Born in Corinaldo, Ancona, Italy, on October 16 1890; St. Maria Goretti's farmworker father moved his family to Ferrier di Conca, near Anzio. Her father died of malaria and her mother had to struggle to feed her children.
In
1902 an eighteen-year-old neighbor, Alexander, grabbed her from her
steps and tried to rape her. When Maria said that she would rather died
than submit, Alexander began stabbing her with a knife.
As she lay in the hospital, she forgave Alexander before she died. Her death didn't end her forgivness, however.
Alexander
was captured and sentenced to thirty years. He was unrepentant until he
had a dream that he was in a garden. Maria was there and gave him
flowers. When he woke, he was a changed man, repenting of his crime and
living a reformed life. When he was released after 27 years he went
directly to Maria's mother to beg her forgiveness, which she gave. "If
my daughter can forgive him, who am I to withold forgiveness," she said.
When Maria was declared a saint in 1950,
Alexander was there in the St. Peter's crowd to celebrate her
canonization. She was canonized by Pope Pius XII in 1950 for her purity
as model for youth.
She is called a martyr
because she fought against Alexander's attempts at sexual assault.
However, the most important aspect of her story is her forgiveness of
her attacker -- her concern for her enemy extending even beyond death.
Her feast day is July 6. St. Maria Goretti is the patroness of youth and for the victims of rape.
St. Maria Goretti's symbols include lilies and a sword. For this quilt block, I have included a top view of two lilies and a variation on a sword on the sides. To download the free 12" x 12" pattern, please click here: Quilt Block in Honor of St. Maria Goretti
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