Testimony of the funeral of a heroic woman of today
A young woman, Chiara Corbella (28 years old), and her husband Enrico Petrillo. Both Romans, a very normal couple who were very believers, so much so that they met in Medjugorie. A story that grew up in pain and ended badly, very badly.
Chiara is no longer here. She died on June 13th. She went through two pregnancies, both of which ended in her death at the birth of her babies.
Maria first and Davide later, both victims of malformations that leave them no escape. Chiara still gets pregnant. You are a male, Francesco. This time everything was going well: the ultrasound scans finally confirmed the baby's health. Bad luck seemed to have turned the other way. But no.
In the fifth month of pregnancy, Chiara was diagnosed with a bad lesion of the tongue and after an initial operation, the doctors found a carcinoma. He must be treated with chemo, but chemo would kill the fetus. Faced with this eventuality, Chiara and Enrico decide to go ahead with the pregnancy, putting their mother's life at risk.
In fact, only after giving birth was Chiara able to undergo a new, more radical surgery and then subsequent cycles of chemo and radiotherapy. But it wasn't enough, it was too late. I just returned home from Chiara Corbella's funeral. It's difficult to express with words what's inside me, the whole Mass aroused so many emotions, so many reflections, so many prayers, so many tears, so many holy desires... that I don't know if I'll be able to put it all together and make a speech out of it with complete meaning. What is certain is that I attended a wedding and not a funeral, a party and not a mourning, that is, an example of what Christianity really is (and should be).
If at the beginning my tears were imbued with human compassion and I felt sorry for what this family experienced, during the celebration, as in a crescendo journey within this mystery that was slowly revealing itself, they gradually transformed into tears of joy. Joy because I saw the Life and not the death of a person, joy because I saw Love win over all pain and suffering, joy because I saw the meaning in a broken existence at 28 that leaves a husband alone with a child. And that meaning lies precisely in that existence "broken" and "given" as the body of Christ is broken when it gives itself to us. Joy because I witnessed a miracle, joy because I re-saw for the umpteenth time the action of God in the lives of his children.
This is one of the many gifts that the Lord has given me, I have always had the grace in my life to meet splendid Christian brothers in whom God's action was visible and powerful in His Love. I saw the response of these Christian brothers of mine, a joyful and decisive response of trust that has borne great fruit, fruit for many.
Today, this Christian family, these children of God, Enrico and Chiara, have given me another seed of God to keep in my heart and at the same time to re-gift in turn to those I meet on my path.
This seed will grow, I desire it to grow, I desire holiness with all my heart, I desire to be a child of God, a child of the Light and shine for my family, for my brothers, for anyone who needs it.
The starting point will be this seed of hope and joy that I have in my heart, yet another gift from God through Chiara and Enrico.
It will be those "small possible steps" that this blessed couple taught us. I thank God for this immense gift.
“It's nice to have examples of life that remind you that you can expect the utmost happiness, already here on this earth, with GOD as your guide... Trust me, it's worth it...”, writes Chiara in her letter to her son Francesco of a year.
it's also true for me and for each of us, it's nice to have you as an example that helps us trust God even more. With your constant smile and your serenity even at the point of death you convinced us that it is really worth asking God for the gift of holiness and the strength to live it.