St. Maria Goretti

St. Maria Goretti

One of the youngest and most powerful canonized saints in the Catholic Church.

Known for her deep faith, courage, and forgiveness—even of her murderer.

Her life and death inspire millions worldwide as a witness to purity and mercy.

Patronage

Patron saint of youth, chastity, and forgiveness.

Often depicted holding lilies, symbolizing purity.

Maria Goretti was born on October 16, 1890, to Assunta and Luigi Goretti, and settled in Netuno, Italy in a very poor farming family. He hired his farming skills to a wealthy landowner, and the agreement was that he would grow a certain amount of crops and in return his family could live in an abandoned warehouse on the Serenelli’s property. 

Her father died of malaria when Maria was nine years old, leaving her mother Assunta to support the family. Her mother had to take the father’s place on the farm and Maria took the mother’s household duties in the house and raising her brothers and sisters.

Maria’s next door neighbor, 20-year old Alessandro Serenelli took great impure interest in Maria, and tried to assault her. On July 5, 1902, Alessandro attacked her; Maria resisted and was stabbed repeatedly.

She was taken to the hospital and was in a state of dehydration and begged the doctors for water, but they couldn’t give her water because anything she would swallow would come out her perforated intestines, inducing peritonitis. 

A local priest was called to the hospital and asked Maria, “Maria, our Lord from the cross also begged for water, but no one gave Him any. Would you also offer up your thirst for sinners?” 

She replied, “yes, father, I will.” Doctors performed surgery on her but because she had lost so much blood, they couldn’t give her anesthetic to avoid cardiac arrest. Her wounds were enlarged by the doctors during the surgery, Maria was fully conscience and felt every cut and suture, but she never cried out or complained once. She offered all her pain for the salvation of sinners. 

Before Maria died, she said these words, “I forgive Alessandro Serenelli, and I want him with me in heaven forever.” 

Upon Maria’s death, her mother unable to meet the needs of her family and tend to the farm. 

Sadly, her mother had to give up all 5 remaining children to adoption. Alessandro not only murdered her little girl; he destroyed her family. She was unable to attend Maria’s funeral because it was held on the last day she had remaining with her children. 

Alessandro was tried and sentenced to 30 years in prison. Full of rage, he blamed Maria for her attack and murder. In prison, he was extremely violent to the other prisoners and was placed in solitary confinement for 6 years. One night, Maria appeared to him. She didn’t speak to him, but she appeared in a garden picking 14 white lily flowers and handed the 14 flowers to him one by one. This was a significant number, because it was 14 times that Alessandro had stabbed her. With this gesture, Maria was telling Alessandro, “I forgive you.”. 

That act of love and forgiveness filled Alessandro with the holy spirit and became contrite for what he had done to this little girl. He asked for the local bishop and asked for the sacrament of reconciliation, in which he confessed having murdered Maria. He received God’s mercy through Maria’s forgiveness, began to live a holy life within prison. He started reading the bible, developed a prayer life, and would evangelize the other inmates. Alessandro was released from prison after 27 years. 

Upon his release, he found Maria Goretti’s mother, and asked her if she knew who he was, to which Assunta responded, “Yes, I know who you are.” He asked her, “Do you forgive me?”. She replied, “Alessandro, God has forgiven you, Maria has forgiven you, how can I not forgive you.” She accepted him that day as her own son and adopted him. The date was December 24, 1934, and both went to midnight Christmas Mass together and received holy communion, side by side. 

Because Maria chose to forgive. Because she chose to be a saint. 

In June 1950, Assunta was present at her daughter’s canonization at St. Peter’s Square by Pope Pius XII. Over half a million people were present and was the largest crowd in the Church’s history in that point in time that St. Peter’s Basilica could not be used because it was too small for the amount of people present. 

Alessandro went on to live a very holy life and became a Franciscan capuchin lay brother and lived a completely transformed man, full of holiness, piety and service. 

This story would not have had the happy ending it had, had Maria not made the choice to forgive. She put her faith in God, who demands the forgiveness of our enemies. 

After this incident, thousands of prayer cards with Maria Goretti’s photo on one side and a prayer on the reverse side were distributed across Italy and Europe. Many healing testimonies have been attributed to Maria Goretti’s intercession.

One of the greatest tests in our lives will be how we treat people that didn’t treat you well. 

“The saints are not dead; they are alive in heaven. The reason why we were created is to be a saint. The only tragedy in life is if we leave this world not having become a saint. Maria Goretti taught us what it takes to be a saint. It means saying yes to God and to His will in every circumstance and situation. It means putting our faith in God and not in the circumstances and situations in which we find ourselves.” Fr. Carlos Martins