This saint struck St. Philip in the face, but later repented with true contrition

                           May 1 ------------- St. Peregrine Laziosi

                       Peregrine was born in Forli, Italy in 1265.  Forli was part of the region of the papal states and therefore, was governed by the Pope.  However, most of populace, including the Laziosi family, was vehemently anti-papal. 

The Church then placed the region under interdict which meant that Mass and the sacraments could not be celebrated there.  When St. Philip Benizi entered the city to bring back the fallen flock, he was greeted by an angry mob and threatened with violence.

As St. Philip continued to preach with calm, Peregrine approached him and struck him violently.  St. Philip remained calm and gave him the look of a saint--a look of justice, showing the seriousness of the sin. 

This look was sufficient to bring Peregine to remorse and to apologize.  Moreover, Peregrine's remorse was so sincere that he gave up his bad company and devoted most of his time to prayer.

Shortly later, he joined the Servants of Mary and was received by its superior, none other than St. Philip Benizi, himself. From then on, St. Peregrine did penance for the rest of his life.  St. Peregrine is known to be the patron saint of those suffering from cancer.

The life of St. Peregrine is a perfect example of true contrition. So often, people sin with impunity and do not understand that reparation must be made in accordance to the seriousness of the sin. 

Today, we have not only lost the idea of reparation but also the idea of sin.  Along with the loss of the notion of sin, comes the lack of sorrow and the lack of wanting to repair the damage caused by it. 

Let us ask St. Peregrine to instill in our souls a lively notion of sin along with a lively sorrow that all sin is an offense against God.