Saint Gerard Majella
Lay Brother, “The Mother’s Saint”
(1726 – 1755)

Saint’s Life Story

His Early Life

Gerard was born on April 6, 1726 in Muro, Italy, He was the last of five children born to Domenico Maiella and Benedetta Galella and their only son. They had already lost a baby boy, also called Gerard, who only lived a week. Gerard was frail and his parents had him baptized the day he was born. Immediately, Gerard began to show his love of prayer and visiting the Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament. In fact, at age five, Gerard would visit the church with his mother. There, he would go off by himself to pray in front of a statue of the Blessed Virgin Mary with her Child, the Infant Jesus regularly descended to give him a little white bun. He took it home and naively told his mother, when she asked him, where he obtained it. His sister was sent to the church to observe in secret, and saw the miracle for herself.

Also at the age of five, Gerard began to fast. His mother became concerned about this behavior, insisting that Gerard eat to grow up strong. Gerard then devised a solution that he would use the rest of his life. When no one was looking he would sprinkle bitter crushed herbs into his meal to make it taste so bad so as to dull his hunger.

The Tailor

His father was a tailor, but he died was Gerard was twelve leaving Benedetta left a widow, with four young children to support. So, his mother placed him as an apprentice to a tailor, Martin Pannuto. The tailor employed a foreman to supervise the work when he was not there. Although the foreman was abusive due to Gerard’s ecstasies during work, Gerard never complained and accepted the treatment as God’s will.

After successfully completing his apprenticeship at the age of 16, Gerard started working for Claudio Albini, the Bishop of Lacedonia. The Bishop had a bad temper and took it out on Gerard and his other servants. While most of his employees lasted a few weeks Gerard stayed employeed there for three years. On June 25, 1744, the Bishop died and regardless of his poor treatment of Gerard he was quite sad, remaining silent and humble.

After his death, Gerard returned home and set up his own shop as a tailor. He attracted many customers due to his low prices and his reputation for being honest. After proving for his mother, he would divide up the remaining profits from his business to provide for the poor and to have Masses said for the souls in Purgatory.

Call to Religious Life

Gerard’s fragile health prevented him from being accepted in the Capuchin order where he failed twice in his attempt to become a friar.

In 1749, the Redemptorists, a new religious order founded by Saint Alphonsus Liguori know officially as “The Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer”, came to Muro to give a mission. Gerard was then 23 years old. He met with the leader of the mission, Father Cafaro, and begged to be admitted to the Redemptorist Congregation. Though impressed by Gerard’s obvious sincerity and holiness, Gerard’s bad health – he looked “more a ghost than a man,” said a witness – and lack of formal education put Father Cafaro off. He refused to accept Gerard, and told him to forget about the idea.

Meanwhile, Benedetta had found out about the plan. On the day the missioners were leaving town, his mother locked Gerard in his bedroom so he could not follow them. But Gerard made a rope from the sheets, lowered himself down, and pursued the missioners out of town. A note left behind declared that he had gone off to become a saint.

Gerard ran for 12 miles on a country road to catch up with them, and amidst his puffing, cried out, “Take me on, give me a try, and then send me away if I’m no good.” Father Cafaro could resist no longer and sent Gerard to the Iliceto community with some of the most famous words in the Redemptorist annals: “I am sending you a useless brother.”

On May 17, 1749, Gerard was accepted as a postulant on a probationary basis. Three years later, on July 16, 1752, Gerard became a lay brother as a now professed member of the Redemptorists. In his work with the Redemptorist community, Gerard was worked as a gardener, sacristan, tailor, porter, cook, carpenter, and clerk of works on the new buildings at Caposele. His dedication and humility in carrying out these duties earned him the reputation of a holy and devout man. In addition, his life was marked by a series of extraordinary phenomena, including ecstasies, bilocation, prophesies, healings and the ability to read people’s hearts.

Controversy

At 27 in 1754, Majella was controversially identified by a young pregnant woman, Neria Caggiano, as the father of her child. Rather than defending himself, Gerard chose to retreat into silence, placing his trust in God. His superior Saint Alphonse Liguori questioned him and, due to his silence, banned him from receiving Holy Communion. After several years, the woman revealed the truth on her deathbed, but also testified to Gerard’s holiness.

Gerard was sent to Naples, Italy. However, a few months later after his house was inundated by visitors wanting to see him, he was sent to Caposele, Italy. There, he served as the porter and ministered to the poor of the town.

Patron of Mothers

One miracle in particular explains how Gerard became known as the special patron of mothers. A few months before his death, Gerard visited the Pirofalo family and accidentally dropped his handkerchief. One of the Pirofalo girls spotted the handkerchief moments after he had left the house and she ran after Gerard to return it. However, Gerard said to her “Keep it. You may need it some day.” Years later when the girl, now a married woman, was on the verge of dying in childbirth, she remembered the words of Gerard. She asked for the handkerchief to be brought to her. Almost immediately, the pain disappeared and she gave birth to a healthy child. That was no small feat in an era when only one out of three pregnancies resulted in a live birth, and word of the miracle spread quickly.

His Death

Gerard spent the last few months of his life raising funds for new buildings at Caposele. On August 1755, Gerard returned to the Caposele monastery so exhausted, according to Father Tannoia, that he looked more like a dead than a living man. Never healthy at the best of times, his final journey had begun. He took to his bed, suffering from sustained bouts of hemorrhaging and dysentery. The pain was terrible. A letter he dictated at the time contains the following lines: “I am writing this from my cross … the pain is so very, very severe … I was to die by the lance, but the lance seems to have been mislaid, so I must go on suffering…”

At the age of 29, on October 16, 1755 in Caposele, Campania, Italy, Gerard died, succumbing to tuberculosis. He had a small note hung on his cell door reading: “Here the will of God is done, as God wills, and as long as God wills”. This humble acceptance of God’s plan for his life reflects his deep trust and surrender to divine providence.

Born:                   April 6, 1726 in Muro, Italy

Died:                   October 16, 1755 age 29 at Caposele, Campania, Italy

Beatified:           January 29, 1893 by Pope Leo XIII

Canonized:        December 11, 1904 by Pope Saint Pius X

Feast Day:         October 16

Patron Saint:    Basilicata, Italy; Childbirth; Children; Expectant Mothers; Falsely Accused People; Good Confessions; Lay Brothers; Mothers; Muro, Italy; Pregnant Women; São Geraldo da Piedade; Brazil; São Geraldo do Baixio, Brazil; Unborn Children

Source:

• • Saint of the Day – 16 October – St Gerard Majella C.Ss.R. (1726-1755) – AnaStpaul
  • Oct 16 – St. Gerard Majella: A life rooted in God – Catholicireland.net
  • CatholicSaints.Info » Saint Gerard Majella
  • Saint Gerard Majella – Saint for a Minute: Blesseds & Saints
  • Gerard Majella – Wikipedia

Prayers

Video Link

St. Gerard Majella – YouTube (Catholic Online)