The Basilica of St Francis

Saint Bernardino of Siena

Bernardino, son of Sienese nobleman Tullo Albizzeschi, was born on September 8th 1380 in Massa Marittima, where his father, who married Nera degli Avveduti, had moved.
Bernardino’s date of birth must have been a premonition of his vocation: September 8th is the day on which the church celebrates the birth of the Blessed Virgin Mary, to whom he was extremely devoted to and, only a few months before (April 29th ) in that very same year, the other great saint from Siena of the time, Saint Catherine, died in Rome, as if to imply a passing of the baton between the two.
At 6 years of age Bernardino was orphaned and raised by his Aunt Diana until her death; when he was 11 he was placed under the care of the Albizzeschi family living in Siena. Here he was tutored by his cousin Tobia, a Franciscan tertiary, and by his aunt Bartolomea, an Augustinian tertiary. He studied with the finest teachers, concentrating his studies mainly on philosophy and law.
In 1400, during a severe epidemic of plague, Bernardino worked as a volunteer at the Hospital of Santa Maria della Scala, where he even maybe fell ill for a short time.
Subsequently, Bernardino felt the urge to join a religious order, though not a monastic one as he preferred to be in close contact with people. On August 31st 1402 Bernardino took the Franciscan habit in the church of Saint Francis in Siena and on September 8th (yet again on the feast of the Blessed Virgin Mary) 1404 he celebrated his first mass. Bernardino was an important exponent of the Franciscan Order of the Observance, which advocated a restoration of Saint Francis’ initial spirituality, founding new friaries, including the Basilica of the Observance just outside Siena’s walls.
At the age of 40 the most intense phase of his activity as a preacher began, making him well-known and leading him to visit many cities in Northern Italy. His sermons were highly appreciated, because they were clear and easy for the people to understand. In 1427 he preached for 45 days in a row in Piazza del Campo in Siena, where a large crowd had gathered to hear him speak. He was offered the Bishopric three times. However, he always refused all prestigious posts (the Bishoprics of Siena and Urbino and the Vicar general of the Observants) so that he could continue to mingle with the poor and defend the precepts of Catholicism through his sermons. In every sermon Bernardino displayed to his listeners a tablet bearing the monogram of the name of Jesus surrounded by a blazing sun, which became his iconographic symbol.
In May 1444 Bernardino died in the Friary of Saint Francis at L'Aquila, where he had gone to preach. He was canonized by Nicholas V just six years later in 1450.