An authoritative thought about the book “Deeply in love with Jesus”

Archbishop Luigi Accogli – Apostolic Nuncio

22nd January 2003

My dear beloved friends of the Primavera Community R.C.C.,

It is with great pleasure that I write these few thoughts about our dear Simonetta, that soft, fragrant flower whom Our Father in Heaven wanted to give to the Church in Sardinia and to the universal Church at a time when there is such a deep crisis, particularly of moral and spiritual values.

Simonetta Tronci lived her life very much in the same way as other youths of the same age. She grew up and formed her character in the surroundings of her house, with her studies and with her hopes for the future, with plans for her work career and with plans to build a family with her beloved fiancé.

Her underlying strong faith gave meaning and sparkle to all these daily activities as at the same time she showed quite clearly her preference and her love for “the ways of God”. She threw herself unreservedly and with strong enthusiasm in apostleship work among youths, attracted by the Charismatic Movement, where the Holy Spirit enables His deep divine breath to transform the hearts of mankind.

Everything was proceeding smoothly in line with her youthful expectations and life moved on pleasantly, I would imagine, to the satisfaction and joy of all those who knew her or were able to be close to her including her relatives.

But “Spiritus ubi vult, spirat…”. Yes! God had cast His look upon Simonetta; it was the look of the eternal Shepherd who follows His own flock and who, whenever He finds a welcoming reply, selects His followers and takes them over…

She herself wrote on 20 January 1980: «I can feel that You have in mind great plans for me. I feel that something has yet to arise and develop within me. But I feel especially the need to live for You».

Her sudden and serious illness deeply afflicted and disturbed her relatives and her friends. It also saddened, although possibly to a lesser extent, her confessor and spiritual advisor. But it did not discourage her.

Indeed, in Heaven the choice had already been made. The slender figure of the kind Simonetta, loved and appreciated by everybody, became “the spouse of Jesus”, a lovely and fragrant “flower”, a “message” of faith, the “witness” of a gift to win the hearts of people to Christ.

A special word of thanks goes to the author of this book, Father Clemente Pilloni, who was able to gather every little nuance in the most important moments in the life of Simonetta and to include them in his book “Deeply in love with Jesus”.

May this narrative of the life in this world of Simonetta Tronci serve as a ray of light to the Community which, she loved so deeply, to the Church and to those who live in darkness. May this narrative of the life of Simonetta give back to members of the Charismatic Movement, to her beloved Sardinia and to the whole world of believers the breath of the Spirit that serves to “unite” and to “transform” people so that in the third millennium, mankind will finally discover, love and follow Christ the Redeemer.