Biography of Blessed Irene Stefani, missionary of the Consolata, edited by the Postulación General.
The story of Blessed Irene Stefani (baptized with the name Aurelia Jacoba Mercede Stefani) begins on August 22, 1891, in Anfo, a small town nestled in the mountains of the Brescia region. Raised in a family of deep and genuine faith, young Mercede encountered sorrow early on: in 1907, she lost her mother, and one by one, she watched almost all of her twelve siblings pass away. Amidst this suffering, she did not withdraw into herself; instead, she found the strength to help her father raise her two surviving sisters, Marietta and Antonietta, as well as little Ugo—who was also destined to die prematurely.
Always focused on others—whether through household chores, involvement in catechesis, or dedication to those in need—she felt a deeper vocation growing within her. Captivated by the missionary ideal, she answered the Lord’s call at the age of just twenty: on June 19, 1911, she entered the Institute of the Consolata Missionary Sisters, taking the name Sister Irene.
Three years later, on January 29, 1914, she made her first religious profession, engraving upon her heart the guiding principle for every step of her life:
Jesus alone! Everything with Jesus. Nothing from myself.
Entirely Jesus’s. Nothing of my own.
Everything for Jesus, nothing for myself. Hoc fac et vives (“Do this and you will live”).
On December 28 of that same year, her missionary dream became a reality when she set sail for Kenya with the second group of departing sisters.
An Angel Amidst the Tragedies of the Great War
The Africa that welcomed Sister Irene was soon plunged into the turmoil of the First World War. From 1916, she served as a Red Cross nurse in military hospitals across Kenya and Tanzania, tending to thousands of indigenous porters who had been forcibly conscripted. Exhausted by grueling marches and backbreaking labor, many perished along the way or dragged themselves into makeshift, overcrowded military hospitals—places where a lack of food and medicine, the spread of infections and epidemics, and the presence of untrained, inexperienced caregivers created a breeding ground for disease and death.
In this landscape of suffering and despair, Sister Irene stood out for her extraordinary courage, gentleness, and tireless dedication to the most critically ill, earning both the high esteem of others and the title “angel of charity”.
Work in Kenya and the Name “Nyaatha”
After the war, Sister Irene returned to the Apostolic Vicariate of Nyeri (Kenya). From 1920, she served at the Gekondi Mission, where she devoted herself to teaching, catechesis, caring for the sick, and providing guidance to the community.
The local people were captivated by her gaze and her boundless kindness. Seeing in her a safe refuge, they bestowed upon her a name in the Kikuyu language that perfectly captured her essence: “Nyaatha”—meaning “a mother full of mercy and love”.
The offering of her life
In October 1930, moved by an inner impulse and sustained by the Holy Spirit, Sister Irene made a definitive act: she offered her life to God for the sake of the mission.
The Lord accepted her offering. Just two weeks later, while lovingly caring for a plague victim in Gekondi, she contracted the terrible infection, which led to her death on October 31—at the age of only 39.
“Love killed her” the local people say of her.
It is a comment that captures the essence of a life entirely given to others with heroic charity—a total dedication born from a deep desire to become a saint, as evidenced by her final words before passing away:
“I belong entirely to Jesus, Mary, and Joseph, now and forever, for all eternity”.
The path to canonization
Her reputation for holiness remained alive and steadfast over time, paving the way for the canonization process. Following the diocesan inquiries, conducted between 1984 and 1988, and the subsequent transfer of her remains in 1995, the Dicastery for the Causes of Saints recognized that Sister Irene Stefani had practiced the virtues to a heroic degree. On April 2, 2011, Pope Benedict XVI ratified this judgment by promulgating a decree declaring her Venerable.
Subsequently, a miracle attributed to the intercession of Sister Irene Stefani—which occurred in 1989 in Nipepe, Mozambique, during the civil war—was examined: the water contained in a small baptismal font inexplicably quenched the thirst of over 200 people, and the prisoners were able to return home unharmed. This sign led to the beatification of Sister Irene Stefani on May 23, 2015, in Kenya.
The path toward canonization and the declaration of sainthood now requires that a second miracle—attributed to the effective intercession of Blessed Irene Stefani—be verified through a formal canonical process.
To ensure this journey continues expeditiously, it is essential to spread awareness of her life, the beauty of her holiness, and her extraordinary attentiveness to people’s needs, by promoting prayer initiatives, celebrations, and acts of devotion that seek her intercession.
The faithful, members of religious orders, and priests are therefore invited to promptly report any grace received or extraordinary event attributed to her intercession—information that is indispensable for the evaluations required during the canonization process.
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For graces received, please contact:
Institute of the Missionary Sisters of the Consolata
Via Umiltà, 745
01036 NEPI (VT) – Italy
postulazione.mc@missionariedellaconsolata.org
