The township and the Parish Curch
During this Year (1858), her family suffered a trial. One day, when her mother and the younger children were in Mornese, and Maria, her father and brother Domenico were in the vineyard, thieves broke into the house, turned everything upside down and stole about six hundred lire - quite a large sum at that time (...). The family suffered much from the loss (...) so they decided to leave Valponasca because it was far from the town and very isolated (...) Maria, in her heart would say... ‘Good can come out of evil. Here in the village, we’ll be closer to the church... there will be the opportunity for a few more Masses, short visits and benedictions’, and she praised the Lord (Cronistoria dell’Istituto FMA).
THE HOUSE WHERE TYPHUS BROKE OUT. Maria’s father bought this house on March 16, 1858. The reason which led Giuseppe Mazzarello to leave Valponasca and settle in the village was that an unpleasant incident: one evening, returning from a day’s work in the field, thefamily found that they had been robbed of their savings. Here, after assisting her sick uncles, Maria had caught typhoid fever. It was a long and serious illness. Fr. Pestarino had asked Maria’s father to allow her to help out her sick relatives at the Mazzarelli. Though he was opposed to the idea, he left Maria free to make her own choice. She did so telling Fr. Pestarino: "If you want me to do so I’ll go, but I’m sure I'll catch the disease".
THE HOUSE OF THE TAYLOR, VALENTINO CAMPI. It was precisely while she was gong past the Campi workshop that an idea flashed through Maria’s mind : "If I could improve my sewing skills, I could take up dress-making, I could gather many girls. I could teach the little ones how to make stockings, how to sew and mend ; the bigger girls could make their own dresses and in the meantime, I could keep them away from dangers, from superficial conversations, from vanity. I would be able to lead them to love the Lord, to Our Blessed Mother. I really need to learn how to work this out well." (Cronistoria dell’Istituto FMA) Here in this house, immedialtely after Easter in 1861, Maria and her friend Petronilla started their training.
TERESA PAMPURO' HOUSE. Teresa Pampuro from Mornese was among the first Daughters of Mary Immaculate with Maria and Petronilla. When Don Pestarino built the house called "The Immaculate", he was assisted financially by the Daughters of the Immaculate. Teresa Pampuro was among those who started the common life in the House of the Immaculate with Maria, Petronilla and Giovanna Ferrettino, also of Mornese.
BODRATO'S HOUSE. In this house, Maria and her friend Petronilla rented two rooms to accommodate two children who had lost their mother.
MACCAGNO'S HOUSE. Angela Maccagno was a girl from Mornese. Advised to do so by Fr. Pestarino, she had studied in Genoa and was teaching in the municipal school. It was in this house that Maria and Petronilla finally started their workshop and oratory.
THE IMMACULATE HOUSE. It was built by Fr. Pestarino who lived there with the intention of, eventually, passing it on to the Daughters of Mary Immaculate who would have been able to use it when they found themselves left without any relatives. The Daughters of Mary Immaculate started to live in community on October 1867. The first ones to do so were : Maria, Petronilla, Giovanna Ferrettino and Teresa Pampuro. Some girls also lived with them. Maria, delicate in health, had the permission from her father who, as a real educator, approved of Maria’s inclinations, and thus accompanied her with his affection. Maria Mazzarello did not know where the Lord was leading her but she trusted in Him. She was sure that she was choosing the way of evangelical radicality simply expressed in her daily life and in the joy of a heart totally in love with Christ.
THE PARISH CHURCH. In 1486, the Church of Saint Mary, the Church of the ancient Castellazzo, was very important for the Lords of Mornese for the simple reason that it was situated at the center of the town. Later it became the parish Church but it soon proved to be in such a poor condition that in 1590, the construction of a new Church, was started nearby. Thanks to the help of the people, the work progressed rapidly and on November 1602, the Church was dedicated to Saint Nicola di Tolentino and later on also to Saint Sylvester. During the Napoleonic era, the parish of Mornese passed from the diocese of Tortona to which it belonged, to the diocese of Casale.After being restructured, it was assigned to the Diocese of Acqui to which it presently belongs. From 1812 on, the building was subjected to a series of improvements that made it one of the most beautiful churches in the territory. In its underground, where there are evident traces of the foundation of the ancient Castellazzo and of the first oratory, a permanent "Christmas Crib" was constructed in 1995 by a group of volunteers from Mornese. What attracted Maria Mazzarello to this Church was the presence of Jesus in the Eucharist. She spared no sacrifice to meet Him. Her long wait at the main door when she arrived too early from Valponasca, in any weather, is a living witness to the biblical words : "Great waters could not quench such love !" In this Church, Maria was baptized at the stone baptismal font over which there is a picture of John the Baptist. In this Church, she attentively followed the catechism lessons of Fr. Pestarino and his Sunday homilies which, according to the customs of the time, were given from the high pulpit dominating the entire congregation. In this Church Maria Mazzarello made her first Confession and her first Communion. After the terrible bout with typhoid fever, when she could finally move about, she went to the back of the church, huddled in the darkest corner and said : "Lord, if you grant me a few more years of life, allow me to be forgotten by all. I am happy to be remembered only by you."
THE ORCHARD PATH.This path which rapidly descends among the orchards and vineyards is found between the house of the Immaculate and the building annexed to the Church. As seen from the design of the Church which dates back to 1808, the present path, which can still be seen now, was probably the continuation of a small road opening between the Church (at that time with but a single aisle) and the Oratory of the Brotherhood of "Santa Maria dei Disciplinati". It was precisely along this path that Maria frequently met with her friend Petronilla. During her convalescence, she thought about her life, about what she would still be able to do. It is precisely here that she confided her dream to Petronilla: to take care of the girls of Mornese and bring them to the Lord. The work as a dressmaker had one clear motivation in her heart : it had to let the girls to draw closer to God.