The chapel of the Lomagna Oratory now houses an iconic picture of Sister Luisa Dell’Orto. The image received the blessing of Don Andrea Restelli this morning, Wednesday 21 June, on the occasion of the memory of Saint Luigi Gonzaga, to whom the Lomagnese oratory is dedicated.
Sisters of Sister Luisa, Carmen and Maria Adele, with Don Andrea Restelli
The priest originally highlighted the common features between St. Aloysius from Lomagna and the Little Sisters. Even though half a millennium has passed and life’s circumstances have changed drastically, the same matrix of faith and mission remains in the spirit of giving of oneself for others.
Morning service in the parish church was held on weekdays in the presence of the children of the oratory, who were thus able to hear the life testimony of the saint and the little sister. In fact, Don Andrea reverted to the choices made by St. Louis from a young age, who gave himself up to blood privileges (he belonged to a noble family) in order to fully embrace God’s message and help others. decided to snatch. He became part of the Society of Jesus and while taking care of the plague sick and providing some relief, he became infected and died at the age of only 24.
“For all of you” is the motto chosen by the FOM Youth Ministry (Fondazione Oratori Milanesi) of the Ambrosian Diocese for GREST 2023. An invitation to be responsible by listening to the needs of others and helping others for free. St. Louis embodied these values. This was commented upon by Don Andrea, who then drew a parallel with Sister Luisa, about whom she has had occasion to speak in recent days to the children of the weekday oratory. “When one understands what the way to be happy is, he goes and follows it. Who knows how many humiliations St. Louis endured. Even today, many would tell him he was crazy, electrocuted But he was happy that way,” remarked the priest, who will for all intents and purposes be Lomagna’s parish priest from September.
Don Andrea recalled that a year ago, until June 25, when she was hit by four bullets, Sister Luisa worked in Haiti for the marginalized: “She decided to create a structure similar to our oratory , but which also served as a school for those people who could not afford to educate themselves. For those children she became a mother, headmaster, teacher. Someone decided to close it is, and with it, its actions. A bad man has decided to kill the good by doing evil.
The priest recalled that, after the murder of the Little Sister of the Gospel, Pope Francis had expressed that Sister Luisa had given her life to martyrdom. Don Andrea said that it happens that someone comes to the nun’s grave in the church or cemetery to pray for her. Don said, “Sister Luisa was scared, her family knows that very well, but she put her life second to her vows and the joy of being among the needy.”
Other moments of remembrance at Lomagna are planned for the first anniversary of Sister Luisa’s death. On Saturday 24 June, the bishop of Como Oscar Cantoni will bless the window of a door dedicated to him, which gives access to a room in the church reserved for young children and their parents. The moment will be preceded by a visit by Cardinal Cantoni to the cemetery where religious missionaries Luisa Dell’Orto and Vittorio Ferrari are buried.
Meanwhile, work has begun on the ornamentation of the playground, through Silvio Pellico, with murals commemorating those created at the center where Sister Luisa worked in Haiti. The inauguration of the inclusive playground named after Sister Luisa and the naming ceremony for the same is scheduled for Sunday 25 June (click here).
A biographical book on Charles de Foucauld’s Little Sister, written by Avenire journalist Lucia Capuzzi, who has signed various reports from the poorest and most conflict-ridden regions of the planet, is out (official publication date is June 30). The volume has a foreword by former director of the same newspaper Marco Tarquinio.
MP
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