Picture via Catholic.org
Last edition, I told the inspiring story of Saint Martin X, the patron saint of aliens. The incredibly brave, incredibly charitable St. Martin X was also incredibly fake. To make up for this tall tale, I am writing a second article this month for Saint of the Month. This is a woman who made a decision several decades ago that is still a controversial issue today. And in defending life, she caused her own death. This is the story of a woman who is an epitome of the church's best examples of motherly love. This is St. Gianna Beretta Molla. Gianna Beretta Molla was born on October 4, 1922, in Magenta, the kingdom of Italy. She was the 10th of 13 children. The family moved when she was three, and she ended up living in the Lombardy region of Italy. Gianna grew up loving God and her family, and was a big fan of prayer. In 1942, at the age of 20, she went to Milan to study medicine. She also joined the St. Vincent de Paul Society. In both of her jobs, she specialized in helping mothers, babies, the elderly, and the poor. Gianna received her degrees in medicine and surgery in 1949 and opened a medical office in 1950. She offered her services to a group called the Catholic Action, who were dedicated to spreading the word of God. Gianna tried to go out into the world, but her health wouldn’t permit her to. She chose the next best thing: the vocation of marriage. In late 1954, she met Pietro Molla, whom she would marry less than a year later. She’d have three children in four years. Somehow, she managed to balance a work life with a mother's life, and cared for both her patients and her children. Gianna was a woman who could take anything the world threw at her. Then her fourth pregnancy came around, which came with a baby and a fatal tumor. Even when she knew it would cost her her life, Gianna sacrificed everything so her fourth child could be born. She had alternate options available that would have let her live, but they would have killed the child in the process. She didn’t have the luxury of modern medicine to help her make the choice. Gianna just kept pushing and did everything she could as a mother and a doctor during her last few months. She prayed to God to have mercy on the baby as the pain grew worse. She died a week after the baby was born, on April 28, 1962. For her services, she was beatified and canonized by Pope John Paul II within 10 years (1994-2004.) She is the patron saint of mothers, unborn babies, and physicians. She never misses Mother's Day.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorEvery two weeks, author Diego Campbell will be writing about a patron saint of the month of publication! Archives
May 2022
Categories |