BIOGRAPHY of ST GEMMA GALGANI - Get a Free Blog

wholeheartedly to it. I put everything in his hands. Let him ask for an explanation after Communion, and I
shall give it to him."’
The work of which there is question was none other than the sanctification of Gemma's soul. Father
Germanus undertook this work with great earnestness and carried it to a happy conclusion. In his biography
of Gemma he wrote:
'Pleasant indeed was the task of guiding this favored soul, so detached in mind and heart from everything
earthly, and particularly from herself. She was humble, docile, lovable, ready for every sacrifice, full of faith
and love of 'God, and at the . same time so natural that you would scarcely have distinguished her from any
ordinary young girl. I must not stop here to describe all the rare qualities of my spiritual child. . . . I shall say
only this, that to have dealings with her, to labour in helping her to advance in perfection, and to correspond
with the impulses of Divine grace, caused me no weariness, but rather intense satisfaction. One could have
spoken to her for many hours on heavenly things, oblivious of the passage of time. She spoke little, even to
her director, and seemed to find a difficulty in answering the questions I put to her. Nevertheless, what she
said was so much to the point, so sensible, so full of unction that it was a pleasure to listen to her.'
Naturally, considering the distance that separated Gemma from Father Germanus, the greater part of this
direction was accomplished by letter. But this was another admirable design of Divine Providence, for these
letters, at least a number of them, were published together with extracts from her ecstasies 'in one volume,
and constitute what the Civilita Cattolica called 'a treasure of heavenly wisdom-a marvelous and captivating
volume, full of solid doctrine, the most efficacious asceticism, and the highest mysticism.' [La Civilita
Cattolica, 1909, Vol. II, p. 727; La Ciencia Tomista, VI, n. 31, p. 122.]
Gemma was most grateful not only to God for having given her such a helper, but also to Father Germanus
himself. She was most devoted to him, treating him with the greatest reverence and respect, and with the
ingenuousness of a child called him Babbo, although he, in pursuance of his principle to keep Gemma
hidden from Gemma, treated her with just ordinary courtesy. 'Father Germanus told me several times,' said
Cecilia Giannini, ' that Gemma had gone to Heaven with her baptismal innocence unsullied. But while she
was alive, although he had a great esteem for her, he never let it be seen; on the contrary, he used to scold
her.' And Gemma herself wrote to him:
'Infinite thanks for all the care you have taken an d will take of my poor soul. I hope that by now you have
come to understand me well and that you will be able to do me some good. Pray to Jesus for me, that He
may enlighten you about me and then convert me. Will you ever succeed in converting me? I find it hard to
weep at any time, and when your last letter made me think of this, I wept, and I always weep when I think of
it. Live, Jesus! If you succeed in saving my soul for me, you will see what I shall do for you in return-what I
shall do for you when I go to Heaven. I shall pull you in after me at all costs.' [Un fiore di Passione nella Citta
del Volto Santo, p. 172.]
In a note to this letter in Lettere ed estasi, Father Germanus writes: 'In this hope I live. In the midst of the
labors of this present life, these words are always a consolation to me.'
On the other hand, Gemma had a great esteem for Father Germanus. According to a witness in the
Processes, she used to say that her extraordinary confessor was a saint. Now that she has been declared
Blessed these words of hers assume a new importance, and make one think more highly of him who was
chosen by God to guide this privileged soul. He died on December 11, 1909, at fifty-nine years of age,
leaving behind him a reputation for learning-his many published works provide ample proof of his learningand
an even greater reputation for virtue, a fact which made him beloved not only by his religious brethren
but by all who came into contact with him. Before his death he had the great consolation of giving evidence
about his spiritual child at the Ordinary Processes held at Lucca, and of seeing his Life of Gemma Galgani
received everywhere with enthusiasm, and reach a third edition in two years.
'Against this direction,' Sister Gesualda well remarks, 'Hell itself was let loose, and all the poisonous
influence of men was hurled, but what does it matter? From all eternity God has chosen a guide for each
soul, and the Will of God will triumph over every obstacle. Father Germanus was the guide chosen by God
for Gemma, and in spite of men and devils, such he remained." [1 Lettere ed estasi, p. 75]
HER CANDOUR OF SOUL -GEMMA OF LUCCA AND THERESE OF LISIEUX
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