A VIRGIN, A MARTYR, A SAINT

Matthew 10:1-7

Today we celebrate the blessed memory of St. Maria Goretti, virgin and martyr. St. Maria Goretti lived and died in the last century. She is a saint from our times and for our times.

Early in life, St. Maria Goretti consecrated her life to God. She was so much in love with Jesus; thus, she offered her entire life to Him. As a visible expression of her love for Jesus, she consecrated her virginity to Him. Her faithfulness to her consecration to the Lord was proven when she was attacked by a man, Alessandro by name, who wanted to violate her. Defending her virginity against the assault of Alessandro, Maria Goretti died from fourteen stabs. But before she died, from her lips came only words of forgiveness for Alessandro. She said, “I forgive Alessandro and pray that he may go to heaven someday.”

We need more people like St. Maria Goretti. There may be many people who promise virginity or chastity to the Lord, but their promise must be like that of St. Maria Goretti’s: single-hearted, faithful, and forgiving. For many may offer themselves to God but also subscribe to false gods. One may be very determined in consecrating himself to the Lord but when persecuted, easily gives in to “blend in” with the crowd. One may be chaste but unwilling to forgive.

It is not virginity or martyrdom that makes a person a saint. It is the quality of love that makes a virgin or a martyr a saint. Without love, virginity is self-preservation, nothing else. Without love, martyrdom has no meaning at all. It is the quality of our love that satisfies the Lord’s instruction in the Gospel today: “As you go, make this announcement: ‘The kingdom of heaven is at hand.’”

Let us love like St. Maria Goretti – single-hearted, faithful, and forgiving. It was love that made St. Maria Goretti a virgin and martyr. It was her kind of love that made her virginity and martyrdom holy. It was the quality of her love, not her virginity neither her martyrdom, that made her a saint. For as St. John of the Cross said, “At the twilight of life, we shall be judged on love.”

Would you qualify for a virgin? Would you qualify for a martyr? But would you qualify for a saint?