Saint of the Day Online - St Anthony Maria Zaccaria
Saint of the Day for Wednesday, July 5, 2017
05-07-2017
Saint Name: Saint Anthony Maria Zaccari
Place: Cremona, Italy
Birth: 1502
Death: 5 July 1539
Feast: 05 July
Saint Anthony Maria Zaccari who was born in Italy in 1502 was an early leader of the Counter Reformation. His feast day is celebrated on 5 July.
Anthony became a medical doctor. In 1528 he was ordained a priest and cofounded the Barnabites, the religious congregation so called because it was headquartered in St. Barnabas Monastery in Milan.
After attending the Episcopal School annexed to the Cathedral, he studied philosophy at the University of Pavia, and, from 1520, Medicine at the University of Padua. After completing studies in 1524, he practiced as a physician in Cremona for three years. In 1527, he started studying for the priesthood and was ordained in February 1529. Having explored his calling for two years, mainly working in hospitals and institutions for the poor, he became the spiritual advisor to Countess Ludovica Torelli of Guastalla (then the tiny County of Guastalla) in
Having explored his calling for two years, mainly working in hospitals and institutions for the poor, he became the spiritual advisor to Countess Ludovica Torelli of Guastalla (then the tiny County of Guastalla) in 1530 and followed her to Milan. In Milan, he became a member of the Oratory of Eternal Wisdom.
In Vincenza, he popularized for the laity the Forty-hour devotion—solemn exposition of the Blessed Sacrament for the adoration of the faithful—accompanied by preaching. He also revived the custom of ringing church bells at 3 p.m. on Fridays, in remembrance of the Crucifixion.
While on a mission to Guastalla, Italy, in 1539, he caught a fever. Combined with the strict penances he performed, his health waned and he died on 5 July 1539, at the age of 36. The suffragan bishop, Bishop Luca di Seriate, who ordained him a priest, presided over the funeral. In attendance were the aristocratic assembly and the people of Cremona and surrounding towns. He was buried in the convent of the Angels of St Paul, the female branch of the Barnabites, in Milan.