Mother Cabrini had just returned from her first trip to New York in 1899 when a huge fire broke out at the convent in Codogno, Italy. It began in a shed where, Mother Cabrini reported, “I had just finished storing a large quantity of wood.” She may have been the…
The Jubilee of 1900 In the spring of 1900 Mother Cabrini was in Rome. It was a busy time because the pontifical schools under her care were being moved to a new district. She didn’t mind the work, particularly since being in Rome meant she was able to participate in…
“How sweet and good it is to go to sea, tired and drained from the work of the missions!” Mother Cabrini wrote on September 1, 1899. In nine months she had done a staggering amount. Her sixth journey to the United States took her to New York, New Jersey, Chicago,…
In 1872, smallpox raged through the region of Lodi. Francesca Cabrini, then 22, and her older sister Rosa went through the town tending to their sick neighbors. Not surprisingly, Francesca came down with the deadly illness. But Rosa’s attentive nursing helped her make a quick recovery, and the future saint…
For someone with a deep fear of water, Mother Cabrini found great peace while at sea. The reason was simple: “My secure boat is the Sacred Heart, my star of the sea is Mary, and my protector is Saint Frances Xavier, the wonder worker.” But she would not voluntarily get…
Mother Cabrini rushed to the hospital as soon as she heard Fr. Lepore was shot. According to early reports, a man named Giuseppe Sorice entered Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church, began an argument with the pastor over a game of cards, then fired three rounds. Fr. Lepore wrested the…
Mother Cabrini was in Rome when the unexpected letter arrived. The Very Reverend Father Campbell, provincial of the Society of Jesus in New York, wrote that he’d had “an inspiration” to sell her the Jesuit novitiate house overlooking the Hudson. Two Jesuits who’d met Mother Cabrini while she was setting…
Five commissioners and their stenographers descended upon the orphanage in Dobbs Ferry, New York, early in the morning. It was a surprise visit. The Advisory Committee to the New York Commissioner of Public Charities, John Kingsbury, had been tasked with investigating child care institutions, and it had decidedly political –…
Less than two weeks after Mother Cabrini landed in the U.S. she wrote to the Sisters in Italy asking them for fabric for habits and veils. They needed an extra set. She’d quickly learned that the Sisters had to always look neat and tidy, “… or they will call us…
Five years after Columbus Hospital opened in Chicago Mother Cabrini planned an extension specifically designed for poor Italians. It was to be located on the densely packed West Side, close to Little Italy. A suitable property was purchased early in 1911. Opposition to Mother Cabrini’s Plan The neighbors wanted nothing…