About the holy man Brother Justin of Panicale, Lay Friar

Brother Justin was from a village in the countryside of Perugia, near the castle of Panicale. He was born tho honest parents, though farmers. When he was young he applied himself to the trade of rope making. However when he was about eighteen years old, inspired by God he took the habit in the Franciscan Order. Because he was young and bright, even though he was uneducated, he was assigned to the office of the infirmary where he served with great charity for some years and had the greatest experiences in his practice.

When the Congregation of Capuchins came he burned with an incredible fervour to imitate perfectly the example of Father Saint Francis. He went to find Brother Louis of Fossombrone who received him the friary of Saint Euphemia and assigned him to the fraternity in the friary at Scandriglia. However a little later he transferred him to the Province of Saint Francis where he led a very remarkable life, exercising himself in continuous fasts and dedicating himself continuously to holy contemplation in which God gave him many revelations. She had Brother Bernardine get in one barrel and this servant of God, Brother Justin, get into the other. One reasons she did this so that first of all certain Religious would not see him because it was suspected that some harm would come to him on the journey. The other reason was so that he would arrive more quickly. As it pleased God, the Congregation was freed and benefited greatly from the presence of the Occhino as on many occasions while he was still a good man. Therefore when this matter in Rome was over Brother Louis sent Brother Justin to the Province of Saint Francis and to the friary of Saint Joseph in Foligno. I was in the fraternity at the time. For many years we were close and I saw marvellous things in him.

Once when he was in the friary at Bettona, there was a knock at the door late in the evening. When the porter went to the door a poor man asked him for alms with great humility. The porter asked him to wait. Returning he brought him some bread and said to him, “Forgive us because we only have a little.” The poor fellow replied to him, “I know how much you have and I know what you can do.” As the porter closed the door the holy man Brother Justin was praying in the church. Immediately Our Lord appeared to him with the bread in his hand and because he was Guardian at the time He said to him, “I got this from your Friars.” The he disappeared straightaway. Brother Justin then began to weep uncontrollably and said, “My son, what have you done? That poor man was Jesus Christ, and you have sent him away with a loaf of bread.” From then on, every time he remembered this he wept and said, “Know that Lord wanted to make us aware of our lack of charity.”

Another time when the holy man was in the same friary, someone he did not know appeared to him while he was praying. This person put before him a round stool with three legs, “This belongs to a certain Guardian.” Since the holy man did not understand the vision, the one who appeared to him told him inwardly with a clear voice, “The vision is profound. It means trinity and stability.” Because that Guardian was in the midst of great tribulation because of a persecution Religious of another Order were bringing against him, he understood from this vision that God would preserve him and that it would result in victory, which it did.

Another time this servant of God was in the serve of plague victims. A great plague had come and with the permission of the Superiors he plunged into it. He brought great benefit to the poor plague victims in both soul and body. He had them confess to his companion who was a Priest. He medicated their wounds. Because of their poverty many of them had no one to bury them and so he gave them burial. However the enemy of human nature who cannot tolerate good being done brought him the greatest temptation by having him see a very beautiful girl who would tempt him in holy purity. He told me, “I would have fallen completely if the Virgin Mother of Christ did not help me straight away.” While he did not want to elaborate any further to me, it was believed that the Mother of God appeared to him visibly.

I will leave aside telling about the many revelations that he had and told me about because they do not seem very useful things to me. I will only write that he was taken in a vision into the church of certain Religious who led a very lax life. It was at the hour of Matins. The Religious began Matins and he had the impression that all their words were curses. Stunned by this, with great sorrow and tears the servant of God turned to the one who showed him this and said, “Oh my! These poor fellows are cursing the Supreme Creator.” He was answered, “Their words are not curses per sè. Rather their bad life so displeases the Lord God that since their hearts do not please him He receives their praises like curses. If they do not change their life they will be abandoned by god.” Then later it was obvious that as they worsened they fell headlong into every vice.

He was very zealous about holy poverty. Sometimes when he was there when Friars established houses he always said, “The words that our Father Saint Francis says in the Testament about himself and his companions are not without reason – that they freely stayed in abandoned churches. So I say we should do the same ourselves. There are many devout, abandoned churches that no one uses. We should take up one of those so as not to incur further expense and build for ourselves so that we cannot stay and observe our Rule there. This was the intention of Father Saint Francis, because I tell you that new people will come and they will not be happy with out simplicity. Rather, they will abandon these little places that we are making with so much effort. They will build others – bigger, more sumptuous and close to the cities. God has given us this spirit and we have known by His grace in what the true observance of poverty and the Rule is. Let us make these little places as poor as we can and with the least expense possible so that when they are abandoned not much will be lost.”

We see that this opinion has been shown him by God and not by men. It is appears to be more a prophecy than an opinion.

He never wanted more than one old, completely patched habit. He ate very little and usually ate only once a day. He always fasted on bread and water for the vigils of Our Lady and the Lord. He could not do much because he was old. However because he was Guardian quite often, and because at that time friaries were built, he suffered the greatest exertions. He governed very prudently because of which he was Commissary of the Provincial many times. He was very charitable towards neighbour. Wherever he was, when he heard about the sick, he went to visit them with great charity. He performed for them many tasks related to his trade. Many said, “When I was sick, if I could have Father Justin I would not care about other doctors.”

Once in the Province of Romagna, in the friary at Forli, there was a lay Friar called Brother Bonaventure of Brescello. Because of ulceration the whole leg had gone bad. The surgeon Master Matthew had cut away all the flesh. During the cutting Brother Bonaventure felt nothing. Only the bone remained. Desperate about being able to do anything more to restore the leg, four doctors advised that he should amputate the bone. On the morning he had to amputate it, with the other doctors present, as it pleased God, Brother Justin happened along. At time he was Guardian of the friary at Faenza. When he saw that they wanted to cut the bone he said to the doctors, “Do not amputate it. Let me take care of it.” Believing that he was a skilled infirmarian the doctors were happy to do so. The holy man immediately began to treat him and within a very short time the leg returned to how it used to be. Everyone regarded this as a miracle from God who had healed him through the merits of this holy man. He then lived for many years carrying out all the tasks that were imposed on him through obedience.

Finally when the holy man was in the friary at Narni he fell gravely ill. Enduring it with great patience he equipped himself for a blessed death. It happened that one night there was a holy Friar in the church. He is still alive but because he asked that I not name him therefore I am not mentioning his name. Raise up in ecstasy in an instant he saw the door of the church open. A beautiful procession of Capuchin Friars entered in two lines, numbering about two hundred Friars. This Friar stayed in the oratory at the back of the church. As the procession passed by the entered the choir and from the choir they entered the dormitory. They all went to the cell where the servant of God Brother Justin was ill. Stunned at this vision the Friar, as if outside himself, did not dare to say anything. However when nearly all had passed by, he took courage and asked the last two, “Who are you?” Very gently they answered, “We are Capuchin Friars who have already left this world and by the mercy of God are now happy and blessed. We have come to visit our beloved Brother Justin to let him know on which day we will return for him.” And so the vision disappeared. The Friar who saw the vision came to his senses and understanding the mystery he went with great joy straight away to the cell of the holy man and said to him, “My dear Father, good news! On such and such a day you will die. Prepare yourself.” With great joy the servant of God replied, “My son, I know about it. I must die on such and such a day at such and such an hour.” Because of this the Friar was certain that he too had seen the vision. And so it was that he died on the day at the time that God had revealed to him, at the hour of Vespers.

As he approached death, the servant of God Brother Justin had all the Friars of the house called and gave them a few devout words, encouraging them about the true observance of the Rule. As best he could he turned a little in bed and half sitting and half kneeling, with great tenderness and tears he embraced everyone of his sons one by one. Then with great humility blessed them and asked their forgiveness, saying, “Thank you, my sons, for the humble and kind obedience that I have received from you and I ask your forgiveness for all the bad example I have given you. I beg that you may wish to pray for my soul. May the Lord God from whom all blessings come bless you and keep you in His holy service. Then picking up a crucifix that had been painted on a piece of paper, he said with many tears, “My Lord, I beg your forgiveness because I have not been that true servant that I should have been.”

Then at about midnight, while still kneeling, he said many times, “Jesus! Mary! Into your hands my Lord I commend my spirit.” Then having received all the most holy sacraments of the Church that happy soul flew away to its Creator. He was buried in that place.

To the praise of God. A-men.