Accompanying a sick person on their journey towards death is made up of presence, attention, services, dedication, contacts, exchanges. There is fatigue and pain, degradation and loss. The intensity of the moment stimulates strong experiences, in the patient and in those who care for him: it gives depth to relationships, it smooths and peels away because it is the only essential that has the right to remain in the face of death.
Here are some testimonials.

When the first buds appear

…During the operation (of the father: blocked coronary arteries), there were some problems, but the doctors said not to worry. But the same night they called saying he had had a cardiac arrest. When we arrived at the hospital, hope was rekindled: they had resuscitated him, however his condition remained serious.
My brothers and I took turns in front of that closed door (intensive care ward). Someone came to tell us that it was useless to stay there, but we didn't want to leave him alone...
On the last evening I arrived at the hospital angrier than ever. I was there listening in front of that door. I could hear the sounds of machinery. Those sounds stayed with me for a long time. I said to myself: now I'm asking to come in, but I didn't have the courage to do so.
Suddenly, within me the certainty that my father was dead and a great peace in my heart. A voice inside told me to be good.
The door opened and the doctor confirmed what I had already perceived.
Since that night my life has changed radically. I say to myself: "I have seen the light".
After his death on a journey of faith I retraced his. With my heart I can say that he knew that he was dying and that when he showed me the first buds of the pomegranate, his eyes "saw God".
Anna

A conflict that becomes harmony

I have always had a distant and difficult relationship with my mother. At the age of 91 she was diagnosed with cancer. I stop my activity to take care of it. It's not easy: she's the one who organizes my day, if I walk away she gets angry, she says I think more about others. However, she goes through periods of relatively good health and occasionally relapses appear. My space is getting smaller and smaller, but what hurts me the most is not feeling loved by her, having constant clashes with her. And yet I take care of her and become her go-to nurse: she's only looking for me, not my brothers. Even if we bump into each other, it happens that she says thank you and gives me a kiss in the evening after I fix her up. I am attentive to her needs and try to support her.
My birthday arrives, my brothers decide to have a little party with her. I can't believe that she too, despite her state, starts singing happy birthday to me, smiling at me with much affection. She seems so happy, I'm surprised but happy. Two hours later she is sick and the end is quick. What happens next amazes me even more: despite the disappointment we are all calm. it's as if mother had given us the gift of great peace, of making us experience our farewell to her in a calm way, as if what happened was obvious and happened at the right time. it is a sign that the Lord loved both me and my mother, giving us reconciliation.
Ester

The translations
in a foreign language

Dear Father Director,
I thank you for the idea you had in putting a short descriptive translation of the topic the article talks about next to some articles. I particularly like the translation of two languages: French which I learned at school when I was young and allows me to exercise my memory and English which offers me the way to leaf through the magazine together with my nephew and have him read the small passage written in English, a language he is learning at school. This connection to the language allows me to explain to him the illustrations of the figures that accompany the articles, especially the sacred representations. Thank you for this news and I pray that it will also be useful to many people. I entrust my family to your prayers and greet you.
Elisabetta - Milan

The perpetual masses

Dearest Pious Union,
I am writing to ask for a favor. I would like the grace of you to write in the book of perpetual masses all our poor dead from Burundi, murdered during the fratricidal war and who did not receive a burial like all Christians. I would like to put a cross on their common graves but we are not yet willing to recognize this honor to so many poor dead. I pray for them in all my Holy Masses so that the Lord may have mercy on them. By enrolling them in the Pious Union, perhaps they will receive the charity of many friends and faithful of Saint Joseph. I would also like the people who died in the plane crash over the Atlantic, who disappeared into the deep ocean, to be included in the list, as if they wanted to remind us that living without God we could disappear into thin air and our search with all the most modern means will be in vain. We peer into the immense universe but we cannot peer into the bowels of the sea...
Regards,
father Vittorio Blasi

Dear Father,
thank you for your example as an apostle and your sensitivity. Rest assured that it will be a duty for us and an exquisite act of charity towards these brothers and sisters of ours killed by violence and hatred. Our prayer and that of all the members of the Pious Union and of the readers of the Holy Crusade in Honor of Saint Joseph will be for them like a caress of affection and a sign of participation in the fate of many brothers who live in a climate of fear and violence. May the God of peace grant them peace and touch the hearts of those living in that region of the world to nourish feelings of peace and the desire for dialogue to color the future of their country with the colors of the rainbow.
The victims of the French plane, like all the victims of the sky, the road and the depths of the seas, enter, every day, the heart of our prayer and the great embrace of perpetual suffrage.

Trust in Providence

Dearest Don Mario,
I took steps to send an offering for the celebration of a holy mass in honor of Saint Joseph, because I received a great grace, which I no longer hoped for and, instead, the Lord looked at us really closely. My wife and I will continue to pray fervently that Jesus never abandons us and continues to bestow grace upon grace, especially those we need most every day. We pray that divine providence comes to the aid of our most urgent needs, and that the grace of God with the Holy Spirit descends upon me and my family, and that it enlightens our minds, and helps us to keep faith in the path of the Gospel . We still pray that the Angels always guard us in our steps and in particular to Saint Michael the Archangel who keeps away from me and my family, from my home and from my workplace, all the snares of the enemy, of the evil one, of the devil, and that annihilates them forever and that they never have to return. I thank you from the bottom of my heart for all your prayers and I hope as soon as possible to render new thanks that the Lord will give me.
Personally and in the name of my family I ask that the Lord forgive us for all the sins committed.
Letter signed

Hidden sanctities

Reverend Director,
I am immensely grateful to you for enrolling my dear mother in Perpetual Suffrage.
Knowing that her soul can enjoy the benefits of numerous Holy Masses, fraternal prayers and devout functions gives me relief and peace... my supreme desire is that she can reach Heaven as soon as possible, because she always spoke about it and said it with sweetness , amiability and great faith that did not want to "do" Purgatory but go straight to Heaven. Especially since she has always been a fervent devotee of St. Joseph! How many prayers and novenas she recited for her family and for others in need, inviting everyone with her apostolate and example to venerate this great Saint.
I also recited the Sacred Mantle on the advice of my mother and I still pray to Saint Joseph with faith.
Certainly, receiving the membership card reinvigorated my soul and conveyed new fervor for prayer. For this reason, I kindly ask you for one more favor, that is, to enroll my husband in the Pious Union as well.
Silvia Trotti

Praise and honor be to God for
the 400 years of the Visitation

Reverend Don Mario,
I warmly thank you and the entire Pious Union for the very kind wishes for my name day and even more for the precious prayers of which I am truly in need together with my community. I was very moved by this affectionate memory of her: may the Holy Virgin of Sorrows take him into her heart and present him to Jesus with her maternal intercession!
I take this opportunity to ask you for a prayer for the 400th anniversary of the foundation of the Order of the Visitation which will be celebrated on 6 June 2010 in each of our monasteries throughout the world and in particular in Annecy which is like our "holy source". May everything return to the glory of the Holy Trinity!
Sister Maria Amata Sbaragli

Dear and reverend Mother,
It will be my duty and joy to accompany the preparation of the 400th anniversary of the foundation of the Order of the Visitation by Saint Francis de Sales. The saint of sweetness and meekness nurtured a great cult for the earthly "father" of Jesus. During my pilgrimage to the significant places of the cult of Saint Joseph, such as Le Puy and Coutignac, I was also able to visit Annecy (a little Venice ) and celebrate the Eucharist on the altar where the mortal remains of Saint Francis de Sales and his faithful disciple Chantal are preserved.
In my heart I have a feeling of everlasting gratitude to a Visitation monastery for exquisite hospitality during a period of my life. In addition to the desire to absorb the spirituality of Saint Francis de Sales into my life, this feeling of gratitude also sings. From now on, best wishes for holiness to you and to all the monasteries of the "Visitandine".

Harmony builders

Dear Director,     
I am writing to tell you that my mother Maria Ottavia Montanaro is no longer here, she returned to the Father's house on 29 July 2009, after 7 months of pain due to a fall at home which occurred on the night of 2 January 2009. For years, my mother subscribed to the Pia Unione magazine. I am one of her 5 children and I remember very well that there has always been the Saint Joseph calendar and the magazine in the house. We practically grew up in the family with the constant presence of Saint Joseph.
Recently he no longer spoke, but during his suffering only a few words of prayer, however he always prayed even when he couldn't stand it anymore...
Summing up the 73 years of my beloved mother's life would be long. For her, family was at the center of everything: both the family she came from and the family she created with our father Vincenzo and her five children: Giuseppe, Marisa, Patrizia, Pio and Prudenzio.
Jesus wanted him to see all his children married. We have lost a precious asset, the love of a lifetime.
With immense love, my son Pio.

Prayer
for an adopted seminarian

Reverend Director,
the prayer that I transcribe below, found and "adapted" from an old prayer manual in honor of Saint Joseph, I recite every day for my "spiritual son", together with other prayers and devotions that mark the day. Praying for this boy has become the focus of my life. May Saint Joseph accompany you, Matias Javier. For many years, I have had a close relationship with Him made up of St. Manto, novenas, prayers and... words, many words. And he, every now and then, but not that much, intervenes. And always on Wednesdays. I transcribe the prayer entitled "To carry out one's duty well": "Glorious Saint Joseph, model of holy industriousness, help him to sanctify his study. In intellectual and physical fatigue, always obtain for him: to work conscientiously, putting duty above his inclinations; to work with gratitude and joy, considering it an honor to use the gifts received from God in the fulfillment of his duty; to work with order and patience, without ever backing down in the face of tiredness and difficulties; to work above all with purity of intentions, always thinking that he will have to account for the wasted time, the unused talents, the omitted good. Everything for Jesus. Everything for Mary. All in your imitation or Saint Joseph! Let his every action tend towards this ideal of life. Amen".
Piera Paolucci - Rome

San Giuseppe
great intercessor

Reverend Director,
I must fulfill a promise made to St. Joseph, testifying to a grace obtained. I therefore express my gratitude to the dear Saint, my lawyer and intercessor, for having brought my grandson home: a true miracle! I would also like to thank you, dear Don Mario, for the magazine that I receive at home every month and to congratulate you on your editorial, each month is more and more interesting and which I usually read first. Praise also goes to his collaborators for the excellent work they do. I particularly compliment the August-September magazine, which is very interesting, like the article “A recipe for happiness”, on page 9. We should all treasure these words and put them into practice. The history of the Basilica del Trionfale is also interesting. I am sending an offering for a lamp in honor of Saint Joseph, for your clients asking for the charity of a prayer for a boy.
Antonietta Abbruscato - Canada

Praise for the summaries
in a foreign language

Dear Director,     
For a long time I have been meaning to write to you to apologize for the delay in sending the annual fee, but I have not been able to do so for various reasons. It's true that at my age, 88, the simplest things become difficult. I also wanted to tell you how happy I am to receive the magazine of "La Santa Crociata", more and more beautiful, with many articles full of spirituality. I also like the prayers and comments in French, English, German and Spanish... what a beautiful European initiative! Thank you, Mr. Director, for these precious moments of serenity-joy of the soul. Thank you with all my heart.
Lina Andreani Caruso – France

The merciful eyes
of the Holy Family

Reverend Director,
once again to joyfully testify to my experience. Jesus, the Madonna and Saint Joseph are always next to us. They protected my son who risked suffocating at night due to regurgitation linked to gastroenteritis; they protected him from the bite of a viper and from numerous falls while playing. I thank them for all the times they protected me and my husband by guiding us through various events and enlightening us in our choices and decisions. I also thank them for the many small signs, important to me, which I receive with kindness every day. I thank them for their protection of the people dear to me, like my friend who underwent a kidney transplant and two little girls with serious heart problems. Here, for all this, I thank them with all my soul, asking for their constant guidance and protection.
Simona

Light, faith and good will always reward

Reverend Director,
I am devoted to Saint Joseph and I prayed to him a lot to finish my course of studies. My prayers have been answered and I will always be grateful to this great Saint. I ask for the protection of Saint Joseph for me, for my family and for all those who are in need. I will continue to pray to Saint Joseph and spread the beautiful devotion of the Sacred Mantle.
Maria Gemma – Rome

Suffrage for the dead
of Burundi

Dearest friends of the Pious Union of the Transit of San Giuseppe,
I ask you for the favor and charity of enrolling in the Suffrages Union all our dead in Burundi, murdered during the fratricidal war, who were unable to receive a dignified and Christian burial. I would like to place a cross on their common graves, a sign of hope for every Christian, but here they still do not recognize this sign as an honor for the poor dead. I pray for them in all the Holy Masses that I celebrate, so that the Lord, our Father, will be merciful with us and with these dear dead ones of ours.
By enrolling them in the Suffrage Union at your Pious Union, I am sure that they will receive the spiritual charity of many friends and faithful of Saint Joseph, who will raise prayers of suffrage for them to the Lord. I also entrust to the prayers of the members of the Pious Union the victims of the plane crash over the Atlantic, who disappeared into the dark depths of the abyss.
Let us pray for them and that no one will ever die without the grace of God.
Thank you in Jesus and Mary.
P. Vittorio Blasi
(Bujulbura – Burundi)

Registration     
to perpetual suffrage

Dear Don Mario,
I sincerely thank you, on behalf of myself and my family, for registering for perpetual suffrage and the condolences expressed for my dear mother Gertrud, whom the Lord called to himself on Tuesday 20 October 2009. The prayers and the remembrance in the sacrifice of the saint placed in her suffrage they are the most precious gift for the dear deceased. With firm trust in the word of the Lord “I am the resurrection and the life; whoever believes in me, even if he dies, he will live; whoever lives and believes in me will never die” (Jn 11, 25-26), we recommend his soul to the mercy of God.
Monsignor Georg Gänswein,
Private secretary
of His Holiness Benedict XVI

Overlooking the panorama of devotion     
in San Giuseppe

Reverend Father,
I would like to tell you how I became devoted to Saint Joseph. An experience that I still keep alive even though many years have passed since that beautiful day. I was born into a very religious family in which prayer and the recitation of the Holy Rosary were never lacking. Despite this, during the delicate period of my adolescence, I began to frequent groups of young people who were not very inclined towards things concerning God, the Church and prayer. In a short time, unfortunately, I fell into the same habits and even started drinking until I became an alcoholic. While I was on holiday in a European city, I happened to pass by a church where I hadn't set foot in years. With a strong desire I crossed the threshold and found myself in an atmosphere that had become unusual, if not foreign, to me. In one corner I saw the statue of a saint with baby Jesus in his arms and in the other a lily. Without hesitation I knelt down and started praying asking for forgiveness and help. I was granted. I stopped drinking and found the joy of living again. That day I rediscovered my love for the Lord and for all that is good; I found my faith again, after experiencing firsthand that I couldn't live without it. There have been other dark moments but Saint Joseph has always been close to me. Many years have passed. Now I have a family, a husband and children to love and from whom I receive so much love, that same love that the Lord wanted me to rediscover through Saint Joseph.
Lucia

Example of reflected light
in the light of Saint Joseph

Dear director, I have to tell you a story. Please check how many years my mother, Maria Ottavia Montanaro or Parente Maria, had been a subscriber for, because I, being one of her five children, clearly remember that there has always been the Saint Joseph calendar and the magazine in the house. We are
practically raised in a family with the constant presence of Saint Joseph. By the way, I'm 37 years old, so director, we've known you for decades.
I am writing to you because Maria Ottavia Montanaro is no longer here, she returned to the Father's house on 29 July 2009, after seven months of pain due to a fall at home which occurred on the night of 2 January 2009. Recently she no longer spoke but we managed to glean during his suffering some words belonging to the prayers, yes because he always prayed even when he couldn't stand it anymore...
Summarizing the 73 years of life of my beloved mother would be long, I understand the editorial problems, so I will tell you briefly: the Family at the center of everything, both the one of origin and the family she created with our father Vincenzo and us five children: Giuseppe, Marisa, Patrizia, Pio and Prudenzio.
Jesus wanted him to see all his children married. All my life working at home and love in all things. The thought that came to me is that perhaps this story, published in your monthly magazine, can be a small consolation. We have lost everything, our most precious possession, the love of a lifetime, we have lost our mother. Dear editor, I would like a copy of the magazine to be sent to my father and brothers.
Pio Parente

From Münstertal Kloster
St. Trudpert in Germany

From the monastery of Münstertal the Association of Saint Joseph, affiliated to our Primary Pious Union of the Transit of Saint Joseph, the secretary Sister Bernita Schwester informs us that during the year 2009 in their association 812 people registered with the Pious Union and five priests: Christian Elbracht, Hansjörg Sailer, Stefan Dreher, Jürgen Reuss and Bruno Hunerfeld asked to participate in the perennial Mass in favor of the dying. We thank the deserving sister Bernita and wish the religious community a good apostolate in their glorious abbey which dates back to the early Middle Ages.

From the Pious Union
Saint Joseph of Warsaw

Father Casimiro Linkiewicz sends us compliments and many thanks for the wonderful 2010 calendar and praises our sagacity in spreading the cult of Saint Joseph.
A journey in the sign
of Providence

Way back in 1948, Divine Providence opened the doors of the then nascent San Calogero institute in Naro to me. From the beginning I was fascinated by the dedication of the Guanellian priests, two in particular, who welcomed us poor "picciriddi".
I wanted to become a priest, but then I changed my path and started a family. Don Guanella always helped me in my choices. He always showed me the right and good path. Over the years, I have visited all those Guanellian Houses, in Italy and abroad, where I found myself due to work needs.
I have never forgotten Don Guanella, his Work and his brothers, carrying, according to my possibilities, that torch of Guanellian charity, which warmed me so much in the years of my training.
I tried to help wherever I could, also to say my "Thank you, Don Guanella, for what you have done and continue to do for me. Thanks to Divine Providence who now uses us to realize his plans."

Gero Lombardo
Germany


Invocation
to a good father

Dearest Don Mario,
I always pray for her and I hope that she doesn't forget me too; I wanted to ask you if it is possible to be published in the magazine for the graces received from Saint Joseph.
I thank Saint Joseph with all my heart for the countless graces he has granted to me and my family. Every day I recite the sacred mantle and I will always continue to direct my daily thoughts to Him. I invite everyone to pray to Saint Joseph because he is a good and friendly father who grants unexpected graces with so much love; don't lose hope and pray to him with all your faith, he will not disappoint you.
Silvia - Ancona

Be sure that you and all the members of the Pious Union are in the heart of our prayers.

With an open heart

Dear Don Mario
I wanted to thank you because I received the magazine and the calendar; I really hope that Saint Joseph, in addition to protecting me, protects and intercedes with God for my two children. I have someone who lives with a divorced woman ten years older with a 16-year-old son, and this is a great disappointment to me; I have entrusted the resolution of this problem to God the Father since I cannot do anything and I really hope that Saint Joseph will now intercede for him. My other daughter is a university student, she still lives with me (I am a widow) and she too experiences considerable internal discomfort: she is far from the sacraments, without friends, immersed only in studying. I hope that Saint Joseph intercedes for her too. Speaking with one of my sisters, she also expressed the desire to join the Pious Union.
Elena - Milan

Dear and dear Elena,
when I read her email, I imagined what was going on in the heart of a mother who dreamed of a bright sky and a serene, joyful and regular road for her children. Things aren't always like this. The parents' generations of a few decades ago saw the world turned upside down and the values, which were the foundation of their existence, collapsed or lived differently. While one day the future determined the choices of the present, now only the present exists: tomorrow will be another day. Then when the events of feelings and the heart enter, then our beliefs sizzle like a red-hot iron immersed in water; on the other hand, Pascal already said that there are reasons of the heart that the mind does not know and for us it becomes extremely difficult to give a soul to these reasons of the heart.
So what to do? Let us not forget that rather than us looking for God, it is from eternity that God has been looking for us, the prophet Isaiah thought of us and told us that the Eternal One wrote our name on the palm of his hand so as not to forget us.
All that remains for us is to bear witness to faith and charity towards others and to pray that the season of encounter of our infirmities with the mercy of God may be hastened to console our souls and to give vigor and wisdom energy to Luca and Sara.
I assure you that your intentions will be at the heart of my prayers and I wish you much good. Saint Augustine is the fruit of the prayers and tears of his mother Monica. We have hope. Best regards and I will also take care of your sister.
God bless everyone.
Don Mario

A memory in blessing

Dear Management,
I am sending an offer for a Holy Mass in memory of my mother, Rosa who is now in heaven. We are keen to continue our friendship with you, which dates back to 1962, when we came to you on our honeymoon and you hosted us. Mum and dad had done the same thing in 1934. We still remember the Sanctuary of San Giuseppe, where we went to pray to ask for a blessing on our new family and I must say that San Giuseppe granted us his wish. We have 4 children, married, good and nine grandchildren who are also good and good. Kind regards and greetings dear.
Ester and Virginio - Giussano (Milan)

From fathers to sons

Dear Management, I am sending an offer for a Holy Mass in memory of my mother, Galli Elli Rosa who is now in heaven. I ask you to change the address where you can send the monthly "La Santa Crociata". We are keen to continue our friendship with you, which dates back to 1962, when we came to you on our honeymoon and you hosted us. Mum and dad had done the same thing in 1934. We still remember the Sanctuary of San Giuseppe, where we went to pray to ask for a blessing on our new family and I must say that San Giuseppe granted us his wish. We have four children, married, good and nine grandchildren who are also good and good. Kind regards and greetings dear.
Elli Ester and Virginio,
Giussano – Milan

Looking for a job

I have been a devoted and affectionate reader of yours for I don't know how many years. I entrusted my eldest son Bruno Luigi to the paternal care of San Giuseppe as soon as he decided to go first to Veneto and then to Lombardy through military service, with the primary aim of creating a working future for himself. My prayers were insistent, sometimes even discouraged. In military service he was unable to place himself in the top positions, now in Milan he was working on fixed-term contracts in a metalworking industry. At Christmas it was the last contract then it was the end. Luigi was destined to return here: you can imagine my and my father's pain and anxiety motivated by the economic crisis our country is experiencing. I did nothing but repeat: Saint Joseph, don't abandon him to me... On December 23rd my son suddenly returned, he had a sheet of paper in his hands that I jealously keep in the Sacred Mantle (your prayer booklet): that sheet was the permanent employment contract... I did nothing but cry and repeat to everyone: Saint Joseph gave me the grace... Now I say it and I repeat it to you. A few years have passed but Saint Joseph has given me the grace, now I continue with the offers for the cot so that he will always assist him and lead him by the hand on the right path of work, prayer and rectitude.
Ascione Maria Speranza
by email

Under his protection

Dear members of the Pious Union, I have long wanted to place myself, my son, my husband and my mother under the protection of Saint Joseph. I am a 44 year old teacher, subscribed to "La Santa Crociata" for a long time. I have been married for 17 years and my husband hasn't worked for over 10 years, so I'll let you imagine the financial problems I have had and currently have. I'm trying to supplement my salary with extra work to do at home and I hope that the dear Saint will help me by finding lots of clients so I can earn some money, I really need it. I have an only son, 16 years old, Alfonso. I wanted so much to have another baby, without success. However, now I wish to place my son Alfonso under the protection of the dear Saint, especially for his studies. He attends the 3rd scientific high school, and I am very worried about his academic performance. And I also have my problems: I suffer from hepatitis C and have successfully undergone interferon treatment for 18 months, but I always think that this "enemy" is lurking. Furthermore, I have to undergo surgery: they have to remove my saphenous vein, but I don't have the courage to do it; I really hope that Saint Joseph intervenes, enlightens me and gives me the strength to have the operation done as soon as possible without panicking. Furthermore, I have another very serious worry: my mother has had a clothing store for over 22 years which has been going badly for some time; she can't even buy bread from this shop. As you can see, I have explained to you many of my problems and many of my anxieties and I really hope that the dear Saint will take charge of all these situations and work to resolve them and to restore peace and serenity to my family.
Letter signed

A touching testimony

Dear Director, my husband Luciano Tini died on 19 March 2008; to remind the Lord of this, my brother and his wife requested membership in the Pia Unione del Transito. A few days ago, among my husband's papers, I found the ccp he had executed way back in 1952, made out to the Pia Unione. I knew well about his devotion to Saint Joseph but not about his membership in the Union. To my letter I enclose a photocopy of the aforementioned ccp for the simple testimony of a young man who was then just twenty-three years old. I recommend the soul of my beloved husband to your prayers.
Angela Tini Zampetti - Rome

Dear and dear Mrs Angela,
I thank you for your beautiful testimony in memory of your dear husband Luciano.  
In reading his writing I was once again able to appreciate how much vitality and solidity of formation in Christian life there was in our parish communities and in particular in the ranks of Catholic Action which accompanied young people in search of a living and life-giving relationship with Jesus.
Even devotion to models of sanctity, such as Saint Joseph, patron saint of workers, gave energy and confidence in facing the inevitable battles of daily life.
The figure of her husband Luciano remains an example to imitate for us members of the Pious Union of Saint Joseph and also an intercessor for us with the great Patriarch.
In these weeks of the month of March, dedicated to Saint Joseph, in a particular way, I will have a memory of Luciano and also of his entire family, so that the examples are still fruitful today and God's blessing always sings with joy in your hearts.
Greetings also to his brothers-in-law and a blessing for everyone.
With respect and affection.

Gratitude

Dearest members of the Family of the Pious Union of the Transit of San Giuseppe, I would like to thank you very much for the splendid and hard work you do for all of us members, especially for the work of the magazine "La Santa Crociata", very interesting and instructive, and for the way in which display the articles and news, easily understandable even for those who, like me, have little education due to not having been able to attend school. I appreciate all this also because in the magazine I find exactly what I want to read or know, such as news on the Holy House of Loreto or other sanctuaries that I can see on TV when they broadcast the Holy Mass from these churches, explaining the facts and devotions that lead to build these great places of worship. All this strengthens my faith. Thanks for the calendar and the good wishes for my name day: you are the only ones who remember. I thank God, the Holy Virgin and Saint Joseph for helping me and listening to my prayers. I entrust myself to your prayers for the health and work of my children and also for my health which is not so good in this period. For over ten years I have helped your house in Kenya, but since my husband stopped working due to health problems this was no longer possible, having to save money. Please direct the offering I send to where it is most needed. Kind regards and thanks again.
Concetta Mossuto
Melbourne, Australia

The Church in Kerala

I read with pleasure Stefania Severi's article of 3 March 2010 on the depiction of the Holy Family of Quilon in Kerala (India). It offers an insight into the missionary activity of the church in distant lands and in somewhat forgotten centuries. However, I would like to remind you that Christianity had already arrived in Malabar a thousand years earlier with the Syriac church, with a language very close to the Aramaic spoken by Jesus. The Portuguese found a perfectly structured church. The Pope established the first Catholic or rather Latin rite diocese. Here in Oropa we have nuns of both the Malabar and Latin rites.      
Greetings and good work.
Cuffolo Don Silvano, vice-rector.

Sanctity recognized

Reverend and dear Don Mario, I follow up on sending the article for the Magazine, thanking you for the letter you sent me, but above all to congratulate you and your Brothers and Sisters, for the good progress of the canonization process of the Founder Luigi Guanella . The miracle that is clearly attributed to him will remove any delay in recognizing his Sanctity! Despite the attempts of the prince of darkness to obscure the beautiful face of the Church, she always shines as the "Matrix of Saints" and the risen Christ is always present to her. Her love has already won!
In Him I greet you affectionately.
Mother Anna Maria Cánopi osb

The good use of goods

Dear and dear Director, I am sending you my offer for a scholarship for one of your young seminarians. I am happy to be able to do it and for this I thank Providence that allows me to do it. When I pray, I often ask the Lord for the Grace to make good use of the goods he has granted me and I also thank you who, through your prayers and with the ideas I find on "The Holy Crusade" facilitate my objective. I offer everything to the Lord for the conversion of sinners, for the salvation of my soul and for all my loved ones, living and deceased.
Cesarina Bragaglia
Montreal, Canada

A welcome appreciation

Most Reverend Director, thank you so much for your letter which brought me joy and support in feeling understood and well-liked by a person like you. I have carefully read, appreciated and meditated on your last two editorials: from last month, with the spontaneous and moving letter addressed to Saint Joseph and from April, with the title "An event of hope" which invited us to "reflect on the grandeur of that empty tomb". I thank you very much for what you think and write about "our magazine" and I also act as spokesperson for the members who - better and more than me - appreciate its content, as a lesson and guide. I would like to concentrate more but I am still saddened by my son's problems which, in brief, I have communicated to you. I continue to recite the chaplet to Saint Joseph every evening. I thank you for your constant memory of him in prayer.
Maria Luisa

Against skepticism

Dear Director, I am sending my offer for the celebration of a Holy Mass in memory of my husband, who ascended to heaven many years ago. I have always prayed to Saint Joseph, especially in difficult moments and he has always listened to me. I still hope for his help so that he can intercede with God and my children can return to attending church and the holy sacraments. I am especially worried about one of my daughters, separated from her husband, who, although she is well off financially, is never satisfied. Now she has lost the job she held for many years and with the crisis that is almost everywhere, she is unable to find a job that satisfies her. Last March 19th, St. Joseph's Day, I went to church and participated in the Holy Mass, taking communion and praying for this daughter of mine. When she got home she called me and I reminded her that it was March 19th, the feast of Saint Joseph. She grumpily replied that she didn't care. I cried a lot that day because of her behavior but I was sure that Saint Joseph would help me once again. Two days later she was called by a company where she had applied for a job without expecting too much, in fact she had also forgotten that she had forwarded her application to this company. All went well. I was certain that Saint Joseph would help me! In 15 days you will start working in this company in a job that you have known well for many years and which you do very willingly. I am now elderly and I would really like to see my children return to the faith and the sacraments. I hope this will happen while I am still alive, if it is God's will, otherwise I will see them from heaven. Thank you for your patience and the time you dedicate to me.
Letter signed
(from Canada)

The example of parents

Very reverend Director, with this letter of mine I want to share the birth in heaven of my mother Colombo Corinna Ved. Mauri, which took place on 3 July 2010.
Always a passionate reader of yours but above all a great devotee of St. Joseph.
This name meant a lot to his long life; his father was called Joseph, and he wanted to give the name Joseph to his second son (he too is already among the ranks of angels). Every day, he never failed to pray with a Holy Crusade report card; it was among the most recited prayers and in his small but great breviary, it was the most crumpled prayer, signifying precisely how much he recited it.
I devoutly greet and send best wishes to you all and above all a special wish to the entire Guanellian family for the good news of the canonization of the founder. Just think, in Civate, my town, there is a distant relative of him.
Elisa Mauri Polastri


Life is a gift
immeasurable

Dear Don Mario, I have been a member of our Association for some time. Last year in a heartfelt letter I confessed to her the desire to be able to give a little brother or sister to my Nicolò who unfortunately did not arrive. I am happy, after some time, after having prayed so much to the Sacred Mantle of Saint Joseph, that on September 12th my little one arrived, whom I decided to call Joseph with immense joy. Please remember in his prayers thanks to Saint Joseph and protection for me, my husband and my little ones and all the people dear to us. I thank you for the time you dedicate to all those people who, like me, entrust themselves to his prayers and to the precious Sacred Mantle, filling the hearts of so many people with hope.
Antonella - Francavilla

Esteemed and dear Antonella,
His letter fills me with joy not only for his happiness in embracing one of his creatures, but also because God sends us a message of hope in every creature that is born: despite everything, He continues to love us and entrusts us with the fate of the world. only as a space in which to develop, grow and mature the "talents" that he has sown in the furrows of our existence, but so that we become his collaborators in attempting to make the earth a livable oasis, where people learn to love each other and share resources.
Every creature that is born brings a heritage, a singular richness into the fabric of society, a new lifeblood enters that purifies, vitalizes, strengthens. Alongside this gift there also grows a responsibility of us adults in knowing how to cultivate these seeds of humanity that God himself makes sprout on our earth.
Feel, dear Antonella, all the solidarity of the members of the Pious Union and rest assured that we all pray that these new creatures of every skin color and every latitude are accompanied by the divine blessing and covered by the protective mantle of Saint Joseph.

Memory of the Venerable
Aurelio Bacciarini

Reverend director, my sister M. Ida and I Giantina are very close to this magazine because the Venerable Bishop Aurelio Bacciarini not only confirmed us, but was a great friend of our father, Dr. Valente Bernasconi, who accompanied him to Lourdes taking care of of his seminarians.
We pray with them that the sanctity of this Bishop who saved our Ticino in very difficult times with prayer, example and his courage against those (many) who fought against him is recognized.
He offered his life for his people. Thank you for what they do for his Beatification!
Giantina Bernasconi and M. Ida
Angelini – Lugano - Switzerland

by Ottavio De Bertolis

We have reached the end of the Decalogue, and we combine the last two commandments, or words, those that traditionally go under a sort of duplication: "do not desire another's wife", and "do not desire other people's things". We unify them into a single “do not desire”, which is a sort of lowest common denominator.
To begin to clarify the meaning of this Word, we must first of all distinguish between "desires" and "cravings", or whims. Desire is something profound, which sculpts our identity and which constitutes what God created us for: so one can desire to study physics, or be an astronaut, or become a father, or consecrate oneself to God. These types of desires say our vocation itself: any other type of experience will be less significant and important for those who live them, and these desires will likely remain deeply rooted in us, overcoming any contrary or adverse evidence. It may be difficult to remain faithful to it, but it is not impossible, and the effort made in this sense will contribute to making us feel like ourselves, authors and protagonists of our choices. True desire is indelible, precisely because, ultimately, it comes from God.

by Ottavio De Bertolis

15/* The commandments: ten words to stay free. Do not steal

Let's continue our reflection on the ten words that make us free. The seventh commandment says: "thou shalt not steal", and with this each of us feels exempt from any guilt. In fact, none of us has ever gone to rob a bank, or pickpocket old ladies on the bus. But it is clear that the commandment, or rather the word, has a much more significant meaning.
First of all, I would like to note that there is quite little talk about it. In fact, while the sixth commandment, the one on chastity, is felt to be truly obligatory, a sort of bugaboo on which whether or not being in a state of grace depends, the seventh is quite overlooked, as if the Lord did not like the virtues “public”, but only “private” ones.

Don't commit adultery

by Ottavio De Bertolis, sj

At the conclusion of these reflections on the sixth commandment, we can therefore say some very simple things. First of all, that sexuality is a very powerful impulse in everyone, and that therefore it must be lived well, because this force must be well channeled: it is therefore not a question of denying or repressing it - that would only make it worse - but of integrating it into a context of fully human life, of deep and emotional relationships that are not false or illusory. In short, the sixth commandment invites us to learn to love, because, despite the fact that we are all "naturally" capable of it, this does not mean that we always succeed well. Ultimately, we must say that love, like any other human reality, needs to be redeemed: and this is, after all, the profound meaning of the sacrament of marriage, which is aimed at freeing the couple from ambiguities or distortions that can always arise in this relationship.

by Ottavio De Bertolis sj

We have already mentioned the profound meaning of the sixth commandment, which is not to repress, but to free our affectivity and our sexuality itself. In fact, it is evident that these impulses can be disordered and be experienced in a destructive way, that is, not human, but simply animal: experienced in this way, they are not even satisfying, precisely because love is not a simple mechanics of organs, but an agreement of souls. , or, if you prefer, of hearts. Each of us, married or not, lay person or priest, is marked by the profound need to love and be loved: if we thought that chastity consists in suppressing this, we would be completely off track. In this sense, as we mentioned, the sixth commandment does not teach us to repress, but to integrate and live more fully the world of our affections, because it is instead possible to live them badly or "less".

Let us continue our reflection on the fifth word of the Decalogue: do not kill. We have already seen that "kill" here means the relationship with the other broken or deformed by violence. In a nutshell, we could say that "killing" occurs every time someone else is erased from our life. Again, we observed that the brotherhood that the commandment obliges us to live is not a relationship between two, me and my friend, but a relationship between three: me, the other and He who placed us next to each other. other. In this sense, to heal the wounds in our interpersonal relationships we must look to this third subject, God, who loved both of us first, forgiving each of us every debt: we can therefore welcome each other, as He welcomed us.

by Angelo Forti

On the solemnity of the Transfiguration thirty-five years ago Paul VI died after fifteen years of pontificate. A very complex season in the history of the Church. The Second Vatican Ecumenical Council had opened a dam of fruitful waters. John XXIII had been commissioned by the Holy Spirit to a renewed incarnation of the spirit of faith in a threadbare fabric. The Church as an institution was strong in its organization, but after World War II it had lost tune with the breathing of the people; the Word of Christ no longer bit the flesh of human history, it had lost its role as a compass in the orientation of daily life. The "useless massacre" of the war, the concentration and extermination camps, the genocide of the Jews, the gypsies, the handicapped and even the Christians had sparked a burning question in people's minds: "But where is God?".