Innocenzo da Berzo (19 March 1844 - 3 March 1890), born Giovanni Scalvinoni, was an Italian

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particu ...

and a professed member of the

Order of Friars Minor The Order of Friars Minor (also called the Franciscans, the Franciscan Order, or the Seraphic Order; postnominal abbreviation OFM) is a mendicant Catholic religious order, founded in 1209 by Francis of Assisi. The order adheres to the teachi ...

- or Capuchin branch of the

Franciscan Order , image = FrancescoCoA PioM.svg , image_size = 200px , caption = A cross, Christ's arm and Saint Francis's arm, a universal symbol of the Franciscans , abbreviation = OFM , predecessor = , ...

. Scalvinoni assumed his new religious name upon his profession as a Capuchin friar.

Pope John XXIII Pope John XXIII ( la, Ioannes XXIII; it, Giovanni XXIII; born Angelo Giuseppe Roncalli, ; 25 November 18813 June 1963) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 28 October 1958 until his death in June 19 ...

beatified him on 12 November 1961.

Life

Giovanni Scalvinoni was born on 19 March 1844 to Pietro Scalvinoni and Francesca Poli in Niardo (Brescia). He was

baptized Baptism (from grc-x-koine, βάπτισμα, váptisma) is a form of ritual purification—a characteristic of many religions throughout time and geography. In Christianity, it is a Christian sacrament of initiation and adoption, almost ...

Giovanni. His father died of pneumonia when Giovanni was three months old in June 1844. He spent his childhood in Berzo.Bolognini, Daniele. "Beato Innocenzo da Berzo", Santi e Beati, February 28, 2006
/ref> As a small child he had great mercy for the poor, giving generously to those who asked, even though his family was in need. From 1855 to 1860 he attended the municipal college in

Lovere Lovere (Bergamasque: ) is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Bergamo, in Lombardy, northern Italy, at the northwest end of Lake Iseo. The houses in the city have overhanging wooden roofs, typical of Switzerland, combined with the heavy s ...

in the province of

Bergamo Bergamo (; lmo, Bèrghem ; from the proto- Germanic elements *''berg +*heim'', the "mountain home") is a city in the alpine Lombardy region of northern Italy, approximately northeast of Milan, and about from Switzerland, the alpine lakes Como ...

and he passed with high marks. In 1864 he entered the diocesan seminary of

Brescia Brescia (, locally ; lmo, link=no, label= Lombard, Brèsa ; lat, Brixia; vec, Bressa) is a city and ''comune'' in the region of Lombardy, Northern Italy. It is situated at the foot of the Alps, a few kilometers from the lakes Garda and Iseo. ...

. He was

ordained Ordination is the process by which individuals are consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorized (usually by the denominational hierarchy composed of other clergy) to perform va ...

to the priesthood on 2 June 1867 and held some positions, including that of vice-chancellor of the seminary, but each time he was removed because his innate shyness made it difficult to impose authority. He was assigned as the parochial vicar at the parish of Cevo in Valsaviore. In 1870 he returned to

Berzo Inferiore Berzo Inferiore ( Camunian: ) is an Italian comune of 2,316 inhabitantsDato Istat all'31/12/2008
in

where his duties were to act as a confessor and to direct the local primary school. During the time in the parish he found a need for solitude, prayer and penance. In 1873 he entered the Order of Friars Minor at the Annunciata Convent in the village of Borno. In 1877 he later he made his solemn vows and took the name of "Innocenzo of Berzo". Except for short assignments of preaching spiritual exercises in some convents in

Lombardy Lombardy ( it, Lombardia, Lombard language, Lombard: ''Lombardia'' or ''Lumbardia' '') is an administrative regions of Italy, region of Italy that covers ; it is located in the northern-central part of the country and has a population of about 10 ...

, he remained at the Annunicata Convent. There he lived a life of intense abandonment, living the adage of "do good and disappear". He had a deep devotion to the

Blessed Sacrament The Blessed Sacrament, also Most Blessed Sacrament, is a devotional name to refer to the body and blood of Christ in the form of consecrated sacramental bread and wine at a celebration of the Eucharist. The term is used in the Latin Church of the ...

, finding his sustenance in front of the

Tabernacle According to the Hebrew Bible, the tabernacle ( he, מִשְׁכַּן, mīškān, residence, dwelling place), also known as the Tent of the Congregation ( he, link=no, אֹהֶל מוֹעֵד, ’ōhel mō‘ēḏ, also Tent of Meeting, etc.), ...

. He also had a devotion to the crucified

Jesus Christ Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label=Hebrew/Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other names and titles), was a first-century Jewish preacher and religious ...

, and encouraged penitents to the exercise of the

Way of the Cross The Stations of the Cross or the Way of the Cross, also known as the Way of Sorrows or the Via Crucis, refers to a series of images depicting Jesus Christ on the day of his crucifixion and accompanying prayers. The stations grew out of imitati ...

. On 3 March 1890 he died in the infirmary of the convent of the Capuchin friars in Bergamo. From 26 to 28 September of the same year his body was transferred to the cemetery of Berzo Inferiore in a trip defined as "the last itinerant adventure connected to the earthly world of the little friar from Berzo". The mortal remains of Innocenzo from Berzo arrived in Vallecamonica some months after his death. Even though the news went slower than now, a great number of people asked the Conventual house, where his body was resting, to have a relic of his mortal remains. Once the people obtained the permission, on 28 September, nearly seven months after his death, the body was arranged in a coffin and then carried on the shoulders of his Franciscan brethren and was taken to his last resting-place.

Beatification

Beato Innocenzo - Berzo Inferiore (Foto Luca Giarelli)

There are two miracles attributed to the late friar. The first is a cure of a male child at the age of four from an aggressive form of

leukemia Leukemia ( also spelled leukaemia and pronounced ) is a group of blood cancers that usually begin in the bone marrow and result in high numbers of abnormal blood cells. These blood cells are not fully developed and are called ''blasts'' or ' ...

. The second is the cure of another male child of the age of five from

peritonitis Peritonitis is inflammation of the localized or generalized peritoneum, the lining of the inner wall of the abdomen and cover of the abdominal organs. Symptoms may include severe pain, swelling of the abdomen, fever, or weight loss. One part or ...

presided over the beatification of Innocenzo da Berzo on 12 November 1961 and made him the patron of both Berzo and of children.

References

External links

Sanctuario della Ss.ma Annunciata e del Beato InnocenzoCapuchin Franciscan Province of St. Mary
{{DEFAULTSORT:Innocenzo Da Berzo 1844 births 1890 deaths 19th-century venerated Christians 19th-century Italian Roman Catholic priests Beatifications by Pope John XXIII Capuchins Italian beatified people Religious leaders from the Province of Brescia