Crispin of Viterbo

After his religious profession, Brother Crispin was sent to various convents in the Roman province: Tolfa (1694-1697), Rome (a few months in 1697), Albano (1697-1703), Monterotondo (1703-1709), and Orvieto (1709-1750), where he spent nearly forty years, with the exception of brief stays in Bassano Romano (late 1715) and Rome (1744). Within these communities, he performed the simplest tasks with joy and humility: cook, infirmarian, and above all, gardener (ortolano). Starting in January 1710, in Orvieto, his superiors entrusted him with the role of questing brother (questore). For four decades, he traveled daily through the city and the surrounding countryside to beg for the sustenance of his convent. This ministry of begging became for him a true pulpit for popular evangelization. Always bareheaded, with a satchel over his shoulder, he distributed words of comfort, spiritual advice, and maxims of Christian wisdom to the peasants, the poor, and the sick. His communicative joy, his humor, and his inexhaustible charity made him extremely popular. People of all conditions, including bishops, nobles, and Pope Clement XI himself, sought his company and his wise counsel.

The life of Brother Crispin is marked by heroic virtues and extraordinary deeds that deeply impressed his contemporaries. He distinguished himself by absolute obedience to his superiors. During an epidemic that struck one of his friaries, his superior asked him if he would agree to care for his brothers at the risk of his own life. Crispin replied with this famous phrase: "I left my will in Viterbo when I entered the Capuchins." He cared for and healed all the sick without ever contracting the illness himself. Possessing deep humility, he loved to call himself "the donkey of the Capuchins." When passing through a crowd, he would exclaim with humor: "Come now, my children, make way for the donkey of the Capuchins!" If he was insulted to test his patience, he would respond joyfully: "God be praised! I am being treated here as I deserve." His charity was also expressed through his attention to the most vulnerable: he would take in abandoned newborns to bring them to hospitals and provided material assistance to families in need. His absolute trust in Divine Providence and his filial devotion to the Virgin Mary (whom he affectionately called "My Lady Mother") supported his numerous miracles and healings, which he always attributed to the intercession of the Mother of God. Exhausted by fatigue and age, he was transferred to Rome where he died holily on May 19, 1750, at the age of 81.

The reputation for holiness of Brother Crispin is such that the process for his canonization opens quickly after his death, on September 16, 1761, under the pontificate of Clement XIII. He was declared venerable on July 7, 1796, by Pope Pius VI (Pius VII was only elected pope in 1800). He was beatified on September 7, 1806, by Pope Pius VII in St. Peter's Basilica in Rome. He was canonized on June 20, 1982, by Pope John Paul II in St. Peter's Basilica. This canonization holds a historic character, as it is the very first one celebrated by John Paul II during his long pontificate. His body, preserved from corruption, rests today under an altar dedicated to him in the church of Santa Maria della Concezione dei Cappuccini (Our Lady of the Conception of the Capuchins), located on the Via Veneto in Rome.

The spirituality of Saint Crispin of Viterbo is fully rooted in the Franciscan tradition of perfect joy, evangelical poverty, and contemplation in the heart of the world. Nicknamed the "joyful saint" or the "saint of the street," he knew how to make theology accessible to the humblest through simple and striking maxims. He frequently repeated to those he met: "The power of God creates us, wisdom governs us, mercy saves us." To encourage those burdened by material difficulties, he would remind them: "Divine Providence thinks of us much more than we do ourselves." He summarized the path to Salvation as follows: "If you want to save your soul, love everyone, speak well of everyone, and do good to everyone." His legacy remains alive, particularly in Italy and within the Capuchin family, as a model of ordinary holiness lived out in daily service, good humor, and confident abandonment into the hands of God.