May 31: Saint Felix of Nicosia
The humble friar who begged alms for the poor
An illiterate, simple, and humble Franciscan friar, he asked the rich for alms in order to distribute them to the poor. For forty years, he walked through the streets of his town, proclaiming the Gospel through both word and example.
He was Felix—born Giacomo Amoroso—to Filippo and Carmela Pirro, in Nicosia, Sicily, on November 5, 1715, into a large and poor family. His father was a shoemaker and died prematurely, leaving his widow to raise three children. He was never sent to school, but from a very young age he frequented a shoemaker’s workshop and the nearby convent of the Capuchin Friars Minor.
He was deeply struck by the religious way of life and decided to enter the Order. At the age of twenty, he asked the guardian friar to plead his case with the Provincial Father of Messina. He would have been admitted as a lay brother, given his illiteracy and his aptitude for simple tasks. Unfortunately, the Provincial’s response was negative—and so it remained each time he renewed his request over the following eight years.
Despite the refusals, he felt that God was calling him among the sons of Saint Francis. When the Provincial Father visited Nicosia, Felix managed to speak with him and was finally admitted into the Order. He was sent to the convent of Mistretta for his novitiate year, which began on October 10, 1743, and at that time he took the name Brother Felix.
On October 10, 1744, he made his religious profession and was assigned to the convent in Nicosia. Contrary to custom, his superiors did not hesitate to send him back to his hometown, despite the risk that family ties might distract him. By then, however, he was free from all earthly attachments and wholly devoted to seeking God.
In Nicosia, he was assigned to collect alms. For forty years he went through the streets asking the wealthy for charity and giving what he received to the poor in need. Although he was illiterate, he made great efforts to memorize what he heard from the Bible and from sermons, repeating it to those he met in order to proclaim the Gospel.
He had a special devotion to Jesus Crucified and, for this reason, every Friday he contemplated the Passion. During the Fridays of March, he would fast on bread and water and pray with his arms outstretched in the form of a cross. He had a deep love for the Eucharist and spent hours in prayer before the Tabernacle.
Always simple and obedient, on May 31, 1787, he fell ill while working in the garden. His superior ordered him to go to bed and called a doctor, who prescribed some medicines. However, Brother Felix said they were useless, because his time had come. He died that very same day.
He was beatified by Pope Leo XIII on February 12, 1888, and canonized by Pope Benedict XVI on October 23, 2005.