The Catholic Church celebrates the feast of Saint Maria Goretti on 6 July every year. She was the 11-year-old girl who was murdered while defending her purity from an attempted rape, and who during her agony forgave her attacker.
Saint Maria Goretti, who was called the “sweet martyr of purity” and proclaimed a saint by Pope Pius XII, stood out not only for her defence of chastity but also for her love of the Eucharist and devotion to the Virgin Mary.
With just a few hours to go before her feast day, we share 10 facts about the life of the Italian saint that can help the faithful grow in faith from childhood.
1. She Worked since she was Little
Maria was born on 16 October 1890 in Italy, to a poor family who moved from the province of Ancona to Ferriere di Conca, in the province of Lazio, to work in the fields of Count Mazzoleni, according to Vatican News.
She sold eggs, prepared food for the peasants, mended clothes and looked after her younger siblings.
2. She was an Exemplary Daughter
After the death of her father, Luigi Goretti, Maria supported her mother Assunta in the household chores and caring for her five siblings. According to Vatican News, she preferred to eat leftover food so that the others would be well-fed.
The little girl used to inspire hope in her mother, who suffered from the bad behaviour and despotic attitude of the Serenellis, the family they had joined due to financial difficulties. “Cheer up, Mom, don’t be afraid, we are getting older. All we need is for the Lord to grant us health. Providence will help us. We will fight and we will continue to fight!” she told her.
3. I would Rather Die than Say a Bad Word
One day the saint expressed her indignation at hearing a young man and one of his companions saying obscene words to each other.
“What goes in one ear, comes out the other. Look, daughter, just as you are surprised by the things others do, others may be surprised by the things you do,” her mother once told her. The girl replied: “If I ever have to talk like that, I would rather die first.”
4. She didn’t Go to School
In a message from Saint John Paul II, he recounted that Saint Maria Goretti was unable to attend school because of “the difficulties of poverty.” But she and her siblings were “educated by their parents in respect for themselves and others” and in “the sense of duty fulfilled for the love of God.”
5. She Made her First Communion with the Help of People
The saint had longed to receive the Eucharist since she was little, and when she told her mother, she reminded her that she did not know the Catechism or how to read, that they did not have “money to buy you a dress, shoes and veil” and “not a single free moment.” The little girl replied: “Well, I will never be able to take Communion, Mom! And I cannot be without Jesus!”
Her neighbours helped her prepare for the sacrament, and got her the clothes she needed, and so María made her First Communion on 29 May 1902, at the age of 11, a year earlier than was customary at the time.
6. He Used to Pray and Offer her Sufferings to the Virgin Mary
When the girl lost her father, she sought solace in prayer, especially in the Holy Rosary. She also used to pray to the Virgin Mary in response to the indecent proposals and death threats from Alessandro Serenelli, who tried to rape her and ended up killing her.
After her mother and Alessandro’s father found her seriously injured after the attempted rape, Maria was taken to a hospital, where doctors were surprised that she had not died and operated on her without anaesthesia due to her delicate state of health. Despite the pain, she did not complain and offered her sufferings to the Virgin.
7. Resisted an Attempted Rape
On 5 July 1902, Alessandro Serenelli took advantage of the fact that Maria was home alone and tried to rape her, but she resisted, shouting at him: “No! It is a sin! God does not want that!” and warned him that he could go to hell. Blinded by rage, the young man stabbed her 14 times, leaving serious wounds to her heart, left lung, diaphragm and intestines.
8. She Forgave her Attacker before Dying
Before she died, the priest asked her: “Mary, do you forgive your murderer with all your heart?” She replied: “Yes, I forgive him for the love of Jesus, and I want him to come with me to Paradise too. I want him to be by my side… May God forgive him, because I have already forgiven him.”
In this regard, Saint John Paul II stressed that “the spirit of forgiveness animated the relationships of the entire Goretti family and, for this reason, it was able to express itself with such spontaneity in the martyr.”
9. His Killer Repented
Alessandro Serenelli was sentenced to 30 years in prison and seemed to have no remorse. He repented after being visited by the Bishop of Noto, Monsignor Giovanni Blandini, and after dreaming of the saint pouring 14 lilies over him, the number of times he had stabbed her.
When he was released, he sought out the saint’s mother to ask for forgiveness, gave his testimony to help the cause for beatification, and was admitted into the Third Order of Saint Francis.
Saint John Paul II emphasized that the murderer “recognized the guilt committed, asked forgiveness from God and the family of the martyr, atoned for his crime with conviction and maintained this disposition of spirit throughout his life.”
10. One of her Sisters became a Nun
The Corinaldo Sanctuary website records that on the day of her martyrdom, the saint was caring for her two-year-old sister, Teresa Goretti. The baby woke up upon hearing Maria’s cries and began to cry, a noise that caused her mother and Alessandro’s father to return from the fields to the house and find the saint wounded.
Teresa entered the Institute of the Franciscan Missionary Sisters of Mary on 23 October 1920, under the name of Sister Maria di San Alfredo. She met Saint Paul VI in September 1969 and, ten years later, Saint John Paul II. She died on 25 February 1981 in a convent of her institute in Orvieto.