“If any person, due to their state of life, cannot live without wealth and position, let them at least keep their heart empty of love for these” (Saint Angela of Merici).
Upon the death of her uncle, when she was 20 years old, Saint Angela returned to her homeland, Desenzano, where she dedicated herself to assisting the poor and catechizing girls. She turned her house into a kind of school, convinced that education was the best help for those who had little or nothing, that it was the most appropriate tool for a happy life, helping the Church and, of course, obtaining eternal life. .
Angela was not religious at that time, as befits every member of a third order, but she had found a path of total dedication to the Lord and service to her most needy children. Without a doubt, a wonderful precedent, as Pope Benedict XVI pointed out.
In 1516, the Franciscans asked the saint to go to Brescia to accompany a woman who had lost her husband and children in the war, and who was going through an experience of unspeakable sadness. Ángela stays with her for two years, helping her materially and spiritually. She then decided to remain in that city, until in 1524 she left for Jerusalem with a group of pilgrims who felt summoned by her testimony of holiness. While passing through Crete, she suffers from temporary blindness, which forces her to be guided to the Holy Land, where she manages to reach. Miraculously, during the return trip she regains her sight.