Whenever I visit the Mother House in Turin, am always attracted by a small chapel next to the Chapel of Our Founder, that bears a list of all the Consolata Martyrs. They are only pictures, yet they speak louder to any person thirsty of Christ. They make the greatest wealth of our Institute because they make our history of graces. Before our Founder died, there were three things that he desired to see. One was seeing his uncle Don Cafasso beatified, then he wanted to see ordained an indigenous priest, which happened only one year after his death; and then he also had a great desire to see one of his missionaries dying in the mission as a martyr. Only that he never knew how long the list would be about 80 years later.
Martyrdom as a witness
Jesus is the true model of all martyrs. When a person chooses to sacrifice his life for the sake of faith in the love of Christ, he testifies effectively before men the meaning and truth of his faith. Man has nothing more precious than life and everything he does, he always tries to preserve and to promote it. Therefore, when he chooses the sacrifice of this precious possession, he demonstrates the existence of a Lordship that underlies a physical happening and going beyond the immediate agents of such a robbery. And this Lordship is felt to be so real that the highest earthly good is surrendered without resistance for the sake of it.
Looking at the concrete character of martyrdom, with the culprits normally of both sexes, of all classes and age, and without fanaticism, in patient resign action, the cruel circumstances, and the acceptance of martyrdom as the fulfilment of Christian life, we see the personal convictions of men of faith. Alive or dead, they belong to Christ. They have been absorbed by the Gospel of Christ; making them witnesses up to a painful death like Jesus did.
Martyrdom as a miracle
Martyrdom for the sake of Christian and Catholic faith has always been regarded in the theological tradition as a miracle, because it goes beyond man's normal and moral strength. How would St. Mary Goretti, a girl of 12, refuse to have sex with Alexander, even when threatened to be killed and eventually killed while still resisting? Why would Sr. Lionella Sgorbati choose to go to Mogadishu giving her life and love to the poor and suffering? She was consciously aware of the dangers involved but she chose to be a presence of life, consolation and hope to the needy. All along, her life was a daily martyrdom of love that ended with a dramatic irony of being killed together with the person that was to protect her.
The Church considers martyrdom as an exceptional gift and as the highest proof of love (LG, 42). It is really the supreme act of love for it places man completely at the disposal of God. It is only love that can affirm the value of another person. Thus, martyrdom expresses the love of God whom one allows one's life to be taken and to whose love one attributes the pain of this loss. The intention of the martyr is a loving desire to be dissolved and to be with Christ (Phil. 1:23).
Blessed Allamano used to say that ''to die well, we must prepare ourselves well.'' Our lives must already be burning with love of God. Martyrdom can never be a showing off act or a heroic pretence. It is crowning a life already lived in love for humanity up to the point of a betrayal by the same humanity. It is giving up of a life that was always sustained and highly compelled by the love of God and neighbour. This is a way of living a life of witness to the truth and one can only accept it if he has assimilated the heavenly truths to the point of becoming fully convinced. It is this conviction that makes one available for death.
The Martyrs in our Institute
In these days, we are moaning the death of our 82 years old conferee Fr. Joseph Bertaina. He gave his life for the people of Kenya and for the last 57 years, he has been living a daily martyrdom of love in the services he was known to give with all his heart. The last time I visited the chapel of our Founder, I counted the number of martyrs that are listed there and seeing that they were twelve, I was just so amazed to see the fullness of that number. Only that I didn't know that my old professor of Italian would soon be enrolling himself in the same list. And I'm convinced that these are graces for us no matter how bitter they can be. These can never be obstacles to evangelization, but stabling blocks to be turned into stepping stones.
Africa, the first love of our Founder, has so far been washed by blood of twelve Consolata Missionaries, and among them three Consolata Sisters. In 1941, Ethiopia witnessed the death of Fr. John Prato and Fr. Quinto Gardetto and also Sr. Eliodora Zottig. Two years later, a 28 years Fr. Francesco Favotto, lost his life in Tunisia. And in Kenya with the uprising of the MauMau, Sr. Eugenia Cavallo lost her life in 1953 at Mujwa and later with independence, Fr. Michael Stallone was killed at Baragoi in 1965. Three years later, Fr. John Calleri would die in the hands of the Indios in the Amazzonia. And as if this was not enough, two fathers would lose their lives in Mozambique, with the difficult situation that had entered in that country. Fr. Guerrino Prandelli was killed in 1972 and in 1991 followed Fr. Ariel Granada. Again in Kenya, with many situations of insecurity, the last 28 years has claimed blood of three missionaries. Fr. Luigi Graif was killed at Parkati in 1981 while Fr. Luigi Andeni fell in the hands of bandits at Archer's Post in 1998. And two years ago, the whole world moaned the death of Sr. Lionella Sgorbati in Mogadishu where she was giving her services to the war torn country along the Gulf.
Carrying our crosses
''Unless a grain of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains just a grain of wheat, but if it dies, it produces much fruit.'' (John 12:24) How many people are strengthened by the blood of martyrs? When we hear of somebody giving his own life for the sake of Christ, it challenges us to ask of that which can be all that attractive to him/her to the point of allowing his/her life to be taken, without defending himself or resisting. Thus, the martyrs can never be in any way a way of killing of zeal for souls but it even doubles it. To be disciples means to carry our own crosses and to follow Him in different situations of suffering and to be ready to lose one's life in order to gain it, by serving out of love like Jesus.
We are all called to become martyrs in our everyday lives and in our vocations. Our Blessed Founder was convinced that carrying our own crosses everyday is a slow and prolonged martyrdom. A bloody martyrdom is perhaps noticeable, but this hidden one is even more precious. This is the same martyrdom that Our Lady, venerated as a woman of Sorrows, was living everyday and she always encourages us to imitate her in our daily lives by persevering in doing the good. To be a witness of Christ is a struggle and a sacrifice. This is our daily martyrdom which puts us into an unending journey of love among our brothers and sisters, Christians and pagans, rich and poor, those at our reach and even to those far from us. We can both moan and rejoice for our slain missionaries but they set themselves for us as great examples of a life lived in love and given off for love.
