Saint Rita of Cascia and the Stigmata

Saint Rita of Cascia and the Stigmata

During Lent of the year 1443, St. James of Marches, a great preacher of his day, came to the convent in Cascia, and gave a very personal, fervent sermon on the Passion of our Lord to the Nuns. 

Rita of Cascia was so taken by the sermon that she returned to the Monastery and began to pray, with all her heart and soul, before a fresco of Jesus Crucified. 

As she humbly asked for a part of His suffering on the Cross, admitting that she was unworthy to share His full Passion on Calvary, a thorn fell from the Beloved Head of our Savior and pierced the forehead of St. Rita. 

She could feel the pain down to the depths of her heart. 

Rita of Cascia immediately began to bleed profusely, and the wound that kept bleeding has been accepted by all as the gift of the Stigmata of our Lord. 

In the case of most holy people who have been graced with the Stigmata, like St. Francis of Assisi, and the saintly Padre Pio, the fragrance exuded from the holy wounds smells like a beautiful perfume from Heaven, more pleasing even than that of flowers. 

With the wound of St. Rita, came humiliation, estrangement and isolation. 

The wound had such a pungent, putrid odor emanating from it that she had to suffer the ostracism and rejection of her fellow Nuns who, at best, feared it might be infectious and, at worst, could not bear the smell. 

Rita of Cascia spent the next fifteen years alone, suffering  more and more excruciating physical pain. 

But although she was isolated from her Community in a small cell far away from any of the consoling companionship of other Nuns, she had the Consoler! 

Instead of looking toward herself and her pain, Rita of Cascia focused on Jesus and His bleeding Crown of Thorns and all the thorns in her life were turned into roses of love by her Lord as she offered them to Him.

Saint Rita Famous as the patron of hopeless situations, St. Rita of Cascia is immortalized in this wonderful, deeply moving film about this beautiful woman who lived in Italy in the 14th century. Starring Vittoria Belvedere and Martin Crewes, this powerful story combines high drama, great love, deep betrayal, senseless tragedy, profound forgiveness and strong faith as it tells the story of this brave and loyal woman who married her knight, helped him overcome his dark past and convert to faith, happily bore him two childern, and later endures immense pain as she loses everything in her life. She finds peace and new hope through generosity of a nearby convent of sisters, and with their help she develops a deep union with Christ that greatly inspires all who near her. This DVD contains the following language options: Italian with English subtitles, English dubbed version or Spanish subtitles. Also includes a special 16 page Collector's booklet! This movie is Not Rated ' This is a Region 1 DVD (playable ONLY in Bermuda, Canada, the Cayman Islands, United States and U.S. territories) ' ' '

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