The saint we celebrate today is one I had not heard of before - St Hyacintha of Mariscotti. Born in Italy in 1585 to noble family in the province of Viterbo in central Italy, she was a strong willed undisciplined young woman, so much so that her family had her shipped off to a Franciscan monastery to live out the rest of her days, since they felt they could not manage her. For 15 years in the monastery, she rebelled against the vows of poverty obedience, not fitting into monastery life at all. After a very serious illness, she had a profound conversion of heart and submitted to Franciscan life. In her converted life, she gave generously to the poor, excelled in contemplative prayer, and became so united to Christ that she had the ability to read souls and to work miracles. Her love for the poor inspired her to found two confraternities to aid them, including prisoners. She was transformed completely from her selfish self-indulgent ways. She died in 1640 at the age of 54. She was canonized a saint in 1807 by Pope Pius VII.
In our Gospel today, Jesus tells us that no one lights a lamp and then covers it up. Our faith is meant to be a light in the world, not to be hidden. Our message is meant to be shared. Others should see us practicing our faith openly. They should know we are Christians by our words and our actions. We should be able to influence others by our Christian vision. Even a religious sister like St Hyacintha can influence others by her example of faith and by her prayers.
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