Nicholas of Tolentino

Nicholas of Tolentino was born around 1245 in Sant’Angelo in Pontano, Italy, the long-awaited child of parents who had prayed for a son at the shrine of Saint Nicholas of Myra. As a young man he entered the Order of Hermits of Saint Augustine, and after years of study was ordained a priest. Gifted as a preacher and gentle in the confessional, he became known for a quiet holiness marked by fasting, compassion, and tireless pastoral care. Sent to Tolentino around 1274, Nicholas spent the rest of his life serving a city troubled by civil conflict. He fed the poor, visited prisoners, and worked as a peacemaker, always insisting that any good done through him was God’s work. Devotion remembers his prayers for the suffering souls in Purgatory and the “Saint Nicholas Bread,” blessed and shared with the sick in hope and trust in Mary’s intercession. He died after a long illness on September 10, 1305, and was canonized in 1446. He is especially invoked for the holy souls and is patron of places including Adra, Albi, Arsita, Auditore, Barzizza, Campisico, Cas Concos des Cavaller, Jerez, Modugno, and Monterubbiano. His feast day is September 10.