Bienheureux Jean Liccio
Religieux dominicain (✝ 1511)
Religieux dominicain, originaire de Palerme en Sicile, il fut célèbre par la chaleur de sa prédication, sa charité et sa dévotion au Rosaire de Notre-Dame. Il mourut à 111 ans. Son culte fut reconnu en 1753.
À Caccamo en Sicile, l’an 1511, le bienheureux Jean Liccio, prêtre de l’Ordre des Prêcheurs. Remarquable par sa charité infatigable envers le prochain, son ardeur à propager la prière du Rosaire, son zèle pour la discipline régulière; il s’endormit dans le Seigneur à l’âge de cent-onze ans.
Martyrologe romain
Bx Jean (Giovanni) Liccio
Prêtre dominicain
(1400-1511)
Giovanni Liccio naît à Caccamo (près de Palerme, Sicile) en 1426.
À 6 mois il perd sa mère. Son père, trop pauvre pour payer une nourrice, le nourrit au jus de fruit. Une voisine charitable l’allaite et est récompensée par la guérison de son mari.
Adolescent, il jeûnait les mercredis et vendredis. Plus tard, à l’instigation de Pierre Geremia, il entre dans l’Ordre dominicain. Ses prédications touchent les pécheurs, qui se convertissent. Sa charité lui gagne l’affection du peuple. Il pleurait souvent en célébrant la messe, et aimait tendrement la Sainte Vierge.
Il fonde un couvent dominicain à Caccamo et le dirigea avec zèle et intelligence. Il fut célèbre par la chaleur de sa prédication, sa charité infatigable, son zèle pour la discipline régulière et sa dévotion au Rosaire. Il mourut le 14 novembre 1511 en embrassant le crucifix. Beaucoup de miracles ont été obtenus par son intercession.
Son culte fut reconnu le 25 avril 1753 par le pape Benoît XIV (Prospero Lorenzo Lambertini, 1740-1758).
Source principale : cite-catholique.org/ (« Rév. x gpm »).
©Evangelizo.org 2001-2016
Blessed John Liccio, OP (AC)
(also known as John Licci)
Born in Sicily in 1400; died 1511; beatified in 1733.
The man who holds the all-time record for wearing the Dominican habit--96 years-- was also a person about whom some delightful stories are told. Perhaps only in Sicily could so many wonderful things have happened to one man.
John was born to a poor family. His mother died at his birth and his father, too poor to hire a nurse for the baby, fed him on crushed pomegranates and other odds and ends. He was obliged to leave the baby alone when he went out to work in the fields, and a neighbor women, who heard the child crying, took the baby over to her house and fed him properly.
She laid the baby in bed beside her sick husband, who had been paralyzed for a long time. Her husband rose up--cured, and the woman began to proclaim the saintly quality of the baby she had taken in. When John's father came home, however, he was not only unimpressed by her pious remarks, he was downright furious that she had interfered in his household. He took the baby home again and fed it more pomegranates.
At this point, the sick man next door fell ill again, and his wife came to John's father and begged to be allowed to care for the child. Begrudgingly, the father let the wonderful child go. The good woman took care of him for several years, and never ceased to marvel that her husband had been cured a second time--and that he remained well.
Even as a tiny baby, John gave every evidence that he was an unusual person. At an age when most children are just beginning to read, he was already reciting the daily Office of the Blessed Virgin, the Office of the Dead, and the Penitential Psalms. He was frequently in ecstasy, and was what might be called an "easy weeper"; any strong emotion caused him to dissolve in floods of tears.
At the age of fifteen, John went to Palermo on a business trip for his father, and he happened to go to confession to Blessed Peter Geremia, at the church of Saint Zita. The friar suggested that he become a religious. John believed himself quite unworthy, but the priest managed to convince him to give it a try. The habit, which he put on for the first time in 1415, he was to wear with distinction for nearly a century.
Humble, pure, and a model of every observance, Brother John finished his studies and was ordained. He and two brothers were sent to Caccamo to found a convent, and John resumed his career of miracle-working, which was to bring fame to the order, and to the convent of Saint Zita.
As the three friars walked along the road, a group of young men began ridiculing them and finally attacked them with daggers. One boy attempted to stab John, but his hand withered and refused to move. After the friars had gone on, the boys huddled together and decided that they had better ask pardon. They ran after the Dominicans and begged their forgiveness. John made the Sign of the Cross, and the withered hand was made whole.
The story of the building at Caccamo reads like a fairy tale. There was, first of all, no money. Since the friars never had any, that did not deter John Liccio, but he knew it would be necessary to get enough to pay the workmen to begin the foundations.
John went into the parish church at Caccamo and prayed. An angel told him to "build on the foundations that were already built." All he had to do was to find them. The next day, he went into the woods with a party of young woodcutters and found the place the angel had described: foundations, strongly and beautifully laid out, for a large church and convent. It had been designed for a church called Saint Mary of the Angels, but was never finished.
John moved his base of operations to the woods where the angel had furnished him with the foundations. One day, in the course of the construction, the workmen ran out of materials. They pointed this out to John, who told them to come back tomorrow anyway. The next day at dawn a large wagon, drawn by two oxen, appeared with a load of stone, lime, and sand. The driver politely inquired where the fathers would like the material put; he capably unloaded the wagon, and disappeared, leaving John with a fine team of oxen--and giving us a fascinating story of an angel truck-driver.
These oxen figured at least once more in the legends of John Liccio. Near Christmas time, when there was little fodder, a neighbor insisted on taking the oxen home with him "because they were too much care for the fathers." John refused, saying that they were not too heavy a burden, and that they had come a long way.
The man took them anyway, and put them into a pasture with his own oxen. They promptly disappeared, and, when he went shamefacedly to report to the fathers, the man found the team contentedly munching on practically nothing in the fathers' yard. "You see, it takes very little to feed them," John said.
During the construction, John blessed a well and dried it up, until they were finished with the building. Whereupon, he blessed it again, and once more it began to give fine sweet water, which had curative properties.
Beams that were too short for the roof, he simply stretched. Sometimes he had to multiply bread and wine to feed his workers, and once he raised from the dead a venturesome little boy who had fallen off the roof while watching his uncle setting stones.
Word of his miraculous gift soon spread, of course, and all the neighbors came to John with their problems. One man had sowed a field with good grain, only to have it grow up full of weeds. John advised him to do as the Scriptures had suggested--let it grow until the harvest. When the harvest came, it still looked pretty bad, but it took the man ten days to thresh the enormous crop of grain that he reaped from that one field.
John never let a day pass without doing something for some neighbor. Visiting a widow whose six small children were crying for food, John blessed them, and he told her to be sure to look in the bread box after he had gone. Knowing there had been nothing in it for days, she looked anyway; it was full, and it stayed full for as long as the need lasted.
Once when a plague had struck most of the cattle of the vicinity, one of John's good friends came to him in tears, telling him that he would be ruined if anything happened to his cattle. "Don't worry," John said, "yours won't get sick." They didn't.
Another time a neighbor came running to tell him that his wife was dying. "Go home," said John. "You have a fine new son, and you shouldn't waste any time getting home to thank God for him."
John was never too famous as a preacher, though he did preach a good deal in the 90 years of his active apostolate. His favorite subject was the Passion, but he was more inclined to use his hands than his speech. He was provincial of Sicily for a time, and held office as prior on several occasions.
John Liccio is especially invoked to help anyone who has been hit on the head, as he cured no less than three people whose heads were crushed by accidents (Dorcy).
Blessed John Licci, C.O.P.
(Also known as John Liccio)
Memorial Day: November 14th
Profile
The man who holds the all-time record for wearing the Dominican habit--96 years-- was also a person about whom some delightful stories are told. Perhaps only in Sicily could so many wonderful things have happened to one man.
John was born to a poor family. His mother died at his birth and his father, too poor to hire a nurse for the baby, fed him on crushed pomegranates and other odds and ends. He was obliged to leave the baby alone when he went out to work in the fields, and a neighbor women, who heard the child crying, took the baby over to her house and fed him properly.
She laid the baby in bed beside her sick husband, who had been paralyzed for a long time. Her husband rose up--cured, and the woman began to proclaim the saintly quality of the baby she had taken in. When John's father came home, however, he was not only unimpressed by her pious remarks, he was downright furious that she had interfered in his household. He took the baby home again and fed it more pomegranates.
At this point, the sick man next door fell ill again, and his wife came to John's father and begged to be allowed to care for the child. Begrudgingly, the father let the wonderful child go. The good woman took care of him for several years, and never ceased to marvel that her husband had been cured a second time--and that he remained well.
Even as a tiny baby, John gave every evidence that he was an unusual person. At an age when most children are just beginning to read, he was already reciting the daily Office of the Blessed Virgin, the Office of the Dead, and the Penitential Psalms. He was frequently in ecstasy, and was what might be called an "easy weeper"; any strong emotion caused him to dissolve in floods of tears.
At the age of fifteen, John went to Palermo on a business trip for his father, and he happened to go to confession to Blessed Peter Geremia, at the church of Saint Zita. The friar suggested that he become a religious. John believed himself quite unworthy, but the priest managed to convince him to give it a try. The habit, which he put on for the first time in 1415, he was to wear with distinction for nearly a century.
Humble, pure, and a model of every observance, Brother John finished his studies and was ordained. He and two brothers were sent to Caccamo to found a convent, and John resumed his career of miracle-working, which was to bring fame to the order, and to the convent of Saint Zita.
As the three friars walked along the road, a group of young men began ridiculing them and finally attacked them with daggers. One boy attempted to stab John, but his hand withered and refused to move. After the friars had gone on, the boys huddled together and decided that they had better ask pardon. They ran after the Dominicans and begged their forgiveness. John made the Sign of the Cross, and the withered hand was made whole.
The story of the building at Caccamo reads like a fairy tale. There was, first of all, no money. Since the friars never had any, that did not deter John Liccio, but he knew it would be necessary to get enough to pay the workmen to begin the foundations.
John went into the parish church at Caccamo and prayed. An angel told him to "build on the foundations that were already built." All he had to do was to find them. The next day, he went into the woods with a party of young woodcutters and found the place the angel had described: foundations, strongly and beautifully laid out, for a large church and convent. It had been designed for a church called Saint Mary of the Angels, but was never finished.
John moved his base of operations to the woods where the angel had furnished him with the foundations. One day, in the course of the construction, the workmen ran out of materials. They pointed this out to John, who told them to come back tomorrow anyway. The next day at dawn a large wagon, drawn by two oxen, appeared with a load of stone, lime, and sand. The driver politely inquired where the fathers would like the material put; he capably unloaded the wagon, and disappeared, leaving John with a fine team of oxen--and giving us a fascinating story of an angel truck-driver.
These oxen figured at least once more in the miracles of John Liccio. Near Christmas time, when there was little fodder, a neighbor insisted on taking the oxen home with him "because they were too much care for the fathers." John refused, saying that they were not too heavy a burden, and that they had come a long way.
The man took them anyway, and put them into a pasture with his own oxen. They promptly disappeared, and, when he went shamefacedly to report to the fathers, the man found the team contentedly munching on practically nothing in the fathers' yard. "You see, it takes very little to feed them," John said.
During the construction, John blessed a well and dried it up, until they were finished with the building. Whereupon, he blessed it again, and once more it began to give fine sweet water, which had curative properties.
Beams that were too short for the roof, he simply stretched. Sometimes he had to multiply bread and wine to feed his workers, and once he raised from the dead a venturesome little boy who had fallen off the roof while watching his uncle setting stones.
Word of his miraculous gift soon spread, of course, and all the neighbors came to John with their problems. One man had sowed a field with good grain, only to have it grow up full of weeds. John advised him to do as the Scriptures had suggested--let it grow until the harvest. When the harvest came, it still looked pretty bad, but it took the man ten days to thresh the enormous crop of grain that he reaped from that one field.
John never let a day pass without doing something for some neighbor. Visiting a widow whose six small children were crying for food, John blessed them, and he told her to be sure to look in the bread box after he had gone. Knowing there had been nothing in it for days, she looked anyway; it was full, and it stayed full for as long as the need lasted.
Once when a plague had struck most of the cattle of the vicinity, one of John's good friends came to him in tears, telling him that he would be ruined if anything happened to his cattle. "Don't worry," John said, "yours won't get sick." They didn't.
Another time a neighbor came running to tell him that his wife was dying. "Go home," said John. "You have a fine new son, and you shouldn't waste any time getting home to thank God for him."
John was never too famous as a preacher, though he did preach a good deal in the 90 years of his active apostolate. His favorite subject was the Passion, but he was more inclined to use his hands than his speech. He was provincial of Sicily for a time, and held office as prior on several occasions.
John Liccio is especially invoked to help anyone who has been hit on the head, as he cured no less than three people whose heads were crushed by accidents (Dorcy).
Born: 1400 at Caccamo, diocese of Palermo, Sicily
Died: 1511 of natural causes at 111 years old
Beatified: April 25,1753 by Pope Benedict XIV (cultus confirmed)
Name meaning: God is gracious; gift of God (John)
Patronage: Head injuries
Prayers/Commemorations
First Vespers:
Ant. Strengthen by holy intercession, O John, confessor of the Lord, those here present, have we who are burdened with the weight of our offenses may be relieved by the glory of thy blessedness, and may by thy guidance attain eternal rewards.
V. Pray for us, Blessed John
R. That we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ.
Lauds:
Ant. Well done, good and faithful servant, because Thou hast been faithful in a few things, I will set thee over many, sayeth the Lord.
V. The just man shall blossom like the lily.
R. And shall flourish forever before the Lord.
Second Vespers:
Ant. I will liken him unto a wise man, who built his house upon a rock..
V. Pray for us. Blessed John.
R. That we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ.
Prayer:
Let us Pray: O God, who hast been pleased to make Blessed John, Thy Confessor, illustrious for perfect self-denial and for singular zeal in the cause of charity, grant us that, after his example, we may forsake all earthly affections and live evermore in Thy love. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.
SOURCE : http://www.willingshepherds.org/Dominican%20Saints%20November.html#John Liccio
Beato Giovanni LiccioDomenicano
Caccamo, 1426/30 - 14 novembre 1511
Giovanni Licci fu discepolo e continuatore di Pietro Geremia nell'opera della restaurazione della vita regolare nei conventi Domenicani di Sicilia. Nacque nel 1426 a Caccamo; la madre morì nel darlo alla luce e lui venne da una zia. Fin da bambino praticò quell'astinenza non ne accorciò la lunga vita, superò, infatti i 100 anni. Giunto ai quindici anni, essendosi recato a Palermo, entrò nella Chiesa di Santa Zita, tenuta dai Domenicani, per confessarsi. Qui incontrò padre Geremia, il quale, scorgendo in quel giovane la divina chiamata, lo invitò ad entrare nell'Ordine. Giovanni si fece molto onore nello studio e Dio gli fece il dono di saperla esporre con tanta forza da riuscire a convertire i più induriti peccatori. Fondò nel suo paese natale un Convento di cui fu il primo priore. Compiva con la più grande semplicità i più strepitosi miracoli. Dopo la sua morte, avvenuta il 14 novembre 1511, i ventiquattro ceri accesi intorno al suo cadavere arsero senza consumarsi. Papa Benedetto XIV il 25 aprile 1753 ha confermato il culto. È stato il primo domenicano di Sicilia ad essere iscritto nell'elenco dei Beati. (Avvenire)
Martirologio Romano: A Cáccamo in Sicilia, beato Giovanni Liccio, sacerdote dell’Ordine dei Predicatori, che, insigne per la sua instancabile carità verso il prossimo, per l’impegno nella propagazione della preghiera del Rosario e per l’osservanza della disciplina, riposò a centoundici anni nel Signore.
Giovanni Licci fu discepolo e continuatore di Pietro Geremia nell’opera della restaurazione della vita regolare nei conventi Domenicani di Sicilia. La mamma morì nel darlo alla luce, nel 1426 a Caccamo, e suo padre, forse per avarizia, lo fece allevare da una sua sorella col succo di melegrane. Così il bimbo cominciò assai presto quella rara astinenza che sempre praticò, senza che ne venisse accorciata la lunga vita, che raggiunse i cento anni. Giovanni visse nell’innocenza e nel fervore, amatissimo della preghiera e del digiuno, che era stato suo primo nutrimento. Giunto ai quindici anni, essendosi recato a Palermo, entrò nella Chiesa di Santa Zita, tenuta dai Domenicani, per confessarsi. La Provvidenza lo condusse ai piedi di Padre Geremia, il quale, scorgendo in quel candido giovinetto la divina chiamata, lo invitò ad entrare nell’Ordine. Giovanni si fece molto onore nell’acquisto della scienza, e Dio gli fece il dono di saperla esporre con tanta forza e unzione, tanto che intorno al suo pulpito si vedevano i più induriti peccatori sciogliersi in lacrime. Fu amatissimo della Madonna e fervente propagatore del suo Rosario. Fondò nel suo paese natale un Convento di cui fu il primo Priore, e dove fece fiorire in santo fervore la vita regolare e apostolica, con immenso beneficio di quelle popolazioni. Compiva con la più grande semplicità i più strepitosi miracoli. Dopo la sua morte, avvenuta il 14 novembre 1511, i ventiquattro ceri accesi intorno al suo cadavere arsero senza consumarsi. Compì molti miracoli. E’ invocato per i mal di testa. Papa Benedetto XIV il 25 aprile 1753 ha confermato il culto. E’ stato il primo domenicano di Sicilia ad essere iscritto nell’elenco dei Beati.
Autore: Franco Mariani