PILGRIMS OF HOPE
SAINT PEREGRINE LAZIOSI

By Brother Patrick

Not long before his death, Pope Francis says: “I have much in common with you at this time of my life: the experience of illness, weakness, of having to depend on others for so much, and needing their support;” and “Our bodies are weak, but even like this, nothing can prevent us from loving, praying, giving of ourselves, and being present to each other in faith, as shining sings of hope.”

Throughout his final illness, the Holy Father often thanks his doctors, nurses, and caregivers. He often thanks all of the people all around the world who pray for him. But Pope Francis does not ask for healing. He does not ask for a miracle cure. Instead, he prays for acceptance and humility in the face of illness. He prays for the grace to see God’s hand at work in his final days; to see God’s blessing in the kindness of his caregivers. He prays in thanksgiving for God’s gift of life, God’s gift of peace at the end of life, and God’s gift of new life to come.

Acceptance. Awareness. Gratitude. Peace. These are also the gifts offered to us through the intercession of Saint Peregrine. Peregrine Laziosi is born in 1260 at Forli, Italy, which is located about fifty miles north of Florence. During Peregrine’s youth, his hometown is embroiled in a bitter struggle between the pope and the emperor. In 1282, all church services are canceled and the entire town is excommunicated as punishment for their support for the emperor and his army.

Into this tense situation comes a preacher. His name is Philip Benizi (1233-1285). He is Prior General of the Friar Servants of Saint Mary, also known as the Servite Order. The Servites are a community of lay people, married and unmarried, who dedicate themselves to prayer, good works, peacemaking, and simplicity. The Servites are devoted to the figure of the Blessed Mother at the foot of the Cross. In their constitution, we read: “Since the Son of Man is still being crucified in his brothers and sisters, we, Servants of Mary, wish to be with her at the foot of those countless crosses to bring comfort and redemptive cooperation.”

Friar Philip arrives in Forli. He preaches peace. He exhorts the people to obey the pope. In response, Philip is heckled, driven from the town square, and punched in the face. The fist belongs to Peregrine Laziosi. Soon enough, however, Peregrine is racked with guilt. He searches for Friar Philip and begs forgiveness. From then on, Peregrine lives as a person of peace and prayer.

At age twenty-five, Peregrine enters the Servites as a lay brother. After a brief novitiate in Siena, he returns to the new monastery in his hometown, where he remains for the rest of his life. Peregrine busies himself with manual labor, carpentry and gardening, but soon joins the Servites in their primary work: caring for the sick and the dying.

We should remember that monks are often the only people who can read or write during the middle ages. Potions, remedies, and what passes for medical knowledge are entrusted to the monasteries. So hospitality and caring for the sick become the natural ministries of monks and nuns. Early hospitals are built near or within the cloister. And since monasteries are respected by all parties, they are often the only safe and quiet place for the sick and the dying.

Peregrine works tirelessly with the suffering. He feeds them. He washes them. He prays with them. He offers them the latest medicines: salves, ointments, and tinctures that are made primarily of herbs, dried flowers, and fermented fruits. Peregrine also prays for the sick and the suffering. He stands for long hours in penance for the sins of his patients and their families. This practice leads to varicose veins in one of his legs. Ulcer, infection, and cancerous lesions are soon diagnosed. The only treatment is amputation.

On the night before the surgery, Peregrine rises from his pallet in great pain. He drags himself into the chapter room and prays beneath a large crucifix. In a dream, Jesus descends from the cross and touches the sick leg. At sunrise, the doctor arrives and discovers that Peregrine’s leg is healed. No pain. No cancer. No infection. Word of this miracle spreads far and wide. Peregrine becomes famous, but continues his humble ministry among the sick and the dying.

On May 1, 1345, Peregrine dies at the age of eighty. Perhaps predicting that their brother would become an object of popular piety and veneration, Peregrine is not buried in the cemetery. He is laid to rest in the monastery chapel. As news of Peregrine’s passing spreads, people come from all over the northern provinces to pray and to pay their respects. Tradition holds that three people are cured before his funeral: a blind man, a possessed woman, and a man badly injured in a fall.

Long before his canonization in 1726, Peregrine is revered as a healer of the sick and the suffering. Nearly seven centuries after his life and death, Saint Peregrine is still widely venerated as patron of the sick, especially those living with cancer and other chronic or incurable illnesses. Saint Peregrine is considered a miracle maker, but the miracles he works are not necessarily cures. The are more often miracles of faith.

People who pray for his intercession are more likely to be blessed with peace, love, acceptance, forgiveness, and reconciliation within families. For example, Father Daniel Lord (1888-1955), a Jesuit author and broadcaster, is dying of lung cancer. Father Daniel prays to Saint Peregrine and wears his medal over his heart. He says: “The peace, the peace, this is miracle enough.”

Then there is Pope Francis. We cannot know if the Holy Father prayed for the intercession of Saint Peregrine. But there can be little doubt that people around the world asked the saint to pray for the pope. In the end, of course, there is no cure. Pope Francis flies into the loving arms of our Father in heaven. Before he departs this world, he says: “Thank you for your prayers, which rise up to the Lord from the hearts of so many faithful from so many parts of the world. I feel your love and your closeness…I feel as if I am carried and supported by God’s people,” and finally, “The sickbed can be a place where we hear the voice of the Lord speak to us: ‘Behold, I am about to do a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not see it?”

A heart stops. A life ends. And a new thing begins. It is the miracle of peace. It is the miracle of eternal life. Francis and Peregrine, Bearers of the Cross. Francis and Peregrine, Instruments of God’s Peace. Francis and Peregrine, Pilgrims of Hope. Glory to the Father, to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit; as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be forever. Amen. Saint Peregrine, pray for us! Pope Francis, pray for us.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Brother Patrick Garvey is co-founder and spiritual director of the Assisi Project. He is a graduate of the University of Southern Maine, Saint John Seminary, and the Catholic University of America. He is a writer, spiritual director, retreat leader, and university lecturer. He also serves as an Associate Minister in the Catholic Community of Gloucester & Rockport in Massachusetts. On October 3, 2023, the Feast of the Transitus of Saint Francis of Assisi, Brother Patrick was consecrated as a diocesan hermit by Bishop Mark O’Connell, Vicar General of the Archdiocese of Boston. For more information about the Assisi Project and our ministries with adults of all ages and backgrounds, please contact Brother Patrick at brpatrick@assisiproject.com.

Art by Justinfegan – 74621675 – Dreamstime

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ABOUT US

Founded in 2007, the Assisi Project is a Fellowship of Franciscans in Spirit with friends and followers throughout the world. We are dedicated to helping Christian believers of all ages more faithfully live the Gospel of Christ in the spirit of Saint Francis and Saint Clare of Assisi. The Assisi Project is a non-profit, tax exempt charitable organization. Please support our ministry via Pay Pal (see link below) or mail a tax-deductible donation to the Assisi Project, Post Office Box 3158, Gloucester, Massachusetts 01931-3158. The Assisi Project Podcast is produced by the Assisi Project, Inc. Copyright 2025. All rights reserved. May God bless you! May the Lord give you peace!

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