Talk:LAura Vicuña

Biography

Escape from Chile

She was born the April 5 of 1891, she was the first daughter of Vicuña Pino family, her parents were José Domingo Vicuña and Mercedes Pino. Her father was in the military service and her mother worked at home.

When the nineteenth century was about to end, Chile had a civil war. In one of the battle fields was Claudio Vicuña, a relative of José Domingo, who participated in the elections to become the successor of the president José Manuel Balmaceda, despite this Claudio Vicuña did not achieve that goa,l and a pursuit for the whole Vicuña family began, which obligated them to run away from Chile.

In 1984, after the birth of the second daughter of the Vicuña Pino family Domingo died, leaving his wife and daughters without any money, and in great danger.

Mercedes decided to travel to Argentina, so she could hide from the ones that wanted her family dead.

Early years in Argentina

Mercedes and her daughters lived nearby Nequén, a small town in Argentina. She looked for a job so she could pay the education of her daughters, and she find a job in the Quilquihué Hostal. The owner of the Hostal was Manuel Mora. Manuel stocked Mercedes and pushed her to have a relationship with him, in exchange of that, he would pay Laura`s Education.

This how Laura entered the “Hijas of Maria Auxiliadora” school, where he was taught the love for religion . Following her father as an example and with the care of the nuns, she began to find God.

Vocation of Laura Vicuña

Laura did her first communion in June 2 of 1991, where she shows her vocation of love to God and expressed her wishes for serving the poor and needed people, and she also preferred to die before sinning .

Because of her deep connection with God , many of her school partners did not like her, that is why most of her time was spent praying in her school´s chapel.

Even though she was really young , she was very mature, which let her know the problems of her mother and noticed how far she was from God. This motivate her to pray everyday for her mother´s salvation and to help her to leave Manuel.

Her best friend was Mercedes Vera , and with her she expressed all the feelings she had inside, she wanted to become a nun.

Problems at home

During one of her school vacations, Laura was attacked twice by Manuel Mora, who wanted her to forget about becoming a nun. Even though Manuel attacked her she never stop wanting to serve God.

Manuel stopped paying her education, but the nuns of her school heard her problem an decided to give her an scholarship. Despite this Laura felt that the situation of the her mother had not got any better.

The sacrifice

One day, remembering the phrase of Jesus: “there is no one greater than the one that give his life for his brothers”, Laura decided to give her life in exchange of the salvation of her mother.

In the next months Laura got sick, and her health was getting worse as the time passed. In of her mother visits, Mora attacked her leaving her injured in her bed

Before dying Laura asked her mother:

“I die, because I asked Jesus, two years ago I offered my life for you, for asking the grace of your salvation”, Mom before I die, ¿Would I have the joy of seeing you repented?”

Mercedes, with tears on her face, Mercedes answered her saying :

“I swear, I would do whatever you asked me, ! God is the witness of my promise!

Finally Laura smiled and said to her mother:

!Thanks, Jesus, !Thanks Mary!, !bye Mom ! !Now I die happy!

In January 22 of 1904, Laura died, who gave her life for the salvation of her mother.

Her body since 1937 to 1958 laid in the Nequén graveyard, and nowadays the are in Bahía Blanca .

After Laura´s death her mother hid in Argentina until she moved to Temuco. In 1906 she returned to the city Junín de los Andes , where her second daughter married Horacio Jones, at the age of twelve.

After her daughter´s marriage, Mercedes moved to Freire, where she married Malitón Parra, a hard worker man. Mercedes died the 17 September of [[1929].

Manuel Mora was murdered in a fight, because of a bet on a horse race.

Beatification Process

The congregation of Salesianos started her canonization process in the 50´s, the congregation commend that duty to the nun Cecilia Genghini, who spent many years collecting information about her life. But she did not see her work finished, because she died the same year in which the process started.

One impulse for the Congregation was the Beatification of Saint Domingo Savio (march 5 of 1950) and the canonization of Saint Maria Goretti ( June 24 of 1950). That is how in the city of Viedma the process is started.

But Laura could no be considered a martir, and her young age did not open her many hopes for her beatification. In 1981, the last requirement was filled out by the Congregation and the 5 of june of 1986, she was declared Venerable.

The main reason for her beatification process was the miracle she made to the nun Ofelia Del Carmen Lobos Arellano, she was affected by a problem on her lungs. In august of 1955 , doctors told her that she would die in a few months, but she prayed with faith to Laura and she got better and the disease on her lungs disappear .

And in 1988 she was beatified by the Pope.

Sanctuary

It is located at the Renca Hill, with 30 hectares, in the city of Santiago of Chile, it counts with a chapel with a capacity of a hundred people.

The 9 of December of 1999, in the city of Junín de los Andes, a temple was inaugurated and dedicated to the memory of Laura Vicuña

Bibliography

• Life of Laura Vicuña
• Laura Vicuña
• A brave girl: Laura Vicuña
• Beatfied Laura Vicuña

Movie

In 1988 a movie about her was made the name of the movie was A Great love, which told the story of the life of Laura and her suffering before achieving the salvation of her mother.

External links

• Fundation Laura Vicuña (in spanish)
• Special of Laura Vicuña, web site of Saint John Bosco (in spanish)
• [http://www.iglesia.cl/especiales/lauravicuna/index.html Special de Laura Vicuña, Web site of Church.clc (in spanish)
• Laura Vicuna (in spanish)
• Laura Vicuna site(in spanish)