St. Ubald
Feast Day: May 16
Born: 1160 :: Died: 1192
St. Ubald was born at Gubbio near Ancona, Umbria, in Italy. When both his parents died, he was raised by his uncle who was a bishop and received a good education. Ubald finished his schooling and decided not to get married as he wanted very much to become a priest.
He became Dean of the cathedral in his home town and many years later, the pope made him bishop of Gubbio, the city of his birth. St. Ubald became well known for his mild and patient nature. Once when a worker was repairing the city wall, he badly damaged the bishop's vineyard. The saint gently pointed it out to him. The workman who must have been very tired probably did not even recognize the bishop. He shoved Bishop Ubald so hard that he fell into a pile of wet cement and was soon covered with it. Ubald silently got up, cleaned himself off and went into the house. Some people saw the whole thing and demanded that the worker be brought to court. Bishop Ubald appeared in the courtroom and set the man free. The holy bishop loved peace and he had the courage it takes to keep it. When the Bishop was walking down the street one day, he saw that the people of Gubbio were fighting in the streets. He threw himself between the two angry crowds, unafraid of the swords clashing and the rocks flying. Suddenly he fell to the ground. The people were shocked. They thought the bishop had been killed. But when he got up unhurt, the people thanked God, stopped fighting and went home. Another time, Emperor Frederick Barbarossa was on his way to attack Gubbio. St. Ubald did not wait for him and his army to come to the city. He went out on the road to talk to him. No one knows what he said. All they know is that he convinced the emperor to leave Gubbio alone. The saint suffered much pain and he was sick quite often as he got older. Yet he never complained. On the morning of Easter Sunday, he said Mass giving a beautiful sermon and blessed the people. Then he was forced to go back to bed, not able to get up ever again. He died on May 16, 1160. All the people came to pay their respects. They cried and prayed to St. Ubald to take care of them from heaven. Reflection: It is sometimes hard to forgive those who hurt us. We are given the grace to do this when we turn to Jesus more and ask him to help us be as meek and forgiving as he was. |