JAMES OF THE MARCHES, Saint. - Born in 1394 at Monteprandone (diocese of Ripatransone in the Marches) into a very humble family, died at Naples on 28 Nov. 1476. He completed his studies through the interest of a priest uncle and around the age of 20 became a Franciscan at Assisi. Having come into contact with St. Bernardino of Siena, he was won over by him, imitated his preaching and spread the devotion so dear to him to the name of Jesus, defending it against the attacks to which it was exposed. He also went abroad, especially to Hungary, and waged the struggle against the Hussites; he came into contact with the Emperor Sigismund, negotiated with the Council of Basel on behalf of the Pontiff and concerned himself greatly with the crusade against the Turks, collecting money and exerting influence on the authorities.
He also took part in the disputes between Conventuals and Observants and held offices in his Order; nor should one pass over in silence his activity as inquisitor against the Fraticelli, which earned him strong criticism and even excommunication, promptly lifted by the Pope, and his constant interest in the Monti di pietà. Tireless in moving from one city to another for preaching, he gave it a tone of simplicity and liveliness, but founded on profound doctrine; his rich library underwent various vicissitudes after his death. In the last years of his life he settled at Naples. His process of beatification, and then that of canonization, were long and difficult because certain of his statements on the Most Precious Blood were not clear; he was canonized by Benedict XIII in 1726. Feast on 28 Nov.
Of his works, published only in minimal part, one may recall the unpublished ones: Quaresimali and other collections of sermons; the treatise Del Sangue di Cristo; the Dialogo contro i Fraticelli and other polemics with heretics; the Campo di Fiori or great summa of penitential cases; Della Confessione, etc.
Bibliography6 works
Paolo Brezzi