Spiritual Woman

Most of the saints we learn about and love lived a long time ago. As much as we can study their lives and, when available, read their writings, it can be difficult to imagine them as living, breathing human beings who struggled with life. That is one reason why it is so amazing to watch “St. Gianna Beretta Molla: A Modern Day Hero of Divine Love,” a new DVD about a saint who lived in our own time. The DVD is a visual delight, featuring photos and home movies of St. Gianna, who lived from 1922 to 1962. One gets to see her getting married and playing with her children and living out her career as a doctor. Viewers see her laughing and smiling and loving life. This is a real woman. She is someone like us. Sadly, one also has the opportunity to get a glimpse of the outpouring of mourners at her funeral. She was truly loved in her community and admired for her sanctity.

Here we get to know a woman like so many of us who struggled to balance work and family. She was highly intelligent, excelling in her studies. She also loved music and art and being in the mountains. She loved her family above all else, but saw her career as a physician as a calling from God. Not only did she run her own practice, she was an active volunteer and sought to bring medical care to those who needed it, especially mothers and children. She would tell other doctors that “when you have finished your earthly profession, if you have done this well, you will enjoy divine life ‘because I was sick and you healed me.’”

St. Gianna was raised in a Christ-centered family and sought to raise her children the same way. Her life was one of service and was deeply rooted in prayer. She attended daily Mass as often as possible and prayed her rosary daily. She was always ready to encourage others in their relationship with God. She was a woman who viewed life as a gift from God and trusted in the power of prayer. Totally pro-life, her ultimate sacrifice was to give birth to her last child, even though she was advised against it and knew it might result in her own death. After giving birth, she bravely bore her final suffering with grace and prayer. She died on April 28, 1962 at the age of 39. Beatified in 1994 and canonized in 2004, Pope John Paul II held St. Gianna up as a role model for mothers, physicians, and the pro-life cause.

Watching “St. Gianna Beretta Molla: A Modern Day Hero of Divine Love” is an opportunity to discover a wonderful woman devoted to God who can serve as a model for all of us struggling with life as mothers.

To order this DVD produced by Catholic Action for Faith and Family, please visit www.stgiannaphysicians.org.

The mission statement of the Sisters of Life states that they are “a contemplative/active religious community dedicated to protecting and advancing a sense of the sacredness of all human life — beginning with the infant in the womb and extending to all those vulnerable to the threat of euthanasia.” Founded by John Cardinal O’Connor in 1991, the sisters begin with prayer and then go out into the world with outreach to create a culture of life one person and one encounter at a time.

Since their founding, the Sisters of Life have been dedicated to providing practical assistance and spiritual and emotional support to pregnant women in crisis. Many of these women have had abortions in the past and want to give their unborn child life but are unsure of how to cope and move forward. The sisters state that “we strive to bring His peace, the gift of hope and a ‘beginning joy’ to each of these women God sends our way, even amidst what the women themselves readily admit are ‘non-ideal circumstances.’ We have witnessed the truth that ‘life is always a good’ as we have watched it slowly but surely blossom forth in so many of these courageous women with a heart faithful to the call to love.”

At the Holy Respite, located in the heart of Manhattan, New York, pregnant women “most vulnerable to the pressure of abortion,” whether Catholic or not, are invited to come and stay. A woman is welcome not only through the birth of her child, but up to six months after so that she may get back on her feet and begin to create a life for herself and her child.

The Sisters also help those who are suffering from the pain of abortion. The “Entering Canaan” program takes its name from the Exodus experience of the Jewish people crossing the desert to reach the Promised Land. This program takes women “on a Sacramental journey into the true Promised Land of the Heart of Jesus.” Each retreat is directed by women who experienced both the pain of abortion and the healing found in Christ. Retreats are also offered for men who are experiencing pain as a result of an abortion.

Education is yet another mission of the Sisters of Life. Thanks to the generosity of the Knights of Columbus, Villa Maria Guadalupe in Stamford, Connecticut became a reality. “The retreat house hosts Evenings of Recollection, educational seminars on life issues and retreats for everyone (themes include Theology of the Body, Young Adult Retreats, Post-Abortion Healing, and retreats on the Dignity and Vocation of Women). “ It is “a spiritual home for the pro-life community.” The Sisters also staff the Family Life Office of the Archdiocese of New York, supporting marriages and families.

A more recent addition to the Sisters’ outreach has been the creation of an organized group of laity known as Co-workers. These volunteers work out of local or parish communities to provide help to women in need. Some open their homes to pregnant women; others work to help women find resources in their local communities. Men involved as co-workers help move furniture or build cribs or mentor fathers. Health professionals, college contacts, business professionals, counselors, and lawyers are all offering their talents to this effort.

For more information on any of the programs offered by the Sisters of Life, please visit their website at www.sistersoflife.org .