TWO developments… below.
But first…
You may have heard that the relics of St. Mary Goretti are on “pilgrimage”, as it were, in these USA. HERE
Pilgrimage of Mercy: the Tour of the Major Relics of St. Maria Goretti
From September to November of this year the major relics of St. Maria Goretti will make a pilgrimage to the United States. It is the first time that her body travels to the USA and only the second time that it has left Italy.
While St. Maria is universally known as the Patroness of Purity, her greatest virtue was her unyielding forgiveness of her attacker even in the midst of horrendous physical suffering, a forgiveness that would completely convert him and set him on a path to personal holiness. In March His Holiness, Pope Francis, announced an Extraordinary Holy Year of Mercy beginning December 8th. This visit of the major relics of St. Maria Goretti is an effort on the part of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints and Treasures of the Church (www.TreasuresOfTheChurch.com) to prepare and catechize the United States for this great celebration in the life of the Church.
Directed by Fr. Carlos Martins, CC, the Pilgrimage will cover churches, schools and prisons in 28 dioceses spanning 18 states.
Webpage: www.MariaGoretti.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/MariaGorettiUSA
Twitter: @GorettiUsa
I had a note that
St. Maria Goretti began her US tour by visiting Sing Sing Correctional Facility, a maximum security prison in NY, where the inmates had the opportunity to venerate the relics of the “Little Saint of Mercy”—seeking the Mercy of God that the 11 year old Maria witnessed as she forgave her murder in her last breath.
Of course this wasn’t the first time the St. Maria Goretti had visited a prison cell and offered forgiveness. The unrepentant Serenelli famously reported receiving an apparition of his victim within his prison cell, some 6 years into his 30-year sentence. That occasion began his dramatic transformation from a violent and ruthless brute to that of a gentle and renewed soul intent on spreading devotion to God and his saintly victim. In his words, “Maria’s forgiveness saved me.”
Also, the Apostolic Penitentiary granted a plenary indulgence to those who participate in this pilgrimage
