Antonio Lucci (2 August 1682 – 25 July 1752), born Angelo Nicola Lucci, was an

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, a Romance ethnic group related to or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance languag ...

Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

professed member from the

Order of Friars Minor Conventual The Order of Friars Minor Conventual (O.F.M. Conv.) is a male religious fraternity in the Catholic Church and a branch of the Franciscan Order. Conventual Franciscan Friars are identified by the affix O.F.M. Conv. after their names. They are ...

(the "Franciscans") and served as the Bishop of Bovino from 1729 until his death. The beatification cause started on 5 December 1764 under

Pope Clement XIII Pope Clement XIII (; ; 7 March 1693 – 2 February 1769), born Carlo della Torre di Rezzonico, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 6 July 1758 to his death in February 1769. He was installed on 16 July 1758. ...

while he was later titled as

Venerable ''The Venerable'' often shortened to Venerable is a style, title, or epithet used in some Christianity, Christian churches. The title is often accorded to holy persons for their spiritual perfection and wisdom. Catholic In the Catholic Churc ...

on 13 June 1847 under

Pope Pius IX Pope Pius IX (; born Giovanni Maria Battista Pietro Pellegrino Isidoro Mastai-Ferretti; 13 May 1792 – 7 February 1878) was head of the Catholic Church from 1846 to 1878. His reign of nearly 32 years is the longest verified of any pope in hist ...

Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II (born Karol Józef Wojtyła; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 16 October 1978 until Death and funeral of Pope John Paul II, his death in 2005. In his you ...

beatified Lucci on 18 June 1989 in

Saint Peter's Square St. Peter's Square (, ) is a large plaza located directly in front of St. Peter's Basilica in Vatican City, the pope, papal enclave and exclave, enclave in Rome, directly west of the neighborhood (rione) of Borgo (rione of Rome), Borgo. Both t ...

Life

Angelo Nicola Lucci was born on 2 August 1682 to the cobbler and coppersmith Francesco Lucci and his wife, Angela Paolantonio. He attended the local school that the Franciscans managed and later joined them in 1698. Lucci made his solemn profession in 1698 in the religious name of "Antonio"."Antonio Lucci", Dicastero delle Cause dei Santi
/ref> He completed his studies for the priesthood in

Assisi Assisi (, also ; ; from ; Central Italian: ''Ascesi'') is a town and comune of Italy in the Province of Perugia in the Umbria region, on the western flank of Monte Subasio. It is generally regarded as the birthplace of the Latin poet Prope ...

where he was

ordained Ordination is the process by which individuals are Consecration in Christianity, consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorized (usually by the religious denomination, denominationa ...

in 1705. He studied rhetoric and philosophical studies at Venagro and Alvito as well as in

Aversa Aversa () is a city and ''comune'' in the Province of Caserta in Campania, southern Italy, about 24 km north of Naples. It is the centre of an agricultural district, the ''Agro Aversano'', producing wine and cheese (famous for the typical dome ...

before doing theological studies at

Agnone Agnone ( Neapolitan: ''Agnèune'') is a ''comune'' in the province of Isernia, in the Molise region of southern Italy, some northwest of Campobasso. Agnone is known for the manufacture of bells by the Marinelli Bell Foundry. The town of Agnone ...

. Further studies led to a doctorate in theological studies and appointments as a professor in Agnone as well as at the Franciscan school in

Ravello Ravello (Campanian: ) is a ''comune'' (municipality) situated above the Amalfi Coast (exactly 782 stairs above the town of Atrani), in the province of Salerno, Campania, with approximately 2,500 inhabitants. Its scenic location makes it a popular ...

(from 1709 to 1712) and at the Franciscan school of San Lorenzo in

Naples Naples ( ; ; ) is the Regions of Italy, regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 908,082 within the city's administrative limits as of 2025, while its Metropolitan City of N ...

(from 1713 to 1718). He also served as

guardian Guardian usually refers to: * Legal guardian, a person with the authority and duty to care for the interests of another * ''The Guardian'', a British daily newspaper (The) Guardian(s) may also refer to: Places * Guardian, West Virginia, Unit ...

of the

convent A convent is an enclosed community of monks, nuns, friars or religious sisters. Alternatively, ''convent'' means the building used by the community. The term is particularly used in the Catholic Church, Lutheran churches, and the Anglican ...

in Naples. Lucci was elected as the

Minister Provincial A provincial superior is an officer of a religious institute (including religious orders) acting under the institute's Superior General. A provincial superior exercises general supervision over all the members of that institute in a territorial d ...

in 1718 and held that post until 1719; in 1719 he was appointed as a professor at the

Pontifical University of St. Bonaventure The Pontifical University of St. Bonaventure or Pontifical Theological Faculty of Saint Bonaventure (, ), commonly called the Seraphicum, is the international study center of the Conventual Franciscans, Friars Minor Conventual in Rome. As a Pontif ...

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

and remained there until his appointment to the episcopate. In 1725 he received instructions from

Pope Benedict XIII Pope Benedict XIII (; ; 2 February 1649 – 21 February 1730), born Pietro Francesco (or Pierfrancesco) Orsini and later called Vincenzo Maria Orsini, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 29 May 1724 to his death in ...

to write against

Jansenism Jansenism was a 17th- and 18th-century Christian theology, theological movement within Roman Catholicism, primarily active in Kingdom of France, France, which arose as an attempt to reconcile the theological concepts of Free will in theology, f ...

. It was rumored that Benedict XIII would appoint him as a cardinal but this did not happen: the pope had decided to name him in 1729 as the Bishop of Bovino and explained of the appointment: "I have chosen as Bishop of Bovino an eminent theologian and a great saint". Benedict XIII himself conferred

episcopal consecration A bishop is an ordained member of the clergy who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance and administration of dioceses. The role ...

upon Lucci in

Saint Peter's Basilica The Papal Basilica of Saint Peter in the Vatican (), or simply St. Peter's Basilica (; ), is a church of the Italian Renaissance architecture, Italian High Renaissance located in Vatican City, an independent microstate enclaved within the cit ...

. Lucci had a reputation for being reserved but his episcopate was marked with frequent visits to his local parishes in the diocese as well as a renewal of

Gospel Gospel originally meant the Christianity, Christian message ("the gospel"), but in the second century Anno domino, AD the term (, from which the English word originated as a calque) came to be used also for the books in which the message w ...

application amongst the faithful; he dedicated his episcopal income to works of education and set up free schools. He repaired churches and enforced discipline on priests who indulged in vanities. He also visiting hermits to ensure the

magisterium The magisterium of the Catholic Church is the church's authority or office to give authentic interpretation of the word of God, "whether in its written form or in the form of Tradition". According to the 1992 ''Catechism of the Catholic Church'' ...

was being upheld in those places of hermitage. The

Minister General Minister general is the term used for the head or superior general of the different branches of the Order of Friars Minor. It is a term exclusive to the order and comes directly from its founder, St. Francis of Assisi. Terminology Francis chose ...

for his order requested he write a hagiographical account in 1740 and so he wrote a major book about the Franciscan saints and blesseds in the first two centuries. Lucci studied with, and was a close friend of Francis Fasani who, after Lucci's death, testified on 29 November 1742 at the diocesan hearings regarding the holiness of Lucci's life; he and Fasani were both ordained as priests together. Alphonsus Maria de' Liguori wrote of Lucci and heaped great praise upon him. Lucci died in of a high fever in mid-1752 and his remains were interred in the Bovino Cathedral.

Beatification

The cause commenced under

on 5 December 1764 and Lucci became titled as a

Servant of God Servant of God () is a title used in the Catholic Church to indicate that an individual is on the first step toward possible canonization as a saint. Terminology The expression ''Servant of God'' appears nine times in the Bible, the first five in ...

while

confirmed that Lucci had lived a model life of

heroic virtue Heroic virtue is the translation of a phrase coined by Augustine of Hippo to describe the virtue of early Christian martyrs. The phrase is used by the Roman Catholic Church. The Greek pagan term hero described a person with possibly superhuman a ...

and so named him as

on 13 June 1847. The informative process for the miracle needed for beatification spanned from 1779 until 1780 and received validation in Rome from the

Congregation for Rites The Sacred Congregation of Rites was a congregation of the Roman Curia, erected on 22 January 1588 by Pope Sixtus V by ''Immensa Aeterni Dei''; it was divided into two separate congregations by Pope Paul VI on 8 May 1969. The Congregation was cha ...

on 10 September 1782 before a medical board met and approved this miracle two centuries later on 3 February 1988. Theologians approved the miracle on 7 July 1988 as did the

Congregation for the Causes of Saints In the Catholic Church, the Dicastery for the Causes of Saints, previously named the Congregation for the Causes of Saints (), is the dicastery of the Roman Curia that oversees the complex process that leads to the canonization of saints, passi ...

on 8 November 1988.

approved this miracle on 28 November 1988 and beatified Lucci on 18 June 1989 in

."Beatifications by Pope John Paul II, 1979-2000", Vatican News Service
/ref> The current

postulator A postulator is the person who guides a cause for beatification or canonization through the judicial processes required by the Catholic Church. The qualifications, role and function of the postulator are spelled out in the ''Norms to be Observed i ...

for this cause is Fra Angelo Paleri.

References

External links

Hagiography Circle
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lucci, Antonio 1682 births 1752 deaths 18th-century Italian Roman Catholic bishops 18th-century venerated Christians Beatifications by Pope John Paul II Conventual Friars Minor Franciscan theologians Franciscan beatified people Franciscan bishops 18th-century Italian Roman Catholic theologians Italian beatified people Italian Franciscans People from the Province of Isernia Venerated Catholics by Pope Pius IX