Saint Margaret of Cortona was born in 1247 to a farming family. Her mother died when she was seven, and Margaret lived with her father and harsh stepmother. Margaret had a strong need for indulgences, and a nobleman seduced her at age eighteen. He took her to his castle where she was his mistress for nine years, hoping he would fulfill his promise to marry her. She gave birth to his son, but the man still refused to marry her. One day she discovered the nobleman dead in the woods because he was murdered by thieves. After he died, she was evicted from the castle and gave back all her treasures.
Margaret returned to her father's home seeking his forgiveness for her perverse actions. Her father wished to take her back, but her stepmother refused to have such a public sinner under the same roof. Margaret was so full of shame, but she prayed. An inner voice directed her to go to Cortona and confide the care of her soul to the Franciscans. She found her way to the Franciscans who became her fathers in Christ and gave her son an education. She struggled against temptation, but she never gave in.
Eventually, Margaret's piece of mind returned. She began to experience the love of Jesus and to believe that her sins had been forgiven. She started out nursing women, but later gave this up in order to devote herself more fully to prayer and caring for the sick and poor in her own small cottage. She lived off the charity of others, gave her food to the poor, and ate only scraps. One of her messages from God was "I have made you a mirror for sinners. You are a ladder for sinners. My daughter, I have set you as a light in the darkness, as a new star that I give to the world, to guide back again those who have lost the way. You are the way of the despairing, the voice of mercy.".
Sinners and those seeking counsel sought Margaret for comfort and wisdom. Margaret also dedicated herself to praying for the souls in Purgatory.