TODAY, ON THE FEAST OF THE ASSUMPTION OF MARYWE CELEBRATE WITH SR. KHRISTINA GALEMA, FSPON THE GIFT OF HER LIFE TO THE LORD IN PERPETUAL PROFESSION “Now you belong forever to this family of the Daughters of St Paul”Today it is right that your house should echo with a new song of thanksgiving for this sister of ours who has listened to your voice and made herself over to your holy service. From the Solemn Blessing of the New Perpetually ProfessedThis is a picture o...

My favorite recollection of my perpetual profession were our candles on the altar. The three of us making final vows together each processed down the aisle with a lit candle representing the gift of our lives given to the Lord. They were then placed near the altar. We intended to collect our candles after the profession Mass and save them as remembrances, but in the excitement of the day (and all the picture-taking) we left them lit and went downstairs for a festive meal with family an...

Stubborn determination and a competitive spirit can bring a young boy a lot of places… it could spur him on to turn his team around in a sports game; it could drive him to study hard in school; it could get him into some trouble with friends… but rarely do we think about these qualities helping a young boy towards sainthood.Maggiorino Vigolungo was born on a farm in Benevello d’Alba, Italy on May 6th, 1904.  While his family was not wealthy, they were hard-working and de...

Belonging.  The search for it can haunt us.  Br. Andrew Borello was someone who faced this question many times in his life, and each time, found that Home in Christ.He was born Ricardo Borello, on March 8, 1916 in Mango, Italy.  When he was still a baby, his father died in WWI, leaving a wife and two children behind.  His mother remarried, and so little Ricardo and his older sister Maria moved to a new home, adjusting to a new father.  When Ricardo was in his teens, both...

Teresa Merlo had a heart the whole world could fit in.Born February 20, 1894, into a farming family in Castagnito d’Alba, Italy, Teresa (as she was called then) was the second of four children. She was a loving, capable child, but never quite as healthy as other kids her age. Worried about her health, her parents decided to get her a tutor rather than send her to school with her brothers. From her parents and her tutor, Miss Chiarla, Teresa learned her school subjects, essential life skill...

Upon hearing that the Founder, Fr. Alberione, had chosen her to “carry out silence, silence, silence,” you might think that Mother Scholastica’s life was thoroughly still, calm, and safe from all surprises. But in reality, her life was anything but predictable!Born in Guarene, Italy on July 12, 1897, Ursula Rivata was raised in a loving family. Her childhood suffered a major heartbreak, however, when her mother passed away suddenly after a short illness. The little Ursula misse...

These days, Fr. Timothy can be seen only in the old photographs, sitting stoically with hands properly folded, draped in his black cassock.  His camera-shy posture belies his daring spirit and gentle heart, which have had such a profound influence on the lives of so many.Born Giuseppe Giaccardo on June 13th, 1896 in Cuneo, Italy, he was the eldest of five children.  As a boy, the young Giuseppe had a great love for God, a devotion to the sacraments, and a Marian heart – three qua...