And Only In
1888 Was The Crowning Work Accomplished.
In that year His Holiness Leo
XIII and the Sacred Congregation of Cardinals solemnly approved the
evidence and inscribed the name of Egidio in the book of the Blessed.
To touch upon a few minor matters - I observe that Fra Egidio, like the
Flying Monk, was "illiterate," and similarly preserved up to a decrepit
age "the odorous lily of purity, which made him appear in words and
deeds as a most innocent child." He was accustomed to worship before a
favourite picture of the Mother of God which he kept adorned with
candles; and whenever the supply of these ran out, he was wont to
address Her with infantile simplicity of heart and in the local dialect:
"Now there's no wax for You; so think about it Yourself; if not, You'll
have to go without." The playful-saintly note. . . .
But there is this difference between him and earlier saints that whereas
they, all too often, suffered in solitude, misunderstood and rejected of
men, he enjoyed the highest popularity during his whole long life.
Wherever he went, his footsteps were pursued by crowds of admirers,
eager to touch his wonder-working body or to cut off shreds of his
clothing as amulets; hardly a day passed that he did not return home
with garments so lacerated that only half of them was left; every
evening they had to be patched up anew, although they were purposely
stitched full of wires and small chains of iron as a protection.
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