Venerated in Roman Catholic Church Name Giulia Crostarosa | Patronage Redemptoristine Nuns | |
 | ||
Born 31 October 1696
Naples, Kingdom of Naples ( 1696-10-31 ) Died 14 September 1755(1755-09-14) (aged 58)
Foggia, Kingdom of Naples Attributes Nun's habit
Pendant of Jesus | ||
Giulia Crostarosa (31 October 1696 – 14 September 1755) was an Italian Roman Catholic nun who founded the Redemptoristine Nuns. She had a series of visions in her life that led to the establishment of her order which was bestowed upon it a rule of its own. She assumed the religious name of Maria Celeste when she became a professed nun.
Contents
Pope Francis declared her to be Venerable for her life of heroic virtue on 3 June 2013; a miracle attributed to her intercession needed for beatification was approved on 14 December 2015. The beatification shall take place on 18 June 2016 in Foggia and Cardinal Angelo Amato shall preside on behalf of the pope.
Life
Giulia Crostarosa was born on 31 October 1696 in Naples with the baptismal name of Giulia Marcella Crostarosa. She was born to Francesco Crostarosa and Paola Battistini Caldari; descended from the Lords of Abruzzo and Aquila.
Crostarosa was immersed in spiritual life and collaborated with Father Bartolomeo Cacace who served as her spiritual director. As an adolescent she accompanied her sister Ursula to Marigliano to become a nun in 1716. While there she met Father Thomas Falcoia of the Pious Workers who served her as a spiritual assistant following the death of Cacace. She remained in the convent for under a decade and she moved in 1724 out of the convent alongside her sister. Her first recorded vision of Jesus Christ was on 25 April 1725 when she was still a novice in which she saw for the first time what would soon become the congregation she would establish. In another vision Christ revealed the new institute and the suffering that would result from its creation. After a period of time the theologians confirmed the divine experiences that she had. After she became a nun she assumed the name of "Maria Celeste".
In September 1730 she met Alphonsus Liguori - future saint. Crostarosa left La Scala in 1733 and went to Nocera Inferiore. It was in Foggia on 19 March 1738 that she established the Redemptoristine Nuns. She served as the order's superior for under two decades. She had the esteem of Liguori and Gerard Majella - future saint.
Giulia Crostarosa died in Foggia on 14 September 1755. Her spiritual experiences are contained in numerous documents of considerable value following her death as well as those she kept during her life.
Beatification process
The beatification process opened in Foggia on 11 August 1901. The two processes that ensured were validated in 1999. The Congregation for the Causes of Saints was given the Positio in two parts in 1999 and 2002 in order to determine if she had lived a life of heroic virtue according to the precepts of the Christian faith.
Pope Francis approved the findings of the Congregation and proclaimed her to be Venerable on 3 June 2013 on the account of her heroic virtues.
A miracle attributed to her intercession was investigated on a local level and was validated on 6 December 2013. The pope approved the miracle on 14 December 2015. Cardinal Angelo Amato shall preside over the beatification on 18 June 2016 in Foggia.