Luigi Orione was born of a poor family in Italy. His father Vittorio was a street paver and his mother Carolina was a very devoted person. Orione really enjoyed going to the fields with his mother to glean, to the parish, the oratory or to the choir and he never used to miss bringing flowers to Mother Mary even in the winter season. Luigi in fact showed inclination and yearning for all that is good. If Luigi would see any youth sitting wasting time in the street he used to disturb them by raising the dust in order to chase them from there. Orione was a very devoted person. Once when he heard some bad words he soon ran to the church and washed his tongue with the holy water then he asked God that he would better die than use these bad words. Luigi Orione grew with the intention of becoming a priest. Once a friar asked him if he liked to serve the Lord; At that time Orione’s heart was overflowing with joy.
He eventually managed to join the Franciscan order but due to bad health he had to leave the monastery. On 4th October 1886 he was accepted at Don Bosco’s oratory. There he was very much inspired by the saint’s teachings. When Don Bosco died his body was displayed in order to allow people to venerate him. Orione cut some bread to touch the body of Don Bosco with, as relics to distribute to the people, but while doing so in hurry he cuts his index finger. He was scared because at that time he would not be allowed to become a priest without that finger. So he ran to Don Bosco, touched his body and suddenly the bleeding stopped and the wound got healed.
He eventually became a priest in the diocesan seminary on 13th April 1895. Before he could become priest, at the age 21 he founded the Congregation called the Little Work of Divine Providence.
He was a great devotee of Mother Mary, in fact he used to ask mother Mary for whatever he wanted and he used to get it by his faith.
During his first mass he asked for 3 graces for those who would follow him: bread, peace and paradise and eternal salvation for those in any way would come in contact with him or his work.
His 4 main ideals were: Love for Jesus, for the Pope, for the souls and for mother Mary. His motto was: “restore all things in Christ”; his life style: pray and work. From the time he was a seminarian he was ready to die, if necessary, in order to defend the Pope. On march 1912 he went to Pope Pious X to make his religious profession, but he needed 2 witnesses, so the Pope said: “our guardian angels are the witnesses”; thus Don Orione offered himself to God, to the Church, to the Pope and to the souls.
When in 1908 an earthquake struck Sicily he went there in order to help them. He worked day and night without taking rest. He used to say that there he lost half of his life.
In June 1915 he founded the Little Missionary sisters of Charity, to serve the poor and the destitute. In order to raise vocations for his congregation he used to write letters to all the parish priests to send to his congregation all those poor boys who are interested; he would accept them without any fees. He was a most zealous and prudent promoter of all that can help religious sentiments in the hearts of simple, so he built shrines to our Lady, churches, oratories, hostels for the poor boys etc.
Madonna of Safe Keeping shrine was built by his own priests and seminarians. However his works of mercy spread around the world especially in Latin America. Now we, the Sons of Divine Providence, are present in 32 countries.
He was called by God to heaven on 12 March 1940. Before he would die he repeated “Jesus, Jesus, Jesus I am coming”.
On 16 May 2004, Pope John Paul II proclaimed him a saint.
“ONLY CHARITY CAN SAVE THE WORLD”
[DON ORIONE]
Bro.Raju FDP
for an italian history of our mission in India visit www.oresteinindia.blogspot.com
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