Saint-Gemma

Saint Gemma Galgani

Our pilgrimages are under the patronage of St. Gemma Galgani, who lived in the beautiful little city of Lucca, Italy, from 1878 to 1903. St. Gemma was and extraordinary person; a beautiful young woman whose passionate love for Christ was evident at a very early age. Because of her ardent desire to suffer for Jesus, Our Lord granted her wish and bestowed upon her not only the stigmata, which are the five wounds of Christ, but also the Crown of Thorns, the scourging and a wounded shoulder like one who bore the Cross.

In Lucca pilgrims can visit her tomb, the two homes she lived in, the churchs she often visited and where she received the sacraments. We try to visit Lucca every time we are in Rome and are happy to have others come with us. You just have to be willing to get up early and pay for your train ticket. Lucca is almost 4 hours away, so if you want to spend some time there you need to get their early. Sometimes we even stay overnight!

There is an excellent website dedicated to St. Gemma. You can find the link below. This website posted the story of our first visit to Lucca and how we came to have a devotion to her. We included a link to that story below as well. We encourage you to read about her and pray for her powerful intersession. You can't help but love St. Gemma!

St. Gemma Website

Our Story of St. Gemma

Prayer to St. Gemma

O Holy Gemma, I am near you, help me to pray. You who know what I and those near me need, look after my urgent needs, my spiritual and material wants. You take care of them! I confide in you and entrust all to your loving care. Offer up to Jesus that tender and constant care that you bore Him here on earth. O Holy Gemma, you who physically suffered all the pains of the Passion of Jesus, I beseech of you the grace to meditate on and live the Passion of Jesus and the sufferings of Holy Mary. Pray that I will be able to walk in the path of humility, simplicity, love and sacrifice, fulfilling at all times, and in all ways, the holy will of God. Let me live united with Jesus, the Blessed Virgin and you, for all eternity. Amen

Lucca

Monastery of St Gemma in Lucca, where her tomb is located

St Gemma comic strip book for children: The Lily of Lucca

Vintage Comic book pages- from the January, 1951 edition of the "Treasure Chest of Fun & Fact" depicting the holy life of Saint Gemma Galgani6 pages, by Mary Fabyan Windeatt.