Saint Andrew Corsini
| St. Andrew Corsini, O.Carm. | |
|---|---|
St. Andrew Corsini in Prayer
by Guido Reni (1630-1635) |
|
| Religious and bishop | |
| Born | November 30, 1302 Florence, Republic of Florence |
| Died | January 6, 1374 (aged 71) Fiesole, Republic of Florence |
| Venerated in |
Roman Catholic Church (Carmelite Order and Archdiocese of Florence) |
| Beatified | 1440, Rome, Papal States, by Pope Eugene IV |
| Canonized | April 22, 1629, Rome, Papal States, by Pope Urban VIII |
| Major shrine | Church of Santa Maria del Carmine, Florence, Italy |
| Feast | February 4 |
| Attributes | holding a cross, with a wolf and lamb at his feet, and floating above a battlefield on a cloud or a white palfrey; a Carmelite friar wearing a mitre and cope |
| Patronage | Invoked against riots and civil disorder |
Andrew Corsini, O.Carm. (1302 – January 6, 1374), was an Italian Carmelite friar and bishop of Fiesole, who is honored as a saint within the Catholic Church.
Corsini was born in Florence on November 30, 1302, a member of the illustrious Corsini family. Wild and dissolute in youth, he became a Carmelite friar in his native city, began a life of great mortification. He studied at Paris and Avignon.
On his return, Corsini became the "Apostle of Florence". He was regarded as a prophet and a wonderworker. In 1348 as the Black Plague was prevalent in area, he was appointed Provincial of Tuscany by the General Chapter meeting in Metz. The following year he was named Bishop of Fiesole. The inscription on his tomb says that "he was snatched from Carmel to the church and the miter of Fiesole". This likely gave rise to the story that he fled but was discovered by a child at the at Enna, and later accepted the nomination as bishop, as the result of a vision.
Corsini redoubled his austerities as a bishop, was lavish in his care of the poor, and was sought for everywhere as a peacemaker, notably at Bologna, whither he was sent as papal legate to heal the breach between the nobility and the people.
Reportedly, in 1373, while Corsini was celebrating the Midnight Mass of Christmas Eve, the Blessed Virgin appeared to him and told him he would leave this world on the feast of the Epiphany. It came to pass as the vision had told him, and he died on that day. After twelve years in the episcopacy, Corsini died in his native Florence on 6 January 1374, at the age of 71.
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