«Her martyrdom is above all the point of arrival of a humble and joyful dedication to the life of her large family: it was her constant yes to hidden service at home that prepared her for a total yes. Since she was a child - it was the years after the war - Antonia experienced the hardness of her land and the generosity of her people; guided by her parents, by the teacher and by the parish priest, she courageously opened up to the values of life and faith; in particular, at the school of the Girls' Youth of Catholic Action, she deeply planted the human and Christian roots of her desire for purity and self-giving. And at only sixteen years old she found herself living her heroic yes to the bliss of purity, defended to the point of supreme sacrifice. The invitation of the three young martyrs (Marcel, Pierina and Antonia) acquires a particular eloquence for us who take part in the Synod. Their testimony stimulates us to think with renewed attention about the role of the laity in the Church, about the work they are called to carry out among the People of God for the salvation of the world.
«Let's not say that today it is more difficult;
it's different. Let's learn rather
by the saints who have gone before us
and they faced the difficulties
characteristic of their era".