Sunday 2 February 2014


MIRACLE MAN: Saint Francisco Borgia, canonized 1671.

Not all Borgias were intriguers and priapic gadabouts, as the TV series would have you believe. Some of them were saints. No, really.
Here are some miracles Francisco Borgia worked:
  • A lady had two pieces of wood, one of them from Christ's cross, but she wasn’t sure which. Francisco broke them both. One of them started bleeding. Clearly the genuine article. -- Not miraculous enough for you? Okay:
  • A man had two of his teeth knocked out. Francisco replanted them in his gums. And neither decay nor old age had any power to loosen them.
  • A monastery Francisco visited ran out of food. He told the monks to ring the supper bell. There came to the door an old man of majestic appearance with a young man of striking beauty, who brought baskets of meat, bread, fish, eggs and wine, and a purse of money. The two were St. Andrew and an angel, in case you are wondering. Still not convinced of Francisco's sainthood?
  • Occasionally people saw a halo of light surmounting Francisco’s head. And he was seen floating above the ground.
  • Also: The Duchess of Uzeda was in labour and unable to deliver her baby. She called on the saint, who laid a relic on her breast, and she delivered a girl without the slightest pain.
I could list more miracles, but I can tell from your sniggering that you are a bunch of skeptics and infidels!
(Source: A. M. Clarke, The Life of St. Francis Borgia)

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