4. Our Lady of the Rosary Smiles at Lucia
When my turn came round, I went and knelt at the feet of our
dear Lord, represented there in the person of His minister, imploring
forgiveness for my sins. When I had finished, I noticed that
everyone was laughing.
My mother called me to her and said: “My child, don’t you know
that confession is a secret matter and that it is made in a low voice?
Everybody heard you! There was only one thing nobody heard:
that is what you said at the end.”
On the way home, my mother made several attempts to discover
what she called the secret of my confession. But the only
answer she obtained was complete silence.
Now, however, I am going to reveal the secret of my first confession.
After listening to me, the good priest said these few words:
“My child, your soul is the temple of the Holy Spirit. Keep it
always pure, so that He will be able to carry on His divine action
within it.”
On hearing these words, I felt myself filled with respect for my
interior, and asked the kind confessor what I ought to do.
“Kneel down there before Our Lady and ask her, with great
confidence, to take care of your heart, to prepare it to receive Her
beloved Son worthily tomorrow, and to keep it for Him alone!”
In the Church, there was more than one statue of Our Lady;
but as my sisters took care of the altar of Our Lady of the Rosary 7,
I usually went there to pray. That is why I went there on this occasion
also, to ask her with all the ardour of my soul, to keep my poor
heart for God alone. As I repeated this humble prayer over and
over again, with my eyes fixed on the statue, it seemed to me that
she smiled and, with a loving look and kindly gesture, assured me
that she would. My heart was overflowing with joy, and I could scarcely utter a single word.
5. Eager Expectancy
My sisters stayed up that night making me a white dress and a
wreath of flowers. As for me, I was so happy that I could not sleep,
This beautiful statue still stands in the Parish Church on the right of the transept.
and it seemed as if the hours would never pass! I kept on getting
up to ask them if the day had come, or if they wanted me to try on
my dress, or my wreath, and so forth.
The happy day dawned at last; but nine o’clock – how long it
was in coming! I put on my white dress, and then my sister Maria
took me into the kitchen to ask pardon of my parents, to kiss their
hands and ask their blessing. After this little ceremony, my mother
gave me her last recommendations. She told me what she wanted
me to ask Our Lord when I had received Him into my heart, and
said goodbye to me in these words:
“Above all, ask Him to make you a saint.”
Her words made such an indelible impression on my heart,
that they were the very first that I said to Our Lord when I received
Him. Even today, I seem to hear the echo of my mother’s voice
repeating these words to me. I set out for the church with my sisters,
and my brother carried me all the way in his arms, so that not
a speck of dust from the road would touch me. As soon as I arrived
at the church, I ran to kneel before the altar of Our Lady to renew
my petition. There I remained in contemplation of Our Lady’s smile
of the previous day, until my sisters came in search of me and took
me to my appointed place. There was a large number of children,
arranged in four lines – two of boys and two of girls –from the back
of the church right up to the altar rails. Being the smallest, it happened
that I was the one nearest to the ‘angels’ on the step by the
altar rails.
6. The Great Day
Once the Missa Cantata began and the great moment drew
near, my heart beat faster and faster, in expectation of the visit of
the great God who was about to descend from Heaven, to unite
Himself to my poor soul. The parish priest came down and passed
among the rows of children, distributing the Bread of Angels. I had
the good fortune to be the first one to receive. As the priest was
coming down the altar steps, I felt as though my heart would leap
from my breast. But he had no sooner placed the Divine Host on
my tongue than I felt an unalterable serenity and peace. I felt myself
bathed in such a supernatural atmosphere that the presence
of our dear Lord became as clearly perceptible to me as if I had
seen and heard Him with my bodily senses. I then addressed my
prayer to Him:
“O Lord, make me a saint. Keep my heart always pure, for You
alone.”
Then it seemed that in the depths of my heart, our dear Lord
distinctly spoke these words to me:
“The grace granted to you this day will remain living in your
soul, producing fruits of eternal life.”
I felt as though transformed in God.
It was almost one o’clock before the ceremonies were over, on
account of the late arrival of priests coming from a distance, the
sermon and the renewal of baptismal promises. My mother came
looking for me, quite distressed, thinking I might faint from weakness.
But I, filled to overflowing with the Bread of Angels, found it
impossible to take any food whatsoever. After this, I lost the taste
and attraction for the things of the world, and only felt at home in
some solitary place where, all alone, I could recall the delights of
my First Communion.
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