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The saints

St. Bernardine of Siena

A Franciscan who held up a plaque with the name of Jesus, and made Italy listen.

Feast: 20 May · 1380 to 1444 · The Middle Ages · Siena, and towns all over Italy

Read the story 1 min read
Marble statue of St. Bernardine of Siena in a Franciscan habit, in a niche.

Antonio Raggi, 2005. Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0.

Home / The saints / St. Bernardine of Siena

The piazzas of Italy, the 1400s

During a plague in Siena, young Bernardine and his friends ran a hospital for the sick.1

He became a Franciscan and a preacher, and at first his voice was weak.1

He prayed, and it grew strong enough to reach crowds in the open squares.

Patron of advertising and public relations1; Italy1

01St. Bernardine of Siena

IHS

He held up a tablet with the letters IHS, the name of Jesus, and asked people to venerate it.1

He preached against gambling, usury and the feuds between rival families.1

02St. Bernardine of Siena

The logo

His symbol of the holy name spread everywhere, which is partly why he is called the patron of advertising.1

Live it this week

Put the name of Jesus where you’ll see it

Bernardine made the name of Jesus visible everywhere. Put a small cross or the name of Jesus somewhere you look all day (your lock screen, your desk), and say His name prayerfully each time you see it.

Notes

How we know · 1 source for this page
  1. Franciscan Media, Saint of the Day: “Saint Bernardine of Siena”. franciscanmedia.org. franciscanmedia.org

The Catholic Encyclopedia (1913) is in the public domain; we quote the New Advent edition. Texts of the Holy See are quoted briefly from vatican.va. Scripture: World English Bible, Catholic edition (public domain); Verse numbers are modern, with Douay-Rheims numbers in brackets where they differ. Photographs: Wikimedia Commons, credited under each image; full list on the photo credits page.

Lines in the narrator’s voice, without a note, are our reflection, not a historical claim. Stone & Incense restates Church teaching in plain words; our wording is not an official Church text. Report an errorCorrections.