Maria Goretti

Životopis

Maria Goretti (1890-1902) was an Italian child martyr who died defending her sexual purity. Born in Corinaldo to a poor family, she worked with her mother as a domestic servant. At age twelve, she was attacked by Alessandro Serenelli, a family lodger, who attempted rape. Maria violently resisted, crying out that she would rather die than sin. Serenelli murdered her in fury, stabbing her fourteen times. She died hours later, forgiving her attacker. Her remarkable courage in preferring death to violation made her immediately venerated locally. Maria's case challenged assumptions about shame and victimhood, establishing that victims of sexual violence bear no moral culpability. She was canonized in 1950, making her one of the youngest non-martyred saints. Her feast celebrates not just her tragic death but her powerful witness to the sanctity of human dignity and the triumph of grace over violence.