This Friday, Leo XIV has authorized the promulgation of several decrees related to causes of beatification and canonization, after receiving in audience Cardinal Marcello Semeraro, prefect of the Dicastery for the Causes of the Saints. The decisions disseminated by the Holy See cover the recognition of the martyrdom of two priests killed during World War II and the declaration of heroic virtues of four Servants of God from different countries and states of life.
Two priests killed out of hatred for the faith during World War II
The first decree recognizes the martyrdom of the Servant of God Ubaldo Marchioni, a diocesan priest born in 1918 in the Italian locality of Vimignano di Grizzana Morandi. He was murdered on September 29, 1944, in Casaglia, in the context of the massacres perpetrated by Nazi troops in the Marzabotto area. The Church confirms that his death was directly due to hatred for the faith, which allows his beatification as a martyr without the need for a prior miracle.
The second case is that of the Servant of God Martino Capelli, a Dehonian religious born in 1912 in Nembro, also in Italy. Known in the world as Nicola Capelli, he was executed on October 1, 1944, in Pioppe di Salvaro, very close to the scenes where Marchioni fell. His death has also been recognized as martyrdom “in odium fidei,” thus confirming the radical witness character of his priestly dedication during the final months of the conflict.
Recognition of heroic virtues of bishops, priests, religious sisters, and laity
Along with the martyrs, the Pope has authorized the promulgation of the decrees that recognize the heroic virtues of four Servants of God whose lives stood out for their evangelical righteousness in very diverse circumstances. The archbishop Enrico Bartoletti, born in 1916 in Calenzano and died in Rome in 1976, exercised his pastoral mission in Lucca with doctrinal firmness and notable pastoral sensitivity. His figure is associated with the years of ecclesial renewal following the Second Vatican Council, in which he stood out for his prudence, capacity for dialogue, and spiritual solidity.
Another decree declares the heroic virtues of the priest Gaspare Goggi, a religious of the Congregation of Divine Providence, born in 1877 in Pozzolo Formigaro and died in 1908 in Alessandria. His relatively brief life was marked by pastoral dedication, austerity, and charity toward the most vulnerable, traits that the Church now recognizes as lived in a heroic manner.
In the missionary field, the holy life of Mary of the Sacred Heart (Maria Glowrey), an Australian religious born in 1887 in Birregurra, has also been recognized. A teacher, doctor, pioneer in the development of Catholic health networks, and religious of the Society of Jesus, Mary, and Joseph, she dedicated her life to serving the sick and needy in India, where she died in 1957, leaving a deep mark on the local community.
Finally, the Pope has recognized the heroic virtues of the Brazilian laywoman Maria de Lourdes Guarda, born in 1926 in Salto and died in São Paulo in 1996. Her simple life, marked by faith, service, and everyday charity, represents the silent but profound witness of thousands of lay faithful whose holiness is expressed in ordinary life lived with fidelity to the Gospel.