Author: Editor, Kingdom Revelator
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St Maria Goretti
AS CHRISTIANS WE KNOW THE IMPORTANCE OF KEEPING OUR HEARTS, MINDS AND BODIES PURE. TEMPTATIONS TO SIN ARE ALL AROUND US. THIS IS THE STORY OF MARIA GORETTI, A TEENAGE SAINT WHO LAID DOWN HER LIFE FOR WHAT SHE BELIEVED.
HER CHILDHOOD
Maria Teresa Goretti was born on October 16, 1890 in Corinaldo, Italy. Her parents were Luigi Goretti and Assunta Carlini. Maria was the third of seven children in the poor farming family. By the time she was six, Maria’s family had become so poor that they had to give up their farm. When Maria was nine years old, they moved to Le Ferriere, where they lived in a building that was shared with another family which included Giovanni Serenelli and his son, Alexander. Maria’s father caught malaria, and died when she was just nine year’s old. With the father’s death the rest of the family had to work even harder to feed the large family. Maria’s mother, Assunta had a very strong faith and despite the hardships, she brought up the children with great devotion to love the Sacraments and she encouraged them to pray. From a very young age all her children were taught about the importance of keeping themselves pure in heart, mind and body. Maria never had any schooling and could not read or write but as a young girl, while her mother and brothers were out working in the fields, Maria, would look after the house, cooking and cleaning and she cared for her baby sister. Though it was a hard life, the family was very close. They shared a deep love and faith in God.
HER DEATH
Eighteen-year-old Alexander, who lived in the same house, had already made secret attempts to seduce Maria but she had always resisted him and she was afraid to tell anyone about his advances. One day, when twelve year old Maria was alone in the house with her baby sister, Alexander appeared with a knife in his hand even more determined than ever. Maria refused, saying that it would be a very serious sin to give in and she fought against him to keep her chastity. When Maria said that she would rather die than submit, Alexander, in a frenzy began stabbing her until family members arrived, alerted by the baby’s crying. Maria was taken to hospital, where they operated on her immediately to try to save her life. But the next day, after forgiving her attacker and while holding a crucifix she died.
REPENTANCE
Alexander was arrested, tried and sentenced to thirty years in jail for murder. For a time he was unrepentant but one night he had a dream that he was in a garden and Maria was there. He said that she gave him flowers. After the dream, he repented of the killing and became a changed man. When he was released after twenty seven years behind bars he went to Maria’s mother, begging for her forgiveness. She willingly forgave him saying, “If my daughter can forgive you, then who am I to withhold my forgiveness?” Alexander later became a lay brother and lived in a monastery, working as its receptionist and gardener until he died peacefully in 1970 at the age of 87.
“I am especially holding up this saint as an example to young people who are the hope of the Church and of humanity. Walking in the footsteps of the divine Teacher always means standing up for him and committing oneself to follow him wherever he goes. However, on this path, young people know that they are not alone. St Maria Goretti and the many adolescents, who down through centuries paid the price of martyrdom for their allegiance to the Gospel, are beside them, to instil in their hearts the strength to remain firm in fidelity.” Pope John Paul II (6th July 2002)
MIRACLES
Many miracles were attributed to Maria Goretti after her death and in 1950, at Saint Peter’s Basilica in Rome, Pope Pius XII canonized Maria as a Saint. Maria’s mother was present at the ceremony, along with her brothers and sisters. She was the first mother ever to attend the canonization ceremony of her child. St Maria Goretti is a very popular young saint and martyr and she is a great role model for young people, as she fought to defend her purity and more importantly she forgave her attacker. Her feast day is July 6. St. Maria Goretti is the Patron Saint of Catholic youth, girls, teenagers and young people.
Transformation
“DO NOTHING FROM SELFISH AMBITION OR CONCEIT, BUT IN HUMILITY REGARD OTHERS AS BETTER THAN YOURSELVES. LET EACH OF YOU LOOK NOT TO YOUR OWN INTERESTS, BUT TO THE INTERESTS OF OTHERS.” PhiliPPians 2:3-4
MY CHILDHOOD
I was brought up in the Catholic faith. Religion for my father was his life. He had a very strong faith, being former Church of England he had converted to become a Catholic before I was born. It was very important to my father that my sisters and I had a good Catholic upbringing. We regularly went to Mass and Confession and we had family prayer time, saying the Rosary together every day. But as a child I didn’t embrace the faith, or experience God’s love. I believed everything I was taught by my father, but my focus was always on others, comparing myself with them and being overly concerned about what other people thought of me. I started feeling ashamed when school friends saw us going to Church and when friends came round I was ashamed of the religious items in our home. My friends seemed to have better homes, and they had many luxuries that we didn’t have. I felt different from the rest and wanted to be like everyone else. I wasn’t happy or content with what I had. I didn’t recognise the many blessings I had because my attention was always on other people.
TEENAGE YEARS
I didn’t think that I could be happy in the way of life my father wanted for me. At that time I hadn’t encountered Jesus on a personal level. God was very distant, I felt unimportant in His eyes and I felt like a nobody. When I left school at 16 I stopped going to church. I started to desire a different lifestyle, like those I saw in television programmes. The beautiful and glamorous girls on TV seemed to be having lots of fun. They had lots of friends and were popular with the boys. I was very image conscience. My friends started going to pubs pretty soon after leaving school, and I started to join them, getting dressed up in short skirts, skimpy tops and high heels. This gave us the opportunity to meet boys. We had to make ourselves look older with lots of make-up so that we would pass for 18. I did my best to hide this from my dad because he wouldn’t have approved so I used to stay over at friends’ houses whose parents didn’t mind us going out late to pubs. I was struggling with a lack of confidence being extremely shy, but I soon learnt that alcohol made me come out of my shell and seem like a fun person. I began to binge drink and rely on alcohol for a good time.
LOOKING FOR LOVE
I never felt happy with how I looked, so I always wore makeup and keeping friends was difficult for me. I never felt fully accepted with my friends. I wanted to be loved but I never found this love in any of the boyfriends that I had. After a few years of having one disastrous relationship after another I started to lose hope of ever finding happiness. I was growing ever more aware of my emptiness, I was lonely and my life had no meaning. I was broken in so many ways. One night as I was crying on my bed, feeling my lowest, the image of the Divine Mercy came into my mind. That’s the picture of Jesus with rays issuing from His heart with the words “Jesus I trust in you” inscribed underneath the image. This picture had always been on the wall of my parent’s house for as long as I can remember. I was at the time in a relationship that I wanted to get out of because I knew it wasn’t making me happy, I was inspired to make an act of trust through the image, I prayed the words in desperation “Jesus I Trust in you” and made the decision to break off the relationship with my boyfriend and face the consequences placing my situation in the hands of Jesus.
FORGIVENESS
A few months passed and the feelings of loneliness and misery were still weighing me down, so when an opportunity came up for me to go on a blind date, I took it. Before we met we tried to get to know each other a little, and to my surprise, he asked me, “Are you a practising Catholic?” I had never before found anyone searching for a practising Catholic, one that I thought I could be attracted to. This started me thinking, “Is this how God has answered my plea for help?” I felt drawn to returning to the church again with this date. As I got to know him, it turned out that he too had had a religious upbringing and had turned away from the Church. It was like looking into a mirror. He was in the same situation as me. I started to become more aware of God’s presence in my life, and He became very real to me and very close. After a few dates, he decided to call it off. He said he was still grieving over a previous relationship and was not ready for a new one. I felt very hurt and upset and didn’t understand what this meant. I was frustrated and cried out to God, “Why do this to me when I was ready to turn my life around?” Then I felt God saying to me “Forgive this person for offending you.” I had never really forgiven anyone before. I used to hold grudges against the people who had hurt me. So I swallowed my pride, and forgave the person for the hurt that I felt. Instantly I felt at peace, and my heart felt aglow. I knew that I had done a great thing and I felt free from the bitterness.
TIME STOOD STILL
After that God was on my mind constantly and I still wanted to go back to Church. When driving to work one morning, God spoke to me in a way that made me realise that I could not delay any longer my return to the Church. It was an urgent call to be reconciled to God in Confession. I went straight to my dad and told him that I wanted to go to Confession and to start praying the Rosary again. At first he was very suspicious because he couldn’t believe my sudden change of heart. The first Mass I went back to with my dad was on Ash Wednesday. I felt very nervous but everything at that Mass seemed to have a personal message for me, God was calling me back to himself in a very beautiful way that made me feel very emotional. God had melted my heart and for the first time I experienced Him pouring out his love for me. It was as though time stood still, and it was just me and God, and we were just gazing at one another. My eyes had been opened and I could see him as he really is, LOVE.
MY CONFESSION
I couldn’t receive Holy Communion at that Mass because l hadn’t made my Confession yet, but I was able to go up to the priest for my ashes. The priest’s words as he marked my forehead with the ashes were, “Turn away from sin and be faithful to the Gospel.” That was like my first stepping stone back. I got my dad to arrange for me to see a priest and he gave me a book to help me examine my conscience. I was so nervous. I knew I had to do it, but I was fearful of telling the priest all my sins. I started to write them down, smiling to myself thinking how can I tell all this to a holy priest? But I felt someone with me, all the way, encouraging me to make this Confession to the best of my ability. I was inspired by the courage of the martyrs. If they can shed their blood for Christ then I can face my fears and make my Confession. When I had finished my list it was eight pages long! Looking back now I think that Confession was the bravest thing I’ve ever done. Inside the confessional I started to shake in fear and I was close to tears. My hands were shaking as I read out to the priest what I had prepared. When I had finished, there was a long pause, and then the priest said, “Don’t worry.” I smiled and gave a big sigh of relief. As the priest raised his hands to give me absolution, it felt like a shower of raindrops was being poured out into my soul, starting with my head and running into the depths on my being. My spirit felt lifted, as if I was floating and an immense joy filled my heart. A massive burden had left me. I had been washed and restored by the blood and water that issued from the heart of Christ. I had encountered Christ. I knew I had a saviour who had brought me back to life. Jesus is alive!
A TRANSFORMATION
From that moment on, my whole life changed. I was no longer fearful for the future. I had hope and experienced real happiness. I knew that I was loved with a love that is just so unimaginable. Jesus is now in control of my life. Everything I do now is through Him and for Him. I have thrown out my old wardrobe and let go of being worried about my image. I am no longer trying to impress others and seeking their approval. Him love me for who I am. I have bought new clothes that are plain and let me keep my dignity. I threw out my makeup and the fake tan. Friends couldn’t understand what had happened to me and I got comments like, “You’re starting to dress like my grandmother.” But it doesn’t matter to me. I am so excited about my future with Jesus. He has become such a close and loving friend, full of surprises. Every day He proves His love for me by speaking to me and listening to my every concern, no matter how small and insignificant I think it might be. I can share everything with Jesus and He has an answer for everything. I am so content. I can’t imagine life without him now.
Written by Gillian Prince
Joshua and the walls of Jericho (Joshua 6:1-27)
BATTLE OF JERICHO
After the death of Moses, God appointed Joshua to be the leader of the Israelites. Under God’s guidance, Joshua and the people of Israel were preparing to conquer the land of Canaan. One of the first strongholds that they had to tackle was the walled city of Jericho. Earlier some Israelite spies had sneaked into the city where they hid in the house of Rahab, who protected them from being captured. The plan that God had for the battle of Jericho was rather unusual. He commanded Joshua to make all the people and the soldiers march around the city once every day for six days. Also, the priests were to carry the Ark of the Covenant and blow trumpets while marching around the walls, while everyone else kept silent. Joshua and the people did everything that God had commanded them to do. Then, on the seventh and final day, God told the people to march round the walled city seven times. After this, at Joshua’s command, all the people gave a great shout and as God had promised, the walls of Jericho fell down flat! The Israelites rushed into the city and conquered it, only sparing Rahab and her family.
OUR WALLS
Without meaning to, we often build walls around ourselves that stop us from having a good relationship with God. These walls may be our pride, selfishness or anything that upsets God. Our free will allows us to decide who or what takes top priority in our lives. So, if we choose to satisfy our worldly desires rather than our soul’s real thirst for God’s Spirit, we are building barriers between ourselves and God. Deep down, what our hearts really long for is a close relationship with our Creator; each one of us has a space in our hearts that only the person who actually created us can fill. Unfortunately, while the walls of sin that we’ve built up exist, it’s not possible to fully experience God’s presence in our lives. This is why God has given us the very special Sacrament of Reconciliation. Through this extraordinary Sacrament, God can break down every barrier that is stopping us from living a Christ-centred life. The only condition that God sets is that we should confess our wrongdoings with sincere regret and make a firm decision not to turn back to our old ways. When the priest grants absolution for our sins, it is Jesus himself forgiving and forgetting those sins and breaking down the walls of sin that had been stopping us from completely surrendering ourselves to God.
THEY LOOKED CRAZY
To those watching, Joshua and the Israelites marching around the walls of Jericho, the people must have looked crazy and their actions very strange. Despite this, Joshua and the people of Israel were willing to look foolish because they knew that it was what God had commanded, and by doing His will God would lift them up and give them the glory in the end. In the same way, we are called to bear witness to Jesus in our lives, even if that means that we look foolish and people mock us. By evangelising those who don’t know Jesus, we are giving them the chance to encounter the same love of God that we have been blessed to experience and we are helping to break down the walls that they have built up between themselves and God. Helping others to come closer to God is the duty of every baptised Christian.
EVANGELISING
We may want to tell everyone about Jesus but it is easier said than done. When we’re among friends and people who don’t share the same beliefs as us, it’s very difficult to put across our views about how important it is to have Jesus in our lives. We feel embarrassed and scared about how people may react or judge us, even if in our hearts we want to try and convert everyone! Eagerness to evangelise is important; at the same time, since evangelisation is a very gradual process, trying to forcefully make others understand and believe in our Christian faith can cause more problems than benefits. However, we can all take the first steps to cautiously bring others to Christ, which may mean being willing to be a fool for Jesus. Our reward for evangelising will be in heaven. This is a great motivation to be a donkey for Jesus and to carry others to Him!
A CLOSE ENCOUNTER!
MY STRUGGLE
As a convert to the Catholic Faith I really struggled with the belief that the Eucharist really is the Body and Blood of Jesus. I could not understand how speaking certain words over the bread and wine that were on the altar could make any difference to them. They looked the same as before and they tasted the same so what had changed? I desperately wanted to believe that I was receiving Jesus in the Eucharist so I prayed that God would show me the truth. Soon afterwards He led me to a seminar at a large gathering of Catholics at Walsingham. The seminar was called “The Real Presence” and when I heard the title I just knew that I had to go and listen to it. It was given by the late Bishop Ambrose Griffiths, who very gently took us through the Scriptures and what Jesus Himself had told us about the Eucharist.
THE MASS
He said that Jesus gave us the Mass. At the Last Supper, when He blessed the bread and gave it to His disciples He said, “This is my Body given up for you.” When He had blessed the wine and passed it round to His disciples He said, “This is my blood, poured out for you.” He did not say that it was a sign of His Body and Blood but that it actually was them. In the same way that Jesus gave His Body and Blood to His disciples He offers himself to us in the Eucharist. Every Mass presents the death and resurrection of Jesus and somehow these events, become present and real to us who join in the celebration.
REAL FOOD AND DRINK
Jesus also said, “I am the living bread that came down from heaven. Whoever eats this bread will live for ever. This bread is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world.” (John 6:51) He went on to say, “I tell you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you have no life in you.” (John 6:53) By receiving Jesus’ Body and Blood in Holy Communion we receive the life of Christ within us. There was also another promise, “Those who eat my flesh and drink my blood have eternal life, and I will raise them up on the last day; for my flesh is real food and my blood is real drink.” (John 6:54-55). Jesus leaves us little doubt that he is truly present in Holy Communion. Through the Eucharist we are united with Christ Jesus and become more like him. At the end of the seminar Bishop Ambrose suggested that we reread the verses from John Chapter 6.
MY EXPERIENCE
The next day as I waited in the long queue for Communion I recited to myself, “Unless you eat my flesh and drink my blood you will not have life within you.” And “my flesh is real food, my blood is real drink.” I remember very clearly as I got to the front of the line, there was one person in front of me receiving Holy Communion when I heard a man’s voice very clearly in my head (but not through my ears) saying, “How much closer can you get to me than to take me into your own body?” At that moment I was in front of the priest and received the Host and I knew, deep down in the depths of my heart, without a shadow of a doubt that I had received the Body of Jesus. The same thing happened with the Chalice. I knew for certain that it was the Blood of Jesus that I had received.
MY PRAYERS WERE ANSWERED
I returned to my seat on a real high and knelt in thanksgiving to Jesus for revealing Himself to me. His words kept going round my head until suddenly I realised what a strange thing He had said. Why did He say, “How much closer can you get to me than to take me into your own body?” He could just have said, “This really is my Body and Blood.” I wondered about this and then suddenly I had a flashback to three days earlier, on the first night, when the Conference Leader asked us to think about why we were there. I decided that it was because I had enjoyed it the previous year so much that I wanted to come back again. Then he said, “Now you know why God had brought you here you should pray for what you want to get out of the coming week’s conference.” I felt a bit of a fraud because I had misunderstood his first question and didn’t want to pray to have a good time so I racked my brain to think of what I wanted to get out of the coming week. I couldn’t really think of anything specific so I quickly shot off the prayer, “I want to get closer to you, Lord.” Then I instantly forgot the prayer. But God didn’t! Three days later He answered my prayer by pointing out that I couldn’t get any closer to Him than by receiving Holy Communion, His Body and Blood, into my own body.
VALUABLE LESSONS
I learnt two very valuable lessons that week: Jesus is truly present in Holy Communion and He always answers our prayers, even if we have forgotten them!
Written by CATHERINE