![Saint Philomena by J](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/32/Saint_Philomena_by_J.D._Mahlknecht.jpg)
Philomena ( el, Ἁγία Φιλομένα), also known as Saint Philomena or ''Philomena of Rome'' was a young
virgin martyr
The title Virgin (Latin ''Virgo'', Greek ) is an honorific bestowed on female saints and blesseds in some Christian traditions, including the Eastern Orthodox Church and the Catholic Church.
Chastity is one of the seven virtues in Christian tr ...
whose remains were discovered on May 24–25, 1802, in the
Catacomb of Priscilla. Three tiles enclosing the tomb bore an inscription, ''Pax Tecum Filumena'' (i.e. "Peace be unto you, Philomena"), that was taken to indicate that her name (in the Latin of the inscription) was Filumena ( grc, φιλουμένη, , beloved), the English form of which is Philomena. Philomena is the patron saint of infants, babies, and youth, and is known as "The Wonder Worker".
The remains were moved to
Mugnano del Cardinale
Mugnano del Cardinale is a town and ''comune'' of the province of Avellino in the Campania region of southern Italy.
Geography
Baiano, Mercogliano, Monteforte Irpino, Quadrelle, Sirignano, Visciano are nearby towns.
Sights
The town houses t ...
in 1805. There, they became the focus of widespread devotion; several
miracle
A miracle is an event that is inexplicable by natural or scientific lawsOne dictionary define"Miracle"as: "A surprising and welcome event that is not explicable by natural or scientific laws and is therefore considered to be the work of a divin ...
s were credited to Philomena's
intercession
Intercession or intercessory prayer is the act of praying to a deity on behalf of others, or Intercession of saints, asking a saint in heaven to pray on behalf of oneself or for others.
The Apostle Paul's exhortation to Saint Timothy, Timothy sp ...
, including the healing of
Pauline Jaricot
Pauline-Marie Jaricot (22 July 1799 – 9 January 1862) was a French member of the Third Order of Saint Dominic. She also was the founder of the Society of the Propagation of the Faith and the Association of the Living Rosary, Pope John XXIII ra ...
in 1835, which received wide publicity.
John Vianney
John Vianney (born Jean-Baptiste-Marie Vianney; 8 May 1786 – 4 August 1859), venerated as Saint John Vianney, was a French Catholic priest who is venerated in the Catholic Church as a saint and as the patron saint of parish priests. He is of ...
attributed to her intercession the extraordinary cures that others attributed to himself.
From 1837 to 1961, celebration of her
liturgical
Liturgy is the customary public ritual of worship performed by a religious group. ''Liturgy'' can also be used to refer specifically to public worship by Christians. As a religious phenomenon, liturgy represents a communal response to and partic ...
feast was approved for some places, but was never included in the
General Roman Calendar
The General Roman Calendar is the liturgical calendar that indicates the dates of celebrations of saints and mysteries of the Lord (Jesus Christ) in the Roman Rite of the Catholic Church, wherever this liturgical rite is in use. These celebra ...
for universal use. The 1920 typical edition of the
Roman Missal
The Roman Missal ( la, Missale Romanum) is the title of several missals used in the celebration of the Roman Rite. Along with other liturgical books of the Roman Rite, the Roman Missal contains the texts and rubrics for the celebration of the m ...
included a mention of her, under August 11, in the section headed ''Missae pro aliquibus locis'' ("Masses for some places"), with an indication that the
Mass
Mass is an intrinsic property of a body. It was traditionally believed to be related to the quantity of matter in a physical body, until the discovery of the atom and particle physics. It was found that different atoms and different elementar ...
to be used in those places was one from the common of a virgin martyr, without any collect proper to the saint.
[1920 typical edition of the Roman Missal, with feasts updated to the late 1920s]
p. 14 "11 August. St Philomena. Virgin and Martyr. Mass: ''Loquebar'' from the Common of Virgins, 1."
Biography
On December 21, 1833, the
Holy Office
The Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith (DDF) is the oldest among the departments of the Roman Curia. Its seat is the Palace of the Holy Office in Rome. It was founded to defend the Catholic Church from heresy and is the body responsible f ...
declared that there was nothing contrary to the Catholic faith in the revelations that Sister Maria Luisa di Gesù (1799–1875), a Dominican tertiary from
Naples
Naples (; it, Napoli ; nap, Napule ), from grc, Νεάπολις, Neápolis, lit=new city. is the regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 909,048 within the city's adminis ...
, claimed to have received from Philomena herself.
According to Gesù, Philomena told her she was the daughter of a king in Greece who, with his wife, had converted to Christianity. At the age of about 13, she took a vow of virginity for
Christ's sake. When the Emperor
Diocletian
Diocletian (; la, Gaius Aurelius Valerius Diocletianus, grc, Διοκλητιανός, Diokletianós; c. 242/245 – 311/312), nicknamed ''Iovius'', was Roman emperor from 284 until his abdication in 305. He was born Gaius Valerius Diocles ...
threatened to make war on her father, her father went with his family to Rome to ask for peace. The Emperor "fell in love" with the young Philomena and, when she refused to be his wife, subjected her to a series of torments:
scourging
A scourge is a whip or lash, especially a multi-thong type, used to inflict severe corporal punishment or self-mortification. It is usually made of leather.
Etymology
The word is most commonly considered to be derived from Old French ''escorg ...
, from whose effects two angels cured her; drowning with an anchor attached to her (two angels cut the rope and raised her to the river bank); and being shot with arrows (on the first occasion her wounds were healed; on the second, the arrows turned aside; and on the third, they returned and killed six of the archers, after which several of the others became Christians). Finally, the Emperor had her decapitated. The story goes that the decapitation occurred on a Friday at three in the afternoon, as with the death of Jesus. The two anchors, three arrows, the palm, and the ivy leaf on the tiles found in the tomb were interpreted as symbols of her martyrdom.
In the Neapolitan nun's account, Philomena also revealed that her birthday was January 10,
that her martyrdom occurred on August 10 (the date also of the arrival of her relics in Mugnano del Cardinale),
and that her name "Filumena" meant "daughter of light" (from Latin "filia" and "lumen;" however, it is usually taken to be derived from Greek φιλουμένη ''philouménē'' (hence Latin "u" for "ου") meaning "beloved.").
Publication of this account gave rise to critical study both of the account itself and of the many archaeological finds, leading to uncertainty that her supposed tomb was in fact that of a martyr.
Discovery of her remains
On May 24, 1802, in the
Catacombs of Priscilla on the Via Salaria Nova, an inscribed
loculus Loculus may refer to:
*Loculus (satchel)
*Loculus (architecture), a burial niche
*An alternative name for a locule, or compartment in an organism.
*Loculus of Archimedes or Ostomachion
''Ostomachion'', also known as ''loculus Archimedius'' ...
(space hollowed out of the rock) was found, and on the following day it was carefully examined and opened. The loculus was closed with three
terracotta
Terracotta, terra cotta, or terra-cotta (; ; ), in its material sense as an earthenware substrate, is a clay-based ceramic glaze, unglazed or glazed ceramic where the pottery firing, fired body is porous.
In applied art, craft, construction, a ...
tiles, on which was the following inscription: ''lumena paxte cumfi''. It was and is generally accepted that the tiles had not been positioned in the sequence of the words, and that the inscription originally read, with the leftmost tile placed on the right: ''pax tecum Filumena'' ("Peace with you, Philomena"). Within the loculus was found the skeleton of a female between thirteen and fifteen years old. Embedded in the cement was a small glass phial with vestiges of what was taken to be blood. In accordance with the assumptions of the time, the remains were taken to be those of a virgin martyr named Philomena.
The belief that such vials were signs of the grave of a martyr was still held in 1863, when a December 10 decree of the
Sacred Congregation of Rites
The Sacred Congregation of Rites was a congregation of the Roman Curia, erected on 22 January 1588 by Pope Sixtus V by '' Immensa Aeterni Dei''; it had its functions reassigned by Pope Paul VI on 8 May 1969.
The Congregation was charged with the ...
confirmed a decree of April 10, 1868. But this view has been rejected in practice since the investigations of
Giovanni Battista De Rossi
Giovanni Battista (Carlo) de Rossi (23 February 1822 – 20 September 1894) was an Italian archaeologist, famous even outside his field for rediscovering early Christian catacombs.
Life and works
Born in Rome, he was the son of Commendatore Cam ...
(1822–1894).
[Kirsch, Johann Peter. "St. Philomena." The Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol. 12. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1911. 29 Apr. 2013]
/ref>
In 1805, Canon Francesco De Lucia of Mugnano del Cardinale
Mugnano del Cardinale is a town and ''comune'' of the province of Avellino in the Campania region of southern Italy.
Geography
Baiano, Mercogliano, Monteforte Irpino, Quadrelle, Sirignano, Visciano are nearby towns.
Sights
The town houses t ...
requested relics for his oratory, and on 8 June obtained the remains discovered in May 1802 (reduced to dust and fragments). The relics arrived in Mugnano on August 10, and were placed in the Church of Our Lady of Grace.[Enciclopedia dei Santi: Santa Filomena di Roma]
/ref> A new Church of Our Lady of Grace was built, containing a chapel where the sacred relics were moved on September 29, 1805.
In 1827, Pope Leo XII
Pope Leo XII ( it, Leone XII; born Annibale Francesco Clemente Melchiorre Girolamo Nicola della Genga (; 2 August 1760 – 10 February 1829), was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 28 September 1823 to his death ...
gave to the church in Mugnano del Cardinale the three inscribed terracotta slabs that had been taken from the tomb.[
]
Spread of devotion
In his ''Relazione istorica della traslazione del sagro corpo di s. Filomena da Roma a Mugnano del Cardinale'', written in 1833, Canon De Lucia recounted that wonders accompanied the arrival of the relics in his church, among them a statue that sweated some liquid continuously for three days.[
A miracle accepted as proved in the same year was the multiplication of the bone dust of the saint, which provided for hundreds of reliquaries without the original amount experiencing any decrease in quantity.
Devotion includes the wearing of the "Cord of Philomena", a red and white cord, which had a number of ]indulgences
In the teaching of the Catholic Church, an indulgence (, from , 'permit') is "a way to reduce the amount of punishment one has to undergo for sins". The '' Catechism of the Catholic Church'' describes an indulgence as "a remission before God o ...
attached to it, including a plenary indulgence
In the teaching of the Catholic Church, an indulgence (, from , 'permit') is "a way to reduce the amount of punishment one has to undergo for sins". The ''Catechism of the Catholic Church'' describes an indulgence as "a remission before God of ...
on the day on which the cord was worn for the first time, indulgences that were not renewed in ''Indulgentiarum doctrina
''Indulgentarium Doctrina'' is an apostolic constitution about indulgences issued by Pope Paul VI on 1 January 1967. It responds to suggestions made at the Second Vatican Council, it substantially revised the practical application of the traditio ...
'', the 1967 general revision of the discipline concerning them.[Pope Paul VI, Apostolic Constitution ''Indulgentiarum doctrina'' (1 January 1967)]
c
/ref> There is also the chaplet
Chaplet may refer to:
* Chaplet (headgear), a wreath or garland for the head
* Chaplet (prayer), a string of prayer beads and the associated prayer
* Chaplet (metallurgy), a metal form to hold a core in place
See also
* Wreath (attire)
* Ukraini ...
of Saint Philomena, with three white beads in honour of the Blessed Trinity
The Christian doctrine of the Trinity (, from 'threefold') is the central dogma concerning the nature of God in most Christian churches, which defines one God existing in three coequal, coeternal, consubstantial divine persons: God the F ...
and thirteen red beads in honour of the thirteen years of Philomena's life.[Saint Philomena: Virgin martyr and wonder worker. Cecily Hallack. Dublin, Ireland; Anthonian Press, 1936 Pages 120–124] A sacramental
A sacramental in Christianity is a material object or action (in Latin ''sacramentalia'') ritually blessed by a priest to signal its association with the sacraments and so to incite reverence during acts of worship. They are recognised by the Cat ...
associated with the hallow is the Oil of Saint Philomena, which is used for the healing of the body and soul.
Canonization
On January 30, 1837, in the aftermath of the cure of Pauline Jaricot, Pope Gregory XVI
Pope Gregory XVI ( la, Gregorius XVI; it, Gregorio XVI; born Bartolomeo Alberto Cappellari; 18 September 1765 – 1 June 1846) was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 2 February 1831 to his death in 1 June 1846. He h ...
authorized liturgical celebration of Philomena on August 11[ or, according to another source, originally on September 9,][ first in the Diocese of ]Nola
Nola is a town and a municipality in the Metropolitan City of Naples, Campania, southern Italy. It lies on the plain between Mount Vesuvius and the Apennines. It is traditionally credited as the diocese that introduced bells to Christian worship. ...
(to which Mugnano del Cardinale belongs), and soon in several other dioceses in Italy.
On January 31, 1855, Pope Pius IX
Pope Pius IX ( it, Pio IX, ''Pio Nono''; born Giovanni Maria Mastai Ferretti; 13 May 1792 – 7 February 1878) was head of the Catholic Church from 1846 to 1878, the longest verified papal reign. He was notable for convoking the First Vatican ...
approved a proper Mass and office dedicated to Saint Philomena with confirmation of the decree ''Etsi Decimo'' (Rescript of the Sacred Congregation of Rites, Papal Confirmation of Promotor of the Faith Brief Etsi decimo as submitted by Rev. Andrea Fratini, 31 January 1855).
In August 1876, the first issue of ''Messenger of Saint Philomena'' was published in Paris, France. On October 6, 1876, Father Louis Petit founded the Confraternity
A confraternity ( es, cofradía; pt, confraria) is generally a Christian voluntary association of laypeople created for the purpose of promoting special works of Christian charity or piety, and approved by the Church hierarchy. They are most c ...
of Saint Philomena in Paris. In November 1886, the Confraternity was raised to the rank of Archconfraternity by Pope Leo XIII
Pope Leo XIII ( it, Leone XIII; born Vincenzo Gioacchino Raffaele Luigi Pecci; 2 March 1810 – 20 July 1903) was the head of the Catholic Church from 20 February 1878 to his death in July 1903. Living until the age of 93, he was the second-old ...
. On May 21, 1912, Pope Pius X
Pope Pius X ( it, Pio X; born Giuseppe Melchiorre Sarto; 2 June 1835 – 20 August 1914) was head of the Catholic Church from 4 August 1903 to his death in August 1914. Pius X is known for vigorously opposing modernist interpretations of C ...
raised it to the rank of Universal Archconfraternity with the Apostolic Brief ''Pias Fidelium Societates'' stating, with regard to the historical authenticity of Philomena, that: "The current statements (regarding St. Philomena) are and remain always fixed, valid and effective; in this way it has to be judged as normative; and if it is proceeded in another way, it will be null and void, whatever its authority".
The name Philomena was not included in the Roman Martyrology
The ''Roman Martyrology'' ( la, Martyrologium Romanum) is the official martyrology of the Catholic Church. Its use is obligatory in matters regarding the Roman Rite liturgy, but dioceses, countries and religious institutes may add duly approved ...
, the official list of saints recognized by the Catholic Church
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 ...
and in which the saints are included immediately upon canonization. In the 1920 typical edition of the Roman Missal
The Roman Missal ( la, Missale Romanum) is the title of several missals used in the celebration of the Roman Rite. Along with other liturgical books of the Roman Rite, the Roman Missal contains the texts and rubrics for the celebration of the m ...
Philomena is mentioned, under August 11 (with an indication that the Mass for her feastday was to be taken entirely from the common, so that there was no part, not even the collect
The collect ( ) is a short general prayer of a particular structure used in Christian liturgy.
Collects appear in the liturgies of Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox, Anglican, Methodist, Lutheran, and Presbyterian churches, among oth ...
, that was proper to her) in the section headed "Masses for some places", i.e. only those places for which it had been specially authorized.[
On February 14, 1961, the Holy See ordered that the name of Philomena be removed from all liturgical calendars that mentioned her.]Acta Apostolicae Sedis
''Acta Apostolicae Sedis'' (Latin for "Acts of the Apostolic See"), often cited as ''AAS'', is the official gazette of the Holy See, appearing about twelve times a year.Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church (Oxford University Press 2005 ), ...
, 1961, p. 174. The text can be consulte
on the website
of the Holy See. It is also available a
Instruction ''De calendariis particularibus'' (1961)
together with a French translation and a note that recounts the history of the devotion and that says a different saint named Philomena (July 5) and two called Philomenus (November 14 and November 29) were listed in the Roman Martyrology
The ''Roman Martyrology'' ( la, Martyrologium Romanum) is the official martyrology of the Catholic Church. Its use is obligatory in matters regarding the Roman Rite liturgy, but dioceses, countries and religious institutes may add duly approved ...
, in which this Philomena never appeared. This order was given as part of an instruction on the application to local calendars of the principles enunciated in the 1960 Code of Rubrics
The Code of Rubrics is a three-part liturgical document promulgated in 1960 under Pope John XXIII, which in the form of a legal code indicated the liturgical and sacramental law governing the celebration of the Roman Rite Mass and Divine Office. ...
, which had already been applied to the General Roman Calendar. Section 33[ of this document ordered the removal from local calendars of fourteen named feasts, but allowed them to be retained in places that had a special link with the feast. It then added: "However, the feast of Saint Philomena, virgin and martyr (11 August), is to be removed from all calendars." This action did not call into question her existence or sainthood, nor prohibit popular devotion to Saint Philomena. No suspension or prohibition of the Archconfraternity was issued.
]
Veneration by other saints
* The spread of devotion to her in France as well as in Italy was helped when John Vianney
John Vianney (born Jean-Baptiste-Marie Vianney; 8 May 1786 – 4 August 1859), venerated as Saint John Vianney, was a French Catholic priest who is venerated in the Catholic Church as a saint and as the patron saint of parish priests. He is of ...
built a shrine in her honour and referred to her often, attributing to her the miracles that others attributed to himself.[
* Another help was the cure of the near-dying ]Pauline Jaricot
Pauline-Marie Jaricot (22 July 1799 – 9 January 1862) was a French member of the Third Order of Saint Dominic. She also was the founder of the Society of the Propagation of the Faith and the Association of the Living Rosary, Pope John XXIII ra ...
, founder of the Society for the Propagation of the Faith
The Society for the Propagation of the Faith (Latin: ''Propagandum Fidei'') is an international association coordinating assistance for Catholic missionary priests, brothers, and nuns in mission areas. The society was founded in Lyon, France, in ...
, at Philomena's shrine on August 10, 1835.[ On July 6, 1835, the Miracle of Giovanna Cescutti took place in Venice.
* ]Damien of Molokai
Father Damien or Saint Damien of Molokai, SS.CC. or Saint Damien De Veuster ( nl, Pater Damiaan or '; 3 January 1840 – 15 April 1889), born Jozef De Veuster, was a Roman Catholic priest from Belgium and member of the Congregation of the Sacr ...
, who had strong devotion to Philomena, named his church at Kalawao
Kalawao () is a location on the eastern side of the Kalaupapa Peninsula of the island of Molokai, in Hawaii, which was the site of Hawaii's leper colony between 1866 and the early 20th century. Thousands of people in total came to the island to l ...
in honor of her.
* Many other saints were devoted to Philomena, including Peter Julian Eymard
Peter Julian Eymard ( ; 4 February 1811 – 1 August 1868) was a French Catholic priest and founder of two religious institutes: the Congregation of the Blessed Sacrament for men and the Servants of the Blessed Sacrament for women.
Eymard ente ...
, Peter Chanel
Peter Chanel (12 July 1803 – 28 April 1841), born Pierre Louis Marie Chanel, was a Catholic priest, missionary, and martyr. Chanel was a member of the Society of Mary or "Marists" and was sent as a missionary to Oceania. He arrived on the is ...
, Anthony Mary Claret
Anthony Mary Claret, CMF ( ca, Antoni Maria Claret i Clarà; es, link=no, Antonio María Claret y Clarà; December 23, 1807 – October 24, 1870) was a Spanish Catholic archbishop and missionary, and was confessor of Isabella II of Spain. He fo ...
, Madelaine Sophie Barat, Euphrasier Pelletier, John Neumann
John Nepomucene Neumann (german: link=no, Johann Nepomuk Neumann, cs, Jan Nepomucký Neumann; March 28, 1811 – January 5, 1860) was a Catholic priest from Bohemia. He immigrated to the United States in 1836, where he was ordained, joined t ...
and Anna Maria Taigi
Anna Maria Taigi (29 May 1769 - 9 June 1837), born Anna Maria Giannetti, was an Italian Roman Catholic professed member from the Secular Trinitarians. She married Domenico Taigi, a brash and impulsive individual though devoted to his wife. Taigi ...
.
Criticism
Although correlation does not prove causation, the Holy See's instruction to remove the name of Philomena even from local calendars followed the raising of questions by certain scholars, whose interest had been drawn to the phenomenon more especially in connection with the revelations of Sister Maria Luisa di Gesù.[ The questions were raised in particular by ]Orazio Marucchi
Orazio Marucchi (1852 - January 1931, Rome) was an Italian archaeologist and author of the ''Manual of Christian Archaeology''. He served as Professor of Christian Archaeology at the University of Rome and director of the Christian and Egyptian mu ...
, whose conclusions won the support of Johann Peter Kirsch
Johann Peter Kirsch (3 November 1861 – 4 February 1941) was a Luxembourgish ecclesiastical historian and biblical archaeologist.
Life
Johann Peter Kirsch was born in Dippach, Luxembourg, the son of Andreas and Katherine Didier Kirsch. At ...
, an archaeologist and ecclesiastical historian who is the author of the article on Philomena in the ''Catholic Encyclopedia
The ''Catholic Encyclopedia: An International Work of Reference on the Constitution, Doctrine, Discipline, and History of the Catholic Church'' (also referred to as the ''Old Catholic Encyclopedia'' and the ''Original Catholic Encyclopedia'') i ...
''.[ However, according to ]Mark Miravalle
Mark Miravalle (born 1959) is a professor of theology at Franciscan University of Steubenville, specializing in Mariology. He is president of ''Vox Populi Mariae Mediatrici'', a Catholic movement promoting the concepts of the Blessed Virgin Mary ...
the conclusions have been rejected by others. Historian Michael S. Carter (who supports Miravalle's position) has written about devotion to Saint Philomena within the broader context of veneration of "catacomb martyrs" and their relics in the history of the United States.
The inscription on the three tiles that had provided the Latin name "Filumena" belonged to the middle or second half of the second century,[ while the body that had been found was of the fourth century, when the persecutions of Christians had ended.][ Not only the name but also the leaf, the two anchors and the palm that decorated the three tiles, and which had been believed to indicate that Filumena was a martyr (though the necessary connection between these symbols and martyrdom has been denied), had no relation to the person whose remains were found.][ The disarrangement of the tiles was something fourth-century sextons regularly did when re-using materials already engraved, with the aim of indicating that it was not the same person who was now buried in the place.
In April 2005, at the ''Conference of Philomenian Studies – 1805-2005'', findings of a study carried out on the tiles by the Opificio delle Pietre Dure e Laboratori di Restauro (Factory of Hard Stones and Restoration Laboratories) of Florence were made public. The analysis confirmed that only one type of mortal lime could be found on the tiles, thus giving strong support to the theory that the tiles had not been re-arranged.
The rector of the shrine in Mugnano del Cardinale disputes these findings. After reporting the decision of the Sacred Congregation of Rites in 1961 as resulting from the studies of scholars, the Italian-language ''Enciclopedia Dei Santi'' says that there still remain the miracles that occurred and the official recognition that the Catholic Church gave in the nineteenth century, the personal devotion to Saint Philomena of popes and people who were later canonized, and the widespread general devotion that still persists, particularly at Mugnano del Cardinale in the Diocese of Nola, where pilgrims from all over the world arrive continually, giving a display of intense popular devotion.][
The website of "The National Shrine of Saint Philomena, Miami, Florida" sees "the action taken in 1960 as the work of the devil in order to deprive the people of God of a most powerful Intercessor, particularly in the areas of purity and faith at a time when these virtues were so much being challenged as they continue to be up until now!"
]
Status
In his book ''It Is Time to Meet St Philomena'', Mark Miravalle says that Pope Gregory XVI
Pope Gregory XVI ( la, Gregorius XVI; it, Gregorio XVI; born Bartolomeo Alberto Cappellari; 18 September 1765 – 1 June 1846) was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 2 February 1831 to his death in 1 June 1846. He h ...
"liturgically canonized St. Philomena, in an act of the ordinary Papal Magisterium". This contrasts with the usual view that canonization is an exercise of infallible
Infallibility refers to an inability to be wrong. It can be applied within a specific domain, or it can be used as a more general adjective. The term has significance in both epistemology and theology, and its meaning and significance in both fi ...
magisterium declaring a truth that must be "definitively held".
The ''Roman Martyrology
The ''Roman Martyrology'' ( la, Martyrologium Romanum) is the official martyrology of the Catholic Church. Its use is obligatory in matters regarding the Roman Rite liturgy, but dioceses, countries and religious institutes may add duly approved ...
'' contains the names of all the saints who have been formally canonized, since "with the canonization of a new saint, that person is officially listed in the catalog of saints, or Martyrology", and "as soon as the beatification or canonization event takes place, the person's name is technically part of the Roman Martyrology". It does not now contain and in fact never included the name of this Philomena, which can be seen to be absent in th
1856 edition
published some twenty years after the 1837 decree.
Canonization is a ceremony of the highest solemnity, in which the Pope himself, invoking his supreme authority in the Catholic Church, declares that someone is a saint and inserts that person's name in the catalog of saints. This ceremony has never taken place with regard to Saint Philomena.[''Commonweal'', vol 75, p. 431]
See also
Places dedicated to Saint Philomena:
* Sanctuary of St. Philomena, Mugnano del Cardinale, Avellino, Italy, which houses her remains within a life-size, richly robed effigy
* St. Philomena's Cathedral (India)
* St. Philomena's Church (Cincinnati, Ohio)
* St. Philomena's Church (Pittsburgh, PA)
St. Philomena's Church was a Roman Catholic parish originally located in Pittsburgh's Strip District, Pittsburgh, Strip District within the Roman Catholic Diocese of Pittsburgh, Diocese of Pittsburgh. Although this church was formally establishe ...
* St Philomena's Catholic High School for Girls
* St. Philomena's Roman Catholic Church (Franklinville, NY)
Sanctuary of St. Philomena (Sorocaba, SP, Brazil)
* St. Philomena's Catholic Church and School (Peoria, Illinois
Peoria ( ) is the county seat of Peoria County, Illinois, United States, and the largest city on the Illinois River. As of the United States Census, 2020, 2020 census, the city had a population of 113,150. It is the principal city of the Peoria ...
)
* St. Philomena's Catholic Church (Monticello, IL)
References
Bibliography
*Sister Marie Helene Mohr, S.C., ''Saint Philomena, Powerful with God'', Rockford, IL: TAN Books and Publishers, Inc, 1988.
*''Philomena'' in David Hugh Farmer, '' The Oxford Dictionary of Saints'', (Oxford University Press
Oxford University Press (OUP) is the university press of the University of Oxford. It is the largest university press in the world, and its printing history dates back to the 1480s. Having been officially granted the legal right to print books ...
, 2004)
*Dr Mark Miravalle
Mark Miravalle (born 1959) is a professor of theology at Franciscan University of Steubenville, specializing in Mariology. He is president of ''Vox Populi Mariae Mediatrici'', a Catholic movement promoting the concepts of the Blessed Virgin Mary ...
,
Present Ecclesial Status of Devotion to St. Philomena
', (Queenship Publishing, 2002) (also on Internet: see below)
*Cecily Hallack. ''Saint Philomena: Virgin martyr and wonderworker''. Dublin, Ireland; Anthonian Press, 1936
*Alfonso Ramos. ''Santa Filomena: Princesa del cielo''. Chihuahua, Mexico; Ultimo Sello, 2013.
*Michael S. Carter, "Glowing With the Radiance of Heaven: Roman Martyrs, American Saints, and the Devotional World of Nineteenth-Century American Catholicism. ''U.S. Catholic Historian'', Volume 36, Number 1 (Winter 2018), pp. 1–26
External links
(New York 1911)
David Farmer, "Philomena" in ''The Oxford Dictionary of Saints'', Fifth Revised Edition (Oxford University Press 2011
)
2002, Retrieved March 12, 2013
''Sanctuary of St. Philomena''
in Mugnano del Cardinale
Mugnano del Cardinale is a town and ''comune'' of the province of Avellino in the Campania region of southern Italy.
Geography
Baiano, Mercogliano, Monteforte Irpino, Quadrelle, Sirignano, Visciano are nearby towns.
Sights
The town houses t ...
, Italy
Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...
''St. Philomena the Wonderworker by Father Paul O’Sullivan, O.P. (E.D.M)''
Litany to Saint Philomena
List of Places Devoted to Saint Philomena
{{Authority control
291 births
304 deaths
3rd-century Roman women
4th-century Roman women
4th-century Christian martyrs
Christian child saints
Christian hagiography
Ante-Nicene Christian martyrs
Saints from Roman Greece
Italian saints
Ancient Corcyrans
Late Ancient Christian female saints
Miracle workers
Christians martyred during the reign of Diocletian