Sts. Perpetua and Felicity - c. 203

Before her death, St. Perpetua wrote an account of her sufferings, which we still have today. Obviously, someone else stepped up and finished the story after her death, but nevertheless, her autobiographical description is one of the first documents we have written by a woman--making St. Perpetua one of the first female writers! Her story was so popular, in fact, that St. Augustine had to warn his parishioners against giving it the weight of Scripture!

St. Perpetua was born around AD 181, in Carthage, a city of North Africa. She was the daughter of a wealthy Roman nobleman, and was married to a soldier. At that time in the Roman Empire, slavery was still a common and acceptable practice, and being a rich noblewoman, Perpetua had slaves. One of them was Felicity. But because they were of similar ages, and had both recently been married, and since Perpetua had just given birth, and Felicity was pregnant, the similar events in their lives led them to develop a friendship that went beyond slave-master.

At this time, in the Roman Empire, the Emperor, Caesar Septimus Severus had proclaimed that Christianity was illegal, and that it was therefore illegal to convert to Christianity, or to proclaim and teach the Christian faith to non-Christians. Those who were already Christians, or born into Christian families, were excluded from the government's censure, unless they tried to convert others--but for those who converted, the penalty was often death. Despite this, the Christians continued to spread the Gospel, convinced of its truth and importance. That was how St. Felicity's husband came to hear about Jesus, and he began learning about the Christian faith from a priest, Father Saturus. Felicity's husband, Revocatus, convinced Felicity to come and learn as well, and she in turn persuaded Perpetua.

These three, with two others (Saturninus and Secundulus), attended catechism in secret from Father Saturus. However, before they could complete their instruction, and be baptised the following Easter, the Roman government found out about their religious instruction, and had the five catechumens, as well as their priest, arrested. The date for their trial would not come right away, though, and they languished in their dungeon for months--awaiting a suitable occasion: the birthday of the Emperor!

During their time in prison, Fr. Saturus would continue to teach them the Christian faith, and, when they were catechised enough, he took some of their drinking water, and baptised each of them, since it would be impossible for them to wait for the following Easter. During this time, Perpetua's father, who was a nobleman and thus had influence, was permitted to visit Perpetua. But far from bringing joy and relief to her, she writes that his visits only served to vex her further, since he, as a Pagan Roman, continually tried to convince Perpetua to abandon the Christian faith to save her life. He appealed to her reason, to her honour and to her family's honour--to not die so shameful a death. But most of all, he appealed to her mother's heart, for who would take care of her newborn baby? Perpetua knew that her son would be starving without her to feed him, since he hadn't been weaned yet. But on one of her father's visits, he brought her mother and also her brothers, one of whom himself was also secretly learning the Christian faith (though, obviously, he hadn't been caught yet), and he went to the Deacons of the Church in Carthage, who bribed the guards to let Perpetua's baby be brought to her. And so she was able to feed her son until her trial.

Furthermore, Perpetua's brother also asked her to pray to God, that maybe she'd be granted a vision that would indicate whether her current sufferings and imprisonment would lead to martyrdom. She agreed, and in fact did receive a vision. Here's her account:

I beheld a ladder of bronze, marvelously great, reaching up to heaven; and it was narrow, so that not more than one might go up at one time. And in the sides of the ladder were planted all manner of things of iron. There were swords there, spears, hooks, and knives; so that if any that went up took not good heed or looked not upward, he would be torn and his flesh cling to the iron. And there was right at the ladder's foot a serpent lying, marvelously great, which lay in wait for those that would go up, and frightened them that they might not go up. Now Saturus went up first (who afterwards had of his own free will given up himself for our -sakes, because it was he who had edified us; and when we were taken he had not been there). And he came to the ladder's head; and he turned and said: Perpetua, I await you; but see that serpent bite you not. And I said: it shall not hurt me, in the name of Jesus Christ. And from beneath the ladder, as though it feared me, it softly put forth its head; and as though I trod on the first step I trod on its head. And I went up, and I saw a very great space of garden, and in the midst a man sitting, white-headed, in shepherd's clothing, tall milking his sheep; and standing around in white were many thousands. And he raised his head and beheld me and said to me: Welcome, child. And he cried to me, and from the curd he had from the milk he gave me as it were a morsel; and I took it with joined hands and ate it up; and all that stood around said, Amen. And at the sound of that word I awoke, yet eating I know not what of sweet.

And at once I told my brother, and we knew it should be a passion; and we began to have no hope any longer in this world.

(Meaning, of course, that they placed all their hope in Heaven, not that they gave in to despair.)

The six Christians continued to pray with each other and encourage each other as the day approached, but St. Felicity grew more and more worried. You see, she was still pregnant, and was not due to give birth until after the date slated for execution. According to Roman law, a pregnant woman could not be tortured or executed until after she had given birth. St. Felicity was worried not so much about being tortured or executed for Christ's sake, but that she would not be able to be martyred along with her friends. It's often hard to do the right thing. That's especially the case when it comes to giving your life. But it's even harder when you have to do it alone. Felicity was worried that when her time came, without her friends' encouragement she would not find the strength within her to confess Christ.

The six prayed together about this, and although Felicity was only about eight months pregnant, a week before their trial, she gave birth to a healthy baby, who was arranged to be adopted by a Christian family. In this, God showed that He was still with them, and cared for them, even in that dark prison. His asking of them to lay down their lives was not a sign that God had abandoned these six brave Christians, but rather, that He had singled them out for greater honour!

The day before their martyrdom, the six were allowed to have whatever they desired as a "last meal". Unanimously, they chose to have bread and wine, which Fr. Saturus blessed, and so they celebrated the Mass together. When the day finally came for these six great saints to be martyred, they were led to the arena in Carthage, to be tried by the magistrate. Each in their turn were asked whether they would renounce Christ and sacrifice a goat to Caesar and worship him, and each in their turn refused, claimed to be Christian, and were sentenced to be thrown to the wild beasts.

When it came time for Perpetua to be tried, however, not only the magistrate, but also her own father, attempted to convince her to abandon the Church. Her father came forward, carrying her baby in his arms, and appealed again to Perpetua to recant and live, so that her baby wouldn't die of starvation, for lack of milk. But again, through God's grace, He made it so that the baby was already weaned before his time, and no longer needed his mother to live. Thus, Perpetua, with her friends, professed herself a Christian, and was sentenced to death.

While the men were sentenced to face off against leopards and bears, out of spite and mockery for their femininity, the court sentenced Perpetua and Felicity to be attacked by a cow (a symbol of motherhood, and a mockery of these two mothers). When the two courageous women were thrown into the arena, Perpetua's robe tore, and she took the time to tie it so that she would appear modest and decent, taking more care for her modesty than for her own wounds. She even tied back her hair, since messy, unkempt hair was a sign of mourning in her culture, and she didn't want anyone to think that she was sad at her fate, but courageous and confident in God. She turned to help up Felicity, and immediately was led off to the side of the arena to rejoin the men who had survived the beasts. When there, she asked them, "When are we going to face the cow?" Amazed, her friends said to her, "You already have! It's hurt you! Look at yourself!" Perpetua and Felicity had been blessed by God to have had an ecstatic encounter with him, so that they were spared the pain of the cow's attack. In fact, Perpetua had to be shown her own wounds before she would believe her friends!

Afterward, all of them were led out again, and sentenced to be killed by the sword. The courage of these martyrs, particularly of the women, touched the audience so much, that many of them became Christians, including the jailer of the martyrs. It was one of these converts who finished the account of Perpetua's and Felicity's martyrdom, so that others in future generations would hear about and be inspired by their courage and sacrifice. In the author's own words:

O most valiant and blessed martyrs! O truly called and elected unto the glory of Our Lord Jesus Christ! Which glory he that magnifies, honors and adores, ought to read these witnesses likewise, as being no less than the old, unto the Church's edification; that these new wonders also may testify that one and the same Holy Spirit works ever until now, and with Him God the Father Almighty, and His Son Jesus Christ Our Lord, to Whom is glory and power unending for ever and ever. Amen.

God bless.

St. Maximilian Kolbe - 1941

Since Remembrance Day is coming up, I figured it would be good to relate the story of a Saint who played a large role in World War II.

Raymond Kolbe was born in 1894, in Zdunska Wola, Poland. Throughout his childhood, Raymond was quite a troublemaker. Very mischevious, he was always trying to get away with something, and his parents often considered him to be quite a trial. However, in 1906, around the time of his First Communion, things changed for Raymond. One night, he had a vision, and in that vision, he saw the Blessed Virgin Mary, and he asked her what was to become of his life. In response, she held out two crowns: one white, and the other red. The white one, she said, represented a life of purity, and the red one, a death of martyrdom. She told him he could choose a crown. Raymond decided to choose both.

Raymond chose to enter the priesthood with the Fransiscans, and took the name Maximilian. While in seminary, he and some friends started a club known as The Crusaders of Mary Immaculate, who were dedicated to spreading the Gospel of Jesus, the conversion of sinners, devotion to Mary, and to the Miraculous Medal.

After his ordination, St. Maximilian founded a Fransiscan monastery in Warsaw, Poland, in order to further spread faith in Christ and devotion to the Miraculous Medal, known as "The City of the Immaculate". After a while, though, he became restless, and felt God wanted him to travel as a missionary. So in 1930, Maximilian Kolbe went to Nagasaki, Japan, and there founded another monastery. After that, he continued on to India, doing the same thing, but illness caused him to have to return to Poland in 1936.

(Incidentally, Nagasaki was one of the two cities, with Hiroshima, that the USA dropped nuclear bombs on at the end of World War II, in retaliation for the Japanese attack of Pearl Harbour. The atomic bombs decimated nearly everything in those two cities--but, miraculously, St. Maximilian's monastery, and all those within, survived the bombing. Just one of the miracles attributed to devotion to the Miraculous Medal.)

Back in Poland, Maximilian continued his priestly duties, and overseeing the monastery there. On top of this, he began to publish and write for a newsletter called "The Knight". In it, he would teach about the love of Christ, and also address issues of justice and right living. When Adolph Hitler came to power in Germany in 1939, and began his Holocaust of the Jews and others who weren't of the Aryan race, many refugees began to flee from Germany to escape the oppression and persecution. Many of these refugees came to Poland, and Maximilian was able to put his teachings on love and justice into action, by hiding refugees in his monastery, and caring for them there. At one point, he had about 3000 refugees hidden in the monastery, and at least two-thirds of them were Jewish, because he knew that God loves all people, not just those of a certain ethnicity or religion.

For this act of hiding refugees, and for continuing publication of The Knight, which the Nazi Party considered to be Anti-Nazi, when Germany invaded Poland at the beginning of the War, Maximilian Kolbe was arrested and put into the Polish prison of Pawiak, on February 17, 1941. On May 28th, he was transferred to the Auschwitz concentration camp, in Germany, and even then was put in the worst sector--with particularly cruel guards--because he was a priest. There he was often beaten and deprived of food. Through it all, though, he continued to tell others about Christ, and to hear Confessions. He even, when he could get his hands on some smuggled in bread and wine, would say Mass and give other inmates the Eucharist!

After about a month and a half, there was an escape from Auschwitz. Protocol dictated that for every escaped prisoner, ten others were to be executed in his place. So the Nazis rounded up several people. One of them was a Jewish man named Franciszek Gajowniczek. He cried out, "Please! I have a wife and four children! Please don't kill me!" The guards were pitiless to his cries, but St. Maximilian Kolbe stepped forward and said, "This man has a wife and family. I am a priest. I have no wife, no children. Kill me instead and let this man go free."

In making this sacrifice, Maximilian lived out the two crowns that Our Lady had offered him: the purity of the priesthood, and the martyrdom of charity. He died on August 14th, 1941. Franciszek Gajowniczek did survive Auschwitz, and because of Maximilian's sacrifice, he and his family converted to Catholicism!

No one in the world can change Truth. What we can do and should do is to seek truth and to serve it when we have found it. The real conflict is the inner conflict. Beyond armies of occupation and the hecatombs of extermination camps, there are two irreconcilable enemies in the depth of every soul: good and evil, sin and love. And what use are the victories on the battlefield if we ourselves are defeated in our innermost personal selves?

Saint Maximilian Kolbe in the last issue of The Knight

St. Jean de Brébeuf - 1649

St. Jean de Brébeuf is probably my favourite of the martyrs. In fact, I was going to choose him as my Patron Saint at my Confirmation, but, because I was converting from Protestantism, and my parents are still protestants, and because the name they gave me means so much to us, I thought they might not understand when the priest said "Jean, be sealed with the Holy Spirit." Because of that, I chose to take Sts. Gregory of Nyssa and Gregory of Nazianzus as my patrons.

St. Jean de Brébeuf still has a special place in my heart, though, and that's for three reasons. 1st, he's known as a Canadian saint, and one of the Patrons of our great Country. 2nd, he was a missionary, one who spreads the Christian faith--which is something that I feel called to do. And 3rd, he was a martyr--and, in my mind, the martyrs just rock out loud. Hence my writing about them here!

St. Jean de Brébeuf was born in Normandy, France, in 1593. From an early age, he knew that he wanted to be a part of spreading the Gospel, so, when he was old enough, he went to the Jesuits in order to become a lay missioner. However, he strongly felt that God was telling him that being a layperson wasn't the plan--God wanted him to become a priest. So, he thought, he would study theology and the Bible and the history of the Church, and become one of the smartest priests around, so that he could train others to do missionary work. So he enrolled in the Jesuit University in France, and began studying.

Well, this lasted all of maybe a month, and then Jean became really sick. He was so sick that he had to return home in order to get better. His sickness stayed with him for nearly nine years! But, during this time, Jean realised that God was calling him to more than simply instructing others. God wanted him to actually go out and do the mission work himself! And so, when he was well enough, Jean de Brébeuf signed up to be a part of the team that was going to the newly discovered country of Canada!

Now, in my mind, it is definitely an act of God, when someone who is too sick to even study, is suddenly well enough to accept the call to travel across the ocean, to Canada, and face our harsh winters and other rough climates! Nevertheless, St. Jean de Brébeuf went, and thrived there!

At this time, in the early 1620s, the Protestant revolt had been going on for about 100 years. Tensions were high, and oftentimes violent, as whole European countries would often side with either Protestantism or Catholicism. England, on the one hand, for example, had become totally Protestant, and even outlawed Catholicism. France, on the other hand, became rather totally Catholic, and outlawed Protestantism. This fact merely fuelled the rivalry between the two countries that had existed for centuries, since the French Normans had invaded England back in 1066.

Well, it just so happened that it was an English Protestant captaining the ship that was carrying St. Jean de Brébeuf and the other Jesuits to Canada, who more than once threatened to "turn this boat around and take you back to France!" because they were Jesuit missionaries, and the English and the French were fighting over who got Canada.

Well, despite the threats, St. Jean de Brébeuf and the others arrived safely in Canada, and travelled to Trois-Rivières, Québec, where the Jesuits were headquartered. When he arrived, Jean did not simply begin proclaiming the Gospel, because he would not have been understood! The Natives only spoke a very little English or French, if any, and he didn't speak their language at all--nor did he understand their customs or culture. So the first thing that he did was begin to study the customs of the Native people, so that he could better understand and communicate with them.

After some time of this, he was assigned to travel with a tribe of natives known as the Hurons back to their land in Upper Canada (modern day Ontario, basically in the Simcoe area). It was a three-day canoe ride with the Hurons, and because St. Jean de Brébeuf was so large of a man, the Hurons even hesitated to let him in the canoe with them, for fear it would sink! As it was, he had to travel alone with a group of Hurons, while the other Jesuits were each in separate canoes. Since he still couldn't communicate with the Hurons, it was a three-day trip in silence, with only God to talk to.

Finally, they arrived in the Hurons' home, and the Jesuits worked to set up their Mission, and to continue to build relationships with the Hurons, learning their language and ways. Jean de Brébeuf found this task particularly difficult, but he continued to strive at learning Huron. After years of it, he managed, and even wrote a Huron Catechism, and a Huron-French dictionary to aid his fellow Jesuits in their learning and communication. Through these means, and their cheerful and friendly attitudes with the Natives, friendships were finally forged, although the Hurons were still not open to receiving the Gospel.

Back in Québec, however, things were not going so well at all. Tensions between the English and the French were heating up, and growing to the point of war. The Jesuit Superior at Trois-Rivières instructed the missionaries in Huronia to return. This order broke Jean de Brébeuf's heart, because he had grown to really love his Huron people. The Hurons also felt hurt, and abandoned, because they did not understand about Superiors and Orders. But Jean had to go. Back at Trois-Rivières, the situation was even worse than he'd feared, and the Jesuits had to return all the way to France.

Back in France, Jean tried to do whatever service he could with the Jesuits, but more than anything he wanted to return to Canada, to his beloved Hurons. Finally, God answered the prayers of his heart, and after a 4-year exile in France, he was able to return. But when he was back with the Hurons, Jean found that he had to rebuild those friendships that he had forged. Trust had been lost between them, and he had to work harder than ever to reach them with the Gospel.

Complicating matters was the fact that the Natives often got deathly ill with the white men's diseases, since their immune systems had never encountered them before. To the Hurons, it seemed as though the white men were cursing them with death. Jean de Brébeuf would minister to the sick and dying Hurons, telling them about Christ and Heaven. Those who converted, he would baptise--but they were so sick that they would often die the next day. This caused the Hurons to be rather afraid of Baptism, thinking that it was the cause of death for their friends and family--and so, it became still harder for St. Jean de Brébeuf to make converts!

Patiently, however, Jean de Brébeuf continued his work, and sought the intercession of Mary, and of St. Joseph, whom they had long ago established as the Patron Saint of Canada. After nearly four years, the earnest prayers of the missionaries were answered, when two healthy adult Huron men, Pierre Tsiouendaentaha and Joseph Chiwatenha converted and were baptised. Because of their example, Christianity began to make a slow but steady headway. St. Jean de Brébeuf continued his work among the Hurons for nearly 16 years, and conversions among the Hurons grew until they could be numbered in the thousands!

However, not all was peaceful in the land of Huronia. The Hurons had enemies in the deadly savage tribe of the Iroquois, and these enemies would often savagely attack the Hurons, who frequently kept poor guard. In 1648, Huronia began to fall to the well-armed Iroquois, who were intent on destroying their enemies. The Iroquois kept destroying Huron villages, causing them to flee. Finally, on March 16, 1649, the Iroquois attacked the village of St. Ignace, causing the Hurons to flee to St. Louis. The Iroquois took that as well, and, killing many Hurons, they captured several, as well as St. Jean de Brébeuf and his colleague, St. Gabriel Lalemant, who were taken back to St. Ignace.

The two missionaries were fastened to great stakes, and tortured in various ways, such as placing necklaces of red-hot tomahawk heads around their necks, and pouring boiling hot water on their heads in mockery of baptism. Through it all, St. Jean de Brébeuf never complained, but endured it stoically. His friend, Paul Ragueneau, wrote, "No doubt, his heart was then reposing in his God." This went on for several hours, and his silence astonished and angered his captors. Finally, when Jean de Brébeuf did begin to speak, it was to preach the Gospel of Christ to them, and to encourage the Hurons with him to continue to cling to God, and await the reward of Heaven. They replied, saying, "We will call on God as long as we live. Please, pray for us!" Finally, the Iroquois killed the saint at about 4 pm on March 16, 1949.

Since the Iroquois had all but exterminated the Hurons, and those who had survived had fled into the USA and could not be found, the remaining Jesuits retreated to Trois-Rivières to determine what they should do. Should they go back to France, in defeat, or should they return to the Iroquois to face what seemed like certain death? They decided that they were called to be missionaries here, and, following in the spirit of Jean de Brébeuf, they returned to the Iroquois. Because of the example and courage of St. Jean de Brébeuf, and the love and courage of the Jesuits who returned, the Iroquois people were deeply moved, and many became Catholic!

Again, we see that the death of the martyr is never the end of the story--but their sacrifice is used by God to bring incredible change! Because of the work of these early Canadian missionaries, our Country was started as the Christian nation that it was. Let us seek the intercession of St. Jean de Brébeuf and the Holy Canadian Martyrs that Canada would continue to be a nation that upholds Godly values!

St. Jean de Brébeuf, pray for us!
Amen.

St. Maria Goretti - 1902

St. Maria Goretti is unique among the saints and martyrs of the Catholic Church, as the youngest saint ever to be canonised! At the time of her martyrdom, she was only eleven and a half years old.

Maria Goretti was born on October 16, 1890, to a very large, but poor, Italian family. Her family was so poor, in fact, that in order to make ends meet, her father, Luigi Goretti, had to make arrangements with another family, the Serenellis, to come and live on their farm, and do the farmwork with them, in order to make ends meet--to have enough food and a place to live!

As Maria grew up, she made a decision to live as God would want her to--to be good, and humble, and modest. She would take care of her younger siblings, and do thankless chores around the farm, even when no one asked. Around town, she was well-known for her good behaviour and her modesty. When, two years after they'd moved to the Serenelli farm, her father died of Malaria, St. Maria Goretti had to mature even more, and continued to serve her family and take care of her brothers and sisters.

When she was growing up, Catholic children received the Sacraments of Confirmation and Holy Communion in a different order than we do today. Maria would have been Confirmed around the age of six or seven, and would not receive the Eucharist until she was eleven. As her opportunity for First Communion approached, Maria took extra care to prepare herself to receive such an awesome gift: Jesus Christ, fully present, Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity, in the Eucharistic bread and wine! She spent much time in prayer and spiritual reading, in order to make sure she was worthy of receiving such a precious gift! When the day came, her family said that it was the greatest moment, and highlight of her life!

But if St. Maria Goretti could be considered a model of saintly virtue, of love, compassion, and modesty, then another person on that farm was the exact opposite. The Serenelli family had a son, Alessandro. And Alessandro was not a good kid. In his teens, he got into the wrong crowd, and going with them to parties and other things, he lived a very wayward life. Alessandro was often violent, and got in trouble with the law on more than one occasion. On top of all this, he would occupy his free time reading and looking at very impure things, like pornography. All of these choices that Alessandro made, caused him to have a very skewed and troubled, and selfish, outlook on life. And when he looked at Maria as she grew up, he felt lust in his heart.

Alessandro would many times try to come on to Maria, trying to seduce her; but Maria, very conscious of God's instructions on the topic of sex, and very protective of her modesty and purity, would tell Alessandro, No, and remind him that God did not permit that kind of behaviour. But Alessandro wasn't interested in what God wanted, but only what he wanted. Over and over, he would try to tempt Maria, and over and over she would turn him down, reminding him of God's Laws. Finally, Alessandro wasn't going to take no for an answer any more, and on July 5th, 1902, he tried to force himself on Maria, in order to rape her. When she again struggled to resist him, telling him again that "This is a sin! God doesn't want this! You can go to hell for this, Alessandro!" he took a knife, and stabbed Maria with it fourteen times. Maria was quickly taken to the hospital, and Alessandro was taken to prison.

As Maria lay in the hospital overnight from July 5th to 6th, 1902, she held a medal of Our Lady, and a Crucifix. Over and over, she prayed for Alessandro, that God would have mercy on him! She kept praying for Alessandro's forgiveness until she died, and, truly, even afterward in Heaven.

Meanwhile, Alessandro, who was a minor when he committed his attack, was sentenced to 30 years in prison. While there, nothing changed, and he continued to be a selfish, violent prisoner. Often he would attack the guards, as well as other inmates. He would even attack the faithful priest who would come to visit him, in order to encourage him to repent and turn to God. This behaviour continued for thirteen years.

But one night, Alessandro had a vision. In that vision, he saw Maria Goretti in a field full of lilies--a flower that has traditionally symbolised purity. Maria was gathering up the lilies into a bouquet, and then walked up to Alessandro. She told him to take the lilies, and when he did, he said they turned into a still white flame that went into his heart. Alessandro awoke from that vision as a changed person.

The next day, when the priest came to see him--probably expecting to be beaten up--he found a calm and quiet Alessandro Serenelli. That day, Alessandro made a good Confession, and turned his life over to Jesus Christ. After he served out the rest of his sentence, Alessandro went to Maria's mother, and asked her forgiveness for his crime. Mrs. Goretti forgave Alessandro, and that year they attended Christmas Eve mass together. Alessandro afterwards became a Capuchin monk, and lived a life of purity, helping others to turn from their sinful lifestyles.

When the cause of Maria's beatification came up, Alessandro Serenelli testified to her life and purity, and told of his crimes against her. When in 1952, Pope Pius XII canonised her as a saint, her mother was there to witness it! On that occasion, the Pope said these words:

With splendid courage she surrendered herself to God and his grace and so gave her life to protect her virginity.

The life of a simple girl - I shall concern myself only with highlights - we can see as worthy of heaven. Even today people can look upon it with admiration and respect. Parents can learn from her story how to raise their God-given children in virtue, courage, and holiness; they can learn to train them in the Catholic faith so that, when put to the test, God's grace will support them and they will come through undefeated, unscathed, and untarnished.

From Maria's story carefree children and young people with their zest for life can learn not to be led astray by attractive pleasures which are not only ephemeral and empty but also sinful. Instead they can fix their sights on achieving Christian moral perfection, however difficult that course may prove. With determination and God's help all of us can attain that goal by persistent effort and prayer.

Not all of us are expected to die a martyr's death, but we are all called to the pursuit of Christian virtue.

So let us all, with God's grace, strive to reach the goal that the example of the virgin martyr, Saint Maria Goretti, sets before us. Through her prayers to the Redeemer may all of us, each in his own way, joyfully try to follow the inspiring example of Maria Goretti who now enjoys eternal happiness in heaven.

St. Maria Goretti again reminds us that the story of a martyr goes beyond their tragic death--but always impacts the lives around them, even their killers, as we see from the radical change Maria's example of purity, her willingness to die, and her prayers from heaven had on Alessandro Serenelli.

God bless.