Miraculous healing of unborn child leads to Beatification

She is one step closer to becoming the Church’s newest saint. Her name is Servant of God Mother Elisabetta (Eliza) Martinez and if you have not heard of her then you are missing out on a blessing. It appears God has been performing many miracles of healing for babies inside the mother’s womb. Perhaps God is sending a message of just how valuable these unborn children are and showcasing their dignity and worth. The latest miracle attributed to Mother Martinez highlights this fact.

The possibilities of an Italian unborn baby girl to be born healthy and happy seemed impossible. However, we know that “nothing is impossible with God.” (Luke 1:37) According to a 2017 ultrasound of the child, the mother was informed the child had multiple life-threatening and life-debilitating health problems. The unborn child had been diagnosed with thrombosis, complete calcific occlusion of the left fetal umbilical artery, extensive placental infarction, and severe intrauterine fetal growth retardation associated with brain sparing condition. Simply defined, the unborn girl was in danger of death or life debilitating issues because of a blood clot, significant cardiac dysfunction, interruption of the blood flow between the placenta and the baby, as well as oxygen and nutrient restriction to the child from the mother. The child was at risk of death or, at a minimum, being born with multiple complications which could include hearing loss, heart defects, and severe developmental delays.

A family friend refused to accept the situation as a guarantee and turned to the intercession of Mother Martinez. The friend contacted the Daughters of Santa Maria de Leuca (the religious order founded by Mother Martinez) and sought their prayers. The sisters began to pray novenas to Mother Martinez for a miracle. They devoutly prayed for healing of the child and begged Mother Elisabetta Martinez for her intercession. The following year, 2018, started with an answer to their prayers. It began with healing.

The mother returned in January 2018 for a new ultrasound. The doctors were astounded and confused. They did not know what to make of the results. The ultrasound revealed regular quantities of amniotic fluid and regular fetal flowmetry. This significantly improved the baby’s condition, but the baby still faced the potential for health problems. The little girl was not out of danger yet. The blood clot was still present and she still faced the battle of umbilical artery and cardiac dysfunction. Her fight for life was not over, but neither was Mother Martinez and her sisters’ fight for the little girl.

The sisters continued in prayer for the next two months. On March 19, 2018, their prayers were answered. The little girl was born completely healthy. As a result of this miracle attributed to Mother Martinez, Pope Francis decreed the authorization for the advancement of her canonization due to the unborn child’s healing which was attributed to Mother Martinez. Servant of God Martinez will not be named Blessed Elisabetta Martinez. This places her one step closer, and only one miracle away, from being canonized a saint.

So, who is Mother Martinez and why might she be a new intercessor for you? She was born in Galatina, Italy, on March 25, 1905. She made her first profession of religious vows to the Congregation of Our Lady of Charity of the Good Shepherd at the age of 25. When she made her profession of religious vows at the time, they named her Sister Maria Lucia. The order sent her to minister to young women in central Italy. It was during this time that Sister Lucia became ill with a serious lung infection. As a result of the illness, she was forced to leave the religious order.

However, the Lord and Our Lady were not finished with her. Our Lady inspired her to begin her own religious order. It was called the Daughters of Santa Maria de Leuca and it received formal papal approval to be an established religious order in 1943. The order, according to their website, “take care of the sick, the aged, the widow and the orphans, the sounded and the handicapped and in particular among the poorer, the weaker sections of the society, and to promote the welfare of the working women….We the Congregation of The Daughters of St. Mary of Leuca perform work of charity, for those in need irrespective of caste, race, community or creed. We work to promote the spiritual, social, educational cause and for the welfare of society.”

Martinez died in Rome on February 8, 1991. Pope Francis named her a venerable servant of God in 2021. The recent miracle has caused the pope to elevate her to Blessed.

To contact the sisters for prayers, click here.