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First, two news reports and, then, a comment: ***** For First Time, a Married Couple Is Beatified Together: VATICAN CITY, OCT. 21, 2001 (Zenit.org).- John Paul II fulfilled a long-held desire today when he beatified a husband and wife together, highlighting the fact that holiness is not restricted to religious and priests. The new blessed are Luigi (1880-1951) and Maria (1884-1965) Beltrame Quattrocchi of Rome, who were married for 50 years and had four children, three of whom are still alive and attended today's ceremony in St. Peter's Basilica. Their two sons, Filippo and Cesare, were among the priests who concelebrated the beatification Mass with the Pope. Their daughter Enrichetta was among the faithful attending the Mass. The Holy Father explained during the homily that the couple "lived an ordinary life in an extraordinary way." "Among the joys and concerns of a normal family, they had an extraordinarily rich spiritual life," the Pope said. "Daily Communion was at the center, to which was added filial devotion to the Virgin Mary, invoked by praying the rosary every night, and reference to wise spiritual counsel." "These spouses lived conjugal love and the service to life in the light of the Gospel and with great human intensity," he said. "They assumed with full responsibility the task of collaborating with God in procreation, dedicating themselves generously to the education, guidance and direction of their children in discovering his plan of love." The Church has recognized officially the holiness of other spouses. But this was the first time that spouses were beatified together. The beatification was the high point of the weekend celebrations organized by the Church in Italy to mark the 20th anniversary of the publication of the "Familiaris Consortio." The apostolic exhortation is John Paul II's most important document on marital life. Saturday afternoon, 50,000 people met with the Pope in St. Peter's Square to pray, celebrate and witness. The Holy Father took the opportunity to appeal for marked improvement "in the planning of social policies" in favor of the family, and reminded the faithful that the family cannot be equated with any other form of living together. Torrential rains and strong winds in Rome forced today's celebration into St. Peter's Basilica at the last minute. Thousands of drenched pilgrims, who at one point had used chairs as umbrellas, crowded dripping wet into the basilica. At the end of the ceremony, and before reciting the Angelus, John Paul II condemned the recent violence in Bethlehem, and presented the family as a sign of hope in a world gripped by the fear of attacks and violence. "Indeed, the family proclaims the Gospel of hope by its very constitution, because it is founded on mutual trust and faith in Providence," he said. "The family proclaims hope, because it is the place where life springs and grows, in the generous and responsible exercise of paternity and maternity." "An authentic family, founded on marriage, is in itself good news for the world," the Pope concluded. ***** Wedding Anniversary Is Feast Day of
Blessed VATICAN CITY, NOV. 25, 2001 (Zenit.org).- When the first joint beatification of a married couple was approved, the Vatican Congregation for the Causes of Saints wondered when their feast should be celebrated. Usually the feast of blessed and saints is celebrated on the day of their death. The question was whether the memory of Luigi and Maria Beltrame Quattrocchi should be observed on different dates. John Paul II, who for years hoped to beatify a married couple, made a revolutionary decision: The feast of the two blessed would be held on the same day, their wedding anniversary. That anniversary was today. The couple married Nov. 25, 1905. For now, the feast is observed only in Rome, the couple's diocese, since their beatification held last month is local in character. This year Rome will mark their feast Monday, since today is a solemnity. If the couple are canonized someday, their feast will have a universal character. Luigi (1880-1951) and Maria (1884-1965) Beltrame Quattrocchi, natives of Rome, were married for 50 years and had four children, three of whom are still living and attended their parents' beatification ceremony. Maria was a teacher and writer on educational topics, committed to several associations, including Catholic Action, Scouts and the Red Cross. Luigi ended his legal career as attorney general of Italy. John Paul II also decided that one miracle -- the cure of bone alterations of Italian neurosurgeon Gilberto Grossi -- was attributed to the intercession of both spouses and thus would open the doors for their beatification. ***** Now, a comment: The beatification of Luigi and Maria Beltrame Quattrocchi of Rome represents a very significant and long overdue advance in the Church's understanding of sanctity. For the first time in Catholic history, a husband and wife together have been proclaimed "blesseds" or "saints." Previously, spouses have individually been proclaimed blesseds and saints but never before as married couples. Moreover, those spouses proclaimed blesseds and saints usually were cited for heroic witness that had little or nothing to do with the fact of being a husband or wife. (In fact, most of those proclaimed blesseds or saints embraced religious life after the death of their spouse.) In Luigi and Maria, married couples now have a real husband and wife, who begat and raised four real children, and who experienced real problems during their 50+ years of marriage. But, Luigi and Maria did so in a heroic way that teaches and can assist married couples as they endeavor to live out their marriages in a sacramental and saintly way. In this sense, the new blesseds are a "gift to the Church" and especially for married couples. With this beatification, the Church recognizes that the Sacrament of Marriage is as valid a pathway toward heroic sanctity for couples as religious life and the dedicate single life are. This beatification should inspire married couples to pray for the intercession of Luigi and Maria Quattrocchi. When confronting the real problems associated with the vocation of married life, spouses can find in Luigi and Maria a husband and a wife who've "been there" and "done that" but in a way that exhibits heroic determination to fulfill their commitment to live united in God and to love, honor, and obey one another until death. This married couple---now a blessed couple---understand the problems of married life, are willing to share their wisdom, and to intercede to God on behalf of any couple standing in need. As a married couple, do you need a miracle? Pray to Luigi and Maria Quattrocchi to assist you in your efforts to fulfill your marriage covenant. All that Luigi and Maria Quattrocchi need to be elevated to the role of "Saints"---and for married couples to have, as their heroic role models a saintly husband and wife---is one miracle that can be attributed to the intercession of Luigi and Maria. That might just be you!
To access the biographies of Luigi and Maria Quattrocchi, double click on their picture. Then, scroll down to October 21, 2001. If you would like to read the homily Pope John Paul II delivered at the Mass of Beatification, double click the hotlink at the bottom of either biography. |
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BEATIFICATION
