St Anna Maria Francesca Rubatto was a religious sister and the founder of the Capuchin Sisters of Mother Rubatto.
She was born on February 14 1844 in Carmagnola, Turin, Italy, and died on August 6 1904 at the age of 60 in Montevideo, Uruguay.
She was canonized by Pope Francis on May 15 2022 at Saint Peter’s Square, Vatican City, and became the first Uruguayan to become a saint.
We celebrate her feast day on August 6 every year in the Catholic Church.
| St Maria Francesca Rubatto Biography | |
|---|---|
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| Date of Birth | February 14 1844 |
| Place of Birth | Carmagnola, Turin, Italy |
| Place of Work | Italy |
| Date of Death | August 6 1904 |
| Place of Death | Montevideo, Uruguay |
| Feast Day | August 6 |
| Beatification | Beatified by Pope John Paul II on October 10 1993 at Saint Peter’s Square, Vatican City |
| Canonization | Canonized by Pope Francis on May 15 2022 at Saint Peter’s Square, Vatican City |
| Patron Saint of | |
St Maria Francesca Rubatto Biography
St Maria Francesca Rubatto was born on February 14 1844 in Carmagnola, Turin in Piedmont, Italy. Her father was Giovanni Rubatto and her mother was Catarina Pavesio and had seven siblings. Her father died when she was four years old and her mother died when she was nineteen.
When she was a teenager she received a marriage proposal but turned the offer down in favor of pursuing a religious vocation.
When her mother died, she moved to Turin where she became a friend of noblewoman Marianna Scoffone.
St Maria Francesca Rubatto helped Scoffone with teaching catechism to children and visiting the sick and poor. Marianna Scoffone died in 1882.
A life-changing incident happened one morning after mass in Loano when a stone fell from a construction site and struck a worker.
Rubatto helped the worker and the sisters of the nearby convent close to the construction site noticed what had happened. The sisters took it as a sign that Rubatto was the person the sisters needed.
When she became a nun in 1885, she took the name of “Maria Francesca of Jesus”. Later on, she became the superior of the Capuchin Sisters of Mother Rubatto following the orders of Bishop Filippo Allegro.
In 1892 she traveled to Montevideo, Uruguay, and established the Capuchin Sisters of Mother Rubatto group there and in other South American countries like Argentina.
While in Montevideo, she contracted cancer and died in 1904 at the age of 60. She is buried in Montevideo as per her wish to be buried “in the midst of her dear poor ones”.
St Francesca Rubatto lived her life in openness to God’s call, and she showed her love for Jesus in her service to the poor and to those most in need.
St Maria Francesca Rubatto gave Franciscanism a modern feminine version and just like Saint Francis of Assisi, she encountered Christ in the poor and suffering. She was a sister among the Sisters, more than a founding mother.
St Maria Francesca Rubatto was beatified on October 10 1993 by Pope John Paul II and canonized by Pope Francis on Sunday, May 15 2022, and became the first Uruguayan to become a saint.
Founded on January 23 1885, the Capuchin Sisters of Mother Rubatto are present today in Italy, Uruguay, Argentina, Brazil, Peru, Ethiopia, Eritrea, Kenya, and Malawi, with schools and parishes where the sisters provide assistance to people most in need.
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