Osanna of Mantua
Encyclopedia
Blessed Osanna Andreasi of Mantua (also Hosanna and Andreassi) (Born 17 January 1449, Mantua
, Italy
- Died 1505 ) was a Dominican tertiary, stigmatic
, and mystic
.
, and the Trinity
at age five. Feeling called to religious life, she rejected a marriage arranged by her father
. Unable to explain her attraction to religious life to her father, she secretly received the habit of the Dominican tertiaries. Returning home, she explained that she had made a vow and must wear it until she had fulfilled her promise. She became a Dominican tertiary at 17. She waited 37 years to complete her vows so she could care for her brothers and sisters after the death of her parents.
A legend states that Osanna, like Saint Catherine
, miraculously learned to read and write. One day she saw a piece of paper with two words and said, "Those words are 'Jesus
' and 'Mary
.'" Allegedly, from that time on, anything relating to the spiritual was within her grasp.
When Osanna was thirty years old, she received stigmata on her head, her side, and on her feet. She also had a vision in which her heart was transformed and divided into four parts. For the rest of her life, she actively experienced the Passion, but in an especially intense way on Wednesdays and Fridays. Osanna confided these things in her biographer and "spiritual son," Father Jerome, as well as the fact that for years, she subsisted on practically no food at all.
Osanna was a mystic who would fall into ecstasies whenever she spoke of God, and a visionary who saw images of Christ bearing his cross. She bore stigmata
along with red marks, but there was no bleeding. She helped the poor and sick and served as spiritual director for many, spending much of her family's considerable fortune to help the unfortunate. She spoke out against decadence
, and criticized the aristocracy
for a lack of morality. She was a friend of Blessed Columba of Rieti
, and is recorded to have sought counsel from Blessed Stephana de Quinzanis
.
. His vita of Blessed Osanna was written in 1507, very shortly after her death. Although Jerome noted that Osanna was not quick to discuss her spiritual experiences, in the last years of her life, she adopted Father Jerome as a "spiritual son," "conceived in the Blood of Christ."
Jerome's account is especially unique due to his intimate relationship with his subject. The biography takes the form of a detailed report of his conversations with Osanna. Jerome appended to his account Latin translations of twenty-four letters from Osanna accompanied by documents certifying their authenticity.
According to Father Benedict Ashley, O.P.
, these letters express an "intense and constant physical and inner suffering" made bearable only by "sublime experiences of union with God which [Osanna] cannot describe except in broken and inadequate language." A special source of misery for Osanna was the degradation of the Church under the abusive pontificate of Alexander VI
.
of 8 January 1515 Leo X
authorised the celebration of masses in honour of the beata Osanna in the state of Mantua. Her local cultus was confirmed by Innocent XII
with a bull
of 24 November 1694, and extended to the whole of the Dominican order two months later.
Mantua
Mantua is a city and comune in Lombardy, Italy and capital of the province of the same name. Mantua's historic power and influence under the Gonzaga family, made it one of the main artistic, cultural and notably musical hubs of Northern Italy and the country as a whole...
, Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
- Died 1505 ) was a Dominican tertiary, stigmatic
Stigmata
Stigmata are bodily marks, sores, or sensations of pain in locations corresponding to the crucifixion wounds of Jesus, such as the hands and feet...
, and mystic
Christian mysticism
Christian mysticism refers to the development of mystical practices and theory within Christianity. It has often been connected to mystical theology, especially in the Catholic and Eastern Orthodox traditions...
.
Life
Osanna was the daughter of Italian nobles Niccolò Andreasi and Agnese Gonzaga. She was reported to have had a vision of angels, paradiseHeaven
Heaven, the Heavens or Seven Heavens, is a common religious cosmological or metaphysical term for the physical or transcendent place from which heavenly beings originate, are enthroned or inhabit...
, and the Trinity
Trinity
The Christian doctrine of the Trinity defines God as three divine persons : the Father, the Son , and the Holy Spirit. The three persons are distinct yet coexist in unity, and are co-equal, co-eternal and consubstantial . Put another way, the three persons of the Trinity are of one being...
at age five. Feeling called to religious life, she rejected a marriage arranged by her father
Arranged marriage
An arranged marriage is a practice in which someone other than the couple getting married makes the selection of the persons to be wed, meanwhile curtailing or avoiding the process of courtship. Such marriages had deep roots in royal and aristocratic families around the world...
. Unable to explain her attraction to religious life to her father, she secretly received the habit of the Dominican tertiaries. Returning home, she explained that she had made a vow and must wear it until she had fulfilled her promise. She became a Dominican tertiary at 17. She waited 37 years to complete her vows so she could care for her brothers and sisters after the death of her parents.
A legend states that Osanna, like Saint Catherine
Catherine of Siena
Saint Catherine of Siena, T.O.S.D, was a tertiary of the Dominican Order, and a Scholastic philosopher and theologian. She also worked to bring the papacy of Gregory XI back to Rome from its displacement in France, and to establish peace among the Italian city-states. She was proclaimed a Doctor...
, miraculously learned to read and write. One day she saw a piece of paper with two words and said, "Those words are 'Jesus
Jesus
Jesus of Nazareth , commonly referred to as Jesus Christ or simply as Jesus or Christ, is the central figure of Christianity...
' and 'Mary
Mary (mother of Jesus)
Mary , commonly referred to as "Saint Mary", "Mother Mary", the "Virgin Mary", the "Blessed Virgin Mary", or "Mary, Mother of God", was a Jewish woman of Nazareth in Galilee...
.'" Allegedly, from that time on, anything relating to the spiritual was within her grasp.
When Osanna was thirty years old, she received stigmata on her head, her side, and on her feet. She also had a vision in which her heart was transformed and divided into four parts. For the rest of her life, she actively experienced the Passion, but in an especially intense way on Wednesdays and Fridays. Osanna confided these things in her biographer and "spiritual son," Father Jerome, as well as the fact that for years, she subsisted on practically no food at all.
Osanna was a mystic who would fall into ecstasies whenever she spoke of God, and a visionary who saw images of Christ bearing his cross. She bore stigmata
Stigmata
Stigmata are bodily marks, sores, or sensations of pain in locations corresponding to the crucifixion wounds of Jesus, such as the hands and feet...
along with red marks, but there was no bleeding. She helped the poor and sick and served as spiritual director for many, spending much of her family's considerable fortune to help the unfortunate. She spoke out against decadence
Decadence
Decadence can refer to a personal trait, or to the state of a society . Used to describe a person's lifestyle. Concise Oxford Dictionary: "a luxurious self-indulgence"...
, and criticized the aristocracy
Aristocracy
Aristocracy , is a form of government in which a few elite citizens rule. The term derives from the Greek aristokratia, meaning "rule of the best". In origin in Ancient Greece, it was conceived of as rule by the best qualified citizens, and contrasted with monarchy...
for a lack of morality. She was a friend of Blessed Columba of Rieti
Columba of Rieti
Columba of Rieti was an Italian female Dominican tertiary mystic. She was renowned for her spiritual advice, devotion to the Blessed Sacrament, and the fantastic miracles attributed to her....
, and is recorded to have sought counsel from Blessed Stephana de Quinzanis
Stephana de Quinzanis
Blessed Stephana de Quinzanis was an Italian Dominican tertiary and stigmatic.-Life:...
.
Relationship with Girolamo de Monte Oliveto
Father Girolamo de Monte Oliveto (Jerome of Mount Olivet), was an Olivetan BenedictineOlivetans
The Olivetans, or the Order of Our Lady of Mount Olivet, are a monastic order formally recognised in 1344. They have formed the Olivetan Congregation within the Benedictine Confederation since 1960.-History:...
. His vita of Blessed Osanna was written in 1507, very shortly after her death. Although Jerome noted that Osanna was not quick to discuss her spiritual experiences, in the last years of her life, she adopted Father Jerome as a "spiritual son," "conceived in the Blood of Christ."
Jerome's account is especially unique due to his intimate relationship with his subject. The biography takes the form of a detailed report of his conversations with Osanna. Jerome appended to his account Latin translations of twenty-four letters from Osanna accompanied by documents certifying their authenticity.
According to Father Benedict Ashley, O.P.
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...
, these letters express an "intense and constant physical and inner suffering" made bearable only by "sublime experiences of union with God which [Osanna] cannot describe except in broken and inadequate language." A special source of misery for Osanna was the degradation of the Church under the abusive pontificate of Alexander VI
Pope Alexander VI
Pope Alexander VI , born Roderic Llançol i Borja was Pope from 1492 until his death on 18 August 1503. He is one of the most controversial of the Renaissance popes, and his Italianized surname—Borgia—became a byword for the debased standards of the Papacy of that era, most notoriously the Banquet...
.
Veneration
By a papal briefPapal brief
The Papal Brief is a formal document emanating from the Pope, in a somewhat simpler and more modern form than a Papal Bull.-History:The introduction of briefs, which occurred at the beginning of the pontificate of Pope Eugenius IV , was clearly prompted for the same desire for greater simplicity...
of 8 January 1515 Leo X
Pope Leo X
Pope Leo X , born Giovanni di Lorenzo de' Medici, was the Pope from 1513 to his death in 1521. He was the last non-priest to be elected Pope. He is known for granting indulgences for those who donated to reconstruct St. Peter's Basilica and his challenging of Martin Luther's 95 Theses...
authorised the celebration of masses in honour of the beata Osanna in the state of Mantua. Her local cultus was confirmed by Innocent XII
Pope Innocent XII
Pope Innocent XII , born Antonio Pignatelli, was Pope from 1691 to 1700.-Biography:He was born in Spinazzola to one of the most aristocratic families of the Kingdom of Naples, which included many Viceroys, and ministers to the crown, and was educated at the Jesuit college in Rome.In his twentieth...
with a bull
Papal bull
A Papal bull is a particular type of letters patent or charter issued by a Pope of the Catholic Church. It is named after the bulla that was appended to the end in order to authenticate it....
of 24 November 1694, and extended to the whole of the Dominican order two months later.