As a cradle Catholic I was fascinated with the lives of the saints, which also happens to be the name of a book I spent hours poring over, gazing at the photos and wondering how I could ever be so holy.
Looking back now, I realize much of this interest revolved around those canonized heroes who had given their lives to their faith – literally. In other words, those who had been martyred, choosing to die by arrow, stoning or burning rather than deny Jesus Christ as their savior.
Which is likely why I paid little attention to the saint my childhood church was named for: St. Frances Xavier Cabrini.
After all, unlike her peers who were tortured and murdered because of their Christian convictions, Mother Xavier Cabrini was a 20th century nun who opened orphanages and hospitals and died not at the hands of evil persecutors but because of health reasons in 1917 in Chicago’s Columbus Hospital, one of the dozens of institutions she founded.
And so, I’m more than a little embarrassed to admit, my interest in the namesake of my hometown church – who also happens to be America’s first canonized saint and the patron saint of Chicago – was minimal at best.
That is until last weekend when, on the advice of a few friends, Catholic and otherwise, not to mention good reviews on Rotten Tomatoes, I went to see “Cabrini,” even convincing my husband – who reluctantly goes to the movie theater no more than twice a year – to be my date.
To say we truly enjoyed this film would be as understated as the simple black habit worn by Mother Cabrini and the half-dozen nuns she brought with her to America in 1889.
I’m no theater critic, but I do know how this movie impacted me, not just because “Cabrini” is powerfully acted with stunning cinematography and a beautiful score – which includes Andrea Bocelli and his daughter Virginia – but because it focuses on critical issues that are still so relevant today – women’s empowerment and immigration.
Mother Cabrini was half-heartedly sent to America by Pope Leo XIII to serve the poor and marginalized Italian immigrants of New York City, including the orphans trying their best to dodge disease, rats, criminals and heart-wrenching discrimination.
And serve she did, while taking on the most powerful men of the city – including the archbishop and the mayor – as well as the entire Italian Senate and at times, even the pope himself.
The movie centers on Cabrini’s early years in New York, but a decade later she came to Chicago, where she faced similar immigrant issues yet made such an impact in education and health care that more than 120,000 people filled Soldier Field when she was canonized by Pope Pius XII in 1946, and her national shrine is located here.
“Cabrini” was released by Angel Studios, which found box office gold in the 2023 “Sound of Freedom,” a film about child sex trafficking that generated over $180 million in domestic box office, in large part because it became such a political hot potato.
“Cabrini,” which opened March 8, is not bringing in nearly those numbers because it’s hard to stir up controversy over a biopic about a tiny frail nun who devoted her life to helping the most vulnerable. In fact, much of the criticism about the movie is from Catholics themselves, who complain the nun is portrayed more like a feminist and social justice warrior than a sainted missionary.
It’s true that her faith is not as much front and center in this film as her spunky personality. As far as I can recall, the word Jesus was uttered only once – and in Italian — and God’s name just a couple more times.
Mother Cabrini definitely spends more time in this film challenging and at times defying the men in power than she does praying. And yes, there are times it seems her ego is moving her more than the Holy Spirit. Then again, its creators have made it clear they wanted more than a “Catholic movie” because Mother Cabrini was so much more than a Catholic nun.
At least that’s what producers Leo Severino and Eustace Wolfington tried to stress in a webinar that the Rockford Diocese featured in the days before the movie’s March 8 release.
Too many faith-based movies get so bogged down trying to be made palatable that they become mediocre, but not so “Cabrini.” With a $50 million budget, the goal was to make this a beautiful and powerful film for mainstream audiences.
Not since “The Passion of the Christ,” which was released in 2004, has the Rockford Diocese received this much feedback on a movie, says Director of Communications Penny Wiegert, who hopes that many more people, no matter what their beliefs, will catch “Cabrini” even after it leaves the theaters and hits streaming services.
“It is not about proselytizing; it is not about trying to convert anybody,” said Wiegert. “The movie celebrates the fortitude and resilience of this woman, who happened to wear the long black robes of a Catholic nun.”
All of this, of course, can’t help but make her present day colleagues incredibly proud.
Dominican Sisters Kathleen Gallagher and Jane Beckman of Aurora also saw the movie this past weekend and came away not only impressed with how Mother Cabrini continued on in spite of whatever adversity was thrown her way, but also with the film’s honest portrayal of the lives and works of the sisters who have done so much to build up the church, the educational system and health care in this country.
“The movie presented the obstacles of prejudice that Mother Cabrini encountered as a woman, an Italian and a religious sister,” said Beckman. “As I watched the movie, I felt proud to be a Dominican sister today because we, and all religious communities, continue the mission of the church to work for an end to racism and prejudice against immigrants and injustices related to women and our environment.”
Which really is the message of hope “Cabrini” brings to all of us who still believe not only in America, but also in each other.
dcrosby@tribpub.com
