In less than 40 years, Gianna Beretta Molla became a pediatric physician, a wife, a mother and a saint! Parenthood is often seen by some as a lesser vocation, as compared to holy orders or religious life, which naturally seeks perfection in both virtues and spiritual gifts. However, let us be reminded that because of our Baptismal consecration, we are all made to be saints and made to be a sanctifying presence in the world. This is what Gianna has excellently taught us. Our ministry is blessed to have a large relic of her clothing obtained from the Archdiocese of Milan, who oversaw her beatification and canonization process. She was born in Magenta near Milano, the 10th of Alberto and Maria Beretta’s 13 children. An active member of the St. Vincent de Paul Society and a leader in the Catholic Action movement, Gianna also enjoyed skiing and mountain climbing. She earned degrees in medicine and surgery from the University of Pavia, eventually specializing in pediatrics. In 1952, Gianna opened a clinic in the small town of Mesero, where she met engineer Pietro Molla. Shortly before their 1955 marriage, Gianna wrote to Pietro: “Love is the most beautiful sentiment that the Lord has put into the soul of men and women.” In the next four years the Mollas had three children: Pierluigi, Mariolina, and Laura. Two pregnancies following ended in miscarriage. Early in her sixth pregnancy, doctors discovered that Gianna had both a child and a tumor in her uterus. She allowed the surgeons to remove the tumor but not to perform the complete hysterectomy that they recommended, which would have killed the child. Seven months later in April 1962, Gianna Emanuela Molla was born at the hospital in Monza, but post-operative complications resulted in an infection for her mother. The following week, Gianna Molla died at home in Mesero, where she was buried. Gianna Emanuela went on to become a physician herself. Gianna Beretta Molla was beatified in 1994 and canonized 10 years later by St. John Paul II, in the presence of her husband Pietro and their children. PRAYER to St. GiannaGod, our Father,
we praise You and we bless You because in Saint Gianna Beretta Molla You have given and made Known to us a woman who witnessed the Gospel as a young person and bride, as a mother and doctor. We thank You because, through the gift of her life, we learn to accept and honour every human being. Lord Jesus, You were for her a privileged reference. She was able to see You in the beauty of nature. As she questioned her choice of life, she was searching for You and for the best way to serve You. Through her married love, she became a sign of your love for the Church and for all men and women. Like You, Good Samaritan, she stopped at the side of every sick person, of the small and the weak. Following your example, she lovingly offered up her life, while giving new life. Holy Spirit, source of all perfection, give to us also wisdom, intelligence and courage so that, following Saint Gianna’s example and through her intercession, we may serve every person in our personal, family and professional life, and thus grow in love and holiness. Amen.
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Today, we remember the feast of a Franciscan nun known for being an excellent manager: she managed the temporal and spiritual lives of her nuns, while making sure she also managed her path to holiness. Oftentimes, leaders and managers are often seen in a negative light, but with the example of St. Crescentia, may we be reminded that to be placed above others in rank is in essence, to be placed at the bottom to be first to serve and care for others. Our ministry has relics of wood from her coffin and canvas that was found inside her coffin. Crescentia was born in 1682, the daughter of a poor weaver, in a little town near Augsburg. She spent play time praying in the parish church, assisted those even poorer than herself and had so mastered the truths of her religion that she was permitted to make her first Holy Communion at the then unusually early age of 7. In the town she was called “the little angel.” As she grew older, she desired to enter the convent of the Tertiaries of Saint Francis. But the convent was poor, and because Crescentia had no dowry, the superiors refused her admission. Her case was then pleaded by the Protestant mayor of the town to whom the convent owed a favor. The community felt it was forced into receiving her, and her new life was made miserable. She was considered a burden and assigned nothing other than menial tasks. Even her cheerful spirit was misinterpreted as flattery or hypocrisy. Conditions improved four years later when a new superior was elected who realized her virtue. Crescentia herself was appointed mistress of novices. She so won the love and respect of the sisters that, upon the death of the superior, Crescentia was unanimously elected to that position. Under her, the financial state of the convent improved and her reputation in spiritual matters spread. She was soon being consulted by princes and princesses; bishops and cardinals too sought her advice. And yet, a true daughter of Francis, she remained ever humble. Bodily afflictions and pain were always with her. First it was headaches and toothaches. Then she lost the ability to walk, her hands and feet gradually becoming so crippled that her body curled up into a fetal position. In the spirit of Francis she cried out, “Oh, you bodily members, praise God that he has given you the capacity to suffer.” Despite her sufferings she was filled with peace and joy as she died on Easter Sunday in 1744. She was beatified in 1900 and canonized by Pope John Paul II in 2001. Prayer composed by St. CrescentiaGrant, O God, that love and suffering may grow hand in hand in me, so that I may love you more and more with the cheerful disposition which is the fruit of love. O Lord, only grant me love for you, and I shall be rich enough. I desire only that you leave me to my nothingness and that you alone, if I may say so, be all in all and loved and honored by everybody. I wish to take pleasure in nothing but only in you and your love. Amen.
Our Church has always been filled with numerous examples of holiness, not only in the Roman-Latin ritual family, but as well as in other Rites of the Catholic Church. Recently, there has been a sparked interest in the saints of the Eastern Rites, and it is fitting today to remember St. Rafqa, who is a Maronite nun, and is second in fame to another Maronite, St. Charbel in Lebanon. Our ministry is blessed to have relics of the clothing “ex indumentis” of both Sts. Rafqa and Charbel. "O Christ, I unite my sufferings to yours, my pains with your pains, as I look at your head crowned with thorns." St Rafqa Al-Rayes Rafqa was born in Lebanon on 29 June 1832, on the feast of Saint Peter and Paul. She was named Boutrossieh (the feminine name of Peter). Her mother died when she was 7 years old, and her father struggled financially. He sent Boutrossieh away to work as a servant for 4 years in Damascus. When she returned home she found her father had remarried. At 14, her stepmother and her aunty were arranging for her to marry, but she did not want to marry. She wished to become a nun and went straight to the Convent of Our Lady of Liberation at Bikfaya. Her father and stepmother tried to persuade her to come back home, but she refused and asked the mistress of novices to excuse her from seeing them and she agreed. They returned home and never saw her again. On 9 February 1855, on the feast of Saint Maroun, Boutrossieh commenced her novitiate (the period of training and preparing someone for the religious institute) at the convent in Ghazir. She took her temporary vows on 19 March 1862. She was assigned to be in charge of the kitchen service in the Jesuit school in Ghazir, where she spent seven years. In 1860, some Jesuit priests invited Boutrossieh and another nun to assist them in their mission in Deir El Kamar. It was a time of civil unrest. One day while walking the streets, she noticed a little Maronite boy being chased by soldiers, wanting to kill him. Boutrossieh hid him under her religious robe. Civil unrest made it dangerous to remain and forced Boutrossieh back to Ghazir. She established a school at the request of Antoun Issa, he wanted her to come to his town to educate the girls. This school grew to have up to 60 girls, and Boutrossieh stayed there for 7 years, fulfilling this mission. After the Marian Order where Boutrossieh belonged was dissolved, she entered the convent of Saint Simon in Ayto. In 1872 she took her perpetual vows of obedience, chastity and poverty and took the name Rafqa after her mother. She was an example to her fellow sisters, always in prayer and silent in hard work. The sisters worked manual labour, harvesting vegetables and grain, they also cultivated silkworms and sewed vestments for the churches. After 14 years at this convent Rafqa felt that she was called to bigger sacrifices. She asked to be closer to God and to share in Jesus’ passion. God answered her prayers immediately. That night she felt a terrible headache which quickly spread to her eyes. She suffered this way silently for 12 years, and it caused her to lose her sight. Her superior sent her to be examined by many doctors, all which concluded they could not do anything to help her. An American physician was consulted and he decided that surgery was necessary for Rafqa. Rafqa refused aesthetic, and offered up the pain. During the surgery the doctor accidently pulled her whole eye out. Rafqa didn’t complain, instead she continued to pray, repeating “I join my sufferings to yours, my Jesus.” Rafqa even thanked the doctor after his mistake. The pain was in her left eye, and surgery did not help, gradually she became blind and her eyes continued to haemorrhage. She did not let this suffering isolate her from the other sisters. Rafqa continued to work, spinning wool and cotton and knitting stockings for the other sisters and participating in prayer. One day Rafqa commented to the Mother Superior of great pain in her waist. Her body was weakening and she was eventually bedridden, although she was still able to use her hands and she thanked God for this as she used her hands to work. Rafqa died on 23 March 1914, and was buried in the convent’s cemetery under the oak trees. She was canonized on 10 June 2001 by Pope John Paul II. We remember a remarkable woman, who lived a humble life. Although she suffered, she never complained and continued to give thanks for the opportunity to share in Christ’s passion. We ask for the intercession of Saint Rafqa for all those who are suffering, may the Lord comfort them. Like St Rafqa may we be able to join our suffering with Jesus’ suffering on the cross. (Taken from the “Living Maronite” website) Prayer to St. RafqaWe ask you, Saint Rafqa, to spread joy in our world and comfort those who are suffering. Teach us to pray with faith in Jesus Christ. Medicine was unable to cure you, so you healed the sick by enduring sorrow and sharing in the Mystery of Redemption of Our Lord Jesus Christ.
We ask you to intercede for our intentions (state them) and for all the sick, to fill our hearts with joy and love and to guide us to follow in your example. May we glorify with you, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit forever. Amen. This ministry is blessed to receive today the sacred relics of St. Teresa Eustochio Verzeri, virgin and foundress of the Daughters of the Sacred Heart of Jesus in Bergamo. The relic consists of a small piece of her clothing “ex indumentis”. Teresa Verzeri was born in Bergamo (Italy) on July 31, 1801,the first of the seven children of Antonio Verzeri and the countess Elena Pedrocca-Grumelli. Her brother, Girolamo, became Bishop of Brescia. Her mother, doubtful of whether she should give herself to matrimony or embrace the monastic life, had listened to the prophetic word of her aunt, Madre Antonia Grumelli, a Franciscan Poor Clare Nun: "God has destined you for this state to become the mother of holy children." At a very tender age Teresa learned from her mother, a prominent woman, to know and ardently love God. She was led in her spiritual journey by the Canon Giuseppe Benaglio, the Vicar General of the Diocese of Bergamo, who already accompanied the family. Teresa completed her initial studies at home. Through grace, she travelled a road of detachment, of purity of intention, of simplicity and straightforwardness that brought her to seek "God alone." Interiorly Teresa lived the special mystic experience of the "absence of God," anticipating something of the religious life of today: the weight of human solitude before a restless sense of the distance of God. Nevertheless, in unshakeable faith, Teresa never lost her confidence and abandonment to the living God, provident and merciful Father, to whom she devoted herself in obedience. Her lonely cry, like that of Jesus, became the entrusting of her whole self through love. With the intention of pleasing God and doing only his will,her religious vocation matured at home and in the Benedictine Monastery of St. Grata. After a long and tormenting search, she left the Monastery to found the Congregation of the Daughters of the Sacred Heart of Jesus together with the Canon Giuseppe Benaglio on February 8, 1831, in Bergamo. Teresa Verzeri lived during the first half of the 1800s, a time of great transformation in the history of Italy and the society of Bergamo, marked with political changes, revolutions, and persecutions that did not spare the Church, which was also wounded by Janenism and by the crisis of values, resulting from the French Revolution. At a time when the devotion to the Sacred Heart found resistance, she gave to the first Daughters of the Sacred Heart this testament that characterises the spiritual patrimony of their religious family: "To you and to your Institute Jesus Christ has given the precious gift of his Heart, for from no one else can you learn holiness, he being the inexhaustible source of true holiness" (Libro dei Doveri, vol. III,p. 484). Teresa saw very clearly the pressing needs of her times. Wherever charity called, she seized the situation, even the most dangerous and serious, with absolute availability, and with her first companions she dedicated herself to diverse apostolic services: "education of middle class troubled girls; homes for orphans who were at risk, abandoned and even led astray; public schools, christian doctrine, retreats, holiday recreations and assistance to the infirm" (Libro dei Doveri, vol. III, p. 368). In 1836 Canon Benaglio died and Teresa, supported by the obedience that guaranteed that the Congregation was willed by God, dedicated herself totally to its approbation, strengthening and expansion. In this she was affronted by many obstacles placed in the way by civil authorities, and also by ecclesiastics who put her virtue to the hard test. Teresa showed herself heroic in abandonment to the will of God that sustained her. After a life of intense giving, Teresa Verzeri died in Brescia on March 3,1852. She left to the Congregation, already approved by the Church and by the government, a vast documentation - above all in the Constitutions, the Book of Duties and in more than 3,500 letters - from which it is possible to draw all the richness of her spiritual and human experience. The precious spiritual patrimony transmitted to the Congregation finds its center in the Heart of Jesus from whom the Daughters of the Sacred Heart inherit the spirit of magnanimous charity that compels one to be "all to all " in an intimate relation with the Father and in loving solicitude for one's neighbor. The relics of Teresa Verzeri are venerated in the chapel of the Daughters of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, in Bergamo. She was beatified in 1946 by Ven. Pius XII, and was canonised in 2001 by Pope St. John Paul II. Prayer composed by St. Teresa to the Sacred Heart(Loosely translated and adapted by this Ministry)
Sacred Heart of Jesus,you know what is best for me. May everything in my being be according to Your holy will. Give me what you desire, At this moment; Grant what You see is fit for me. Sacred Heart of Jesus, In You, I am your child. I place myself fully at your disposition. Surround me with your strength. Sacred Heart of Jesus, draw me to You. May your love fill my heart. I want to live for you, for the mission that you have embraced, According to the desires of Your Heart. Sacred Heart of Jesus, teach me to live according to that which You desired for me. I want nothing more than to be like You. I want to do your will, To love everyone with Your love with those whom you love, without distinction. Sacred Heart of Jesus, I hide my heart in Yours and I will live in you and for you, for the good of humanity, to do what You desire. Amen. Today, we remember a holy woman who lived holiness in two dimensions, that is in marriage and in religious life. The story of St. Benedetta is very inspiring and challenging, especially for those in marriage and religious life. Our ministry is blessed to have a relic of her clothes “ex indumentis”. “When God wants something, He does not fail to find the appropriate means.” -Saint Benedetta Cambiagio Frassinello Saint Benedetta Cambiagio Frasinello was born on 2 October 1791 in Langasco (Genoa) Italy; she died on 21 March 1858 in Ronco Scrivia in Liguria. She was wife, religious and foundress. She let the Holy Spirit guide her through married life to the work of education and religious consecration. She founded a school for the formation of young women and also a religious congregation, and did both with the generous collaboration of her husband. This is unique in the annals of Christian sanctity. Benedetta was a pioneer in her determination to give a high quality education to young women, for the formation of families for a "new Christian society" and for promoting the right of women to a complete education. Call to marriage, then to religious life From her parents Benedetta received a Christian formation that rooted in her the life of faith. Her family settled in Pavia when she was a girl. When she was 20 years old, Benedetta had a mystical experience that gave her a profound desire for a life of prayer and penance, and of consecration to God. However, in obedience to the wishes of her parents, in 1816, she married Giovanni Frassinello and lived married life for two years. In 1818, moved by the example of his saintly wife, Giovanni agreed that the two should live chastely, "as brother and sister" and take care of Benedetta's younger sister, Maria, who was dying from intestinal cancer. They began to live a supernatural parenthood quite unique in the history of the Church. Congregation founded by wife, who is supported by her husband Following Maria's death in 1825, Giovanni entered the Somaschi Fathers founded by St Jerome Emiliani, and Benedetta devoted herself completely to God in the Ursuline Congregation of Capriolo. A year later she was forced to leave because of ill health, and returned to Pavia where she was miraculously cured by St Jerome Emiliani. Once she regained her health, with the Bishop's approval, she dedicated herself to the education of young girls. Benedetta needed help in handling such a responsibility, but her own father refused to help her. Bishop Tosi of Pavia asked Giovanni to leave the Somaschi novitiate and help Benedettain her apostolic work. Together they made a vow of perfect chastity in the hands of the bishop, and then began their common work to promote the human and Christian formation of poor and abandoned girls of the city. Their educational work was of great benefit to Pavia. Benedetta became the first woman to be involved in this kind of work. The Austrian government recognized her as a "Promoter of Public Education". She was helped by young women volunteers to whom she gave a rule of life that later received ecclesiastical approval. Along with instruction, she joined formation in catechesis and in useful skills like cooking and sewing, aiming to transform her students into "models of Christian life" and so assure the formation of families. Benedictine Sisters of Providence Benedetta's work was considered pioneering for those days and was opposed by a few persons in power and by the misunderstanding of clerics. In 1838 she turned over the institution to the Bishop of Pavia. Together with Giovanni and five companions, she moved to Ronco Scrivia in the Genoa region. There they opened a school for girls that was a refinement on what they had done in Pavia. Eventually, Benedetta founded the Congregation of the Benedictine Sisters of Providence. In her rule she stressed the education of young girls. She instilled the spirit of unlimited confidence and abandonment to Providence and of love of God through poverty and charity. The Congregation grew quickly since it performed a needed service. Benedetta was able to guide the development of the Congregation until her death. On 21 March 1858 she died in Ronco Scrivia. Her example is that of supernatural maternity plus courage and fidelity in discerning and living God's will. Today the Benedictine Nuns of Providence are present in Italy, Spain, Burundi, Ivory Coast, Peru and Brazil. They are at the service of young people, the poor, the sick and the elderly. The foundress also opened a house of the order in Voghera. Forty years after the death of Benedetta, the bishop separated this house from the rest of the Order. The name was changed to the Benedictines of Divine Providence who honour the memory of the Foundress. She was beatified by John Paul II on 10 May 1987, and was canonized on 19 May 2002 by the same Pope. (Official biography taken from the Vatican website) Prayer of St. John Paul II to St. BenedettaThroughout your life, O sweet Santa Benedetta,
you have endeavored to faithfully fulfill the will of God, by always looking at the crucified Christ, who is the example of perfect obedience to Heavenly Father. At the demanding school of the Cross, both in conjugal union and in religious life, you witnessed to the "Loving Providence of God", who provides for the needs of his children. Help us to be inspired by your spirituality and your example, to walk generously in the path you have traced and to be able to witness to the younger generations the beauty of a life entirely spent for the Lord and for our brothers. (Based from the discourse of St. John Paul II, 20 May 2002) Just today, we are blessed to receive a precious relic of St. Jeanne-Emille (Marie) de Villeneuve, virgin and foundress of the Sisters of the Immaculate Conception of Castres. The relic is a piece of her clothing which was found in her tomb (ex indumentis sepulchralibus). Binta was a teenage African Muslim girl living in Guinea. One day in 1994, she swallowed some caustic soda. Rushed to Barcelona, Spain, she was saved by an operation, and then sent to stay in a home run by the «Blue Sisters». But soon, doctors discovered that she had an enormous ulcer, peritonitis, and hemorrhaging of the stomach. In spite of another long operation, the prognosis was clear: «There is nothing more we can do.» The death certificate was even prepared. The Blue Sisters began a novena to their foundress, Emilie de Villeneuve, and placed a picture and relic of Emilie in the girl's hand. Suddenly, Binta opened her eyes and, without any possible medical explanation, quickly recovered. After twenty-three days of unconsciousness, she got up by herself and returned to the Sisters' residence, completely healed. This miracle made possible the beatification on July 5, 2009 of Emilie de Villeneuve in Castres, in the south of France. Emilie de Villeneuve was born in Toulouse, France, on March 9, 1811, into one of the oldest aristocratic families of the region. Two other girls, Léontine and Octavie, had preceded her. Every summer, the family went to their chateau in Hauterive, near Castres, and, after the birth of a son, Ludovic, in 1815, the family moved there. Madame de Villeneuve educated and raised her children herself in spite of her poor health, which had been ruined at an early age by the hardships of the Revolution. Her husband was completely occupied in the cultivation of their land, which he strode every inch of, directing the farm work. Discipline was strict at the chateau: no fires in the bedrooms, silence at table, and in the salon, the children were relegated to the far end of the room and forbidden to make noise. On the other hand, outdoors they were given complete freedom. The mother's authority, firm yet flexible, relied principally on trust, since she had taught the Christian principles of good and righteous conduct. Having reached the age of twenty-three, Emilie confided to Coralie: «I will not marry... but what torments me is a vocation to which I feel an irresistible attraction, but Father Leblanc does not yet want to give his decision on it... I feel the desire to devote myself to the poor in the admirable community of the Daughters of Charity.» When, finally, Father Leblanc did approve her plan, her joy was immense. But Monsieur de Villeneuve, along with his family, asked her to wait four years. Father Leblanc advised his spiritual directee to accept this delay. So she continued with her activities and assisted her parish priest so well that her friends called her «the Assistant Priest». One day, a letter arrived from a Monsieur de Barre, a fervent Christian who prayed in churches for long periods at a time and spent the rest of his time alleviating the sufferings of the poor. He had received an inspiration during Mass—Emilie should establish a house in Castres run by nuns, to raise children whose parents were unable to care for them themselves. After several months of discernment and prayer, Father Leblanc concluded that the work was the will of God. Monsieur de Villeneuve, reassured by the thought that his daughter would not be too far away from him, gave his consent, and the Archbishop of Albi likewise approved. She named the Society she founded the «Congregation of the Immaculate Conception»; the Sisters' habit would be blue. Along with two companions, she went to the Visitation convent in Toulouse for a month of novitiate. On December 8, 1836, the three sisters took the habit and temporary religious vows, and moved into their house in Castres, in the presence of the archbishop. Emilie took the name «Sister Marie». The first Rules defined the purpose of the new Congregation—the education of abandoned children, service to the poor and prisoners, and teaching and providing vocational training to young women. On March 19, 1837, a sewing room was opened for thirty students, but soon the city's seamstresses complained of unfair competition. The populace, which had been very favorable toward the Sisters when they first settled into their house, turned bitterly against Sister Marie, with malicious remarks, and even slander. Even the clergy allowed themselves to be swayed, but Father Leblanc urged the Sisters to forge ahead. During the year 1840, serious difficulties emerged in the community—some bad examples led others to become slack in observation of the Rules. Rather than being harsh with anyone, Mother Marie de Villeneuve prayed. The still-imperfect organization did not allow the religious formation she gave to bear all its fruits. She decided to separate the novices from the professed religious, and began drafting the Constitutions that would ultimately be approved by the Archbishop of Albi at the end of 1841. The Superior General was to be elected for three years, but the Sisters obtained the archbishop's permission to appoint their foundress Superior for life. Mother Marie's behavior with them was full of delicacy and discreet vigilance. She very quickly spotted their doubts, their problems, and their sorrows, and immediately found the right word to restore them to peace. She took the greatest care to observe the community rule in the least detail, and wanted to be able, from time to time, to sweep her cell or do the dishes. In April 1841, Mother acquired a piece of land on which to have the Congregation's motherhouse built. But the flame of divine love that burned in her heart urged her to faraway missions. «The desire to make Jesus Christ loved and to serve Him in His members will not be limited to the borders of France. The Congregation still has the goal to devote itself to the beautiful work of foreign missions, particularly to the Blacks, and to the most scorned and abandoned in general. Wherever the voice of the poor or the orphan calls, there they will go without hesitation.» Mother de Villeneuve's spiritual life was straightforward—she sought above all to do the will of God. «When we speak, act, or write for the good of a soul, on any important affair,» she said to her daughters, «we should not so much plead for the good of this soul or the success of this affair, but rather for the will of God to be done, not wanting what we propose but rather His intentions, which are often different from ours.» She placed great importance on prayer: we must become used «to conversing with Jesus in the midst of our occupations, praying from the heart as we come and go in the house.» As for herself, she appreciated the moments when she was alone with God. But her spiritual life often passed through the dryness of pure faith, an experience she spoke of when she wrote to one of her daughters: «Do not worry about your interior state which, according to what you are telling me, is somewhat dark. God is everywhere, even in the darkness, and perhaps it is even better that way.» She advised another: «You must always suspect a bit of illusion, and prefer to be led by a bare and unappetizing faith... Distrust these lofty desires for perfection—be content with desiring to do the will of God... I am afraid of the way of consolations for you and the others, and I prefer faith alone, the darkness, and finally the crosses.» Two months after returning to Castres, Mother de Villeneuve threw her daughters into turmoil by resigning as Superior General. The reasons she gave can be summed up as follows: her ardent thirst to practice obedience even in the smallest things; the advantage to the Congregation, which one day or another would be deprived of her leadership; the fear that her daughters obeyed her more out of confidence and fond affection than out of faith and pure love of God. Above all, Mother Marie did not consider herself at all necessary or even desirable, as Superior. Not without pain, the General Chapter of September 1853 assented to her decision. Nevertheless, wanting to be of aid to the new Superior, the foundress was appointed Assistant General and Novice Mistress, responsibilities that she would bear discreetly and effectively. This example of humility and detachment was most certainly an unparalleled source of fruitfulness for her Congregation. Around the middle of 1854, cholera spread through the south of France and reached the city of Castres. An epidemic of «military fever» (a contagious febrile disease) broke out at the same time. Mother de Villeneuve set in motion a veritable crusade of prayers and created an atmosphere of confidence. Cholera did not make its way into the Sisters' convent, but the foundress fell victim to military fever and, on September 7, was forced to take to her bed. At the beginning of October, her condition worsened and the chaplain gave her Extreme Unction. Shortly thereafter, she passed away as the sisters said the prayers for the agonizing. Today there are more than six hundred members of the Congregation of the Immaculate Conception of Castres, spread across 123 communities in Europe, Africa, South America, and Asia. She was eventually canonized by Pope Francis on May 17, 2015 at Rome. (Biography is taken with permission from the Spiritual Letters of St. Joseph’s Abbey in Clairval, France.) Prayer to St. JeanneOur Father,
God of Life, protector of the poor, we know that Saint Emille de Villeneuve walks with us. We are certain that she accompanies us, in our struggle for life, in our joys and sufferings. We ask you, through her intercession (state your favor here). We trust in her help; give us her hope and her courage. Amen. Today, we remember the memorial of Blessed Joseph Allamano. Our ministry has relics of him in the form of a piece of his burial cassock, as well as several pieces of his coffin. His story is a reminder that sanctity always runs in the family, and that our families must be places where holiness and virtue are fostered. Joseph Allamano, the fourth of five children, was born on January 21, 1851, at Castelnuovo d’Asti (now Castelnuovo Don Bosco), in Italy, the hometown of St. Joseph Cafasso and St. John Bosco. His father died when he was not yet three years old, and his mother, Maria Anna Cafasso (the sister of the Saint), was the major influence on his life. Joseph Allamano followed in the footsteps of his uncle, St. Joseph, and devoted himself to the training of clergy. He was a holy man, like his uncle; it was often said that he was “Fr. Cafasso returned to life” and “an almost perfect copy of his great uncle and predecessor”. With Don Bosco. Joseph Allamano finished elementary school in 1862 and that autumn entered the Salesian “Oratorio” at Valdocco, where his regular confessor was Don Bosco himself. After completing four years of intermediate school at the “Oratorio”, he felt called to the diocesan priesthood, and left Valdocco for the diocesan seminary in Torino. Don Bosco perhaps had thought that Allamano would enter his own Congregation, and gently reproved him: “You hurt my feelings — you left without even saying ‘goodbye’.” Allamano responded timidly, “I didn’t have the nerve …” He felt great affection for Don Bosco all his life long, and did not want to displease him. On September 20, 1873, Joseph Allamano was ordained to the priesthood. He wanted very much to be involved in pastoral ministry but, instead, he was assigned to the seminary, first as an assistant (1873-1876) and then as spiritual director (1876-1880). Fr. Allamano had very different plans, so that, when Archbishop Lorenzo Gastaldi gave him this assignment, he objected respectfully, “I had hoped to be an assistant parish priest, and later maybe a parish priest in some little village…” The Archbishop responded kindly, “You wanted to be a parish priest? If this is all that’s bothering you…, I am giving you the most important parish in the diocese: the seminary!” As a formator of candidates for the priesthood, he was distinguished by the firmness of his principles and the gentleness with which he put these principles into action. Everyone recognized his excellence as an educator: he was a genuine “master of clergy formation”. At the same time he continued his own studies, and on July 30, 1876, the Torino Theological Faculty awarded him a doctorate in Theology, and on June 12, 1977, university teaching credentials. He was later appointed as associate member of the Canon and Civil Law Faculty; subsequently he became the chairman in both of these faculties. In October 1880 he was appointed Rector of the Consolata Shrine in Torino and, from that time until his death, all his work took place at that Archdiocese’s Marian Shrine. This new assignment was not an easy one for the 29-year old priest. He later told of his conversation with the Archbishop: “My Lord, I am too young for this job”, he said with filial trust. The Archbishop’s response was both fatherly and encouraging: “You will see that they will like you even so. It is good that you are young: if you make any mistakes, you will have time to correct them.” Fr. Giacomo (James) Camisassa, a priest Fr. Allamano had known and respected when he was the seminary spiritual director, was his first associate at the Shrine. Fr. Allamano invited Fr. Camisassa to the Shrine, and the letter reveals something of Fr. Allamano’s pastoral plans: “You see, my friend, together we can accomplish some good and honour Mary, our Mother and Consolation, with our sacred worship.” Their fraternal and priestly collaboration lasted their entire lives. Each respected the other’s work and shared the same ideals. Their work together is a magnificent witness to and example of two priests’ friendship and pastoral collaboration. Shortly after Fr. Camisassa’s death, Fr. Allamano said, “He was always ready to sacrifice himself to spare me”. “With his death I have lost my two hands”. “We were together as one for 42 years”. “Every evening we spent long hours together in my study…”. “We have promised to tell each other the truth, and we kept this promise.” The Shrine was physically run down and in spiritual decline. Fr. Allamano’s leadership initiated a revival. With Fr. Camisassa’s active assistance, the shrine became the artistic, marble and gold jewel we see today. Fr. Allamano took charge of the shrine’s pastoral, liturgical and social activity; gradually it became a centre of Marian spirituality and Christian renewal in the city and in the region. Fr. Allamano’s special gift for counselling and comfort contributed to this rebirth. People of all classes benefitted from his insight and heart-felt concern. Cardinal Jean-Marie Villot remarked, “Fr. Allamano was an exemplar of what a genuine priest should be; his was a providential mission for a diocese like Torino. It was a mission of counselling, direction, encouragement, admonition, and reviving souls through the Sacrament of Reconciliation. He brought the joy and peace of God’s friendship to many, and encouraged people to work in the apostolate.” Fired by his intense apostolic zeal and a vivid understanding of the Church’s mission, Fr. Allamano’s concerns reached out to the whole world. He felt the urgency of Christ’s command to take the Gospel to all peoples. He thought it unnatural that the Church in Torino, that flowered with so many institutions devoted to charity, should not have one solely dedicated to the missions. He sought to remedy this situation, thus helping those who felt the missionary call to carry out their vocation and encouraging this call in other people. Founding a missionary Institute was not a sudden impulse; Fr. Allamano conceived this idea after prolonged spiritual preparation and in the face of considerable obstacles and contradictions. Undoubtedly the work of founding the Institute was one of trial and fatigue for Fr. Allamano, who was already deeply involved in Fr. Cafasso’s cause and the work at the “Convitto” and Shrine, as well as at St. Ignatius’ House. In 1891 he believed the right moment had arrived to found his missionary Institute of priests and brothers, but he was only able to carry out this project when his friend and classmate, Cardinal Agostino Richelmy, became the Archbishop of Torino. In Card. Richelmy Fr. Allamano found someone who supported him and shared his ideals. Delay came to a sudden end through the intervention of Divine Providence. In January 1900, Fr. Allamano was close to death; he had contracted a disease while assisting an old woman in an icy attic. He always believed that his recovery was a miracle of Our Lady Consolata. He never doubted that this was a sign that the Institute was to be founded. The following year, on January 29, 1901, the Institute of the Consolata Missionaries (priests and brothers) was born. The underlying motivation of this foundation was the deep-rooted spirit of Fr. Allamano himself. Fr. L. Sales, his loving disciple and first biographer, claims that the root cause of this missionary endeavour is Fr. Allamano’s sanctity. He himself once said: “Since I could not be a missionary myself, I wanted to make it possible for those with this vocation to follow it.” There were also other circumstantial reasons for starting this work: a desire to continue Cardinal Massaia’s work, and the missionary spirit and urgings of some of the priests living in the “Convitto”. Fr. Allamano himself says as much in a letter to Card. Richelmy on April 6, 1900: “During my many years of training clergy, I must confess that I have often encountered genuine missionary vocations.” The final decision to found an Institute of missionaries was taken only at the explicit command of the Archbishop. Fr. Allamano responded to this command with Peter’s words to Jesus on the occasion of the miraculous catch: “In your name I will cast out the nets”. On May 8, 1902, the first four missionaries left for Kenya: two priests and two brothers. Others followed shortly afterwards. Soon becoming aware of the need for female collaborators, Fr. Allamano obtained from the Superiors of the Cottolengo Institute some Vincentian Sisters to go to Kenya and work alongside the Consolata Missionaries. This collaboration began in 1903 and lasted more than twenty-two years. However, because of difficulties arisen between the newly elected Apostolic Vicar, Bishop Filippo Perlo, and the Cottolengo Superiors, no more Sisters were sent after 1909. Those who were working in Kenya quite gradually returned to Italy. Fr. Allamano suffered because of the difficulties, but was unable to forestall their consequences. He felt forced to intervene to assure the necessary presence of Sisters in the missions. At the urging of Bishop F. Perlo, with the permission of his Archbishop, and on the advice of Card. Girolamo Gotti, prefect of “Propaganda Fide” and especially because of Pope St. Pius X’s support, Fr. Allamano founded the Institute of the Consolata Missionary Sisters on January 29, 1910. He later told the Sisters how their Institute came to be founded. He was asking them to pray for Card. Gotti who was very sick at the time and he said, “It was Card. Gotti who encouraged me to found the Sisters. He told me ‘It is God’s will that there be Sisters.’ And I responded, ‘But there are already so many Sisters’. ‘Yes’, he said, ‘many Sisters, but few missionary ones’.” Fr. Allamano also revealed the Pope’s involvement: “It was Pope Pius X who wanted your foundation; he is the one who gave me the vocation of providing women missionaries”. He would continue with pleasure, and recount his conversation with Pope Pius X, to whom he had spoken about his problems in finding female personnel for the missions. The Pope said, “You yourself must found an Institute of missionary Sisters, as you have founded one for men missionaries.” “But, Your Holiness”, Fr. Allamano respectfully objected, “there are already so many Institute of Sisters”. “Yes”, the Pope responded, “but they are not exclusively missionary”. “But, Holy Father,” Fr. Allamano continued, “I do not feel I have a vocation to found an Institute of Sisters!” “If you do not have it,” the Pope said, “I give it to you”. Logically Fr. Allamano would then tell the Sisters, “You see, it was the Pope, not me, who wanted your foundation. Therefore you must be ‘Papaline’ (faithful to the Pope)”. In later years, other mission fields were entrusted to the men and women Consolata Missionaries, in Ethiopia, Tanzania, Somalia, and Mozambique. Today the Consolata Missionaries are working in twenty-four Countries of the continents of Africa, America, Europe and Asia. Through personal contacts, letters, and formation meetings, Fr. Allamano lavished his most loving care on his sons and daughters. Convinced that the missions deserved the best we have to offer, he was more concerned with quality than quantity. He looked for well-prepared evangelizers, “saint in a superlative way”, and willing to give their lives for the missions. He had as a motto: “First saints and then missionaries”. For him this “first” was not a matter of time but of priority. Fr. Allamano died on February 16, 1926, at the Consolata Shrine. Today his remains are preserved in the church of the Mother-House of his Missionaries in Corso Ferrucci, in Torino. Missionaries, friends of the missions, and many pilgrims visit his resting place. Bd. Allamano’s sarcophagus is not just a tomb; it is an altar on which Mass is celebrated. Bd. Allamano’s sons and daughters have placed the remains of his close collaborator and co-founder, Fr. Camisassa, next to his body. Fr. Allamano was beatified on October 7, 1990, by Pope John Paul II. The Pope confirmed the tributes the new Blessed had received during his life and after his death: “The Consolata Saint”, “Provident Father”, “Formator and Teacher of the Clergy”, “A priest for the whole world”. During the homily he delivered at the beatification, the Pope said, “At this moment when his name is added to the list of the Blessed, Joseph Allamano reminds us that, in order to be faithful to our Christian vocation, we must share the gifts we have received from God with brothers and sisters from every race and culture. We must proclaim Christ with courage and coherence to everyone we encounter, and especially to those who do not yet know Him”. Bd. Allamano left a written last will and testament to his missionaries. It included words of encouragement which can certainly be seen as addressed to all people who intend to embrace his missionary spirituality: “I have lived my many years for your sake; I have given my possessions, my health and my life for you; I hope that, after my death, I will be your protector in heaven”. Prayer to Blessed JosephGod our Father,
we thank you for having numbered Joseph Allamano among the Blessed of the Church. He has made your fatherly tenderness shine among us; he has honoured Mary Consolata as a mother full of love and an inspiration of the Mission among the peoples. We request you to give to the church the joy of venerating him among the saints as an exemplary witness of announcing Jesus and His gospel. We humble implore you through his intercession to grant us what our heart requests you with confidence. Through Christ our Lord. Amen. The previous weekend, we were blessed to receive the precious relics of St. John XXIII and St. Eustochia Calafato. Both of them are second class relics "ex indumentis". St. Eustochia Smeralda Calafato [January 20]Saint Eustochia was born with the name “Smeralda” (or ‘Esmeralda’ which means ‘emerald’) on March 25, 1434 in Messina, Italy. She was the fourth of six children. Smeralda’s mother was a fervent Christian and enthusiastic admirer of the Franciscan religious order, particularly of the reformers who insisted on following closely the life of St. Francis, especially by embracing poverty. The reform’s first monastery was established in Messina by Blessed Matthew of Agrigento. He inspired a renewal of faith in the people of Messina by his ardent preaching and way of life. Smeralda’s mother had attended one of Blessed Matthew’s sermon’s as an eighteen-year-old bride, and devoted her life to prayer, penance and helping those in need. Thus, Smeralda was raised from childhood to exercise Christian piety and virtue, eventually exceeding her mother’s greatest hopes and expectations for her daughter. Smeralda was beautiful both inside and out; she is thought to be the model for the painting The Virgin of the Annunciation by Antonello da Messina (seen here on the right). When she was fourteen years old, Smeralda wanted to become a Poor Clare nun, but her father arranged marriage for her to an older, wealthy widower. Smeralda kept her hope in religious life, and the widower died before the wedding. Her father again arranged a marriage for his daughter, but that man also died, followed by Smeralda’s father himself. When she entered the convent of Santa Maria di Basico, her brothers threatened to burn it down if she did not return home, which she did. But seeing her great desire, they experienced a change of heart. She finally entered and took her vows, with the name Eustochia, at fifteen-and-a-half years old. Unfortunately, Eustochia came to discover that the convent had drifted away from the poverty lived by their foundress, St. Clare of Assisi. For more than a decade, Eustochia struggled to be an authentic Franciscan in the materialistic atmosphere. She received papal permission to establish a new convent, but found resistance to her reforms. Some friars refused to say Mass at the convent, believing that the sisters’ lifestyle was too strict. Eustochia appealed directly to Church authorities in Rome, who approved of Mother Eustochia’s renewal of Franciscan asceticism and poverty. The friars who had refused to assist at the convent were threatened with excommunication should they continue to resist. Eustochia’s holiness drew many women to her community – so many that they soon outgrew the building and moved to Montevergine, near Messina, where their convent still stands. The local people considered Eustochia their patron and protector, and the cloister to be a place of refuge—especially during the earthquakes that rocked the area. Eustochia was a spiritual mother to her daughters, instructing, educating and training them in the Franciscan life, encouraging them to meditate on the Passion of Christ. She often led them in two-hour Scripture study sessions. Eustochia conveyed to her nuns the fruits of asceticism, and lovingly infused into their hearts the virtues which she herself practiced with admirable constancy and heroism. She taught them to permeate their whole lives with a simple and generous Franciscan spirituality, focusing on their Beloved Suffering Christ, to devote themselves to the Eucharist, and to draw all necessary strength and nourishment for daily meditation from an intense, liturgical life. Eustochia’s love of Jesus in poverty and penance was outstanding. She wrote a treatise on the Passion, which, unfortunately, is now lost. Though she never visited the Holy Land, Eustochia had a devotion to the holy places that is reminiscent of Saint Bridget of Sweden. In fact, she had one of the first sets of the Stations of the Cross (as we know them today) constructed within her convent. As she lay on her deathbed, Eustochia spoke to her daughters, who had gathered around her, about the Passion of Christ. She spoke for an hour before passing to her final rest on January 20, 1485. A few days after her burial, Eustochia’s tomb and body manifested extraordinary phenomena, and many people received powerful graces through her intercession. The sisters wrote a biography of their revered mother and founder. She was beatified on June 22, 1987 and canonized on June 11, 1988 by Blessed Pope John Paul II. Her incorrupt body rests in the Sanctuary of Montevergine in Messina, the monastery which she established, and can be visited twice a week. In his homily, John Paul II said of St. Eustochia: “Learning assiduously in the school of Christ Crucified, she grew in knowledge of him and, meditating on the splendid mysteries of grace, she conceived a faithful love for him. For our saint, the cloistered life was not a mere flight from the world in order to take refuge in God. Through the severe criticism which she imposed upon herself, she certainly wanted to be united to Christ, gradually eliminating whatever in her, as in every human person, was fallen; at the same time, she felt united to all. From her cell in the monastery of Montevergine she extended her prayer and the value of her penances to the whole world. In such a way she wanted to be near to each brother and sister, alleviate every suffering, ask pardon for the sins of all.” (Credits due to Pilgrim Center of Hope for the biography) Pope St. John XXIII (Angelo Roncalli) [October 11]When on October 20, 1958 the cardinals, assembled in conclave, elected Angelo Roncalli as pope many regarded him, because of his age and ambiguous reputation, as a transitional pope, little realizing that the pontificate of this man of 76 years would mark a turning point in history and initiate a new age for the Church. He took the name of John in honor of the precursor and the beloved disciple—but also because it was the name of a long line of popes whose pontificates had been short.
Angelo Giuseppe Roncalli, the third of thirteen children, was born on November 25, 1881 at Sotto il Monte (Bergamo) of a family of sharecroppers. He attended elementary school in the town, was tutored by a priest of Carvico, and at the age of twelve entered the seminary at Bergamo. A scholarship from the Cerasoli Foundation (1901) enabled him to go on to the Apollinaris in Rome where he studied under (among others) Umberto Benigni, the Church historian. He interrupted his studies for service in the Italian Army but returned to the seminary, completed his work for a doctorate in theology, and was ordained in 1904. Continuing his studies in canon law he was appointed secretary to the new bishop of Bergamo, Giacomo Radini-Tedeschi. Angelo served this social-minded prelate for nine years, acquiring first-hand experience and a broad understanding of the problems of the working class. He also taught apologetics, church history, and patrology. With the entry of Italy into World War I in 1915 he was recalled to military service as a chaplain. On leaving the service in 1918 he was appointed spiritual director of the seminary, but found time to open a hostel for students in Bergamo. It was at this time also that he began the research for a multi-volume work on the episcopal visitation of Bergamo by St. Charles Borromeo, the last volume of which was published after his elevation as pope. In 1921 he was called to Rome to reorganize the Society for the Propagation of the Faith. Nominated titular archbishop of Areopolis and apostolic visitator to Bulgaria (1925), he immediately concerned himself with the problems of the Eastern Churches. Transferred in 1934 to Turkey and Greece as apostolic delegate, he set up an office in Istanbul for locating prisoners of war. In 1944 he was appointed nuncio to Paris to assist in the Church's post-war efforts in France, and became the first permanent observer of the Holy See at UNESCO, addressing its sixth and seventh general assemblies in 1951 and 1952. In 1953 he became cardinal-patriarch of Venice, and expected to spend his last years there in pastoral work. He was correcting proofs of the synodal Acts of his first diocesan Synod (1958) when he was called to Rome to participate in the conclave that elected him pope. In his first public address Pope John expressed his concern for reunion with separated Christians and for world peace. In his coronation address he asserted "vigorously and sincerely" that it was his intention to be a pastoral pope since "all other human gifts and accomplishments—learning, practical experience, diplomatic finesse—can broaden and enrich pastoral work but they cannot replace it." One of his first acts was to annul the regulation of Sixtus IV limiting the membership of the College of Cardinals to 70; within the next four years he enlarged it to 87 with the largest international representation in history. Less than three months after his election he announced that he would hold a diocesan synod for Rome, convoke an ecumenical council for the universal Church, and revise the Code of Canon Law. The synod, the first in the history of Rome, was held in 1960; Vatican Council II was convoked in 1962; and the Pontifical Commission for the Revision of the Code was appointed in 1963. His progressive encyclical, Mater et Magistra, was issued in 1961 to commemorate the anniversary of Leo XIII's Rerum novarum.Pacem in terris, advocating human freedom and dignity as the basis for world order and peace, came out in 1963. He elevated the Pontifical Commission for Cinema, Radio, and Television to curial status, approved a new code of rubrics for the Breviary and Missal, made notable advances in ecumenical relations by creating a new Secretariat for Promoting Christian Unity and by appointing the first representative to the Assembly of the World Council of Churches held in New Delhi (1961). In 1960 he consecrated fourteen bishops for Asia, Africa, and Oceania. The International Balzan Foundation awarded him its Peace Prize in 1962. Since his death on June 3, 1963, much has been written and spoken about the warmth and holiness of the beloved Pope John. Perhaps the testimony of the world was best expressed by a newspaper drawing of the earth shrouded in mourning with the simple caption, "A Death in the Family." He was beatified on September 3, 2000 by St. John Paul II, and was canonized together with him on 27 April 2014 by Pope Francis at St. Peter's in Rome. (Taken from the official Vatican biography of St. John XXIII) What makes this relic special for me is the fact that this came from a Carmelite friend, who has always supported me in her prayers, as well as the fact that it has been authenticated by Loris Cardinal Capovilla (the Saint's secretary), whom I have had the privilege of speaking and confiding my prayers to, months before he passed on to the Father.) |
![]() "All the Saints of God are there to protect me, to sustain me and to carry me. Indeed, the communion of Saints consists not only of the great men and women who went before us and whose names we know. All of us belong to the communion of Saints, we who have been baptized in the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, we who draw life from the gift of Christ’s Body and Blood, through which he transforms us and makes us like himself. Yes, the Church is alive – this is the wonderful experience of these days. "
(Pope Benedict XVI, Homily on the Mass of Inauguration to the Petrine Ministry, 24 April 2005) NOTE:This ministry does not entertain requests nor for information to obtain the relics which appear in this website. Guide For Relic ClassificationWe strive to provide English translations of the terminology used to label relics. However, there may be a need to consult the original term to avoid confusion.
Please go to this page for a short guide to relic classification. Instagram Feed/BlogArchives
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