"Santa Rosa de Lima", patron saint of the national police of Peru, and representative of Peruvian nurses
05/05/2023
"Santa Rosa de Lima", patron saint of the national police of Peru, and representative of Peruvian nurses, to whom a series of miracles and interesting stories are attributed, represents the reason for many traditions in Peru, on the 30th of August of each year, thousands of Peruvians pay tribute to the best known "Patron of America". We will know these and many more facts about the first woman in Latin America declared a saint by the Catholic Church.
Santa Rosa de Lima, whose real name was Isabel Flores de Oliva, was a Dominican tertiary Christian woman, canonized in 1671 by Pope Clement X. She always stood out for her beauty and noble heart, since she devoted her life to caring for the sick, elderly, children, and performed ascetic practices, which led to many places his fame of holiness.
Even in her lifetime she was already highly revered, since she possessed certain gifts, mystical visions and a series of miracles were attributed to her. For this reason, in a little more than half a century, the Catholic Church canonized her, declaring her patron saint of Lima and Peru, and a short time later patron saint of America, the Philippines and the East Indies.
Santa Rosa de Lima was born on April 20, 1586 in the vicinity of the Hospital of the Holy Spirit in the city of Lima, which at that time was the capital of the Viceroyalty of Peru. She was the fourth of the 12 children of Gaspar Flores (an arquebusier of the viceroyalty guard from San Juan, Puerto Rico) and Maria de Oliva from Lima.
At birth she was baptized as Isabel Flores de Oliva, but at the time of her confirmation she was given the name "Rosa", since this was the name that her entire family used for her practically since her birth. The reason? her exceptional beauty so outstanding, but also because of a vision that her mother had, in which she observed that the face of her little girl turned into a rose. For those reasons, Santa Rosa would definitely assume that name.
From her childhood there were already indications that manifested in the future saint her religious vocation, as well as a singular spiritual elevation. She had learned music, singing and poetry, skills that were learned from her mother, since she was dedicated to instructing the daughters of the nobility in those times. Around the age of 10, Rosa carried out peculiar activities: she fasted on bread and water, placed logs on her bed, shavings and reeds on her pillow, she also used hair shirts to flog her fragile body, all this, with the conviction of her fidelity to Christ.
Actually, from a very young age, she showed her vocation to help others, for this reason, adding to the actions of fasting or self-flagellation that she carried out, her parents tried to divert her from this Christian path and even began to look for a suitable marriage for her, but Rosa never gave in to those claims. Even in her adolescence, Santa Rosa felt strongly attracted to the model of the Dominican Saint Catherine of Siena (Tuscan mystic of the fourteenth century) and following her example, she stripped off her attractive hair and made a vow of perpetual chastity, thus definitely contrary to her parents' plans for her.
Throughout history many miracles are attributed to Santa Rosa de Lima, we will highlight 5 of them:
EnIn 1615, the city of Lima was in imminent danger of being sacked by the Dutch pirate Joris Spitberg, who was hired by the Netherlands to take the Viceroyalty of Peru by storm. His plans were to land in Callao and loot Lima with the help of 300 men. , who sailed with him in six ships under his charge.
When the Dutch corsair arrived in El Callao, the rumor spread that he would take the convent of Santo Domingo to desecrate it and steal its treasures. Then, the young Isabel Flores, 29 years old at the time, ran determined to the temple to protect it with her own body, she was willing to die in defense of Catholic values, so she began to beg for the protection of Lima to the Virgin Rosary.
Spitberg decided not to land at El Callao or attack the city of Lima. He continued on his way to Paita and Acapulco and never returned. The people of Lima then attributed these actions to the prayers and supplications of the Saint.
This is one of the best known miracles of the saint from Lima. According to the stories, Pope Clement IX had doubts about the powers and miracles of Santa Rosa and wanted to make sure of them before beatifying her.
After hearing the stories of her miracles, the Supreme Pontiff would have said: “Patron and Saint? Flowers and Roses? Then let it rain flowers on my desk if this is true”. That was when a shower of roses began to fall on the Pope's table that left him stupefied. It was then that he approved her canonization, and the young Isabel Flores de Oliva was renamed Santa Rosa de Lima.
Another of the stories told about Santa Rosa is the miracle of its appearance to several hundred Filipinos fleeing the Japanese siege during the war. While the troops of the Imperial Army advanced near that place, the Peruvian saint made her appearance and led them to a nearby temple where she offered them shelter and food. It is said that a beautiful lady dressed in a black and white robe led them to the church, in the parish of Santa Rosa.
When they were inside, she offered them plenty of fish and rice. Grateful, everyone fell to their knees as they entered the temple and recognized her image on the altar. Japanese troops later reached the church. The officers leading the platoon tried to enter on their horses, but to no avail because the animals resisted.
Another of the miracles for which the faith of the people of Lima towards Santa Rosa grew was the healing of the sick, using a holy card of Jesus whom he called "doctor boy" and prayed daily. According to the stories that are told about these miracles, Santa Rosa was devoted to the Child Jesus and she had an image of the Divine Child in her house. The sick came to her in search of a cure for her ills. She kindly entrusted her healing to the "doctor boy". From that point, the Catholic faith in the Divine Child spread throughout the continent.
Santa Rosa contracted a mystical marriage with Jesus of Nazareth, in the convent of Santo Domingo de Lima. This miracle is also known as the "mystical betrothal" between Jesus and Santa Rosa de Lima. It happened in 1617 during Palm Sunday; she was 31 years old.
That day she did not receive any palm, so she thought that God was upset with her for some offense. She then went to the Chapel of the Rosary where she wept and begged Jesus for forgiveness, and he replied: "Rose of my heart, I want you as a wife." She answered the Lord that she would be his most "humble slave."
In 1615, and with the help of his favorite brother, Hernando Flores de Herrera, he built a small cell or hermitage in the garden of his parents' house. There, in a space of just over two square meters (which can still be seen today), Santa Rosa would gather to pray and do penance, practicing her severe asceticism, with a crown of thorns under her veil, her hair pinned to the wall to keep from falling asleep, drank ice, and did rigorous fasts.
Her biographers say that her mystical experiences and states of ecstasy were very frequent. Apparently, every week she experienced a state of ecstasy similar to that of Santa Catalina de Ricci, it is said that every Thursday morning she locked herself in her oratory and did not come to until Saturday. She was also credited with various gifts, such as prophecy (according to tradition, she prophesied her death a year earlier).
But, Santa Rosa suffered at that time the misunderstanding of his family and friends and suffered stages of great emptiness, but all this borne fruit his intense spiritual experiences, full of ecstasy and wonders, such as communication with plants and animals, without ever losing joy. of his spirit (a fan of composing love songs with mystical symbolism) and the beauty of his face.
Santa Rosa de Lima fell seriously ill and was affected by acute hemiplegia. The Lima virgin thus gave her soul to God, on August 24, 1617, in the early hours of the morning; she was only 31 years old.
The same day of her death, in the afternoon, Santa Rosa's body was transferred to the large Dominican convent, called Our Lady of the Rosary.
The process that led to the beatification and canonization of Rosa de Lima began immediately in 1617-1618 by the Archbishop of Lima, Bartolomé Lobo Guerrero. After five decades of proceedings, Pope Clement IX beatified her in 1668, and a year later she declared her the patron saint of Lima and Peru. After her, Clement X of her, canonized her in 1671 and besides her declared her the main patron saint of America, the Philippines and the East Indies.
This is how every August 30 is declared a holiday in Peru, due to the celebration and homage to the patron saint Santa Rosa de Lima, without a doubt a woman full of incomparable virtues and gifts.
Currently in the city of Lima, exactly in the Cercado de Lima, where the family of Isabel Flores de Oliva used to live, is the sanctuary of Santa Rosa, whose main attraction is the so-called Well of Desires, where every year , thousands of devout Peruvians come to pay homage to Santa Limeña, and it is traditional to write a letter, asking for a wish or a special request and then the letter is thrown into the well, hoping that the request will be fulfilled by she.
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