Caterina Zecchini, a Venetian lady with great love for the Eucharist and mission, founded the Congregation of the Missionary Servants of the Blessed Sacrament.
Mo. Caterina was born in Venice, Italy, on May 24, 1877, to a Catholic couple, Rinaldo Zecchini and Maria de Petris. At an early age, she has shown remarkable interest in learning about Christ and the faith. Her interest gradually matured into an intense desire to contribute to the missionary works of the Church.
As a young woman, she initiated several activities in favor of the mission. Her zeal for the mission was inspired and strengthened by her profound encounter with Jesus Christ, hidden in the Blessed Sacrament. In 1912, while praying in front of the Eucharist at Castel di Godego, she received inspiration from the Holy Spirit, to begin the foundation of an institute, which, like Christ who hid himself in the form of Bread for man’s salvation, will carry out the mission in hiddenness, that is, in humility and as constant support for all missionary endeavors of the Church.
With the clarity of this specific charism the Lord entrusted to her, she set out to find young women who shared her missionary ideals. She traveled to different places in Italy to speak about the mission and encourage young women to join her. Her efforts and God’s grace bore fruit, and on May 31, 1923, she and her first three companions formed the first community of the Missionary Servants of the Blessed Sacrament.
Ten years later, the Congregation she founded was formally recognized as a Religious Institute by the Cardinal Patriarch of Venice, Pietro La Fontaine.
Mother Caterina Zecchini spent her life for the eucharistic-missionary ideal until her last breath on October 17, 1948. At her death, what she had written several years before had been fulfilled: At the end of our mortal lives, the last note of love that will emit from our poor hearts is that of the dying Christ: It is finished!