Saint Hyacintha Mariscotti

Servants of God

Third Order
foundress of Oblates of Mary (Sacconi)

Hyacintha (also known as Giacinta or Clarice Mariscotti)  is exceptional among saints in that she experienced not one conversion but two in her life.   Unlike many saints, Clarice showed no predisposition to piety and, as a young religious, she was notoriously unfaithful to the rule.  She repented and reformed herself, relapsed again into infidelity and then repented again and rose to the level of heroic virtue. The life of Saint Hyacintha demonstrates the way our sufferings can be transformed into blessings by God.
She was born in Vignarello (near Viterbo), Italy, in 1585, into a noble family.  Her parents were Marc'Antonio Mariscotti (Marius Scotus) and Ottavia Orsini. At Baptism she received the name Clarice and in early youth was remarkable for piety, but, as she grew older, she became frivolous, and showed a worldly disposition. Her frivolity wasn't checked at all by her education at the Franciscan Convent of St. Bernardine at Viterbo, where an older sister had taken the veil.

At age 20, Clarice was passed over by the Marquis Cassizucchi in favor of her younger sister, whom he married. Thereafter, she was sadly disappointed, became so ill-tempered and made home-life so unendurable, that her family nearly forced her into the convent of Franciscan tertiaries at Viterbo.

She escaped but eventually returned to the convent and, in due course, was admitted and professed, receiving the name Hyacintha.  But, as she told her father, she did this only to hide her chagrin and not to give up the luxuries of the world; and she asked him to furnish her apartments with every comfort. She claimed every privilege to which her rank and wealth entitled her, keeping her own kitchen, wearing a habit of the finest material, receiving and paying visits at pleasure... She used every possible opportunity to scandalize her community for a period of ten years during which she disregarded the spirit of the religious rule.
By the special protection of God, she retained a lively faith, was regular in her devotions, remained pure, always showed a great respect for the mysteries of religion, and had a tender devotion to the Blessed Virgin.

The two Conversions

Her first 'conversion' came when her confessor, attending her when she was sick, expressed astonishment at the furniture and decor of her room; he told her she was in the convent merely to help the devil and the shock of such a remark snapped her out of her spiritual lethargy; she set about reforming her life with exaggerated fervor. Hyacintha said her 'yes' and took a long step toward the Lord, but soon fell back into her old ways.

Once again sickness, this time more serious, and once again reform!  She became a model of heroic patience, penance, prayer, untiring goodness, sweetness, and promptness in serving all.  She increased her devotion to the Mother of God, to the Holy Infant Jesus, to the Blessed Eucharist, and to the sufferings of Christ. She made a public confession of her faults in the refectory, discarded her costly garments, wore an old habit, went barefoot, frequently fasted on bread and water, chastised her body by vigils and severe scourging, and practised mortifications to such an extent that the decree of canonization considers the preservation of her life a continued miracle.

The novice mistress

It is remarkable that such a character could become a model novice mistress. Hyacintha seems to have shown healthy common sense in the guidance of others, restraining their devotional and penitential excesses and giving very practical
advice to the many who wrote to seek her counsel. Hyacintha's charity was also outstanding, and it was not limited to those of her community. Hyacintha's faith was now living, and when she surveyed the zigzag path she had followed, it all seemed to her like a miracle.

The two confraternities

She established two confraternities in Viterbo, whose members were called Oblates of Mary or Sacconi, that devoted themselves to the relief of the sick, the aged, and the disadvantaged. Hyacintha herself helping to provide the necessary funds by her own begging.   One of these confraternities, similar to our Society of St. Vincent de Paul, gathered alms for the convalescent, for the poor who were ashamed to beg, and for the care of prisoners; the other procured homes for the aged.
Though now leading a life so pure and holy, Hyacintha always conceived the greatest contempt for herself. She worked numerous miracles, had the gifts of prophecy and of discerning the secret thoughts of others. She was also favoured by heavenly ecstacies and raptures.
At her death, 30 January, 1640, great sorrow was felt at Viterbo and crowds flocked to her funeral. She was beatified by Pope Benedict XIII in 1726, and canonized 14 May, 1807, by Pius VII.