Genoveva Torres Morales was a Spanish Roman Catholic nun who established her own congregation known as the Daughters of the Sacred Heart of Jesus and of the Holy Angels. She wanted her new congregation to focus on the care of all women. During her life and after her death, she was referred to as an "Angel of Solitude". Pope John Paul II beatified her in 1995 and canonized her on in 2003 in Spain.
Life
Genoveva Torres Morales was born in Almenara in 1870 as the last of six children to poor parents whom she lost in her childhood before she was eight. Four of her six brothers also died at this point. She remained in the care of her eldest brother José who was 18. Despite this hard life she remained steadfast in her faith which never wavered. Of course this also impacted on her completion of her education due to the circumstances. Despite the fact that he treated her with much respect José was taciturn and demanding of her. Deprived of affection and companionship Morales grew quite accustomed to solitude. At the age of ten she took a keen interest in spiritual publications and came to understand that God had willed her to follow him into his service. She also realized that true happiness is his will and decided to dedicate her whole life to that fact. In 1882 a tumor in her knee appeared and this led to the amputation of her leg. Due to the crude method of amputation she was forced to walk with crutches following this. In 1884 she grew ill and in 1885 was able to admit herself into a hospice to recover which the Carmelites oversaw. She remained there for almost a decade while she deepened her spiritual life and cultivated her blossoming vocation. She also met the priest Carlos Ferrís who would help her deepen her spiritual life. Despite the fact that she wished to join the congregation she left the hospice in 1895 and retired back to her hometown with the idea of establishing a congregation with a special emphasis for the women. To that end she consulted with spiritual directors as well as the Jesuits - in particular Martín Sánchez - and began to plan how she would go about this mission of hers. Her first aim was to establish special houses for women that were in need of assistance and the first house was opened in 1911 in Valencia. Others in places such as Barcelona and Santander soon opened. The General House was then established along with a novitiate and led to the formation of her own congregation. Her ailments worsened in the 1950s which added to her deafness. She resigned her post as Mother General in 1954. Her congregation received the papal approval of Pope Pius XII in 1953. Morales died at the beginning of 1956 in Zaragoza. She was granted the nickname of "Angel of Solitude" due to her peaceful and humorous disposition with a deep faith in Jesus Christ.
Canonization
The canonization cause commenced in Zaragoza on 12 July 1975 under Pope Paul VI which conferred upon her the posthumous title of Servant of God. The process started with the accumulation of documentation and testimonies in a process that spanned from 5 January 1976 until 3 April 1978. The process was formally ratified on 11 November 1983, resulting in the Positio being submitted to the Congregation for the Causes of Saints in Rome in 1987. Pope John Paul II approved that she had lived a life of heroic virtue and declared her to be Venerable on 22 January 1991. The miracle attributed to her intercession required for her beatification was investigated and ratified on 17 January 1992. John Paul II approved the miracle on 2 July 1994 and beatified her on 29 January 1995. The second miracle needed for canonization was ratified on 19 November 1999 and received papal approval, leading to John Paul II canonizing her on his visit to Spain on 4 May 2003.
