Start with the Sign of the Cross!

By Giana Martella, 2025 Summer Intern

It was after a long day in Rome, and I was exhausted and ready to make the hour-long commute back to where all the pilgrims were staying. But on the way, my friends and I met a young woman named Shijie, a Chinese foreign exchange student studying engineering in Rome. We began talking, and very quickly the conversation turned toward faith. She shared that she had never grown up with any religion but felt drawn to learn more about Jesus. My heart lit up with joy.

We invited her to join us for Mass the next day, and she happily agreed.

The next day, she was full of sincere and searching questions: What is prayer? Who is Mary?

How do you pray? I explained to her that prayer can be as simple as speaking to Jesus like a

friend, sharing your heart with Him. She also asked how she should hold her hands in prayer, and I reassured her that she could stand however was most comfortable, that God looks at the heart, not the posture. I also had the joy of teaching her how to make the Sign of the Cross, explaining the meaning behind each movement as best as I could.

When Mass came, we guided her through every part, and later that evening we invited her to our Marian prayer night. It was at the prayer night where t I truly saw Mother Mary at work. After hearing a testimony about how Mary always leads us to her Son, we were invited to pair up and pray for one another. First in our own language, then in a new language we would learn from our partner. Shijie asked me to pray that Jesus would take away her pain. I prayed over her, then asked if she wanted to pray over me. She was hesitant at first, and declined me so I sat for a second and then decided to help her learn the Hail Mary in Mandarin. I pulled it up on my phone, and the moment she realized what I was doing, her eyes lit up. She looked at me and asked if she should place her hand on my shoulder. I said that would be lovely so she placed her hand gently on my shoulder and, for the first time in her life, prayed a Hail Mary. Tears filled my eyes as she spoke those words, I felt an overwhelming presence of peace and love in the presence of Mary, drawing this young woman closer to her Son.

In that moment, I witnessed something sacred: the gentle hand

of a Mother leading one of her children home. Later, during praise and worship, I lifted my hands in worship to the Lord. I noticed Shijie glance at me with a shy smile. Slowly, she raised her own hands—perhaps praising the Lord for the first time ever. It was a holy, joy-filled moment.

That night, I witnessed something extraordinary: the gentle and motherly guidance of Mary

leading one of her children into the arms of Jesus. It reminded me that Mary always brings us to her Son, and that even the smallest acts, an invitation, a prayer, a gesture, can be used by God to change a heart forever.