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In his Son, Jesus Good Shepherd, the Father has opened
in the Church, through Blessed James Alberione, a new
path of holiness. The holiness of God, which is nothing
else but his goodness and his beauty, has been made
visible in Christ the Good Shepherd: kalōs, the
Beautiful Shepherd. |
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Good
Shepherd,
Mausoleum of
Galla
Placidia,
Ravenna |
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For every Christian, the
path to holiness begins
with Baptism. We are all
called to live in
holiness, faith, hope
and charity.
For us Pastorelle
Sisters, it’s not only a
vocation to personal
holiness. We are called
to take care of the
holiness of the people
of God in the ministry
of pastoral care. Ours
is a vocation to be
mothers and sisters in
the Spirit at the
service of the holiness
of the Church by our
configuration to Christ
the Shepherd, in order
to reawaken the taste
for God in our fellow
human beings today.
In our prayer let us ask
for the gift of pastoral
holiness:
italiano
english
português
español |
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Let us be challenged by
those who have been
witnesses of holiness as
lived out in the
ministry of pastoral
care.
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The Fathers of the
Church |
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St. Ambrose of
Milan
Pastor and Father of
the Church
He is remembered on
7 December
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Ambrose, a member of
two important
Senatorial Roman
families that had
become Christian,
the Aurelii family
on the mother’s
side, and the
Simmaci Family on
the father’s side,
was born at Trier
about the year 339
where his father was
prefect of the Gauls.
Destined for a civil
career, he attended
the best schools in
Rome and received a
solid rhetorical and
judicial education. |
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After five years as
a magistrate at
Sirmio, around 370
he was sent to
govern the provinces
of Emilia and
Liguria and
eventually arrived
in Milan as Governor
of Northern Italy
where he became an
influential figure
in the court of the
Emperor Valentinian
I. His ability to
pacify those of
opposite factions
[orthodox Christians
and Arians] won him
the respect of the
people.
Fifty years had
passed from the time
of Constantine’s
decree and the
Church was growing
strong and well
organised, but at
the same time it was
facing its first
Christological
heresies between the
Arians and the
Orthodox. |
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In 374,
following
the
death of
the
Arian
bishop,
Auxentius,
Ambrose
was
acclaimed
by the
people
as
bishop
of Milan
despite
the fact
that he
was a
simple
catechumen.
At first
he
refused
given
that he
wasn’t
even
baptised
and
lacked
preparation.
But he
later
accepted
and
under
the
Emperor
Flavius
Valentianian
was
baptised
and
ordained
a
bishop.
Highly
prepared
culturally,
but
deficient
in
knowledge
of
Scriptures,
the new
bishop
began to
study
them
energetically.
In this
way
Ambrose
brought
to the
Latin
environment
the
practice
of
meditating
on
Scriptures
initiated
by
Origen,
beginning
the
practice
of
‘lectio
divina”
in the
West.
The
method
of
“lectio”
soon
guided
the
preaching
and
writing
of
Ambrose,
which
emerged
precisely
from the
prayerful
listening
to the
word of
God.
Giving
himself
to a
life of
prayer
and
asceticism,
Ambrose
gave
away his
goods to
the poor
and all
his
properties
except
for
making
provisions
for the
support
of his
young
sister,
Marcellina,
who was
to
consecrate
herself
to
Christ
in the
Order of
consecrated
virgins.
To
Marcellina,
Ambrose
dedicated
his
treaties
on
Christian
virginity.
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He was man of great
charity, his door
was always open to
others and he was
tireless in his care
of the people
entrusted to him.
His wisdom and fame
were determining
factors in the
conversion of
Augustine. In 386
Augustine had come
to Milan as a
professor of
rhetoric, in search
of the truth.
Seeking he wasn’t
able to find since
he did not know that
it was God who was
in search of him.
The beautiful
homilies of Ambrose
certainly made an
impact on Augustine
but it was above all
the testimony of his
life and the life of
the Church of Milan,
a Church deeply
united with its
bishop that
converted him.
Augustine was
baptised by Ambrose
on the Easter night
of 387.
Under the leadership
of Ambrose, the
Church was capable
of resisting the
bullying of the
emperor and his
mother, who had
demanded again the
expropriation of a
Church building for
Arian ceremonies in
early 386. In the
building that was to
be expropriated,
Augustine wrote,
“the devout people
of Milan stayed put,
ready to die with
their own bishop.”
[1] |
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Subsequently,
Ambrose ordered the
building of four
basilicas, at the
four corners of the
city as if to form a
protective square
and in the shape of
a cross. These
correspond to the
existing Basilica of
St. Nazaro, built on
the road that
connected Milan to
Rome; the Basilica
of St Sempliciano;
The Basilica of the
Martyrum which
Ambrose made home to
the bodies of Saints
Gervasius and
Protasius and the
Basilica in which he
himself was buried
and came to be known
as the Basilica of
St. Ambrose; and the
fourth, the Basilica
of St. Dyonisius.
As the bishop of
Milan, Ambrose
exercised
considerable
influence on the
social and political
life of the Empire.
And because the
Emperor, starting
with Constantine,
held a certain
authority within the
church, Ambrose took
his distance in
order to preserve
his ecclesiastical
prerogatives and to
be the one to care
for the Christian
life of Emperor
Theodosius. In
fact, in the year
390 he reprimanded
him severely after
he had ordered a
massacre among the
population of
Thessalonica, guilty
of having lynched
the head of the
Roman garrison of
the city. In the
course of three
hours of massacre
thousands of people
had been killed. As
punishment, Ambrose
imposed a “public
penance” on
Theodosius; he was
excluded from
participation in the
liturgy. Theodosius
accepted the penance
imposed on him and
it was only in the
Christmas of the
following year that
he was readmitted to
the sacraments. |
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Ambrose
wrote
works on
ethics
and
theology.
He
guarded
the
rights
of the
Church,
and in
his
writings
and his
work he
defended
the true
faith
against
the
Arians
and
paganism.
He very
quickly
developed
an
extraordinary
sensus
fidei
which
markedly
influenced
the
culture
on his
time. He
wrote
many
hymns
for
prayer
and made
fundamental
reforms
to the
liturgy
and
sacred
songs,
introducing
features
taken
from the
Eastern
liturgies.
His
successors
kept his
liturgy
in the
diocese
of Milan
recognised
as the
Ambrosian
Rite
and
which is
still
used
today.
He
worked
hard to
regenerate
the
spirituality
and
theological
preparation
of the
clergy
and to
propose
strong
testimonial
experiences
for
Christians.
He
promoted
and
supported
the
state of
consecrated
virginity,
renewing
the
eschatological
dimension
which
was
weakening
after
the era
of the
martyrs
had
eased.
He spoke
severely
against
usury
and the
selfish
use of
the
goods of
the
earth, |
and
through
his
evangelical
parresia
[2]
he
fought
against
emperors
and the
powerful
people
of his
time who
had
succumbed
to moral
and
doctrinal
errors.
However,
he did
this
without
ever
failing
to
proclaim
the
mercy of
God
towards
all who
have
erred.
In his
treaty
on
Penance,
it is
lovely
to sense
his
solidarity
with
those
who have
sinned:
“Preserve,
O Lord,
Your
work,
guard
the gift
which
you have
given
even to
him who
shrank
from it.
Let not
him whom
when
lost you
called
to the
priesthood,
to be
lost
when a
bishop.
And
first
grant
that I
may know
how with
inmost
affection
to mourn
with
those
who sin;
Grant
that so
often as
the sin
of any
one who
has
fallen
is made
known to
me I may
suffer
with
him, and
not
chide
him
proudly,
but
mourn
and
weep, so
that
weeping
over
another
I may
mourn
for
myself
”.
[3]
He was a
faithful
shepherd
to
Christ
and to
his
flock
whom he
guided
with
courage
and
wisdom
to
maturity
in faith
and
fidelity
to the
Gospel.
He gave
his
whole
life to
pastoral
ministry
and died
when he
was not
even 60.
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“The
saintly Bishop
Ambrose died during
the night in Milan
between April 3-4,
397. It was the dawn
of Holy Saturday.
The day before,
toward 5 p.m., he
began to pray as he
was lying in bed
with his arms open
in the form of the
cross. That is how
he participated in
the solemn Easter
Triduum, in the
death and
resurrection of Our
Lord. "We saw him
moving his lips,"
testified Paulinus,
the faithful deacon
who was invited by
Augustine to write
Ambrose's biography
entitled "Vita,"
"but his voice could
not be heard."
Suddenly, the
situation seemed to
come to an end.
Honoratus, bishop of
Vercelli, who helped
Ambrose and who
slept upstairs from
him, was awakened by
a voice that
repeated: "Get up,
quick! Ambrose is
approaching death."
Honoratus
immediately went
downstairs, Paulinus
recounted, "and
offered the saint
the Body of the
Lord. After having
taken it, Ambrose
surrendered his
spirit, carrying
with him viaticum.
Thus, his soul,
strengthened by
virtue of that food,
now enjoys the
company of angels"
("Vita," 47).
On that Good Friday
of 397, the open
arms of the dying
Ambrose expressed
his mystical
participation in the
death and
resurrection of Our
Lord. This was his
last catechesis:
Without speaking a
word, he spoke with
the testimony of
life.”
[4]
The legacy of St
Ambrose has emerged
primarily from his
pastoral duties:
the preaching of
the Word of God
linked to theology,
the attention given
to problems
regarding social
justice, the
welcoming of people
from distant lands,
denouncing errors in
public and political
life. A tradition
hat has been long
guarded by the whole
Church and
especially the
Ambrosian Church.
The homilies and
declarations of its
bishop, even today,
especially on the
feast of St Ambrose,
are held in great
esteem by the
general public.
“Like John the
Apostle, Bishop
Ambrose, who never
tired of repeating "Omnia
Christus est nobis!"
-- Christ is
everything for us!
-- remained an
authentic witness
for the Lord. With
these same words,
full of love for
Jesus, we will
conclude our
catechesis: "Omnia
Christus est nobis!
If you want to heal
a wound, he is the
physician; is you
burn with fever, he
is the fountain; if
you are oppressed by
iniquity, he is
justice; if you need
help, he is
strength; if you
fear death, he is
life; if you desire
heaven, he is the
way; if you are in
darkness, he is the
light. ... Taste and
see how good the
Lord is. Blessed is
the man who hopes in
him!" ("De
virginitate,"16,
99)”
[5]
Ambrose of Milan,
holy bishop and
father of the
Church, remains a
point of reference
for anyone who is
called to the care
of life in Christ
and to the
proclamation of the
Gospel to all who
search for truth and
justice but may not
find them since they
do not know that the
longing in their
hearts is a God
given longing. We
can also look to him
to discover anew the
breath of a Church
that breathes
through both its
Eastern and
[Christian] Western
lungs, a Church that
John Paul II so much
longed for and
promoted throughout
his entire
Pontificate.
(Edited by) Sr.
Giuseppina
Alberghina sjbp |
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Notes
[1]
Augustine of Hippo,
Confessions, 9,7.
[4]
Pope Benedict XVI,
General Audience, 24
October 2007.
[5]
Pope Benedict XVI,
General Audience, 24
October 2007.
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Witnesses of
pastoral holiness |
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Sr. Cecilia Domenica Sciarrone:
the ardent heart and
industrious hands
of an authentic
missionary |
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Domenica was a
beautiful 21 year
old girl from
Calabria when she
applied to enter the
Congregation of the
Sisters of Jesus
Good Shepherd,
Pastorelle, who were
only four years
founded and part of
the Pauline Family.
In fact, on 22
September 1942,
Domenica joined the
small group of
Sisters that was
quickly gaining
stability and
developing rapidly.
The young lady
arrives with a
letter of
recommendation from
her parish priest,
don Gaetano Cotroneo,
who testified to the
solidity of her
religious vocation.
Domenica has grown
up in a well to do
Christian family
that distinguished
itself in the
township for its
wealth and its
assiduous regular
parish life. Her
father, Santo, and
her mother, Eleonora
Pratticò, had six
children: a boy who
became a magistrate
and five girls, two
of which became
Religious, our
Sister Cecilia and
her sister Caterina
who became a
Salesian Sister. |
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Domenica
was born
at Campo
Calabro,
Reggio
Calabria,
on 23
November
1920 and
was
baptised
on 8
December,
on the
feast of
the
Immaculate
Conception,
in the
parish
Church
dedicated
to Saint
Mary
Magdalene.
The
years in
which
Domenica
joined
were the
stormy
years of
World
War II
and the
small
flock of
Pastorelle
Sisters
was
doing
its best
to
confront
all the
difficulties
and
deprivations
they
encountered
and to
help
people
around
them.
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The time
of the
war
coincided
with the
time of
her
initial
formation,
and
together
with the
other
Sisters,
she
lived
the
experience
of
moving
from one
community
to
another
in
search
of a
safe
place...
At the
end of
1942 she
was in
Valdicastello,
Lucca,
and
subsequently
at Farra
d’Alpago
in the
Belluno
region.
They
were
difficult
times
but also
times of
high
aspirations
to be
disciples
of the
Lord
with
evangelical
radicality.
It was
only at
the end
of the
war,
when
peace
was
being
consolidated,
that
Domenica
did her
novitiate
at
Genzano
and made
her
First
Profession
on 6
January
1948
taking
the name
of
Cecilia
after
the
roman
martyr
who shed
her
blood
for
Christ,
giving
joyful
and
courageous
witness
to her
faith.
Sr
Cecilia
always
sought
to do
honour
to the
martyr
whose
name she
bore and
from the
beginning
of her
religious
life she
“was
animated
by a
great
spirit
of faith
and
charity,
she was
generous
towards
everyone,
keen to
help,
especially
in the
sewing
room,
but also
anywhere
she was
asked to
go,
without
letting
weigh on
anybody
what she
did”,
according
to the
testimony
of a
Sister. |
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After her Profession she went to S. Pietro alle Acque, Umbria, the house which in those years served as the Central house of the Institute and the house for initial formation. Among the many human and spiritual qualities that Sr Cecilia possessed, she could sew, do embroider y and was very good at art and craft which she passed on to the young women with enthusiasm.
In 1951 she was entrusted with the role of Superior in the community of Polinago, a beautiful area in the Modenese Apennines where it always snows in winter. In 1953 she was called to be animator of the community of Medolla at the service of a very lively parish. |
It was at Medolla, just as she was beginning her apostolate, that she received the missionary call to go to Brazil where the Congregation was setting its first roots and many young women were asking to enter.
They needed a Sister to lend a hand in the fervour of its early growth and there was a great need to provide many things and not least a house where to welcome the young women. “As soon as she set foot on Brazilian soil, after two days of her arrival she took me on a charity round at Rio de Janeiro, in order to provide for some of the house needs of the Terceira Légua in Caxias do Sul, where a number of aspirants had already entered”, testifies the same Sister as before. |
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Sr Cecilia was a
well loved member of
the formation
community of
Terceira Légua. Sr
Cecilia was simple
and spontaneous; she
had a good sense of
humour and was also
able to accept her
own limitations and
to sincerely
recognize her
mistakes. In 1959
she became part of
the Avenida san
Leopoldo community,
also in Caxias do
Sul, this house was
the Central house
and formation house
of the Institute.
After one of her
missionary voyages
by boat, she wrote
to the First Master
telling him how she
spent her days
during the long
crossing, praying
much and attending
to children who were
travelling with
their families.
Among other things
she writes: “We
praised God above
the immensity of the
waters. I suffered
for having left
behind my family and
fellow-Sisters but
in my heart I felt
much joy and very
close to Jesus as I
conversed with Him
before the small
Ciborium; renewing
at every moment the
gift of myself of
which you are
aware…in reparation
for the many sins
committed”.
In 1963 she returned
to Italy and stayed
for over a year in
the community of
Saliceto Panaro
where she dedicated
herself to the
pastoral care of
families. On her
return to Brazil,
she went to
Jabaquara, Sao
Paulo, where the
Congregation had a
big community and
its first school
which was to become
a very prestigious
educational
Institute: the
Institute of the
Divine Shepherdess.
As always, Sr
Cecilia got on well
with the young and
contributed through
her laboriousness to
the many daily
necessities. She
remained there until
1969 when she was
appointed Superior
of the community of
Terceira Légua where
she had begun her
missionary
adventure.
Subsequently she was
made Superior of the
community of
Fagundes Varela
which had been
opened in 1954. She
remained in this
community until her
final return to
Italy in 1971.
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Part 2
In the first part we
described the
vocation and
religious life of
Sr. Cecilia Domenica
Sciarrone, including
her great missionary
experience in
Brazil, which
concluded in 1971,
the year in which
she was asked to
return to Italy.
After returning from
Brazil and spending
some time in Albano
studying to obtain
her diploma as a
kindergarten
teacher, Sister
Cecilia was sent to
be part of the
community at Borgo
Milano, Verona,
where in 1972-73 she
completed her
training as a
kindergarten
teacher. She was
very happy in the
apostolate and gave
herself generously
wherever she saw a
need. She was most
faithful in the care
of her spiritual
life and hardly ever
neglected her
prayer.
She was diligent in
her preparation for
the apostolate
especially for the
teaching of
catechism which she
loved doing, and she
kept up her
formation by
participating in
renewal courses. She
used to also
dedicate time to
visiting the sick of
the parish and
joined UNITALSI[1]
so as to be able to
better fulfil her
ministry of
consoling and
offering spiritual
help to those in
need. |
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Sister
Cecilia
often
told
jokes
and was
pleasant
company;
she had
a
captivating
simplicity
combined
with a
great
precision
in
everything
she did.
She was
a great
example
of
someone
who was
available
and
accountable.
A very
sincere
and
affectionate
Sister,
she was
always
ready to
assist
in the
needs of
the
moment,
showing
a strong
love for
the
Congregation.
Her deep
faith
and
trust in
the
First
Master
and in
her
Superiors
made her
docile
in
obedience
and
zealous
in the
apostolate
which
she
carried
out for
the Lord
alone
and not
to be
noticed.
Sr
Cecilia
gladly
spoke of
and
listened
to
things
of God
and
nourished
her
relationship
with the
Lord so
as to
love him
more and
more. |
Her
health
was not
strong
and in
the
summer
of 1975,
while
visiting
her
family,
she took
the
opportunity
for a
period
of rest,
enjoying
her
beautiful
Calabrian
sea.
When she
returned
to the
community
in
August,
she
began to
experience
the
early
symptoms
of a
disease
that was
not
easily
diagnosed.
She
lamented
fatigue
and
severe
headaches.
Her
doctor
recommended
a tonic
treatment
but it
didn’t
have the
desired
effects.
With the
passing
of weeks
her
health
deteriorated.
She
experienced
brief
moments
of
memory
loss
and, at
times,
her
behaviour
seemed
marked
by
certain
disorientation. |
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Such health problem
prevented her from
continuing her
ministry in the
parish and to leave
the community of
Borgo Milano.
Everyone, especially
the sick who were
very fond of her,
wished her well and
a speedy recovery
and a happy return.
So towards the end
of the year, Sister
Cecilia moved to the
Mother House at
Albano, and was
admitted to Regina
Apostolorum Hospital
where she underwent
surgery for a
cholecystotomy. Her
recovery was slow
and during her long
convalescence, signs
of deterioration and
mental fatigue
became evident.
Consequently, after
Easter in 1976, she
was taken for an
emergency
hospitalisation to a
clinic in Rome where
she stayed for one
day only due to the
difficulty of
reaching a
prognosis. And so,
on April 24, she was
transferred to San
Camillo hospital
where she remained
until June 22.
Prior to her
departure for Albano
for her
hospitalisation in
Rome, one of the
Sisters comforted
her reminding her of
a phrase from the
First Master: "The
bed of a sick Sister
is like an altar."
At those words her
face seemed to be
transfigured and she
replied: “How
beautiful these
things you are
saying to me!” This
sentence well
describes Sr
Cecilia, her
determination to be
a good Religious in
all things, even to
the point of
offering her life
with that of Jesus
Good Shepherd. |
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At the
hospital
she was
diagnosed
with a
brain
tumour,
maybe
already
advanced,
but
nevertheless
she was
operated
in an
attempt
to
circumscribe
the
tumour;
unfortunately
that
didn’t
happen
and her
condition
worsened
considerably.
The
doctors
recommended
that she
be
transferred
to the
hospital
in
Albano
Laziale,
to be
more
easily
assisted
by the
Sisters,
who with
great
love and
dedication
took
turns at
her
bedside
day and
night.
On the
feast of
the holy
Apostles
Peter
and
Paul, a
day of
great
celebration
for our
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Congregation,
the
Superior
General,
before
leaving
for
Brazil,
went to
see
Sister
Cecilia
and
asked
for the
help of
her
prayer
and the
offering
of her
suffering.
Sr
Cecilia
could
not
speak
but
through
her
facial
expression
and
especially
with her
eyes,
she
expressed
her joy
and her
participation
in the
trip
through
her
suffering.
Although
she was
paralysed,
at the
moment
of
praying
the Our
Father,
she
composed
herself
as in
prayer,
the
prayer
of the
heart
that the
Lord
welcomed
in the
secret
of His
mystery. |
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Her health
deteriorated further
and her sister, Sr
Caterina who was a
Salesian Sister,
remained close to
her in the last days
of her life together
with the Pastorelle
Sisters who did not
leave her even a
single moment. On
the morning of 13
July 1976, at 3.40am
Sr Cecilia entrusted
her earthly
existence to the
Father and entered
eternal life.
Sr. Cecilia had a
short life; she
would have been 56
years the following
November. However,
hers was an intense
life lived in faith
and dedication to
Jesus the Good
Shepherd, in the
love for her
vocation of
Pastorella and in
the care of the
people of God. Her
ardent heart was
purified in the
crucible of a
profound suffering
that was hard to
comprehend, but a
suffering that the
heavenly Father
accepted in the
silent offering of
an act of pure love,
the intensity and
gratuitousness of
which was known to
Him alone.
Her hands now united
to the hands of the
crucified and
glorious Christ, we
can be certain,
continue to be
active in abundantly
blessing and
interceding in the
presence of the
blessed Holy
Trinity. |
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Sr. Giuseppina
Alberghina sjbp |
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Notes
[1]
U.N.I.T.A.L.S.I.
(UNITALSI) – Unione
Nazionale Italiana
Trasporto Ammalati a
Lourdes e Santuari
Internazionali. [Italian
National Union of
Transportation of
the Sick to Lourdes
and to International
Shrines] |
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Archives |
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