|
Saint Maria
Goretti Religious Medal
Patron Saint: Youth, Purity & Rape Victims - Feast Day July 6
the
In 1902 an
eighteen-year-old neighbor, Alexander, grabbed her from her
steps and
tried to rape her. When Saint Maria Goretti said that she would rather died than submit,
Alexander began stabbing her with a knife. As she lay in the
hospital,
she forgave Alexander before she died.
Sentenced to thirty years he was unrepentant until he had a
dream that he was in a garden. Saint Maria Goretti was there and gave him
flowers. When he woke, he was a changed man,
repenting of his crime and living a reformed life. On his
released ,
he went directly to Saint Maria Goretti's mother to
beg her forgiveness, which she gave.
"If my daughter can forgive him, who am I to withhold
forgiveness" .
She was canonized by Pope Pius XII in 1950 for her purity as model for
youth.
She is called a martyr because she fought against
Alexander's attempts at sexual assault. However, the most
important aspect of her story is her forgiveness of her attacker
-- her concern for her enemy extending even beyond death.
|
