By Karen Schneider
A Place for All
I am sure like most people, when you think about what a saint would look like, you would probably imagine them as someone “larger than life.” More often than not, you would think it would be someone holy or a leader in the church. But, in actuality, saints can come in all shapes and sizes, ages, levels of education, and, yes, it can even be someone with a disability or multiple disabilities.
St. Margaret of Castello is one of those unexpected saints. Let me give you the background history on this small holy wonder! St. Margaret of Castello was born into a wealthy family near Florence, Italy, in 1287. She was born with a variety of disabilities. She was a dwarf. She had a curvature of the spine, now known as scoliosis, that caused her to walk hunched over that made it difficult for her to walk, and she was blind.
Her well-to-do family was embarrassed by her with all her disabilities. They kept her hidden away from the community. At one point, they had taken her to a Franciscan Shrine to ask for a miracle to heal all her ailments. When they did not receive their miracle, they just abandoned her there. The Dominican Third Order of Castello took her in and she spent the remainder of her 33-year-old life performing acts of penance and charity.
Despite all of her trials and suffering, she did not become bitter, but rather remained serene, calm, cheerful and courageous. She went to Mass daily and prayed fervently to Jesus, Mary, Joseph and St. Dominic. She accepted her fate in life. She knew God would not allow evil without a good reason, and he would eventually turn this evil into good for his children.
Because of all her suffering, she became more sympathetic to the trials and tribulations of others. She visited prisons, helped the sick and comforted the dying.
Since her death at age 33, she has continued to help those who pray to her. She is an inspiration to those who are discouraged and prone to self-pity. Her intercession is most powerful to those suffering from eye and muscular disease and is the Patron Saint for pro-life groups and those who are unwanted and abandoned.
St. Margaret was beatified in 1609 and canonized a saint by Pope Francis in 2021.
So, remember saints can come in all forms. Treat all those you encounter in life with kindness, love and respect. They may look different. They may not be able to do everything that you can do due to their disability. But, you may just be in the presence of the next modern day saint!
Karen and her family are members of Corpus Christi Parish in Evansville where she serves as the Disability Liaison. She works as a pharmacist at Encompass Health Deaconess Rehabilitation Hospital in Newburgh. Karen and her husband, Tom, have been married for almost 30 years and they have three children: Cooper, 24; Jake, 23, in his first year at St. Meinrad Seminary; and Anna, 21, a senior in Nursing at the University of Southern Indiana.