Sr. Maria Troncatti_Maggio_ENG

1. aze at the Mother of
od and Our Mother
Gaze No. 9
Dear Sisters, with joy and exultation we celebrated the feast in
honor of Mary Help of Christians, instituted by Pope Pius VII on May
24, 1814. In 1873, Don Bosco began construction on the church at
Turin, Italy. He began without resources, solely trusting in the fact
that it regarded a desire of the Mother of God. Within a few years, from
this place devotion to Mary under the title of Help of Christians began
to spread throughout the world. Today, the Salesian Family through its
various works, continues to propose filial trust, closeness, and the help
that comes from the Most Holy Virgin.
In remembrance of Blessed Maria Troncatti, this month we
propose a reflection on her gaze on the Mother of God. She
discovered this sweet and confident gaze as a child, in her family, when
they prayed the Rosary together. During her adolescence, she belonged
to the Pious Association of the Daughters of Mary, and when she left,
she entrusted her whole family to the hands of the Virgin in the Church
of her city. Then, on September 17, 1908, she made her First
Profession as a Daughter of Mary Help of Christians.
A significant episode of the protection of the Virgin Mary
regarding Sr. Troncatti occurred when the River Teiro overflowed
while she was at Varazze. She promised the Virgin that if she was
saved from that flood, she would go to the missions and this is what

2. she did. She left Nizza for Ecuador in the name of the Virgin Help of
Christians and of Don Bosco.
On his first trip to the Amazon on November 9, 1925, the party
brought with them a beautiful picture of the Immaculate Conception
that the Director, Father Duroni, had had painted in Cuenca, a faithful
copy of what they had in Riobamba. When the population of Macas
learned that they were approaching, they set out, eager to meet her
because they knew that step by step, the expected picture of the Virgin
was advancing in one of the trunks of the group.
On the first day of the trip, after Holy Mass, the image of the
Virgin was placed at the head of the group, accompanied by horsemen,
among whom Monsignor and all those who had gone to meet them. At
around noon, they reached the home of Mr. Dionisio, a distinguished
man respected by everyone. Sr. Troncatti recalled the applause, the
emotion, the tears, and how some had knelt when the beautiful picture
of the Most Pure entered the courtyard of the house that was very well
organized to welcome her.
The Feast of the Immaculate was memorable that year. The
painting was located on the wall of the Church, decorated with white
and blue silk that the sisters had taken out of their trunks. The best
surprise was to discover that the Association of the Daughters of Mary
was already organized, thanks to Miss Mercedes Navarrete, in whom
the sisters found real support. Cfr. Grassiano María, Selva Patria del Cuore,
Cap. V.
In the month of May, as a gift of the Virgin, they received the
first Shuar girl as a resident, Yampauch, orphaned of her father, who
asked to remain with the sisters at the mission. Sr. Troncatti agreed,
telling her that she would remain in the home of the Virgin. On May
24th
, solemnity of Mary Help of Christians, not having an image of the
Virgin, they prepared a statue of the Immaculate Conception for the
feast, the gift of a Protestant to Miss Mercedes Navarrete. The statue
of the Help of Christians was in their desire and on the list of
acquisitions of the Provincial, Mother Caroline Mioletti. Cfr. Grassiano
María, Selva Patria del Corazón, Cap. VI
Those who had known Sr. Maria Troncatti, testify that they
usually saw her with the Rosary in hand at any hour of the day, often
repeating her usual refrain: Mary Help of Christians support us and

3. also our Guardian Angel. She always carried in her pocket medals of
the Help of Christians. In prayers for healing, she recited the Hail Mary
and also asked whoever accompanied her to pray it as well for the cure
of the sick person they were visiting. This was the case with the
daughter of the Shuar chief that Sr. Maria operated on at Mendez
during her trip to enter Macas. She attributed the healing to the Help
of Christians who guided her at that crucial moment.
The invocation to the Virgin saved her from many dangers, like
when she was almost dragged by the flooded river current, or when a
snake slithered over her feet, or when the airplane did an emergency
landing at Quito and, according to the pilot, they were saved by the
prayer of Mother Maria who was praying the Holy Rosary.
‘The Most Holy Virgin will help me; all my trust is in her’, she
would often repeat and, when the cures were risky, she always repeated
the ejaculation Mary Help of Christians, pray for us. Even while she
kept vigil over the recovery of the sick, the beads of the Rosary passed
through her fingers.
A testimony to her enormous trust in the Virgin is the cure of
Augusto Zúñiga, who had fallen from a bridge under construction and
remained for many days without anyone being able to attend to his
broken spine and ribs. As she passed through Mendez on her way to
Cuenca, she took care of him at the insistent request of Fr. Albino del
Curto, who was very unhappy about this young man who helped him
in the work of opening the road. Sr. Maria found herself without any
resources in this delicate situation and asked the priest to let her go to
the Church, saying: “Mary Help of Christians will inspire me about
what I must do. She remained in prayer for a long time, so much so,
that they had to go to get her.
At the side of the sick youth, she took an image of Mary Help
of Christians from her prayer book and told him to kiss it because that
was the medicine. Then she touched his broken ribs with the point of
her finger and placed the image on them as she prayed the Hail Mary.
Now the medicine for his spine was needed. She took from her prayer
book an image of Don Bosco, gave it to him to kiss, and placed it on
his spine, and bandaged him again from his neck down. After five days
she told him to try to sit and Augusto sat without any effort, got down

4. from the bed and took some steps. At the order of Sr. Maria, he
returned to bed. On the sixth day, he was healed and on the seventh
she removed the bandages, gave him the images to kiss again, and put
them back in her prayer book. Then she told him to go to bathe and
swim in the river and he did this, feeling himself completely healed.
Cfr. Grassiano María, Selva Patria del Cuore, Cap. IX
Meanwhile, at her home every night, her sister Lucia had a Hail
Mary prayed to the Virgin especially for Sister Maria who was far
away. To her sister Catherine she wrote with emotion that the month
of May is the month of our dear Mother Help of Christians; she will be
the one who will bring our whole family to Jesus. Cfr. Ciezkowska Sylwia,
Letter 68
Share your reflection
What does the rapport of
Blessed Maria Troncatti with
the Virgin Mary suggest to
you?
Be thankful for all the
occasions on which you have
felt the tangible help of the
Virgin Mary.