Celebrating the feast day of St. Rose of Viterbo

On Sept. 4, the Franciscan Sisters of Perpetual Adoration, along with Franciscans worldwide, honor the feast day of St. Rose of Viterbo.

In the small town of Viterbo, Italy, a young girl named Rose was born around the early 1230s. From a young age, Rose was drawn to the teachings of St. Francis of Assisi. She dedicated her life to prayer and caring for those in need. By the time she was seventeen, Rose had become a beacon of hope in Viterbo, encouraging people to stay loyal to the Church and resist Emperor Frederick II's forces. Her commitment would lead her to seek a life within a religious community, the Poor Clares of Viterbo, founded by St. Clare of Assisi.

The Poor Clares are women who pray together, care for the sick, work with their hands and rely on what God provides. When Rose sought to enter the Poor Clares monastery, she was refused, due to the lack of a dowry. However, after her passing, believed to have been around 1251, when she was just 17 years old, the people of Viterbo brought her body to the Poor Clare monastery that had denied her entrance.

Rose’s influence did not end with her death. In a book written by Franciscan Sisters of Perpetual Adoration, Joan Weisenbeck and Marlene Weisenbeck, “Manna for a Wintery Earth: The Story of Rose of Viterbo,” Joan and Marlene share, “Her life and death were prolific with miraculous events. Nearly 1200 miracles have been documented, having been attributed to the prayers and merits of St. Rose, the most recent being in 1985.”

In 1457, Pope Callistus III canonized Rose. As noted in Franciscan Media's "Saint of the Day for September 4," St. Rose is the patron saint of florists and flower growers. Even today, St. Rose is remembered as a symbol of hope and strength for the people of Viterbo, who honor her as their patron saint. Learn how the people of Viterbo, Italy, continue to celebrate St. Rose's feast day with devotion and joy at Franciscan Tradition.