Blessed Assunta Liberta
Blessed Assunta Pallotta, F.M.M. ("Maria Assunta") (born August 20, 1878 AD in Force, Ascoli Piceno, Marche, Italy; died April 7, 1905 AD in Tongzhou, Hebei, China) was an Italian Franciscan Missionary of Mary who died in China at age 26 from typhus contracted while nursing the sick. Born in a peasant family in the Marche region of Italy, she joined the Franciscan Missionaries of Mary and was sent to China. Her brief life was marked by exceptional holiness, charity, and a profound union with God. She was beatified by Pope Pius XII on November 7, 1954. Her feast day is April 7.
Stored in Cargo: Blessed Assunta Liberta
| Blessed Assunta Liberta | |
|---|---|
| Feast Day | April 07 |
| Profession | Franciscan Missionary of Mary (FMM); foreign missionary to China; nurse; contemplative in the active life; Italian Catholic missionary sister |
| Rel. Affiliation | Catholic Church; Franciscan Missionaries of Mary (FMM); Italian Catholic Church; Chinese mission tradition; Marchigian Catholic culture |
| Patronage | Missionaries; nurses; those who die young in service; Italy; the Marche region; Force (Ascoli Piceno); Franciscan Missionaries of Mary; China missions |
| Attributes | FMM habit (Franciscan brown); lily (purity); a sick person (her martyrdom of charity); Chinese mission setting; palm frond of charity; a cross |
| Birthplace | Force, Ascoli Piceno, Marche, Italy |
| Death Place | Tongzhou (Tungchow), Hebei, China |
| Cause of Death | Natural death from typhus; died April 7, 1905, at the Franciscan Missionary of Mary mission in Tongzhou (near Beijing), China; she was 26 years old; she had contracted typhus while nursing a sick sister in the community; her death was swift — she died within days of falling ill; her death was regarded by all who knew her as the death of a saint; the superior of the mission wrote that "the sisters could not restrain their weeping, for they had lost a model of perfection"; she was beatified by Pope Pius XII on November 7, 1954 |
| Primary Shrine | Force, Ascoli Piceno, Marche, Italy — her birthplace and primary Italian shrine; April 7 feast; Marchigian pilgrimage |
| Liturgical Class | Not in universal Roman calendar; April 7 feast among the Franciscan Missionaries of Mary and in the Marche region of Italy |
| Historic Class | Not in 1962 calendar |
Biography
Assunta Pallotta was born August 20, 1878, in Force in the Marche region of Italy, to a peasant family. She entered the Franciscan Missionaries of Mary (FMM) and was sent to China in 1904.
She arrived in the mission at Tongzhou (near Beijing) and quickly impressed all who knew her with her extraordinary holiness and charity. When a sister in the community fell ill with typhus, Assunta nursed her selflessly, contracting the disease herself.
She died April 7, 1905, at Tongzhou, China, at age 26 — having spent less than a year in China.
She was beatified by Pope Pius XII on November 7, 1954.
Significant locations
Legend
Birth location: Force, Ascoli Piceno, Marche, Italy
Death location: Tongzhou (Tungchow), Hebei, China
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Known shrines
- Force, Ascoli Piceno, Marche, Italy — her birthplace shrine; April 7 feast; Italian pilgrimage.
Feast day
April 7
Veneration
Blessed Assunta Pallotta (1878–1905) was an Italian Franciscan Missionary of Mary from the Marche who died of typhus contracted while nursing a sick sister at the China mission of Tongzhou — a death of twenty-six years marked by the selfless love that defines martyrdom of charity. Beatified Pius XII, 1954. Feast April 7.
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