Monday, January 18, 2010

St. Fazzio of Verona (1190 to 1272)


Verona, Italy was on my intinerary of must-see cities during my second trip to Europe. It was the birthplace of St. Fazzio, born in 1190.
Although I'm not one for doing touristy things (I skipped seeing the Colosseum the first time I went to Rome to the disbelief of many people), I made the long walk from the train station to Casa di Giulietta which was built in the 13th century and said to be the home of Juliet Capulet.
There I saw the balcony and a bronze statue of Shakespeare's heroine in the courtyard. There was also the monstrous Arena di Verona (the third largest Roman amphitheater in Italy) built in 290.
St. Fazzio made his living as a goldsmith and when he moved to Cremona founded the Order of the Holy Spirit which was a charitable organization working with pilgrims and the sick. He was a pilgrim himself known for travelling on foot to places like Rome and Spain.
St. Fazzio died in 1272 and his feast day is celebrated on Jan. 18.

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