July 26, 2025 • 10 mins
Dive into the extraordinary life of Saint Gerard Majella, an Italian lay brother of the Redemptorists, whose unwavering devotion to mirror the sacrifices and humiliations of Jesus Christ was awe-inspiring. Despite his frail health, he surpassed the work of his peers, earning the title Father of the Poor for his boundless charity. Revered for his angelic purity, he bore false accusations with admirable patience, leading St. Alphonsus to declare, Brother Gerard is a saint. His divine gifts extended to profound spiritual insight, prophecy, discernment of spirits, bilocation, and seemingly limitless power over nature, sickness, and demons. Today, people seek his intercession for a myriad of causes, including children, expectant mothers, the falsely accused, and more. Join us as we explore the legacy of this saint, drawing from sources like the 1919 Catholic Encyclopedia and Wikipedia.
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
Chapter thirteen of Life of Saint Gerard Magella. This is
a LibriVox recording. All LibriVox recordings are in the public domain.
For more information or to volunteer, please visit LibriVox dot org.
Life of Saint Gerard Magella by Reverend O. R. Vassal Phillips,
(00:26):
Chapter thirteen, His Wonderful Life at Naples. The Redemptorist fathers were,
from an early period in the history of their congregation
in possession of a small residence in Naples. It had
been bestowed upon them by the brother of Saint Alfonsas,
so that they might have a home of their own,
where they could break the journey when passing through the
(00:48):
city from one mission to another. Father Margata, the Procurator
General of the congregation, shortly after the triumphant vindication of
Saint Gerard's character, was sent to take charge of this
little house. He was a man of exceptional holiness, well
acquainted with the Saint. He had written to him most
kindly in his late trouble, and now he begged as
(01:11):
a special favor that he might be given him as
his companion during his stay in Naples. Yes, said Saint Alfonsis,
take him with you, it will be some compensation to
him after the trials which he has borne so generously.
Father Margoda and Saint Gerard, for some months lived together
at Naples, a life of wonderful sanctity. They were alone,
(01:33):
and thus enjoyed the greater liberty to give full vent
to their fervor and the heroic service of God. Understanding
one another thoroughly, they used to exercise their ingenuity in
discovering fresh means, whereby they might spur each other on
in the practice of virtue. Father Margota once asked Gerard
what he had got ready for their dinner. The dinner
(01:55):
which your reverence ordered this morning, was the smiling answer that,
and nothing more there was. It appeared no dinner whatsoever
prepared that day, for none had been ordered. The Saint
knew doubtless that Father Margada would be rejoiced to share
his fast. However, it was not always with Father Margota
that he had to deal. A lay brother, Francis Tartaglione
(02:17):
by name, was sent by his superiors to pay them
a visit at Naples. The morning after his arrival, he
and Saint Gerard both went out. It was Gerard's duty
to cater for the midday meal, But for he had
as yet bought anything, he came upon a wretched huckster
selling matches in the market place. Sad indeed was the
story of want and misery that he poured into the
(02:39):
sympathetic ears that were now open to his tale of woe.
He was so, he declared, absolutely dying of hunger. For
Gerard to empty his slender purse into the poor man's
hands was the work of a moment. He accepted some
of his wares in exchange for the money, and invent
his steps homewards in all peace of mind. Meanwhile, brother
Francis had also returned to the house, and when Gerard appeared,
(03:01):
he asked him at once what he had got for dinner.
The servant of God replied with a sly glance. God
is all that we need. We want nothing more. That
is all very well, retorted Brother Francis impatiently. But how
about the dinner? Before him? On the table lay the
store of matches. What may those things be? He continued
(03:22):
in amazement. My dear brother, answered Gerard, I am sure
that we shall find them very useful. He then told
the story of his adventure in the market place. Poor
Brother Francis's discomfiture was complete. He was entirely disarmed, and
he had not a word to say. Charity, we all
know is the queen of virtues. Still, try as he might,
(03:43):
he could not help feeling that he needed his dinner
badly enough. Soon Father Margota joined them. Saint Gerard told
him at once all that had occurred, saying simply that
in the absence of his superior he had assumed his
permission to give the poor man an alms. But said
Father Margare, noticing with some amusement the disconsolate appearance of
(04:03):
brother Francis, tell us, please, what are we to have
to eat today? God will provide? Was the only reply
that he received. A few moments after, there was heard
a ring at the bell. Perhaps that is our dinner,
remarked Father Margota with a smile. Brother Gerard and he
went together to the door Father Margotta had prophesied. There
(04:24):
before their eyes stood a servant with a basketful of eatables.
She had just been told by her mistress to take
a present to the Redemptress. Though she merely knew them
by name, We may be sure that brother Francis never
forgot how God thus sent the seal of his divine
approval upon Saint Gerard's charity. During the first few weeks
of his stay at Naples, the Holy Brother gave himself
(04:46):
up without let or hindrance, to the practice of prayer
and contemplation, his duties in a house being very slight.
The greater part of the day was at his own disposal.
Father Margota said Mass every day in the Church of
the Oratorian. After Mass, Gerard used to spend the whole
morning hidden away in a corner, generally stretched as though lifeless,
(05:08):
on the pavement. He also visited with great assiduity any
church in which the blessed Sacrament was exposed for the
forty hours adoration. But throughout Saint Gerard's life we see
how irresistible was his attraction for works of charity. This
soon manifested itself at Naples. No great length of time
had elapsed before he was well known in the city.
(05:28):
Every day he was to be found in the public hospitals,
ministering to the sick, after the example set him by
his Holy father Saint alfonsas in the lunatic asylums, consoling
the poor inmates with his sweet kindness. In the big shops,
winning the hearts of the young men there employed to
the love of our Lord Jesus Christ. Great were the
conversions that he thus affected, and numerous were the sinners
(05:49):
whom he led to the feet of Father Margata, that
they might be absolved from their sins in the sacrament
of penance. As usual, his sanctity was illustrated by the
gut of miracles. One of the most wonderful that he
ever performed belongs to this period of his life. It
has been attested on oath by a large number of
eye witnesses. Standing one day by the Bay of Naples,
(06:12):
he noticed a great crowd of men and women. They
were rending the air with their piercing shouts of terror.
A storm had suddenly arisen with great violence. A boat
was on the point of sinking beneath the waves. Full
of compassion for these poor people, and relying upon the
protecting arm of Him who quelled the storm of old
and caused Saint Peter to walk upon the face of
the waters as upon solid earth, Gerard made the sign
(06:35):
of the Cross, and then advanced unhesitatingly into the sea
in the name of the most Holy Trinity. Thus did
he adjure the frail craft, which was going down before
his very eyes, stay while thou art I command thee.
At that moment, the boat remained motionless. Gerard advanced, seized
it as he might have caught a lily floating upon
(06:56):
the surface of the bay, and brought it to the shore. Then,
in presence of the assembled multitude, without his clothes being
so much as wet, he stepped out of the sea
on to dry land. The people, in enthusiastic wonderment, cried out,
a miracle, a miracle. Gerard himself and his humility, ran
away as though he had committed some great crime, and
hid himself in a shop until nightfall. When father Margada
(07:19):
asked him afterwards how he had managed to draw on
the boat, he answered, simply, Father, to God, all things
are possible. The renown of this miracle caused Gerard to
become known in every part of Naples. He could not
appear in the streets without men and women calling out
as he passed, there goes the Saint, the saint who
saved the boat. The little Redemptorest's house was daily besieged
(07:41):
by persons of all ranks, eager to speak to the
Holy Brother and obtain his advice and their troubles and difficulties.
But the more he was exalted among men, the more
earnestly did Gerard set himself to discover fresh means of
self objection. When he first went to Naples, he u used,
sometimes alone, sometimes with Father Margota, who seems to have
(08:03):
been almost as greedy of humiliations as himself, to mix
with the beggars at the door of the oratory. Then
with the other poor people he would ask in alms
of the charity of the sons of Saint Philip. This
wonderful act of humility was, of course forbidden directly. It
came to the ears of higher superiors at a distance.
But Gerard soon found other means of advancing in holy humility. Thus,
(08:25):
one day, on opening the door, he received the following message,
the Duchess of matalone wishes to see Brother Gerard. As
he saw that the servant evidently did not know him
by sight, he replied, in all seriousness, I am afraid
that I cannot bring you that brother to tell you
the truth. He is only a simpleton and a fool. People,
as I find, are strangely mistaken about him. Here at Naples,
(08:47):
please tell the Duchess so for me. This lady had
wished to see Saint Gerard, that she might obtain at
his hands the cure of a sick child. When the
servant brought back the answer that he had received, she
knew at once that it could have come from no
other than the Saint himself. Early the next morning, she
went to the Church of the Holy Spirit, where she
knew that she would be sure to find Saint Gerard.
(09:08):
As soon as she saw him come in, she went
up to him and begged of him to obtain from
God the recovery of her child. There, said Gerard, turning
his eyes to the tabernacle, there dwells the giver of
all good gifts. It is from you and from him,
replied the Duchess that this grace on which I have
set my heart must come. Gerard bowed to her and
(09:30):
promised to pray for her child. The poor mother was
still in the church when her maid came in quickly
to tell her that the little girl had been suddenly cured.
It was subsequently ascertained that the cure took place at
the very moment when our Saint had promised to recommend
the child to god ladies living in the world were
far from being the only persons to seek the help
of Saint Gerard. In Naples, as elsewhere, priests and religious
(09:53):
vied with one another in the eagerness with which they
strove to obtain his advice, until at last his superiors
felt bound to interpose. It might be dangerous even for Gerard,
a lay brother by vocation, thus, to be made the
idol of a great city. Again, it was hardly conductive
to the calm which should pervade a religious house, that
the little Redemptorist residence should become a center of attraction
(10:15):
for crowds of eager visitors, anxious even at the most
inconvenient hours, to see the marvelous worker of miracles, with
whose fame all Naples was ringing. Accordingly, after a stay
of about four months duration in the capital, Gerard was,
to his own great contentment, attached by Saint Alfonsis to
the House of Capacelli, and thus restored once more to
(10:36):
the ordinary community life of a Redemptorist lay brother. End
of Chapter thirteen.
Chapter thirteen of Life of Saint Gerard Magella. This is
a LibriVox recording. All LibriVox recordings are in the public domain.
For more information or to volunteer, please visit LibriVox dot org.
Life of Saint Gerard Magella by Reverend O. R. Vassal Phillips,
(00:26):
Chapter thirteen, His Wonderful Life at Naples. The Redemptorist fathers were,
from an early period in the history of their congregation
in possession of a small residence in Naples. It had
been bestowed upon them by the brother of Saint Alfonsas,
so that they might have a home of their own,
where they could break the journey when passing through the
(00:48):
city from one mission to another. Father Margata, the Procurator
General of the congregation, shortly after the triumphant vindication of
Saint Gerard's character, was sent to take charge of this
little house. He was a man of exceptional holiness, well
acquainted with the Saint. He had written to him most
kindly in his late trouble, and now he begged as
(01:11):
a special favor that he might be given him as
his companion during his stay in Naples. Yes, said Saint Alfonsis,
take him with you, it will be some compensation to
him after the trials which he has borne so generously.
Father Margoda and Saint Gerard, for some months lived together
at Naples, a life of wonderful sanctity. They were alone,
(01:33):
and thus enjoyed the greater liberty to give full vent
to their fervor and the heroic service of God. Understanding
one another thoroughly, they used to exercise their ingenuity in
discovering fresh means, whereby they might spur each other on
in the practice of virtue. Father Margota once asked Gerard
what he had got ready for their dinner. The dinner
(01:55):
which your reverence ordered this morning, was the smiling answer that,
and nothing more there was. It appeared no dinner whatsoever
prepared that day, for none had been ordered. The Saint
knew doubtless that Father Margada would be rejoiced to share
his fast. However, it was not always with Father Margota
that he had to deal. A lay brother, Francis Tartaglione
(02:17):
by name, was sent by his superiors to pay them
a visit at Naples. The morning after his arrival, he
and Saint Gerard both went out. It was Gerard's duty
to cater for the midday meal, But for he had
as yet bought anything, he came upon a wretched huckster
selling matches in the market place. Sad indeed was the
story of want and misery that he poured into the
(02:39):
sympathetic ears that were now open to his tale of woe.
He was so, he declared, absolutely dying of hunger. For
Gerard to empty his slender purse into the poor man's
hands was the work of a moment. He accepted some
of his wares in exchange for the money, and invent
his steps homewards in all peace of mind. Meanwhile, brother
Francis had also returned to the house, and when Gerard appeared,
(03:01):
he asked him at once what he had got for dinner.
The servant of God replied with a sly glance. God
is all that we need. We want nothing more. That
is all very well, retorted Brother Francis impatiently. But how
about the dinner? Before him? On the table lay the
store of matches. What may those things be? He continued
(03:22):
in amazement. My dear brother, answered Gerard, I am sure
that we shall find them very useful. He then told
the story of his adventure in the market place. Poor
Brother Francis's discomfiture was complete. He was entirely disarmed, and
he had not a word to say. Charity, we all
know is the queen of virtues. Still, try as he might,
(03:43):
he could not help feeling that he needed his dinner
badly enough. Soon Father Margota joined them. Saint Gerard told
him at once all that had occurred, saying simply that
in the absence of his superior he had assumed his
permission to give the poor man an alms. But said
Father Margare, noticing with some amusement the disconsolate appearance of
(04:03):
brother Francis, tell us, please, what are we to have
to eat today? God will provide? Was the only reply
that he received. A few moments after, there was heard
a ring at the bell. Perhaps that is our dinner,
remarked Father Margota with a smile. Brother Gerard and he
went together to the door Father Margotta had prophesied. There
(04:24):
before their eyes stood a servant with a basketful of eatables.
She had just been told by her mistress to take
a present to the Redemptress. Though she merely knew them
by name, We may be sure that brother Francis never
forgot how God thus sent the seal of his divine
approval upon Saint Gerard's charity. During the first few weeks
of his stay at Naples, the Holy Brother gave himself
(04:46):
up without let or hindrance, to the practice of prayer
and contemplation, his duties in a house being very slight.
The greater part of the day was at his own disposal.
Father Margota said Mass every day in the Church of
the Oratorian. After Mass, Gerard used to spend the whole
morning hidden away in a corner, generally stretched as though lifeless,
(05:08):
on the pavement. He also visited with great assiduity any
church in which the blessed Sacrament was exposed for the
forty hours adoration. But throughout Saint Gerard's life we see
how irresistible was his attraction for works of charity. This
soon manifested itself at Naples. No great length of time
had elapsed before he was well known in the city.
(05:28):
Every day he was to be found in the public hospitals,
ministering to the sick, after the example set him by
his Holy father Saint alfonsas in the lunatic asylums, consoling
the poor inmates with his sweet kindness. In the big shops,
winning the hearts of the young men there employed to
the love of our Lord Jesus Christ. Great were the
conversions that he thus affected, and numerous were the sinners
(05:49):
whom he led to the feet of Father Margata, that
they might be absolved from their sins in the sacrament
of penance. As usual, his sanctity was illustrated by the
gut of miracles. One of the most wonderful that he
ever performed belongs to this period of his life. It
has been attested on oath by a large number of
eye witnesses. Standing one day by the Bay of Naples,
(06:12):
he noticed a great crowd of men and women. They
were rending the air with their piercing shouts of terror.
A storm had suddenly arisen with great violence. A boat
was on the point of sinking beneath the waves. Full
of compassion for these poor people, and relying upon the
protecting arm of Him who quelled the storm of old
and caused Saint Peter to walk upon the face of
the waters as upon solid earth, Gerard made the sign
(06:35):
of the Cross, and then advanced unhesitatingly into the sea
in the name of the most Holy Trinity. Thus did
he adjure the frail craft, which was going down before
his very eyes, stay while thou art I command thee.
At that moment, the boat remained motionless. Gerard advanced, seized
it as he might have caught a lily floating upon
(06:56):
the surface of the bay, and brought it to the shore. Then,
in presence of the assembled multitude, without his clothes being
so much as wet, he stepped out of the sea
on to dry land. The people, in enthusiastic wonderment, cried out,
a miracle, a miracle. Gerard himself and his humility, ran
away as though he had committed some great crime, and
hid himself in a shop until nightfall. When father Margada
(07:19):
asked him afterwards how he had managed to draw on
the boat, he answered, simply, Father, to God, all things
are possible. The renown of this miracle caused Gerard to
become known in every part of Naples. He could not
appear in the streets without men and women calling out
as he passed, there goes the Saint, the saint who
saved the boat. The little Redemptorest's house was daily besieged
(07:41):
by persons of all ranks, eager to speak to the
Holy Brother and obtain his advice and their troubles and difficulties.
But the more he was exalted among men, the more
earnestly did Gerard set himself to discover fresh means of
self objection. When he first went to Naples, he u used,
sometimes alone, sometimes with Father Margota, who seems to have
(08:03):
been almost as greedy of humiliations as himself, to mix
with the beggars at the door of the oratory. Then
with the other poor people he would ask in alms
of the charity of the sons of Saint Philip. This
wonderful act of humility was, of course forbidden directly. It
came to the ears of higher superiors at a distance.
But Gerard soon found other means of advancing in holy humility. Thus,
(08:25):
one day, on opening the door, he received the following message,
the Duchess of matalone wishes to see Brother Gerard. As
he saw that the servant evidently did not know him
by sight, he replied, in all seriousness, I am afraid
that I cannot bring you that brother to tell you
the truth. He is only a simpleton and a fool. People,
as I find, are strangely mistaken about him. Here at Naples,
(08:47):
please tell the Duchess so for me. This lady had
wished to see Saint Gerard, that she might obtain at
his hands the cure of a sick child. When the
servant brought back the answer that he had received, she
knew at once that it could have come from no
other than the Saint himself. Early the next morning, she
went to the Church of the Holy Spirit, where she
knew that she would be sure to find Saint Gerard.
(09:08):
As soon as she saw him come in, she went
up to him and begged of him to obtain from
God the recovery of her child. There, said Gerard, turning
his eyes to the tabernacle, there dwells the giver of
all good gifts. It is from you and from him,
replied the Duchess that this grace on which I have
set my heart must come. Gerard bowed to her and
(09:30):
promised to pray for her child. The poor mother was
still in the church when her maid came in quickly
to tell her that the little girl had been suddenly cured.
It was subsequently ascertained that the cure took place at
the very moment when our Saint had promised to recommend
the child to god ladies living in the world were
far from being the only persons to seek the help
of Saint Gerard. In Naples, as elsewhere, priests and religious
(09:53):
vied with one another in the eagerness with which they
strove to obtain his advice, until at last his superiors
felt bound to interpose. It might be dangerous even for Gerard,
a lay brother by vocation, thus, to be made the
idol of a great city. Again, it was hardly conductive
to the calm which should pervade a religious house, that
the little Redemptorist residence should become a center of attraction
(10:15):
for crowds of eager visitors, anxious even at the most
inconvenient hours, to see the marvelous worker of miracles, with
whose fame all Naples was ringing. Accordingly, after a stay
of about four months duration in the capital, Gerard was,
to his own great contentment, attached by Saint Alfonsis to
the House of Capacelli, and thus restored once more to
(10:36):
the ordinary community life of a Redemptorist lay brother. End
of Chapter thirteen.
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