St. Zita of Lucca

Today we celebrate the feast day of St. Zita. St. Zita is a 13th century Italian woman who served God through her humble and patient service to others for this reason she is the patron saint of maids and other domestic workers.

St. Zita was born into poverty during the year 1212. St. Zita was raised in a very holy Christian family and St. Zita was taught by her mother ever since a young age to seek God's will in every circumstance regardless of how hard it may be.

St. Zita developed a strong prayer life by the time she was sent to work. At the age of 12, St. Zita was sent to work in the home of the Fatinelli family in Lucca, Italy.

St. Zita’s older sister had become a Cistercian nun and St. Zita’s uncle Graziano was a hermit who local people called a saint. St. Zita lived her life always trying to do God's will with the upmost of obedience whenever it was pointed out to her by her mother.

St. Zita's employers lived very close to a church which helped her have the ability to attend daily mass. In order for St. Zita to attend daily mass she had to wake up very early in the morning. St. Zita looked at her hard work as a way to serve God, and her mentality helped her remember that God was present during all her long hours of work.

St. Zita’s presence in the Fatinelli household was very unwelcoming and she was met with extremely harsh treatment for a number of years. St. Zita suffered intense hostility and abuse from the people who employed her, the abuse was so bad that she would be left in bruises and scars after some attacks she had to endure.

However, St. Zita faced all of these trials with a lot of patience and she developed inner strength through the life of prayer she lived. Eventually, after a long time the members of the household came to value her service, and they started to appreciate the virtues she had acquired through God's grace.

During that time, St. Zita always made sure she maintained her humility, even when she was promoted to a position of responsibility within the Fatinelli home.

St. Zita continued to look at all of her earthly responsibilities as a way to serve God and do his will. St. Zita would seek God’s presence through her prayers and her fasting. St. Zita also refused to hold a grudge against everyone who may have mistreated her.

During St. Zita’s new household role, St. Zita was always faithful to Christ's admonition that all superiors should conduct themselves as the servants of all.

St. Zita was always kind to those who were under her direction, and she was mindful of the poor through her frequent almsgiving and acts of charity to the point of personal sacrifice.

Throughout St. Zita’s life, St. Zita found her main source of strength and peace when celebrating the Mass and receiving the Holy Communion, which would always moved her to tears.

Despite all of the responsibilities St. Zita had in her life, she frequently set aside time to recall God's presence through contemplative prayer during the course of her day.

One report recalls an event when St. Zita gave her own food or that of her master to the poor and vulnerable that she had encountered. During another event, St. Zita decided to bake bread that was used to tend to someone who was in need. A couple of the other servants made sure that the Fatinelli family were aware of what had occurred; when they went to check what was occurring , they claimed that they had found angels in the Fatinelli kitchen, and the angels were baking the bread for her.

After St. Zita had foretold her own death and spiritually prepared for her death, St. Zita died in Lucca, Italy on April 27, 1271.

Many of the residents regarded her as a saint and they began to want her intercession. Through St. Zita’s intercession a large number of miracles have occurred. Some of the writers started to refer to the city of Lucca as “Santa Zita” in her honor.

The Fatinelli family, who had once made St. Zita endure such extreme suffering, eventually decided to contribute to the cause of her canonization. The earliest account of her life was found in a manuscript that had belonged to the family, and it was later published during the year 1688.

The Church's liturgical veneration of St. Zita was introduced during the 1500s, and it was later confirmed by Pope Innocent XII during the year 1696.

During the year 1580, St. Zita’s body was exhumed and it was found to be miraculously incorrupt, since her body’s finding it has since been mummified. It is venerated today in the Basilica of St. Frediano. St. Zita attended mass at the Basilica of St. Frediano when she was alive.

St. Zita’s feast day is celebrated on April 27.

Prayer to St. Zita: St. Zita intercede that we may be filled with God’s graces so that we may be able to fulfill his will. St. Zita help us to be peaceful and charitable servants for God and help us to be able to forgive everyone who has done wrong to us, help us to give more then what we receive and help us to be a light for everyone during our lives. We ask this through Christ Our Lord and Mary Our Mother in Heaven Amen St. Zita pray for us St. Joseph pray for us

May we continue to strengthen our journey to sainthood and keep others in our prayers.

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Works cited:

Information (read from, not taken):

Catholic Online. “St. Zita. ”St. Zita - Saints & Angels - Catholic Online. Accessed 27, April 2021.

Images:

St. Zita. April 27, 2021. st. zita - Google Search.