Spirituality: Union with the Passion of Christ; offering oneself for souls.
Reflection: Gemma was the daughter of a pharmacist in Lucca, Italy. She lost her
mother and then her father while still young and suffered from serious illness. She
longed to become a Passionist nun but was refused because of her health. She
received the marks of Christ’s wounds and many mystical graces, and she spoke of her
guardian angel as a close companion. She died at twenty-five on Holy Saturday. Pope
Pius XII canonized her in 1940. Gemma shows that suffering united with Jesus
becomes a gift of love for souls.