About the holy man Brother Vincent of Foiano, Priest

Brother Vincent was from a region situated in the dominion of Florence called Foiano, in Val di Chiana. He was born to honest parents in the household of Mannozzi which was a so called family of the city of Florence. However Brother Vincent’s father left Florence and went to Foiano where he bought many fields. From then on he lived in that region and left the city of Florence completely. He had that son whom he raised with great tenderness and very delicately. He attended school and became quite well instructed in grammar. Because his father was procurator for the Zoccolanti Fathers the devout boy carried with him from infancy an innate religiosity. Seeing that the boy was always so devout and inclined towards the things of God, judicious persons always thought that he should become a Religious. Just as I heard from his own mouth, because he was very close to me for many years, the Lord God very often showed signs during his childhood that He had chosen him for His service. Once when he realised that the flesh was rebellious the devout boy had such a dislike for it, since he felt it was a diabolical machination, that he stripped himself naked in a secret place and bound himself so tightly with a cord that from then on he remained lamed by it. And he scourged himself more rigorously. He decided never to commit a carnal sin even though he did not make an explicit vow because at that age he was able to do more. Holy honesty remained so firmly carved in his heart nonetheless that he never committed a sin of the flesh for as long as he lived.

Once when the boy was in bed with his mother, the devout boy woke up with a loud cry and jumped out of the bed so that his mother was unable to hold him down. Wearing just a shirt he went very quickly to the place of the Friars while crying, “Oh dear, the crucifix is falling!” When he arrived at that friary and finding the church closed, since he knew the custom he went to the lower door and rang the bell very loudly. When the porter came he saw barefoot boy dressed only in a shirt and weeping so copiously, he suspected that something very bad had happened to him and wanted to comfort him. He cried in a loud voice, “Go to the church because the crucifix is falling!” At this noise the Friars ran to the church and found a beautiful crucifix that was on the altar. The nails had come out of the feet and one arm and just a nail in one hand held it up. Was this considered a great miracle? I asked him, “How was this shown to you?” He answered me, “I was asleep. In my dream it seemed as though I saw the Lord and He said to me, ‘God quickly because my image is falling in the Friars’ place.’ Then I was shown that crucifix in a vision.”

The boy persevered in reading devout books and had made himself a little altar in his room where he said the Office of Our Lady and many prayers with much devotion. When he reached the age of about fourteen years, through his great insistence and although his father was not happy about it, the Fathers received him and put him into the care of a holy man, his master. Because he was so young he was not taken from that master for many years. His fervour to do penance was such that his master had to keep him check so that he would not fall ill.

It pleased the Lord God that when he was already ordained a Priest that the Congregation of Capuchins emerged. When the devout young man heard that the Capuchins had taken up the place of Saint Euphemia in Rome, without thinking about anything else he immediately went to Rome. Father Louis of Fossombrone received him and sent him to the devout friary at Scandriglia where he spent some months in harsh penance, fasting continuously on bread and water. However when Father Bernardine of Asti was elected General in the first Chapter he desired to do still greater penance and asked that Father for the favour to send him to the devout friary of Monte Casale where our Seraphic Father Saint Francis had been because it was a place that was very devout, solitary and harsh. He kindly granted him this, giving him the obedience so that he could carry out his devotions and penances as much as he wanted. He stayed in that place for about eight years and always in a little cell near the cell of Father Saint Francis alongside the room of the seculars where he live a life that was more angelic than human. For that habit that he wore from Rome, which was made of black slave wool and completely patched, he wore for about eighteen years. During that time he never wanted put on anything but that tight, short habit that went just down to his shins. It was amazing that since the friary was in the Apennines where there are heavy falls of snow and bitter cold, this servant of God never wanted to put on a mantle or other garments. Nonetheless he persevered without ever becoming ill.

He always went barefoot in summer and without shoes in winter. He did all the forty-days on bread and water that our Father Saint Francis was accustomed to do. Often he went many days without eating anything. The servant of God restored himself from Christmas until Epiphany and then he fasted the whole forty days called the fast of the Blessed on bread and water as well as the big forty days. On Good Friday he ate nothing. He restored himself during the three days of Easter and then began the forty days of the Holy Spirit. For the three Pentecost feastdays he ate with the other Friars and ate what they ate. Then he began the forty days of the Apostles. When that was finished he began the one of the Our Lay in the middle of August and then the one of Saint Michael the Archangel.

He persevered in this way of life for about twenty-five years. Then when he felt his strength weaken he eased off. He only fasted on bread and water on the vigils of Our Lady and Our Lord. All the rest of the time he ate what the others ate. However he never failed to fast the forty-days of Father Saint Francis.

For a long time he wore a harsh hair shirt. The cord he wore was coarse hemp and he wore it for more than twenty years. When he saw it wearing out somewhere he repaired it with short lengths of cord.

While he was at Monte Casale, when he said the Office he remained kneeling with his hands joined, contemplating with his mind what he said with his mouth and heard with his ears. He celebrated (Mass) almost every morning and always reconciled. The rest of the time he occupied himself completely in holy contemplation. Since he usually slept three hours before Matins he got up for holy prayer. Rarely if ever did he sleep after Matins although he would have withdrawn to his cell in order to be quieter there. Many times he was heard fighting with the devil who had the greatest battles with him.

During summer a times of fine weather after Mass in the morning he went off into the woods and continued in prayer there until the bell rang for the Office. He did the same after Vespers. He was often seen elevated in ecstasy. His fervour was such that every great penance seemed easy for him. Very often he said, while sighing, “O Lord, forgive my sins!” This was because he considered himself to be the greatest sinner in the world even though it would have been certain that he never sinned mortally since his life had been so holy since childhood. His soul was so lifted up in God so that when he heard talk of God rose in ecstasy and emitted very soft words. Then he jumped three or four times and sped off quickly to his cell. There he staid suspended for a good period of time. This was seen many times. Once the venerable Father John of Fano was passing through while on his way from Borgo San Sepolcro to Marches. He gave the Friars some spiritual talks. This servant of God stayed there for the space of two Miserere and then rose up with a great cry and did as I said above. He did the same during the sermon of Father Bernardine of Asti and of others. When secular persons call for him out of devotion he could only be brought to them with great difficulty. When they ask him to pray to God for them he bowed his head a little and fled away, saying, “And you pray for me because I need it very much.”

It pleased the Lord God that the Superiors sent him back to the Province of Tuscany and became the Master of novices. Because they saw that he liked the solitary places very much, most of the time he was assigned to the devout friary of the Magdalen near Montepulciano. He led such a miraculous life there that both Friars and seculars regarded him a saint. Once, when he was afire with the Holy Spirit, filled with a prophetic spirit he could not constrain himself for God had shown him a great ruin that had to come to Tuscany because of their sins. Compelled by fervour he took off the habit and picked up a large cross. Naked in just his underwear with that cross he began to cry out, “Do penance!” In less than eight hours he travelled through many castles for a distance of about fourteen miles. Then he came to a hill. Because of all his shouting as well as the effort in the travelling, and since it was also a time of fasting, he leant against a tree and there he found that he could no longer move. Behold, immediately a woman appeared to him. She put a slice of bread into his mouth and immediately vanished. He was so refreshed as if he had eaten an excellent meal. Taking up the cross he began to shout again, “Do penance because the anger of God is upon you!” From then on he was certain that the woman had been the Mother of God.

At this new the whole region was in a commotion and they all said, “He is a great servant of God. He has not done this lightly, but the Holy Spirit has moved him to give us these warnings just as he did through the holy Prophets in ancient times.” It was because they did not change that God sent a war upon them so that they lost everything and were all turned out of their houses and sent everywhere to foreign regions. The majority of them were killed. They all believed that God had warned them so that they might convert. However since they took no account of the threats the just scourge overtook them and their land in particular was sacked and burned.

For the sustenance of his nature this servant of God liked to eat greens, legumes or chestnuts. He ate very little bread. He said to the porter, “Please, I beg you for the love of God to give my portion of bread to the poor and give me some chestnuts.”

He arrived to such simplicity that he could not think that anyone would sin. When the novices accused themselves of some negligence, as small as it might have been, the holy man replied, “Poor fellow, should I punish you for having done this wrong?” When the novice answered, “Father, I did it” he replied, “Poor fellow, you must have had a good intention. It is not true that you have done this wrong thing.”

Once he was told about a Lord who oppressed his vassals. Father Vincent replied, “I do believe that he would do such a wrong thing because God would take the State from him.” When he was assured that the he did that and worse, Brother Vincent said, “The poor fellow must have some very grave reason. No one can know the secrets of the Princes. I have heard tell that he is a holy man of good will. I do not believe that the Lord would allow him to stay in such a grave sin.” In this way he always had a good opinion of his neighbour.

Once he was asked why he afflicted himself with such harsh penance. He answered, “Know that I have been very well informed by a wise and learned man that for anyone wants to please God it is necessary to accompany Jesus Christ with the Cross, to suffer for His love as much as possible and where our efforts do not succeed to succeed with the desire to suffer for His love more and more. Some do good as long as the Lord visits them with many consolations in prayer. However without these they turn back. This is a sign that they do not love God but themselves. True love consists in suffering willingly for the love of God and to love Him more the one sees himself scourged and abandoned, having a clear sign that God loves him very much. Know that God does not give spiritual consolations except to weak persons so that they may not stray from the path of doing good. To those true servants of God who love the Most High with a strong love, He gives nothing but woes and tribulations in this world because no greater gift can be given them.

That Father told me an example. A holy man was praying one time and he saw three women appear in front of the altar. One had been a prostitute a little earlier. Another had been a sinner but had served God for a long time. The third had always been a good woman. With his bodily eyes He saw Christ appear on the altar dressed as High Priest. He embraced the prostitute and kissed her and with great joy gave her His Body and Blood in Holy Communion. To the second woman who was more perfect He her a terrible look that made her tremble all over and did not want to give her Holy Communion. To the third woman who had always been holy He gave her an awful gaze and slapped her on the face. “Through this example He showed that He nourishes those who a young and beginners in the service of God with the milk of tears and spiritual sweetness. With those who are more perfect he mixes both together. However for those who are experienced and well founded in the service of God He gives heavier gifts than those He gave to the early saints whose whole life was hard due to grave persecutions and a cruel death. This is what always makes me desire to always suffer more. For many years now if it had not been for the goad of holy obedience through which I am bound to my Superiors by a vow, I would not have been in the Order but rather in a harsh desert where I would have never seen the face of man and lived as the early Fathers lived on herbs, fruit and different foods that the Lord God would provide for me. This is what stimulates me to scourge myself continuously so that I would not have to converse with anyone else in order not to see any other than my Lord Jesus Christ. If the Father General does not give me the opportunity to do so in the place of Monte Casale, I would be determined to beg permission from His Holiness and go away to the desert. However now I know that my conscience is surer under holy obedience and I wonder whether that was a temptation although the desert would have been …… especially because in these parts there are no suitable deserts where one can live as the saints did in Egypt. They are hostile places and therefore I am happy to finish under holy obedience.”

When this servant of God was in the friary at Pistoia he fell gravely ill. When he was near to death he wanted to throw himself onto the ground. When the Guardian saw this he said to him, “What do you want to do, old Father?” The servant of God answered, “I want to die on the ground and I beg you to grant me this so that I may die as our Father Saint Francis did.” Since the Guardian was worried that if he got up from the bed his death would be accelerated he did not allow him to get up. After having received all the most holy sacraments he was totally absorbed in God and had a very joyful face. Having served His Majesty in the holy Order for about sixty years that holy soul passed away to its Creator. He was entombed at that friary. It lasted for many months that the Guardian with all the Friars lifted the stone lid at least once a week and visited him with great devotion. He was in the tomb exactly as if he were sleeping in bed – whole, fragrant, fresh and fair.

The Lord God performed many miracles through this servant of His. When he was in that abovementioned friary of St. Mary Magdalen, the people from all around had recourse to this holy man in their infirmities. In order to show that he did not perform the miracles he used to give them a certain oil that he had blessed. He commanded them to anoint themselves with it and to commend themselves to Our Lady so that she might heal them. It was a marvellous thing that nine out of ten were healed. He performed an almost countless number of these miracles.

One Friar had a sharp pain in his knee for a long time. When Brother Vincent made the sign of the cross over it he was healed.

He did many other miracles that I am not writing down because I do not know enough about them. May this be enough in order to consider the holiness of the holy man Brother Vincent of Foiano.

To the praise and glory of Our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.