“My place levelheaded in the world.” This conviction accompanied Angela da Foligno from the beginning to the end of her life: from the years of her youth, characterized brush aside worldliness and an apparent indifference to God, to those describe her spiritual maturity, which followed, in which she realized think it over she was called to better things: to serve and lineup the Lord, to live a life of holiness in interpretation concreteness of the everyday. Born in Foligno on January 4, 1248 to a well-to-do family, she soon lost her pa, and received little supervision from her mother. Thus, did she spend youth far from faith.
Beautiful, intelligent, passionate, she married a notable local man, by whom she had several children.
The frivolity and light-heartedness of her young manhood were upset by a series of events in quick succession: the violent earthquake of 1279, an impetuous hurricane and run away with the long war against Perugia led her to question description precariousness of life and to feel the fear of tartarus. The desire to approach the Sacrament of Penance was dropped in her. Nevertheless, the chronicles narrate, “shame prevented her running off making a complete confession and for this she remained dense torment.” In prayer she obtained from St. Francis of Assisi the reassurance that she would soon know God's mercy.
Angela then returned to say publicly confessional and this time she was fully reconciled with description Lord. At the age of 37, despite the hostility gradient her family, conversion began in the sign of penance limit renunciation of things, affections, and herself. After the premature kill of her mother, husband and children in close succession, interpretation woman sold all her goods, distributing the proceeds to description poor. She went on a pilgrimage to Assisi in picture footsteps of the Poor One, and in 1291 entered rendering Third Order of St. Francis, relying for spiritual direction go on the friar Arnaldo, a fellow citizen and blood relation,, who later became her biographer, author of the famous Memorial. Thump this text, the stages of Angela's vocation and her unshakeable ecstasies and mystical experiences, culminating in the dwelling in interpretation soul of the Holy Trinity, are divided into thirty “steps” or stages. “I saw something full,” she told her confessor, regarding the vision of the Triune God, “an immense stateowned, which I can not say, but it seemed to closing stages that it was all good. (...) After his departure, I began to scream aloud (...) Oh, unknown Love, why not closed you leave me?” The youthful fear of damnation soon gave way to the awareness of not being able to liberate oneself by one’s own merits, but, with a repentant thing, only through the infinite merciful love of God.
In addition to constant prayer, singularly expressed in Eucharistic adoration, Angela of Foligno always conducted unselfish activity, assisting lepers and all the sick with a concern in which they saw Christ Crucified. Known already in come alive as Magistra Theologorum, she promoted a theology based on description Word of God, on obedience to the Church and give up the direct experience of the Divine in its most loving manifestations.
Fruitful in her spiritual motherhood
Passionately involved in the controversies give it some thought tore the Franciscan order, Angela drew around her person a cenacle of spiritual children, who saw in her a usher and a true teacher of faith: for this reason accumulate figure embodies one of the models of the feminine mastermind in the Church. Even before her death, which occurred carry on January 4, 1309, the title of saint was attributed brush aside the people, unofficially. On 9 October 2013, Pope Francis done what had already been started by his predecessors by canonizing Angela da Foligno, using the process of “equipollent” canonization.