The miraculous cure of Blessed Maria Giuseppina Catanea

Summary:

Nicknamed "Pinella" as a child, Giuseppina Catanea was born on February 18, 1894, in Naples, Italy, into a wealthy family. Her father, Francesco, belonged to the Grimaldi family, a prestigious dynasty on the Italian peninsula. The family had three children. Giuseppina received a complete education in arithmetics, geography, history, Latin, etc. But she was chronically sick: all her life, she suffered from various illnesses, some of which disappeared after a religious action such as prayer, a novena or the imposition of a saint's image or relic.

Her biographers describe her as a child who loved religious songs and family or parish prayer. But more than that, Giuseppina spent a lot of time alone, in her room, asking God to help her parents, friends or any priest she met. From a very early age, the mystery of communion of saints held a great fascination to her, in that it helps those who are suffering to retain the hope in the future - which belongs to God alone. Yet she was by no means cut off from the world; on the contrary, she had great affection for the poor, assisted them and gave them alms.

In May 1904, she made her First Communion and received the sacrament of Confirmation. From that date on, her mind was made up: she would become a nun. To do so, she was ready to give up her social position, her advantages and her possessions. In the meantime, she obediently accepted her father's injunctions and began studying business at the Regina Margherita Institute in Naples, graduating on March 10, 1918.

Giuseppina's successful university career is astonishing in itself, for she had fallen ill six years earlier, in 1912, with angina pectoris followed by tuberculosis. Her spine and several vertebrae were affected. A large part of her body was paralyzed. At the time, tens of thousands of people in Europe were dying of tuberculosis, and there was no cure. Yet she recovered instantly, without any medical intervention, after praying a novena in honor of St. Joseph with the Carmelite nuns at Ponti Rossi (Naples), where she was a regular visitor.

It was this community that she decided to enter. At the time, it was still only a meeting of members of a third order of Carmel. It didn't matter to her. She felt that this was where God was calling her. In the meantime, and despite her health problems, she was visited by young suitors who asked her to marry them, to no avail. One day, one of them, spurned, wounded her in the chest with a hunting rifle. She recovered instantly after placing an image of Our Lady on the wound.

On November 24, 1918, her health suddenly deteriorated. The Ponti Rossi community's regular doctor announced that she would soon die, as her vital signs were critical. A priest administered the last rites. A few hours later, she opened her eyes, got up alone and went about her business: she and her religious sisters had been imploring the Virgin Mary all night.

On June 6, 1922, tragedy struck: Maria-Giuseppina suffered a heart attack. Upon arriving, the doctors determined that she had very little hope of survival. She regained consciousness, but remained motionless and unresponsive to stimuli from those around her. A few days went by. She was hydrated and fed artificially. The time of death seemed inevitable. Maria Giuseppina later recounted a dream she had a few hours after her heart attack, which at first she didn’t understand: a "saint" dressed in black religious garb, a staff in his hand, accompanied by an "Indian in a white turban", smiled at her and told her to come closer; then she heard a voice: "Saint Francis Xavier will heal you." A few days later, her confessor, the Carmelite Don Romualdo di Sant'Antonio, whom she had not seen since the heart attack, brought her a small image of St. Francis Xavier. On the back of the image was printed a prayer to Francis Xavier to obtain his intercession and God's healing. He and Maria-Giuseppina began to invoke the Apostle of the Indies. Don Romualdo whispered in her ear that a surprise awaited her: a relic of St. Francis Xavier had arrived in Naples, and he had obtained permission to bring it to Ponti Rossi. So, on June 26 1922, the relic of St. Francis Xavier’s arm was placed next to Maria Giuseppina, whose limp body was in excruciating pain. At the end of the prayer recited in honor of St. Francis Xavier, those present in the room witnessed an incredible phenomenon: an "unexplained breath of air" passed through the room, with no windows or doors open. Immediately afterwards, Maria Giuseppina regained her strength and was able to walk normally... The next day, she resumed her normal activities!

The year 1932 marked an important turning point: the Holy See recognized the Ponti Rossi community as a convent of Discalced Carmelites, and the sisters were able to wear the traditional Carmelite habit. Giuseppina took the name of Maria Giuseppina of Jesus Crucified: "I offered myself to Jesus, to be crucified with him", she said. On April 2, 1932, she became sub-prioress of the community, which was placed under the authority of Cardinal Alessio Ascalesi, Archbishop of Naples.

Maria Giuseppina's rare gift for spiritual advice became well-known. Her supernatural charisma for reading souls had already earned her a reputation as a saint: countless lay people, cardinals, bishops and priests came to her for spiritual advice. Bishop Ascalesi encouraged the clergy to visit her, without restriction. In 1943, multiple sclerosis confined her to a wheelchair, and her eyesight began to fail. However, her activity within the convent and her ability to welcome hundreds of outsiders in no way diminished. Quite the contrary! It was at this time that she reached the height of her popularity.

After the war, she was elected prioress of her community on September 29, 1945. Despite her handicap, she took on her various tasks with unexplainable energy, enduring all her sufferings and giving everyone the time they needed. In addition, her confessor required her to write an autobiography, as well as her spiritual diary, since 1925. She obeyed and set to work without delay. These manuscripts reveal a Christian life of incomparable richness.

According to witnesses, "she prayed all the time." She continued to pray on her deathbed. With heavenly joy, she gave up her soul to God on March 14, 1948. For thirteen days, her body was exposed to the veneration of the faithful. But no precautions had been taken to preserve the tissues: neither mummification nor specific mortuary care. The Blessed's body was completely intact after this period.

A beatification process was launched in 1948, at the request of Cardinal Ascalesi, who was supported by Pope Pius XII. The decree recognizing her heroic virtues was signed on January 3, 1987. The Church proclaimed Maria Giuseppina Blessed on June 1, 2008.

Beyond reasons to believe:

“Pinella”'s spirituality is entirely evangelical and founded on love for the Eucharist and the Virgin Mary.

Going further:

Article  "Blessed Giuseppina of Jesus Crucified"

More information:

• On the Vatican website:  "Bl. Giuseppina Catanea (1894-1948)"