A house founded on the rock of the Divine Will
For at least 30 years, the Association "Luisa Piccarreta - Little Children of the Divine Will” has been committing to the promotion and diffusion, in Italy and in the world of the spirituality "of living in the Divine Will", contained in the writings of Luisa Piccarreta, Dominican Tertiary who was born in Corato on April 23, 1865 and died on March 4, 1947 in the odor of sanctity, after an entire earthly existence lived for about 70 years, in the bed of pain accepted in constant and joyful conformity to the Divine Will.
History of the Association
The first unit of the Association arose under Sister Assunta Marigliano who, fascinated by the writings of Luisa, settled in Corato in October 1981.
The group received an initial approval on October 16, 1982 by the Arch. Mgr. Giuseppe Carata and on March 4, 1987 the Pious Association Luisa Piccarreta Little Children of the Divine Will was canonically erected, as a private association.
The head office was established at the home of Luisa in Via Luisa Piccarreta 27.
On November 21, 1987 the first floor with the exhibition of objects belonging to Luisa and the opening of her room to visitors was inaugurated and blessed by the Arch. Mgr. Giuseppe Carata. Downstairs, on November 30, 1989 the chapel with the Eucharistic case was inaugurated.
The Arch. Mons. Carmelo Cassati accepted the request of the Association, as the plaintiff, for the beginning of Luisa’s Cause of Beatification. On November 20, 1994 there was the opening of the diocesan Inquiry into the Life, Virtue and Reputation of Sanctity of the Servant of God, with the establishment of the Ecclesiastical Court. On February 2, 1996, the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, at the request of the Arch. Mons. Carmelo Cassati, granted the possibility to photograph and photocopy the volumes of the Diary, kept there.
The diocesan inquiry closed on October 29, 2005. This event, preceded by an international conference, ended with a solemn ceremony in the Mother Church during which three boxes with the papers of the Inquiry were sealed.
To seal the event the City Council decided to name the street in which the Association is located (formerly Via Nazario Sauro) to Luisa Piccarreta. On March 7, 2006 the Cause of Beatification and Canonization of the Servant of God Luisa Piccarreta was opened.
Following the closing of the diocesan Inquiry with decree of April 2, 2006, the Arch. Mgr. Giovanni B. Pichierri invited the Pious Association to set up, under its own responsibility, the secretariat of the Cause of Beatification with the task to link, inform and support.
Activities of the Association
The Association in its dissemination activities organizes meetings and international conferences on the figure and spirituality of Luisa (Costa Rica in 1995, Dallas in 1996, Georgia in 1997, Corato in 2002, Corato in 2005, Corato in 2015). Over time, there emerges the need to equip the Pious Association of a new legal structure with the amendment of the Statute.
By decree of the Arch. Mgr. Giovanni B. Pichierri of June 13, 2010, the Pious Association was erected as a public association of faithful called "LUISA PICCARRETA ASSOCIATION - LITTLE CHILDREN OF THE DIVINE WILL" and it was provided with a new Statute with the aim of accentuating the ecclesial impression.