Maria Giovanna Fasce
An Italian Augustinian nun and prioress of the monastery of Cascia, Blessed Maria Teresa Fasce (1881-1947) dedicated her life to spreading devotion to Saint Rita, founding an orphanage, and building the new sanctuary, all while heroically enduring illness.
Contemporaries
Figures and markers around the normalized period for this entry.
Guided reading
5 reading sections
Biography
Birth of Maria Giovanna Fasce in Torriglia, her education in Genoa, her religious vocation inspired by Saint Rita, and her difficult entry into the monastery of Cascia.
Maria Giovanna Fasce was born on December 27, 1881, in Torriglia, Italy, into a bourgeois and Christian family. The daughter of Eugenio Fasce and Teresa Valente, she lost her mother at the age of eight. Her older sister Luigia then took charge of her education. Settled in Genoa, she became actively involved in her parish and discovered the spirituality of Saint Augustine under the guidance of Father Mariano Ferriello. Marked by the canonization of Saint Rita in 1900, she desired to enter the monastery of Cascia. Despite the opposition of her family and the initial refusal of the nuns, she was admitted in June 1906, taking the name Sister Maria Teresa Eletta. She made her solemn vows on May 28, 1912.
Life and Work
Election of Sister Maria Teresa as Abbess of Cascia, her major achievements including the magazine, the orphanage, the new sanctuary, and her charitable work during the war.
Elected Abbess in 1920, a position she held for 27 years, Sister Maria Teresa profoundly transformed Cascia. In 1923, she founded the magazine "Dalle Api alle Rose" to propagate devotion to Saint Rita. In 1925, she undertook the construction of the "Alveare di Santa Rita" orphanage for poor young girls, which was completed in 1938. She also launched the project for a large basilica dedicated to Saint Rita to welcome pilgrims, overcoming numerous financial difficulties and the disruptions of the Second World War. During the Nazi occupation, she demonstrated courage by hiding resistance fighters and refugees in the monastery.
Journey toward holiness
Maria Teresa's mystical union with the Cross through serious illnesses endured with patience and joy until her death in 1947.
The life of Maria Teresa Fasce is marked by a profound mystical union with the Cross through illness. For 27 years, she suffered from cancer of the left breast, which she called 'my treasure,' as well as diabetes, asthma, and serious heart problems that forced her to use a wheelchair. She endured these sufferings with heroic patience and constant joy, offering herself as a sacrifice for Christ and the Church. She passed away peacefully on January 18, 1947, at the monastery of Cascia.
Beatification and canonization
The beatification process of Maria Teresa Fasce, the recognition of her heroic virtues, and the miracle of unexplained healing leading to her beatification in 1997.
The beatification process opened in the Archdiocese of Spoleto-Norcia in 1968. On July 11, 1995, Pope John Paul II declared her Venerable. The miracle accepted for her beatification was the scientifically inexplicable healing of a gallstone in Chiara Gargano in Naples in April 1991, after invoking the intercession of Maria Teresa. This miracle was officially recognized by decree on July 7, 1997. Maria Teresa Fasce was solemnly beatified by Pope John Paul II on October 12, 1997, in Saint Peter's Square in Rome.
Spirituality and legacy
The synthesis between contemplation and charitable action, and the endurance of her work in Cascia where her body rests.
The spirituality of Maria Teresa Fasce rests on a perfect synthesis between contemplative life and charitable action. Her legacy remains alive in Cascia: the basilica welcomes millions of pilgrims and the 'Beehive' orphanage continues to help young girls in difficulty. Her body rests and is venerated in the lower basilica of the sanctuary of Saint Rita in Cascia. She is particularly invoked by patients suffering from cancer.
Frequently asked questions about Maria Giovanna Fasce
Who was Maria Giovanna Fasce?
An Italian Augustinian nun and prioress of the monastery of Cascia, Blessed Maria Teresa Fasce (1881-1947) dedicated her life to spreading devotion to Saint Rita, founding an orphanage, and building the new sanctuary, all while heroically enduring illness.
What is Maria Giovanna Fasce invoked for?
Maria Giovanna Fasce is invoked for: Malades atteints de cancer and Cancer patients.
Which saints were contemporaries of Maria Giovanna Fasce?
Contemporaries include: Pauline of the Agonizing Heart of Jesus, Felipe de Jesús Munárriz and 50 companions, Mariano de Jesús Euse Hoyos and Teresa of Jesus of the Andes.
When did Maria Giovanna Fasce die?
Maria Giovanna Fasce died around 1947.
What are the other names of Maria Giovanna Fasce?
Other forms of the name: Maria Teresa Eletta and Marie-Thérèse.
Who are the relatives of Maria Giovanna Fasce?
Relatives of Maria Giovanna Fasce: Eugenio Fasce (father), Teresa Valente (mother) and Luigia Fasce (sister).
Annexes & related entities
Structured data for exploration: events, miracles, quotes, places, attributes, patronages, and important entities cited in the text.
Key Events
- Era / death: 1947
- Beatification in 1997 by John Paul II