Consolata Betrone

On February 28, 1930, Pierina received the religious habit and took the name Sister Maria Consolata, in honor of the Virgin Consoler, patroness of Turin. She pronounced her temporary vows on April 6, 1931, and then her perpetual vows on April 8, 1934. Within the monastery, she led a humble and laborious life, occupying the positions of cook, porter, shoemaker, secretary, and nurse in succession. On July 22, 1939, she was transferred to the new monastery of the Sacred Heart in Moriondo, a hamlet in the municipality of Moncalieri, near Turin. It was there that she spent the last years of her life, marked by the rigor of cloistered life, the deprivations linked to the Second World War, and increasingly fragile health. Afflicted with tuberculosis, she endured great physical suffering which she offered for the salvation of souls and the conversion of sinners. She was hospitalized in a sanatorium in November 1945, before returning to pass away at the monastery of Moriondo on July 18, 1946, at the age of 43.

The life of Sister Consolata Betrone is characterized by an intense mystical life, marked by interior locutions and visions of Christ, which she faithfully recounts in her spiritual diary and letters. From 1935, she was guided by Father Lorenzo Sales, a Consolata missionary, who became her spiritual director and encouraged her to write her autobiographical notes.

Christ is said to have revealed to her what she calls the "very little way of love" (piccolissima via d'amore), a path of spiritual childhood similar to that of Saint Thérèse of Lisieux, but centered on an incessant act of love. This spirituality rests on the continual offering of every moment and on the recitation of a simple ejaculatory prayer: "Jesus, Mary, I love you, save souls."

After her death, Sister Consolata's reputation for holiness spread rapidly, notably thanks to the publication of her writings by Father Lorenzo Sales. On February 8, 1995, Cardinal Giovanni Saldarini, Archbishop of Turin, officially opened the diocesan process for her beatification. This diocesan inquiry concluded on April 23, 1999, and the file was transmitted to Rome, to the Congregation for the Causes of Saints. On April 6, 2019, Pope Francis authorized the promulgation of the decree recognizing the heroic nature of her virtues, which officially confers upon her the title of Venerable. For her beatification to be pronounced, the official recognition of a miracle attributed to her intercession is required.

The spirituality of the Venerable Consolata Betrone is articulated around three pillars transmitted through her writings: 1. The incessant act of love: materialized by the formula "Jesus, Mary, I love you, save souls," lived not as a simple mechanical repetition, but as the expression of a constant union of the heart with God. 2. The smiling "yes" to everyone: the benevolent welcome of every person and every event, seeing in them the divine will. 3. The grateful "yes" to everything: the joyful acceptance of setbacks, sufferings, and the humblest daily tasks. Her spiritual legacy is today perpetuated by the Capuchin Poor Clares of the Sacred Heart monastery in Moncalieri, where her remains have rested since April 17, 1958. Her writings, translated into several languages, continue to inspire many faithful throughout the world, inviting them to absolute trust in divine mercy.