María Beatriz del Rosario Arroyo y Pidal (María Rosario of the Visitation) ( fil, María Beatriz del Rosario Pidal Arroyo; February 17, 1884 – June 14, 1957) was a

Filipino Filipino may refer to: * Something from or related to the Philippines ** Filipino language, standardized variety of 'Tagalog', the national language and one of the official languages of the Philippines. ** Filipinos, people who are citizens of th ...

nun A nun is a woman who vows to dedicate her life to religious service, typically living under vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience in the enclosure of a monastery or convent.''The Oxford English Dictionary'', vol. X, page 599. The term is o ...

and the founder of the Dominican Sisters of the Most Holy Rosary of the Philippines (Dominican Sisters of Molo).

Early life and education

Arroyo was born on Feb. 17, 1884, in Molo,

Iloilo Iloilo (), officially the Province of Iloilo ( hil, Kapuoran sang Iloilo; krj, Kapuoran kang Iloilo; tl, Lalawigan ng Iloilo), is a province in the Philippines located in the Western Visayas region. Its capital is the City of Iloilo, the ...

to a pious couple, Ignacio Arroyo and Doña María Pidal, as the only daughter of three children. Her two brothers were José María Arroyo and Mariano Arroyo. José became a

senator A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

in 1919, while Mariano was governor of

in 1928. She is a grand-aunt of former

First Gentleman First lady is an unofficial title usually used for the wife, and occasionally used for the daughter or other female relative, of a non-monarchical head of state or chief executive. The term is also used to describe a woman seen to be at the t ...

José Miguel "Mike" Tuason Arroyo, husband of

Gloria Macapagal Arroyo Maria Gloria Macaraeg Macapagal Arroyo (, born April 5, 1947), often referred to by her initials GMA, is a Filipino academic and politician serving as one of the Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives of the Philippines, House Deputy Spe ...

, the fourteenth

president of the Philippines The president of the Philippines ( fil, Pangulo ng Pilipinas, sometimes referred to as ''Presidente ng Pilipinas'') is the head of state, head of government and chief executive of the Philippines. The president leads the executive branch of t ...

congresswoman A Member of Congress (MOC) is a person who has been appointed or elected and inducted into an official body called a congress, typically to represent a particular constituency in a legislature. The term member of parliament (MP) is an equivalen ...

Pampanga Pampanga, officially the Province of Pampanga ( pam, Lalawigan ning Pampanga; tl, Lalawigan ng Pampanga ), is a province in the Central Luzon region of the Philippines. Lying on the northern shore of Manila Bay, Pampanga is bordered by Tarlac ...

and 21st House Speaker. Mother Rosario's closest relative, niece Mariquita Arroyo Tuell Richmer (Daughter of Dr. Mariano Arroyo) died in 2014 in

Indiana Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th s ...

, USA. Mother Rosario is also the grand-aunt of Anne Walsh of Indiana, and Chris Tuell of

Ohio Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...

, USA. She was christened María Beatriz del Rosario at the Santa Ana Church in Molo on February 20, 1884, by Fr. Agapito Buenaflor. A noteworthy tradition of her family was

almsgiving Alms (, ) are money, food, or other material goods donated to people living in poverty. Providing alms is often considered an act of virtue or charity. The act of providing alms is called almsgiving, and it is a widespread practice in a number ...

; Arroyo thus participated in the corporal

works of mercy Works of mercy (sometimes known as acts of mercy) are practices considered meritorious in Christian ethics. The practice is popular in the Catholic Church as an act of both penance and charity. In addition, the Methodist church teaches that th ...

from an early age. Unspoilt by her affluent upbringing as a member of the aristocracy, she preferred a simple life and reportedly donated her inheritance to the congregation upon becoming an heiress.Manolo, Charlie V., " Saint Rosario Arroyo and the saintly Cory Aquino", ''The Daily Tribune'', October 23, 2012
/ref> Arroyo first attended classes at the Colegio de Santa Ana, a

private school Private or privates may refer to: Music * " In Private", by Dusty Springfield from the 1990 album ''Reputation'' * Private (band), a Denmark-based band * "Private" (Ryōko Hirosue song), from the 1999 album ''Private'', written and also recorde ...

in Molo. In preparation for her

first communion First Communion is a ceremony in some Christian traditions during which a person of the church first receives the Eucharist. It is most common in many parts of the Latin Church tradition of the Catholic Church, Lutheran Church and Anglican Communi ...

, she was transferred to Colegio de San José administered by the Daughters of Charity. She stayed at the Colegio until she finished her elementary education.

Career and death

The young María Beatriz joined the religious life in the Beaterio de Sta. Catalina in Manila and made her profession on January 3, 1914. She was taught at the Beaterio of Manila and in Lingayen. She then became a nun in the

Dominican Order The Order of Preachers ( la, Ordo Praedicatorum) abbreviated OP, also known as the Dominicans, is a Catholic mendicant order of Pontifical Right for men founded in Toulouse, France, by the Spanish priest, saint and mystic Dominic of Cal ...

. With the help of two other Dominican nuns, Arroyo would eventually create the Dominican Sisters of the Most Holy Rosary, a Filipino congregation, on February 18, 1927. Elected the First Superioress General of the Congregation at the Congregation's First General Chapter of January 3–6, 1953, she had 32 years of service. ''Madre Sayong'' or ''Madre Maestra'', as Arroyo was known, died on June 14, 1957.

Legacy

With a present membership of over 250, Arroyo's congregation runs multiple schools, colleges and retreat houses. Nationally, the order has professed sisters in the archdioceses of

Capiz Capiz, officially the Province of Capiz ( Capiznon/ Hiligaynon: ''Kapuoran sang Capiz''; tl, Lalawigan ng Capiz), is a province in the Philippines located in the central section of Western Visayas region. Its capital is the city of Roxas. It is ...

, Jaro, and

Manila Manila ( , ; fil, Maynila, ), officially the City of Manila ( fil, Lungsod ng Maynila, ), is the capital of the Philippines, and its second-most populous city. It is highly urbanized and, as of 2019, was the world's most densely populate ...

, as well as the dioceses of

Bacolod Bacolod, officially the City of Bacolod (; hil, Dakbanwa/Syudad sang Bacolod; fil, Lungsod ng Bacolod), is a 1st class highly urbanized city in the region of Western Visayas, Philippines. It is the capital of the province of Negros Occidenta ...

Imus Imus, officially the City of Imus ( fil, Lungsod ng Imus), is a 3rd class Cities of the Philippines#Legal classification, component city and ''de jure'' Capital city, capital of the Provinces of the Philippines, province of Cavite, Philippines ...

, Mati, San José de Antique and

Tagum Tagum, officially the City of Tagum ( ceb, Dakbayan sa Tagum; fil, Lungsod ng Tagum), is a 1st class component city and capital of the Davao del Norte, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 296,202 people making it th ...

. The congregation also has an overseas presence in the Diocese of Chalan Kanoa in the

Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands The Northern Mariana Islands, officially the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI; ch, Sankattan Siha Na Islas Mariånas; cal, Commonwealth Téél Falúw kka Efáng llól Marianas), is an unincorporated territory and commonwea ...

; the

Roman Catholic Diocese of Ngong The Roman Catholic Diocese of Ngong ( la, Ngongen(sis)) is a diocese located in the city of Ngong in the Ecclesiastical province of Nairobi in Kenya. History * 20 October 1959: Established as Apostolic Prefecture of Ngong from Metropolitan A ...

Kenya ) , national_anthem = "Ee Mungu Nguvu Yetu"() , image_map = , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Nairobi , coordinates = , largest_city = Nairobi , ...

; at Convitto San Tommaso (Convitto Internazionale San Tommaso d'Aquino) in

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

; the Parish of

San Quirico d'Orcia San Quirico d'Orcia is a ''comune'' (municipality) of about 2,500 inhabitants in the Province of Siena in the Italian region Tuscany, located about southeast of Florence and about southeast of Siena inside the Valdorcia landscape. It is named in ...

in Valdorcia,

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in the

Archdiocese of Siena-Colle di Val d'Elsa-Montalcino In church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop. History In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided provinces were administratively associate ...

(

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); and in the

Archdiocese of San Francisco The Archdiocese of San Francisco (Latin language, Latin: ''Archdiœcesis Sancti Francisci''; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Archidiócesis de San Francisco'') is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Catholic Church in the north ...

and the Diocese of Honolulu in the

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."Mike Arroyo's kin may become a saint", GMA NEWS.TV, June 17, 2008
/ref>

Canonization process

Arroyo is currently in consideration for

sainthood In religious belief, a saint is a person who is recognized as having an exceptional degree of holiness, likeness, or closeness to God. However, the use of the term ''saint'' depends on the context and denomination. In Catholic, Eastern Ortho ...

in the

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with several

miracles A miracle is an event that is inexplicable by natural or scientific lawsOne dictionary define"Miracle"as: "A surprising and welcome event that is not explicable by natural or scientific laws and is therefore considered to be the work of a divin ...

being investigated purportedly attributed to her. On July 28, 2009, Archbishop

Angel Lagdameo Angel Nacorda Lagdameo ( la, Angelus Lagdameo; 2 August 1940 – 8 July 2022) was a Filipino bishop of the Roman Catholic Church. He was Archbishop of Jaro from 9 May 2000 until 14 February 2018. Life and career Angel Lagdameo was born on 2 ...

issued an edict declaring that he is initiating the “diocesan process for the Cause of the Canonization of the Servant of God Mother Rosario Arroyo de la Visitacion which was officially opened on the 7th day of October 2009 at the parish church of St. Anne, Molo, Iloilo City.” It was spearheaded by the Congregation of the Dominican Sisters of the Most Holy Rosary of the Philippines (originally Beaterio de Molo) based in Molo, Iloilo. Mother Rosario founded this congregation in 1925. The Cause of Mother Rosario Arroyo was initiated by the Mother Rosario Arroyo Commission (MRAC) headed by former Superior General, Mother Visitacion Alecto, O.P. Later, Rev. Fr. Samson S. Silloriquez, OAR, was constituted as the Postulator who petitioned Archbishop Angel N. Lagdameo to decree the initiation of the Diocesan Process for Mother Rosario's beatification and canonization. On June 11, 2019, the decree of heroic virtue was promulgated, giving her the title Venerable.

References

External links

Domican Sisters of the Most Holy Rosary of the Philippines

* Mauro Bonato, Venerabile Maria Rosario della visitazione (Maria Beatrice Rosario Arroyo) * http://www.santiebeati.it/dettaglio/98549 {{DEFAULTSORT:Arroyo, Maria Beatriz Del Rosario 20th-century Filipino Roman Catholic nuns Leaders of Catholic female orders and societies Hiligaynon people Filipino people of Spanish descent Maria Beatriz 1884 births 1957 deaths People from Iloilo City Filipino Servants of God Visayan people Venerated Catholics by Pope Francis