Anna Maria Taigi and the souls of Purgatory: her extraordinary experiences
Anna Maria Taigi was born in Siena in 1796 and at six years her father Luigi and her holy mother brought her to Rome on the occasion of the Holy Year opened in the spring of 1775 by Pope Pius VI. Anna Maria married on January 7, 1790 in the Church of San Marcello, which according to tradition had once been the villa of the great Roman matron Lucina, where the first Christians were once gathered for sacred celebrations; later a stable was built in that place, where Pope Marcello hid during the persecution of Christians. Then a grandiose basilica was built there and it was here that Anna Maria knelt next to her groom Domenico in front of the altar to celebrate her wedding.
The decree for the introduction of the beatification cause of A. Maria Taigi outlines the great and yet simple figure of Mother, Bride and victim for the salvation of the Church, of men and poor souls ... It reads: «It was chosen by God to lead souls to Him, to become a victim of reparation, to remove serious disasters from the Church and all this for the strength of his PRAYER ».
Among the extraordinary gifts and charisms with which God enriched her, it should be remembered that she saw in a kind of luminous ball past, present and future events and the secrets of hearts. He also knew there with absolute certainty the fate of the deceased, as well as the duration and cause of their reparatory penalties in Purgatory.
Some examples: Anna Maria Taigi saw a priest of her acquaintance, who was saved, because he had overcome himself by enduring a troublesome individual who kept asking for alms! This was an act of virtue which initiated many other graces and other meritorious works.
She saw a priest, who for his great activity, for his sermons and his zeal was highly esteemed, who nevertheless was subjected to very serious penalties in Purgatory, because he had tried to make a name for himself through his preaching, instead of looking for you the glory of God. She also saw a friend of hers who had had celestial illuminations and yet was purified in purgatory because she had not kept silent about her special gifts.
Blessed Anna Maria Taigi saw two religious souls in purgatory of which one had died in the concept of holiness and the other as a highly appreciated spiritual director; but the former had given too much importance to his judgment and the latter had often been too distracted in priestly service.
She saw Count X, who had been dead for two days, who despite his wild and joyful life was nevertheless saved, because he had forgiven one of his enemies. However, he had to spend as many years in purgatory as he had spent in worldly enjoyment. A lay person well known for his virtues or believed to be such, was sentenced to a painful purgatory, because he had always flattered high-ranking people. It also provided for the preparation of the catafalque of Pope Leo XII. A few years after the death of this Pope, which occurred as she had predicted on February 10, 1829, she saw the soul of the late Pope as a ruby that was not yet completely purified from the flames.
Anna Maria often saw rich, distinguished people, distinguished personalities of high ecclesiastical positions, priests, religious who plunged with flames into the abyss. Anna Maria always kept their names silent, and when a monsignor pointed out to her that the damned no longer have any right to our love, the blessed replied: «For their relatives and friends who are still alive on earth they still have them right"!
Poor, humble, simple people like children she saw them go directly to heaven after their death; among them a poor Capuchin brother, a Jesuit novice, two missionary priests. If he learned that someone at his death especially if a priest left a lot of money, he would shake his head and say: "There are many poor people to help, salvation for exploiters of the people is difficult to achieve." During the funeral of a wealthy cardinal, Cardinal Doria, Blessed Anna Maria Taigi saw that the hundreds of holy masses, which he had left in his will, did not benefit his anjima at all, but came to the advantage of poor abandoned souls; the cardinal's soul did not help until much later.
While one day the blessed was confessing to Father Ferdinando of the order of the Trinitarians in the Church of San Grisogono in Rome she said to him; "The General of your Order was slaughtered together with his companions in Spain by French soldiers." She also described with great clarity and details the mistreatment that the two priests had to undergo, however she added: "The souls of the two martyrs I have seen them go up to Heaven". Two months later letters from Spain heralded the death of the two Trinitarian priests as she had described it.
Often poor souls insisted on the blessed asking insistently for her help, the liberation of these souls always cost the blessed a great deal of suffering and pain. For the love of poor souls the blessed often dragged herself with great pains to the cemetery to pray there on the grave of the dead. In particular, she prayed for the souls of deceased priests and religious!
While one day she attended the Holy Mass of the dead she suffered unspeakable pain. During the thanksgiving mass that followed the requiem mass, the blessed saw "the Glory" as the soul of the deceased freed from the punishment of the afterlife, flying towards Heaven. She believed she was dying of joy during her ecstasy.
A particular and very instructive thought for us was this: Blessed Anna Maria always recommended to the souls freed from purgatory the needs of the Church and above all those of the Pope!
And now some details of the life of Blessed Anna Maria Taigi removed from the libretto by Ida Lúthold «A holy woman and Mother-KanisiusVerlag: Anna Maria went married to Domenico Taigi, as mentioned above, had a baby girl, Anna Serafina, who however died soon leaving a tremendous void in the life of the two young spouses. To silence the great pain and both of them sought vent in human pleasures and boastfulness, but then the Lord intervened Him ...
On a splendid spring day, Anna Maria dressed up and richly adorned went to St. Peter's on the arm of her husband. At the door they met a priest, who wore the "de Servi di Maria" dress. Anna Maria did not know him, but an intimate voice prompted her to observe him carefully. Their eyes met. It was as if lightning entered her heart! For her part, Father Angelo - this was the name of Fr. Servita - heard a voice inside him saying: "Look carefully at this woman, one day I will entrust her to your guide, You must completely lead her back to Me. She will walk in the path of perfection, because I chose it for holiness ».
There were crises, repentances, anguish, abandonment at parties and finally, in the church of San Marcello, where she had married Domenico Taigi, she met Father Angelo dei Serviti, whom God had chosen to guide her in her new life towards holiness!
Domenico and Maria lived their married life deeply for 48 years and had seven children.
At 92 years of age Domenico Taigi was called before high prelates to testify about the virtues of his late wife, who had died on June 9, 1837 at 68 years and ten days. For the first time in the history of beatifications, the husband of a bride who had lived a deeply pious and holy life was called to the information process! The remains of Anna Maria Gianotti Taigi now rest as she had always desired in San Grisogono, in the Sanctuary of the "Trinitaria" in Rome.
The Lord had given Anna Maria Taigi a very rare grandiose grace, which few great saints and mystics have had, such as the saint "Bruder Klaus" and the abbot of Saint Columban of Scotland, who once or twice had this "vision" of "Divine Light", through a ray of this "Sun" they could immediately know the mysteries of Creation and Redemption and also know and see the whole universe. A similar thing had the great Hildegarda of Bingen, who could know the wonders of creation and events and creatures and plants and their medicinal strength ... etc.
Anna Maria Taigi was able to have this "Sun" from the day of her conversion until the end of her life, always visible before her eyes. It "Luce" first appeared to her in her bedroom after she had scourged herself, in a veiled and dim light. As it progressed in virtue, this. "Light" was becoming ever clearer and in a short time, as she herself affirms, this Light became brighter than seven suns united and merged together. "This Sun" appeared to his eyes in the greatness of our sun. It hovered continuously over her head, day and night, at home, on the street, in the church, "This sun" says Cardinal Pedicini, "it was the Divinity who had made herself particularly present for her"; Anna Maria knew that divine Wisdom was present in her "Sun". Often the Lord had assured her that He had given her something that she had not normally done with any person and that everyone would have to kneel next to her - not for her - but to worship Him who was always close to her!
It was enough for her to raise her eyes to know everything nobody ever knew, and all this for 47 years! It - every day saw the whole world, the events, the natural progress and everything that happened, something that otherwise it could not have known!
"Present, past and future" were in his "Sun" all one. Anna Maria lived with the flesh in the world simultaneously participated in the knowledge of the Blessed. For herself, "this Sun" was Light that allowed her to see even the slightest spots and imperfections and made her renew her pain, her humility, her prayer and penance. How many rivers of graces came out of this "Sun" also in favor of many other people. Anna M. was able to convert countless sinners of whom she had known the state of their souls, through this "Sun". Many punishments and tremendous punishments were avoided for individuals and society. It was able to save from machinations and conspiracies that upset that wretched world like ours today.