Saint Maria Goretti

7/6/2012

by Sharon Clossick - click for more info

Saint Maria Goretti has always been, in my mind, the epitome of forgiveness.

At this point in time, most people know her story. She was a poor girl from a poor family. Destitute, they had to give up their home to work with (and then for) another family, the Serenellis. Shortly after, Maria's father passed away from malaria, leaving her mother and siblings at the mercy of the Serenelli family.

For several years the Goretti family worked for the Serenellis. However, even before her father passed away, Maria (then only nine) had found herself on the receiving end of sexual advances from Alessandro Serenelli. She thwarted his attempts to sully her purity several times, and each time was threatened with death if she uttered to anyone his treachery.

However, at 11 years old (she was 2 months shy of her 12th birthday which is why so many folks incorrectly list her as a 12 year old), he found her alone after her mother and siblings had gone to work in the field. Maria was home taking care of her infant sister, Teresa. Maria had just placed Teresa down for a nap when Alessandro approached her - again - with the intent to force her into sex. He brandished a 10 inch dagger with which to subdue her. Maria, however, would not allow his perversion to tarnish her chaste purity.

Crying out, "No! It is a sin! God does not want it! You will go to hell." Maria tried to fend off his lustful advances. Enraged, Alessandro choked Maria. This, too, proved futile as Maria insisted she'd rather die than endure the desecration of her body. As a result, Alessandro stabbed her body 11 times times.

He left her bleeding on the floor of her kitchen to die alone, agonizing in pain as his dagger cut through her throat, heart, lungs and spinal column. Yet she attempted to crawl to the door to call for help. Alessandro (who was asleep upstairs) heard her cries of "Mother, I am dying!" and went back to finish his work. He stabbed her 3 more times - 14 in all.

Alessandro then fled upon hearing little Teresa cry out. Alessandro's father was awoken by the baby's cries and went down to chide Maria for being negligent. However, he found her bruised and bloodied body instead, and his frantic calls for help brought her mother running.

Maria was rushed to the nearest hospital where doctors, incredulous that she'd survived with such terrible wounds, did their best to help her. She underwent immediate surgery (without anesthesia), but doctors knew she would not last. A priest was brought in to perform Last Rites. It was to him she expressed her forgiveness of Alessandro, citing Christ's forgiveness upon the Cross saying, "I, too, pardon him. I, too, wish that he could come some day and join me in heaven."

It was this forgiveness that finally caused Alessandro to amend his ways. Having been convicted of murder and imprisoned, he spent many years brooding in his cell. However, no doubt through Maria's intercession, God allowed him the grace of seeing little Maria in her glorified state. In this dream, Maria handed Alessandro 14 lilies, one for each of the wounds he inflicted upon her. Each of these lilies burst into flames of forgiveness as he took them, one by one, from her outstretched hand. From that moment forth, Alessandro changed his life and sought to live out the same love of Christ that Maria had taught him through her pure and holy example.

Upon his release from prison, Alessandro went straight to the home of Maria's mother. When she opened the door, he flung himself at her feet, tearfully begging for her forgiveness.

Again, modeling the holy example of her own saintly daughter, Assunta said, "Alessandro, Marietta forgave you, Christ has forgiven you, and why should I not also forgive. I forgive you, of course, my son!"

The next morning, she led him by the hand to Mass where they received, together, the Eucharist.

Alessandro lived out the rest of his days in the service of monks. No doubt he is in Heaven with little Maria as she had promised so many years before.

And what a blessing that her mother and siblings were able to witness the canonization of their own. Assunta said of Maria, ""My God, I was not worthy to have such an angel!"

If only she understood that it was through her blessed example that Maria came to understand the love of the Lord. Through her witness, Maria came to love Him and strive for His Grace in all she did.

Not only were you worthy of Maria, Assunta - you helped to create her place in Heaven. May you both, together with Alessandro, forever enjoy the Beatific Vision. And may you all intercede for us still toiling below. Pray for us that we may always understand the power and blessing of forgiveness.

8 Comments

Kell Brigan

7/11/2012 10:50:41 am

"Maria, however, would not allow his perversion to tarnish her chaste purity."

This sickening myth was created by gothic, lewd hysterics who embellished the Goretti story within hours of her death to suit their exploitative and self-indulgent prurience. There is no indication anywhere that Goretti believed rape victims were somehow magically made "impure" by a mere rapist. In fact, her religious tradition included study of St. Augustine, who repeatedly condemned such superstitious, pagan beliefs. Maria Goretti was fighting, first, for her life, not to fulfill some sick, pagan obsession with intact hymens. Second, if she was fighting for anyone's virtue, it was Serenelli's. By helping perpetuate the strange, sickening, hateful myth that rape somehow makes someone impure, all you're doing is telling victims of sexual violence they'd be better off dead. You're telling misogynist, gothic, perverse, lewd lies about a saint who deserves much better than to be used as a tool of torture against raped women.

Gina link

7/11/2012 05:23:14 pm

Slow your roll there, Kell. Your commentary makes little to no sense.

I was not intending to say that rape somehow causes a person to become unchaste. I agree with the assessment that a rape victim is innocent of sin and thus remains chaste (our Church teaches as much).

However, the raping of an individual IS a desecration of the body, which Maria understood. Much like someone running into a church and stealing a tabernacle would desecrate that particular church, a rapist would similarly desecrate a virgin by stealing from her (or him!) his innocence (which is the purity I and most others refer to).

And finally, I mentioned that Maria was hoping to save Alessandro, himself, from Hell.

No one needed to embellish Goretti's story as it was pretty gruesome enough. We have Alessandro, himself, to thank for the full details as he gave a couple interviews after his release from prison regarding Maria's murder (and considering he was there and all... I'm willing to place my trust in his rendition of things).

For you to traipse over to my blog and attempt to dismantle my words only to rebuild them into some sort of accusation that rape makes a person impure is ridiculous. Your argument is absolutely baseless and incredibly pompous.

I'm all for defending the saints from perverse attacks, but methinks you're better off picking arguments with someone who, oh, I dunno, is actually painting a perverse picture of one.

Blessings.

Clare

8/17/2012 11:06:43 am

I have to say I am far more in agreement with Kell on this one. I can admire this poor little girl for her outstanding generosity in forgiving her murderer and would-be rapist, but I find it disturbing that some people are prepared to exploit the horrific tragedy of a brutally murdered child in order to manipulate and pressure young women like myself into remain "pure" - as if all that is good and noble in a women is concentrated in her virginity and (more offensively still) the sexual temptations to which we are all subject are the same as being threatened into intercourse. I'm certainly not arguing for moral laxity, but to use poor little Maria Goretti as an image of purity and an example to young girls is, to say the least, in extremely bad taste.

Clare

8/17/2012 11:10:49 am

"I was not intending to say that rape somehow causes a person to become unchaste."
Oh really? How about this:
"Maria, however, would not allow his perversion to tarnish her chaste purity."?
By claiming that Alessandro's pervesion would have "tarnished" Maria's "chaste purity", that is precisely what you are saying.

Gina link

8/17/2012 12:46:43 pm

Clare,

You do realize that you just fell into the same exact trap Kell fell into, right?

Purity is NOT simply about sex, and yet that is exactly what you attempt to boil it down to when you try to warp my words into somehow meaning "chaste purity = sexual virginity."

I believe I made myself perfectly clear when I stated:

"Much like someone running into a church and stealing a tabernacle would desecrate that particular church, a rapist would similarly desecrate a virgin by stealing from her (or him!) his innocence (which is the purity I and most others refer to)."

She had made a promise to God to keep His law of modesty, chastity and obedience. In allowing herself to be martyred rather than give in to that which would not only corrupt her body, but corrupt her soul, she kept all three pure. She was faithful to her promise which is exactly why God granted her the distinct privilege of becoming a saint in the eyes of the Church.

Again - it's shameful that you are attempting to boil her chaste example down to simply refusing his sexual advances. EVERYTHING she did in regards to Alessandro was chaste, and while refusing intercourse was certainly part of it, that wasn't the singular defining moment that we laud her saintliness for.

Forgiveness, in fact, is why she is a saint. Her pure example of love and forgiveness is what we teach little girls to follow. Forgiveness is what turned Alessandro's heart. Forgiveness is what prompted the doctors and even her family members to look upon Maria with awe. Forgiveness is how her mother and siblings healed. And forgiveness - NOT the sexual innuendo you and Kell have now highlighted - is the crux of this entire piece.

To write this off as some sordid "Don't let yourselves get raped, girls, and you'll go to Heaven, too!" story is absolutely shameful and belies a lack of intellectual honesty.

Clare

8/18/2012 01:48:00 am

But how on earth would being RAPED (no, it is not "consent" or "giving in to advances" if you are being threatened and in fear of your life) have made Maria Goretti any less pure. As Augustine pointed out, physical virginity is unimportant, it is chastity of the soul which matters, and a woman who has been coerced against her will is thus still spiritually a virgin. I'm sorry to be getting so heated over this, but I find the story of Maria quite disturbing, with unfortunate implications for women who have been raped.

Clare

8/18/2012 01:51:03 am

Forgive me, but if, as you claim, forgiveness is really the crux of the matter (in which case I could deal with the story), why is so much emphasis laid on Maria's chastity then? Why isn't she just made the patron saint of those who forgive those who have offended them. I don't mean to sound flippant, I genuinely think this would be an improvement on the Martyr to Chasity.

Gina link

8/22/2012 04:36:17 pm

First, let me begin by allowing Webster to define "chastity" for us.

http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/chastity

Keep in mind that the definitions descend from present use down through how the word was originally used. You'll note that it's only relatively recent that chastity has come to mean a specific refusal of sex.

Originally, chastity had little to do with sexual intercourse so much as purity of intent and action (which is what we focus on when we call to mind Maria's chastity). Sex seems to be at the forefront anymore because of how sex-obsessed our culture is.

Although there was a sexual element to the sin Alessandro was attempt to commit against Maria, that's NOT the only thing we are talking about when we say she remained chaste. In fact, it's probably one of the last things on the list we care about. Most important was her chastity regarding thought and action.

She had little care for her own mortal life. More than her own safety, she struggled to save Alessandro's soul. More than her own life, she sought to refuse him the means for his eternal damnation.

THAT is chastity. It's difficult for modern understanding because to us, chastity immediately connotes to sex, but in pure form, chastity is purity of intention - and what is more pure than sacrificing your own life so that your would-be rapist is unable to commit further sin against God's Will?

And on top of this incredible example of chastity, we have her awe-inspiring story of forgiveness. Even having endured the pain of surgery sans-medication, this blessed child found the strength within herself to offer forgiveness just as Christ had from the Cross.

Maria is a virgin in every meaning of the word. Yes, of course, sexually. But again - a virgin was not simply a person free from sexual conduct. A virgin was considered a person pure of heart - pure of spirit.

And Maria is exemplary. Her purity - her chastitiy - her virginity - her forgiveness - are the jewels which God crowned her saintliness with. She serves as a faithful example of just what such purity can accomplish in the hearts of even the most hardened sinners.

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Saint Maria Goretti

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