Blessed Giovanni Fornasini
Also known as
- The Angel of Marzabotto
Profile
Ordained a priest of the archdiocese of Bologna, Italy in the cathedral of San Pietro on 28 June 1942 in the midst of World War II. Chaplain and then parish priest in Sperticano, Italy. He took in people who had been displaced in the war, helped others to escape from occupied territory, and ministered to prisoners and those condemned to death, getting around everywhere on a bicycle. For this work, he was murdered and his body mutilated by a German Waffen SS officer. He was posthumously awarded Italy‘s Gold Medal of Military Valour for saving people from the Fascists.
Born
- 23 February 1915 in Pianaccio di Lizzano, Belvedere, Bologna, Italy
- 13 October 1944 in San Martino di Caprara, Marzabotto, Bologna, Italy
- buried in the church of San Tommaso in Sperticano, Marzabotto
- 21 January 2021 by Pope Francis (decree of martyrdom)
- 26 September 2021 by Pope Francis
- beatification celebrated at Bologna, Italy, presided by Cardinal Marcello Semeraro
MLA Citation
- “Blessed Giovanni Fornasini“. CatholicSaints.Info. 30 April 2022. Web. 28 April 2024. <>