What obligation does the physician have? To host an Enshrinement, the physician must become a member of the Guild and sign the St. Gianna Physician's Hippocratic Oath. This may be done online. During the actual Enshrinement ceremony, there is a part where the Oath is read out loud then signed by the physician. Some physicians have shared with the Guild that they frame the signed Hippocratic Oath and place it next to the St. Gianna picture in their office to share their commitment with their staff and patients.

Why do an Enshrinement? A picture of a Saint hanging on the wall serves as an inspiring model for physicians to imitate and to inspire them in the practice of medicine and Faith. It also serves as a way to bring up discussion of holiness and hope in patients, staff and others who see the picture and ask about the story behind it.

Who attends? Physicians, their families, staff, fellow physicians as well as patients and friends may attend.

Where is the frame placed? Ideally, in a prominent place visible to the public, like a waiting room or lobby. Alternatively, it can be placed in a hall, personal office or in the physician’s home.

How long is the Enshrinement ceremony? The Enshrinement ceremony lasts about 25 minutes if the priest or deacon gives a homily.

Why does a priest or deacon do the Enshrinement? By having a priest or deacon conduct the program, it makes the occasion more solemn and meaningful.

Do we serve refreshments? It is not necessary to provide refreshments but following the ceremony people usually enjoy visiting with others who attend. Many times it is the first opportunity for those who share the profession of medicine to meet others who also share the same Faith.

What material do I need? St. Gianna Physician’s Guild provides an Enshrinement Kit for $150.00. The kit includes a custom, gold wooden framed picture of St. Gianna with a Second-Class relic (a piece of clothing) of St. Gianna. Also included in the kit is a pack of 100 St. Gianna prayer cards, two books on the life of St. Gianna, two St. Gianna Physician’s Guild membership pins and five Enshrinement booklets for people to follow the ceremony.

What is expected of the physician after the Enshrinement? The physician may display the prayer cards and booklets about St. Gianna in their office or have them available to offer to interested patients. They are also invited to pray daily to St. Gianna for inspiration and guidance in the practice of medicine. The colorful lapel pin of St. Gianna may be worn on the white coat of the physician and serves to bring up conversations about St. Gianna.

How do I promote the Enshrinement Ceremony? First, the priest or deacon should be contacted and a convenient date and time chosen. Then family, friends, staff, patients and colleagues are invited to attend. Evenings are usually better so that people have time to arrive after work. Physicians have shared with the Guild that Friday’s at 7:00 PM tends to be a good time for everyone.

How do I order more products? You may visit the Store on the St. Gianna Physician'’s Guild web site”.

To hold Him who has brought me this art as my constant model and to live my life in partnership with Him, and to give through Him a share of my time and money, and to regard all my patients as my brothers in Christ and in such manner apply this art. And to whomever desires to learn this I will share the precepts and give oral instruction and all the other learning appropriate to the art according to my station in life, provided that these pupils have signed the covenant and have taken an oath according to the medical law and the laws of the Holy Catholic Church.

I will apply all medical measures for the benefit of the sick according to my ability and judgment; I will keep them from harm and injustice.

I will neither give a deadly drug to anybody who asks for it, nor will I make a suggestion to this effect. Similarly I will not give to a woman an abortive remedy nor advise any agent to prevent pregnancy. I will not refer to any practitioner for the purpose of procuring such services. In purity and holiness I will guard my life and my art.

I will not use the knife nor any remedy at which I am not skilled, but will withdraw in favor of such practitioners as are engaged in this work.

Whatever rooms or hospitals or houses I may visit, I will come for the benefit of the sick, remaining free of all intentional injustice, of all mischief and in particular of sexual relations with both female and male persons, be they rich or poor, strong or weak.

What I may see or hear in the course of the treatment or even outside of the treatment in regard to the life of my patients, which on no account one must spread abroad, I will keep to myself, holding such things shameful to be spoken about.

If I fulfill this oath and do not violate it, may it be granted to me to enjoy life and art, being honored among all men for all time to come, and in the end blessed with eternal salvation by our beneficent and loving Almighty Father; if I transgress it and swear falsely, may the opposite of all this be my lot.

Name ____________________________________________ Date ___________________

Witness __________________________________________

© St. Gianna Physician's Guild

The goal of this program is to spread devotion to St. Gianna Beretta Molla and promote her as an example for people to imitate. Together with presentations, the organization offers the enshrinement of a beautifully framed picture of St. Gianna with a relic in churches, hospitals and especially physician's offices and clinics. Having the picture of this saintly mother, holding one of her children in her arms, is a convenient way to spark interest in her life and bring up topics of the Faith. Booklets, prayer cards and pictures can be placed near the picture for those interested in her life to learn more.

Church Enshrinements

With permission of the local diocesan bishop, clergy and faithful can arrange a program where a picture of St. Gianna with a relic in it to be enthroned in the Church or parish building for public veneration. This is done as part of a presentation on the life of St. Gianna. Prayer cards and other literature are made available. The pastor can suggest that the faithful pray for their doctor and take them a copy of the prayer card along with a form for them to become enrolled in the St. Gianna Physician's Guild. It is also a devotional shrine to have for mothers and spouses as a place where they can go to pray to one who can offer them consolation and inspiration.

Office Enshrinement

As part of joining the Guild, a picture of St. Gianna with a relic in it will be offered to the physicians to be placed in their facility. Along with prayer cards which patients can be offered for use to pray to St. Gianna asking her intercession for their well being, a short biography of the live of St. Gianna can also be displayed for those who would like to learn more about her life. Ideally the picture is displayed in a location visible to the public. Alternatively the picture can be enthroned in the physician's private office or in their home when there is no office. The enthronement ceremony is presided over by a member of the clergy with colleagues, family and friends invited. When appropriate it is a nice occasion to host a small reception following the event. This provides an occasion for people to ask questions and meet others of like mind.

Catholic Hospital Enshrinements

Catholic hospitals will be contacted to enthrone a picture and relic in their facility. Their will be a ceremony presided over by a clergy member and leading physician or staff director. Prayer cards and books will be offered to be placed in the hospital to teach people about the life of St. Gianna and offer suggested prayers to pray for doctors and patients.

Home Enshrinements

Many families have contacted the Guild with the desire to enshrine a picture of St. Gianna in their home where she can serve as a patroness and model. Families may request a picture of St. Gianna from the Guild and frame it. The Guild will provide enshrinement booklets and family and friends can be invited to attend an enshrinement in the home.

Public Lectures

Representatives of the organization can be invited to visit your church or organization to speak about the life of St. Gianna and how her saintly example can inspire us today. Pictures of the saint, the places where she lived and worked as well as living family members bring the life of the saint to a living reality. A pair of gloves worn by St. Gianna were recently given to the Guild by the family and will be displayed for the faithful to venerate and touch.

On May 31 Thomas McKenna joined Archbishop Raymond Burke in the Archdiocese of St. Louis to enshrine a picture and relic of St. Gianna in the newly formed parish of St. Gianna in Lake St. Louis, Missouri.

The parish is the first in the United States dedicated to St. Gianna. It was also the first parish church to host an enshrinement program of the St. Gianna Physician’s Guild.

The parish was founded in 2006 by Archbishop Burke to serve a growing Catholic population in St. Charles County. Until the church is built the parish is using a temporary building for services and administration. The current facility has been decorated to transform a simple hall into a church environment which was packed that afternoon.

Following Mass, Archbishop Burke led the faithful in special prayers for the act. The picture was carried by Thomas McKenna, president of the Guild, together with parishioner Larry Slattery, to a prominent location on the front wall beside the alter. Once in place Archbishop Burke blessed it and led the faithful in the recitation of a consecration to Mary composed by St. Gianna.

After an interval for refreshments and an occasion for parishioners to greet Archbishop Burke and Mr. McKenna, everyone gathered once again in the church for a presentation on the life of St. Gianna.

Mr. McKenna gave an over-view of the life of the saint and shared many details he learned from personal conversations with St. Gianna’s family members. The second part of the presentation Archbishop Burke shared details about the trip he made with Mr. McKenna in 2007 to visit the family and places where St. Gianna lived. The public found it very inspiring to learn first hand about the saint and see pictures of their Archbishop with the husband, daughters, and two living siblings of St. Gianna.

The pastor, Fr. Timothy Elliot summed it up saying, “it [the presentation] gave many insights into the life of our patron saint and will help us to have greater devotion to her and follow her example of sanctity.”

About 50 physicians and others attended the ceremony held at The Center for Cancer Care and Research in West County. Archbishop Raymond L. Burke presided at the March 7 event.

Thomas McKenna of San Diego is co-founder and president of the newly formed St. Gianna Physician’s Guild, which was behind last weekend’s enshrinement and several other events held over the weekend to promote the guild and the life of the saint.

The vision of the guild, said McKenna, is to provide physicians and other health care workers the opportunity to more strongly draw their faith into their lives and medical practices.

Dr. C. Paul Morrow, an internationally known gynecologic oncologist from the University of Southern California, is the organization’s vice president. Archbishop Burke also serves as the group’s episcopal adviser.

The guild, said the archbishop, "is important because it provides a spiritual program for physicians to support them in their care for the sick ... after the example of our Lord himself."

The guild also "provides Catholic physicians an avenue to know one another and encourage one another and discuss mutual concerns with one another," said the archbishop.

"We want to give support and encourage Catholic physicians to practice in a manner that’s consistent with the teachings of the Church," said Morrow, who was at the enshrinement ceremony here. "That’s a very difficult thing to do in the environment today."

As an Italian physician, wife and mother, St. Gianna was best known for choosing a medical procedure to treat a uterine tumor that would not take the life of her unborn child, Gianna Emanuela.

St. Gianna’s death has been called a testament to the value of the unborn. St. Gianna died in 1962 at age 39, a week after Gianna Emanuela was born. Pope John Paul II canonized her in 2004.

McKenna noted that the organization wants to offer enthronement ceremonies to other Catholic doctors’ offices, Catholic hospitals and even churches and other Catholic institutions. A home enshrinement program also is in the works.

Doctors who join the guild also must sign a "Catholic Hippocratic Oath," a document drafted by Morrow that requires them to affirm their adherence to the teachings of the Catholic Church. It is based on the age-old oath drafted by Hippocrates and traditionally taken by physicians for the ethical practice of medicine.

At last weekend’s enshrinement ceremony at The Center for Cancer Care and Research, a framed image of St. Gianna holding her daughter Mariolina and a second-class relic of a tiny piece of her clothing were hung in the main lobby of the doctors’ offices.

The private practice includes several Catholic physicians. Dr. Frederick Zivnuska, a member of St. Francis de Sales Oratory in South St. Louis, headed the effort to have the enthronement at their offices. Other doctors in the practice are Leonard White, Alfred Greco, Nelida Sjak-Shie, Kevin Easley and John Eckardt.

"At The Cancer Care Center we know that the Church’s relic and learning example about the exemplary life of St. Gianna will help patients and their loving families embrace the joys and sorrows of the cross God has given each of them," said Zivnuska. "May all of us who work here benefit from the kindness St. Gianna showed to her own patients when she practiced medicine."

"The enshrinement is a way to have the presence of St. Gianna in your medical practice," he said. "Having a picture of St. Gianna — everyone wants to know, ‘What is this beautiful picture here?’"

McKenna also shared with those at the ceremony a slide show on the life of St. Gianna, including pictures of where she lived and worked. McKenna has developed a relationship with the saint’s family over the years and has visited with them several times. Archbishop Burke accompanied McKenna on one trip.

McKenna said St. Gianna’s daughter, Gianna Emanuela, called her mother "a saint not only because she offered her life, but that she lived her life practicing virtue in a very heroic way."

In addition to being involved with the Catholic Action movement in Italy, St. Gianna also was charitable with her patients, often giving them the money to buy costly prescription drugs and driving all over town in her little Fiat to care for them. She also talked several women out of having an abortion.

"Her life was filled with little stories like that," said McKenna.

Among those at the enthronement were Drs. John Dickinson and Courtney Voelker, both resident physicians at Barnes-Jewish Hospital in St. Louis. The two young adults said that they are eager to learn more about St. Gianna and hope to use her as an example in living out their personal and professional lives.

Dickinson, who attends St. Francis de Sales Oratory, called St. Gianna "a very practical saint" and a "wonderful example to bring into practice and my own personal life."

Voelker said of the guild: "Physicians oftentimes don’t have a chance to reach out in fellowship to each other. This is a way to meet and encourage each other in our journey."

Also held last weekend was a private reception March 8 at the archbishop’s residence for more than a dozen doctors and others, during which McKenna introduced them to the guild.

The weekend wrapped up with a March 9 afternoon presentation by McKenna to about 50 people at the Cardinal Rigali Center in Shrewsbury. The event was sponsored by the archdiocesan Respect Life Apostolate.

"I look forward to collaborating with Thomas McKenna and the St. Gianna Physicians Guild to spread a devotion to St. Gianna in St. Louis," said Christina Heddell, director of the respect Life Apostolate. "She is a beautiful example of heroic love, which makes her a powerful intercessor for all people working to defend human dignity.

"I hope that many laypeople will develop a devotion to St. Gianna," said Heddell. "She is easy to relate to since she was a laywoman with a career and a vocation to marriage and motherhood."

Reprinted with permission from St. Louis Review