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Teresa Gimma was born in Bari (Italy) on March 10, 1880. To her parents, saddened by the loss of two children, she gave new joy and new hope. She was given the name Teresa.

At the age of 18 she asked to join the Daughters of St. Teresa. This request created havoc in the serene house of the Gimma spouses, who looked to their daughter as the only heir of their family.

Despite these pressures and opposition, supported by a mysterious force, Teresa crossed the blessed threshold of the Carmel of St. Joseph in Bari, on May 29, 1898.

After the Postulancy, which was quite prolonged through the prayers of Cavaliere Gimma, who was hoping for and awaiting the return of his beloved daughter to the ancestral Home, Teresa was finally able to put on the Sacred woollen habit of Carmel, amid the admiration and enthusiasm of those who knew her. Her baptismal name was kept at her Father’s wish. When the formal command from the Archbishop to leave her monastery to give life to a new Carmel arrived on July 13, 1920, Sister Teresa immediately left (July 14, 1920) the beloved Cloister, after twenty-two years of peace and intimate joys, enjoyed in the sweet oasis of St. Joseph, and returned to her father's home.

The following day, July 15, by the express will of His Excellency, Monsignor Vaccaro, the first Holy Mass was celebrated in the improvised chapel of Palazzo Gimma. On that same day, His Excellency sent a letter to Sister Teresa, promising to protect the nascent work and inviting her to begin the work of transforming the Palace.

In 1932, Archbishop Augusto Curi, in agreement with the Superiors of the Order, decided to transfer the nuns to another place, far from the city. The present villa was purchased and enlarged and modified according to their needs. The Community left Palazzo Gimma, and moved to Via Salerno in 1935.

On June 5, 1938, the Religious made solemn vows, and ten years later, in 1948, on the first of December, the Mother Foundress, who had already seen her work prosper, after a very edifying life gave up her soul to God.

The diocesan process into her «life, virtue and reputation for holiness» ended on 6^th of June 2012 in the Archdiocese of Bari-Bitonto. On 19^th of June 2015, the decree of validity was granted.

1. The canonical norms concerning the procedure to be followed in the Causes of Saints are stated in the Apostolic Constitution Divinus Perfectionis Magister promulgated by John Paul II on 25 January 1983 (AAS LXXV, 1983, 349-355).

2. To initiate a Cause it is necessary that at least five years pass after the death of the candidate. This is to allow for greater balance and objectivity in the evaluation of the case and to allow the emotions of the moment to decant. There must be a clear conviction among people about his/her sanctity (fama sanctitas) and about the efficacy of his/her intercession with the Lord (fama signorum).

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Thérèse Camille of the Child Jesus was born in France in 1757, the daughter of the Marquis de Soyécourt.

At the age of 16 she decided to enter a monastery, but had to face opposition from her parents who wanted her to marry. She waited until she came of age to enter Carmel.

The beginnings of monastic life were hard, being an austere life.

In 1792, during the French revolution, the nuns were expelled from their convent. They settled in small groups in apartments and continued their monastic life. Many were arrested, including Sr Thérèse Camille, who was released after a period of imprisonment. At the end of this forced exile she returned to Paris and founded an underground religious community.

In 1796, her whole family having died during the revolution, she inherited the properties and began to finance in many ways the clergy, the nuns out of prison or in conditions of poverty. In 1797, she bought the Carmelite convent and installed her «clandestine» convent there, which would become «the fulcrum of all French Carmel».

For supporting Pope Pius VII and the «black» cardinals, Mother Camille was exiled at Napoleon Bonaparte’s pleasure from 1811 to 1813. Back in Paris, she continued her work to restore Carmel and support the clergy, as well as other religious communities. In 1845 she sold the Carmelite convent to the Archbishop of Paris and settled with her sisters in a new convent founded especially for them.

She died on May 9, 1849, at the age of 91.

The Diocesan Inquiry into her «life, virtue and reputation for holiness» was opened in 1938.

1. The canonical norms concerning the procedure to be followed in the Causes of Saints are stated in the Apostolic Constitution Divinus Perfectionis Magister promulgated by John Paul II on 25 January 1983 (AAS LXXV, 1983, 349-355).

2. To initiate a Cause it is necessary that at least five years pass after the death of the candidate. This is to allow for greater balance and objectivity in the evaluation of the case and to allow the emotions of the moment to decant. There must be a clear conviction among people about his/her sanctity (fama sanctitas) and about the efficacy of his/her intercession with the Lord (fama signorum).

PLEASE NOTE

1) In order to be able to consult the Positio please fill in the request form on this page.

2) If your request is accepted, we will then send you the conditions and directions for consulting the document.

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