Roger of Todi, Bl.
ROGER OF TODI, BL.
Franciscan; b. Todi (Umbria), Italy; d. Jan. 5, 1237. Roger, one of the earliest companions of St. francis of assisi, was received into the franciscans by Francis himself in 1216. He distinguished himself as one of the first Franciscans in Spain. Francis then assigned him as spiritual director of the convent in Rieti, Italy, where (Bl.) philippa mareri and her companions established themselves under the rule of (St.) clare of assisi. Roger was with Philippa when she died and he pronounced her eulogy. While Roger was still alive, his friend, Pope gregory ix, called him a saint; Gregory also approved Roger's cult for the city of Todi, where his remains were enshrined. Francis characterized Roger as an exemplar of charity (Speculum perfectionis, ch. 85); Thomas of Pavia, in his Dialogus written c. 1245, assigned 16 miracles to him. In 1751, Benedict XIV approved his feast for the Franciscan order though today it is celebrated only by the Franciscans in the province of Umbria.
Feast: Jan. 14.
Bibliography: Acta Sanctorum (Antwerp 1643–Venice 1734– ; Paris 1863–) March 1:415–417. b. mazzara, Leggendario francescano, 12 v. (Venice 1721–22) v.1. lÉon de clary, Lives of the Saints … of Saint Francis, 4 v. (Taunton, Eng. 1885–87) 1:442–443. a. butler, The Lives of the Saints, rev. ed. h. thurston and d. attwater (New York, 1956) 1:88.
[j. j. smith]