Child Bride: Blessed Benigna Cardozo de Silva

This is the 13 year old child beatified as "virgin and martyr" by Pope Francis in 2022, whom Cardinal Steiner joins in celebrating as a role model for girls and women.

“At the fountain, Benigna offers her life in fidelity to Jesus” he said.

Regarding the circumstances of her death, the cardinal said that Blessed Benigna brings light in the midst of a social context where women are murdered and where children are abused....

“Benigna [was an] example of the non-subjugation of women, defender of their own strength and value, of dignity and beauty, of sexuality and motherhood, of vitality and tenderness. She preferred death to passion, she preferred death to the breaking of her dignity."

                Cardinal Leonardo Steiner, Beatification Mass

"The priest explained that the red dress with white polka dots that Beata Benigna wore “prophetically” symbolized her martyrdom.

“Red recalls blood and white holiness of life,” he pointed out."

This is the toddler, first grader, and tween for whom Fr. Pinto celebrates Benigna as that role model when they grow up. 

In addition, he said they decided that the statue of the young teen should wear a ring on the index finger “to represent the everlasting marriage that the virgin Benigna Cardoso entered into with her divine husband, the Lord Jesus.”

Toddler and first grader get to wait a few years. Tween is ripe and ready to be a "virgin" child sacrifice bride. 

        Fr. José Vicente Pinto de Alencar Silva, Press Conference

    The Jesus I know said abusers of children should be thrown in the sea with millstones around their necks. (Gospel of Matthew, Chapter 18, Verse 6.

    So I'm thinking he's nauseated rather than aroused at that offer.

    And nauseated by the official Catholic age of consent to marriage: 14 for girls and 16 for boys. (Canon 1083).

       1983 Code of Canon Law, reproduced from 1917 Code of Canon Law, which raised it from 12 for both.

    They considered making it equal for both genders of children, but decided not to.

     Generously offered the option of local bishops raising sacramental marriage age in their own diocese though. 

    I haven't found any in the US thus far, much less the UCCSB-- official group of all American Bishops. 

    Including my own Archdiocese of Detroit, despite the state of Michigan recently becoming the 10th state to totally ban legal marriage before 18 for both much less the national organization of bishops.   

    Extensive research on damage caused minors by child marriage--especially girls, usually married to adult men at least 4 years older and frequentlyfar  more--can be found at leading advocacy and recovery nonprofit Unchained at Last.

    Perhaps we should send the link to each diocese and the UCCSB as a whole. 

    In depth reflection on issue in Catholic context, and canon law links from Laura Bramon Hassan.