3 Secrets to Sainthood from St. Gianna (and a Giveaway!)

Laura Range shares three quotes on joy and holiness from St. Gianna—and a chance to win some beautiful items with St. Gianna’s words on them! 

Saint Gianna Molla's feast day is coming up on April 28. As a twentieth-century wife, mother, and doctor, she has much to share with Catholic mothers today on how to live well the vocation God has given us. She was a vibrant, intelligent, and virtuous woman. When Gianna was pregnant with her fourth child, doctors found a tumor on her uterus. Gianna refused a recommended hysterectomy because it would end the life of her baby. Shortly after the baby was born, Gianna died from an infection. Just over forty years later, Gianna was canonized a saint, with her husband and children attending the ceremony. 

Though Saint Gianna is most often known for her heroic decision to protect the life of her unborn child, the faithful actions of her daily life are what prepared her for that time and they are ultimately what made her a saint. Most likely my motherhood and yours will not consist of literally laying down our lives for our children, but we know that every day presents multiple opportunities to die to self in order to love and serve our children and husbands. This gift of self does not mean a sad-faced "martyr mom." As joyful Gianna shows us, the path to heaven can be both happy and holy. Want to know her secrets? 

But first, prayer. 

The stillness of prayer is the most essential condition for fruitful action. Before all else, the disciple kneels down. 

As we care for our household and families, prayer can sometimes slip by the wayside. Yet St. Gianna reminds us that all of our actions are fruitless if they do not stem from prayer. It must be the foundation of our vocation—prayer for our wisdom in parenting, prayer for strength and endurance, prayer for our children. We are filled with God's love first and foremost as His daughters so that we have a full tank with which to pour out love to our family members and those outside our home as well.

Not sure where to begin? Try posting a copy of the Morning Offering by your coffee pot, subscribe to a daily Catholic prayer podcast, or read the daily Mass readings with Blessed Is She ministry or the Catholic Mom Daily Gospel Reflections.

See Jesus in your children. 

Love your children. In them you can see Baby Jesus. Pray for them a lot and every day put them under Holy Mary's protection. 

The teething baby? The whiny toddler? The cranky teenager? Jesus lives in them. And He wants you to love Him by loving them. By looking for His Face in our children, it softens our hearts to their needs and desires and helps us put away our selfishness. Our children are not IN the way of our sanctification, they ARE the way to it. Our Lady will help us care for their bodies and souls as tenderly and faithfully as she did for our Lord. 

Live in the present moment. 

The secret of happiness is to live moment by moment and to thank God for all that He, in His goodness, sends to us day after day. 

You don't have to be a mom for very long to realize you will have regrets about the past and fears about the future. Yet those emotions rob us of the peace and beauty of the present moment. St. Gianna tells us happiness is found in staying in the present, by trusting the past to God's mercy and the future to His providence. We can look at all He gives us each day with gratitude—so many gifts if we have the eyes to see! —and we can live in peace and deep joy as His beloved daughters when we believe our Father will take care of us even during the hard seasons.  

Click to tweet:
Every day presents multiple opportunities to die to self in order to love and serve our children and husbands. #CatholicMom

If you'd like to learn more about St. Gianna, I recommend the book Saint Gianna Molla: Wife, Mother, and Doctor, co-written by her husband Pietro with Elio Guerriero. (If you have a subscription to Formed.org, you can download it for free!) 

Enter to win one of three prizes featuring the words of St. Gianna!

And now it’s giveaway time! Artist Jessica from the Sweet Little Ones shop on Etsy has graciously offered one of her beautiful T-shirts and two art prints to help you remember St. Gianna’s “secrets” for holiness! To enter, please comment below to answer this question:

Which words of St. Gianna in this article resonated with you most?

This giveaway is open to US residents only. Entries will be accepted through 11:59 PM Eastern Sunday, April 23, 2023. Three winners will each receive one of the following prizes:

• "Live holy in the present moment" t-shirt
• "Whatever God Wants" print
• "Secret of Happiness" print

Winners will be notified by email and will have 48 hours to claim their prize. Unclaimed prizes will be awarded to alternate winners. This is a blog-only giveaway; entries made on social media will not be counted.

Copyright 2023 Laura Range
Images: (top) Canva; product images courtesy of Jessica Marie of Sweet Little Ones, all rights reserved, used with permission