Guarino Foscari (c. 1080 - 6 February 1158) was an Italian
Catholic
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
canon regular
Canons regular are priests who live in community under a rule ( and canon in greek) and are generally organised into religious orders, differing from both secular canons and other forms of religious life, such as clerics regular, designated by a ...
Pope Lucius II
Pope Lucius II (died 15 February 1145), born Gherardo Caccianemici dal Orso, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 9 March 1144 to his death in 1145. His pontificate was notable for the unrest in Rome associated ...
elevated him into the cardinalate.
He is better known as "Guarinus of Palestrina" and is noted for his charitable compassion for the poor of
Palestrina
Palestrina (ancient ''Praeneste''; grc, Πραίνεστος, ''Prainestos'') is a modern Italian city and ''comune'' (municipality) with a population of about 22,000, in Lazio, about east of Rome. It is connected to the latter by the Via Pre ...
.
Pope Alexander III canonized him as a saint of the Roman Catholic of Church in 1159.
Life
Guarino Foscari was born in Bologna around 1080; he was a member of the noble Guarini household while his mother was a Foscari.
Foscari was well educated and was quite fond of literature. Despite opposition from his parents he was
ordained
Ordination is the process by which individuals are consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorized (usually by the denominational hierarchy composed of other clergy) to perform ...
episcopal consecration
A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution.
In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...
when he climbed out of a window. He went into hiding until another election was held.
During the Advent season of 1144,
Pope Lucius II
Pope Lucius II (died 15 February 1145), born Gherardo Caccianemici dal Orso, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 9 March 1144 to his death in 1145. His pontificate was notable for the unrest in Rome associated ...
sent for him and he again attempted to avoid higher office. Lucius II had Guarino arrested, but he escaped for a brief period of time. But soon after Lucius II had him appointed in December 1144 as the Cardinal-Bishop of Palestrina. He also bestowed on him a number of gifts suitable to a person of his new standing, including some fine horses, which Guarino sold and distributing the funds to the poor.Butler, Alban and Burns, Paul. ''Butler's Lives of the Saints: February'', p.66, A&C Black, 1998
Feeling unworthy of the position, he left his post twice. The first time, he was recalled from Subiaco due to the orders of
Pope Eugene III
Pope Eugene III ( la, Eugenius III; c. 1080 – 8 July 1153), born Bernardo Pignatelli, or possibly Paganelli, called Bernardo da Pisa, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 15 February 1145 to his death in 1153. He ...
. The second time he went to Ostia, but finding Saracens there, he fled to Rome. He was bishop for thirteen years and remained out of the troublesome Roman politics that so defined the time and temperament of Rome. As a cardinal he participated in three conclaves that saw the elections of Eugene III,
Pope Anastasius IV
Pope Anastasius IV ( – 3 December 1154), born Corrado Demetri della Suburra, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 8 July 1153 to his death in 1154. He is the most recent pope to take the name "Anastasius" upon his ...
, and Pope Adrian IV.
He died at the age of 78 on 6 February 1158; he was loved for his humility and also for his great generosity to the poor. He was canonized by Pope Alexander III in 1159.
Guarino was buried in the crypt of the Cathedral of Sant'Agapito. In 1473 Palestrina was looted and his remains were hidden for fear of desecration. Although a search was made in 1754, they were not located.