VENERABLE MARGARET OCCHIENA

1
VENERABLE MARGARET OCCHIENA

• A SPIRITUAL PROFILE

Rev. Enrico dal Covolo sdb
2
MAMMA MARGARET A SPIRITUAL PROFILE

• 25th November 1857 MM passes to her heavenly
  reward in the Oratory all were sure that she
  was truly a saint
• cause of her Beatification and Canonization
  introduced 8th September 1994
• diocesan phase concluded in 1996
• documentation presented to the Sacred
  Congregation on 25th January 2000
• declared Venerable on 15th November 2006, about
  150 years after her death

3
MAMMA MARGARET A SPIRITUAL PROFILE

• We will concentrate on 4 characteristic elements
  that sum up the person of MM. She was
• A HEROIC MOTHER AND A WISE EDUCATOR
• A GUIDE AND COLLABORATOR IN THE NASCENT SALESIAN
  CHARISM
• A WOMAN OF AUTHORITY WHO SHINES IN HER OWN LIGHT
• A RICHLY ENDOWED HUMAN AND CHRISTIAN FIGURE

4
1. A HEROIC MOTHER AND A WISE EDUCATOR

• Uniqueness of MMs style as a mother
• awareness of the responsibility that motherhood
  entails
• blessed with natural gifts kind and firm,
  understanding and demanding, patient and decisive
• sacred respect for the priesthood
• active participation in the ministry of her son

5
1. A HEROIC MOTHER AND A WISE EDUCATOR

• Uniqueness of MMs style as a mother
• Spiritual Roles
• God the Father DB loving father and wise
  educator
• Mary MM kind mother and profound teacher
• harmonized tenderness and firmness since she had
  to be both mother and father to her orphaned sons
• able to give both paternal and maternal love
• ability to deal with an ailing mother-in-law and
  a difficult step-son

6
1. A HEROIC MOTHER AND A WISE EDUCATOR

• Uniqueness of MMs style as an educator
• an exemplary educator able to transform her
  difficult family situation into an effective
  educative ambient
• could draw a faith-lesson from all the events of
  life
• able to identify and develop the hidden talents
  of her sons esp. DB gave him autonomy and
  support

7
1. A HEROIC MOTHER AND A WISE EDUCATOR

• Uniqueness of MMs style as an educator
• the dream at the age of 9 was interpreted best by
  her ready to do all to make it come true
• JP2 in Turin (1988) the key role played by MM
  in the life of DB
• she was successful in creating the family
  ambient in the Oratory
• which gave rise to goodness and kindness in DB
  making him friend and father of his poor boys

8
2. A GUIDE AND COLLABORATOR IN THE NASCENT
SALESIAN CHARISM

• MM - remote inspirer of the Salesian educative
  system influenced the concept of the family
  spirit heart of the Salesian charism with
  her presence in the Oratory for about 10 years
• many elements of the PS bear traces of MMs
  maternal figure sweetness, reassurance etc.
  eg. good night and word in the ear
• first Salesian cooperator

9
2. A GUIDE AND COLLABORATOR IN THE NASCENT
SALESIAN CHARISM

• MM aware of her new vocation accepted it with
  humility and clarity responded to this call
  with heroic generosity
• DB also aware of the precious role that his
  mother was playing in the Oratory not only
  material assistance, but also a guide and
  collaborator in his educative pastoral task
• Don Lemoyne a succinct but accurate judgement
  In MM one could see the spirit of the Oratory
  personified.

10
3. A WOMAN OF AUTHORITY WHO SHINES IN HER OWN
LIGHT

• impossible to deny the greatness of this humble
  woman often overshadowed by the brilliance of her
  sons achievements
• impossible to understand DB without MM - the last
  15 years of MMs life interwoven with that of her
  priest son
• MM shines in her own light - stature of her
  interior life ensured that her son had much to
  learn from her
• recall how DB would sometimes hide behind the
  curtains of his room to listen in on her advice
  to the boys

11
4. A RICHLY ENDOWED HUMAN AND CHRISTIAN FIGURE

• three preceding points present three diverse
  angles of the spiritual profile but do not do
  justice to her person
• the more we observe MM, the more we study the
  testimonies regarding her life the more she
  appears as a person very profound and at the same
  time very simple

12
4. A RICHLY ENDOWED HUMAN AND CHRISTIAN FIGURE

• rich - not in worldly goods or in cultural
  attainments
• rich as a woman of exceptional intuition, of deep
  wisdom richly endowed with a very affable
  humanism, with a big heart, with a very exquisite
  sensitivity and serene self-control
• richly blessed with courage to affront the trials
  of life and with interior energy to work
  tirelessly

13
4. A RICHLY ENDOWED HUMAN AND CHRISTIAN FIGURE

• she was also simple - poor and humble woman
  without any formal learning other than the
  catechism
• her simplicity was due to her whole existence
  being centred on God
• all her life was nothing but service rendered to
  God and others her sons, her neighbours who were
  sick or needy, the poor boys collected by her son
  in need of a clean bed, some warm food, and also
  the warmth of a family

14
4. A RICHLY ENDOWED HUMAN AND CHRISTIAN FIGURE

• deep personal relationship with God - directly
  proportional to her simplicity and humility
• she did not need to make an impact or be noticed
• it happened automatically due to the esteem and
  affection that she showered due to the
  coherence of her dedicated service, of her
  wisdom, of her goodness, her simplicity and her
  lovable originality

15
4. A RICHLY ENDOWED HUMAN AND CHRISTIAN FIGURE

• simple MM is a part of the spiritual aristocracy
  that shines with other holy mothers who live in
  the presence of God - the result of constant
  silent prayer
• MM would recall sanctity is easily attainable
  by everyone - results from faithful obedience to
  ones unique vocation
• JP2 says Sanctity is the best test of ordinary
  Christian living
• MM teaches us that the simple events of everyday
  life can lead us along the path of sanctity

16
Let us strive to imitate herin her virtues be
like her in holiness and become like her in love
and compassion!!