St. Francis of Assisi

20 September, 1224: On or about this date, on Italy’s secluded Mount Alvernia, Francis of Assisi reportedly prayed, “O Lord, I beg of you two graces before I die—to experience in myself in all possible fullness the pains of your cruel passion, and to feel for you the same love that made you sacrifice yourself for us.” Soon his heart was filled with both joy and pity, and wounds appeared on his hands, feet, and side. He reportedly carried these scars (called stigmata – divine marks corresponding to those left on Christ’s body by the Crucifixion,) until his death in 1226.