The drama centres on the "Mary Temple of the Holy Spirit" convent in Pienza in the southern part of Tuscany. Before becoming a convent, the property formerly hosted the diocesan seminary.

A group of 13 Benedictine sisters arrived in the convent in 2017 under the leadership of their newly elected superior, Sister Diletta Forti, who has a background as a marshal in the Forest Guards, more or less the Italian equivalent of the Park Rangers in the United States.

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"I was very happy with everything I had, but it does not compare with the happiness that God now places in my heart," she says.

Esmeralda Solís Gonzáles says her religious awakening had been developing since she was 14, through "vocational days, missions and camps".

She describers it as being like "a little thorn" which demanded she find out what God wanted of her.

She discovered God was calling her "to serve him in a radical way," by changing her "life to embrace the cross of Christ and live it more closely."

Esmerelda says while she was still discerning her vocation she had fears and doubts.

"But the love that Our Lord was showing every day made me overcome any feeling of discouragement," she says.

"God's timing is perfect. During this time (of discernment) he allowed me to have some experiences such as being a beauty queen, and other experiences, which forever left their mark and which allowed me to learn a lot for what was to come later."

"I have been in religious life very little time, but I truly have been very happy," she says.

Source

• Catholic News Agency
• Hello Christian
• Image: Periodico El Cinco