In 2022 I embarked on a journey to acquire my Italian citizenship. This process was called Jure Sanguinis , commonly known as Citizenship by Descent.  I had been watching a house hunter show and a woman was buying a home in Italy.  She was American and talked of this process of Americans getting Dual Citizenship in Italy. I had learned that if I had an male ancestor who was born in Italy,  and naturalized (became an American citizen) after their child was 21 years of age, they could pass down their citizenship to that child and so on down the line.  I began researching through my mothers side of the family to see if I would qualify to do so. After getting together with my aunt, she had many documents that showed I could do this.  In fact, I was eligible through my mother, then through her father, then through her grandfather.

Then the real process started of collecting documents that would show proof to the Italian consulate that yes I was eligible.  I started ordering documents starting with my birth, my mother and father’s birth and death, grandfather and grandmothers birth and death, and great grandfather and great grandmothers birth and death plus marriage and any divorce documents. I had to  order the naturization papers and Petition of intent of my great grandfather to show proof of dates.  This was not an easy task! Several documents took over a year to receive. The most difficult task was getting my great grandparents birth and marriage certificates from Italy. Many documents required notary signatures and would take months before receiving. My aunt had found someone reputable in Italy who was able to get the Italian documents from Italy. Francesco helped me tremendously and in a reasonable amount of time, but was costly. Then my mother’s siblings decided they wanted to join in on this process for themselves and for their children and grandchildren to join in on becoming an Italian citizen! It was a joy to all be working towards this goal.  This then required obtaining more documents as we didn’t all live in the same area consulate so we’d be submitting our own documents. In the meanwhile we had to get an appointment at the consulate to show all our documents.  Again, this was not an easy task. I think it was over a year before 4 of us secured an appointment for two years out! My aunt and I have appointments scheduled in October 2025. Two family members still don’t have appointments.  The next steps once receiving our documents were to get them translated into Italian.  Each page had to be translated except the original Italian documents.  Then came the task of sending each document back to the state where they were issued to be appostiled which authenticates the document.  Why was I so dedicated to this goal?  I started out on this journey because I knew I was eligible and having dual citizenship came with alot of perks. One was being able to buy a home in Italy. Another was I could travel and stay longer in Italy and in 180 of the EU countries without restrictions.  Then I started to get to know my ancestors better and the  heritage they left me and my family.  Being that I am the oldest grandchild on my mothers side of the family, I came to realization that this would so benefit my younger cousins who have much more time on this earth than me. I was excited for them to have the full potential to use the passport for so much longer than I ever could.  I was excited every time a document would arrive in the mail. I kept in close contact with my aunt as we now were managing three sets of documents, one for myself, one for her, and one for my uncle.  The others would be able to reference us, once we obtained citizenship.

Then came the bad news in March of 2025 that the Italian government was changing the rules on how one could receive Italian citizenship. You could only be eligible if you had a parent or grandparent born in Italy. This disqualified me and my cousins. Only my aunts and uncle could obtain citizenship. Then the government set up new parameters in May 2025 that if you had an appointment prior to that March date, you could still apply. I was still eligible along with my one cousin who also had an appointment . Unfortunately all my younger cousins now will not have the opportunity to get their Italian citizenship because they didn’t have an appointment . This makes me very sad that they changed the law after we had been working for years to get things set up for our other family members.

During the time when I thought I was ineligible, I had some mixed emotions. Yes, I was disappointed during that time , but I looked at all I had gained. I gained insight to my great grandparents and their lives. They came to America for a better life . The research helped me to know them. Plus all the time with my Aunt Ruth was so valuable. We worked together for the goal and for the most part truly enjoyed the journey. We corrected many documents that had errors and set the records straight. Yet during that time, I knew our efforts were not in vain because my mom’s siblings could still get their Italian citizenship. And I certainly hope they continue the journey.

Yet I still had Hope. Because I know I am a citizen of two kingdoms, the civil kingdom of this world as well as the heavenly kingdom . The one in heaven is secure because of my relationship with Jesus Christ. In Philippians 3:20a it says “But our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a savior , the Lord Jesus Christ”. As a citizen of that heavenly kingdom, my allegiance lies with the risen Christ to whom belongs all rule and authority and might and dominion. So already I’m a citizen of 2 kingdoms, and in October I will see if I will be a citizen of Italy.