St. Rose of Lima
Feast day: August 23
Isabel de Flores de Olivia was born in Lima, Peru, in 1586. Her face as an infant was reportedly transformed into a mystical rose, so she took
the name Rose at confirmation. After her parents refused to let her enter the convent and she declined to marry, Rose lived at home in seclusion. She performed acts of stern penance and mortification. In 1606, she joined the Third Order of St. Dominic. She helped care for the poor, elderly and
the sick in her parents’ home. She died at age 31, and in 1671, she became the first saint of the Americas. She is patron of embroiderers and of Peru.
Collect
O God, you set Saint Rose of Lima on fire with your love,
so that, secluded from the world
in the austerity of a life of penance,
she might give herself to you alone;
grant, we pray, that through her intercession,
we may tread the paths of life on earth
and drink at the stream of your delights in heaven.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
God, for ever and ever.
