These were the last words spoken by a remarkable woman who loved God and her family dearly. These were the final words which blessed all of us who had that inestimable privilege to accompany her on her last journey to the Father’s House.
But who was precisely Marie-Louise Mifsud who, at the age of 57, opened a new and everlasting chapter in Heaven? She was the wife of a much-respected person, Mario, and an affectionate mother to two lovely children, Kenneth and Marilise. Her life was not at all rosy. In fact, as a nine-year-old she tasted the bitterness of life when her beloved mother passed away. Furthermore, at the age of 18, Marie-Louise started suffering from diabetes. At the age of 37 she was diagnosed with celiac disease. Until, on 2 May, feast of Saint Athansius, Marie-Louise ended her life journey on earth by passing away peacefully after a short illness, comforted by the rites of Holy Church.
Amid the diverse challenges she had to face in her brief life, Marie-Louise never wavered in her staunch faith, especially her absolute trust in the Divine Mercy. Thus, her unshakeable trust in Jesus helped her to both understand and fully implement her spousal and motherly vocation by following the instructions Jesus gave to Saint Faustina Kowalska to spread His unfathomable Mercy everywhere. Jesus spoke to the holy Polish nun these exact words: “I demand from you deeds of mercy, you must not shrink from this or try to excuse or absolve yourself from it. I give you three ways of exercising mercy, the first by deed, the second by word, and the third by prayer. In these three degrees are contained the fullness of mercy, and it is an unquestionable proof of love for Me. By these means a soul glorifies and pays reverence to My mercy” (Diary, 742).
Marie-Louise’s actions spoke so loudly! She was the one who founded the Malta Diabetes Association. As a Learning Support Assistant (LSA) Marie-Louise actively supported and collaborated with various class teachers and other colleagues to assist in the education of pupils with special education needs to ensure that their individual curricular entitlement was safeguarded and their learning needs professionally addressed. In all this Marie-Louise interiorised and put into practice Pope Francis’ words, taken from his Lenten Message of 2014, when he said: “In the poor and outcast we see Christ’s face; by loving and helping the poor, we love and serve Christ.”
Another aspect which excelled in Marie-Louise’s life was the way she spoke about others. Her voice had the joy of pronouncing words that built love, trust and hope. Jesus gave her the grace of shunning away from words that brought hurt and hatred to those with whom she lived and met. As Pope Francis rightly warns us, consecrated people, and consequently you who are reading this appreciation piece: “One who gossips is a terrorist. He is a terrorist in his Community, because he throws a word like a bomb against this, against that, and then goes away tranquil. He destroys! One who does this destroys, like a bomb, and he moves away. This, the Apostle James said, is perhaps the most difficult virtue, the most difficult human and spiritual virtue to have, that of controlling one’s tongue. If you feel like saying something against a Brother or a Sister, to throw a bomb of gossip, bite your tongue! Very hard! No terrorism in the Communities!”
Marie-Louise’s favourite prayer was the Divine Mercy Chaplet. Since the canonization of Saint Faustina Kowalska, every day, at 3 o’clock in the afternoon, she would ardently recite the Divine Mercy Chaplet. As her daughter Marilise told me: “When we were children, at 3pm, she would call my brother Kenneth and I to pray with her the Divine Mercy Chaplet.” One of Our Lord’s promises attached to the praying of the Chaplet of Divine Mercy, as revealed to Saint Faustina Kowalska, says: “The souls that say this chaplet will be embraced by My mercy during their lifetime and especially at the hour of their death.” (Diary, 754).
No wonder Marie-Louise’s præsente cadavere Eucharist, celebrated at 2pm on 4 May finished precisely at 3pm, the hour of Jesus’ mercy!
Fr Mario Attard OFM Cap