Augustine Fangi
Encyclopedia
Augustine Fangi, O.P. was an Italian
Dominican
friar
and priest
. He was commonly regarded in his time as a miracle worker
, and as prior
of several houses, was concerned with restoring and maintaining regular observance of the Rule of Saint Dominic. He was beatified
by Pope Leo XIII
in 1878.
One remarkable characteristic noted of Blessed Augustine was his equanimity and ability to concentrate intensely
on spiritual matters. One incident recorded involves a surgical operation
that he was required to undergo, without anesthetic (as such conveniences did not exist in the fifteenth century). He did so without crying out at all. Afterwards, he simply stated that his mind was so intensely focused on something else that he hardly noticed what was being done.
In 1464, Augustine was made prior
of the convent at Soncino
. He is said to have performed several miracles there. One involved a deformed child
who had died without baptism
yet was said to have been restored to life by Augustine's prayer long enough to be baptized. Another purported miracle involved a boy who was crying
bitterly because he had broken a jug of wine
. Augustine gathered up the shards and put them back together again. The account continues to state that with a prayer
, he refilled the jug, and handed it back to the startled child.
The last ten years of Augustine's life were spent in Venice
, where he died on 22 July 1493, the feast day of Saint Mary Magdalene
.
place. In the 1530s, workmen doing repairs on the church where he was interred found his coffin
floating in water which had seeped into the burial chamber. However, when opened, Augustine's body and clothing were reportedly found to be incorrupt
. This did much to increase devotion to his cause for canonization. Even so, by the time he was beatified, three centuries had passed, and he had been forgotten by everyone except the residents of Biella.
In 1872, Augustine's cultus was confirmed, and in 1878 he was beatified
.
Italian people
The Italian people are an ethnic group that share a common Italian culture, ancestry and speak the Italian language as a mother tongue. Within Italy, Italians are defined by citizenship, regardless of ancestry or country of residence , and are distinguished from people...
Dominican
Dominican Order
The Order of Preachers , after the 15th century more commonly known as the Dominican Order or Dominicans, is a Catholic religious order founded by Saint Dominic and approved by Pope Honorius III on 22 December 1216 in France...
friar
Friar
A friar is a member of one of the mendicant orders.-Friars and monks:...
and priest
Priest
A priest is a person authorized to perform the sacred rites of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particular, rites of sacrifice to, and propitiation of, a deity or deities...
. He was commonly regarded in his time as a miracle worker
Miracle
A miracle often denotes an event attributed to divine intervention. Alternatively, it may be an event attributed to a miracle worker, saint, or religious leader. A miracle is sometimes thought of as a perceptible interruption of the laws of nature. Others suggest that a god may work with the laws...
, and as prior
Prior
Prior is an ecclesiastical title, derived from the Latin adjective for 'earlier, first', with several notable uses.-Monastic superiors:A Prior is a monastic superior, usually lower in rank than an Abbot. In the Rule of St...
of several houses, was concerned with restoring and maintaining regular observance of the Rule of Saint Dominic. He was beatified
Beatification
Beatification is a recognition accorded by the Catholic Church of a dead person's entrance into Heaven and capacity to intercede on behalf of individuals who pray in his or her name . Beatification is the third of the four steps in the canonization process...
by Pope Leo XIII
Pope Leo XIII
Pope Leo XIII , born Vincenzo Gioacchino Raffaele Luigi Pecci to an Italian comital family, was the 256th Pope of the Roman Catholic Church, reigning from 1878 to 1903...
in 1878.
Life
The life of Augustine Fangi was marked by piety and regularity, rather than by extremely unusual events or spiritual ambitiousness. Fangi was born in 1430 in Biella, Italy to a wealthy family who had planned a secular career for him. Instead, young Augustine was impressed at the newly-arrived Dominicans in Biella and joined the convent there.One remarkable characteristic noted of Blessed Augustine was his equanimity and ability to concentrate intensely
Christian meditation
Christian meditation is a form of prayer in which a structured attempt is made to get in touch with and deliberately reflect upon the revelations of God. The word meditation comes from the Latin word meditārī, which has a range of meanings including to reflect on, to study and to practice...
on spiritual matters. One incident recorded involves a surgical operation
Surgery
Surgery is an ancient medical specialty that uses operative manual and instrumental techniques on a patient to investigate and/or treat a pathological condition such as disease or injury, or to help improve bodily function or appearance.An act of performing surgery may be called a surgical...
that he was required to undergo, without anesthetic (as such conveniences did not exist in the fifteenth century). He did so without crying out at all. Afterwards, he simply stated that his mind was so intensely focused on something else that he hardly noticed what was being done.
In 1464, Augustine was made prior
Priory
A priory is a house of men or women under religious vows that is headed by a prior or prioress. Priories may be houses of mendicant friars or religious sisters , or monasteries of monks or nuns .The Benedictines and their offshoots , the Premonstratensians, and the...
of the convent at Soncino
Soncino, Italy
Soncino is a comune in the Province of Cremona in the Italian region Lombardy, located about 60 km east of Milan and about 30 km northwest of Cremona...
. He is said to have performed several miracles there. One involved a deformed child
Disability
A disability may be physical, cognitive, mental, sensory, emotional, developmental or some combination of these.Many people would rather be referred to as a person with a disability instead of handicapped...
who had died without baptism
Baptism
In Christianity, baptism is for the majority the rite of admission , almost invariably with the use of water, into the Christian Church generally and also membership of a particular church tradition...
yet was said to have been restored to life by Augustine's prayer long enough to be baptized. Another purported miracle involved a boy who was crying
Crying
Crying is shedding tears as a response to an emotional state in humans. The act of crying has been defined as "a complex secretomotor phenomenon characterized by the shedding of tears from the lacrimal apparatus, without any irritation of the ocular structures"...
bitterly because he had broken a jug of wine
Wine
Wine is an alcoholic beverage, made of fermented fruit juice, usually from grapes. The natural chemical balance of grapes lets them ferment without the addition of sugars, acids, enzymes, or other nutrients. Grape wine is produced by fermenting crushed grapes using various types of yeast. Yeast...
. Augustine gathered up the shards and put them back together again. The account continues to state that with a prayer
Prayer in Christianity
Prayer has been an essential part of Christianity since its earliest days. Prayer is an integral element of the Christian faith and permeates all forms of Christian worship...
, he refilled the jug, and handed it back to the startled child.
The last ten years of Augustine's life were spent in Venice
Venice
Venice is a city in northern Italy which is renowned for the beauty of its setting, its architecture and its artworks. It is the capital of the Veneto region...
, where he died on 22 July 1493, the feast day of Saint Mary Magdalene
Mary Magdalene
Mary Magdalene was one of Jesus' most celebrated disciples, and the most important woman disciple in the movement of Jesus. Jesus cleansed her of "seven demons", conventionally interpreted as referring to complex illnesses...
.
Veneration
Augustine Fangi was buried in a dampHumidity
Humidity is a term for the amount of water vapor in the air, and can refer to any one of several measurements of humidity. Formally, humid air is not "moist air" but a mixture of water vapor and other constituents of air, and humidity is defined in terms of the water content of this mixture,...
place. In the 1530s, workmen doing repairs on the church where he was interred found his coffin
Coffin
A coffin is a funerary box used in the display and containment of dead people – either for burial or cremation.Contemporary North American English makes a distinction between "coffin", which is generally understood to denote a funerary box having six sides in plan view, and "casket", which...
floating in water which had seeped into the burial chamber. However, when opened, Augustine's body and clothing were reportedly found to be incorrupt
Incorruptibility
Incorruptibility is a Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox belief that supernatural intervention allows some human bodies to avoid the normal process of decomposition after death as a sign of their holiness...
. This did much to increase devotion to his cause for canonization. Even so, by the time he was beatified, three centuries had passed, and he had been forgotten by everyone except the residents of Biella.
In 1872, Augustine's cultus was confirmed, and in 1878 he was beatified
Beatification
Beatification is a recognition accorded by the Catholic Church of a dead person's entrance into Heaven and capacity to intercede on behalf of individuals who pray in his or her name . Beatification is the third of the four steps in the canonization process...
.