Jesuit Bishop Of Youngstown Forwards The Cause Of Mother Maria Teresa Casini

An Italian nun who founded a religious order may be one step closer to beatification as the Catholic Church investigates her possible intervention in the remarkable recovery of a young Campbell boy who nearly drowned five years ago.

A Canonical Investigation is underway in the Diocese of Youngstown after Bishop George V. Murry, S.J., heeded the request of Father Luca M. DeRosa, postulator for the Cause of the Beatification and Canonization of the Venerable Servant of God, Mother Maria Teresa Casini, foundress of the Oblate Sisters of the Sacred Heart of Jesus.

The Oblates’ only headquarters in the United States is in Hubbard, Ohio, where they operate a priests’ retirement facility and a preschool/kindergarten program. The order also serves in Italy, Brazil, India and West Africa.

The case for Mother Maria Teresa Casini’s sainthood began 57 years ago in Frascati, Italy, which was her birthplace. She was first deemed a Servant of God, and then declared Venerable in 1998. "Venerable" is the Church’s way of saying Mother Maria Teresa was an exceptional woman in terms of her morals and actions, so prayers and intercessions to her are encouraged, explained Oblate Sister of the Sacred Heart of Jesus Joyce Candidi. Sister Joyce is director of the diocesan Office of Vowed Religious.

Teresa Casini was born in 1864 into a wealthy family. Her father was a devout Catholic; her mother, a Russian socialite. In her autobiography, she recalled her childhood awareness of God and how she would ponder His greatness alone in her room while her family hosted parties. Her love of prayer and concern for the poor were nurtured by her father, who died when she was nine. After his death, when her mother resumed her social life, Teresa would often accompany her, although the parties and dinners did not make her happy.

After committing herself to religious life, she founded the Oblates of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, a religious order that began as a cloister but grew into service, all in the name of increasing priestly vocations and sanctifying the clergy. She created schools for "The Little Friends of Jesus," which were pre-seminary institutions. She started the League of Priests, which she said was requested of her by Jesus to offer reparations for those priests who do not fulfill or appreciate their vocations. Today, the League of Priests is formed at the diocesan level, and members meet for prayer and fellowship four times per year.

"Of all her virtues, what really struck me was her obedience ... to God’s will," Sister Joyce said.

The event that is being investigated as a miracle was accompanied by a number of coincidences.

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