Blessed BENVENUTO da GUBBIO. — A nobleman and soldier from Gubbio, in 1222 he was received into the Franciscan order by St. Francis, who was confident that B. would exchange the valor of arms for the heroism of virtue. Indeed, in a short time he excelled in the humblest offices. When entrusted with the care of lepers, overcoming his natural repugnance, he served them with paternal affection, showing neither weariness nor fatigue, though he practiced the most severe penances. For his charity he was called the “apostle of the lepers.” Stricken by a serious illness, he died at Corneto in Apulia in 1232. At Illiceto, where an arm relic is venerated, a feast was celebrated on May 5; in the Franciscan Order, however, it occurs on June 27. Innocent XII permitted his cult within the Order, but the date of the indult is unknown.
