St. Maria Goretti

8x10 Art print, frame is not included. 

Pen on Paper

"He loves, He hopes, He waits, our Lord prefers to wait Himself for the sinner for years rather than keep us waiting an instant" ~St. Maria Goretti

One of the youngest Saints canonized by the Church, martyred at only 11 years old in 1902, St. Maria Goretti lived an ordinary life of extraordinary faith. 

After a 20 year-old Alessandro Serenelli attempted to rape her, Maria refused and fought saying "No! It is a sin! God does not want it!" He went on to stab her many times before being found by her mother and transported to the hospital. It was here that Maria prayed and forgave Serenelli saying "For the love of Jesus, I forgive him, and I want him to be with me in Paradise" before passing into Paradise herself. 

Bitter and unapologetic, Serenelli was 11 years into his sentence when he had a vision of St. Maria Goretti who brought him 14 white lilies. At first reluctant, he eventually took each lily.  As he took each flower, it transformed into a white flame and Maria repeated her forgiveness for him.

Maria's mercy changed Serenelli's life that day. He soon repented, returned to God, and became a model prisoner. Maria's mother went on to forgive him citing her daughter's testament. Serenelli went onto become a Franciscan lay brother and was present alongside Maria's Mother during her canonization in 1950 under Pope Pius XII. 

St. Maria Goretti lives on in the heart of the faithful and serves as a reminder of the Lord's Mercy. Forgiveness that can change lives and the world.