On December 14, 2023, Pope Francis declared Capuchin Father Alberto Beretta (1916-2001) venerable. In this family from Milan, Italy, three children have dedicated themselves to God and one has already been declared a saint.
Saints from the same family, this is not the first time that this has happened! In the history of the Catholic Church, many brothers and sisters have inspired each other on the path to holiness: the sisters of the Martin family, Saint Ambrose and his sister Saint Marcelline, or even Saint Louis and his sister Isabelle de France. This is the path that the Beretta family also seems to be taking, since the great saint Gianna Beretta Mollawas canonized in 2004 and her brother, Father Alberto, was declared venerable last December.
A deeply Christian family
Maria de Micheli (1887-1942) and Alberto Beretta (1881-1942), Franciscan tertiaries, were the parents of a family of thirteen children. Their lives were not always simple, since five of their children died at a young age from the Spanish flu and the eldest died at the age of 18 from tuberculosis. Despite the trials, the parents showed unwavering faith and trust in God.
Their daughter Virginia would later say: “My parents were two holy people. Dad got up at 5 a.m. to go serve the 5:30 a.m. mass. Then he came back to have breakfast and went to work. Mom then went to 7 a.m. mass because before she prepared everything for my father.” A daily mass to which the mother went with her many children. Then in the evening, when the family was together, they all prayed the rosary together to entrust their day to God.
Another son of the family, Giuseppe, says : “Faith, before learning it in books or in preaching, we breathed it at home, we touched it with our hands, seeing how our parents spoke to us, loved each other, lived the Gospel, practiced it before our eyes. They were extraordinary people, who had great faith in providence. Ah, this is a great faith: otherwise, they would not have had thirteen children! »
Three consecrated children and a saint
Several of the Beretta children decided to devote themselves to God. This is the case with Giuseppe, an engineer, who became a diocesan priest. Virginia, who was a doctor, became a nun and missionary in India. As for Enrico, he becomes a Capuchin priest after serving a mass celebrated by Padre Pio. He will take the name Father Alberto and go on a mission, as priest and doctor, to Grajaù, in Brazil. For 33 years, he devoted himself to his mission with dedication, particularly helping the poorest, the sick and lepers. For this gifted life and his heroic virtues, he was declared venerable.
Association for the Cause of the Venerable Servant of God Alberto Beretta.
Several of the Beretta brothers and sisters were able to attend St. Peter’s Square at the beatification, then the canonization, of their sister, Saint Gianna Beretta Molla. If during her youth, Gianna wanted to go on a mission and join her brother in Garajaù in Brazil, she ultimately became a mother. During her fourth pregnancy, she was diagnosed with a tumor. She agrees to be operated on, but on the condition that her daughter’s life is preserved. She will also ask her husband: “If you have to choose between me and the child, I demand it, choose the child.” The child is born, but after a few days of agony, Gianna dies. She will be proclaimed a saint by the Church for her exemplary life of holiness and her fight for the defense of unborn life.
While the venerable Alberto Beretta is moving towards sainthood, perhaps to join his sister in the procession of canonized saints, the Beretta family could well still surprise the Church in the future…
