FIRST BEATIFICATION IN HISTORY OF A MARRIED COUPLE

VATICAN CITY, OCT 21, 2001 (VIS) - This morning in St. Peter's Basilica, the Pope beatified the first married couple in the history of the Church, Luigi Beltrame Quattrocchi (1880-1951) and Maria Corsini (1884-1065), Italians. Present at the ceremony were three of the beatified couple's four children: two sons, Msgr. Tarcisio and Fr. Paolino, who concelebrated with the Pope, and a daughter Enrichetta. Their second daughter, who became a nun, has passed away.

Due to the rain, the Mass was moved from St. Peter's Square to inside the basilica, and half of the 40,000 pilgrims seated in the square were invited to take their chairs and to enter the basilica. The remaining pilgrims followed the Mass by means of large screens in the square.

In his homily, John Paul II noted that the new Blesseds "assumed with full responsibility the duty of collaborating with God in procreation, dedicating themselves generously to their children in educating, guiding, and directing them to the discovery of His design of love."

Luigi and Maria, he continued, "lived an ordinary life in an extraordinary way. Among the joys and worries of a normal family, they lived an existence extraordinarily rich in spirituality. At the center, the daily Eucharist, to which was added filial devotion to the Virgin Mary, invoked with the recitation of the Rosary every evening, and reference to wise spiritual advisers. In this way they knew how to accompany their children in vocational discernment."

Addressing the married couples present, many with their children, who took part in the previous day's National Encounter of the Family with the Pope, promoted by the Italian Episcopal Conference, the Holy Father said: "As with every journey towards sanctification, yours as well, dear married people, is not easy. Every day you face difficulties and trials in being faithful to your vocation, in cultivating conjugal and family harmony, in accomplishing the mission of parents and participating in the social life. May you know how to seek in the word of God the answer to the many questions which daily life puts to you."

John Paul II particularly recalled those who live "the drama of separation," those who are sick and those who suffer the premature death of a spouse or child, and affirmed that "even in these situations a great testimony of faithfulness in love can be given."

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