| Saint Paola Elisabetta Cerioli | |
|---|---|
| "Mother" | |
| Born | January 28, 1816 Socino, Italy |
| Died | December 24, 1865 (aged 49) Comonte, Italy |
| Honored in | Roman Catholic Church |
| Beatified | March 19, 1950 by Pope Pius XII |
| Canonized | May 16, 2004 by Pope John Paul II |
Saint Paola Elisabetta Cerioli (January 28, 1816 – December 24, 1865) is a saint in the Roman Catholic Church from Soncino, Italy and founder of the Institute of Sisters of the Holy Family and the congregation of the Family of Bergamo.
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Cerioli, the daughter of Francesco Cerioli and Francesca Corniani, was born in an Italian noble family, the youngest of 16 children. At the age of 11, she was sent to school in Bergamo where she would be educuated for 5 years. Though she became lonely, the experience helped her religious convictions.
Cerioli returned to Soncino where an arranged marriage awaited her. At the age of 19, she married 59-year-old Gaetano Busecchi, widow of a countess. She accepted the proposal and was married on April 30, 1835. The marriage, which lasted for 19 years, proved to be diffuclt at times. She had to deal with husband's difficult character poor health. Of the 4 children she gave birth to, 3 of them died prematurely. Her only child who had survived died at the age of 16 due to a serious illness in January 1854. That same year, her husband also died.
Following the death of her husband and son, she entered into a deep mourning period. She was able to find guidance in God and religious life. At the age of 38, she began to assist the poor and shared her material possessions to the young and orphaned children.
Cerioli decided to devote the remainder of her life in doing charity and contemplative prayer. She took a vow of chastity on December 25, 1856 which was soon followed by her vows of poverty and obedience on February 8, 1857. In December 1867 she founded the Institute of the Sisters of the Holy Family in Comonte. The order specifically focused on family. It was during this time that Cerioli took the name of Paola Elisabetta. A male branch of the order, the Religious of the Holy Family as founded on November 4, 1863.
Paola Elisabetta died in her home in Comonte on December 24, 1865 at the age 49.
Paola Elisabetta was beatified by Pope Pius XII on March 19, 1950 and canonized on Pope John Paul II on May 16, 2004.