Looking through the Vatican’s website, I came upon the homily by Pope John Paul II preached on Oct 21, 2001 during the beatification of an Italian married couple, Luigi Quattrocci and Maria Corsini. This couple lived in Italy in the late 19th and first half of the 20th century. Luigi and Maria were devout Catholics, bringing up their children well through good times and bad. Remember, Italy was not always a great place to raise a family, especially during World War II. Here is a little of what the Pope had to say about them:
“This couple lived married love and service to life in the light of the Gospel and with great human intensity. With full responsibility they assumed the task of collaborating with God in procreation, dedicating themselves generously to their children, to teach them, guide them and direct them to discovering his plan of love."
Drawing on the word of God and the witness of the saints, the blessed couple lived an ordinary life in an extraordinary way. Among the joys and anxieties of a normal family, they knew how to live an extraordinarily rich spiritual life. At the centre of their life was the daily Eucharist as well as devotion to the Virgin Mary, to whom they prayed every evening with the Rosary, and consultation with wise spiritual directors. In this way they could accompany their children in vocational discernment, training them to appreciate everything "from the roof up", as they often, charmingly, liked to say.”
So what does this mean to the Men of St. Joseph today, in 21st Century America? It means that in our struggle to move our families toward heaven, we have assistance. People like Maria and Luigi are examples we can learn from. Google them and read the articles you find. You will see they were simple people, strong in Faith. They loved God, the life He gave them and their family. Not only can we learn from them, they can help us in an active role today. Maria and Luigi are part of the Communion of Saints who pray for us. We should ask them to intercede on behalf of our family. They certainly understand the struggles we face: a sick child; unstable work situation; financial stress and the rest of the daily challenges we confront with our families. Tap into their help.
Jesus, Mary and Joseph faced similar issues, but their holiness can be intimidating. Maria and Luigi’s ordinariness make them accessible. God has inspired countless others to live the married vocation in full union with His will, some of these families are around us now. Observe and learn from the outstanding examples of grace from our Catholic history as well as right next to us in the pew on Sunday. I pray that all of us can learn to live “an ordinary life in an extraordinary way”, with our families so we can follow in Luigi and Maria’s footsteps toward heaven!
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