Every August 17, the Catholic Church celebrates Saint Beatriz de Silva, a 15th century Portuguese nun, founder of the Order of the Immaculate Conception, known as Franciscan Conceptionists. Beatriz dedicated herself to contemplative prayer and to spreading devotion to Mary Immaculate.
It is believed that he was born in 1426 in Ceuta, the famous city located in North Africa facing the Mediterranean. Ceuta was at that time under the rule of the Portuguese crown.
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The importance of faith formation
Beatriz’s mother, following a family tradition, entrusted the religious education of her eleven children to the Franciscans. They instilled in the children a special love for the Immaculate Conception, the Virgin Mary. As a result of those years of formation, several vocations to religious life emerged within the family.
That was the case of Beatriz, although she was not the only one: one of her brothers, Juan or “Joao”, would also take the habit of Saint Francis of Assisi, adopting the name Amadeo. This – the fifth of the De Silva brothers – promoted a reform within the Order in Italian lands. This reform, when the time came, would become one of its most lively branches, that of the so-called “Amadeists” – now extinct.
A maiden at the court of Castile
Years before becoming a nun, in 1447, Beatriz arrived in Castile (Spain) as a maiden, as part of the entourage of Queen Isabella of Portugal. The monarch arrived to marry Juan II, king of Castile. Unfortunately, certain rumors reached Isabel’s ears, who withdrew her favor from Beatriz and began to treat her with contempt.
The palace of Juan II had become a nest of gossip and conspiracies for power. Beatriz was accused of having tried to seduce the king, so Isabel began to consider her a traitor and see her as a threat to her. As her punishment, the Portuguese queen ordered her to be locked in a chest, where she remained for three days.
Consoled by the Immaculate Conception
During the terrible hours in which she remained without light, water or food, Beatriz had a vision of the Virgin Mary, who came to console her and strengthen her in pain. After being freed, the young maiden expressed her desire to leave the court and begin a spiritual path that would lead her to consecrate herself to the Virgin.
Thus Beatriz left the royal court, located in Tordesillas (Valladolid), and entered the Cistercian monastery of Santo Domingo de Silos, in Toledo, where she served God for 30 years.
Vindicated by Christ from all slander
While in Silos, the saint made the decision to found a new monastery, which would later become the first headquarters of the Order of the Immaculate Conception. In 1489, with the support of Queen Isabel La Católica – daughter of Isabel of Portugal -, Beatriz obtained authorization from Pope Innocent VIII to found the new monastery, as well as approval of the rules of the Order. However, before regular life began, in 1492, God called Beatrice into his presence.
The new religious family, far from weakening, spread rapidly throughout Europe and America. Today, several centuries after its founding, it is made up of some 3,000 nuns who live in 150 monasteries throughout the world.
Beatrice was beatified by Pope Pius XI on July 28, 1926. She would later be canonized by Saint Paul VI on October 3, 1976.
A saint with a message for the men and women of today
Pope Paul VI highlighted the relevance of this saint’s testimony: “There is a message that brings Saint Beatrice closer to our experience, making us appreciate the relevance of the testimony that she presents to us. We live in a permissive society, which does not seem to recognize any borders. The result is visible to all: the expansion of vice in the name of a misunderstood freedom. The noble society of the Renaissance period very often presents, although with noble exceptions, a panorama in which some sad experiences of today are reflected quite well.
The remains of Saint Beatrice are preserved for public veneration in the Mother House of the Franciscan Conceptionists, located in Toledo, Spain.
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