ON BL. JAMES UNGARELLI, OF THE ORDER OF FRIARS MINOR, AT FORLÌ IN ROMAGNA,
IN THE YEAR MDXVII. Commentary
James Ungarelli, confessor of the Order of St. Francis, at Forlì in Romagna. (B.)
BY J. D. B.
On this day the Martyrology of the Seraphic Order makes memory of the blessed man James Ungarelli in these words: Of the cult shown to Bl. James At Forlì in Romagna, of Bl. James Ungarelli *, confessor, who, most excellent in erudition and preaching, became also a model of all virtues. But why he is referred to this day is uncertain; for of the many who have mentioned the blessed man, not one has fixed a certain day of his death. And he lies buried at Forlì in the parish church of St. Jerome, which formerly belonged to the Friars Minor of the Observance, distinguished by this inscription:
HIC JACET CORPUS BEATI PATRIS
FRATRIS JACOBI UNGARELLI
DE PADUA ORD. MIN. RELIGIONIS *
OBSERVANTIÆ PRÆDICATORIS EXIMII
OBIIT MDXVII. [Here lies the body of the blessed father, Brother James Ungarelli of Padua, of the Ord. Min. of the religious * Observance, an outstanding preacher. He died MDXVII.]
[2] is sufficiently established; That the title of so great a veneration was not abolished by time is clear from what the Most Rev. Lord Peter Paul Trucchi, bishop of Forlì, wrote back to us on the 23rd day of November of the year 1877, when asked about the public cult shown to Bl. James: Hardly had I received your letter, when I took care to learn without delay whether the inscription of Bl. Br. James Ungarelli of Padua, O. M. of the regular observance, which is read in your most excellent letter, is similar to that which is found in this church of St. Jerome painted on the wall beneath the image of the said Blessed, and I learned from the parish priest of that church that it is similar. And that he enjoys a certain public cult, the father guardian of the O. M. R. O. here not merely testifies, but as a demonstration showed me both the head of the blessed James himself enclosed in a small coffer
nearly square, of walnut wood, sealed together with letters testimonial with the seal of my predecessor Marianus Falcinelli Antoniacci, and an oval case containing a small particle taken from the skull of the same Blessed, sealed likewise with letters testimonial with the seal of Bishop Andrew Baratti, which, together with the head, as the said father guardian avows, was exposed to the public veneration of the faithful on the feast of All Saints before the suppression in the church of the Order of Valverde. These things being so, it is easily gathered that the said Blessed in fact enjoys a certain public cult.
[3] but, proper Acts being lacking, To these one could certainly attach a longer list of all those who, treating of men outstanding in virtue of the Seraphic Order, have called James Ungarelli Blessed: but what strength would be added from this to establishing that the blessed man has rightly obtained his place in our Work? It is better that there be briefly reported what has been handed down to memory about Bl. James. For although we have spent much effort to ascertain whether a manuscript Life of the blessed man was kept stored somewhere, and although the most ample Lord Francis Czernai, canon of the cathedral of Udine, most courteously communicated to us what his brother Peter, who died in the year 1858, had collected about Bl. James, we have experienced here too that fortune which we have so often, that nothing was shown except what we had already long since drawn from printed books.
[4] we report his deeds from Scardeone. Of all those I have read through, Scardeone wrote most accurately about Bl. James [History of Padua book II (in Graevius, Thesaurus Antiquitatum, vol. VI, Part III, p. 129).], in this way: No small or moderate ornament to our city was James Ungarelli of the Order of F. M., who, by his excellent learning and admirable piety toward those above and his most keen pursuit of the vices of men and his efficacious exhortations to every virtue, at times so gripped the hearts of men, so kindled them with divine love, that that fire could in no way be extinguished by the devil. From which he most happily obtained a wonderful name of blessedness, in the Marche of Ancona especially, first before the end of his life, and afterwards after his death. He by skillful diligence and no moderate labor so diligently emended the text of the book of the Summa Angelica as to correct more than fifteen hundred faults brought in both by the injury of time and by the carelessness of copyists. He added moreover to the same most learned scholia, which greatly illuminate all the most obscure places. But when he saw himself being carried by a sudden course from the shipwreck of this fluctuating life to the heavenly port before he could put the last hand to this work, he ordered Augustine of Urbino, a man of the same country and profession, with whom from his earliest age the greatest friendship had existed, to be called to him, to whom he bequeathed this province to be taken up, suppliantly asking that by revising and supplying he would most opportunely bring into the light for the common benefit the work rightly emended. And he zealously indeed and above all took care that the work should be had emended from all errors.
[5] Of his writings, From this one may correct John of St. Anthony, who, treating of Bl. Angelo of Chivasso, asserts that in the year 1492 the Summa Angelica came out more correct and enlarged by the study of James Ungarelli. Which will be plainly false to anyone who even lightly inspects that edition of the year ninety-two. But whether the same John spoke more truly Op. cit., vol. II, p. 107. that the additions of Bl. James to the Summa Angelica were put to press at Lyons in the year 1538 and at Venice in the year 1569, I would not wish to define, since it has not been my fortune to have the book in hand. I will confess the same about his treatise against the Hebrews, which the said John mentions Ibid..
[6] by works of zeal Beyond what has already been brought forward you will seek anything further about Bl. James with vain effort in Gonzaga De origine Seraphicæ religionis Franciscanæ, etc., p. 270., Wadding Annales Minorum at the year 1517., Portenari Della felicità di Padova, p. 405. and Bonoli Storia di Forli, vol. II, p. 367.. There remains one, Flaminius of Parma, who reports some things worthy of note. For he, from Paul Zerbinati (who had heard the blessed man at Bergamo pronouncing from the pulpit that whoever should oppose the erecting of a "Mount of piety" or favor the Jews would die within the year), described what he worked in the year 1507 at Ferrara, so that in this city a "mount of piety," of which pious institution there is treatment also in the Acts of Bl. Bernardine of Feltre Act. SS., vol. VIII Sept., p 874 ff., might be established. And so, on Sunday, the 3rd of October 1507, our Blessed began his sacred sermons, aiming especially to check the usuries of the Jews by a "mount of piety"; and on the 15th of November he proclaimed that leave to erect the mount had been granted to him by the Most Serene Duke, to which matter the duke himself would contribute money. Meanwhile he omitted nothing to promote works of every piety. Thus on the 24th of December of the same year he gave to the boys of Ferrara little paper banners adorned with the image of Christ and this inscription: In the name of Jesus let every knee bow of those on earth, in heaven and under the earth, and encouraged them, while he remained in the pulpit, to cry aloud three times the sacred name of Jesus, the crowded circle round about crying in answer as many times. Then he exhorted the citizens by contributing money to set up a very beautiful tabernacle of gilded silver in the greater church and to carve from wood a larger image of Christ, to carry in processions. In addition he joined to the confraternity of the Body of Christ another called "of Jesus," to which a great many faithful of both sexes and every age gave their names. Finally, so that the sacred viaticum might be carried to the sick with greater decency, he established that, the bell of the parish to which the sick person belonged being rung, the members of the Body of Christ should be warned to accompany the venerable Sacrament. And what he most desired he also obtained: for the Most Serene Duke on the 21st day of December informed the whole city by the voice of heralds that on the 27th of the same month, a solemn procession being instituted, the mount of piety would be inaugurated, and that to that end a platform would be erected in the middle of the forum on which each might set out his alms. And so it was done. For on the 27th of December, which was a Monday, the divine office having been celebrated, our Blessed, carrying the banner and as standard-bearer of the whole procession, ascended the platform, to receive the alms, of which many were contributed.
[7] and by the fame of his miracles. The same Flaminius a little below reports from Brother Casimir (in his memorial of the Roman Province of the Friars Minor) how, speaking in the forum of the city called Orte, he promised rain to the people standing by and afflicted with long drought, if they should give assurance that they would keep the feast day of the Apparition of Bl. Michael as a celebrated one. And in truth hope did not deceive those vowing.
Annotations* otherwise Vagarelli.
* otherwise regularis.