Saints / Letters & Correspondence
February 22, 1955 My dearest Gianna, A new life is beginning for me: the life of your great (and greatly desired) affection and of your radiant goodness. We are starting the journey of our love . . . March 11, 1955 Dearest Pietro, I don’t have words to thank you for all your thoughtfulness and kindness toward me. Thank you for the beautiful roses and for the hours we spent together. . . . I am so happy in your company that I wish time would stand still when I’m with you . . .
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he letters of Saint Gianna Beretta and her husband, Pietro Molla, bring us through the ups and downs of their courtship and marriage: childbirth, parenting, demands of professional life, and anxieties over health issues. More than any theological treatise, these letters are convincing proof that sanctity can—and does—unfold in the midst of the world, with each spouse living out the joys and challenges of the vocation to Christian marriage. $17.95 U.S.
The Journey of Our Love The Letters of Saint Gianna Beretta and Pietro Molla Edited by Elio Guerriero
BOOKS & MEDIA Boston
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Beretta Molla, Gianna, Saint, 1922-1962. [Lettere. English] The journey of our love : the letters of Saint Gianna Beretta and Pietro Molla / Gianna Beretta and Pietro Molla ; edited by Elio Guerriero. pages cm ISBN 978-0-8198-4565-8 -- ISBN 0-8198-4565-5 1. Beretta Molla, Gianna, Saint, 1922-1962--Correspondence. 2. Christian saints--Italy-Correspondence. 3. Molla, Pietro, 1912---Correspondence. I. Molla, Pietro, 1912- II. Guerriero, Elio, editor of compilation. III. Title. BX4700.B42A4 2014 282.092--dc23 [B] 2013029412 Originally published by Edizioni San Paolo Milan in Italian as Lettere: A cura di Elio Guerriero copyright © by Edizioni San Paolo s.r.l.—Cinisello Balsamo (MI). Editor: Elio Guerriero. Authors: Gianna Beretta Molla and Pietro Molla. Translated by Ann Brown Many manufacturers and sellers distinguish their products through the use of trademarks. Any trademarked designations that appear in this book are used in good faith but are not authorized by, associated with, or sponsored by the trademark owners. Unless otherwise noted the scripture quotations contained herein are from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Catholic Edition, copyright © 1989, 1993, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved. Excerpts from the Encyclical Letter of the Supreme Pontiff Benedict XVI Charity in Truth, Caritas in Veritate copyright © 2009 by Libreria Editrice Vaticana. All rights reserved. Used with permission. Cover design by Rosana Usselmann Cover photo: Archives of Pietro Molla Photos: Archives of Pietro Molla All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher. “P” and PAULINE are registered trademarks of the Daughters of St. Paul. Copyright © 2014, Daughters of St. Paul Published by Pauline Books & Media, 50 Saint Pauls Avenue, Boston, MA 02130-3491 Printed in the U.S.A. www.pauline.org Pauline Books & Media is the publishing house of the Daughters of St. Paul, an international congregation of women religious serving the Church with the communications media. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
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Contents
Presentation Cardinal Angelo Scola O v P Foreword Cardinal Angelo Comastri O ix P
Preface to My Wife’s Letters Pietro Molla O xiii P
Preface to My Father’s Letters Gianna Emanuela Molla O xvii P
Introduction: Love Is Stronger Than Death Elio Guerriero O 1 P
Part I “I Really Want to Make You Happy” The Engagement Letters O 45 P
Part II “Your Great Love Will Help Me to Be Strong” Letters of the First Years of Marriage O 83 P
Part III “I’m Already Looking Forward to the Joy of Seeing You Again” Letters from Pietro’s Trip to the United States O 157 P
Part IV “Your Watchful and Wise Presence Comforts and Quiets Me” Letters of Maturity O 251 P
Chronology Important Dates in Gianna Beretta’s Life O 279 P
Important Dates in Pietro Molla’s Life O 281 P
Presentation By Cardinal Angelo Scola
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he letters exchanged between Saint Gianna and her husband, Pietro Molla, stand as evidence of a family life developed with original spiritual intensity in the fertile soil of the Ambrosian Church.1 Since childhood the future spouses had participated in Catholic Action. Between the two wars, while they were still relatively young, they had been members of FUCI, the Italian Catholic Federation of University Students. In the postwar reconstruction years, this group remained a guiding light to both of them. The members were involved in politics as leaders in the Catholic party, and as such they helped lead their homeland into a new future. Around the time Gianna and Pietro got to know each other and then married in 1955, Giovanni Battista Montini was appointed the new archbishop of Milan. Once he arrived in Milan, Montini, a pastor with great diplomatic and political experience, energetically began his episcopal ministry in the large diocese. He preached on 1. This is a reference to the Ambrosian or Milanese Rite of the Catholic Church, so named for Saint Ambrose, fourth-century archbishop of Milan. — Ed. v
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feast days, promoted liturgical education, and cared for Catholic associations. Very quickly, however, he saw how the developing industrial situation eluded these concerns. He launched the famous “Milan Mission,” a renewed effort to proclaim the Christian message—something that today we would call an effort to bring the new evangelization to the workplace. In the following years, as a new pope was elected and the start of the Second Vatican Council was announced, he tried to prepare his diocese adequately for this great ecclesial event. Gianna and Pietro responded enthusiastically to the pleas of their archbishop. Saint Gianna, a pediatrician by profession, put into practice the charity she had been taught in her family and had learned through her active participation in the life of the Church. Mr. Molla, an engineer, was already an industrial manager by the time the new archbishop arrived, and at the time of his marriage was a competent leader in technological advancements. His deep concern for charity and justice caused Pietro to seek ways to create new jobs to replace those lost to the accelerated methods of production. With conviction both husband and wife participated in the life of the Church, especially in the liturgy. Gianna was also committed to Catholic Action as the president of the women. From this foundation both of them practiced great charity. A testimony to this was their friendship with Father Olinto Marella, whom the prominent journalist Montanelli called the “vagrant priest.” Father Marella would come to Magenta from Bologna, in an old truck, to pick up from Pietro’s factory anything that could be useful for his orphanages. Another testimony is the family life revealed by these letters. One can sense their great love for one another, their limitless dedication to their children, and, as the basis for all this, an intense prayer life. The letters of Gianna and of her husband were published in the year marking the fiftieth anniversary of her death and of the
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opening of Vatican II. The link between the two events comes from the fact that the Council called by John XXIII and finished by Paul VI favored a new vision of relations between men and women and of marriage in Christ, of which there is an anticipatory trace in these letters. That same year, the Seventh World Meeting of Families took place in Milan. Its theme of “Family Work and Celebration” is another reason to read these letters and to imbibe their spirit. This collection is a precious witness of the strength-giving power of that human fullness which can thrive in a marriage lived through faith. Angelo Cardinal Scola Archbishop of Milan
Preface to My Wife’s Letters By Pietro Molla1
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he letters that Gianna wrote to me during our engagement were beautiful waves bearing enthusiasm and joy, of tenderness and love, a stirring and providential invitation to enjoy the beauty of life and the wonders of creation, to live my faith with joy and trust in Providence. In her first letter (February 21, 1955), Gianna went straight to the heart of my ideal and my will to do the same when she declared, “I really want to make you happy and be what you desire: good, understanding, and ready for the sacrifices that life will require of us . . .” and, “I intend to give myself to form a truly Christian family. . . .” In her other letters, Gianna’s references to God, to his help and his blessing, to her trust in him, and to our duty to be grateful to
1. We reproduce here the preface that originally appeared in: Gianna Beretta Molla, Il tuo grande amore mi aiuterà a essere forte. Lettere al marito, ed. Elio Guerriero (Cinisello Balsamo: Edizioni San Paolo, 1999) published in English as: Love Letters to My Husband: Blessed Gianna Beretta Molla (Boston: Pauline Books & Media, 2002).
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him, confirmed to me how rooted the faith was in her and how profound was her spirit of prayer. In her letter of April 9 of that same year [1955], Gianna, in her humility, wrote to me, “. . . Pietro, I want to be that strong woman of the Gospel! Instead, I think and feel myself weak. . . .” In reality, she was a strong woman from the beginning. When I asked her to move to a little villa on the property of the company of which I was the manager, she said yes at once. Even during the prolonged and very burdensome strikes from 1956–1958 when she shared my worries and disappointments, she never asked to move; she knew that living there would make it easier for me to fulfill my tasks and responsibilities. With her invitation, which I immediately agreed with, to celebrate our official engagement with a Holy Mass and Communion and, above all, with her invitation to me in her letter of September 3, 1955 to prepare ourselves to receive the sacrament of love with a triduum of Holy Masses and Communions, Gianna truly edified me. In our communion of life and love of our family, that the births of our children made fuller and more demanding, Gianna always felt fully gratified. Her letters confirm this, and I like to remember her that way. Now, I kneel before her, a marvelous and strong woman, fiancée, wife, and mother, who, in her love for life and for the child in her womb, knew how to scale the heights of the greatest love which Jesus showed us. Pietro Molla
Letter dated February 14, 1961 from Gianna to Pietro.
Letter dated February 22, 1955 from Pietro to Gianna.
Preface to My Father’s Letters By Gianna Emanuela Molla
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earest Papa d’oro,1 I know well and feel that now you are watching over me from Paradise, together with Mamma and Mariolina. You are the three guardian angels who protect, help, and guide my steps. Together with you, permit me to share with the readers of this book the intense and moving experience I lived during these last few months to transcribe, read, and re-read, in their completeness, all your magnificent letters to Mamma. In doing this I had another confirmation—though I didn’t need one—that you really were a husband and papa d’oro, the most worthy spouse of my saintly mother. It’s a little past four o’clock in the afternoon on Tuesday, September 20, 2011, and I’ve just finished gathering together in the
1. “D’oro” is a title of endearment (literally “of gold”). —Ed.
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ring binder all the letters, cards, and notes you wrote Mamma with boundless love. Tomorrow I will give them all to Dr. Guerriero for publication. The moment has finally arrived to make your letters known as well—the moment many have hoped and waited for, especially those who already knew of and appreciated all the letters that Mamma wrote you with equal love. Cardinal Carlo Maria Martini, who was then archbishop of Milan [and who died on August 31, 2012], and who wrote the beautiful foreword to the book of Mamma’s letters to you, also hoped that yours would be published. “Aside from the frequency, Gianna and Pietro’s written rapport is an extraordinary example of communication. It permits us to glimpse a few luminous flashes of that ‘life lived according to the Gospel’—into that ‘spirituality’— which characterized Gianna’s experience, and, with her, that of her husband, Pietro, whose letters also (judging from a few comments in his wife’s letters), could contribute to outline a more complete picture of the spirituality of this couple and this Christian family.” 2 I remember so well, though, how you, being the very reserved person you were, always preferred to put off their publication until after the Lord had called you to himself, and, quite rightly, we respected your wish. It was October 1, 2010—just a few months after that Holy Saturday, April 3, when you flew to Paradise to embrace again and forever your most beloved Gianna and your Mariolina, leaving a gap that cannot be filled—when Dr. Guerriero approached me again with the suggestion of Edizioni San Paolo to publish your letters to Mamma, and I immediately told Laura and Pierluigi. Knowing well your extreme reserve, I remember that I was in doubt at first. I asked myself whether it would be right. I almost 2. Guerriero, Love Letters to My Husband, viii–ix.
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feared violating your soul that was so noble and pure, so Godfearing, and the deepest feelings you had in your heart—in your great, your very great heart. Afterward, however, I became convinced that your letters, which continually reveal your deep faith and your trust in the Lord and our Heavenly Mother, by whose light you have always lived your boundless and very tender love for Mamma and for us children, for your family and your neighbor, could do a lot of good. I became convinced that you throughout your long life did nothing but good for others, and have always been a great example to us until your last breath. I thought you would certainly be pleased to be able to continue doing good from Paradise as well. And so, in agreement with Laura and Pierluigi, I began with all my good will and care to transcribe, one by one, your seventy-three letters, thirty-nine cards, eleven notes—all written with a fountain pen and green ink—and your telegrams to Mamma. Because complex handwriting is not easy to read, I checked my transcriptions word for word, over and over, with your originals, so that each word would be faithful to your original. What a long, meticulous task it was, but necessary; I was more than happy, honored, and profoundly edified to do it. Especially when reading your early letters, but also other later ones, many of them written late at night when you were already very tired, I couldn’t hold back my tears. On the one hand I reflected on how deeply you and Mamma loved each other and us children, and your immense joy to embrace each other again in Paradise after forty-eight years; on the other hand, I missed and suffered the loss of your visible presence and your boundless affection more than ever. Slowly, as I transcribed your letters, I understood more and more how great was the grace that you and Mamma had received from the Lord and our Heavenly Mother: the grace of meeting each
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other, of becoming “one heart and soul,” with all of Heaven’s blessings; I understood completely that your love was so great, could be so great, profound, and true because the Lord and our Heavenly Mother were always present. They were an integral part of this love, just as they were already an integral part of your whole lives. And in your letters there is a continual thanksgiving to the Lord and our Lady for all the graces and blessings you had received; there is a continual, devout, and intense prayer for your most beloved Gianna, your most beloved children, and your family—always, and even more when your work, which was of great concern and responsibility, also took you far, very far away, and for long periods of time. “The prayer of my flights” is truly magnificent, so much so that Mamma wrote back to you, “You really are the dearest and most affectionate little husband, a saintly papa, not of gold but of diamond, the biggest and most precious one there is on earth!” More than once during these months I remembered vividly how, when I read some of your letters together with you, I told you, with all my heart and with joy, “O Papa, you’re a poet!” and you smiled at me, so very happy to see my joy. And then I would add, “Papa, you were certainly inspired by Heaven when you wrote Mamma these letters,” and in your profound humility, you did not hesitate to confirm my thought. While you were alive, I knelt before you and asked your blessing. Now that you are in Heaven, with Mamma forever, I really don’t know how to thank the Lord for the immense gift he gave me, together with the gift of life: two holy parents. And I pray to him every day, as best I can, to make me worthy of you both, so that I may join you and embrace you again one day and forever. Your most affectionate, Gianna Emanuela
Introduction: Love Is Stronger Than Death By Elio Guerriero
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first met Mr. Pietro Molla the day after the beatification of his wife, Gianna Beretta, in 1994. We met for a book-length interview which has been very successful in Italy and around the world.1 At the time, he mentioned his wife’s letters, especially those from the time of their engagement, as “one of the most touching relics I keep of my wife.” Right away I asked him whether we could publish the letters, but he wisely preferred to wait a while. Nevertheless he promised me he would let me know when the time had come. Gentleman that he was, he kept his word, and when his wife’s
1. The volume by P. Molla Gianna: La beata Gianna Beretta Molla nel ricordo del marito, ed. E. Guerriero (Cinisello Balsamo: Edizioni San Paolo, 1995) was reprinted several times in Italy and was translated into five foreign languages. From here on we will refer to the second edition of 2005, entitled Santa Gianna Beretta Molla. The citation is found on page 44 of that edition.
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canonization was coming up in 2004, he phoned me to ask whether I was still interested in overseeing the publication of Gianna’s letters. Of course I responded in the affirmative. At the same time, I told him that the letters would be more readable and complete if his letters were published as well. Pietro did not immediately refuse; he asked for time to think about it, but in the end he answered me as I had expected: his reserve prevailed. After his death, I called Gianna Emanuela, his daughter who was such a tremendous help to him in his last years, and who today is the soul of the Saint Gianna Beretta Molla Foundation. She told me that her father had discussed my request with her and that now we could publish his letters along with those of his wife. Truly he was a man of his word. The exchange of letters between Saint Gianna and her husband Pietro introduces a new and significant chapter in Christian spirituality. Better than a theological treatise, these letters are a convincing proof that the way of holiness does not necessarily pass through religious life or the priestly ministry, but can unfold in the midst of the world, living one’s own vocation as a Christian called to holiness with Christ in married life. This ancient truth (as we can see in the Acts of the Apostles, saints is synonymous with Christians) was hidden in oblivion during certain centuries which passed over in suspicious silence anything that had to do with the body and sexuality. Among the different types of saints (martyrs, confessors, doctors, virgins), there seemed to be no room for the many Christians who had embraced married life and had viewed it as a mission given them by God, as the field in which to bring their talents to fruition. More often than not, the few married persons (Rita, Nicholas of Flue, Frances of Rome, Jane de Chantal, Louise de Marillac) whom the Church proclaimed as saints had more or less renounced their marriages. Gianna and Pietro,
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however, died in the married state, and their letters testify to the joy of life lived together in a Christ-centered marriage, and to the strength and tenderness of their love for their children. In fact, lifting the veil on their private life, they show us that love centered in Christ takes away nothing of the beauty of being in love, of attraction toward and passion for the beloved, of loving transports and dedication to the children. On the contrary, in these letters of husband and wife, these sentiments are set before us, fresh, pure, and joyful, ever renewed by participation in the Church’s liturgy and by communion in prayer which kept the two united during their separations, the birth of new babies, and the demands of their professions. At the beginning of his Meditation on the Church, Cardinal Henri de Lubac drew attention to the sufferings of many Christians constrained to speak of the mystery of the Church “which they would prefer simply to adore.” 2 In spite of this, he believed the moment had come to speak of the Church, to lay the foundations for a solid ecclesiology in opposition to the misunderstandings of the period between the two wars, misunderstandings of the concept of a community founded by Jesus Christ. I think today it is necessary to apply the cardinal’s thinking to married life. Right now when the Christian concept of matrimony is misunderstood and mocked on all sides, the time has come to put aside reserve in order to propose to the world the beauty of common life between husband and wife, above all in answer to the many detracting voices. It is urgent to show by example rather than words that Christian marriage is eminently livable, that it is a rational and humanly gratifying way to spend one’s life.
2. H. de Lubac, Meditazione sulla Chiesa (Milan: Jaca Book, 1979), 8.
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The fact that the correspondence between Saint Gianna and her husband Pietro is being published the same year that the Seventh World Meeting of Families is being held in Milan on the theme of celebration and work is an even greater reason to see the publication as fitting. To Pietro, Gianna was a woman of celebration, the wife who infused everyday life with an atmosphere of joy. Pietro was a working man whose excessive dedication to his profession was tempered and balanced after he married. Being at the same time an upright and devout man, he and his wife created a communion of life and prayer that was the origin of their marriage’s serenity and joy, and their openness to children who were welcomed and cared for with love and dedication. This volume is, therefore, an invitation to Christian spouses to take these letters in hand, read them attentively, and discover in them the concrete possibility of living Christian marriage with love, whether during their engagement, the joy of the first years of marriage and parenthood, or the years of keeping the sacrament alive each day and caring for the children’s education. Even the fatigue of work— both of them had demanding jobs—can draw us into this harmonious picture, harmonious by a love which, as Benedict XVI has said more than once, is not born solely of the first attraction but must be cultivated each day.3 To facilitate reading these letters I will first offer two points: some information on the husband and wife, and then some information about the letters themselves. I will conclude with some theological considerations.
3. See Benedict XVI, L’amore si apprende (Cinisello Balsamo: Edizioni San Paolo, 2012).
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The Protagonists Gianna4 Gianna’s parents, Maria de Micheli (1887–1942) and Alberto Beretta (1881–1942), were solidly planted in the Lombard Catholic tradition, more attentive to doing than to doctrinal elaborations. From the social point of view, the Berettas were rather well off, but they did not flaunt their standing, and their help to the neediest was never lacking. The family was noted for its care in forming the children. The parents had thirteen children, of whom five died young: three of the Spanish flu and two because of the common medical conditions of the time. The other eight had the opportunity to study and each one earned a professional degree. This was truly exceptional at the time. Saint Gianna was the tenth child, the seventh sibling to live beyond childhood. She was born in Magenta on October 4, 1922, the feast of Saint Francis. Out of devotion toward the Poverello [poor one] of Assisi, the parents, who were both Franciscan tertiaries, added the name of Francesca to her first name, Gianna. A week after her birth she was baptized by her paternal uncle, Father Giuseppe, in the Basilica of Saint Martin. The family then returned to Milan, to Risorgimento Square, where Gianna passed her first years surrounded by the love of brothers and sisters, already breathing in the profoundly Christian atmosphere reigning in her family. In 1925 the family moved to the upper part of Bergamo, but the family’s lifestyle did not change. Prepared by her mother and her older sister Amalia, who was nicknamed Iucci, Gianna received
4. For biographical information on Gianna and her family, see Posizione sulle virtù della beata Gianna Beretta Molla, Pro manuscripto, Rome 1999 (the biography is by Monsignor Antonio Rimoldi). Also see P. Molla-E. Guerriero, Santa Gianna Beretta Molla, cited previously.
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her first Communion on April 4, 1928, at the age of five and a half. From that day on she assisted at Mass daily with her mother. That same year she began her schooling at the Beltrame di Colle Aperto elementary school in Bergamo. According to her younger sister, Mother Virginia, “Gianna was very serene, transparent, sincere, and active.” 5 She was not brilliant in school, but her family atmosphere helped and motivated her to study harder. In 1930 she was confirmed in Bergamo’s cathedral, and that year she attended school taught by the French Daughters of Wisdom. During the following years, however, on account of her mother’s illness, she attended, together with her brother Giuseppe and her sister Virginia, a school taught by the Canossian Sisters. In 1933 she began her gymnasium years [grammar school] at the Paolo Sarpi public school. The first documents we have about Gianna are from these years. They are letters she wrote to her siblings and parents in which she reveals a deep attachment to her family and also a dislike for school. In 1936 she failed her Latin and Italian exams and was held back in those subjects. During the summer she had to stay behind in Bergamo, where she wrote to her parents vacationing on Lake Maggiore in Viggiona, “Here I am, dear Mamma; unfortunately, today I’m alone and I wanted to write you so I could spend some time with you. I went to catechism class at Saint Vigilio and after that I spent some time studying. . . .” 6 Having with difficulty passed the exams in September, Gianna then attended her fourth year of gymnasium at the Paolo Sarpi Institute in Bergamo. The following year, the family moved to Genoa where the girl acquired a more decisive personality and, above all, deepened her Christian life. She continued her studies at the Dorothean Institute 5. In Posizione sulle virtù, op cit., 113. 6. September 6, 1936.
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at Quinto al Mare where, in the spring of 1938, she took part in a course of spiritual exercises given by Father Michele Avedano, S.J. From this retreat, which was a significant event in the life of the fifteen-year-old, we have a notebook entitled Ricordi e Preghiere. Gianna wrote a summary of each of Father Avedano’s sermons, her resolutions, and some prayers to recite during the day. Her studies improved so much that at the end of that year, she was promoted with good grades. Her health, however, was a cause of worry to the point that, at the beginning of the new school year, her parents decided to keep her home to strengthen her delicate constitution. Gianna accepted her parents’ decision with good will and occupied her free time with activities that testify to the delicacy of her spirit: under the guidance of her mother she progressed in her piano studies, did some oil paintings which gave vent to her love for nature, and helped out at home. Most importantly, she enrolled in Catholic Action, in which she served for many years and where she developed her leadership skills. Another gift of this year was meeting Monsignor Mario Righetti (1882–1975), one of the founders of the liturgical movement in Italy, who gave the young woman a love for the Church’s public prayer. After this year of rest, Gianna resumed her studies at the classical school of the Dorothean Sisters at Genoa Albaro, earning consistently good grades. She graduated in June 1942, right in the middle of World War II. The year 1942 was a difficult year in other ways as well. Because of their mother’s worsening illness and the constant bombings in Genoa, the Beretta family decided to return to Bergamo. The two youngest sisters remained behind in the Ligurian capital city since they still had to finish their studies. In April, their mother, Maria, died suddenly, and in September of the same year, their father, Alberto, also died. Gianna sorely missed her parents, but she continued resolutely on with her studies and her Church-related activities. The family,
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meanwhile, led by the oldest brother Francesco, definitively returned to Magenta from which Gianna could easily reach Milan for her university studies. She had chosen to study medicine following the example of her brothers Ferdinando and Enrico, the future Father Alberto, but above all to fulfill her desire to help her neighbor and to bring joy and serenity to the suffering. During the tragic war years, years of internal struggles in Italy and the fall of Fascism, Gianna traveled to Milan to be trained as a physician. But when the war situation worsened at the beginning of the fourth year (1945– 1946), the young woman switched to the University of Pavia. On emerging from the war, Italy turned toward Republicanism and reconstruction. Like many young people of that time, Gianna worked hard to help her country recover. Her niche was Catholic Action. At first she was the delegate for the youngest members with the responsibility of guiding their education and spiritual growth. From 1946 to 1949 she was the president of the young women. With the help of her sisters and of Sister Marianna Meregalli, a Canossian sister who had become her friend and spiritual guide, she undertook many initiatives: conferences, pilgrimages, games, and recreations; frequently she had recourse to the family bank account to help the neediest young girls. Numerous testimonies speak of her educational method, which was based not on her speaking ability but on charity and the ability to listen. One of her girls declared: “In her apostolate she aimed for charity above all, given individually; she took an interest in every interior or family problem, wherever she thought it useful to help out with a word of encouragement, counsel or comfort.” 7 The year 1948 was decisive as Italy found her place in the international scene. Like most Catholics, Gianna worked for the political 7. Testimony of Enrica Parmigiani, reported by Fernando da Riese, Un sì alla vita: Gianna Beretta Molla (Rome: Edizioni Paoline, 1980), 45.
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campaign of the Christian Democrats. Her numerous activities, however, did no harm to her studies. On November 30, 1949, she earned her long-desired diploma in medicine, and the following year, the new doctor opened a medical office in Mesero, 5 km from Magenta. Beginning her professional life required a change in the way her life was organized, but not in her desire to give. It was a significant time in her medical profession, [she wrote]: Unfortunately, today even our work is superficial. We take care of bodies, but often incompetently. 1. We must do our part well. Study hard. Today everyone is after money. 2. Let us be honest. Be faith-filled doctors. 3. Care [for our patients] affectionately; remember that they are our brothers. Be delicate. 4. Do not forget the soul of the sick person. 8
Faithful to this plan, the young doctor wanted to continue her studies, so she enrolled in a pediatric specialization course in Milan. Her decision was influenced by her great love for children and their mothers. At the same time, she dreamed of joining her brother, Father Alberto, who was a missionary in Brazil. Father Alberto, with the help of their brother Francesco who was an engineer, was building a modern hospital in Grajaú in the Maranhão region. To this end, Gianna studied at the Mangiagalli Obstetrical Clinic and studied Portuguese as she prepared to leave. She wrote to her brother, “Dearest Father Alberto, I am so happy to be coming, and I really think this is my vocation. I too have prayed about this. At the end of the month I’m going on retreat to see whether the Lord will say yes or no.” 9
8. This text is classified as document 27–31 and recorded in A. Rimoldi, Gianna Beretta Molla: Una vita per la vita (1922–1962), Pro manuscripto (1978), 131. 9. Letter to Father Alberto, September 12, 1952.
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When Francesco returned from Brazil, he told his siblings about the illnesses that could attack someone who was not in robust health. The family was alarmed. They knew that Gianna, like her mother, was very sensitive to heat, and they begged her to change her plans. Her spiritual director and the bishop of Bergamo10 were also concerned. Bishop Bernareggi said, “From my experience with priests and bishops I have learned that when the Lord calls a soul to the missionary ideal, in addition to a great faith and an outstanding spirituality, he also gives them physical strength to help them deal with difficulties and situations we can’t even imagine over here.” 11 Gianna listened to these authoritative opinions and was particularly impressed by the story of her mother. In her youth, Mrs. Beretta had also wanted to be a missionary, but instead, had become an extraordinary mother. In spite of the momentary disappointment, Gianna turned her attention to family life.
Pietro12 Pietro Molla was born in Mesero, a little town west of Milan along the road to Turin, on July 1, 1912. His parents were Maria Salmoiraghi (1885–1978) and Luigi Molla (1884–1956), two people of great faith and profoundly Christian values. His three older siblings all died before their first birthdays. After him were born Rosetta, Adelaide, Luigia, and Teresina. His father, Luigi, a
10. Archbishop Adriano Bernareggi (1884–1953) was the Bishop of Bergamo from 1936 until 1953. 11. This is related by her brother, Father Giuseppe Beretta, in Terra Ambrosiana, 1 (1994), 36. 12. Some of these facts about Pietro Molla come from what he told me himself in the book-interview P. Molla-E. Guerriero, Santa Gianna Beretta Molla, cited above. Others come from his daughter, Gianna Emanuela, who was a great help to me.
Introduction: Love Is Stronger Than Death OP 11
shoemaker who taught his trade to many in Mesero, placed his hopes in Pietro for whom he desired a better professional future than his own. With deep earnestness he sustained many sacrifices so that his son could study, and encouraged him in difficult moments. Pietro, on his part, was a diligent boy who was much loved. In 1919, according to the practice introduced ten years earlier by Pope Pius X, he was confirmed and received his first Communion at age seven. He earned good grades at the local school. The first difficulty he encountered had to do with finishing elementary school. In Mesero they only had the first four grades, and to go on to the fifth grade, one had to pass an exam. With the help of the parish priest, Pietro’s father turned to the Sisters of the Precious Blood who had recently settled in town, and whose superior, Mother Giovanna Colloni, personally took charge of preparing the boy for this exam. He took and passed the exam at the elementary school run by the Canossian Sisters in Magenta. At this time, Fascism was gaining strength and consolidating its recently acquired power. In 1923, Pietro had to leave Mesero to continue his studies. His father chose for him the Collegio Villoresi San Giuseppe in Monza, a boarding school run at the time by the Barnabite Fathers. From west of Milan, the boy moved east of the principal Lombardian city, toward Venice. Discipline at the boarding school was severe, but Pietro studied hard, partly to please his father who had placed so much confidence in him. One gets the impression that the suffering caused by this early separation from his family formed a strong character but also made him a bit reserved. This reserve only dissipated slowly with the years, as he recovered his spontaneity and joy in relationships with others. At Saint Joseph’s his teachers were good priests who taught, along with Latin, a respect for others, but the discipline was rigid. The education, which was given with an excessive insistence on strict rules of