FREE CHIARA CORBELLA PETRILLO: A WITNESS TO JOY PDF Simone Troisi,Christian Paccini,Charlotte Fasi | 161 pages | 25 Sep 2015 | Sophia Institute Press | 9781622823055 | English | United States 'A saint for our times' – the inspiring story of Chiara Corbella Petrillo Manchester, N. She met her husband Enrico Petrillo at age 18, became the mother of three Chiara Corbella Petrillo: A Witness to Joy, and died at the age But what happened within those 10 years has touched the hearts of thousands across the globe. Chiara's sainthood cause was opened last week, five years after her death. Chiara and Enrico married in Italy on September 21, after having met at Medjugorje in During the early years of their marriage, the young Italian couple faced many hardships together, including the death of two children, who both died only 30 minutes after birth. Chiara became pregnant a third time with their son, Francesco. However, the joyful news of their pregnancy also Chiara Corbella Petrillo: A Witness to Joy with a fatal diagnosis of cancer for Chiara. Her cancer was an unusual lesion of the tongue, which was later discovered to be a carcinoma. Chiara rejected any treatment that could have saved her life during pregnancy because it would have risked the life of her unborn son. As the cancer progressed, it became difficult for Chiara to speak and see clearly, eventually making her final days on earth particularly excruciating. They made peace with the reality that Chiara would never grow old Chiara Corbella Petrillo: A Witness to Joy Enrico or watch Francesco grow up. Chiara died on June 13, at home in her wedding gown, surrounded by her family and friends. Although her earthly life was over, Chiara would continue to be a witness to joy. With Chiara, the ordinary always became the extraordinary. Troisi and Paccini have fond memories of everyday life with the Petrillos, when a conversation about cooking chicken would end in talking about heaven. She never doubted God's faithfulness to His promise of happiness for her story. An earlier version of this article was originally published on CNA Dec. This story was revised July 18, Subscribe to our daily CNA newsletter At Catholic News Agency, our team is committed to reporting the truth with courage, integrity, and fidelity to our faith. We provide news about the Church and the world, as seen through the teachings of the Catholic Church. Servant of God Chiara Corbella Petrillo. Will this young Italian mother be made a saint? Canonization cause gets underway A formal call for testimony has been issued, the first step of an investigation into the Latest Videos:. Follow us:. Chiara Corbella Petrillo: A Witness to Joy by Simone Troisi What I wish to say to the mothers who have lost children is this: we have been mothers; we have had this great gift. The amount of time does not matter: one month, two months, a few hours. What matters is that we have had this gift. In the midst of our culture of death, a society in which life is increasingly devalued and abortion is a common-place medical procedure, Chiara Corbella Petrillo defied societal norms Chiara Corbella Petrillo: A Witness to Joy cherishing the smallest, most defenseless of preborn babies, and outwardly recognized them as her precious children. She and her husband, Enrico, found beauty in tragedy and Chiara Corbella Petrillo: A Witness to Joy their crosses with impeccable grace, humility, and joy, smiling the whole way through, even to the grave. As newlyweds, Chiara and Enrico lost two babies to rare and confusing birth defects shortly after they were born. Even though they knew in utero that each baby would not live long after birth, the couple never once considered abortion as an option, despite the recommendations of surrounding doctors. The third time around, Chiara and Enrico had hoped to experience a normal pregnancy, but God had a different plan for them. Doctors found an aggressive form of cancer in Chiara and she decided to postpone treatment until after childbirth in order to secure the health of her preborn son, Francesco. She was diagnosed as a terminal patient and left this world at the age of 28, still as Chiara Corbella Petrillo: A Witness to Joy in love as ever with God, her husband, and her children. Side by side, they walked through each hardship with their eyes always looking toward God and eternal life with Him. Despite tragedies under which most marriages would crumble, Chiara and Enrico faced uncommon sufferings with heroic virtue, serenity, trust in God, and a profound joy. Chiara and Enrico are true role models. As a married Catholic woman, I am very much inspired to mirror their love in my own marriage. Sarah Poole is a wife, writer, artist, and devout Catholic who enjoys photographing nature and urban areas in Ohio. Facebook Comments. Sarah Poole Sarah Poole is a wife, writer, artist, and devout Catholic who enjoys photographing nature and urban areas in Ohio. View all posts. You may also like. Chiara Corbella: A Witness to Joy - Crisis Magazine Chiara Corbella was born on January 9, in Rome, Italy. Chiara grew up with her older sister of two years, Elisa, in a family that taught her how to live the faith from when she was a child. Chiara went to the prayer meetings of a local Charismatic Renewal movement Rinnovamento nello Spirito with her mother, Maria Anselma. This journey, in which she learned how to turn to Jesus as a friend, taught her, above all, how to share the faith with her brothers and sisters in Christ. As she got older, a certain independence emerged in Chiara, making her very determined in her decisions. She had a peaceful demeanor, not rebellious, and had a way of expressing herself in service Chiara Corbella Petrillo: A Witness to Joy others. Relationship with Enrico During the summer ofChiara was on vacation in Croatia with some friends from high school. Elisa, her sister, was nearby on a pilgrimage in Medjugorje. Chiara decided to meet up with her there. It was here on August 2 nd that Chiara met Enrico Petrillo, a young year-old from Rome, as he was on pilgrimage with his prayer group. Chiara was 18 years old and had never dated anyone, but had the intuition that she was standing before her future husband. After they both returned to Rome, they began dating and getting to know each other. It was, in some sense, an ordinary dating relationship marked by arguments, break-ups and getting back together. So much so, she even would later speak of this experience as the part of her life that was most difficult for her to live, even more difficult than the sickness that would eventually cause her to die. I found, through the help of this program, the strength to trust in God and so I tried Chiara Corbella Petrillo: A Witness to Joy see if the relationship with Enrico could continue. We both started spiritual direction in order to Chiara Corbella Petrillo: A Witness to Joy accompanied in this journey. However, our relationship still did not go well until I began to understand that the Lord was not threatening to take anything away from me. Vito, a Franciscan friar and the spiritual director of both Chiara and Enrico, celebrated the wedding. After their honeymoon Chiara discovered that she was pregnant. The ultrasound showed, however, a severe malformation in the baby. The baby, named Maria Grazia Letizia, was diagnosed with anencephaly. Chiara and Enrico chose to carry the baby until Chiara Corbella Petrillo: A Witness to Joy was born on June 10, She died less than a half hour after her birth. Her funeral was lived in the spirit of the same peace that accompanied the months of pregnancy, and it touched many of the people present who Chiara Corbella Petrillo: A Witness to Joy the grace of experiencing a taste of heaven. A few months later, Chiara got pregnant again. She was pregnant with a little boy that they named Davide Giovanni. Davide was diagnosed, however, with severe malformation to crucial organs and was missing his legs. He too died not Chiara Corbella Petrillo: A Witness to Joy after he was born on June 24, His funeral was also lived as a celebration. He gave us the opportunity to embrace them, have them baptized, and then entrust them into the hands of the Father, all with a peace and joy that we had never experienced before. Francesco and the Dragon Among the pathologies of the two children there was no connection. To demonstrate it they received the results of the genetic tests, which their family and friends suggested they get done. The other proof that that there was no genetic pathology is that they got pregnant with their third child, Francesco, who was completely healthy. A week after Chiara discovered she was pregnant, Chiara felt something on her tongue. The doctors suspected that it might be a tumor and so Chiara, while still pregnant, underwent the first phase of surgery in order to remove the mass on her tongue. For the second phase, they would have to wait until Francesco was born. The tumor, which Chiara later called the Dragonwas confirmed to be cancerous. She chose to delay the surgery in order to protect the baby that she was carrying in her womb. She even chose to be guided by the doctors that would give her the time needed for Francesco to grow big enough to be born without danger of complications. It seemed that I was the one to be saved, not him.