Damião de Bozzano
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Damião de Bozzano O.F.M. Cap., born as Pio Giannotti (5 November 1898 – 31 May 1997), was an Italian Roman Catholic priest and a professed member from the Order of Friars Minor Capuchin who served in the Brazilian missions for over six decades.[1][2][3] Giannotti entered the order when he was twelve to do his ecclesial studies and religious formation of which he spent some of that time in Rome. He worked as a teacher from 1928 until 1931 when he was sent to the missions in Brazil.[3][4] He would remain there for the rest of his life and would go travelling often to northern Brazilian cities where he would celebrate Mass and evangelize while hearing confessions on a frequent basis.[1][2]
Damião de Bozzano | |
---|---|
Born | Pio Giannotti (1898-11-05)5 November 1898 Bozzano, Massarosa, Lucca, Kingdom of Italy |
Died | 31 May 1997(1997-05-31) (aged 98) Royal Portuguese Hospital, Recife, Pernambuco, Brazil |
Resting place | Convent St. Félix Cantalice, Pina, Recife, Brazil |
Towards the end of his life he was hospitalized on nineteen separate occasions due to a series of health issues he began facing.[3] He suffered from a spinal deformation that left him stooped and suffered from speech and breathing difficulties. His health declined into his nineties and he died from a stroke while recovering in hospital for breathing difficulties.[1][2]
The beatification process for the late friar had been called for after he died since the people in Recife and the northern cities revered Giannotti as a saint. The Olinda e Recife archdiocese launched the beatification cause in mid-2003 after its formal introduction in 2002 and he became titled as a Servant of God.[5] The cause culminated on 6 April 2019 after Pope Francis acknowledged his heroic virtue and named him as Venerable.[1][3]