St. Zita

St. Zita

Zita is known as the patron saint of housekeepers. She was born in the village of Monte Sagrati, Italy, in 1218. Her parents were deeply religious and raised Zita in a loving, Christian way. In those days it was the custom of poor couples to send their teenage daughters to trustworthy families who could afford servants. The young women would live with the families for a time and were employed to do the household tasks. Zita was sent to the Fatinelli family in Lucca when she was twelve years old.  Mr. and Mrs. Fatinelli were good people who had several other employees. Zita was happy to be able to work and send money home to her parents. She formed habits of praying that fit in with her new schedule. She even got up early to go to daily Mass.  Zita was very conscientious and always did her best. To her, work was an expression of her love for God. But the other workers were annoyed. They tried to do as little as they could get away with. They began to pick on Zita and oppose her without their employers noticing. Zita was hurt, but she prayed for patience. She never told on the workers. She insisted on doing her work as well as possible no matter what the others thought of her.  After some time, Zita was made the head housekeeper. The Fatinelli children were placed under her care. Then the other workers stopped bothering her. Some of them even began to imitate her.  Zita spent her whole life with the Fatinelli family. While other workers came and went, she stayed. She loved the Fatinellis like she loved her own family and she served them well. By her example, she helped people see that work is beautiful when it is done with Christian love. Zita died peacefully on April 27, 1278. She was sixty years old.

  St. Zita has a wonderful lesson for us all. She reminds us that what we do reflects the kind of person we are. Our work and our study take effort. But they’re worth the trouble because God will reward us in heaven.