THE LIFE AND WORK OF ST. PAUL OF THE CROSS
(continued - May 2006)

4.  A Painful but Fruitful Evening of Life

Given the abundance of suffering that was in store for him, Paul’s title of the Cross seems particularly well chosen.  Over and above spiritual sufferings, which accompanied the establishment of his Congregation, serious illness often threatened his life.  On several occasions he was thought to be on his deathbed.  On one such occasion during the summer of 1767, he was so ill everyone thought he would die.  He himself, thinking the same, prepared for death and received the anointing of the sick.  The illness passed, however, and he regained his strength.  For Paul, these occasions of spiritual and physical suffering were opportunities to enter existentially into the mysticism of the cross and passion.

For more than twenty years, St. Paul of the Cross fought for the establishment of a monastery in Rome.  Finally, in the autumn of 1766, a friend and benefactor gave him the title of a house located near the famous church of St. John Lateran.  To meet the housing requirements of a monastic community, renovations were made.  In January 1767, a small community of Passionists moved into this new retreat named “Hospice of the Crucified”.  While establishing this retreat, Paul came to know Cardinal Antonio Ganganelli, who became a strong supporter of the Congregation and an intimate friend of the saint.
Two years later, on May 19. 1769, Cardinal Ganganelli was elected pope.  Within two or three days, the newly elected Pope Clement XIV received the congratulations of the founder in a private audience.  Wanting the saint to remain near him, Clement XIV invited Paul to remain in Rome.  Not being able to refuse the pope’s request, Paul established himself in the Hospice of the Crucified instead of returning to Vetralla, where he had been staying.

As pontiff, Clement XIV used his authority in favor of the Congregation.  On November 15, 1769, he approved its Rule by a papal brief.  A few days later he issued the papal bull “Supremi Apostolatus”, giving the new Congregation numerous privileges like those of the older orders.  Moreover, the Congregation was explicitly acknowledged as an official ecclesiastical institution.  St. Paul of the Cross now devoted himself to the fulfillment of another important goal, the foundation of a monastery of Passionist nuns who, living a strictly enclosed contemplative life, were to support the apostolic work of the priests by their lives of prayer and sacrifice.  His long-delayed desire became a reality when on May 3, 1771, eleven nuns entered the newly built monastery at Corneto (Tarquinia), their Rule having received prior approbation by the Holy See.

While still a cardinal, Pope Clement XIV had on several occasions visited the founder at the Hospice of the Crucified.  He was therefore aware of its cramped living conditions.  As a result, he wanted to provide the Passionists with better lodging in Rome.  Soon an occasion presented itself.  The monastery of SS. John and Paul, situated on the Coelian Hill, one of the seven hills of ancient Rome, became free. Wanting to assure the future of the new Passionist Congregation, the pope gave Paul the monastery, its church, and adjoining gardens.  On December 9, 1771, the holy founder and a number of his brethren moved into the large monastery.  From then on, this retreat became the center of the Passionist Congregation, the Generalate itself being established there.

Half a year later the monastery of SS. John and Paul received a most honored guest.  On June 26, 1774, the titular feast of the church and monastery, the pontiff came to pay a visit to the old and ailing founder of the Congregation.  This, however was not the only time Paul of the Cross was to receive a papal visit.  Nineteen days after his election, Pope Pius VI, successor of Clement XIV, attended forty hours’ devotion in the basilica of SS. John and Paul and afterward visited Paul in his sickroom and talked with him at length.
At the sixth General Chapter of the Passionists, held from May 15-20, 1775, Paul of the Cross, despite his failing health, was reelected Superior General.  Within a few weeks it became apparent that his health had deteriorated to the point that death was imminent.  On October 18, 1775, Paul, recognizing his approaching death, requested the last sacraments, after which his long life devoted to the crucified Christ came to an end.  At his death, the Congregation numbered two hundred members living in twelve retreats.