BIOGRAPHY of ST GEMMA GALGANI - Get a Free Blog

answered: "Tell me, Gemma, what Jesus has given to you." Gemma replied: "Guess what it is. Even Sister
Julia guessed." I believe from the way Gemma spoke that she thought it was an ordinary gift received by all
who loved Jesus. In fact, I know this was what she thought. And I insisted that she should tell me what it was
that Jesus gave her. Gemma then replied: "Jesus has given me the marks of His Wounds." I prudently said
no more than: "Did it have to take so long to tell me that!" ‘
But others were not as prudent and as charitable as Palmira Valentini and because of their imprudence
Gemma had to suffer much. During a quarrel in the home a member of the family blasphemed. Gemma was
horrified and began to sweat blood all over her body. But how was she to hide this blood? One of her aunts-
'who is so good and the one who loved me so much ' -as Gemma described her in a letter to her confessor,
followed her into her room that evening to find out the cause of the blood. But it is better to quote the letter in
which she mentions these facts:
'Monsignor, do you know what one of my aunts did to me yesterday? When I arrived home I went to my
room. She followed me, very angry, and said: "This evening Julia is not here to defend you, and you must let
me see where all that blood comes from or, if not, I shall beat you until you do." As I remained silent, she
grew angrier, and holding me by the throat with one hand, with the other she tried to take off my clothes, but
did not succeed, for the bell rang and she left me. . . . But the matter did not end there. When I was going to
bed she came to me and said it was time I gave up all my tomfoolery, and that I had given people enough to
talk about. "Mind," she said to me, "if you do not tell me where that blood comes from, I shall not allow you
out of the house alone nor shall I send you anywhere." As you can imagine, at these words I began to cry,
and I did not know what to do. At last I decided to tell her and I answered in this way: "The blasphemies of
your nephew are the cause of it." "What!" my aunt said. "The blasphemies cause this blood to flow?" "Yes," I
answered. "When I hear blasphemies I see Jesus suffering and I suffer with Him, and I suffer in my heart and
the blood comes." That appeared to calm her a little, and she said: "Is it only when your brother blasphemes
that you suffer and not when others do so ?" "I suffer always when I hear blasphemies, but there is a
difference. His blasphemies make me suffer much more." And in saying this I cried bitterly."
Yes, again and again this innocent victim sweated blood, and even wept tears of blood when she heard her
Jesus blasphemed. It can be easily understood that Gemma had much to endure in her own home. However,
being so meek and resigned, she was not the one to lessen the weight of the burden of crosses and
humiliations that were placed upon her shoulders. She remembered what Jesus had said about not allowing
His divine favors to be known, and fearing therefore that He would be offended she asked her confessor to
arrange for her to enter a convent. But her confessor was at a loss what to do. Knowing that she was visiting
the Giannini’s, he used his influence with Cecilia Giannini and asked her to keep Gemma with her as long as
possible. This is known on the authority of Euphemia Giannini who, afterwards as a Passionist nun, bore the
name of Mother Gemma of Jesus. 'My family,' she said, 'was fortunate in having Monsignor Volpi as a friend.
He used to visit us, and my aunt sometimes went to confession to him. Knowing the situation in which
Gemma was placed at that time in her own home…’he desired my aunt to keep her at our home as long as
possible.'
So to the exhortations of the Passionists who had been the first to speak of Gemma, as the Processes attest,
and in particular, of Father Gaetano who, according to Annetta Giannini's deposition, ' desired that the
Giannini’s should see her and afterwards receive her into their home as a member of the family because
they would be blessed through her " there was now added the authoritative and welcome advice of the
Auxiliary Bishop, Monsignor Volpi, who strengthened Cecilia Giannini in the resolve she had not only made
but had already put into practice. God, therefore, Who had formerly come to the help of His servant when
she was tormented with interior anxieties, by making the Passionists known to her, continued to show His
care of her, and fulfilled the promise made to her when He cured her of the sickness that would otherwise
have proved fatal: 'And if it should happen that you cannot become a nun, or that the nuns should send you
away, I will find persons who will take care of you, and who will give you all that will be necessary.'
Cecilia Giannini therefore took every opportunity of having Gemma near her. On her side, Gemma was eager
to take advantage of the invitation and her aunts' permission to remain all night occasionally at the home of
her benefactor, especially on Thursday and Friday, in order to hide as far as possible what happened to her
on those days.
In the beginning, however, Cecilia Giannini was somewhat perplexed about these extraordinary
manifestations. But being an intelligent and prudent woman, she concealed her perplexity, and watched
Gemma continually. When she saw what did happen to the holy girl, she was not upset, and it was not long
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