Mother Cabrini: Combining Faith and Fearlessness

I’ve got some things in common with St. Frances Xavier Cabrini, but I have SO much to learn from her!

To begin with, like Mother Cabrini, I am a five-foot-tall Italian-American Catholic woman. I reside in Colorado, a state in which she labored in the early 1900s. A shrine to this first United States citizen to be canonized a saint sits atop Lookout Mountain, a short drive from my home and a place I’ve visited frequently. Colorado even has an annual state holiday honoring Mother Cabrini on the first Monday in October.

Although I have a few things in common with this diminutive woman, I’m far from leading a life even approaching hers in terms of holiness. But she has left a road map for me to follow.

In watching the new major motion picture, Cabrini, and conducting research for my forthcoming kids’ book, Mother Cabrini: A Heart for the World (Sophia Institute Press), which Angel Studios commissioned to accompany their film, I discovered how this remarkable saint depended on God’s guidance and entrusted to Him all the works of her life.

Two Scripture passages in particular jump out as having been powerful influences in Mother Cabrini’s life. The first is Matthew 25:31-46 and this dynamic teaching of Jesus:

“When the Son of man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on his glorious throne. Before him will be gathered all the nations, and he will separate them one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats, and he will place the sheep at his right hand, but the goats at the left. Then the King will say to those at his right hand, ‘Come, O blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world; for I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.’ Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see thee hungry and feed thee, or thirsty and give thee drink? And when did we see thee a stranger and welcome thee, or naked and clothe thee?  And when did we see thee sick or in prison and visit thee?’ And the King will answer them, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brethren, you did it to me.’ Then he will say to those at his left hand, ‘Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels; for I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me no drink, I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not clothe me, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.’ Then they also will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see thee hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister to thee?’ Then he will answer them, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it not to one of the least of these, you did it not to me.’ And they will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”

Wow! There they are: the Corporal Works of Mercy, described in the Catechism of the Catholic Church as “charitable actions by which we come to the aid of our neighbor” (CCC 2447). How often do I do even one of those?

In watching the Cabrini movie and researching her life for my book, it became obvious that these works of mercy weren’t just something Francesca did, they were the way she lived, even though she battled poor health, pushback from government officials and Church authorities, and prejudice because of her nationality and sex.

She bathed, fed, clothed, and educated the orphans she rescued from filthy New York City sewers. She assisted members of the unjustly accused Italian immigrants who faced scathing discrimination and could find themselves falsely imprisoned.

Not only did she visit the sick, but she also built hospitals to care for them—even if they couldn’t pay. In the U.S. and around the world, she and her missionary religious sisters founded an incredible sixty-seven schools, orphanages, and hospitals…and even a summer camp for orphaned girls on the Colorado site that is now her shrine.

Despite her frail health and the obstacles in her path (including the archbishop of New York preventing her from soliciting funds from anyone other than the impoverished Italian immigrants themselves and arson at a Chicago hospital she was building), Mother Cabrini preserved indefatigably. When most of us would be tempted to throw in the towel, she doubled down on her efforts. How?

The answer is in the second Scripture verse that seemed to steer her life:

“I can do all things through Him who strengthens me” (Philippians 4:13). 

From a very young age, Francesca Cabrini depended on God and entrusted to Him all the works of her life. When she nearly drowned as a child and was subsequently bedridden, the doctor informed her parents that she would never get out of that bed. Through sheer will and absolute dependence on God, she proved the doctor wrong.

When she asked to join missionary orders and was turned down because of her poor health, she didn’t give up. Instead, she founded her own order, the Missionary Sisters of the Sacred Heart of Jesus. It would be for Him that all her work would be directed.

An article in the July 15, 1946 edition of Time recounts the fearlessness and strength that propelled her through adversity:

“When a group of highbinding Chicago contractors tried to get the better of the sisters in remodeling a hotel into a hospital, the little Italian nun fired them out of hand, tucked up her habit, and stumped about the scaffoldings for weeks directing the laborers herself.”

Mother Cabrini was a force to be reckoned with, but hers was a mission sprung from and directed to our Lord Jesus. What she achieved is remarkable, but she would be the first to divert praise and attention from herself. I believe she would point to Isaiah 26:12 in giving credit where credit is due: “All that we have accomplished, You have done for us.”

Her works of mercy and dependence on God inspire me to strive to become a saint, too. At my funeral, I would like Matthew 25:31-46 to be the Gospel that is read. I hope that when the Son of man comes in his glory, I, like St. Frances Xavier Cabrini, will hear, “Come, O blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.”

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Claudia Cangilla McAdam is an award-winning Catholic author of nearly thirty books for kids and teens. Her faith-based titles encourage young readers to learn, love, and live the Faith. Claudia’s most recent work, Mother Cabrini: A Heart for the World (Sophia Institute Press) was commissioned by Angel Studios so that children too young to see the movie Cabrini could come to know the woman whose love for Jesus built an Empire of Hope. Visit Claudia and request a free discussion and activities guide for her book at www.ClaudiaMcAdam.com.