John Leonardi

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Clerics Regular of the Mother of God of Lucca

John Leonardi, OMD (

Italian Catholic priest and the founder of the Clerics Regular of the Mother of God of Lucca.[2]

Biography

He was the youngest of seven children born to middle-class parents in Diecimo (now within the

ordained in 1572,[3] as a member of the now defunct Apostolic Clerics of St. Jerome. He first dedicated himself to the Christian formation of adolescents in his local Lucca parish. He also gathered a group of laymen around him to work in hospitals and prisons.[4]

In 1574, he founded a group charged with deepening Christian faith and devotion; this foundation was part of the wider movement of the

frequent communion
.

Founding the order

He became interested in the reforms instituted by the

Saint Joseph Calasanz
. This union would last only until the beginning of 1617 when Paul V issued another decree constituting the Piarists as a separate congregation.

St. Giovanni Leonardi

Civic leaders in Lucca opposed the establishment of a new religious order for political reasons and acted to stop its formation. While ultimately ineffective, their efforts forced John Leonardi to spend most of the remainder of his life outside Lucca,

Vallombrosans.[6]

In 1603, he founded along with Cardinal J. Vivès, the seminary of the Propagation of the Faith for the philosophical and theological training of missionary priests. In 1621, his community would formally be designated "Clerks Regular of the Mother of God'". The final Rule of his institute was published in 1851. Two houses of the Clerks Regular of the Mother of God were opened when he died, and three others were opened in the seventeenth century.

Death and sainthood

He died on October 9, 1609, of influenza, which he contracted while ministering to his brothers suffering from the epidemic raging in Rome at the time.[5]

He was venerated for his miracles and his religious fervor. His memory was held so high in Rome that Pope Leo XIII added his name to the Roman Martyrology, and ordered Roman clergy to celebrate his Mass and Office, an honor otherwise strictly limited to beatified popes.

Leonardi was beatified in 1861 and canonized in 1938 by

feast is celebrated on 9 October. His relics are enshrined under an altar in the Church of Santa Maria in Campitelli in Rome.[7]

References

  1. ^ (October 7, 2009). On St. John Leonardi Archived 2011-09-13 at the Wayback Machine. ZENIT.
  2. ^ "St John Leonardi". Catholic Online. Retrieved 31 January 2022.
  3. ISBN 0-385-13594-7
    .
  4. ^ a b c "Saint John Leonardi’s Story", Franciscan Media
  5. ^ a b c Britannica, The Editors of Encyclopaedia. "Saint John Leonardi". Encyclopedia Britannica
  6. ^ Carmichael, Montgomery. "Clerks Regular of the Mother of God of Lucca." The Catholic Encyclopedia Vol. 4. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1908. 12 November 2021Public Domain This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
  7. ^ Schofield, Nicholas. "Santa Maria in Campitelli: an old Roman church with strong British connections", Venerable English College, Rome, 26 February 2020

Sources

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Saint Giovanni Leonardi.
  1. OCLC 1774680. Archived
    from the original on August 29, 2019.
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