Rita was born in 1381 in the city of Roccaporena, a small suburb of Cascia near Spoleto, Umbria, Italy. Her name was Margherita and was affectionately called Rita, the short form of her baptismal name.

Despite her repeated requests to be allowed to enter a convent of religious sisters, her parents arranged her marriage. She was married at age twelve to a nobleman named Paolo Mancini. He was a rich, quick-tempered and immoral man, who had many enemies in the region of Cascia. The marriage lasted for eighteen years. Rita was a model wife and mother who made efforts to convert her husband from his abusive behaviour. Rita was successful in converting her husband into a better person through humility, kindness and patience. She had two sons, Giangiacomo (Giovanni) Antonio and Paulo Maria.

Paolo Mancini was stabbed to death following a family feud and Rita gave a public pardon to the murderers at his funeral. However, his brother, Bernardo, continued the feud and hoped to convince Rita's sons to seek revenge. As her sons grew, their characters began to change as Bernardo became their tutor. Rita's sons wished to avenge their father's murder. Rita, fearing that her sons would lose their souls, tried to dissuade them from retaliating, but to no avail. She asked God to remove her sons from the cycle of vendettas and prevent mortal sin and murder. Her sons died of dysentery a year later, which pious Catholics believe was God's answer to her prayer, taking them by natural death rather than risk them committing a mortal sin punishable by Hell.

After the deaths of her husband and sons, Rita desired to enter the monastery of Saint Mary Magdalene in Cascia but was turned away. The nuns were afraid of being associated with her due to the scandal of her husband's violent death and because she was not a virgin. However, she persisted in her cause and was given a condition before the convent could accept her: the task of reconciling her family with her husband's murderers.

She implored the help of her three patron saints, John the Baptist, Augustine of Hippo and Nicholas of Tolentin and was able to resolve the conflicts between the families. Finally at the age of thirty-six, Rita was allowed to enter the monastery.

Catholic legends believe that Rita was transported into the monastery of Saint Magdalene at night by her three patron saints. She remained at the monastery, until her death from tuberculosis on 22 May 1457.

Other Saints of the Day
1. Saint Nicholas Owen
2. Saint Epaphroditus of Terracina
3. Saint Benevenuto Scotivoli of Osimo
4. Saint Basil of Ancyra
5. Saint Lea of Rome

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