Description
In the 17th century, Saint Veronica Giuliani was renowned for her acts of humility. For example, she kept a rotting fish in her cell and frequently smelled it and tasted it. As a result, she came to appreciate the taste of fresh fish even more.
When Veronica developed stigmata, the Church became suspicious and a Jesuit named Father Crivelli was sent to investigate whether she was merely an attention-seeker. Crivelli accused her of being a hypocrite or even a witch, but “found her so humble…that, to tell the truth, I wondered exceedingly.”
To test her humility, Crivelli ordered Veronica to leave her cell and live in a disused closet, which was full of spiders and insects. Instead of sweeping the closet, he told her to clean the floor with her tongue. To his surprise, Veronica not only licked the floor clean, but stood on a stool and licked the walls clean as well, “swallowing both spiders and cobwebs.”
The Jesuit went away convinced and Veronica was canonized.