From: hildegard8@excite.com   
      
   January 19th - St. Berard of Corleone   
      
   Corleone is a Sicilian city which had a reputation for ferociousness. Its   
   citizens fiercely resisted all attempts at foreign domination, gaining for   
   the   
   city the reputation of animosa civitas and the emblem portraying a lion   
   tearing   
   apart a human heart. In 1605, Corleone was dominated by Spanish rule.   
   Foreign   
   soldiers - for whom every household had nothing but contempt - were   
   ever-present. It was into this environment that Philip Latino, one of four   
   children, was born on February 6, 1605. His father, Leonard, whose charity   
   was   
   legendary, was a shoemaker skilled in the leather crafts. Whenever Leonard   
   met   
   people in need, he would invite them into the Latino home, offer a bath and   
   provide clean clothes, food and drink.  Philip followed in his father's   
   footsteps, both as a shoemaker and as a generous, caring person.   
      
   Philip grew up and became adept with the sword. Although he never looked for   
   trouble, his upbringing would never allow him to back down from a   
   confrontation.   
   When provoked, he proved to be an formidable opponent. He used his fencing   
   skills to defend people who were disadvantaged and vulnerable. He achieved   
   the   
   reputation of being the "number one fencer in Sicily."   
      
   One day in 1624, Philip had a skirmish with a man known as Vinuiacitu,   
   resulting   
   in two fractured fingers for Philip's adversary. Sometime later, Vito Canino   
   traveled from Palermo to Corleone ostensibly to compete with Philip for   
   recognition as a skilled fencer. In reality, Vito was an assassin hired by   
   Vinuiacitu to murder the shoemaker who had humiliated him. At the Latino   
   store,   
   Canino challenged Philip to a duel, but Philip refused since he had no   
   argument   
   with Canino. Provoked further, Philip took his dagger and the two stepped   
   outside. When Philip's dagger grazed Canino's head, Canino flew into a rage.   
   At   
   that, Philip realized the seriousness of the duel and returned to the store   
   to   
   retrieve his sword. At altercation's end, Canino had been seriously wounded,   
   his   
   arm permanently disabled. Despite a legitimate claim to self-defense, Philip   
   felt profound remorse for having wounded Canino. The champion fencer asked   
   pardon of the man he wounded. That singular event sparked in Philip a   
   spiritual   
   conversion which eventually led to his becoming a Capuchin.   
      
   Before leaving for the Capuchin novitiate at Caltanisetta, Philip asked for   
   his   
   mother's blessing and the support of his brothers and sister. On December 13   
   ,   
   1631, having found freedom and maturity through adversity, the former   
   champion   
   fencer, now known as Bernard, embraced a new lifestyle. Bernard never forgot   
   Canino. The two became close friends. Through the help of benefactors,   
   Bernard   
   saw to it that Canino was provided for. Bernard took his new life very   
   seriously   
   and strove to be a good Capuchin.   
      
   Simple and illiterate, with no aspirations for power or prestige, Bernard   
   often   
   exhorted the friars to love God and to do penance for their sins. He spent   
   hours   
   in prayer and meditation, entrusting God with his thoughts and feelings.   
   With   
   the qualities of "true devotion" found in the Capuchin Constitutions of   
   Albacina   
   as his inspiration ("Let the brothers be devout and fervent and not content   
   with   
   one or two or even three hours, but spend all their time in prayer,   
   meditation   
   and contemplation"), Bernard learned to love solitude and silence, praying   
   continually. He felt drawn to the eremetical life and often went into the   
   forest   
   near Rimita to pray at a small Marian chapel. For Bernard, prayer lifted his   
   spirit and brought him joy. Still, his prayer life was more admirable than   
   imitable.   
      
   Bernard had great devotion to Mary, always calling her "mother."  In his   
   bedroom   
   and in an alcove near the kitchen where he was cook, Bernard created an   
   atmosphere of prayer. In both rooms, he had a small altar dedicated to Mary   
   where he would retreat during his free moments between preparing meals,   
   washing   
   dishes, etc. The tall and robust friar, with a somewhat rustic bearing and   
   calloused hands, would adorn his shrine with flowers and fragrant herbs. His   
   spirit of devotion was typically Sicilian - fully expressive of imagination   
   and   
   festivity. Bernard also had a great devotion to the passion and death of   
   Christ   
   which was typical of the age in which he lived.   
      
   Someone once suggested that he learn to read, to which Bernard responded,   
   "The   
   wounds of Christ our Savior are all we need to study." One effect of his   
   frequent meditation on Christ's humanity and passion was that Bernard always   
   responded to others with compassion and calm. Many people sought Bernard   
   just to   
   listen to him speak about God in his own simple way. His simplicity moved   
   many   
   to change their lifestyle.   
      
   Charity began at home for Bernard. Within the friary walls, he willingly   
   performed the tasks that no one else liked doing. He never gossiped or   
   talked   
   about others. He had a way of making people feel cared for and appreciated.   
   He   
   accomplished this by a hug, a few words of understanding, and by his   
   characteristic smile. Once, in the Palermo refectory, a friar had been   
   publicly   
   rebuked. Bernard embraced the humiliated friar and showed so much affection   
   for   
   him that the friar was moved to tears for the tenderness shown. Bernard   
   consoled   
   many who were troubled.   
      
   With great relish he would prepare soup for those who were poor. He was   
   delighted whenever he could be of service to someone else. On a number of   
   occasions, those who were experiencing complications in pregnancy were   
   helped by   
   Bernard, for which he is recognized as a patron of expectant parents.   
      
   On January 22, 1667, Sister Death found Bernard in the Capuchin infirmary at   
   Palermo. He was 62 years old. When the news of his death spread, a great   
   crowd   
   of people from all walks of life and social classes came to pay their   
   respects.   
   The nobles of the city accompanied the body to the friary church where the   
   archbishops of Palermo and Monreale presided over the funeral rites. Clement   
   XIII enrolled Bernard among the blessed on May 15, 1768.   
      
   This version taken from:   
   http://www.capuchin.com/Charism/Corleone/Corleone.htm   
      
      
   <><><><>   
   In the Lives of the Holy Fathers it is narrated of the Abbot Paphnutius, who   
   was   
   highly celebrated for sanctity, that one day he expressed a desire to know   
   from   
   the Lord whether he had any merit in His eyes. He received the reply that he   
   had   
   gained equal merit with a certain nobleman, whose name was given. The Saint   
   immediately visited this gentleman, by whom he was kindly treated and   
   hospitably   
   entertained. When the repast was over, the Abbot begged of his host to tell   
   him   
   what was his manner of life. The Baron excused himself by saying that he did   
   not   
      
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