St. Rita of Cascia

Perhaps the most unlikely of patron saints in the Catholic canon is St. Rita of Cascia as the patron saint of baseball. How did a 15th century nun become the intercessor for a 20th century American sport? The answer is quite surprising!

St. Rita is more officially known as the patron saint of impossible causes, difficult marriages, and parenthood because of her own personal struggles in marriage.  Though young Rita begged her parents to let her join a convent, they forced her into marriage at age 12. Her husband was violent, and abused Rita. Over the years, Rita's influence softened her husband's heart; he even eventually renounced a longstanding feud between his family and a rival family. Despite this, the feud continued, and her husband eventually became a casualty in the rivalry. To avenge their father's death, both of Rita's sons looked to join in the war. Rita prayed that their souls would be saved from such a destructive path, and both sons died of dysentery before they could commit any mortal sins, such as murder, in the name of vengeance. 

After her sons' deaths, Rita tried to join a convent. However, she was turned away due to her association with the warring families. Rita prayed for God's help to persuade the families to lay down their arms. Her prayers were answered when the patriarch of one of the families fell ill with bubonic plague and declared an end to the feud. She finally was able to enter the monastery of Saint Mary Magdalene in Cascia.

Rita developed a great devotion to the Passion of Christ and reportedly asked in prayer at age 60, "please let me suffer like you, Divine Savior." From then on, Rita suffered from a deep wound in her forehead which would not heal - a gash from Christ's crown of thorns. St. Rita died in 1457 and her body is incorrupt.

So, how did this patron saint of impossible causes also add baseball to her list of patronage? The story goes that in the 1920s, a group of nuns invested in an oil rig project in Texas, but the project was not particularly fruitful and lacked steady funds. The workers often had free time and so spent much of it playing America's pastime while waiting to strike oil. The nuns started praying to St. Rita as the patron of impossible causes for success in their project and a priest blessed a rose in Rita's name, which was then scattered about the site (roses are also associated with Rita). Five days after her feast day in 1923, oil started spraying into the sky. The workers had to quit their baseball games and get to work! And so, Rita became unofficially associated with baseball. The movie The Rookie brought her patronage to a new generation of Catholics in the early 2000s when the lead character, an older pitcher hoping to make it in the majors, could be seen carrying a St. Rita medal.

If you are struggling with a problem, ask for St. Rita's intercession and remember her words: "There is nothing impossible to God."

By Anna Neal