sins and to teach me
the ways of His holy love. Illustrious Saint, be loved child of Jesus and Mary, pray for me
and help me!
Glory be … etc.

Gracious Saint, look graciously upon this house and bless the members of our family who
devoutly honor thee. Wipe away our tears and smile benignly upon us, imparting the
blessings of peace, hope, love, and good health to all of us. O Wonder-working Saint, pray
for us and help us!
Glory be … etc.

O Child of Wisdom, well thou knowest the graces of which I stand in need, so be with me at
every moment of my life, but be with me especially at the hour of my death. Establish my
soul in peace, protect me from danger, and permit me to enjoy thy sweet companionship
here as well as in eternity. Amen.
All-powerful Saint, hear and help me!

Through the merits of thy cruel martyrdom, Saint Philomena, hear and help me. (3 times)

St. Philomena Shrine Home Page

http://www.philomena.it
 St. Philomena Litany & Novena

Litany of St. Philomena

(Composed by St. John Vianney)
Lord have mercy on us.
Christ have mercy on us.
Lord have mercy on us.
God the Father of Heaven, have mercy on us.
God the Son, Redeemer of the world, have mercy on us.
God the Holy Ghost, have mercy on us.
Holy Trinity one God, have mercy on us.
Response after each phrase - Pray for Us
Holy Mary, Queen of Virgins,
St. Philomena,
St. Philomena, filled with the most abundant graces from your very birth,
St. Philomena, faithful imitator of Mary,
St. Philomena, model of Virgins,
St. Philomena, temple of the most perfect humility,
St. Philomena, inflamed with zeal for the Glory of God,
St. Philomena, victim of the love of Jesus,
St. Philomena, example of strength and perseverance,
St. Philomena, invincible champion of chastity,
St. Philomena, mirror of the most heroic virtues,
St. Philomena, firm and intrepid in the face of torments,
St. Philomena, scourged like your Divine Spouse,
St. Philomena, pierced by a shower of arrows,
St. Philomena, consoled by the Mother of God, when in chains,
St. Philomena, cured miraculously in prison,
St. Philomena, comforted by angels in your torments,
St. Philomena, who preferred torments and death to the splendours of a throne,
St. Philomena, who converted the witnesses of your martyrdom,
St. Philomena, who wore out the fury of your executioners,
St. Philomena, protectress of the innocent,
St. Philomena, patron of youth,
St. Philomena, refuge of the unfortunate,
St. Philomena, health of the sick and the weak.
St. Philomena, new light of the church militant,
St. Philomena, who confounds the impiety of the world,
St. Philomena, who stimulates the faith and courage of the faithful,
St. Philomena, whose name is glorified in Heaven and feared in Hell,
St. Philomena, made illustrious by the most striking miracles,
St. Philomena, all powerful with God,
St Philomena, who reigns in Glory.
Lamb of God, Who takes away the sins of the world, spare us O Lord.
Lamb of God, Who takest away the sins of the world, graciously hear us, O Lord.
Lamb of God Who takest away the sins of the world, have mercy on us.

V.) Pray for us, Great St. Philomena,

R.) That we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ.
Let us pray

We implore Thee, O Lord, by the intercession of Saint Philomena, Virgin and Martyr, who
was ever most pleasing to Thy eyes by reason of her eminent purity and the practice of all
the virtues, pardon us our sins and grant us all the graces we need (and name any special
grace you may require). Amen.

Novena to St. Philomena

O great St. Philomena, glorious Virgin and Martyr, wonder-worker of our age, I return most
fervent thanks to God for the miraculous gifts bestowed on thee, and beseech thee to impart
to me a share in the graces and blessings of which thou hast been the channel to so many
souls. Through the heroic fortitude with which thou didst confront the fury of tyrants and
brave the frowns of the mighty rather than swerve from thy allegiance to the King of
Heaven, obtain for me purity of body and soul, purity of heart and desire, purity of thought
and affection.
Through thy patience under multiplied sufferings, obtain for me a submissive acceptance of
all the afflictions it may please God to send me and as thou didst miraculously escape unhurt
from the waters of the Tiber, into which thou wert cast by order of thy persecutor, so may I
pass through the waters of tribulation without detriment to my soul. In addition to these
favors, obtain for me, O faithful spouse of Jesus, the particular intention I earnestly
recommend to thee at this moment. O pure Virgin and holy Martyr, deign to cast a look of
pity from Heaven on thy devoted servant, comfort me in affliction, assist me in danger,
above all come to my aid in the hour of death. Watch over the interests of the Church of
God, pray for its exaltation and prosperity, the extension of the faith, for the Sovereign
Pontiff, for the clergy, for the perseverance of the just, the conversion of sinners, and the
relief of the souls in purgatory, especially those dear to me. O great Saint, whose triumph we
celebrate on earth, intercede for me, that I may one day behold the crown of glory bestowed
on thee in Heaven, and eternally bless Him who so liberally rewards for all eternity the
sufferings endured for His love during this short life. Amen.

Prayer

O most pure Virgin, glorious Martyr, St. Philomena, whom God in His eternal power has
revealed to the world in these unhappy days in order to revive the faith, sustain the hope and
enkindle the charity of Christian souls, behold me prostate at thy feet. Deign, O Virgin, full
of goodness and kindness, to receive my humble prayers and to obtain for me that purity for
which thou didst sacrifice the most alluring pleasures of the world, that strength of soul
which made thee resist the most terrible attacks and that ardent love for our Lord Jesus
Christ, which the most frightful torments could not extinguish in thee. So, that wearing thy
holy cord and imitating thee in this life, I may one day be crowned with thee in heaven.
Amen.

St. Philomena Shrine Home Page

http://www.philomena.it

The Cord of St. Philomena

Of the several forms which devotion to St. Philomena has taken, perhaps the one that is best
known and most used is that of her Cord. The use of her Cord has been from the beginning a
favorite way of honoring the saint and invoking her protection. The holy Cure of Ars himself
blessed and distributed a great many. The cord is white and red, and may be made either of
linen, woolen, or cotton threads, so interwoven as to give an almost equal preponderance to
both colors; it has two knots at one end. The white color represents virginity; the red,
martyrdom.

The cord has been approved by the Sacred Congregation of

Rites and is enriched with indulgences. The formula of blessing
is found in the roman Ritual, and the needful faculties may be
obtained from the Brothers of St. Vincent de Paul, 3 Square
Leon— Guillot, Paris 15, France. It is usually worn under the
outer garment as a girdle. No ceremony is required in conferring
it, but it should be blessed. When replacing a worn Cord with a
new one, this too, should be blessed. Wearers of the Cord ought
to have the intention of honoring St. Philomena to the best of
their ability in order to merit protection against evils of soul and
body, and to obtain through her prayers perfect chastity and the
spirit of faith. It is also recommended that the following prayer
be said daily:
Saint Philomena, virgin and Martyr, pray for us that through thy powerful intercession we
may obtain that purity of mind and heart which leads to the perfect love of God. Amen.

The Cord of Saint Philomena has been the instrument of innumerable favors. It is used by
the sick, and is a protection against accidents and evils of ever, kind. Those suffering from
temporal trials, or spiritual temptations, have found it a wonderful help. It is especially
recommended that children be given the Cord, for it is a marvelous protection in the many
mishaps which threaten them.

But the Cord is worn especially as a safeguard of the virtue of chastity. St. Philomena is
regarded as a powerful protectress of this virtue because, if the reputed facts of her life are
true, her own virginal purity was so outstanding. Hence her clients believe God has given
her a special power of assisting those who are tempted against this virtue.

The legend of her life indicates that she realized the full value of the angelic virtue, having
bound herself to it by vow at the tender age of eleven; that she preserved her innocence in
spite of the temptations to which she was subjected in a sensuous Greek court at a time when
heathenism had full sway, and when the immodest images of the Greek gods and most
shameful scandals everywhere shocked the modesty of innocent eyes and blighted the purity
of innocent hearts. According to the same legend, a mighty emperor offered her a kingdom
and a crown. The anger of a wrathful father, the tears of an affectionate mother, stormed her
heart; she stood alone, abandoned and forsaken. But she trusted her Divine Bridegroom; she
remained faithful to her vow, and conquered. The Lord was her strength in the combat and
He will likewise come to the assistance of all who invoke her aid in the midst of
temptations; He will glorify again her name and her virtue. Let those who find themselves
carried away by passion, and tempted to disregard the labs of Holy Mother Church by
entering into marriages which are sinful in the eyes of God and man, implore Saint
Philomena's kindly assistance. She has conquered in similar circumstances. Grace came to
her aid, and the enemy will be put to flight again through her intercession if it is confidently
asked and the fear of God allowed to rule the mind and will.

Plenary Indulgences of The Cord of Saint Philomena

1. On the day on which the cord is worn for the first time.
2. On May 25th, anniversary of opening of Saint Philomena's tomb - catacombs of Saint
Priscilla.
3. On August 11, her proper feast.
4. On December 15, the anniversary of the approbation of the cord by the holy see.
5. At the moment of death, under the ordinary conditions.

With the exception of the last, it is necessary for gaining the above indulgences to go to
confession, receive Holy Communion, make a visit to some church and there pray for the
intentions of the Sovereign Pontiff.

Saint Philomena, Virgin & Martyr

Welcome to the official website of the Sanctuary of Saint Philomena, Mugnano del
Cardinale, Italy. "Filomena" [Ital.] "Philomène" [Fr.] or "Philomena" [Eng.]

The Rector’s Message and newsletter, 26th September 2008

Devotion to Saint Philomena continues to explode all around the globe. The Universal
Archconfraternity of Saint Philomena has gained new memberships this past year in
unprecedented numbers. We received a total of 12,155,876 hits to our website in 2006
and pilgrimages to the Sanctuary continue to grow at a remarkable pace.

“Why is Saint Philomena making such a powerful spiritual return in our own times? I
believe one reason is that the youth of today need an example of heroic Christian
purity, even when they do not find support for purity from their society, their friends,
even at times from their own parents. Many of today’s youth are being exposed to
numerous occasions of blasphemy and impurity through pornography, immodest
clothing, obscene movies, and oftentimes, most tragically, with the consent of their
parents.

Today’s youth need a young heroic witness for the upholding of Christian purity even
if their peers and their own parents are not encouraging them. They face situations
very similar to those which Philomena had to contend with. Both the Emperor and her
parents encouraged her to become the Empress of Rome—the highest position of
power and fame the world could offer any woman. Similarly, our young people are
continually tempted by the allure of power and pride and illicit pleasures. Because
Philomena said yes to Christ and to His Kingdom, it is little wonder that Jesus is
making her well known again as the Patroness of Purity, for the young people of the
twenty-first century.”
Dr. Mark Miravalle, Professor of Theology, Franciscan University of Steubenville,
Ohio, United States

Saint Philomena is a saint who has received extraordinary honor in the Church from
popes, bishops, saints, and mystics. Pope Gregory XVI referred to her as the
“wonder-worker” of the nineteenth century. Bl. Pope Pius IX declared her the
“Patroness of the Children of Mary.” St. John Vianney attributed all of his miracles
to her, stating, “I have never asked for anything through the intercession of my Little
Saint without having been answered.” Bl. Anna Maria Taigi, the Roman “mother-
mystic,” received through this saint the miraculous cure of her granddaughter and
entrusted all her children to her powerful intercession. Father Damien of Molokai
showed his devotion by naming his church in her honor. The popes of the nineteenth
century showered this young saint with numerous plenary indulgences, and gifts such
as papal rings and pectoral crosses.
 In 1802, excavators working
in the ancient Catacombs of
St. Priscilla in Rome
discovered a tomb with three
terra-cotta slabs reading
PAXTE; CUMFI; LUMENA
which means "Peace Be With
You, Filumena." The slabs
were marked with a lily,
arrows, an anchor and a palm,
indicating virginity and
martyrdom. Inside were the
remains of a girl of about
thirteen years of age, along
with a vial of her dried blood
which signified that this was
indeed a Martyr who died for
the love of Christ and
Christianity.

The Relics were transferred to

the Treasury of the Rare
Collections of Christian
Antiquity in the Vatican where
they remained for three years.
In 1805, a priest from
Mugnano del Cardinale, Don
Francesco De Lucia, traveling
to Rome with his newly appointed Bishop, requested and eventually received the
relics of this Martyr “Filumena” to enshrine in his village church in Mugnano del
Cardinale, Av, Italy.

During that remarkable period of the 1830s, when miracles abounded through Saint
Philomena’s intercession and the Church granted her public liturgical veneration,
three separate individuals in different parts of Italy (completely unbeknownst to each
other) began receiving details of the historical background of Saint Philomena
through various modes of private revelation. The most significant were locutions
received by Sr. Luisa di Gesu in August of 1833, revelations which received approval
by the Holy Office (presently the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith) on
December 21, 1833.

Nineteen acts of the Holy See during the pontificates of five popes were issued in
positive promotion of popular devotion to Saint Philomena, in the forms of public
liturgical veneration, archconfraternities, and plenary and partial indulgences. This
succession of papal veneration and indulgences is arguably unprecedented in the
pontifical granting of devotional privileges for any modern saint.

May 25th is the anniversary of the finding of the Relics of Saint Philomena in the
catacombs of St. Priscilla in Rome 1802. This is a solemn day of prayer at the
Sanctuary and a popular time for pilgrimages. The grandest festivities and processions
take place in August and last for five days. This includes the liturgical feast within the
diocese of Nola of the Translation of the Holy Relics from Rome to Mugnano del
Cardinale on August 10th. Thousands of devotees attend annually and the Miraculous
Statue, covered in gold donated jewelry is carried through every street in the town.

During this time, the

most incredible peace
ensues and a definite
presence of Saint
Philomena is felt
within the Sanctuary.
She has a strong and
powerful
intercession. Her
presence is especially palpable at the Sacred Altar where her Relics are contained
within the Paper Mache Statue and beside it, the vial of dried blood. Facing the statue
are the original slabs found at the tomb. The museum contains the chair that Pauline
Jaricot sat on when she miraculously recovered from a fatal illness; this is know as the
"Great Miracle of Mugnano" which Pope Gregory XVI was witness to.

On February 14, 1961, the Sacred Congregation of the Rites, decreeing that the feast
of Saint Philomena might be removed from the Liturgical Calendar, created an air of
apprehension amongst believers. With that decree, the Church never intended to
negate the cult of the Saint, but removed the ‘Proper’ Mass from the cults and
conceded to it, the Mass from the Common of Martyrs. Included is an extract from an
article by Luigi Esposito titled “The Cult in the Last Ten Years”:

'But what in truth is the real

position, the real
significance of the 1961
decree? It reads like this:
“The feast of Saint
 Philomena is to be taken off…” It would be a lot different if it has said: “Saint
Philomena has been taken off every calendar.” - With the systematization it
would seem, and we have good reasons to think in this way, the Church
intended to remove from the Saint, not the cult but only those formalities of the
cult that she was accorded in an extraordinary manner by the preceding Roman
pontiffs.

It has returned, for Saint Philomena, to the ancient depositions of the Rite of
1691 by which it was established that Saints, whose bodies were found in the
Catacombs after the year 1000, were able to have a cult, with the Mass from
the “Common” only there where the Body was preserved...'

That this is an objective interpretation and not subjective emerges from the
following evidence. In April, 1961, the Bishop of Nola, Monsignor Binni,
wished that a commission, formed by the undersigned of the Vicar General and
local parish priests should go to Rome to ask what line of conduct should be
followed. The case was expounded. The Pontifical Concessions and, above all,
the reasons for which they were caused were presented. 'Carry on as before'
was the reply.

In 1964, with the visit of the diocesan bishop, a request was presented for the
authentic interpretation of the statement, 'Festum outem S. Filumenae…' and if,
precisely with that statement, only the liturgical cult was removed or all kinds
of devotion. The following reply was received. “The liturgical cult is removed.
The popular cult remains unaltered. The Saint may be venerated and may be
honored even with external celebrations and with the Mass of the Common
Martyrs'.
--Luigi Esposito, Mugnano, August 11, 1971.

She may be 'venerated and honored with external celebrations and with the
Mass from the Common of the Martyrs' not only in Mugnano, but also in other
places where for local reasons devotion to the Saint exists.

A major confirmation of the above, an affirmation to all devotees wherever they

are, is the exhortation of the Supreme Pontiff Paul VI to the Bishop of Misore,
Monsignor M. Fernandes, titular of the Cathedral of Saint Philomena in
India. The Bishop asked the Holy Father what was required concerning the
decree of February 14, 1961. His Holiness advised him: “Continue as before
and do not upset your people”.

Saint Philomena is, therefore, able to bless her devotees. She leads them to understand
the necessity of the salvation of the soul. She is a spring of spirituality which, the
more it is smothered, the more it bursts forth with violence.
Origin of the Name of Saint Philomena
The name Philomena (fee-lo-MAY-nah) is of Latin origin. The inscription on the
original loculus tiles, is Filumena. The word filia is Latin for daughter. The word,
lumena, is Latin for, light, lamp, lantern; light of day; the eye; clearness;
understanding.

Thus the origin of the title "Daughter of Light."

The Italian and Spanish translation is, Filomena, French is, Philomène and English is,
Philomena.

There have been many variations of the name seen on devotional items produced over
the past two hundred years with other variations of the name from around the world.
The story of Saint Philomena
Three people, unknown to each other and living far apart, had what was apparently a
revelation made to them about Philomena’s life. Compared - when they were known -
these three accounts were found to be identical.

The best known recipient of the revelation was the Foundress of the Oblates of Our
Lady of Sorrows, Mother Maria Luisa di Gesù, a Dominican Tertiary.

On the 3rd of August, 1833, this nun was praying after Communion, before a statue of
Saint Philomena and she felt a great wish to know the true day of the Saint’s
martyrdom, because, after all, August 10th was only the day the relics arrive in
Mugnano - a great day for Mugnano, but of not so much importance to people who
lived elsewhere. She had often thought of this, but suddenly the desire filled her heart.
And then she felt that she must close her eyes…and that she could not open them to
look at the statue any more…and a gracious and soft voice came from the direction of
the statue, saying:

“Dear Sister, August the 10th was the day of my rest, my triumph, my birth into
Heaven, my entering into the possession of such eternal goods as the human mind
cannot possibly imagine. That is why my Heavenly Spouse disposed, by His most
high decrees that my coming to Mugnano should be on the day which had seen my
coming to Heaven! He prepared so many circumstances which should make my
arrival at Mugnano glorious and triumphant; giving joy to all the people, even though
the priest who brought me had absolutely decided that my translation should take
place on the 5th of the month very quietly in his own house. My omnipotent Spouse
impeded him with so many obstacles that the priest, although he did all he could to
carry out his plan, could not do so. And so it came about that the said translation was
made on the tenth, the day of my feast in Heaven”

The result of this happening as that Mother Maria Luisa was overwhelmed with
sadness at the thought that she should fall so easy a prey to an illusion. She took
refuge in the sacrament of penance, confessing the whole thing to her director. He was
not so hasty in disposing of the matter. He tested it. He wrote off to Mugnano, and
asked Don Francesco whether it was true that he had originally intended to have the
translation on the 5th and quite quietly in his own house. And the reply came that after
clearly how many obstacles prevented his innocent attempt to bring his resent from
Rome quickly and quietly into his own chapel!

At that, Mother Luisa’ director gave her an obedience to ask Saint Philomena to tell
her some more about her life and martyrdom. So Mother Luisa went to her, and
begged her not to take any notice of her unworthiness, but to consider that it was a
matter of holy obedience, and to reveal a little more. And there came a day when,
being in her cell, she felt her eyes being closed and heard the gracious voice
again.The following is the account of the life of Saint Philomena as taken from the
official account of Fr. Di Lucia’s Relazione Istorici di Santa Filomena and subsequent
annals from locutions received by Sr. Luisa di Gesu in August of 1833, revelations
that received approval by the Holy Office, (presently the Congregation for the
Doctrine of the Faith) on December 21, 1833.

My dear Sister, I am the daughter of a Prince who governed a small state in Greece.
My mother is also of royal blood. My parents were without children. They were
idolaters. They continually offered sacrifices and prayers to their false gods.

A doctor from Rome named Publius lived in the palace in the service of my father.
This doctor professed Christianity. Seeing the affliction of my parents, by the impulse
of the Holy Spirit, he spoke to them of Christianity, and promised to pray for them if
they consented to receive Baptism. The grace which accompanied his words
enlightened their understanding and triumphed over their will. They became
Christians and obtained the long desired happiness that Publius had assured them as
the reward of their conversion. At the moment of my birth, they gave me the name of
“Lumena,” an allusion to the light of Faith of which I had been, as it were, the fruit.
The day of my Baptism they called me “Filumena,” or “Daughter of Light,” because
on that day I was born to the Faith. The affection which my parents bore me was so
great that they had me always with them.

It was on this account that they took me to Rome on a journey that my father was
obliged to make on the occasion of an unjust war with which he was threatened by the
haughty Diocletian. I was then thirteen years old. On our arrival in the capital of the
world, we proceeded to the palace of the Emperor and were admitted for an audience.
As soon as Diocletian saw me, his eyes were fixed upon me. He appeared to be pre-
possessed in this manner during the entire time that my father was stating with
animated feelings everything that could serve for his defense.

As soon as Father had ceased to speak, the Emperor desired him to be disturbed no
longer, to banish all fear, to think only of living in happiness. These are the Emperor’s
words, “I shall place at your disposal all the force of the Empire. I ask only one thing,
that is the hand of your daughter.” My father, dazzled with an honor he was far from
expecting, willingly acceded on the spot to the proposal of the Emperor.

When we returned to our own dwelling, Father and Mother did all they could to
induce me to yield to Diocletian’s wishes and theirs. I cried, “Do you wish, that for
the love of a man, I should break the promise I have made to Jesus Christ? My
virginity belongs to him. I can no longer dispose of it.” “But you were young then, too
young,” answered my father, “to have formed such an engagement.” He joined the
most terrible threats to the command that he gave me to accept the hand of Diocletian.
The grace of my God rendered me invincible, and my father, not being able to make
the Emperor relent, in order to disengage himself from the promise he had given, was
obliged by Diocletian to bring me to the Imperial Chamber.

I had to withstand for some time beforehand a new attack from my father’s anger. My
mother, uniting her efforts to his, endeavored to conquer my resolution. Caresses,
threats, everything was employed to reduce me to compliance. At last, I saw both of
my parents fall at my knees and say to me with tears in their eyes, “My child have
pity on your father, your mother, your country, our country, our subjects.” “No! No,” I
answered them. “My virginity, which I have vowed to God, comes before everything,
before you, before my country. My kingdom is heaven.”

My words plunged them into despair and they brought me before the Emperor, who
on his part did all in his power to win me. But his promises, his allurements, his
threats, were equally useless. He then flew into a violent fit of anger and, influenced
by the Devil, had me cast into one of the prisons of the palace, where he had me
loaded with chains. Thinking that pain and shame would weaken the courage with
which my Divine Spouse inspired me, he came to see me every day. After several
days, the Emperor issued an order for my chains to be loosed, that I might take a
small portion of bread and water. He renewed his attacks, some of which would have
been fatal to purity had it not been for the grace of God.

The defeats which he always experienced were for me the preludes to new tortures.
Prayer supported me. I did not cease to recommend myself to Jesus and his most pure
Mother. My captivity had lasted thirty-seven days, when, in the midst of a heavenly
light, I saw Mary holding the Divine Son in her arms. “My daughter,” she said to me,
“three days more of prison and after forty days you shall leave this state of pain.”
Such happy news made my heart beat with joy, but as the Queen of Angels had added
that I should quit my prison, to sustain, in frightful torments a combat far more
terrible than those preceding, I fell instantly from joy to the most cruel anguish; I
thought it would kill me. “Have courage, my child,” Mary then said to me; “are you
unaware of the love of predilection that I bear for you? The name, which you received
in baptism, is the pledge of it for the resemblance which it has to that of my Son and
to mine. You are called Lumena, as your Spouse is called Light, Star, Sun, as I myself
am called Aurora, Star, the Moon in the fullness of its brightness, and Sun. Fear not, I
will aid you. Now nature, whose weakness humbles you, asserts its law. In the
moment of combat, grace will come to lend you its force, and your Angel, who was
also mine, Gabriel, whose name expresses strength, will come to your aid. I will
recommend you especially to his care, as the well beloved among my children.” These
words of the Queen of virgins gave me courage again, and the vision disappeared,
leaving my prison filled with a celestial perfume. I experienced a joy out of this
world. Something indefinable.

What the Queen of Angels had prepared me for was soon experienced. Diocletian,
despairing of bending me, decided on public chastisement to offend my virtue. He
condemned me to be stripped and scourged like the Spouse I preferred to him. These
are his horrifying words. “Since she is not ashamed to prefer to an Emperor like me, a
malefactor condemned to an infamous death by his own people, she deserves that my
justice shall treat her as he was treated.” The prison guards hesitated to unclothe me
entirely but they did tie me to a column in the presence of the great men of the court.
They lashed me with violence until I was bathed in blood. My whole body felt like
one open wound, but I did not faint.

The tyrant had me dragged back to the dungeon, expecting me to die. I hoped to join
my heavenly Spouse. Two angels, shining with light, appeared to me in the darkness.
They poured a soothing balm on my wounds, bestowing on me a vigor I did not have
before the torture.

When the Emperor was informed by the change that had come over me, he had me
brought before him. He viewed me with a greedy desire and tried to persuade me that
I owed my healing and regained vigor to Jupiter, another god, that he, the Emperor,
had sent to me. He attempted to impress me with his belief that Jupiter desired me to
be Empress of Rome. Joining to these seductive words promises of great honor,
including the most flattering words, Diocletian tried to caress me. Fiendishly, he
attempted to complete the work of Hell which he had begun. The Divine Spirit to
whom I am indebted for constancy in preserving my purity seemed to fill me with
light and knowledge, and to all the proofs which I gave of the solidity of our Faith,
neither Diocletian or his courtiers could find an answer.

Then, the frenzied Emperor dashed at me, commanding a guard to chain an anchor
around my neck and bury me deep in the waters of the Tiber. The order was executed.
I was cast into the water, but God sent me two angels who unfastened the anchor. It
fell into the river mud, where it remains no doubt to the present time. The angels
transported me gently in full view of the multitude upon the riverbank. I came back
unharmed, not even wet, after being plunged with the heavy anchor.

When a cry of joy rose from the debauchers on the shore, and so many embraced
Christianity by proclaiming their belief in my God, Diocletian attributed my
preservation to secret magic. Then the Emperor had me dragged through the streets of
Rome and shot with a shower of arrows. My blood flowed, but I did not faint.
Diocletian thought that I was dying and commanded the guards to carry me back to
the dungeon. Heaven honored me with a new favor there. I fell into a sweet sleep, and
I found myself, on awaking, perfectly cured.
Diocletian learned about it. “Well, then,” he cried in a fit of rage, “let her be pierced
with sharp darts a second time, and let her die in that torture.” They hastened to obey
him. Again, the archers bent their bows. They gathered all their strength, but the
arrows refused to second their intentions. The Emperor was present. In a rage, he
called me a magician, and thinking that the action of fire could destroy the
enchantment, ordered the darts to be made red in a furnace and directed against my
heart. He was obeyed, but these darts, after having passed through a part of the space
which they were to cross to come to me, took a quite contrary direction and returned
to strike those by whom they had been hurled. Six of the archers were killed by them.
Several among them renounced paganism, and the people began to render public
testimony to the power of God that protected me.

These murmurs and acclamations infuriated the tyrant. He determined to hasten my

death by ordering my head to be cut off. My soul took flight towards my heavenly
spouse, who placed me, with the crown of virginity and the palm of martyrdom, in a
distinguished place among the elect. The day that was so happy for me and saw me
enter into glory was Friday, the third hour after mid-day, the same hour that saw my
Divine Master expire.

What is noteworthy from a historical perspective is not only that this revelation was
confirmed y two other individuals unknown to each other (one a priest, the other an
historian), but these other confirmatory historical facts: 1) The Third Century Roman
Emperor was known for executing Christians by the use of arrows, an exemplified by
St. Sebastian; 2) The Third Century Roman Emperor was also known for killing
Christians by tying anchors around their necks and throwing them into the water; 3)
The reference to “Lumena” -- the name given to her at birth, “Light” -- and then at
Baptism, “Fi Lumena”, “Daughter of Light”, may explain the arrangement of the tiles
found at the grave (“Lumena”, her first given name, was on the first tile).

Miracle of Recognition
The great miracle of Mugnano
One of the most illustrious heroines which the Church has given to the world in the
nineteenth century is without doubt the sweet French girl, Pauline Marie Jaricot.

Many were the obstacle which this noble child had to confront whilst following the
high but arduous career marked out for her by God. She was the favorite daughter of
wealthy parents from whom she inherited a vast fortune. Her beauty was striking and
singled her out in the most fashionable gatherings as an object of admiration. Added
to this she was clever, bright and gay, gifted with a most attractive personality and
possessing a heart overflowing with gentleness and affection.

Everything in the girl drew one towards her. Society was at her feet. Notwithstanding
the allurements of pleasure and the soft flattery of many friends, Pauline always felt a
call to higher things. God beckoned her one way the world another. This first combat
was long and fierce, but at last grace triumphed and the victory was for God.

The next struggle that our heroine was destined to encounter was of a
far different nature. She lost her beloved mother at an early age and,
at the same time, fell herself a prey to a violent disorder which
attacked both body and mind, leaving her a veritable caricature of her
former self. This trial like the former was long and intensely painful.

After this came a breathing space, which in turn was followed by a

still more grievous malady which kept her for long years at the very
gates of death.

Wonderful are the ways of God who ever purifies in the crucible of
suffering the souls which He has chosen for great designs. It was this
sorely tried child who was to give the Church three of its most
important modern Associations, each of which is gathering into the
fold of Peter millions of abandoned souls.

Her first work was the foundation of the Association of the Living
Rosary, the fruits of which are incalculable. The Society of the Propagation of the
Faith came next. This society infused, in an incredibly short time, new life and vigor
into the foreign missions and extended still further their already vast radius. By a
single system - the inspiration of Pauline herself - abundant funds flowed in from all
parts, enabling the missionaries to achieve results far in excess of their wildest
dreams.

Finally, if not the sole Foundress, she at least took a leading part in the establishment
of the Holy Childhood, an association which is annually rescuing countless babes
from the horrors and degradation of paganism.

Pauline’s life story is well worth perusal not only because it is teeming with interest,
but much more because it sets before us an example which might well serve as a
model and stimulus to other girls who, like her, could do great things for the world
had they only the necessary confidence in God and themselves. Unfortunately it does
not come within the scope of this work to give a more lengthy account of Miss
Jaricot. We refer to her merely because of her connection with Saint Philomena by
whom, as we shall see, she was miraculously restored to health and whose devotion
she was instrumental in spreading all over France and, indeed, throughout the world.

We entitle the cure of Miss Jaricot the Great Miracle of Mugnano, firstly, because the
Holy Father Gregory XVI, who was a witness of it, declared it to be a miracle of the
first class; secondly, because it was the immediate reason why the office and feast of
the Saint were granted to the universal Church and, lastly, because, more than any
other of the wonders worked at Mugnano, it served to make the name of Saint
Philomena known far and wide.

We still allow the young heroine to recount in her own words the history of her illness
and the miraculous nature of her cure

Pauline’s Illness
“It would be well-night impossible to describe the sufferings I endured for the past ten
years. I do not pretend to give a scientific explanation of all I went through. I merely
state what I felt and what I heard the doctors say.

Up to March 1835 I was, as a rule, able to bear my pains in such a way that those
around me had no idea of what I was going through. After the Revolution, however,
the disease showed unmistakable signs of aggravation. As my malady chiefly affected
the heart, in proportion as it increased, the palpitations became ore violent so that they
could be heard at a distance. On these occasions my sides heaved with the agony I
endured. A slight movement or change of position was sufficient to send the blood
rushing violently back to my heart, thus causing imminent risk of suffocation. My
breathing seemed to cease and the beatings of my pulse became imperceptible, so that
the most drastic remedies had to be applied to restore some degree of heat to my
frozen limbs

The abnormal dilation of my heart compressed the lungs, and breathing became a
positive torture. As a consequence, I was compelled to lie perfectly still lest the over-
charged blood vessels should burst

In the part of my chest where the palpitations were most violent, a cavity was
gradually formed into which most violent, a cavity was gradually formed into which
the food that I attempted to swallow lodged, causing still further danger of suffocation

The doctors now made two openings in my side in a vain effort to check the progress
of the disease and with a view to lessen the danger of suffocation. I was in
consequence reduced to such a state of pain and exhaustions as made it evident that
death could not be far off

During these awful years of torture I had some short intervals of relief. The most
appreciable of these was at the end of a novena made to Saint Philomena. The body of
this Virgin Martyr ad been recently discovered in the Roman Catacombs, and the
marvels wrought by means of her precious relics were so extraordinary that the name
of Philomena was on every tongue. At the mention of this dear name I experienced
intense joy and longed to kneel at the shrine of this illustrious Virgin. But alas! Such a
thing seemed impossible, for her sanctuary was far away in Naples and I was unable
to bear the least fatigue. Yet I felt inspired to go to the Sanctuary of the Sacred Heart,
at Paray-le-Monial, not, indeed, to ask for a cure but to settle the affairs of my soul

Utterly worm out with pain I said to myself: “I survived the fearful shock and
excitement of the bombardment and thought weeks and months have passed I am still
alive. Surely there is some hidden design of God’s Providence in all this.” I knew that
the Association of the Living Rosary was praying for me, so, placing my trust in God
and these good prayers, I resolved on a step which, had it been known, would
certainly have been deemed pure and simple madness

In fact I had some scruples about the matter myself as I had no wish to do anything of
which my conscience did not fully approve

I therefore elicited from the doctor the information that my state was so desperate that
nothing I might do mattered much one way or another. This declaration set my
scruples at rest.

When I mooted the project I had at heart, I met at once with opposition. Though he
was not aware of it, I heard the doctor say in a whisper: “Let her alone, let her go, she
will not go far.

The preparations for the projected journey had been made in secret so Pauline started
immediately in a carriage for Paray-le-Monial, accompanied by her chaplain, a young
lady friend and a confidential servant. The few who knew of her departure said: “She
will not reach the first resting place alive.” Even those who accompanied her feared
that every jolt of the carriage would cause her death. No such thing however
happened.

She arrived safely at her journey’s end and settled the affairs she had so much at heart.
Then she said to herself: “This first journey did not keel me so let me go to Rome and
get the Holy Father’s blessing.” This was the ambition of her life

If we think of what a journey to Rome meant in those days of coach-traveling over the
Alps, through wild and abandoned stretches of territory infested with brigands, we
shall be able to form some idea of the heroic faith and magnificent courage of this
young girl. The journey was at all times wearisome and full of danger but, for one in
Pauline’s state of exhaustion and with so small an escort, it was perilous in the
extreme. Death seemed to dog the steps of the travelers. The pains endured by the
poor invalid were excruciating. Only when her sufferings were most intense could she
be induced to make a short halt, and, even then, after the briefest rest she would insist,
with indomitable courage, on pursuing the journey. When the party reached
Chambery, Pauline herself lost hope and resigned herself to die for from home and far
from the Vicar of Christ. Her weakness was extreme and she completely lost the use
of her senses, remaining unconscious for two whole days. The pupils in the Convent
of the town made a novena to Saint Philomena for her recovery and, at its conclusion,
she was much better and the journey was resumed. The snow was so deep on the road
over the Alps, that notwithstanding their powerful horses and the valuable aid of
sturdy mountaineers, their progress was slow and difficult

On reaching the summit of Mount Cenis a glorious view burst on their delighted gaze
and they halted for some time to contemplate the magnificent panorama that stretched
before them.

As they gazed on this wondrous scene, a beautiful child suddenly appeared - no one
knew whence he came - and approaching the carriage where Pauline lay, smiled on
her sweetly and presented her with a beautiful white rose which exhaled a delightful
perfume

The guides had never before seen the child, who disappeared as quickly as he had
come, nor could they form any idea of who he might be. The rose, they declared,
could not have bloomed in the mountains. No such flowers were found in these
regions of snow. The little incident was a consolation for the travelers after all they
had undergone. Pauline’s companions saw in it a symbol of the beautiful present she
was about to make the Holy Father, nothing less than the gift of her first great work,
the Living Rosary, of which the white and fragrant rose was so fit an emblem

“On our arrival in the Italian plains” she goes on to write, “we were forced to travel
by night, as the heat of the day was excessive. I had no fear of brigands or of evil
spirits since we were under the protection of our Lady and Saint Philomena. We made
sure to have their medals hung on the carriage and we likewise gave one to the
postilions. It was eleven o’clock at night when we reached the foot of the mountain of
Loreto and, though warned that the roads were not safe, we pushed on in the hope of
soon reaching the “House of the Holy Family,” (now the Basilica of Loretto), which
we did as the dawn was breaking over the hills.

Here again the invalid had a serious relapse, and once more all hope was lost of
saving her life. Nevertheless she rallied and after a few days’ rest started anew on the
road to the Eternal City. During this last stage of her journey the attacks were frequent
and she arrived in Rome in an almost unconscious state

The nuns of the Sacred Heart, at the Trinita deiMonti, received her with the greatest
affection. Her weakness was extreme and it was simply unthinkable that she should
leave the convent

Thus after a long and perilous journey, in which she braved so many dangers and even
death itself, she had to halt at the very threshold of the Vatican. She could go no
further

The Blessed Mother and Saint Philomena were with her and she was not to lose her
reward. The Holy Father soon heard of her arrival in Rome and aware of the state of
exhaustion in which she lay, resolved with truly paternal affection to go himself and
visit “his dear daughter” whom he so tenderly loved and who deserved so well of
Holy Church.

It was surely an extraordinary honor but a still more extraordinary consolation for this
most humble girl to receive the visit of the Vicar of Christ who came expressly, not
merely to visit and console but to thank and bless her

The Holy Father opened his great heart and poured forth his thanks in the most
affectionate terms. He told “his dear child” how please he was with all she had done;
he praised her great courage and ardent faith in coming to Rome, and blessed her most
abundantly. It was like a visit of our Blessed Lord, for in His Vicar she saw and
reverence the Master Himself. Seeing how exhausted she was he asked her to pray for
him when she got to Heaven.

“Yes, Holy Father,” she replied, “I promise to do so but, if on my return from

Mugnano I come back well and go on foot to the Vatican will your Holiness deign to
proceed without delay with the final enquiry into the cause of Saint Philomena?”

“Yes, yes, my daughter,” replied the Pope, “for that, indeed would be a miracle of the
first class.

Turning to the Superiors the Holy Father said in Italian; “How ill our daughter is! She
seems to me as if she had come forth from the grave. We shall never see her again.
She will never return.”
Pauline understood what he said but only smiled confidently.

When leaving, the Pope blessed her anew and said to Cardinal Lambruscini who
accompanied him; “I recommend my dear daughter to you. Grant her all the
indulgences and privileges it is possible to bestow.”

It was now August and the heat was terrific. The little party started for Mugnano but
had to travel by night and rest by day. They arrived at the Sanctuary on the eve of
Saint Philomena’s feast

The Neapolitans and the crowds from all the surrounding districts, who flocked to the
Sanctuary for the feast, went wild with excitement when they heard who Pauline was
and why and whence she had come. Their sympathy for her on the one hand their
jealousy for the reputation of their dear patroness on the other awakened the highest
enthusiasm. Here was this French Lady, so loved by the Holy Father, who had done so
much for religion, come hundreds and hundreds of miles, over the snow-capped Alps,
through mountain fastnesses, braving perils and death itself to invoke Saint Philomena
- She must, she must be cured

“Dear Saint Philomena” they cried, “you must cure this dear lady who has come such
a distance to ask your aid. She has done enough for God and for the Madonna for you
to cure her.” And then, knocking at the urn of the Saint, as it were in threatening
tones, they called out! “Do you hear us, Philomena? If you do not grant our prayers at
once we will invoke you no more, it will be all over between us.
So much the worse for you great Saint."
The uproar became so terrific that Pauline could scarcely endure it.

The next day, the feast itself, when Pauline received Holy Communion near the Urn
of the Saint she experienced such frightful pains all over her body, and her heart beat
so violently that she fainted way. At the sight of what they thought was death the
crowds gave way to such cries and vociferations that it was thought safer to carry the
chair, on which Pauline was lying, out of the Church. She, however, regained
consciousness enough to make a sign to be left near the Urn, on which she fixed her
eyes with an expression of the deepest affection. Suddenly an abundant flood of hot
tears burst from her eyes, the color came back to her cheeks, a warm, healthy glow
spread through her numbed limbs. Her soul was inundated with such heavenly joy that
she believed that she was about to enter Heaven. But is was not death, it was life,
Philomena the beloved had cured her, and she was reserved for long years of toil and
labor which were to end in a glorious though bloodless martyrdom.

Although she felt that she was cured, Pauline dared not for some moments reveal the
fact, dreading the outburst of enthusiasm that it was certain to provoke. However, the
Superior of the Sanctuary understanding what had happened, ordered all the bells to
peal and announce the miracle.
The crowds on hearing the news went frantic with joy and were literally beside
themselves with delight. The Church and the streets rang with their shouts. Vivas,
vivas resounded on all sides. It would be impossible to describe adequately this
magnificent and soul-stirring demonstration of faith. “Viva Saint Philomena, Viva our
dear Saint - Viva the great Virgin and Marty - Viva the good French Lady.

In their wild enthusiasm they rushed towards Pauline and wanted to carry her in
triumph on their shoulders. This however, she absolutely refused to allow.

Idolized by the people, Pauline tarried in Mugnano for some time, her soul
overflowing with joy. She passed long hours in sweet colloquy at the feet of her
Heavenly benefactress and great were the graces she received, more even for soul
than body. At last, when the day of departure arrived and she had to tear herself away
from the Sanctuary, she took with her a great relic of Saint Philomena which she
placed in a life-sized statue of the Saint. This was clad in royal robes, given the seat of
honor in the carriage and was hailed by all as the “Princess of Paradise.

At the various stages of the journey, the potilions who had brought Pauline to
Mugnano, more like a corpse than a living person, cried out: “A miracle, a miracle.”
“Viva Saint Philomena.” At this cry crowds used to gather, bringing wreaths and
garlands which they hung on the carriage, invoking at the same time the name of the
Saint with the most intense piety and love.

Naples was profoundly moved on the arrival of the Miraculee. A thrill ran through the
people. The Bishop received Pauline with great honor and, in the presence of the
Apostolic Nuncio and the King of Sicily, presented the blood of St. Januarius for her
to kiss and venerate.

Blessed and invoked on all sides, the “Princess of Paradise” and her escort soon
arrived in Rome where, the better to enjoy the Holy Father’s surprise, Pauline had not
announced her cure

When in the full enjoyment of health and strength she presented herself in the Vatican,
all those who had heard of her were thunderstruck. “Is it really my daughter?” said the
Holy Father. “Has she come back from the grave, or has God manifested in her favour
the power of the Virgin Martyr?” “It is, indeed, I, most Holy Father,” she replied,
“whom your Holiness saw so recently at the very door of death and on whom Saint
Philomena has looked with pity. Since she has given me back my life deign, Holy
Father, to give me permission to build a chapel in honor of my benefactress.”
“Most certainly,” replied the Pope, in accents full of joy and affection

Then he insisted on hearing from her own lips the details of the cure. In his delight
and wonder he ordered her to walk up and down in his presence. “Again, again,
quicker, quicker” he exclaimed laughing. “I want to be sure that what I see is not an
apparition from the other world but really and truly my dear daughter from
Fourvière.” And as his dear daughter walked backwards and forwards, she naturally,
without meaning it, turned her back on the Pope. The Master of Ceremonies hastily
reminded her that she must not turn her back on the Holy Father, whereupon the Pope
said with a smile: “Nonsense, do not trouble about that. God Himself has made far
greater exceptions in her favour.

The Sovereign Pontiff now ordered Pauline to remain in Rome for a whole year, that
the miracle might be thoroughly investigated. During which he conferred on her many
and great privileges, and gave orders for an immediate enquiry to be made into the
cause of Saint Philomena
At the close of the year, with the blessing of Christ’s Vicar, Pauline returned to
Fourvière.

Pauline-Marie Jaricot
Foundress of the Society of the Propagation of the Faith and the Association of the
Living Rosary, born at Lyons, 22 July, 1799; died there, 9 January, 1862.

At the age of seventeen she began to lead a life of unusual abnegation and self-
sacrifice, and on Christmas Day, 1816, took a vow perpetual virginity. In order to
repair the sins of neglect and ingratitude committed against the Sacred Heart of Jesus,
she established a union of prayer among pious servant girls, the members of which
were known as the “ Réparatrices du Sacré-Coeur de Jésus-Christ”. During an
extended visit to her married sister at Saint-Vallier (Drôme), she succeeded in
effecting a complete transformation in the licentious lives of the numerous girls
employed by her brother-in-law. It was among them and the “Réparatrices” that she
first solicited offerings for the foreign missions.

Systematic organization of such collections dates back to Her 1819 when she asked
each of her intimate friends to act as a promoter by finding ten associates willing to
contribute one cent of a week to the propagation of the Faith. One out of every ten
promoters gathered the collections of their fellow-promoters ; through a logical
extension of this system, all the offerings were ultimately remitted to one central
treasurer. The Society for the Propagation of Faith at its official foundation (3 May,
1822) adopted this method, and easily triumphed over the opposition which had
sought from the very start to thwart the realization of Pauline Jaricot’s plans. In 1826
she founded the Association of the Living Rosary. The fifteen decades of the Rosary
were divided among fifteen associates, each of whom had to recite daily only one
determined decade. A second object of the new foundation was the spread of good
books and articles of piety. An undertaking of Pauline’s in the interest of social
reform, though begun with prudence, involved her in considerable financial
difficulties and ended in failure. The cause of her beatification and canonization has
been introduced at Rome.

The Facts of Saint Philomena

In spite of much research, little is known of the life of Saint Philomena before the
discovery of her celebrated tomb in the Catacombs of Priscilla at Rome. The only
information we have about the life of the Saint is derived from the revelation that she
herself made to the Servant of God, Sister Maria Luisa of Jesus, her fervent devotee,
on August 3, 1833. Speaking to the holy sister while she was in prayer before a statue
of her, the Saint recounted in detail all her life. To learn more about the "Story" of
Saint Philomena, please visit The Story page of our website.

On this page, we lay out for you the known facts about Saint Philomena including
some historical perspectives.

May 24, 1802 - A Tomb Is Discovered

To begin telling the story, let us paint a brief picture of the times. Revolution, war,
famine, atheism, persecution had trodden Europe hard during the eighteenth century,
and the icy Jansenist heresy had touched and withered the spiritual vigor of Catholics.
The only spirit that flourished in such circumstances, it seemed, was the spirit of self-
sufficiency. Men were well content to believe in nothing but their own abilities.
They talked about the rights of man, meaning the right of any man to think as they
did.

In these fierce days of persecution the primitive Christians were obliged to perform
the sacred rites of their holy religion in the subterranean caverns (cryptœ) which
extend on every side of the Eternal City, but clustered most thickly at the south-east
corner, near the Appain Way and the Ardeatine Way. These caverns, long believed to
have been originally mere sand-pits, arenaria, out of which sand was dug for building
purposes, are now proved beyond all doubt to have been constructed at great expense
by noble and wealthy Christian families as places of burial. The Catacombs, as they
are called, during three consecutive centuries were the places where the faithful had
their temples and altars; where they met to pray in common and where the Pontiffs
celebrated “The Gathering,” or the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass. They were in constant
use also up to the cessation of persecution, and even to 410 A.D as the last resting-
place of the saints and martyrs. In the terrible irruptions of the Goths and Lombards,
many of these cemeteries, especially of the Via Salaria, were sacrilegiously plundered
of their sacred treasures, and in part destroyed. When happier times ensued - at the
commencement of the eighth century and culminating with Pope St. Paschal - all the
relics of the Popes and principal martyrs and confessors which had hitherto lain in the
Catacombs were removed for greater safety to the churches of Rome. As time went
on the Catacombs were abandoned and in great part closed, and the knowledge of
them was lost altogether, until they were accidentally re-discovered by some laborer
in the year 1578. Even then they seem to have been left unguarded, and permission
was given to the faithful to take away whatever relics they chose. But by a special
providence of God the sacred tomb of Saint Philomena was left unnoticed and
undisturbed until it pleased Him in these later days to reveal her glory to the entire
world.

However, the story begins quite plainly, though and perhaps a little pathetically. On
May 24th, 1802, workers had just returned to the excavations begun earlier in a tufa
pit in an underground cemetery dedicated to the family of Priscilla (the ancient
Catacomb of Saint Priscilla), underneath the soil on the road that goes out of the Porta
Salaria from Rome to Ancona.

Laboring in the darkness, a fossor reached the center of the catacomb not far from the
Greek Chapel, and very close to the largest luminaries where he was clearing loose
sand which had fallen from one of the galleries on the upper level from a loculus
when his pick struck a cemented surface.

Upon closer examination the concrete surface appeared to be some tiles which would
normally enclose a loculus and, as previously instructed by Msgr. Ponzetti, Custodian
of the Holy Relics, immediately ceased the excavation.

May 25, 1802 - The Tomb Is Revealed

Fr. Filippo Ludovici, Vatican overseer of the excavation was informed, and on the
following day, May 25, 1802, Fr. Ludovici, accompanied by several observers,
descended into the catacomb, and witnessed the full uncovering of the loculus,
whereby with the removal of sand, three brick funeral tiles (the tiles were given to the
Sanctuary on August 14, 1827 by Pope Leo XII) were revealed which bore an epitaph
painted in red lead. Each tile measured approximately 50 cm long and having a total
length of 1.74 cm (5 feet 9 inches).
The painted inscription on the three funeral tiles appeared as follows: tile one -
LUMENA; tile two - PAXTE; tile three - CUM FI. The loculus was documented by
Msgr. Ponzetti, Custodian of the Holy Relics, as bearing “FILUMENA,” an
interpretation of the epitaph consistent with both the ancient custom of beginning
inscriptions from the second tile and the logical etymological context. The result is a
full reading of the epitaph as “PAX TECUM FILUMENA.”

This funereal inscription presents the distinctive characteristics of apostolic times,

rarely found in other cemeteries more recent than the Priscilla.

The name of “Filumena” is officially granted to the sacred remains examined on May
25, 1802, as recorded in the document issued by Ponzetti as Custodian of the Sacred
Relics which released the remains of this Christian martyr to the Diocese of Nola on
June 8, 1805:

8 Iunii 1805

Dono dedi Ven. Ecclesiae Archipresbyterali terrae Mugnano Dioecesis Nolanae

corpus Sanctae Christi Martyris

FILUMENAE

Nominis proprii sic picti in tribus Tabulis laterariis cinabro

LUMENA PAXTE CUM FI

in pulverem et in fragmina redactum per me infrascriptum Custodem extractum cum

vasculo vitreo fracto ex Coemeterio Priscillae Via Salaria Nova die 25 maii 1802,
quod collocavi in capsula lignea charta colorata cooperta et consignavi Illmo
Dominico Caesari pro Illmo et Rmo D. Bartholomaeo de Caesare Epo Potentino.

HYACINTHUS PONZETTI, Custos.

In addition to the inscription, so eloquent in its simplicity, the sepulchral tiles

exhibited certain symbols, including tokens of martyrdom. There were an anchor, and
arrow pointing upwards, a palm, under the palm another anchor, a javelin pointing
upwards, another arrow pointing downwards, and a lily.

Students of Christian symbols generally agree on the interpretation of these figures on

the tiles. The emblems breathe the language of faith and hope.

In the anchor there is a resemblance to the cross, the sign of faith in Christ. In both
Greek and Roman antiquity there is mention of the sacred anchor. The anchor also
connotes hope, refuge, and preservation of life. In the legend of the martyred
Philomena there is a passage about the Roman emperor’s wrath when an anchor he
had fastened to the girl’s neck wedged in the mud of the Tiber River. Other saints,
including Pope Clement, suffered martyrdom by having an anchor tied to the neck and
being dropped into the sea. Emperor Trajan as well as Tberius decreed this form of
brutality.

The two arrows pointing in opposite directions signify torment similar to that which
Tberius exercised on St. Sebastian.

On the removal of the tiles in the cavity behind, were disclosed the remains of an
interment, which competent authority pronounced to be those of a young girl from
thirteen to fifteen years of age. The head was small and very much fractured, but the
principal bones were entire. Surgeons ascertained the type of wounds inflicted.
Physicians examined the skeleton - its small unbroken bones fractured skull, eye
sockets. The maiden had been lanced.

At the end of the loculus was a small glass vial or vase with half-broken sides of
which were encrusted within with a dust of blackish color indicating blood clinging to
glass fragments, and with the lower portion of the vial still intact and firmly
embedded in the cement . It was undoubtedly blood which had been collected at the
death of the martyr, according to the custom of the Christian during the persecutions,
and placed with the remains as a testimonial to her death by martyrdom. As early as
1668 the Congregation of Indulgences and Relics had decided that the genuineness of
a true relic of a martyr hinged somewhat on the finding of the vial or vase filled with
the martyr’s blood. The same congregation renewed the decision in 1863.

This blood was loosened from the broken pieces of the vial to which it adhered, and
was carefully placed in a crystal urn. Those present, among whom were men of great
learning of the Court of Inquiry, were startled by a strange chemical reaction as they
these little particles of blood, as soon as they fell into the sun, glittered like burnished
gold or silver, or shone like diamonds and precious jewels, or, again, were resplendent
in all colors of the rainbow. The chemical change of the blood convinced the Church
dignitaries that a new star had arisen among the blessed. Cardinal Ruffo Scilla, who
renewed the seals on the new reliquary after the blood of the Saint, had been
safeguarded in the crystal vial, and deposed in the authentication: “And we have seen
her blood changed into several brilliant little precious stones of various colors; also
into gold and silver.”

This extraordinary phenomenon continues to the present day.

The precious remains were reverently place in a wooden case, lined with silk and
stuffed with fine cotton and transferred to the Custodia Generale, or treasury of sacred
relics, where they remained there for three years.

August 10, 1805 - Transfer Of the Relics from Rome to the Sanctuary of Saint
Philomena, Mugnano del Cardinale, Italy

The remains of Filumena departed from Rome on July 1, 1805 and arrived at
Mugnano on August 10, 1805 where they have remained since the transferal.

In 1805, England was at war with France, because France had been intriguing with
Ireland and Scotland, had attempted to invade England and had designs on the Indian
Empire. Napoleon, who had been the Commander-in-Chief of the French Army
which invaded and conquered Italy, was now Emperor of the French.

That summer, the Bishop-elect of Petenza went to Rome to be consecrated, and also
to congratulate the Pope, Pius VII, on his return from France, on behalf of the King of
Naples, the Spanish Don Carlos. He took with him as his chaplain, a holy missionary
priest who was serving the parish of Mugnano north of Naples, and this priest’s name
was Don Francesco De Lucia. Don Francesco, a cultured and pious priest, was born
at Mugnano del Cardinale on September 19, 1772. He completed his studies in the
Congregation of the Most Blessed Sacrament of Lucera. Ordained priest on
September 19, 1796, he opened in Naples a school of philosophy and literature. He
quickly gained the esteem and affection of distinguished Neapolitan people in
education circles. Amongst these there was the Venerable Jesuit Servant of God,
Guiseppe Maria Pignatelli.

Don Francesco had a heavy heart. His parish was infected with revolutionary ideas,
resentment against the authority of the Church, unbelief, immorality. His secret hope
was to get the Bishop to use his authority to get him the relics of a martyr - a saint
who would come back with him and help him with his parish, which only a saint
could convert. He knew exactly what he wanted - a virgin martyr whose name was
known.

The Guardian of the Custodia Generale, which Don Francesco soon got permission to
visit, was evidently taken by this devout and humble priest, and said he would help
him to get what he wanted, and said he telling him to choose among the relics in the
Custodia. About the middle of May, Don Francesco was taken to the Treasure House
of Relics, which was under the care of a worthy guardian, Monsignor Don Giacinto
Ponzetti. There were those of thirteen martyrs, but only the names of three were
known - one was a child, one an adult and then there was ‘Filumena.’ He had wanted
a virgin martyr from the first, but what was more, when he stood before the case
containing Filumena’s relics, he felt filled with spiritual joy, the heaviness of heart
gone as though she had instantly taken it from him. This was undoubtedly the helper
he wanted! The Guardian promised to arrange for him to have her. Imagine his
disappointment, then, when the official reply came that bodies of martyrs whose
names were known were so few, that such as were found must be kept for special
churches or dioceses.

His sadness returned, redoubled. Rome is not the best place in which to spend the
summer - or at least it was not in those days, when the marshes of the Campagna had
not been drained. And what with overwork and worry, and the heat, and the
disappointment, Don Francesco lost his sleep, his appetite and his health. A friend
offered him the relics of another and unnamed martyr to comfort him, but had got it
into his head that it was Filumena or nobody who could and would convert his parish.
And one night, when he found himself burning with fever and not a breath of cool air
to bring him sleep, he promised desperately that if Filumena would make him sleep,
he would take her for his patron and bring her to Mugnano by hook or crook. His
fever left him; he fell into a refreshing sleep, and woke in the brilliant Roman
morning in perfect health.

That decided it. Filumena wanted to come with him as much as he wanted to have
her. This time he went to the newly consecrated Bishop, and asked him to use his
influence. When the Bishop heard the story, he agreed that the little saint seemed to
want to come to Mugnano, and he added his request to Don Francesco’s, with the
result that the Bishop could not be refused. The Guardian gladly acted on the
permission he received to hand over the relics, saying that he felt sure Filumena
wished to go to Mugnano and work miracles there.

Joyfully, the good Bishop and Don Francesco took possession of the precious casket,
and determined to bring Filumena to Naples with many prayers and every honor, the
casket to be put in front of the Episcopal carriage.

The cortege was due in the little town on Sunday, 10th August, and on the vigil, bells
were rung joyously to announce the morrow’s event. At dawn of day a messenger
was sent by Don Francesco himself to proclaim that the sacred body was coming.
Soon an unusual excitement reigned, and crowds might be seen proceeding from all
directions to meet and welcome it. The day was to be noted as a memorable one in
the archives of Mugnano. More than forty priests in their richest vestments, the
members of the various confraternities and representatives from the neighboring
parishes went in procession with banners displayed. The road was strewn with olive
branches and exquisite flowers. And then the body of the saint was in sight all the
bells were heard “sprinkling air with holy sounds”, choice music added its charms to
the rejoicing; bombs and guns mingled their voice of thunder with the imposing
concert; groups of young men and young girls united in singing hymns and canticles
in their honor. After entering the town the cortege took fully two hours to reach the
church of the Madonna del grazie. When it arrived the sacred body was deposited
under a triumphal dias near the Gospel side of the high altar, and Solemn High Mass
was sung.

Don Francesco Lucia, to give a solid and profound base to the devotion to the saint,
founded the Association of the Children of Saint Philomena. He was the first rector of
the sanctuary and most vigilant guardian of the holy remains of the saint. He
dedicated his priestly life for the glory of God and for souls. After 41 years of
untiring apostolate in the propagation of devotion to Saint Filumena in all the
Kingdom of the Two Sicilys, acquiring the regard of cardinals and bishops, he
rendered his great soul to God on April 9, 1847.

January 30, 1837 - Pope Gregory XVI Confirmed the Feast of Saint Philomena
Established As The 11th Of August
For thirty years miracles continued to increase in number at Mugnano, and the glory
of the Thaumaturga filled the Universe. Various appeals were address to the Holy See
so that a feast-day might be established, and an Office and Mass permitted in her
honor.

In 1835, Pauline Jaricot, Foundress of the great French lay social institution in aid of
the missions, Proagation of the Faith, and also foundress of the Association of the
Living Rosary, and of other good works, was close to death. She suffered from a
heart disease which had affected her health for some years and had left her suffering
from frequent heart attacks. She had been unable to walk for the previous year and a
quarter. The slow deterioration was leading to death. Doctors had given up her case
as hopeless.

Drawn by an irresistible attraction, she wanted to visit Rome and the Holy Father.
When she arrived at Rome after a terrible journey, her state was such that she could
not go to the Vatican, and it was the Holy Father who went to visit her in the convent
of Trinita dei Monti. The young lady asked Gregory XVI if he would approve the cult
of Saint Filumena, would she be cured by the saint.

“Surely, my child”, replied the august Pontiff, “for that would indeed be a first class
miracle”. This miracle took place. On her return to Rome, the Sovereign Pontiff
wanted Miss Jaricot to stay a full year there until all doubts about the completeness of
the cure were quashed. Then, in a decree of the Sacred Congregation of Rites,
confirmed by the Pope on January 30th, 1837, the feast of Saint Philomena was
established as the 11th of August.

Here is a brief account of the miracle:

Towards the evening of Saturday August 9th, 1835, vigil of the feast of the
Translation of Saint Filumena, during the Solemn Vespers, a French lady was seen
to arrive accompanied by her chaplain, a maid and a servant. These last two, with
much trouble, lowered their mistress from the coach onto a chair, and carried her
through the crowd to the foot of the alter of the Reliquary where she remained in
prayer until the end of the function.

After 15 months of suffering, the lady was pallid, wasted and weak. Being in the
final stages of heart disease, she resembled more a corpse than a live person!

he next day, the 10th, she was taken to the Sanctuary a number of times to
participate in various Masses and to receive Holy Communion. She attended the
Evening Office as she had on the Monday. Her sad state was observed by a number
of doctors from Naples who had come for the feast-day celebrations.

Up until that evening she gave no sign of improvement though she later revealed
that she had felt herself healed soon after Communion, but was afraid to announce
it because of the commotion the people would make. However, after Benediction of
the Blessed Sacrament, when the people had left, she rose and walked back to her
lodgings without help. She had truly been cured. When they quickly found out, the
enthusiasm of the public was indescribable. At the second hour of the night, 9:30
p.m. in that season, the church bells pealed out, and the shouts of joy of the crowds
replied. Miss Jaricot had to show herself to satisfy the wishes of the people.

Out of gratitude she took the haven of the daughters of Saint Filumena: The Little
Sisters of Saint Philomena, and added to her name those of Philomena-Maria. The
same gratitude brought her back to Mungano in 1839 for a four day visit. After
cruel trials, borne with the resignation and serenity of the Saints, she entered into
the sleep of the just on January 9, 1862. Her body rests in the Church of Saint
Polycarp awaiting the honor of being raised to the altars. The process of her
beatification has been under way for a number of years.

he next day, the 10th, she was taken to the Sanctuary a number of times to
participate in various Masses and to receive Holy Communion. She attended the
Evening Office as she had on the Monday. Her sad state was observed by a number
of doctors from Naples who had come for the feast-day celebrations.

Up until that evening she gave no sign of improvement though she later revealed
that she had felt herself healed soon after Communion, but was afraid to announce
it because of the commotion the people would make. However, after Benediction of
the Blessed Sacrament, when the people had left, she rose and walked back to her
lodgings without help. She had truly been cured. When they quickly found out, the
enthusiasm of the public was indescribable. At the second hour of the night, 9:30
p.m. in that season, the church bells pealed out, and the shouts of joy of the crowds
replied. Miss Jaricot had to show herself to satisfy the wishes of the people.

Out of gratitude she took the haven of the daughters of Saint Filumena: The Little
Sisters of Saint Philomena, and added to her name those of Philomena-Maria. The
same gratitude brought her back to Mungano in 1839 for a four day visit. After
cruel trials, borne with the resignation and serenity of the Saints, she entered into
the sleep of the just on January 9, 1862. Her body rests in the Church of Saint
Polycarp awaiting the honor of being raised to the altars. The process of her
beatification has been under way for a number of years.

On January 30, 1837, Gregory XVI issued a solemn pontifical decree confirming the
rescript of the Congregation of Rites authorizing her public cultus and approving the
office, Mass of the Common of a virgin and martyr with a proper fourth lesson at
Matins in honor of Saint Philomena, virgin and martyr on August 11. This papal
approval of public liturgical devotion was first granted to the clergy of the Diocese of
Nola, and later extended to other dioceses, including Rome itself. The fourth lesson
officially inserted into the Breviary in liturgical honor of Saint Philomena on August
11 acknowledges the finding of her remains in the Priscilla catacombs, her martyrdom
status, the rapid spread of her extensive popular devotion amidst the faithful due to
her miraculous intercession, and the permission of Gregory XVI to celebrate
liturgically the office and mass in her honor (as here presented):

DIE XI AUGUSTI
IN FESTO S. PHILUMENAE
Virginis et Martyris
In II NOCTURNO - LECTIO IV

Inter cetera martyrum sepulcra, quae in coemeterio Priscillae ad viam Salariam

reperiri solent, illud exstitit quo repositum fuerat sanctae Philumenae corpus, uti ex
tumuli inscriptione, tribus laterculis apposita, perlegebatur. Licet vero inventa fuerit
phiala sanguinis, et alia descripta conspicerentur martyrii insignia, dolendum tamen
est res ab eadem gestas actaque ac genus martyrii quod ipsa fecit obscura perstitisse.
Ceterum ubi primum sacrum hoc corpus, ex beneficentia Pii septimi initio pontificatus
ejus acceptum, cultui fidelis populi propositum fuit Mugnani in Nolana dioecesi,
ingens illico famae celebritas ac religio erga sanctam martyrem percrebuit, praesertim
ob signa quae ejusdem praesidio accessisse undique ferebatur. Hinc factum est ut
complurium antistitum cultorumque martyris postulationibus permotus Gregorius
decimus sextus pontifex maximus, universa rei ratione mature perpensa, festum
ejusdem cum Officio et Missa in memorata Nolana dioecesi et alibi agendum benigne
permiserit.

C.M Episcop. Praenest. Card. PEDICINIUS;

S. R. E. Vice- C. S.R.C. Praef.;
V. PESCETELLI S. Fidei Promotor.

In sum, Pope Gregory XVI in a papal decree, granted official approbation of the
liturgical cultus and, thereby, official ecclesiastical recognition of the sanctity of Saint
Philomena, virgin and martyr. The Pontiff, fully aware of the absence of any
historical account of the martyr saint “Filumena,” granted to her the privileges of
public liturgical veneration based upon the foundation of the great quantity of
miracles ecclesiastically documented and recognized as having occurred through her
direct intercession.
The official positive decree of Gregory XVI in papal recognition of Saint Philomena’s
status as deserving of liturgical cult reinforces the deeper truth that far more important
than the historical account of Philomena’s earthly life is the historical and documented
account of her powerful intercession for the Church as sanctioned by God himself.
Whoever this early Christian martyr is and whatever constitutes the particular
circumstances of her life and death, God is pleased with prayers of petition offered in
the name of “Saint Philomena,” to which He has responded generously to the
Christian faithful in granting an abundance of heavenly favors.

The historical abundance of miracles attests to God’s desire to encourage devotion to

the person behind the name of Filumena, regardless of the absence of a recorded
history of her earthly life. This primacy of importance of her actual intercession for
the People of God in our own times, over the details of her earthly life in ancient
times, is what the Pope and the Church confirmed in the raising of Saint Philomena to
the level of public liturgical veneration, the beginning of the process of her public
recognition as saint and martyr.

Magisterial Decrees Pertaining To Devotion to Saint Philomena

From the liturgical approval of Gregory XVI to the papal decrees of St. Pius X,
Nineteen acts of the Holy See in the course of five successive pontificates were issued
in positive promotion of popular devotion to Saint Philomena expressed in the form of
elevations in rank of liturgical cultus, the erection of confraternities and
archconfraternities, and the granting of plenary and partial indulgences.

Several acts of the Holy See particularly display the Magisterium’s approval and
encouragement of ecclesial devotion to this Christian saint and martyr. Beyond the
elevation of the rank of the mass and office previously granted by Gregory XVI, Bl.
Pius IX approved a proper mass and office dedicated to Saint Philomena with the
papal confirmation of the previously submitted decree, Etsi decimo on January 31,
1855, a significant liturgical elevation, even though her name was never entered into
the Roman Martyrology. The granting of a proper mass and office to Saint Philomena,
which took place following the return of Bl. Pius IX from a papal pilgrimage to
Mugnano during his forced exile from Rome, was an unprecedented act in honor of a
Christian martyr known only by name and evidence of martyrdom. Bl. Pius IX also
granted plenary and partial indulgences to devotions in honor of Saint Philomena at
the Sanctuary in Mugnano.

Pope Leo XIII granted papal approbation to the Cord of Saint Philomena with several
plenary indulgences in association with its wearing, and accorded the title and
privilege of “archconfraternity” for the respective Philomenian devotion and work in
France. Pope St. Pius X continued the papal succession of encouragement for public
Church devotion by approving the extension of the Archconfraternity of Saint
Philomena to the universal Church.

Far more than one solitary papal act by Gregory XVI, the papal Magisterium has
repeatedly encouraged the nature and growth of ecclesial devotion to Saint
Philomena, in official recognition of her status as a saint, in public liturgical and
devotional sanctions which extended to the universal faith and life of the Church, and
thereby manifesting official and essential liturgical and devotional characteristics of
her status as a saint as defined by the Church.
Hagiographical Testimony
St. John Vianney, beyond any other saint or blessed, manifested an expansive
testimony of faith and documented witness toward the reality of Saint Philomena and
her profound intercessory efficacy. The Curé, as recorded in the canonization process,
attributed all the miracles documented at Ars to have been effected through Saint
Philomena’s intercession; repeatedly spoke of having received apparitions of Saint
Philomena; and directly attributed his own personal miraculous cure from grave
illness to her intercession.

The testimony and cure of Ven. Pauline Jaricot through the intercession of the young
martyr saint has been noted. St. Peter Julian Eymard was cured from serious illness
after having been instructed by Vianney to pray a novena to Saint Philomena. St. Peter
Channel, the first Oceanian martyr, preached of Saint Philomena and referred to her as
his “auxiliary” in his missionary apostolate.

Bl. Damien de Veuster dedicated his first chapel in Molokai to the young saint. Saint
Madeleine Sophie Barat consistently invoked Philomena during difficulties in the
establishment of her societies, and attributed the miraculous cure of a dying novice to
her intercession.
Bl. Anna Maria Taigi, as related in her beatification proceedings, applied oil burned
before the tomb of Saint Philomena to the eye of her grandchild who had been
medically diagnosed with an incurable pupil tear of the eye, and the eye was
immediately healed. Other saints and blesseds who manifested veneration to Saint
Philomena include St. Magdalene of Canossa, Bl. Bartolo Longo, Bl. Annibale Da
Messina, and Bl. Pius IX, who, shortly before his death, sent to Mugnano the chalice
presented to him by the Belgian Federation of Catholic Circles on his golden
Episcopal anniversary as one of several papal votive gifts sent in honor of and
gratitude to Saint Philomena.
The wisdom inherent in sanctity as personified in the lives of the aforementioned
saints and blesseds provides a substantial confirmation of the decrees of the ordinary
Magisterium which granted public ecclesiastical devotion to the martyr saint. Worthy
of particular mention is the significant number of saints and blesseds who
immediately participated in veneration of Philomena within the same half century of
the discovery of her sacred remains, some before any certain statement concerning her
public veneration was issued by Rome.
Note also the predominant importance of the supernatural intervention of miracles in
the Church process of canonization. Without the documented miracles, an individual
cause does not typically advance past the status of “Servant of God,” even with
extensive historical evidence of an earthly life of heroic virtue. The Church places its
greatest emphasis for canonization, along with an essential historical basis, upon
God’s witness to the sanctity of the candidate through the manifestation of miraculous
intercession by the person. It was therefore most appropriate for Gregory XVI to give
far greater importance to the miracles documented to the intercession of Philomena,
rather than to the history of her earthly existence beyond the Church approved criteria
of historically establishing her martyrdom. The present inquiry into the case of Saint
Philomena should follow the same criteria as those followed by Popes Gregory XVI,
Bl. Pius IX, Leo XIII and St. Pius X.

Church Process of Canonization

Note also the predominant importance of the supernatural intervention of miracles in
the Church process of canonization. Without the documented miracles, an individual
cause does not typically advance past the status of “Servant of God,” even with
extensive historical evidence of an earthly life of heroic virtue. The Church places its
greatest emphasis for canonization, along with an essential historical basis, upon
God’s witness to the sanctity of the candidate through the manifestation of miraculous
intercession by the person. It was therefore most appropriate for Gregory XVI to give
far greater importance to the miracles documented to the intercession of Philomena,
rather than to the history of her earthly existence beyond the Church approved criteria
of historically establishing her martyrdom. The present inquiry into the case of Saint
Philomena should follow the same criteria as those followed by Popes Gregory XVI,
Bl. Pius IX, Leo XIII and St. Pius X.

Present Ecclesial Status of Devotion to St. Philomena

Dr. Mark I. Miravalle

Precisely how the Church views the history and nature of devotion attributed
to an early Roman martyr named “Filumena” (or more popularly, “Filomena”[Ital.] or
“Philomena” [Eng.]), a name found inscribed on a catacomb loculus, remains a topic
of considerable discussion and confusion.
The status of devotion to St. Philomena has recently received renewed
attention in light of the recent release of the revised Roman Martyrology by the
Congregation for Divine Worship,1 whereby the omission of St. Philomena was
perceived by some as an official rejection of her status as a saint, somewhat
inconsistent with the fact that she continues to be the object of popular Church
devotion throughout the world.2

1
Roman Martyrology, Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, October
2, 2001.
2
Cf. for example, the universal Archconfraternity granted to St. Philomena by St. Pius X, Apostolic
Brief Pias Fidelium (May 21, 1912), AAS 4, 1912, p. 398.
 What then is the present ecclesial status of this early Church female martyr,
the veneration of whom in the past has been the object of several papal documents
and numerous hagiographical testimonies? In seeking to examine this question, we
will briefly examine the historical origins of devotion; papal and ecclesiastical decrees
regarding the devotion; hagiographical testimonies; the archeological controversy;
and recent Church documents relative to the devotion.

Historical Origins of the Devotion

On May 24, 1802, an excavator in the Catacombs of Priscilla struck a tile and,
as previously instructed by Msgr. Ponzetti, Custodian of the Holy Relics, immediately
ceased the excavation. 3 Fr. Filippo Ludovici, Vatican overseer of the excavation was
informed, and on the following day, May 25, 1802, Fr. Ludovici, accompanied by
several observers, descended into the catacomb, and witnessed the full uncovering of
the loculus,4 whereby with the removal of soil, three brick funeral tiles were revealed
which bore an epitaph painted in red. A vial was found broken in the process of
unsealing the loculus, with a dust of blackish color indicating blood clinging to glass
fragments, and with the lower portion of the vial still intact and firmly embedded in
the cement.5 An engraved palm branch, the other typical sign which designates the
tomb of a martyr along with the blood vial, was observed on the second tile.6
The painted inscription on the three funeral tiles appeared as follows: tile one
- LUMENA; tile two – PAXTE; tile three – CUM FI.7 The loculus was documented
by Msgr. Ponzetti, Custodian of the Holy Relics, as bearing “FILUMENA,” an
interpretation of the epitaph consistent with both the ancient custom of beginning
inscriptions from the second tile and the logical etymological context. The result is a
full reading of the epitaph as “PAX TECUM FILUMENA.”8
The name of “Filumena” is officially granted to the sacred remains examined
on May 25, 1802, as recorded in the document issued by Ponzetti as Custodian of the
Sacred Relics which released the remains of this Christian martyr to the Diocese of
Nola on June 8, 1805:

8 Iunii 1805

Dono dedi Ven. Ecclesiae Archipresbyterali terrae Mugnano Dioecesis

Nolanae corpus Sanctae Christi Martyris

FILUMENAE

Nominis proprii sic picti in tribus Tabulis laterariis cinabro

LUMENA PAXTE CUM FI

in pulverem et in fragmina redactum per me infrascriptum Custodem

extractum cum vasculo vitreo fracto ex Coemeterio Priscillae Via
3
Fr. Francisco de Lucia, Relazione storica della traslazione del corpo di santa Filomena, vergine e
martire, da Roma a Mugnano del Cardinale, Naples, 1824, p. 53.
4
Graves hewn out of rock commonly found in the catacombs.
5
De Lucia, Relazione, op. cit.
6
Ibid.
7
Msgr. Hyacinth Ponzetti, Archivi della Lipsanoteca di Roma, Registro II, June 8, 1805, p. 271.
8
Ponzetti, Archivi, p. 271.
 Salaria Nova die 25 maii 1802, quod collocavi in capsula lignea charta
colorata cooperta et consignavi Illmo Dominico Caesari pro Illmo et
Rmo D. Bartholomaeo de Caesare Epo Potentino.

HYACINTHUS PONZETTI, Custos.9

Fr. Francesco de Lucia, priest from the Church of Our Lady of Grace at
Mugnano del Cardinale in the Diocese of Nola, received the assistance of Msgr.
Bartolomeo de Caesare, Bishop-elect of Nola in obtaining permission from the Holy
See to transfer the sacred remains of the Christian martyr, Filumena to his Mugnano
parish for the purpose of fostering spiritual renewal amidst his faithful. The remains
of Filumena departed from Rome on July 1, 1805 and arrived at Mugnano on August
10, 1805 where they have remained since the transferal.10
The exceptional quantity of miracles which resulted from the petitioning of the
martyr invoked as “Philomena,” initially by the southern Italian faithful, and then
shortly thereafter by peoples of various countries, has been officially documented in
various ecclesiastical recordings. Both the extensive documentation from the St.
Philomena
Shrine at Our Lady of Grace Church in Mugnano,11 and the documentation for the
beatification and canonization processes of John Vianney at Ars, record the
remarkable quantity of miracles attributed to the intercession of St. Philomena, which
included the miraculous cure of Vianney himself.12
In 1833, Bishop Anselmo Basilici of the Diocese of Nepi and Sutri requested a
feast and office in honor of St. Philomena from the Holy See, with the local ordinary
from Nola having prepared a lesson for the breviary in her honor.13 The Basilici
petition received the support of a significant number of Italian bishops, in spite of its
unusual status due to the absence of reference to St. Philomena in any martyrology or
in any other historical account. The loculus name, Filumena, and the ubiquitous
miracles acquired through her intercession as testified by numerous Church
authorities sufficed for many of the Italian hierarchy in substantiating the legitimacy
of the petition.14 On September 6, 1834, the Congregation of Rites submitted to Pope
Gregory XVI the formal request for the approval of the office and mass in honor of
St. Philomena, virgin and martyr, due to the repeated request for this liturgical cult
and veneration by several prelates.15
On June 17, 1835, the Congregation of Rites also concluded positively to a
documented miracle submitted by Bishop Basilici and other bishops and priests,
which testified to a multiplication of bone dust derived from the sacred remains.16 In
the dossier submitted to the Congregation, several bishops and clergy testified to the
9
Ibid.
10
De Lucia, Relazione, 53ff.
11
Cf. Documentation from the Parish Shrine of Mugnano, commencing with de Lucia, Relazione, Vol.
I, p. 1, and continuing with the pastor of Our Lady of Grace Church Rector, Msgr. Gennaro Ippolito,
Memorie e culto di santo Filomena Vergine e martire, Mormile, Naples, 1870, Ch. 25; also pp. 23-24,
256, 277,42-48; cf. also Archives of the Parish of Ars and ecclesiastical records relative to the Process
of Beatification and Canonization of John Vianney and attribution of miracles to St. Philomena,
Process of the Ordinary and Apostolic Processes, e.g., Procès de l’Ordinaire, Aug. 12, 1864, pp. 1325,
334, 179, 751, 1160, 1460, Procès apostolique ne pereant, October 10, 1876, p. 288, 768.
12
Procès de l’Ordinaire, II, p. 1447; Procès apostolique, p. 1215-1216.
13
Ippolito, Memorie, Vol. I, pt. 1.
14
Ibid. Cf. also, Msgr. Francois Trochu, Sainte Philomène, Vierge et Martyre, La “petite Sainte” du
Curé d’Ars, Librairie Catholique Emmanuel Vitte, Lyon-Paris, 1924, p. 121.
15
Rescript of the Sacred Congregation of Rites, September 6, 1834.
inexplicable multiplication of bone dust originating from a few grams (“one pinch”),
which then provided bone dust for hundreds of reliquaries without the original amount
experiencing any decrease in quantity. Other experiments were conducted with
numerous Church and civil witnesses, only to observe and testify to the same
phenomenon of multiplication.17
The documented cure of Ven. Pauline Jaricot, foundress of the Society for the
Propagation of the Faith, which occurred at the Mugnano tomb of Philomena, took
place with proximate involvement and knowledge of Pope Gregory XVI.18 The pontiff
met with Jaricot in Rome while she was gravely ill with heart disease and heard
directly from Jaricot of her intention to travel to Mugnano, for the specific purpose of
petitioning the martyr Philomena for a cure so as to serve as a supernatural
manifestation of God’s desire to have the martyr raised to the liturgical veneration of
the altar. The documented cure took place on August 10, 1835, with a complete and
instantaneous healing of Jaricot with regard to her heart and overall health.19 Jaricot
immediately returned to Rome, during which Pope Gregory observed her for a year to
verify the perdurance of the miraculous healing. This miracle constituted the final
impetus for the Pontiff to sanction the raising of popular devotion of the martyr to the
status of public liturgical veneration in this manifestation of ecclesiastically approved
sanctity.20
On January 30, 1837, Gregory XVI issued a solemn pontifical decree
confirming the rescript of the Congregation of Rites authorizing her public cultus and
approving the office, Mass of the Common of a virgin and martyr with a proper fourth
lesson at Matins in honor of St. Philomena, virgin and martyr on August 11.21 This
papal approval of public liturgical devotion was first granted to the clergy of the
Diocese of Nola, and later extended to other dioceses, including Rome itself.22 The
fourth lesson officially inserted into the Breviary in liturgical honor of St. Philomena
on August 11 acknowledges the finding of her remains in the Priscilla catacombs, her
martyrdom status, the rapid spread of her extensive popular devotion amidst the
faithful due to her miraculous intercession, and the permission of Gregory XVI to
celebrate liturgically the office and mass in her honor (as here presented):

DIE XI AUGUSTI

IN FESTO S. PHILUMENAE
Virginis et Martyris

In II NOCTURNO – LECTIO IV

Inter cetera martyrum sepulcra, quae in coemeterio Priscillae ad viam

Salariam reperiri solent, illud exstitit quo repositum fuerat sanctae
16
Presentation of the dossier of Bishop Basilici to the Sacred Congregation of Rites, June 17, 1835,
presided over by Cardinal Galiffi, vice-Prefect of the Congregation.
17
Ibid., cf. also Trochu, Sainte Philomène, p. 122.
18
Ippolito, Memorie, pp. 243, 55; cf. also Msgr. Deschamps du Manoir, Mugnano et sainte Philomène,
p. 40; M. J. Maurin, Vie nouvelle de P. M. Jaricot, Librairie du Sacré-Cœur, Lyon.
19
Ibid.
20
Cf. Trochu, Sainte Philomène, pp. 127-128.
21
Solemn Decree of Gregory XVI (January 30, 1837), in Papal Approval of the Rescript of the Sacred
Congregation of Rites (September 6, 1834); cf. Ippolito, Memorie, p.122-123; Trochu, Sainte
Philomène, p. 129.
22
Rescript of the Sacred Congregation of Rites (January 15, 1857); Cf. Atwater, ed., Butler’s Lives of
the Saints, Allen, TX, Thomas More, p. 300.
 Philumenae corpus, uti ex tumuli inscriptione, tribus laterculis
apposita, perlegebatur. Licet vero inventa fuerit phiala sanguinis, et
alia descripta conspicerentur martyrii insignia, dolendum tamen est res
ab eadem gestas actaque ac genus martyrii quod ipsa fecit obscura
perstitisse. Ceterum ubi primum sacrum hoc corpus, ex beneficentia
Pii septimi initio pontificatus ejus acceptum, cultui fidelis populi
propositum fuit Mugnani in Nolana dioecesi, ingens illico famae
celebritas ac religio erga sanctam martyrem percrebuit, praesertim ob
signa quae ejusdem praesidio accessisse undique ferebatur. Hinc
factum est ut complurium antistitum cultorumque martyris
postulationibus permotus Gregorius decimus sextus pontifex maximus,
universa rei ratione mature perpensa, festum ejusdem cum Officio et
Missa in memorata Nolana dioecesi et alibi agendum benigne
permiserit.

C.M Episcop. Praenest. Card. PEDICINIUS;

S. R. E. Vice- C. S.R.C. Praef.;
V. PESCETELLI S. Fidei Promotor.23

In sum, Pope Gregory XVI in a papal decree, granted official approbation of

the liturgical cultus and, thereby, official ecclesiastical recognition of the sanctity of
St. Philomena, virgin and martyr. The Pontiff, fully aware of the absence of any
historical account of the martyr saint “Filumena,” granted to her the privileges of
public liturgical veneration based upon the foundation of the great quantity of
miracles ecclesiastically documented and recognized as having occurred through her
direct intercession.
The official positive decree of Gregory XVI in papal recognition of St.
Philomena’s status as deserving of liturgical cult reinforces the deeper truth that far
more important than the historical account of Philomena’s earthly life is the historical
and documented account of her powerful intercession for the Church as sanctioned by
God himself. Whoever this early Christian martyr is and whatever constitutes the
particular circumstances of her life and death, God is pleased with prayers of petition
offered in the name of “St. Philomena,” to which He has responded generously to the
Christian faithful in granting an abundance of heavenly favors.
The historical abundance of miracles attests to God’s desire to encourage
devotion to the person behind the name of Filumena, regardless of the absence of a
recorded history of her earthly life. This primacy of importance of her actual
intercession for the People of God in our own times, over the details of her earthly life
in ancient times, is what the Pope and the Church confirmed in the raising of St.
Philomena to the level of public liturgical veneration, the beginning of the process of
her public recognition as saint and martyr.

Magisterial Decrees pertaining to Devotion to St. Philomena

From the liturgical approval of Gregory XVI to the papal decrees of St. Pius
X, Nineteen acts of the Holy See in the course of five successive pontificates were
issued in positive promotion of popular devotion to St. Philomena expressed in the

23
Approved in the Rescript from the Sacred Congregation of Rites (January 30, 1837); cf. also Trochu,
op. cit., p. 318-319.
form of elevations in rank of liturgical cultus, the erection of confraternities and
archconfraternities, and the granting of plenary and partial indulgences.24
Several acts of the Holy See particularly display the Magisterium’s approval
and encouragement of ecclesial devotion to this Christian saint and martyr. Beyond
the elevation of the rank of the mass and office previously granted by Gregory XVI,25
Bl. Pius IX approved a proper mass and office dedicated to St. Philomena with the
papal confirmation of the previously submitted decree, Etsi decimo on January 31,
1855,26 a significant liturgical elevation, even though her name was never entered into
the Roman Martyrology. The granting of a proper mass and office to St. Philomena,
which took place following the return of Bl. Pius IX from a papal pilgrimage to
Mugnano during his forced exile from Rome,27 was an unprecedented act in honor of
a Christian martyr known only by name and evidence of martyrdom. Bl. Pius IX also
granted plenary and partial indulgences to devotions in honor of St. Philomena at the
Sanctuary in Mugnano.28
Pope Leo XIII granted papal approbation to the Cord of St. Philomena with
several plenary indulgences in association with its wearing,29 and accorded the title
and privilege of “archconfraternity” for the respective Philomenian devotion and work
in France.30 Pope St. Pius X continued the papal succession of encouragement for
public Church devotion by approving the extension of the Archconfraternity of St.
Philomena to the universal Church.31
Far more than one solitary papal act by Gregory XVI, the papal Magisterium
has repeatedly encouraged the nature and growth of ecclesial devotion to St.
Philomena, in official recognition of her status as a saint, in public liturgical and
devotional sanctions which extended to the universal faith and life of the Church, and
thereby manifesting official and essential liturgical and devotional characteristics of
her status as a saint as defined by the Church.

Hagiographical Testimony

St. John Vianney, beyond any other saint or blessed, manifested an expansive
testimony of faith and documented witness toward the reality of St. Philomena and
her
profound intercessory efficacy.32 The Curé, as recorded in the canonization process,
attributed all the miracles documented at Ars to have been effected through St.

24
Cf. for example: Leo XII, Decree of Sacred Congregation of Rites (March 15, 1826); Gregory XVI,
Sacred Congregation of Rites (Sept. 6, 1834; Jan. 30, 1837; March 16, 1839); Bl. Pius IX (Jan. 11,
1855; Jan. 15, 1857; March 18, 1859), Pont. Brief (Dec. 9, 1859); Leo XIII, Pont. Brief (Dec. 15,
1883), (Sept. 24, 1889); Pias Fidelium; cf. also Ippolito, Memorie, pp. 113-117; 165-167.
25
Decree of Sacred Congregation of Rites (March 16, 1839; Jan. 1, 1841).
26
Rescript of the Sacred Congregation of Rites, Papal Confirmation of Promotor of the Faith Brief Etsi
decimo as submitted by Rev. Andrea Fratini (January 31, 1855).
27
On November 7, 1849, Bl. Pius IX pilgrimaged to Mugnano escorted by Ferdinand II, the King of
Naples, in public petition to St. Philomena for his safe return to the Vatican, cf. Trochu, Sainte
Philomène, p. 134; Ippolito, Memorie, p. 116.
28
Sacred Congregation of Indulgences, Pont. Brief (July 3, 1863).
29
Leo XIII, Papal Approbation of Cord of St. Philomena and Indulgences (December 15, 1883).
30
Leo XIII, Papal Approbation of the Archconfraternity of St. Philomena for France (Sept. 24, 1889).
31
Pias Fidelium.
32
Cf. Archives of the Parish of Ars and ecclesiastical records relative to the Process of Beatification and
Canonization of John Vianney and attribution of miracles to St. Philomena, Process of the Ordinary and
Apostolic Processes, e.g., Procès de l’Ordinaire, pp. 334, 179, 751, 1160, 1325, 1460, 1447; Procès
apostolique, pp. 288, 768, 1215-1216; Trochu, Sainte Philomène, p. 197.
Philomena’s intercession;33 repeatedly spoke of having received apparitions of St.
Philomena;34 and directly attributed his own personal miraculous cure from grave
illness to her intercession.35
The testimony and cure of Ven. Pauline Jaricot through the intercession of the
young martyr saint has been noted.36 St. Peter Julian Eymard was cured from serious
illness after having been instructed by Vianney to pray a novena to St. Philomena.37
St. Peter Channel, the first Oceanian martyr, preached of St. Philomena and referred
to her as his “auxiliary” in his missionary apostolate.38 Bl. Damien de Veuster
dedicated his first chapel in Molokai to the young saint.39 Saint Madeleine Sophie
Barat consistently invoked Philomena during difficulties in the establishment of her
societies, and attributed the miraculous cure of a dying novice to her intercession.40
Bl. Anna Maria Taigi, as related in her beatification proceedings, applied oil
burned before the tomb of St. Philomena to the eye of her grandchild who had been
medically diagnosed with an incurable pupil tear of the eye, and the eye was
immediately healed.41 Other saints and blesseds who manifested veneration to St.
Philomena include St. Magdalene of Canossa, Bl. Bartolo Longo, Bl. Annibale Da
Messina, and Bl. Pius IX, who, shortly before his death, sent to Mugnano the chalice
presented to him by the Belgian Federation of Catholic Circles on his golden
Episcopal anniversary as one of several papal votive gifts sent in honor of and
gratitude to St. Philomena.42
The wisdom inherent in sanctity as personified in the lives of the
aforementioned saints and blesseds provides a substantial confirmation of the decrees
of the ordinary Magisterium which granted public ecclesiastical devotion to the
martyr saint. Worthy of particular mention is the significant number of saints and
blesseds who immediately participated in veneration of Philomena within the same
half century of the discovery of her sacred remains, some before any certain statement
concerning her public veneration was issued by Rome.43
Note also the predominant importance of the supernatural intervention of
miracles in the Church process of canonization. Without the documented miracles, an
individual cause does not typically advance past the status of “Servant of God,” even
with extensive historical evidence of an earthly life of heroic virtue. The Church
places its greatest emphasis for canonization, along with an essential historical basis,
upon God’s witness to the sanctity of the candidate through the manifestation of
miraculous intercession by the person. It was therefore most appropriate for Gregory
XVI to give far greater importance to the miracles documented to the intercession of
Philomena, rather than to the history of her earthly existence beyond the Church
approved criteria of historically establishing her martyrdom. The present inquiry into
the case of St. Philomena should follow the same criteria as those followed by Popes
Gregory XVI, Bl. Pius IX, Leo XIII and St. Pius X.

33
Procès de l’Ordinaire, II, p. 1426; 1374.
34
Procès de l’Ordinaire, p. 253-254; Procès apostolique, p. 234.
35
Procès de l’Ordinaire, II, p. 1447; Procès apostolique, pp. 1215-1216.
36
Ippolito, Memorie, pp. 243, 55; cf. also du Manoir, Mugnano et sainte Philomène, p. 40; Maurin, Vie
nouvelle.
37
Le Serviteur de Dieu, Pierre-Julien Eymard, Vatican, 1903, p. 24.
38
Cf. Trochu, Sainte Philomène, p. 216
39
Ibid., p. 217.
40
Geoffroy de Grandmaison, La bienheureuse Mère Barat, Gabalda, 1909, p. 198.
41
Fr. Gabriel Bouffier, S.J., La Vènèrable Servante de Dieu, Anna-Maria Taigi, Paris, pp. 125-126.
42
Cf. Ippolito, Memorie, p. 116; Trochu, Sainte Philomène, p. 137.
43
For example, St. John Vianney, Ven. Pauline Jaricot, and Bl. Anna Maria Taigi
Archeological Controversy

Archeologist Oracio Marucchi introduced controversy into the status of

devotion to St. Philomena with a 1906 publication, “Osservazioni archeologiche sulla
Iscrizione di S. Filomena”44 in which Marucchi put forth the following theory:

1. Concerning the unusual word order on the three tiles, “LUMENA

PAXTE CUMFI” the three tiles were purposely re-arranged on the
loculus to indicate that this was a case of a re-using of the original
tiles for the remains of a different person.
2. The tiles were originally used to close in the remains of one called
“Filumena,” from the middle to the end of the second century, and
later used again for the loculus of another young maiden during the
fourth century, which was a time of peace for Christianity.
3. The person designated by the inscription was likely, but not
certainly, a martyr.45

The theory of Marucchi was immediately responded to by a professor of the

Gregoriana, Guiseppe Bonavenia, S.J., (along with Catacomb scientist J. B. De Rossi,
a renowned expert in early Christian archeology) 46 in his Controversia sul
celeberrimo epitaffio di Santa Filomena, V. e M.47 Fr. Bonavenia and others offered
the following refutation of Marucchi’s theory:

1. It was frequently the custom in the catacombs to start the epitaph

on the second tile, and hence the inscription is properly read (as it
was by Msgr. Ponzetti, Custodian of the Sacred Relics), “PAX
TECUM FILUMENA” (“Peace to you, Philomena”).
2. The tomb digger, not able to write the entire name on the first tile
and to conserve the proportions of his writing, proceeded to write
the “FI” on the last tile and the “LUMENA” on the first.
3. At least 12 catacombs located in the Priscilla catacombs begin with
“PAX TECUM”, “PAX TIBI” or IN PACE.”
4. The tiles are at least of the third century, and not from the first or
second centuries (which would include the persecution of
Diocletian) and thus not from a time of peace.
5. There is only one known case posed by Marucchi as similar to
Filumena’s, where two tiles were placed in the wrong order due to
the re-using of marble (not brick) tiles from different original
graves, but the circumstances were substantially different. In the
case of “Noeti,” the two tablets are from two different original
slabs of marble; the handwriting is not the same on the two slabs
but clearly written by two different persons; and the red inscribing
is of different hue on each slab. In Filumena’s case, the three tiles
44
As found in Miscellanea di Storia Ecclesiastica, Vol. 2, 1904, pp. 365-386; and thematically
continued in Nuovo Bullettino di arch. Crist., Vol. 12, 1906, pp. 253-300.
45
Ibid.
46
J.B. De Rossi, Inscriptiones christianae, Rome.
47
Bonavenia, S.J., Controversia sul celeberrimo epitaffio di Santa Filomena V. e M., Roma, Filiziani,
(1906); and continued in La questione puramente archeologica (1907); cf. also the refutation of
Marucchi’s theory by Trochu, Sainte Philomène, p. 256 ff.
 all possess the same handwriting, the same color, and the same
brick material, all of which give no indications of being re-used
and thereby not a valid comparison with the re-use evident in the
Noeti loculus.
6. In response to the claim of tile re-use from another grave, it would
have been just as easy for the mason to use the other side of the
tile, as there was nothing written on it, or to erase the “FI” or to
simply turn it upside or to leave it in an incoherent form rather than
re-use two other tiles. But, in fact, the meaning of the inscription
remained essentially clear even with the tile order changed, as it
was instantly and correctly understood by the custodians of the
Holy Relics to signify “PAX TECUM FILUMENA.”48
7. The conclusions of Prof. Marucchi regarding the dating and re-use
of the tiles were made without Marucchi making a single on-site
scientific or archeological examination of either tiles or catacomb
site. Examination of the archeological site and the tiles would have
revealed the claim of tile dating and re-use in the case of Filumena
to be erroneous and without any empirical foundation.49

Another theory for the tile order was put forth by Trochu, and described in the
following scenario:

A young martyr is being buried. The loculus has been carved in the
usual manner, a little higher at the head side than at the feet. The
mason chooses two tiles he thinks will be sufficient to seal the tomb.
He breaks the larger one into two smaller pieces. Now he has three
tiles. He lays them down and writes the inscription. This having been
completed, he starts the work of putting the tiles in place. At this point
he realizes that because of the difference in height from one side of the
tomb to the other, the last tile on which he had written “LUMENA” is
not tall enough to seal the grave. To close a 3 centimeter gap along a
length of 57 centimeters would be very difficult. Certainly it would be
an unappealing idea to rewrite the whole inscription. His solution,
therefore, is to change the order of the tiles so that the largest tile, with
“CUM FI” inscribed on it, is placed at the head to cover the largest
opening (at the far right) and the most important tile, the tile with
“PAX TE” written on it, is placed in the middle. 50

The plausibility of this scenario is manifest, according to Bonavenia, when the

tiles, now at Mugnano, are examined. The two tiles that are supposed to have been
split fit each other perfectly. There is no doubt they originally formed one large tile.
None of the tiles on Filumena’s grave show any of the usual damage or mismatching
(as in the Noeti case) that is normal for tiles that have been reused, signs that
Marruchi himself said are always present in cases of tile reuse. Moreover, Bonavenia

48
Cf. Trochu, Sainte Philomène, p. 286, fn. 1.
49
Cf. also the summation of several archeological contributions which offer refutations of the Marucchi
theory in Trochu, Sainte Philomène, pp. 255-315.
50
Trochu, Sainte Philomène, pp. 283-284.
further concludes that the idea posited by Marruchi, that “FILUMENA” was cut in
two and the tile “PAX TE” put in the middle, is untenable.51
A moral argument in favor of the authenticity of the tomb of St. Philomena,
was offered in an earlier work by H. Leclercq.52 He argued that the catacombs under
Rome are very large, in keeping with the Christian conception of immortality. They
had an extreme reverence for each and every Christian body, whether a martyr or not.
It was because of their hope for future glory that each body was treated as special,
given its own burial spot and why it was forbidden for Christians to open a tomb,
either to put one body on top of another, or to disturb a grave in any way. Now, if we
were to accept the Marruchi hypothesis, then one would have to accept: a) an epitaph
from a first century Christian named Philomena was used for another anonymous
Christian's grave in the fourth century; b) that the first person was therefore removed
from her grave and c) that this person was removed despite there being room in the
lower parts of the catacombs for new bodies. Why would Christians commit these acts
that had been forbidden as sacrilegious and against all tradition and belief? Morally,
they would not.53
More recent archeological study has provided additional clarity regarding the
shortcomings of the Marucchi theory. Jesuit archeologist Fr. Antonio Ferrua,
Secretary of the Pontifical Commission of Sacred Archeology and Professor of
Archeology at the Gregorian University conducted an examination of the tiles and
catacomb site in 1963 and issued the following conclusion:

The hypothesis of Marucchi, that three tiles with their inscription came
from another tomb and were sealed into the second with the inscription
out of order is not sustainable to illustrate that the epitaph does not
apply to her:

1. Because in that case one would be able to observe on them some

traces of the second application of lime (examiners up to this point
have all concluded to only one sealing).
2. During the process of going from first to second usage, chips
would have been very likely made to the edges of the brick tile.
Two, in particular, come from one complete bipedal54 which has
been split in two. They continue to have sound and undamaged
matching edges along the side of the fracture.
3. Marble slabs are often re-used (being valuable material), but not
pieces of brick, particularly if already written upon. In any case,
where it was desired to avoid the danger of error, the precaution
would have been taken of turning the written face inwards (as
usually happens when re-using wooden planks). In this way, the
inconvenience of having to put new over old would also be
eliminated.
4. Finally, it would be rather unusual and surprising that all three re-
used bricks came from one and the same (previous) grave.

51
Cf. Trochu, Sainte Philomène, p. 285.
52
Manuel d'archéologie chrétienne, Paris, Letouzey, 1907, t. I, p. 220; N.B. This moral argument
continues to possess its own merit, despite the author’s eventual change in position.
53
Ibid.
54
Roman brick tiles approximately two feet in length.
 In conclusion, the hypothesis put forth by Marucchi is of an abstract
orientation, improbable, and contrary to the ordinary method of
procedure of the grave diggers of ancient times. From this
examination, solidly founded on facts, the [Marucchi] hypothesis
cannot be accepted as true.55

During the time when the “Philomena controversy” arose at the beginning of
the twentieth century, Fr. Louis Petit, Director of the “Work of St. Philomena” in
France was received by St. Pius X in papal audience on June 6, 1907, during which
St. Pius X reportedly commented on the controversy. While Petit’s recorded account
of the pontiff’s oral comments cannot be officially verified, the reported statement
nonetheless offers valid theological observations:

I am very saddened by all that is being written about her. How can
such things be possible?…How can they not see that the great
argument in favor of devotion to St. Philomena is the Curé of Ars?
Through her, in her name, by means of her intercession, he obtained
countless graces, continual wonders. His devotion to her was well
known by everyone; he recommended her constantly…
We read the name, Filumena, on her tomb. Whether it be her
own name or whether she has another, what does it matter? It remains,
it is certain, that the soul which animated those sacred remains was a
pure and holy soul that the Church has declared to be the soul of a
virgin and martyr. That soul was so beloved by God, so pleasing to the
Holy Spirit, that she has obtained the most wonderful graces for those
who have had recourse to her intercession.56

Apart from archeological differences of opinion, the classic ecclesial criterion

for identifying Christian martyrdom, the vial of blood and the palm branch
inscription, are historically documented to be found at the loculus of Filumena.57 The
future Benedict XIV quotes Pope Clement IX in a decree of April 10, 1668 in
confirmation that the blood vial and the palm image truly constitute the findings of a
martyr: “Censuit Sacra Congregatio, re diligentius examinata, palmam et vas illorum
(martyrum) tinctum pro signis certissimis habenda esse.”58 The December 10, 1863
Decree of the Congregation of Rites under Bl. Pius IX further confirmed the statement
of Clement IX: “Philias vitreas aut figulinas sanguine tinctas, quae ad loculus
sepultorum in sanctis coemeteriis vel intus vel extra ipsos reperiuntur, censeri debere
martyrii signum.”59
Therefore, the identification of Filumena by the Holy See’s Custodian of
Relics as a Christian martyr is, by explicit Church criteria, true and accurate. The
further theological rationale contained in the reported comments of St. Pius X are
worthy of summation: 1. the witness of St. John Vianney makes clear the modern
55
Fr. Ferrua, S.J., Archeological Study of the Bipedals of St. Philomena, Rome, November 29, 1963,
Archives of Mugnano Sanctuary. For more recent archeological studies countering the Marucchi
theory, cf. Prandi, Mustilli, and Guarducci, Graffiti di S. Pietro, I, p. 501; George Mauter Markhof,
Das unbequeme Wunder, kirchenstreit um Fhilomena, Vienna, 1981.
56
Rev. Louis Petit, Messager de sainte Philomène, July 1907, pp. 356-363; Trochu, Sainte Philomène,
pp. 141-142.
57
Ponzetti, Archivi, R. II, p. 271.
58
Benedict XIV, De beatif., lib. IV, pars II, 27.
59
Rescript of the Sacred Congregation of Rites (Dec. 10, 1863).
historical reality of St. Philomena and the exceptional spiritual efficacy of devotion to
her; 2. whether Filumena is her accurate name or not is secondary to the fact that the
person of these sacred remains was a person declared by the Church as a virgin and
martyr; 3. this person was so beloved by God that she has been granted the ability to
intercede for extraordinary graces for those who invoke her intercession.
Properly understood, these theological and historical facts should place the
questionable and secondary archeological objections in a properly subordinate
position.

Recent Church documents

In a surprising act which ran contrary to the historical succession of papal

magisterial encouragement of public liturgical veneration for the martyr saint, the
Congregation of Rites issued a 1961 instruction removing St. Philomena from
liturgical calendars.60 The instruction was issued without rationale for the liturgical
action, but common theological opinion concluded to the lack of historicity
concerning St. Philomena’s origins, coupled with doubts prompted by the
archeological controversy initiated by Marucchi.61
It is important to note that the 1961instruction was a liturgical directive and
not an ecclesial declaration that St. Philomena was no longer a saint; nor did it
prohibit popular devotion to St. Philomena, which has received repeated approbation
by the papal Magisterium. The liturgical directive was not accompanied with any
suspension or prohibition of the universal status of the Archconfraternity of St.
Philomena granted by St. Pius X. Public devotion to St. Philomena continued with the
full approval of the Holy See and of the Ordinary of the Diocese of Nola where the
Mugnano Sanctuary is located and continues to function, as well as other devotional
centers throughout the world.
Popular devotion to St. Philomena continued in the Church after the 1961
instruction, resting upon the solid precedence and foundation of numerous papal
approbations.62

Revised Roman Martyrology

More recently, the revised publication of the Roman Martyrology by the

Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments in 2001
became the occasion for renewed discussion of the ecclesial status of St. Philomena.
The omission of St. Philomena in the revised Roman Martyrology was once again
interpreted by various media sources as implying that St. Philomena was no longer a
saint recognized by the Church.
Several points must be kept in mind regarding St. Philomena and her omission
from the revised Roman Martyrology:

60
Congregation of Rites, AAS 53, 1961, pp. 168ff.
61
Cf. for example, Atwater ed., Butler’s Lives, p. 301-2.
62
The same theme of “continue as before” regarding popular devotions to St. Philomena after this 1961
liturgical directive was contained in an oral statement of Pope Paul VI as recorded by Bishop
Fernandes of Mysore, India, and Ordinary of the Cathedral of St. Philomena in India. In a 1964 letter
sent to the Mugnano Shrine by Bishop Fernandes, he testifies to the response given by Pope Paul VI,
between the sessions of the Second Vatican Council, to the question: “What must I do for the people in
my diocese who are greatly troubled by the decree of the Sacred Congregation regarding St.
Philomena?” Paul VI responded “do not let it disturb you and do not disturb your people; let devotion
to St. Philomena continue as before ” (“proseguiva come prima”), Mugnano Archives, 1964.
 1. St. Philomena, as previously stated, was never included into the
former
Roman martyrologies, even while the papal Magisterium granted
the public liturgical veneration, plenary indulgences, and
universal approbation to the archconfraternity ecclesiastically
erected in her honor.63
2. The Roman Martyrology does not constitute a comprehensive
compilation of every saint and martyr recognized by the Church,
and was never introduced by the Congregation for Divine Worship
and the Discipline of the Sacraments as such.
3. The continuation of popular devotion at the Mugnano Shrine with
the direct approval of the bishop ordinary of the Diocese of Nola,
juxtaposed with the still flourishing worldwide devotion in honor
of St. Philomena as manifested in the universal archconfraternity
continues with complete ecclesiastical approval, and has moreover

experienced significant worldwide renewal in the past decade.64

Any conclusion, therefore, which seeks to negate popular devotion to St.

Philomena on the basis of her omission in the revised Roman Martyrology would be
theologically erroneous and contrary to existing ecclesiastically sanctioned devotional
practice to the martyr saint.

Present Ecclesial Status

An authentic evaluation of the present ecclesial status of devotion to St.

Philomena would be founded upon the following conclusions as previously discussed:

1. The remains of Filumena were designated as belonging to a

Christian virgin and martyr by Msgr. Ponzetti, Custodian of the
Sacred Relics for the Holy See on May 25, 1802.65

2. The public cultus of St. Philomena, virgin and martyr, was

approved in a pontifical decree of Pope Gregory XVI on January
30, 1837, with the approval of the office, mass of common of a
virgin and martyr and fourth lesson proper in honor of St.
Philomena on August 11.66

63
Cf. Solemn Decree of Gregory XVI (January 30, 1837) in Papal Approval of the Rescript of the
Sacred Congregation of Rites (September 6, 1834); Leo XIII, Papal Approbation of Cord of St.
Philomena and Indulgences (December 15, 1883); Pias Fidelium.
64
Fr. Giovanni Braschi, Rector of the Mugnano Shrine, has documented substantial and widespread
increase in national and international pilgrimages to the shrine, the extent of which has necessitated
major reconstruction at the shrine for the extended housing of pilgrims (completed Sept., 2002);
archconfraternity chapters have multiplied internationally reaching all five continents, with accentuated
increase coming from the British Isles (Ireland, Scotland, Great Britain), the Philippines, and the
several locales within the United States; cf. Mugnano newsletters, e-mail dispatches, 2000-2002.
65
Ponzetti, Archivi, p. 271.
 3. Nineteen acts of the Holy See during the pontificates of five popes
were issued in positive promotion of popular devotion to St.
Philomena, in the forms of liturgical cultus, archconfraternities,
plenary and partial indulgences.67

4. Numerous saints, blesseds, and venerables have testified to the

reality and exceptional intercessory power of St. Philomena,
including Ven. Pauline Jaricot, Bl. Anna Maria Taigi, St. Peter
Julian Eymard, St. Peter Chanel, St. Madeline Sophie Barat, St.
Magdalene of Canossa, Bl. Bartolo Longo, Bl. Pope Pius IX, St.
Pius X, and especially St. John Vianney.68

5. The archeological conclusions of Marucchi which placed in doubt

the authenticity of the remains of St. Philomena have received
significant refutation by Bonavenia, De Rossi, and others at the
time of the controversy, and more recently by Fr. Antonio Ferrua,
S.J., Secretary of the Pontifical Commission of Sacred
Archeology.69

6. Neither the 1961 directive of the Congregation of Rites to remove

St.
Philomena from the calendar, nor her omission in the revised
Roman
Martyrology negatively affect the papally established and
ecclesiastically approved popular devotion to St. Philomena that
continues with Church sanction in our own day.70

Moreover, if we examine the present Church process of beatification and

canonization, we find the following stages: 1. the heroic virtue or martyrdom of the
Servant of God must be historically established; when that is accomplished the
Servant of God is referred to as “Venerable”; 2. for beatification a miracle must be
attributed to the direct intercession of the Servant of God; beatification then permits,
by papal decree, restricted public veneration in a particular, limited sphere of the
Church such as in particular dioceses, countries or religious communities (usually in
the form of a mass and office issued in honor of the blessed); 3. another post-
beatification miracle must be attributed to the blessed, which occurred after the
process of beatification, whereby public veneration is, by precept, extended to the
66
Solemn Decree of Gregory XVI (January 30, 1837) in Papal Approval of the Rescript of the Sacred
Congregation of Rites (September 6, 1834).
67
Cf. Solemn Decree of Gregory XVI (January 30, 1837) in Papal Approval of the Rescript of the
Sacred Congregation of Rites (September 6, 1834); Leo XIII, Papal Approbation of Cord of St.
Philomena and Indulgences (December 15, 1883); Pias Fidelium.
68
Cf. Procès de l’Ordinaire, pp. 334, 179, 751, 1160, 1325, 1460, 1447; Procès apostolique, pp. 288,
768, 1215-1216; Trochu, Sainte Philomène, p. 197; Ippolito, Memorie, pp. 243, 55; cf. also du Manoir,
p. 40; Maurin, Vie nouvelle; Pierre-Julien Eymard, p. 24; de Grandmaison, Mère Barat, p. 198;
Bouffier, Anna-Maria Taigi, pp. 125-126.
69
De Rossi, Inscriptiones christianae; Bonavenia, Controversia, and La questione; cf. also the
summation of several archeological contributions which offer refutations of the Marucchi theory in
Trochu, Sainte Philomène, pp. 255-315; Bonavenia, Letter to Mgr. Joseph Cascioli; Ferrua,
Archeological Study; cf. Prandi, Mustilli, and Guarducci, Graffiti, I, p. 501; Markhof, Das unbequeme
Wunder.
70
Cf. footnote 64.
universal Church by the pontiff.71 Besides the process of formal canonization, there is
also “equivalent canonization,” whereby the formal canonical process has not been
introduced, but the Servant of God has received more than one hundred years of
public veneration and whose sanctity is recognized by the pope.72
If we apply these contemporary criteria for beatification and canonization to
the case of St. Philomena in a more speculative manner, we find: 1. the discovery of
the blood vial and the palm branch symbol at her loculus, indicating Christian
martyrdom, one of the two criteria for the first stage of canonization (which actually
constitutes the highest form of heroic virtue); 2. great numbers of documented
miracles which took place at the Mugnano Shrine from 1805 to 1837, inclusive of the
papally witnessed miraculous cure of Pauline Jaricot, which led to Gregory XVI’s
decree granting public liturgical cultus to the particular region of Nola (comparable to
the liturgical cultus granted to a “blessed”); and 3. a second great quantity of miracles
which were recorded in Church proceedings, both in Mugnano and in Ars, miracles
which occurred in a time period following the granting of particular public veneration,
and which included the miraculous cure of St. John Vianney.
The papal elevation and extension of the public liturgical cultus of St.
Philomena from Nola to other parts of the world, which included the extension of her
mass and office to Rome and other dioceses under Bl. Pius IX (Jan. 15, 1857), the
erection of the
archconfraternity and granting of plenary indulgences in France by Leo XIII (Sept.
24, 1889), and the extending of the archconfraternity of St. Philomena to the universal
Church (Pias Fidelium, May 21, 1912), illustrate papal approval for universal cultus
and veneration of St. Philomena, a universal veneration only appropriate, by the
Church’s own standards, to the status of a saint. The words of St. Pius X in his
apostolic brief which promulgated universal public devotion to St. Philomena through
the archconfraternity indicate a papal intention of permanence for that universal
veneration of St. Philomena by the Christian faithful throughout the world: “We
decree that the present affirmations are and remain always firm, valid, and in effect; in
this way, it must be regularly judged; and if anything proceeds in a contrary manner, it
will be null and void, whatever its authority may be.”73
The norms for beatification and canonization and their implementation during
the pontificate of John Paul II also bear relevance to the question of the ecclesial
status of St. Philomena. In the 1983 Apostolic Constitution, Divinus Perfectionis
Magister, John Paul reiterates through his implementation of norms that either
martyrdom or heroic virtue has to be historically established for the process of
beatification of the candidate, but not both. Therefore a miracle is no longer required
for the beatification of a martyr, but is still required for a non-martyred confessor of
faith.74 Once martyrdom has been historically verified, the candidate can be
immediately beatified without further evidence of a miracle or extended historical
documentation of an earthly life of heroic virtue. These revised norms would, in
themselves, establish Philomena as a blessed solely in virtue of her historically
documented martyrdom, with the subsequent requirement of a documented miracle

71
John Paul II, Apostolic Constitution Divinus Perfectionis Magister (January 25, 1983); cf. also
Canonization Process, Release of the Holy See Press Office, September 12, 1997.
72
Cf. T. Ortolan, DTC, 2.2: 1634-42; E. Dublanchy, DTC, 4.2:2186-87; Benedict XIV, De servorum
Dei beatificatione et beatorum canonizatione, Vol. 4, (Prato 1839-42); Green, Canonization, NCE, Vol.
3, p. 61.
73
Pias Fidelium, (May 21, 1912), AAS 4, 1912, p. 398.
74
Divinus Perfectionis Magister, p. 3; cf. also Canonization Process, n. 5.
necessary for formal canonization being easily fulfilled in light of her numerous
miracles.
Of the four hundred sixty four saints canonized by John Paul II,75
approximately eighty percent have been martyrs,76 which shows the pontiff’s concern
to offer our contemporary age human witnesses to the primacy of eternity over this
life, the transcendence of vision towards Heaven over the immanentism which seems
to infect much of our present society of materialism, secularism, and even atheism.
Certainly, the witness of a young female martyr, icon of virginal purity and fidelity,
would likewise speak to the contemporary need for exemplars of young sanctity and
purity, especially for the youth of today.
The origins of the public veneration of the saints in general must also be kept
in mind in the assessment of St. Philomena. In the primitive Church, martyrs were
immediately recognized as witnessing to the perfection of Christian life on earth,
having shown the ultimate proof of their love for Christ by the offering of their lives.
By the sacrifice of their lives for Christ, they attained Heaven in eternal glory and
were indissolubly united to the Lord, the Head of the Mystical Body. The faithful still
under persecution invoked their intercession to obtain the grace to imitate their saintly
example. The veneration of the martyrs had, from its historical outset, all essential
characteristics
of public veneration, including the placing of the date and place of martyrdom upon a
public calendar which was observed and celebrated by the entire Christian
community. This was certainly distinguished from the sad memorials upon the death
of other Christians, as the martyrs were publicly venerated with joy upon the day of
their deaths.77
It was only near the end of the Roman persecutions that the public veneration
offered to martyrs was then extended to confessores fidei who, while not dying for the
faith, had nonetheless defended and suffered for the faith in heroic ways. Still later
was public veneration extended to Christians who had exhibited exceptional holiness
in charity, penance, evangelical works, or in the elucidation of doctrine.78
This pre-eminence of public veneration for the holiness of martyrdom as
expressed in the primitive Church must be acknowledged in assessing the public
veneration due today to a young female martyr, whose martyrdom is, once again,
historically assured by the official criteria of the Holy See, and whose subsequent
plethora of miracles offer the supernatural indication and confirmation from God that
the Church strictly requires for modern formal canonization. While a comprehensive
historical account of a candidate for canonization is legitimate in seeking to establish
the heroic virtue required for a confessor, it should not, by primitive as well as
contemporary standards, be required for the declaration of the sanctity of a Christian
martyr. When historical requirements beyond the establishment of martyrdom are
posed as impediments to the public veneration of a martyr as a “saint,” these stray
from the ecclesiastical principles for sanctity, both ancient and current. Martyrdom
and miracles, not extended personal history, comprise the essence of canonization for
those who have shed blood for Christ.

75
Total number of saints canonized by John Paul II as of October 7, 2002.
76
This total includes 103 Korean martyrs (1984); 117 martyrs of Vietnam (1988); and 120 Chinese
martyrs (2000); cf. also S. Bunson, The Saints of John Paul II, Our Sunday Visitor, 1999.
77
Cf. H. Delehaye, Les Origines du culte des martyres, Brussels, 1933; F. Gagna, De processu
canonizationis a primis ecclesiae saeculisusque ad Codicem iuris caonici, Rome, 1940; P. Molinari,
Canonization of Saints, NCE, Vol. 3, p. 55.
78
Ibid.
 In conclusion, popular devotion to St. Philomena, virgin and martyr, is
presently alive and well amidst the People of God, enjoying positive ecclesial status
and generously increasing veneration. The wisdom of past popes and saints
recognized that the “history” of Philomena’s powerful supernatural intercession for
the Church was more important than the “history” of her earthly life. Such is the
manifestation of the mysterious ways of God’s salvific design.
The Church today has received from Pope John Paul II the missio for the new
evangelization in this third millennium of Christianity.79 With the recent canonization
of St. Padre Pio of Pietrelcina, thaumaturgus of the twentieth century, how efficacious
it would be for the People of God and the successful implementation of the new
evangelization to have recourse, through a renewed public liturgical veneration, to St.
Philomena, whom Pope Gregory XVI rightly designated as the “Thaumaturga of the
nineteenth century.”80

May the young virgin martyr, powerful with God, become, once again, a
favored patroness of sanctity and purity, particularly for the youth of today.

Mark Miravalle, S.T.D.

Professor of Theology and Mariology
Franciscan University of Steubenville
October 7, 2002
Feast of Our Lady of the Rosary

© Copyright Mark I. Miravalle, 2002

Santa Filomena
Receipt

79
John Paul II, Encyclical Novo Millennio Ineunte (January 6, 2001).
80
Cf. de Lucia, Relazione, Vol. I, pt. I.
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The Story of St. Philomena

Three separate individuals in different parts of Italy, and completely unknown to each other,
began receiving details of the life of St. Philomena through various modes of private
revelation. The most well-known of these were locutions received by Mother Luisa di Gesu
in August, 1833. These locutions were granted the official Imprimatur by the Holy Office
that same year, December 21, 1833.
Mother Luisa had been praying before a statue of St. Philomena when she thought she heard
a voice tell her the specific date of death (August 10) of Philomena and specific details of
her journey from Rome to Mugnano, details as yet unknown to the public. Mother Luisa,
fearing she was experiencing an illusion, increased her prayer and fasting. Under obedience
to her Superior in whom she had confided, she observed complete silence during the
revelations. Mother Luisa’s Superior then wrote to Fr. Di Lucia, reporting the revelations
and asking him to confirm the veracity of the specific details reportedly revealed by St.
Philomena. Fr. Di Lucia confirmed every detail and requested that the nun “be open” to any
additional revelations pertaining to the life of St. Philomena. Again under obedience, Mother
Luisa prayed to St. Philomena for further information and immediately the “same voice”
began revealing the historical facts of the life of the 4th century martyr.

The following is the account of the life of St. Philomena as taken from the official account of
Fr. Di Lucia’s Relazione Istorici di Santa Filomena and subsequent annals.

My dear sister, I am the daughter of a Prince who governed a small state in Greece. My
mother was also of royal blood. My parents were without children. They were idolaters.
They continually offered sacrifices and prayers to their false gods. A doctor from Rome,
named Publius, lived in the palace in the service of m father. This doctor professed
Christianity. Seeing the affliction of my parents, by the impulse of the Holy Spirit, he spoke
to them of Christianity and promised to pray for them if they consented to receive Baptism.
The grace which accompanied his words enlightened their understanding and triumphed
over their will. They became Christians and obtained the long desired happiness that Publius
had assured them as the reward of their conversion. At the moment of my birth, they gave
me the name of “Lumina”, an allusion to the light of Faith of which I had been, as it were,
the fruit. The day of my Baptism they called me “Philomena”. Daughter of Light, because
on that day I was born to the Faith. The affection which my parents bore me was so great
that they would have me always with them.

It was on this account that they took me to Rome on a journey that my father was obliged to
make on the occasion of an unjust war with which he was threatened by the haughty
Diocletian. I was then thirteen years old. On our arrival in the capital of the world, we
proceeded to the palace of the Emperor and were admitted for an audience. As soon as
Diocletian saw me, his eyes were fixed upon me. He appeared to be prepossessed in this
manner during the entire time that my father was stating with animated feelings everything
that could serve for his defense. As soon as Father had ceased to speak, the Emperor desired
him to be disturbed no longer, to banish all rear, to think only of living in happiness. These
are the Emperor’s words, “I shall place at your disposal all the force of the Empire. I ask
only one thing, that is the hand of your daughter.”

My father dazzled with an honor he was far from expecting, willingly acceded on the spot to
the proposal of the Emperor. When we returned to our own dwelling, Father and Mother did
all they could to induce me to yield to Diocletian’s wishes and to theirs. I cried. “Do you
wish that for the love of a man I should break the promise I have made to Jesus Christ? My
virginity belongs to Him. I can no longer dispose of it.”

“But you were young then, too young,” answered my father, “to have formed such an
engagement.” He joined the most terrible threats to the command that he gave me to accept
the hand of Diocletian. The grace of my God rendered me invincible. My father, not being
able to make the Emperor relent, in order to disengage himself from the promise he had
given, was obliged by Diocletian to bring me to the Imperial Chamber. I had to withstand for
sometime beforehand a new attack from my father’s anger. My mother, uniting her efforts to
his, endeavored to conquer my resolution. Caresses, threats, everything was employed to
reduce me to compliance. At last I saw both of my parents fall at my knees and say to me
with tears in their eyes, “My child, have pity on your father, your mother, your country, our
country, our subjects.”

“No, no!” I answered. “My virginity, which I have vowed to God, comes before everything,
before you, before my country. My kingdom is Heaven.”

My words plunged them into despair and they brought me before the Emperor who, on his
part, did all in his power to win me. But his promises, his allurements, his threats, were
equally useless. He then got into a violent fit of anger and, influenced by the devil, had me
cast into one of the prisons of the palace, where I was loaded with chains. Thinking that pain
and shame would weaken the courage with which my Divine Spouse inspired me, he came
to see me every day. After several days, the Emperor issued an order for my chains to be
loosed that I might take a small portion and bread and water. He renewed his attacks, some
of which, if not for the grace of God, would have been fatal to purity. The defeats which he
always experienced were for me to preludes to new tortures. Prayer supported me. I ceased
not to recommend myself to Jesus and His most pure Mother.

My captivity lasted thirty-seven days. Then, in the midst of a heavenly light I saw Mary
holding her Divine Son in her arms. “My daughter.” She said to me, “three days more of
prison and after forty days you shall leave this state of pain.”

Such happy news renewed my courage to prepare for the frightful combat awaiting. The
Queen of Heaven reminded me of the name I had received in Baptism saying, “You are
Lumina, as your Spouse is called Light or Sun. Fear not, I will aid you. Now, nature, whose
weakness asserts itself, is humbling you. In the moment of struggle, grace will come to you
to lend its force. The angel who is mine also, Gabriel, whose name expresses force, will
come to your succor. I will recommend you especially to his care.”

The vision disappeared leaving m prison scented with a fragrance like incense. I experienced
a joy out of his world. Something indefinable. What the Queen of Angels had prepared for
me was soon experienced. Diocletian, despairing of bending me, decided upon public
chastisement to offend my virtue. He condemned me to be stripped and scourged like the
Spouse I preferred to him. These were his horrifying words, “Since she is not ashamed to
prefer to an Emperor like me, as malefactor condemned to an infamous death by his own
people, she deserves that my justice shall treat her as he was treated.”

The prison guards hesitated to unclothe me entirely, but they did tie me to a column in the
presence of the great men of the court. They lashed me with violence until I was bathed in
blood. My whole body felt like one open wound but I did not faint. The tyrant had me
dragged back to the dungeon expecting me to die. I hoped to join my heavenly Spouse. Two
angels shining with light appeared to me in the darkness. They poured a soothing balm on
my wounds, bestowing on me a vigor I did not have before the torture. When the Emperor
was informed of the change that had come over me, he had me brought before him. He
viewed me with a greedy desire and tried to persuade me that I owed my healing and
regained vigor to Jupiter, another god, that he, the Emperor, had sent to me. He attempted to
impress me with his belief that Jupiter desired me to be Empress of Rome. Joining to these
seductive words promises of great honor, including the most flattering words. Diocletian
tried to caress me. Fiendishly, he attempted to complete the work of Hell which he had
begun. The Divine Spirit to whom I am indebted for constancy in preserving my purity
seemed to fill me with light and knowledge. To all the proofs which I gave of the solidity of
our Faith, neither Diocletian nor his own courtiers could find an answer.

Then the frenzied Emperor dashed at me, commanding a guard to chain an anchor around
my neck and bury me deep in the waters of the Tiber. The order was executed. I was cast
into the water, but God sent to me two angels who unfastened the anchor. It fell into the river
mud where it remains, no doubt, to the present time. The angels transported me gently in full
view of the multitude upon the riverbank. I came back unharmed, not even wet, after being
plunged with the heavy anchor. When a cry of joy rose from the watchers on the shore, and
so many embraced Christianity by proclaiming their belief in my God, Diocletian attributed
my preservation to secret magic.

Then the Emperor had me dragged through the streets of Rome and shot with a shower of
arrows. My blood flowed but I did not faint. Diocletian thought that I was dying and
commanded the guards to carry me back to the dungeon. Heaven honored me with a new
favor there. I fell into a sweet sleep. A second time the tyrant attempted to have me pierced
with sharper darts. Again the archers bent their bows. The gathered all their strength but the
arrows refused to second their intentions. The Emperor was present. In a rage, he called me
a magician and, thinking that the action of the fire could destroy the enchantment, he
ordered the darts to be made red in a furnace and directed against my heart. He was obeyed.
But these darts, after having gone over a part of the space which they were to cross to come
to me, took a quite contrary direction and returned to strike those by whom they had been
hurled. Sic of the archers were killed by them. Several among the renounced paganism. The
people began to render public testimony to the power of God that protected me.

These murmurs and the acclamations infuriated the tyrant. He determined to hasten my
death by piercing my neck with a lance. My soul took flight towards my heavenly Spouse
who placed me with the crown of virginity and the palm of martyrdom in a distinguished
place among the elect. The day that was so happy for me and saw me enter into glory was
Friday, the third hour after midday, the same hour that saw my Divine Mater expire.
What is noteworthy from a historical perspective is not only that this revelation was
confirmed y two other individuals unknown to each other (one a priest, the other an
historian), but these other confirmatory historical facts: 1) Diocletian was known for
executing Christians by the use of arrows, an exemplified by St. Sebastian; 2) Diocletian
was also known for killing Christians by tying anchors around their necks and throwing
them into the water; 3) The reference to “Lumena” -- the name given to her at birth, “Light”
-- and then at Baptism, “Fi Lumena”, “Daughter of Light”, may explain the arrangement of
the tiles found at the grave (“Lumena”, her first given name, was on the first tile).
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St. Philomena - Saint Spotlight