Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/620610
St. Maria is the youngest canonized saint in the Church. She is known as the Patroness of Purity. Her greatest virtue was the forgiveness of her attacker even in the midst of horrendous physical suffering, a forgiveness that would lead him on a path to God, becoming a sinner transformed by mercy. Read on to learn about little Maria's own path of mercy. DEvOTED iN TiMES OF hARDShip Born October 16, 1890, Maria Goretti was an illiterate peasant girl who lived in poverty with her parents, who were sharecroppers. Her father moved the family when Maria was just six years old from the east side of Italy to the west side (about 40 miles south of Rome) in hopes of escaping the intense poverty that was gripping the area. Just three years later, when Maria was nine, her father died of malaria. It fell to her as a nine year old, to raise her five siblings while her mother worked the fields to produce the crops with which they would both pay the rent and feed themselves. This was a terrible time of trial and suffering for the whole family. For Maria it was especially difficult. Aside from having the responsibility of caring for her family, she had to also cook and clean for her two next door neighbors – Giovanni Serenelli and his son, Alessandro – who assisted her mother with the farm tasks. uNwANTED ATTENTiON It was a blessing to have such good neighbors in the Serenelli family, the helping hands went a long way on the Goretti farm. Yet it was during this time that Alessandro Serenelli began to merciful Maria National Catholic Forester 24