Today is the feast of Saint Maria Goretti. Her life remains a model of purity and mercy for all Christians. St. Maria Goretti was born in 1890, and at age 11 she resisted when a 20 year old man tried to rape her. The man stabbed her more than a dozen times and she died soon after. She was canonized by Pope Pius XII in 1950. Dr. Matthew Bunson, Executive Editor and Washington Bureau Chief of EWTN News, joins to tell us about St. Maria Goretti and especially about her example of forgiveness and me

Do you know the incredible story of St. Maria Goretti? Today is her feast day -- St. Maria Goretti, pray for us! 🙏 Read more: Prayer to St. Maria Goretti for the healing of those who’ve suffered sexual abuse http://bit.ly/Aleteia_FBMariaGoretti #MariaGoretti #Saints #Spirituality #Catholic #Faith #Prayer | Aleteia English

Saint Maria Goretti’s Story One of the largest crowds ever assembled for a canonization—250,000—symbolized the reaction of millions touched by the simple story of Maria Goretti. She was the daughter of a poor Italian tenant farmer, had no chance to go to school, never learned to read or write. When Maria made her First Communion not long before her death, she was one of the larger and somewhat backward members of the class. On a hot afternoon in July, Maria was sitting at the top of the stairs o