Today is the feast of Blessed Rose Venerini (1656 - 1728). Blessed Rose is a true layperson, having lived her whole life in the world, though in fact she had, earlier in life, entered a convent. She had to leave in order to take care of her ailing mother, and when later she desired to re-enter the convent, her Jesuit spiritual adviser persuaded her to use her great gifts right there in Viterbo.
She humbly gathered the women and girls of the town to say a simple Rosary each night and then their shocking ignorance spurred her to teach them catechism. She did, and she had a great gift not only of teaching but of teaching teachers -- creating the next generation of educators, so to speak. She was very capable and hard-working, providing good practical advice -- which was sometimes even life-saving, as her enemies actually fired arrows at them and with flaming torches tried to set fire to their informal schools.
But Rose's constant and unperturbed patience and humility won over even her fiercest critics and she (and her followers) were not only able to continue her work but expand it throughout Italy and eventually to the United States. Blessed Rose, pray for us.
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