Teen Saint: Dominic Savio, Feast Day, May 6

 

I find  these young saints amazing! Here is a quote from Dominic Savio, "Nothing seems tiresome or painful when you are working for a Master who pays well; who rewards even a cup of cold water give for love of Him." Already at his young age he understood how much Christ wants us to succeed in becoming holy.

Dominic Savio was born in Italy, the Piedmont region, on April 2, 1842. He was one of ten children. His father was a blacksmith and his mother a seamstress. Both parents had a deep faith, and Dominic from his earliest years showed signs of a deep piety and inclination towards prayer. In fact he learned the teachings of the faith and the prayers necessary to receive his First Holy Communion by age seven. At the time he was living, the age for the reception of Holy Communion was twelve. It was not until Pope Pius X lowered the age from twelve to seven in 1910 that it became the norm for the  reception of Holy Communion.

Dominic was a student at St. John Bosco's school in Turin, Italy. It was there that he grew spirituality under the guidance of St. John Bosco. There is no doubt that Dominic was given special graces to respond eagerly and with great desire to love Jesus and to become a saint. I think we are given examples such as Dominic, Blessed Chiara Badano, the Fatima children and others to show us that children can become saints if they cooperate with the graces God gives them, and they receive instruction in the faith from their parents, grandparents, and teachers.

Dominic Savio died at the age of fourteen in 1857. He had a premonition that he was going to die. He was not well and St. John Bosco sent him home. His classmates thought he would return once he recovered from his cough. They had no idea he was seriously ill. Even his parents thought that he would recover from his illness. He did not appear to them to be on death's doorstep, but he was and he knew it. He asked to go to Confession, receive Holy Communion, and a few days later to be Anointed. He was given all three of these sacraments to please him, but his parents and even his doctor did not think he was going to die.

St. John Bosco recorded much of the life story of St. Dominic in the book pictured

above. I would encourage you to read his life and then share it with your children, grandchildren, and students. It is the retelling of the life of one saint by another saint! It is full of spiritual nuggets and many details of St. Dominic's life that I have not included here that provide encouragement for all ages in following Jesus and growing in holiness.

 

When the cause for Dominic's sainthood was proposed, some people objected saying he was too young to be a saint. There had to be some heroic virtue(s) for him to be canonized. They doubted someone so young could attain heroic virtues. Pope Pius X disagreed and began the process of canonization.  In 1933, Pope Pius XI declared him venerable. Pope Pius XII beatified Dominic in 1950 and declared him a saint in 1954.  Pope Pius XI referred to Dominic as "small in size, but a towering giant in spirit."

PRAYER TO ST. DOMINIC SAVIO

Dear Saint Dominic, you spent your short life totally for love of Jesus and His Mother. Help youth today to realize the importance of God in their lives. You became a saint through fervent participation in the sacraments, enlighten parents and children to the importance of frequent confession and Holy Communion. At a young age you meditated on the sorrowful Passion of Our Lord. Obtain for us the grace of a fervent desire to suffer for love of Him.

St. Dominic, Pray for Us!

Meet Blessed Chiara Luce Badano, An Inspirational Young Woman

Meet a teenager who was born in 1971 and died in 1990. She is on her way to being canonized by the Catholic Church as a saint. Chiara is Italian for Clare. Chiara liked to do many things that most teens do. She loved to dance, sing pop music, and get together with her friends. Tennis was her favorite sport and she played well. 

Chiara did not have any brothers or sisters. Her parents, Ruggero and Maria Teresa Badano were married eleven years before they were able to conceive Chiara. They had prayed fervently for a baby. You can imagine how overjoyed they were when on October 29, 1971, a baby daughter was born to them. 

The family lived in Sassello, a city in northwest Italy. Her parents were faithful Catholics who from Chiara's childhood taught her the faith. Her mother tells a story of when Chiara came home one day with a beautiful, large red apple. Her mother asked her where she got it. Chiara said she got it from the neighbor's orchard, but she had not asked the neighbor for it. Her mother told her that it was wrong to have taken the apple without asking and that she must go to the neighbor, apologize, and return  it. Chiara did not want to do it. She was embarrassed. Her mother explained it was important to own up to her actions. Hesitantly she went and told the neighbor exactly what she had done. Later that evening, the neighbor returned with a big box of red apples telling Chiara that she had learned an important lesson that day!

 In 1980 the family attended a Focolare Conference in Rome. Focolare is a twentieth century Catholic movement founded by Chiara Lubich in 1943. Its mission is to recognize the brotherhood of all men and women. In its own words, "It aims at spreading the message of unity worldwide. Inspired by Jesus’ prayer to the Father, 'May they all be one'” (John 17:21). It was approved by the Catholic Church in 1962 and is officially known as the Work of Mary. You can read more about it here:https://www.focolare.org/en/chi-siamo/

Chiara was very attracted to the Focolare movement and began writing the founder, Chiara Lubich after she met her when she was sixteen. The core of the Focolare's spirituality is devotion to the forsaken Jesus. During this season of Lent, this is an image of Christ we might all look to for inspiration. In Chiara's own words she said, "I discovered that Jesus forsaken is the key to unity with God, and I want to choose him as my only spouse. I want to be ready to welcome him when he comes. To prefer him above all else." As a young woman her relationship with Jesus was deepening. Her life as a teen was full with the Focolare movement, her family, friends, school, and tennis.

While playing tennis during the summer of 1988, Chiara experienced pain in her shoulder. Initially she thought nothing of it, but it persisted and would not go away. Eventually she underwent a battery of tests to determine what the problem was. It turned out that she had a rare form of bone cancer, osteogenic sarcoma. The diagnosis was terminal and despite various treatments she experienced paralysis of her legs. Her simple and deep love of Jesus inspired her to say, "It's for you, Jesus; if you want it, I want it, too." Friends told of visiting Chiara hoping to cheer her up, but left needing her and the life she was drawing them to even more.  One of her doctors is recorded as saying, "Through her smile and through her eyes full of light, she showed us that death doesn't exist; only life exists."

Chiara Luce Badano was a courageous teen who loved Jesus and loved her parents. She made dinner reservations for Valentine's Day for her parents and insisted that they stay out until midnight that evening rather than remaining with her in the hospital. Before she died on October 7, 1990, she bought a Christmas card and wrote, "Holy Christmas 1990. Thank you for everything. Happy New Year." She hid the card among some others so her mother would be sure to find it.

When the Cardinal of Turin heard of Chiara's illness, he visited her in the hospital. When he saw her, he asked her, "The light in your eyes is splendid. Where does it come from?" She answered him, "I try to love Jesus as much as I can." The final evening of her life, with her family and friends surrounding her bed, she said, "Bye, Mum, be happy, because I am happy."

Each of our children and grandchildren are precious and unique. They are not meant to be anyone else but themselves.  Jesus calls each of us to be the unique person He created us to be. 

Chiara lived her life with love for her family, friends, and Jesus. Jesus was the center of her life. Let us ask her to help our children and grandchildren to live their lives with love for their family and friends with Jesus as their true center.

 "Oh, Mama, young people...young people...they are the future. You see, I can't run anymore, but how I would like to pass on to them the torch, like in the Olympics? Young people have only one life, and it's worthwhile to spend it well."

                                Blessed Chiara, Pray for Our Children and Grandchildren!

    For more information on the life of Blessed Chiara Luce Badano

   http://www.chiarabadano.org/?lang=en  

http://saintsresource.com/chiara-luce-badano                                                             

https://web.archive.org/web/20110812130158/http://www.focolare.us/us/component/content/article/213-beatification-of-chiara-luce-badano

https://web.archive.org/web/20160303224102/https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/4761105/primo3r_web/saints_pages/chiara_luce_badano.html

https://sistersoflife.org/2021/05/12/blessed-chiara-luce/
 http://www.chiarabadano.org/?lang=en

https://dioceseoftrenton.org/news/blessed-chiara-luce-badano

Books on Blessed Chiara Luce Badano. There are many books on her life. Here are two you might enjoy. Included is a novena prayer to the right of the Chiara Luce: A life lived to the full book.

O Father, fount of every good,
we give You thanks for  the wonderful
testimony of Blessed Chiara Badano.
Filled with the Holy Spirit
and guided by the radiant light of Jesus,
she believed firmly in Your infinite love,
and wished to return it with all her strength,
surrendering herself in complete trust
to Your paternal will.
We humbly  beseech You
that You may also grant us
the gift to live with You and for You,
and ask You, if it be Your will,
for the grace __________________
through Our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.

Young Saints to Journey with this Lent, 2022

 Our Lord said, " 'Let the children come to me, do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of God. Truly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it.' And he took them in his arms and blessed them, laying his hands upon them." (Mark 10:14-16)

 During this season of Lent, I propose that we look at the lives of young saints and blesseds and ask them to help us  grow closer to Jesus and His holy mother. Jesus tells us that the kingdom of heaven belongs to children, those qualities and characteristics that are innocent, pure, trusting, and loving. The young saints that we will look at the next few weeks not only have  the above mentioned qualities, but they are also brave, courageous, forgiving, and persevering in following Jesus. Now this does not mean, they did not have challenges in following Jesus. They had challenges, but they cooperated with God's grace and with His help they became holy at a young age. 

Francisco and Jacinta Marto are brother and sister saints. The Blessed Virgin Mary appeared to them along with their cousin, Lucia, when Francisco was 9 years old and Jacinta was 7. The site was Cova da Iria, near Aljustrel, Portugal, close to where they lived. 

The Angel of Peace had visited the children in 1916 three times preparing them for the Blessed Virgin who came in May of 1917. Our Lady asked the children on her first visit to pray the rosary every day for world peace and the end of World War I. Today we are experiencing disturbances on the European continent with Russia invading the Ukraine. We need heaven's intercession. 

I chose Francisco and Jacinta as saints to pray to this First Week of Lent because as children they lived heroic virtue and the message of the Blessed Mother at Fatima remains as true today as it has in the past. She has asked that the rosary be prayed daily for world peace. 

The Blessed Virgin appeared six times to Francisco, Jacinta, and Lucia with the message she wished them to convey to the world: to pray the rosary daily for peace, and to offer sacrifices for sinners. Later the Blessed Mother would appear to Lucia and ask for the world to be consecrated to her Immaculate Heart. Pope Pius XII consecrated the world to her Immaculate Heart on October  31, 1942.

 At one point on August 13, 1917, the mayor arrested the children and accused them of lying about the apparitions and threatened to throw them into a vat of boiling oil if they did not recant their story. "Instead of caving to the pressure, the children said: “you can do whatever you want, but we cannot tell a lie. Do whatever you want to us, burn us with oil, but we cannot tell a lie.”  “This was the virtue of these children,” Cardinal Martins said, noting that to accept death rather than tell a lie is “more heroic than many adults.” You will find the full text here: https://www.bluearmy.com/jacinta-and-francisco-to-be-canonized-during-pope-francis-visit-to-fatima-may-13/

Francisco and Jacinta died before either was 12 years old. They are the youngest non martyr saints to be canonized. They were recognized as saints for the heroic virtues they lived as children. Their canonization shows that children can attain holiness. It was during Pope John Paul's pontificate that they were beatified, and Pope Francis canonized them on May 13, 2017 at Fatima.

 Let us ask these young saints to help our children and grandchildren to grow closer to Jesus and Mary, to be truthful, to pray the rosary daily especially for world peace, and to learn to make small sacrifices for the eternal welfare of others. Here is a link on how to pray the rosary, if you are not familiar with this prayer: https://hallow.com/2019/09/23/how-to-pray-the-rosary/

Below are some books for children and adults on the message of Our Lady of Fatima.  Many of them can be purchased or ordered from your favorite Catholic bookstore or amazon.

A book for children by Mary Fabyan Windeatt for children ages 7 -  10.

The Message of Fatima as told by Sister Lucia. This has the messages of the Angel of Peace to the children, Our Blessed Mother's apparitions, and her private appearances to the children and to Lucia after the messages at Fatima.

 

Angela De Fatima Coelho was the postulator of the process of canonization for Francisco and Jacinta Marto. You will find a wealth of knowledge and understanding in her book on Fatima.

These are two of my favorite priests. They are no longer living but their excellent work lives on in many books, articles, and DVDs.

DVD with Fr. Apostoli and Fr. Groeschel

                                                            The Fatima Prayer

O my Jesus, forgive us our sins, save us from the fires of hell, and lead all souls to Heaven, especially those in most need of Thy mercy.

Sts. Francisco and Jacinta,

                                                                      Pray for Us!

                                                          Wishing you and your family 

                                                                   a Blessed Lent