BLESSED
TOMASUCCIO DE FOLIGNO (b.? - died c. 1377?)Tomasuccio was born in Nocera, Umbria Italy.
As a young
man, Tomasuccio was as a follower of Pietro da Gualdo near Rigali to
the south of Gualdo Tadino. It appears that they were both brothers
of St Francis and sought to live according to the pure rule of
the life that he had advocated. When Pietro da Gualdo died in ca.
1367, Tomasuccio moved to one of the five hermitages in the Valle di
San Marzio, (these hermitages were later were joined to the Convento
di Santa Maria Annunziata in 1521).
After three
years there, he attracted the attention of the Inquisition when a
colleague accused him of refusing to hear confession. This could
have happened on account of the movements against the Franciscan
fraticelli taken by Pope Urban V in 1365. Blessed Tomasuccio was
acquitted of the charges against him, but nevertheless decided to
leave Umbria for Tuscany.
It was in
Arezzo, en route to Siena, that Tomasuccio met his follower and
future biographer Giusto della Rosa. He was imprisoned once again
while in Siena.
After his
release, he made a pilgrimage to Santiago da Compostella, and during
his time in Spain he became associated with the new eremitical
movement that became known as the Hieronymites (Hermits of St
Jerome). While the hermits of Italy based their way of life on that
of St Francis, those of Spain looked to the example of St Jerome in
the desert.
On his
return to Italy, the Blessed Tomasuccio travelled to Florence where he
spent another short period in prison, and then went to Perugia. It
was during this stay that, at the request of Bartolomeo di Ser
Riccardo Lardi, he apparently wrote his famous prophecies. Also, an
angel appeared to him and ordered him to go to Foligno where he
should spend the rest of his life. The angel also told him that he
would die there after four years.
While en
route to Foligno, the Blessed Tomasuccio stopped in an abandoned
church on the Feast of All Saints and had a vision of paradise that
lasted the entire day. St Francis appeared to him and ordered him to
remind his brothers that he had shown them the way to salvation
through the 'holy Rule and poverty'.
At Foligno,
the Blessed Tomasuccio became attached to the Ospedale della SS
Trinità. He probably joined the quasi-Franciscan group known as the
Clareni. In 1377, he prophesied the imminent violent death of
Trincia Trinci, and shortly thereafter Trinci was murdered by
Ghibelline exiles led by Corradino and Napoleone Brancaleone. The
author Mario Sensi suggests that a misreading of documents relating
to this prophecy led to the common misconception that Tomasuccio
himself also died in 1377. In fact, the year of his death is
unknown.
The
prophecies attributed to the Blessed Tomasuccio take the form of a
poetic lament in 212 verses, which starts with a denunciation of the
popes involved in schism of 1378, Urban VI and Clement VII. They
also decry the civil strife that would arise in Italy, the murder of
Queen Joanna I of Naples in 1382. His prophecies end with the
so-called 'Prophecy of the Worthy Shepherd' which predicts a
legitimate pope who was overshadowed by an Anti-pope will “emerge
from the shadows” and bring the Renewal.
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"One
from beyond the mountains (i.e from beyond the Alps, or, outside of
Italy) shall become the Vicar Of God. Religious and clerics shall
take part in this change. Outside the true path, there will be only
disreputable men; I shrug my shoulders when the Bark of Peter is in
danger and there is no one to lend it help...The schismatic shall
fall into the scorn of the Italian faithful..."
By about
twelve years shall the millennium have passed when the resplendent
mantle of legitimate power shall emerge from the shadows where it was
being kept by the schism. And beyond harm from the one [the usurper
anti-pope] who is blocking the door of salvation, for his deceitful
schism shall have come to an end. And the mass of the faithful shall
attach itself to the worthy Shepherd, who shall extricate each one
from error and restore to the Church its beauty. He shall renew it."
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(Observations:
it appears a non-Italian pope or one not born in Italy will bring
about a 'change'. A 'split / schism' is hinted at for there will be
those who will go outside the 'true path' and they will be
disreputable men. It seems there will be nothing done to stop it,
nor can anything be done, and even Bl. Tomasuccio is left shrugging
his shoulders as if it is an inevitable event that must happen and no
one will be able to stop it. Eventually the Italians will scorn the
schismatic or those turned schismatic.
The
anti-pope who brought about the changes will no longer be able to
keep the legitimate pope in hiding any longer. The legitimate power
that was overshadowed by the schismatic pope shall come forth and
start the renewal c. 12 years after 'the millennium has passed'.
The
millennium when referred to is considered to be the year 2,000 as
other prophecies all indicate the chastisements, the horrible schism
/ apostasy will begin and escalate during the 19th and 20th
centuries.
Since we
have not yet seen the rise of the promised 'Angelic Pontiff' or
'Worthy Shepherd' in 2012, it appears the mercy of God has stepped
in: God will change the timing of punishments and prophecies if
mankind responds to the warnings sent. So, the full strength of the
schism and chastisements has not happened yet, but we must be on the threshold if
Blessed Tommasuccio foretold the Church would be in trouble and then
saved so close to the turn of the millennium. Also, Abbot 'Werdin' d'Otranto predicted he would appear c. 2038)
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