Saint Bonaventure by Claude Francois
On 15 July 1274AD, the Franciscan Cardinal-Bishop of Albano, St. Bonaventure, passed to his eternal reward. This great theologian deserves to be much better known -- not just as a name, but as a Seraphic Doctor of the Church and one of greatest sons of St. Francis of Assisi.
St. Bonaventure was born at Civita di Bagnoregio in Lazio in 1221AD, as Giovanni di Fidanza. Incidentally, his hometown is a gorgeous and striking location. You might note, The Official Website of Civita di Bagnoregio or this promotional video featuring the town presented by the Region of Lazio:
It seems the young Giovanni was saved from a dangerous illness as a child through the intercession of St. Francis of Assisi, and he entered the Order of the Seraphic Francis as Bonaventure around 1240.
St. Bonaventure would study under the great medieval theologian Alexander of Hales at the University of Paris. St. Bonaventure would end up a doctor of theology holding a chair at the University of Paris during the 1250s; a time of great controversy at the university over mendicant professors. This made St. Bonaventure a fellow faculty member with the Dominican, St. Thomas Aquinas.
For the enterprising, here is a page that presents the works of St. Bonaventure: Documenta Catholica Omnia: Santus Bonaventura
Here is one of his more famous works, the Itinerarium Mentis ad Deum, in translation: St. Bonaventure, Journey of the Mind into God
St. Bonaventure would serve as the 7th Minister General of the Franciscan Order from 1257-1274. Pope Blessed Gregory X named him Cardinal-Bishop of Albano (Laziale) in 1273, and summoned him to participate in the Second Council of Lyons (1272-1274), the council to which St. Thomas Aquinas was travelling when he passed away in 1274AD. The council concluded as St. Bonaventure died that July in Lyons.
Prayer of St. Bonaventure for the Election of a New Pope by Francisco de Zurbaran
Here is the life of St. Bonaventure as related by the traditional hour of Matins for his feast:
"Born at Bagnorea in Tuscany, Bonaventure entered the Order of St. Francis of Assisi as a young man. Here he gave himself to study, and made such progress under his teacher. Alexander of Hales, that after seven years he publicly interpreted the book of Sentences at Paris, and gained the highest praise. He was a man of the greatest sweetness and humility, with a most ardent devotion to the Passion of Christ the Lord. When he was only thirty-five he was made Minister General of the whole Order. He carried out this office so prudently that he gained fame not only for his learning and holiness, but also for his diplomacy and skill. Because of this fame, Pope Gregory X made him Cardinal Bishop of Albano. He wrote many very learned works, not the least of which were his commentaries on the four books of the Sentences. He died at Lyons while the Council was in progress, at the age of forty-three. He was enrolled among the Saints by Sixtus IV, and Sixtus V gave him the title of Seraphic Doctor."
The Seraphic Doctor was canonized in 1482 by Pope Sixtus IV and named a Doctor of the Church in 1587 by Pope Sixtus V; two Franciscan popes, incidentally. Although he died on 15 July, his feast was long celebrated on 14 July (owing to the 15th already being the feast of Emperor St. Henry II); it was shifted to 15 July in the revised liturgical calendar of 1970.
It seems the only surviving relic of St. Bonaventure is his right arm, which is in the old Cathedral of Bagnoregio (the diocese of that city was suppressed in 1986 and made a part of the diocese of Viterbo; the title is kept alive as a titular see of Balneoregium). The rest of his body in Lyons was destroyed, first by Huguenots in the 16th century, and the rest disappeared in the French Revolution.
For more details of his life, you might note:
Old Catholic Encyclopedia: St. Bonaventure
Catholic Saints Info: St. Bonaventure
Catholic Hierarchy: St. Bonaventura
Pope Benedict XVI delivered three Wednesday Audience addresses discussing St. Bonaventure:
General Audience of Pope Benedict XVI: 3 March 2010
General Audience of Pope Benedict XVI: 10 March 2010
General Audience of Pope Benedict XVI: 17 March 2010
This site notes the final resting place of his relics, and the Churches in Rome named for the Seraphic Doctor: Saints in Rome and Beyond: St. Bonaventure
Finally, you might note the last mission founded in California by St. Junipero Serra was San Buenaventura in the city now bearing the saint's name: Ventura. Here is their official site: Mission San Buenaventura
Live well!
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