Bienheureuse Chiara Luce Badano
Jeune fille italienne (+ 1990)
SOURCE : https://nominis.cef.fr/contenus/saint/12248/Bienheureuse-Chiara-Luce-Badano.html
Chiara Badano, cette ado "comme les autres" devenue bienheureuse
Philip
Kosloski - Publié le 07/12/17
Quand on évoque les saints, on ne pense pas forcément
à des ados mauvais en maths, sortant tard le soir avec des copains et écoutant
les derniers tubes à la mode. Pourtant, Chiara Badano était de ceux-ci.
Née le 29 octobre 1971 dans un petit village italien
au sein d’un foyer catholique et aimant, Chiara a la foi très tôt. À l’âge de 4
ans, elle fait déjà preuve d’une grande générosité envers les autres :
elle donne ses plus beaux jouets à des enfants défavorisés et est toujours
heureuse d’aller rendre visite à des personnes âgées dans la maison de retraite
près de chez elle.
À 9 ans, elle découvre le mouvement des Focolari et
adhère sur-le-champ à cette spiritualité. Chiara grandit, va au collège puis au
lycée : c’est une jeune fille populaire qui a beaucoup d’amis, fait du
sport, danse, sort… En apparence, c’est une adolescente ordinaire qui aime
s’amuser.
Une joie surnaturelle pour affronter la maladie
Un jour, alors qu’elle a 17 ans, elle ressent une vive
douleur à l’épaule lors d’une partie de tennis. Après de nombreuses analyses,
on lui diagnostique un cancer aigu des os appelé ostéosarcome. La maladie se
développe rapidement et très vite, elle perd l’usage de ses jambes. Ses chances
de survie sont très minces.
Au cœur de la souffrance, Chiara est habitée par une
joie surnaturelle, et au lieu de vivre sa maladie comme une malédiction, elle
l’offre en sacrifice à Dieu. Elle répète inlassablement : « Pour toi
Jésus. Si tu le veux, je le veux moi aussi. » Elle refuse la
morphine : « Cela me rend moins lucide, or je n’ai plus qu’une chose
à faire désormais : offrir ma souffrance à Jésus, car je veux partager sa
souffrance sur la croix le plus possible. »
« La mort n’existe pas. Seule la vie
existe »
De nombreux amis viennent lui rendre visite à
l’hôpital : « Au début, nous allions voir Chiara Luce [son nom chez
les Focolari, « lumière » en italien] car nous pensions qu’elle avait
besoin qu’on lui remonte le moral. Mais très vite nous avons réalisé qu’en
réalité, c’était nous qui avions besoin d’elle. Sa vie était comme un aimant
qui nous attirait à elle. » L’un de ses médecins disait : « À
travers son sourire, à travers ses yeux pleins de lumière, elle nous montrait
que la mort n’existe pas. Seule la vie existe. »
Alors que sa courte vie touche à sa fin, elle dit à sa
mère : « Ne pleure pas, car je pars retrouver Jésus. À mon
enterrement, je ne veux pas que les gens pleurent, je veux des gens qui
chantent de tout leur cœur. » Elle demande également à être enterrée vêtue
de blanc, pour symboliser son alliance éternelle avec le Christ.
Chiara Badano quitte ce monde le 7 octobre 1990, peu
avant ses 19 ans. Elle part retrouver Jésus après avoir dit ces dernières
paroles : « Adieu. Soyez heureux car je le suis. » Son procès en
canonisation a été officiellement ouvert en 1999 et elle est déclarée vénérable
en 2008. Peu après, Benoît XVI reconnaît un miracle attribué à son
intercession ; elle est béatifiée le 25 septembre 2010. Un deuxième
miracle est nécessaire pour qu’elle soit canonisée.
SOURCE : https://fr.aleteia.org/2017/12/07/chiara-badano-cette-ado-comme-les-autres-devenue-bienheureuse/
Histoire de Chiara Badano
La joie est immense lorsque la petite Chiara
montre le bout de son nez le 29 octobre 1971 dans la famille Badano. La
fillette grandit dans un climat familial aimant. En 1980, Chiara découvre les
Focolari. On y prêche un « idéal ». Elle est tout de suite attirée par cette
manière de vivre : mettre Dieu au centre de sa vie et vivre l’unité de façon
concrète. Elle se lie alors au groupe des Gen 3 (jeunes de 9 à 16 ans).
Chiara est belle : son regard limpide attire.
Elle aime la vie et pratique différents sports : tennis, natation, danse,
promenades dans les montagnes avec son père… Sa joie intérieure jaillit par les
chants qu’elle aime entonner. Toujours entourée d’amis, sa présence attire.
Elle les retrouve le soir dans son village, devant le café. Sa présence parmi
eux est témoignage. Non, je ne parle pas de Dieu. […] Ce n’est pas parler de
Dieu qui compte, moi je dois le donner.
Fin de l’été 1988 : Chiara joue au tennis. Une
douleur à l’épaule revient fréquemment. Celle-ci se fait de plus en plus aiguë.
Des recherches plus approfondies permettent au corps médical de trouver la
maladie : ostéosarcome avec métastases. Les examens, les attentes, les
rechutes, les améliorations, les hospitalisations se succèdent. Elle se soumet,
et continue son chemin de vie authentique.
Arrive le temps de la longue chimiothérapie. Chiara
comprend alors la gravité de son mal. Sa maman raconte : « Je vois encore
Chiara arriver dans le jardin… Elle a le regard fixe… Je lui demande comment ça
s’est passé. Non, pas maintenant, ne me parle pas maintenant. Elle se jette sur
son lit les yeux fermés. Elle reste comme ça vingt-cinq minutes. Puis elle se
tourne vers moi : Maintenant tu peux parler. Ça y est, elle a redit son oui. Et
elle ne revient plus en arrière. Son sourire revient. Après avoir demandé à
Jésus : Pourquoi ? Elle continue : Si tu le veux, Jésus, je le veux moi aussi.
» Ses yeux sont tournés vers le Christ, elle sait, où elle va. Sa souffrance a
un sens.
Chiara vit sa maladie en union avec la Passion du
Christ. Alors que ses veines éclatent sans cesse, à force de subir des
perfusions, une infirmière découvre une veine encore bonne. Elle demande alors
à Chiara de rester immobile. Si elle bouge le doigt, l’aiguille sautera et ils
ne pourront faire la thérapie. Pendant trois jours, Chiara reste sans bouger ;
devant l’aiguille qui ressemble à un papillon posé sur son bras, elle dit :
Pour moi, c’est une petite épreuve, même si ça me fait mal et que j’ai envie de
bouger le doigt. Pour résister à cette tentation, je me dis que ce papillon est
l’une des épines que Jésus avait sur la tête.
La médecine baisse les bras et affirme son
impuissance. Chiara souffre atrocement. Elle sait que seul un miracle peut la
sauver. Pourtant, elle écrit : Je n’arrive pas à le demander. Peut-être que
cela vient de mon impression que cela ne rentre pas dans sa volonté ? J’ai hâte
d’aller au paradis…mais est-ce que ce n’est pas encore un attachement, quelque
chose à perdre ? Elle prépare alors dans les moindres détails la fête de ses
noces, vivant ces moments comme des fiançailles.
À sa maman, elle adresse cette recommandation : Quand
tu me prépareras sur mon lit de mort, maman, tu devras toujours te répéter : «
Maintenant, Chiara Luce voit Jésus. » Son état s’aggrave. Elle offre encore ses
souffrances. La veille de sa mort, elle dit au revoir à ses amis : Il faut
avoir le courage de mettre de côté ambitions et projets qui détruisent le vrai
sens de la vie, qui est seulement de croire à l’amour de Dieu. Ses dernières
paroles sont pour sa maman : Ciao ! Sois heureuse, parce que je le suis.Dimanche
7 octobre 1990, Chiara Luce rejoint son Bien-Aimé. Les gens arrivent en foule
chez les Badano. Malgré les larmes, c’est la fête : croyants et incroyants
viennent auprès d’elle. Plus de deux mille personnes se rassemblent pour les
funérailles. Les témoignages parlent d’une atmosphère de joie, de paradis. Un
ami confesse : « Pour la première fois, j’ai réussi à être sûr de l’amour de
Dieu. »
SOURCE : https://www.chiara-luce.fr/?p=63
Neuvaine pour les enfants malades avec Chiara Luce
Badano
Pendant 9 jours, prions avec la Bienheureuse Chiara
Luce Badano pour les enfants atteints de maladies graves !
Commencez la neuvaine quand vous voulez !
Je m'inscris
Que vous souhaitiez porter dans vos prières un enfant
en particulier ou tous les enfants gravement malades, rejoignez cette neuvaine
pour apprendre à "jouer la partition de Dieu" avec Chiara Luce.
Quotidiennement, vous recevrez :
la prière du jour,
l'un des écrits de Chiara Luce Badano que vous pourrez
méditer,
Un extrait de l'Evangile.
Programme
Jour 1 - Le don de la foi
Jour 2 - Obéir à la volonté de Dieu
Jour 3 - Le commandement de l'amour
Jour 4 - Que ta volonté soit faite !
Jour 5 - Demander le pardon et la conversion
Jour 6 - Seigneur, apprends-nous à prier !
Jour 7 - Remercier Dieu pour son amour et ses
dons
Jour 8 - Espérance en la vie éternelle
Jour 9 - L'amour, une petite semence à déployer
Qui est Chiara Badano ?
Chiara Badano dite Chiara Luce (Sassello, 29 octobre
1971 - Sassello, 7 octobre 1990) est une jeune femme ayant appartenu au
Mouvement des Focolari, morte à 18 ans d'un cancer des os. Déclarée vénérable
par l'Église catholique romaine le 3 juillet 2008, elle a été proclamée
bienheureuse le 25 septembre 2010 au Sanctuaire de Notre-Dame du Divin Amour, à
Rome.
Peu avant de partir pour le Ciel, elle confiera à ses
amis qui viennent lui rendre visite pour la consoler, mais qui repartent
consolés eux-mêmes :
... Vous ne pouvez pas imaginer la relation que j'ai
maintenant avec Jésus… Je me rends compte que Dieu me demande quelque
chose de plus, de plus grand. Peut-être pourrai-je rester sur ce lit pendant
des années, je n'en sais rien. La seule chose qui m'intéresse, c'est la
volonté de Dieu, bien faire celle de l'instant présent : jouer la partition de
Dieu. Si on me demandait si je veux marcher (l'avancement de la maladie
lui paralyse les jambes, avec des contractions très douloureuses), je dirais
que je ne le veux pas, car ainsi je suis plus proche de Jésus.
Pour mieux connaître Chiara Luce, je vous invite à
regarder cette vidéo, vous découvrirez une jeune fille "comme les
autres" qui n'a pas eu peur de se laisser saisir par le Christ
et de trouver dans Sa Parole le dynamisme qui l'aidera à construire sa vie
intérieure et à se tourner vers les autres malgré sa souffrance.
Pour vous inscrire, rien de plus simple : cliquez sur
le bouton en haut à droite : « Je m'inscris »
Prière de la neuvaine
Prière à Dieu par l'intercession de la bienheureuse
Chiara Luce Badano
Ô Père, source de tous les biens, nous te rendons
grâces pour l'admirable témoignage de la bienheureuse Chiara Badano. Animée par
la grâce de l'Esprit saint et guidée par l'exemple brillant de Jésus, elle a
cru fermement en ton immense amour, résolue à correspondre à cet amour de
toutes ses forces, en s'abandonnant avec pleine confiance à ta paternelle
volonté. Nous te prions humblement : accorde, à nous aussi, le don de vivre
avec toi et pour toi, et, si tu le veux bien, accorde-nous la grâce … que nous
osons te demander, en vertu des mérites de Jésus-Christ, notre Seigneur. Amen !
Priez dès maintenant pour cette neuvaine en cliquant
sur "je prie"
SOURCE : https://hozana.org/communaute/7872-neuvaine-avec-la-bienheureuse-chiara-luce-badano
13 October 2010, 11:18 am
Also
known as
Luce Badano
Profile
Young lay woman in
the Diocese of Aqui
Terme, Italy.
Daughter of Ruggero Badano, a truck driver,
and Maria Teresa Caviglia. A kind, happy and pious girl,
she enjoyed tennis, swimming,
hiking, singing, dancing and
initially wanted to be a flight attendant.
Member of the Focolare Movement at age nine. At age 16 she began to
feel drawn to religious
life; soon afterward she was diagnosed with cancer in
her shoulder. Chiara insisted that she could become a missionary,
but the cancer spread
quickly, affecting her spine, and she lost the use of her legs. She finally
accepted that she wasn’t going anywhere and spent her remaining time praying and
being supportive of her family and friends.
Born
29 October 1971 in Savona, Italy
7 October 1990 in
Sassello, Savona, Italy of
natural causes
3 July 2008 by Pope Benedict
XVI
25 September 2010 by Pope Benedict
XVI
Additional
Information
other
sites in english
video
fonti
in italiano
Dicastero delle Cause dei Santi
Readings
“Don’t cry for me. I am
going to Jesus. At my funeral I don’t want people to cry, but rather to sing
with all their voices.” – Blessed Chiara
during a medical crisis near the end of her life
MLA
Citation
“Blessed Chiara
Badano“. CatholicSaints.Info. 17 September 2023. Web. 21 October 2025.
<https://catholicsaints.info/tag/name-chiara/>
Tags: Beatified
by Pope Benedict XVI, Beatified in 2010, Born in 1971, Born in Italy, Died in 1990, Died in Italy, Member
of the Focolare Movement, Name Chiara, Name Luce, Saints who had
Cancer, Saints
who were Lifelong Lay People, Saints who were
Singers, Venerated
in 2008
Category: Saints
Beati and Venerables | Comments Off
SOURCE : https://catholicsaints.info/tag/name-chiara/
Chiara
'Luce' Badano
Chiara Badano was born in the small town of Sassello
in Savona, Italy, on 29th October 1971. Her parents were Maria Teresa and
Ruggero Badano. They were a happy couple with a strong commitment to their
Catholic faith and the sanctity of marriage. As they explain, from the time of
their marriage they prayed constantly for the gift of a child.
'We got married at 26 and our greatest desire was to
have children. Even after eleven years together, we continued to believe and
pray that this would happen. Ruggero could not imagine a marriage without
children so even when he was travelling - he was a lorry driver - he would
continually pray that we could become parents. On one occasion, he asked God
for this gift when he went to a shrine in our diocese. It happened and when
Chiara was born we immediately felt she was not only our daughter, but first of
all, she was God's child, and as such we had to raise her, respecting her
freedom…'
Chiara was a happy child and grew to become a normal
teenager. From childhood, her parents instructed her in her faith and included
stories of Jesus in her bedtime reading. Her mother often tells the story of
how Chiara, when she was young, shared her toys with other children and gave
the best ones to other people! She also saved money to give to a friend who
helped with a mission in Africa.
Her parish priest gave her a copy of the gospels when
she made her first Holy Communion. Later, through her close friend, Chicca, she
learnt about the Focolare Movement whose founder, Chiara Lubich, spoke about
putting God in the first place in one's life and living out the gospel. Chiara
was very attracted by these ideas: she was particularly struck when Chiara
Lubich invited the young people who knew the Focolare Movement to "become
a generation of saints". This became a clarion call for little Chiara, and
she made her decision. Lubich never held back in speaking even to very young
people about Jesus on the cross who she described as "Jesus Forsaken and
Crucified". In 1983, little Chiara informed Chiara Lubich about her
decision to see Jesus Forsaken as her first love or "Spouse." She had
truly begun her spiritual journey.
Chiara Luce's favourite sport was tennis. One day,
when she was playing, she felt "that sharp pain in my shoulder" and
at the age of 17 she was diagnosed with osteosarcoma, the most aggressive and
painful form of bone cancer.
Blessed Chiara Badano regarded Chiara Lubich as her
spiritual guide. The latter suggested that she add "Luce" meaning
"light" to her name - the 'light' of God that conquers the world. Her
mantra became, "If you want it Jesus, I want it too." She offered up
her suffering and refused morphine, 'because it takes away my clarity', and she
said she wanted nothing 'but (her) sufferings to offer to Jesus.'
People close to her always experienced a sense joy and
peace. A friend said: "I went there to console her instead she consoled
me." She came to consider her approaching death as the consummation of her
"marriage with her spouse" and asked to be dressed in a white wedding
gown which, she said, should be very simple.
At dawn on the day of her death, she whispered these
words in her mum's ear,
'Be happy because I am.'
On 3 July 2008, Pope Benedict XVI recognized her
heroic virtue and declared her venerable. On 19 December 2009, the decree
approving a miracle attributed to her intercession opened the way to her
beatification, which was celebrated on 25 September 2010, at the Marian Shrine
of Our Lady of the Divine Love near Rome.
Learn more Chiara on her website: www.chiarabadano.org/
There will be live streaming on October 29th www.chiarabadano.org/2020/10/21/news-streaming-25-ottobre-2020/?lang=en#
(Many thanks to writer Maria Dalgarno for this piece.
For more information see: www.newcity.co.uk
SOURCE : https://www.indcatholicnews.com/saint/311
Italian teen one step closer to sainthood
Rome, Italy, Jul 7, 2008 / 05:56 pm MT (CNA).-
The Congregation for the Causes of the Saints issued a decree last week recognizing the heroic virtues of Chiara “Luce” Badano, a young Italian girl who belonged to the Focolare Movement and died in 1990 at the age of 18.
The new “Venerable” Chiara was born in Sassello,
Liguria, on October 29, 1971, to the joy of her parents, truck driver Ruggero
Badano, and Maria Teresa Caviglia, who waited eleven years to have a child.
“Amidst our great joy, we understood immediately that
she was not only our daughter but also a daughter of God,” her mother said
according to a biography published by Focolare.
Since childhood, Chiara showed a deep love for God and
a strong but docile character. She was joyful, kind and very active.
At the age of nine she joined the Focolare Movement.
In 1985 Chiara moved to Savona to continue her education, and according to her
biographers, “She had a difficult time despite her great efforts. She was held
back one year and this made her suffer greatly.”
Chiara had many friends and loved sports, especially
tennis, swimming and hiking. She dreamed of being a flight attendant and
enjoyed dancing and singing. However, at the age of 16 she decided to
pursue the consecrated life.
She had a close relationship with the foundress of the
Focolare, Chiara Lubich, who gave her the name, “Luce.”
Soon afterwards she was diagnosed with a cancerous
tumor in her shoulder. She began intense chemotherapy while she continued
her daily life with the same joy and faith.
This joy and faith moved Chiara to give all of her
savings to a friend who was going to be a missionary in Africa, even though she
was ill.
Despite the efforts by doctors, her illness progressed
rapidly and she lost the use of her legs. “If I had to choose between
walking or going to heaven I’d choose heaven,” she told her family.
In July of 1989 she suffered severe hemorrhaging and
her death appeared imminent. She told her parents, “Don’t cry for
me. I am going to Jesus. At my funeral I don’t want people to cry,
but rather to sing with all their voices.”
On her deathbed, Chiara prayed for the strength to
fulfill God’s will. “I don’t ask Jesus to come for me to bring me to
heaven; I don’t want to give him the impression that I don’t want to suffer
anymore,” she said. She asked her mother to help her prepare for her
funeral, or her “wedding feast,” as she called it.
She gave her mother detailed instructions about how
she should be dressed, the music, the flowers, the hymns and the readings. She
asked her mother to repeat the words, “Now Chiara, go to Jesus.”
She died on October 7, 1990, surrounded by her
parents. Her friends were gathered outside the door. Her final words
were, “Ciao. Be happy because I am.”
Some two thousand people attended her funeral.
Chiara’s cause for beatification was opened in 1999 by
Bishop Livio Maritano, the bishop of Acqui at the time. He said his
decision was based on Chiara’s “way of living, especially the extraordinary
example she gave during the last stage of her life.” “I had no doubt
about promoting her cause,” the bishop said.
SOURCE https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/italian_teen_one_step_closer_to_sainthood
Benedict XVI and Vatican prelates remember example of Blessed Chiara 'Luce' Badano
Vatican City, Sep
26, 2010 / 09:14 pm MT ().-
Chiara “Luce” Badano, a teenage Italian member of the
Focolare Movement, was beatified on Saturday. Church leaders and others
remembered her in celebrations throughout the weekend for her example of love,
Christian coherence and charity. They called her a reminder that “everyone has
sufficient grace to become saints.”
Born in 1971, Chiara died in 1990 at nearly 19 years
of age. Her biography describes a life lived in total devotion to God and
abandonment to His will. Many witnesses have testified to the happiness she
transmitted in spite of the pain of the bone cancer which eventually took her
life.
Thousands of people gathered at the Marian Sanctuary
of Divine Love just outside of Rome for the Mass and Rite of Beatification on
Saturday afternoon. The young blessed was remembered by Archbishop Angelo Amato
during the celebration as a girl with “a heart crystalline like water from the
source.”
Noting specific acts of charity throughout her short
life, Archbishop Angelo Amato, head of the Vatican Congregation for the Causes
of Saints, cited one witness' testimony that being with her gave a person the
"feeling of finding God."
Thanking the Lord for her life of charity and goodness
in spite of the difficulties of her disease, the archbishop remembered Chiara
as a "modern, sporty, positive girl, (who) transmits to us a message of
optimism and hope."
He added that she shows that “the brief season of
youth can be lived in holiness” and also that “today there are virtuous young
people, who in family, at school, in society do not fritter away their lives.”
The archbishop called her beatification "good
news" in the midst of a world "rich with well-being, but often sick
with sadness and unhappiness." He concluded that Chiara's story invites
all people, young and old, to a "freshness and enthusiasm for the
faith" while serving as a reminder that "everyone has sufficient
grace to become saints."
After a youth celebration in Chiara's honor at the
Vatican's Paul VI Hall which ran late into the evening on Saturday, Cardinal
Secretary of State Tarcisio Bertone presided over a thanksgiving Mass at the
basilica of St. Paul Outside-the-walls on Sunday morning. Cardinal Bertone
spoke of the saintly young woman as a "brilliant" and "credible”
example of “authenticity and altruism.”
The cardinal recalled a conversation with the Holy
Father last week on the flight back from the U.K., when the Pope told him that
"this, our Blessed is a valuable example for young people."
Pope Benedict spoke of this example in his pre-Angelus
catechesis on Sunday, which participants in the Mass followed along with from
big screens set up at St. Paul's basilica after the morning Eucharistic
celebration with Cardinal Bertone.
Speaking of Chiara's way of living as a demonstration
of how Love, "with a capital 'L'," gives true happiness, he said that
for everyone, she was "a ray of light, as her nickname says: 'Chiara Luce'
(Clear Light)."
The Pope noted that the celebration is not only for
those from her parish, local diocese and the Focolare Movement. Rather, her
beatification was a festival for all young people, who can “find in her an
example of Christian coherence."
He recalled the "full adherence to the will of
God" in her life down to her last words, addressed to her mother:
"Mom, bye. Be happy because I am."
Chiara "Luce" Badano's feast day will be
celebrated every year on Oct. 29.
BLESSED CHIARA LUCE BADANO, PRAY FOR US!
Published
by admin at July 7, 2013
DateJuly 7, 2013
Sometimes we’d prefer that our lives be a different
story than the one God seems to be writing. In our fragile existence it
doesn’t take much to turn a romance into a drama, or an adventure into a
tragedy. At a glance, the story of Chiara Badano—an only child conceived
after 11 years of marriage, who died at 18 after a bout with a painful form of
bone cancer—looks like an empty tragedy, but not from the perspective of the
Divine Author.
Chiara seemed to have everything going for her as a
teen. She had a loving, holy family and a rock solid faith that was
nurtured by retreats and youth ministry programs. She was popular amongst
her friends and was liked by boys. It’s not hard to see why. She
was beautiful. Chiara loved to hang out in coffee shops. She was
great at tennis, swimming and mountain climbing. Her outgoing personality
and adventurous spirit made her dream of becoming a flight attendant.
Chiara had a bright life ahead of her.
One day while playing tennis, Chiara experienced
excruciating pain in her shoulder. Shortly afterwards she was diagnosed
with osteogenic sarcoma. She watched her bright future slip away.
But it’s here that the real story of her life begins—the story of heroic
virtue.
Chiara’s joy was explosive and it only increased with
her suffering. After one very pain-filled night she said, “I suffered a
lot, but my soul was singing.” Google pictures of her on her death
bed. Her eyes look like pools reflecting the glory of heaven. One
of her doctors remarked, “Through her smile, and through her eyes full of light,
she showed us that death doesn’t exist; only life exists.” Cardinal
Saldarini heard of this amazing teen and visited her in the hospital.
Awestruck, he said, “The light in your eyes is splendid. Where does it come
from?” Chiara’s reply was simple: “I try to love Jesus as much as I
can.”
Chiara had a profound sense of redemptive
suffering. She often repeated the phrase, “If this is what you want,
Jesus, so do I.” Like any teenage girl, she loved her hair, but with each
lock that fell out she’d pray, “For you, Jesus.” She frequently refused
morphine, saying, “I want to share as much as possible in His suffering on the
cross.”
During one of her many hospital stays Chiara took
walks with a depressed, drug-dependent girl, despite the pain of walking from
the huge growth on her spine. When she was encouraged to stop and rest
she said, “I’ll have time to rest later.” Ever thinking of others, she
said, “I have nothing left, but I still have my heart, and with that I can
always love.”
Thanks to her local bishop, Chiara was declared
“Servant of God.” For anyone wondering if Chiara’s cause for canonization
was only opened to comfort grieving parents and friends, God recently put his
stamp of approval on her story. A young boy in Italy was dying from
meningitis. His organs were shutting down. There was no way to save
his life. His parents learned of Chiara’s story and sought her
intercession. He was fully healed. A panel of doctors has ruled
that there was no medical explanation for this turn of events. On
September 25, 2010, she became the first member of Generation X to be
beatified!
Reflecting on her pending death, Chiara said:
“Previously I felt … the most I could do was to let go. Instead, now I
feel enfolded in a marvelous plan of God, which is slowly being unveiled to
me.” The story of our lives with all its riveting twists and painful
turns is written by an author who loves us very much, and for him, even death
is only a comma, not a period. The greatest protagonists in life’s story
are the saints. They shared the eternal perspective of the Author.
That’s why not even the most profound pain could take away their hope.
Here’s to yet another teen saint! “Blessed Chiara Luce
Badano, pray for us!”
Blessed Chiara "Luce" Badano
Chiara was born just over forty years ago in Sassello, a small town in the north of Italy. As a young girl she was full of energy and loved dancing, music and sports. And do you know what her favorite sport was? It was tennis! Do you like sports too? And what about school? Would you sometimes prefer to skip it? So did Blessed Chiara.
Because Chiara’s mum and dad also loved Jesus very much, they were also trying to help Chiara do the same already when she was little. One day, her mum asked Chiara whether she wouldn’t like to give away some of her toys to poor children. At first, Chiara didn’t like this one bit! But after thinking about it for a moment she changed her mind immediately. As she started picking out which toys to give away, she chose the nicest ones and said: “I cannot give half-broken toys to kids who don’t have any, I’ll give them the best ones!” What would you have done?
Later, when she was nine years old, she went to a meeting of the young people of the Focolare movement. There she discovered that the key to being close to God is Jesus who suffered on the cross so much that he even felt far from his Father. In that moment, Jesus continued to love his Father and to do what God wanted from him. Chiara realized that she too could do the same! This meant a new beginning for her and she wrote to Chiara Lubich, who started the Focolare movement, to ask her for a new name. Just like popes, who pick a new name when they start their new life as popes, Chiara too wanted to show that her life had started an important new phase.
The name she received was “Chiara Luce,” which means Chiara Light or clear light. A few months later, Blessed Chiara “Luce” felt a pain in her shoulder while playing tennis and it turned out to be a very serious illness. She spent many months in bed and in hospital, needing very painful treatments. Every time she felt pain she offered it to Jesus and said: “For you, Jesus!” with a smile. Next time you are in a difficult or painful situation, try doing the same!
During her stay in the hospital, Blessed Chiara “Luce” became friends with many people, both patients and doctors. Everybody who came to visit her left very happy and encouraged by her, even though they thought they were coming to encourage Chiara “Luce”! One of the patients in the hospital was very sad, so Blessed Chiara “Luce” decided to go for walks with her even though walking caused her great pain.
When it became clear that she was not getting any better, Blessed Chiara “Luce” decided to plan her last moments with her mom as a wedding celebration. She understood that when she dies, she will meet Jesus and that is a reason to celebrate! When Blessed Chiara “Luce” died, she was only 18 years old and she has been an example to thousands of young people ever since.
“It’s for you, Jesus; if you want it, I want it, too.”
Chiara Badano
1971 AD (Sassello, Italy) – 1990 AD (Sassello, Italy)
Voir
aussi : http://www.chiarabadano.org/vita/
https://www.chiara-luce.fr/wp-content/uploads/2010/08/Chiara-Luce-biographie+photo.pdf
https://web.archive.org/web/20120130212108/http://focolare.org/En/sif/2000/20000323e_b.html
