Saint Camillus de Lellis: Charity Bearing Witness to the Gospel
Camillus was born in the Abruzzi region of Italy in 1550 and was a successful soldier. Remembered as an imposing person—both for his large size (he was 6’6” tall) and for his quick temper—Camillus was also addicted to gambling and he eventually found himself destitute. Jobless and suffering from a painful, incurable ulcer on his right leg, he ended up as a patient in Rome’s Hospital of St. James “of the Incurables” and he was shocked by the poor treatment the patients received. This became the first step in his conversion, including his resolution to give up gambling. Inspired by the example of a Capuchin Franciscan friar he had met, he twice tried to join the Capuchins, but he was turned away because of his poor health.
Camillus came to understand that he was being called to dedicate himself to serving the sick-poor, and, after being ordained a priest, he gathered together a group of companions that would later come to known as the Order of Clerks Regular, Servants of the Sick (the Camillians). A gifted nurse himself, Camillus demanded not only charity toward the sick, but he also promoted standards of cleanliness and technical ability that were ahead of their time. His companions eventually helped to reform not only the hospital of San Giacomo, but also began to work in Rome’s Hospital di Santo Spirito in Sassia. HIs firsthand experience in wars led him to establish a group of health care workers who would assist soldiers on the battlefield. In response to a request of the pope, Camillus sent religious to Hungary to care for wounded or sick soldiers. The large, red cross on their religious habits, which they adopted as a sign of their vocation to medical care, remains a symbol of the Camillians to this day.
An account of his life written in 1615 (one year after his death) by one of his companions relates:
In the sick he saw the person of Christ. His imagination was so vivid that, while feeding them, he perceived his patients as other Christs… His reverence in their presence was as great as if he were really and truly in the presence of his Lord. In his conversations he talked of nothing more often or with greater feeling than of holy charity. He would have liked to plant this virtue in every human heart.
To enkindle the enthusiasm of his religious brothers for this all-important virtue, he used to impress upon them the consoling words of Jesus Christ: I was sick and you visited me. He seemed to have these words truly graven on his heart, so often did he say them over and over again. (from the Office of Readings for the Memorial of Saint Camillus de Lellis)
After years of selfless service, Camillus died in Rome on July 14, 1614, and was canonized in 1746. He is honored as the patron saint of the sick and of healthcare providers, as well as a special patron for those suffering with gambling addictions. In the United States, the liturgical memorial of Saint Camillus de Lellis is celebrated on July 18.
Saint Camillus stands out as one of those saints who, in many practical ways, embodies the meaning of evangelization. Reflecting on his own experiences of sin, addiction, illness, and God’s mercy, his life and ministry were informed by these realities, and he was able to hand on to others the mercy that he had felt in his own life. Moreover, Saint Camillus was able to see suffering and death through the eyes of Jesus and this inspired him to give himself—after the example of Jesus—for the sake of life, as he tried to alleviate suffering in any place where he encountered it. In this, he offers a prophetic witness to the Church today, challenging each of us to also take a long, honest look at the world around us and to respond to what we see with a spirit of solidarity and sacrifice. If we are able to do this, we will recognize that, what the world needs most in these days are our hospitality, availability, and love. As Pope Francis reflected in a statement to the participants of the Camillians 2022 General Chapter:
Our time is marked by individualism and indifference, which generate loneliness and lead to the throwing away of many lives. This is our culture today. Individualism, indifference, which generate loneliness and cause rejection: the throwaway culture. The Christian response does not lie in the resigned observation of the present or in the nostalgic regret of the past, but in charity which, animated by trust in Providence, knows how to love its own time and, with humility, bears witness to the Gospel.
Saint Camillus de Lellis, pray for us.
O God, who adorned the Priest Saint Camillus
with a singular grace of charity towards the sick,
pour out upon us, by his merits,
a spirit of love for you,
so that, serving you in our neighbor,
we may, at the hour of our death,
pass safely over to you.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
God, for ever and ever. Amen.
-Collect for the Memorial of Saint Camillus de Lellis
