Santina Collani

From the age of 16, Maria felt the call to religious life. In 1939, she was hired as an assistant by the Oblates of Our Lady of the Sacred Heart in Cremona. Appreciated for her spirit of sacrifice and dedication, she asked to be admitted as an oblate in 1940. After four years of formation, she received the crucifix of consecration on December 31, 1944, as a lay sister.

Desirous of fully following God's will and guided by her spiritual director, Father Francesco Tantardini, she chose to enter a new nascent congregation: the Institute of the Sisters of Mercy (Sorelle Misericordiose), founded on May 11, 1947, in Rionero in Vulture (province of Potenza) by Father Achille Fosco, a Franciscan priest (Friar Minor Conventual), and Mother Francesca Semporini. She requested admission on August 9, 1949, and began her novitiate on December 8, 1949, in Rionero in Vulture, receiving the religious habit and taking the name Sister Maria Santina (in homage to Santina Mancini, superior of the Oblates of Cremona).

On November 25, 1950, she pronounced her temporary vows before the Bishop of Melfi-Rapolla-Venosa, Msgr. Domenico Petrone. She was first sent to teach briefly in a nursery school in Monteverde, in the province of Avellino. She was then transferred to Borgo d'Ale, in the province of Vercelli, to the 'La Consolata' retirement home for the elderly. There, she served as superior and director, while acting as a humble servant, nurse, and cleaner for the residents. On August 15, 1955, on the feast of the Assumption, she pronounced her perpetual vows in the parish church of Germagno, near Verbania.

Sister Maria Santina distinguished herself by heroic charity, total self-forgetfulness, and profound humility. She made a vow to offer herself as a victim of love for the salvation of sinners and the sanctification of priests. Afflicted with cancer (sarcoma), she endured great physical suffering which she welcomed with unwavering faith and exemplary patience. She died holily on December 22, 1956, in Borgo d'Ale, at the age of 42, assisted by the Superior General, Mother Francesca Semporini.

The reputation for holiness of Sister Maria Santina spread rapidly after her death. On April 8, 2003, the Archdiocese of Vercelli officially opened the diocesan inquiry into her heroic virtues, which concluded on January 1, 2009. The Positio was submitted to the Congregation for the Causes of Saints on January 25, 2016.

On June 11, 2019, Pope Francis authorized the promulgation of the decree recognizing the heroic nature of her virtues, thereby declaring her venerable.

Her mortal remains, initially interred in the cemetery of Borgo d'Ale, were transferred on November 29, 1966, to the cemetery of Santhià. On January 28, 2019, following a canonical recognition, they were solemnly transferred to the Chapel of the Virgin of the Rosary in the parish church of Saints Agatha and George in Santhià (province of Vercelli).

The spirituality of the Venerable Maria Santina Collani rests on contemplation and action lived out in merciful love. Her entire life is summarized by her own writings:

"To be with Jesus! How ugly the world is without Him... I have only one desire: to love Jesus and to be consumed for Him... and I ask myself: 'What have I done for Him until now?'. But I want to love Him and for everyone to love Him."

Her legacy endures through the work of the Sisters of Mercy, who continue their mission of assisting the most destitute, orphans, and the elderly in Italy, as well as abroad, notably in the Philippines and Tanzania.