Italian Mother Next for Beatification: November 6

Friday, November 04, 2005 12:00:00 AM GMT


Cardinal José Saraiva Martins, who presided at the beatification of eight Spanish martyrs in St. Peter's Basilica on October 29, will be the principal celebrant once again at a November 6 ceremony in Vicenza, Italy, when Eurosia Fabris is beatified.

Eurosia Fabris was born in Vincenza, in northern Italy, in 1866, into a poor family. After only two years of education she joined her mother in working as a seamstress. At the age of 15 she began caring for two girls in the neighborhood whose mother had died, and a few years later she married and adopted the children. She and her husband subsequently had 9 children of their own, including 3 who were to become priests.

"Mamma Rosa," as she was known, was known for her sacrifice and devotion to her family, and her courage in the face of a disease that caused her husband's death in 1930. After her own death in 1932, Pope Pius XII said that she was "an example for today's families."

On November 13, Cardinal Saraiva Martins will preside once again at beatifications in the Vatican basilica, for Charles de Foucauld, Maria Pia Mastena, and Maria Crocifissa Curcio.

The new norms for the celebration of beatifications stipulate that the prefect of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints will ordinarily preside. Pope Benedict XVI has indicated that he will only preside at canonizations.


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