St. Frances Xavier Cabrini (1850–1917), known as Mother Cabrini, was an Italian nun who crossed the Atlantic to care for Italian immigrants in America and became the first citizen of the United States to be canonized. In frail health all her life, she founded the Missionary Sisters of the Sacred Heart of Jesus and dozens of schools, orphanages and hospitals across the Americas and Europe. She is the patron saint of immigrants, and her feast in the United States is November 13, which in 2026 falls on a Friday. Below are her life, a prayer to Mother Cabrini and the places where she is honored.
Who was Mother Cabrini?
- Born in Lombardy. Maria Francesca Cabrini was born on July 15, 1850, at Sant’Angelo Lodigiano, near Lodi in northern Italy, the youngest of thirteen children of a farming family. Born prematurely, she was sickly all her life.
- A missionary heart. As a child she floated paper boats filled with violets down the canal, pretending they were missionaries sailing to China. She trained as a teacher, but religious congregations turned her away because of her health.
- Foundress. After years running an orphanage at Codogno, she founded the Missionary Sisters of the Sacred Heart of Jesus there in 1880, adding the name Xavier in honor of St. Francis Xavier, the great missionary to Asia.
- “Not to the East, but to the West.” She hoped to go to China, but Pope Leo XIII, concerned for the millions of Italians emigrating to the Americas, told her to go west instead. In 1889 she landed in New York with six sisters.
- Mother of immigrants. Italian immigrants in America were often poor, exploited and without priests who spoke their language. Mother Cabrini opened schools, orphanages, hospitals (among them Columbus Hospital in New York and Chicago) and catechism classes. She crossed the ocean more than twenty times and her houses spread from New York, Chicago, Denver, Seattle and New Orleans to Central and South America and Europe, some sixty-seven foundations in all.
- American citizen. She became a naturalized citizen of the United States in 1909.
- Death. She died at Columbus Hospital in Chicago on December 22, 1917, while preparing Christmas candy for the children of the parish.
- Saint. Pope Pius XI beatified her on November 13, 1938, and Pope Pius XII canonized her on July 7, 1946, the first American citizen to be declared a saint. In 1950 Pius XII named her patroness of immigrants.
Her motto
A verse from St. Paul is often associated with Mother Cabrini and sums up how a woman too weak for the convent built so much:
I can do all these things in him who strengtheneth me.
A prayer to St. Frances Xavier Cabrini
Written for this page:
Saint Frances Xavier Cabrini, you crossed the ocean to serve strangers in a strange land,
and you trusted the Sacred Heart of Jesus for everything you needed.
Pray for immigrants and refugees, for families far from home,
for those who are lonely, exploited or afraid.
Pray for the sick and for all who care for them in hospitals and homes.
When my own strength is small, help me to say with you,
“I can do all things in him who strengthens me.”
Mother Cabrini, pray for us. Amen.
For those on the road or far from home, see our Catholic travel prayer.
Where to honor Mother Cabrini
- St. Frances Xavier Cabrini Shrine, New York City. In Washington Heights, Manhattan, where her body rests beneath the altar.
- National Shrine of St. Frances Xavier Cabrini, Chicago. On the site of Columbus Hospital, where she died.
- Mother Cabrini Shrine, Golden, Colorado. On land she bought in the mountains above Denver for an orphanage summer camp, where pilgrims climb a stairway to a statue of the Sacred Heart.
- Sant’Angelo Lodigiano and Codogno, Italy, her birthplace and the cradle of her congregation.
Her story reached a wide audience again with the 2024 film Cabrini.
What is St. Frances Xavier Cabrini the patron saint of?
- Immigrants, by the decision of Pope Pius XII in 1950.
- Hospital administrators and the sick, for the hospitals she founded.
- Orphans and children in care.
See the full list of patron saints.
Frequently asked questions
When is the feast of Mother Cabrini?
In the United States, November 13, the anniversary of her beatification, kept as an obligatory memorial. In the Roman Martyrology she is remembered on December 22, the day she died.
Why is Mother Cabrini important?
She was the first U.S. citizen to be canonized, and she built a network of schools, orphanages and hospitals for immigrants at a time when few cared for them. She is the patron saint of immigrants.
Where is Mother Cabrini buried?
Her body rests at the St. Frances Xavier Cabrini Shrine in Washington Heights, New York City.
Why did Mother Cabrini come to America?
Pope Leo XIII sent her. She wanted to be a missionary in China, but the Pope told her to go “not to the East, but to the West,” to the Italian immigrants in the Americas.
More saints and prayers
- St. Katharine Drexel
- St. Francis Xavier
- Litany of the Sacred Heart
- Prayer for the sick
- St. Elizabeth Ann Seton
- Saint of the day
- Patron saints
Texts and sources
- Philippians 4:13 (Douay-Rheims).
- Feast and rank: proper calendar for the dioceses of the United States (November 13, memorial).