Felix de Nicola was born in 1540 at Montegranaro in the Central Italian region know as the Marches of Ancona, around 1540, the second of Jerome de Nicola and his wife Theodora's four children. His father was a builder by trade, but found it hard to eke out a living. At a young age Felix was sent to work on a neighbouring farm, so as to earn some extra income for the family. In the countryside, with only sheep for company, he developed a love for silence, solitude, prayer and meditation. But when his parents died, and his brother Silenzio took over the family business, Felix was called back home to help with the building work. He was, however, a clumsy young man, totally incapable of learning any of the building skills, his brother tried to teach him. Even as a mere hod carrier, his innate clumsiness got the better of him and he was regularly scolded and badly beaten by his bad-tempered older brother. He bore this cruel treatment with great patience.
Wanting to consecrate himself to the service of God, he entered the Capuchin novitiate at Jesi at the age of eighteen. He was given the name Seraphin. "I have nothing but a crucifix and a rosary. With these I hope to benefit the Brothers and become a saint." His humility, penance and self-sacrifice impressed his brothers. Punctual in performing his own duties, he still found time to be of service to others. He used to say, "I'm fit for nothing but ready for anything."
He often spent nights in prayer. In the evening he would visit the Blessed Sacrament and remain there for hours absorbed in contemplation. Then he would take a short rest, after which he would get up again to attend the midnight Office.
During a famine he ate only a quarter of his usual food in order to have more to give to the poor. As doorkeeper, charged with providing for the poor, he once went beyond obedience. One day, there were some poor people waiting for food, and, since he had nothing left to give them, he went into the garden and pulled up the vegetables which were growing there and distributed them. When the guardian criticized him for doing this, Seraphin assured him that the community would not suffer in any way and indeed, they did not go hungry, the shortage being made up in other ways.
God blessed the kindness of his servant: it was said that sick people were restored to health when he made the Sign of the Cross over them. But Seraphin, for the most part, was a quiet man, withdrawn from the public eye. When working in the friary he meditated on the passion of Our Lord, and his great wish was to be sent abroad as a missionary, though this was not granted. He used to compose simple prayers of his own, such as the following: - One of my readers states this is, of course, from the Stabat Mater. I shall look up the dates...
Holy Mother, pierce me through.
In my heart each wound renew
Of my Saviour crucified.
Seraphin died on 12 October 1604 at the age of sixty-four. Pope Clement XIII canonized him in 1767.
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