Beneath Mary’s Mantle: Bl. Emily Bicchieri (1238 - 1314)
St. Dominic once had a dream in which he saw all the saints of the Order safely beneath the mantle of Mary, Protectress of the Order of Preachers. In this blog series, we’ll introduce our beloved Dominican Saints, learn about their lives and work, and come to see how they still inspire and pass on their gifts to today’s faithful.
Virgin
Born: May 3, 1238 in Vercelli, Italy
Died: May 3, 1314 in Vercelli, Italy
Feast Day: May 4
Blessed Emily Bicchieri lived as a wise superior of the sisters of the Third Order of St. Dominic and a great witness to the love of God for the sick. Emily grew up as the fourth of seven sisters in Vercelli, Italy. In her childhood, she received what was at that time a good education, and Emily had a gift for lifting the spirits of troubled souls. When Emily was seventeen years old, her father died. She inherited from her father the material means to build a convent for the sisters of the Third Order Conventual of St. Dominic. Up until that time, no such institution had been established. Emily’s convent established in 1256 and named the Convent of St. Margaret was the first of its kind.
A Dominican nun of the Second Order was sent to the newly established convent to form Emily and her fellow novitiate sisters in the ways of religious life. Once this group made profession, Emily was named superior though she was but 20 years old at the time. In addition to her spiritual fervor, she had leadership qualities including prudence and gentleness that made her suited for the role of prioress.
Emily’s life in this convent was probably similar to the life of the Second Order nuns with the exception that enclosure was not so strictly observed. These sisters, though we are not sure about the specifics, also dedicated themselves to service and charitable works as well as prayer.
Blessed Emily had a beautiful devotion to the Blessed Sacrament, and several miracles involving the Eucharist are attributed to her. One such miracle occurred when she was tending to ill sisters in the infirmary and arrived too late to Mass to receive Communion. She knelt down in prayer and an angel came to her to administer the Holy Eucharist. On another occasion, her duties in the infirmary prevented her from making the long thanksgiving after receiving Communion that she desired. After attending Mass she went back to the sick sisters and said to them, “I am not alone, my sisters; see, I bring Jesus to bless you.” At that moment, the three ill sisters were miraculously cured of their infirmity.
Along with the Eucharist, Blessed Emily had a particular love for the Crown of Thorns. The relic of the Crown of Thorns was brought from the Holy Land around the time of Emily’s birth, and it was likely that she grew up hearing about it. She received the Stigmata in the form of the wounds our Lord received from the Crown of Thorns. This suffering and grace lasted for three days, and during this period, she received apparitions from several saints associated with our Lord’s sufferings.
Emily died on her 76th birthday in 1314 and Pope Clement XIII beatified her in 1769. The multitudes of sisters in the Order of Preachers are indebted to Blessed Emily’s efforts in establishing the first convent for Third Order Dominican sisters. From her example, we can be inspired to have a greater devotion to the Holy Eucharist and a deeper reverence for the Passion of the Lord Jesus.
Blessed Emily Bicchieri, pray for us!
