Domenico Spadafora (1450 – 21 December 1521) 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 ...

Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

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 deity, deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in parti ...

and a professed member of the

Order of Preachers The Order of Preachers (, abbreviated OP), commonly known as the Dominican Order, is a Catholic mendicant order of pontifical right that was founded in France by a Castilian priest named Dominic de Guzmán. It was approved by Pope Honorius ...

. Spadafora was a noted evangelist and attracted countless to the Dominican fold while also converting the hearts of others who led dissolute lives. He is best known for being the first superior of a church he oversaw construction of in

Monte Cerignone Monte Cerignone is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Pesaro e Urbino in the Italian region Marche, located about northwest of Ancona and about west of Pesaro. Monte Cerignone borders the following municipalities: Macerata Feltria, ...

after receiving the papal approval of

Pope Alexander VI Pope Alexander VI (, , ; born Roderic Llançol i de Borja; epithet: ''Valentinus'' ("The Valencian"); – 18 August 1503) was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 11 August 1492 until his death in 1503. Born into t ...

to commence such work. Spadaforo received beatification from

Pope Benedict XV Pope Benedict XV (; ; born Giacomo Paolo Giovanni Battista della Chiesa, ; 21 November 1854 – 22 January 1922) was head of the Catholic Church from 1914 until his death in January 1922. His pontificate was largely overshadowed by World War I a ...

in 1921 after the pontiff confirmed the late priest's 'cultus' (or popular and widespread devotion) as being enduring.

Life

Domenico Spadafora was born in 1450 in

Randazzo Basilica of Santa Maria Assunta. Randazzo () is a town and ''comune'' in the Metropolitan City of Catania, Sicily, southern Italy. It is situated at the northern foot of Mount Etna, c. northwest of Catania. It is the nearest town to the summi ...

to nobles that came from

Constantinople Constantinople (#Names of Constantinople, see other names) was a historical city located on the Bosporus that served as the capital of the Roman Empire, Roman, Byzantine Empire, Byzantine, Latin Empire, Latin, and Ottoman Empire, Ottoman empire ...

. He was born as the third of five children to the Baron of

Maletto Maletto () is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Metropolitan City of Catania in the Italian region Sicily, located about east of Palermo and about northwest of Catania. Maletto borders the following municipalities: Adrano, Belpasso, Bia ...

Giovanni Spadafora and his lower-class wife Marina. His elder brother was Giovanni while he had two sisters - one being Bartolomea - and another brother named Pietro. He studied in

Perugia Perugia ( , ; ; ) is the capital city of Umbria in central Italy, crossed by the River Tiber. The city is located about north of Rome and southeast of Florence. It covers a high hilltop and part of the valleys around the area. It has 162,467 ...

after moving there in 1477 and was later sent to

Padua Padua ( ) is a city and ''comune'' (municipality) in Veneto, northern Italy, and the capital of the province of Padua. The city lies on the banks of the river Bacchiglione, west of Venice and southeast of Vicenza, and has a population of 20 ...

where he earned his bachelor's degree on 23 June 1479. In

Venice Venice ( ; ; , formerly ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 islands that are separated by expanses of open water and by canals; portions of the city are li ...

on 7 June 1487 he was granted his master's degree in theological studies after a public dissertation alongside eleven other candidates. He joined the

at 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 ...

of Santa Zita in

Palermo Palermo ( ; ; , locally also or ) is a city in southern Italy, the capital (political), capital of both the autonomous area, autonomous region of Sicily and the Metropolitan City of Palermo, the city's surrounding metropolitan province. The ...

after returning following the dissertation when his superiors recalled him. Spadaforo 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 ...

to the priesthood in 1479. He participated at the General Chapter of the order in Venice in 1487. He was supposed to be assigned to a convent in

Messina Messina ( , ; ; ; ) is a harbour city and the capital city, capital of the Italian Metropolitan City of Messina. It is the third largest city on the island of Sicily, and the 13th largest city in Italy, with a population of 216,918 inhabitants ...

in 1487 but the Father General of the order Gioacchino Torriani decided to have him as his collaborator in

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, ...

; in 1487 he participated in the General Chapter in

Le Mans Le Mans (; ) is a Communes of France, city in Northwestern France on the Sarthe (river), Sarthe River where it meets the Huisne. Traditionally the capital of the Provinces of France, province of Maine (province), Maine, it is now the capital of ...

in the

Kingdom of France The Kingdom of France is the historiographical name or umbrella term given to various political entities of France in the Middle Ages, medieval and Early modern France, early modern period. It was one of the most powerful states in Europe from th ...

. Spadaforo became a noted preacher and evangelist and won the hearts of converts that had led dissolute lives - such an example of holiness also prompted countless others to join the Dominican fold as religious themselves. He was known for his intense devotion to the

passion Passion, the Passion or the Passions may refer to: Emotion * Passion (emotion), a very strong feeling about a person or thing * Passions (philosophy), emotional states as used in philosophical discussions * Stoic passions, various forms of emotio ...

Jesus Christ Jesus (AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ, Jesus of Nazareth, and many Names and titles of Jesus in the New Testament, other names and titles, was a 1st-century Jewish preacher and religious leader. He is the Jesus in Chris ...

. He taught theological studies in the Sicilian area. He founded the convent of Madonna delle Grazie - that housed a miraculous image of the

Madonna Madonna Louise Ciccone ( ; born August 16, 1958) is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, and actress. Referred to as the "Queen of Pop", she has been recognized for her continual reinvention and versatility in music production, ...

- in 1491 in

and served for the remainder of his life as its first superior. This came about when the faithful of the area wanted to enhance the small chapel and thus the Master General of the Dominicans sent for Spadaforo to oversee its renovation. The priest arrived there in the town on 15 September 1491 and set off on foot to Rome in 1492 to receive papal approval for this work. At this point

Pope Innocent VII Pope Innocent VII (; ; 1339 – 6 November 1406), born Cosimo de' Migliorati, was head of the Catholic Church from 17 October 1404 to his death, in November 1406. He was pope during the period of the Western Schism (1378–1417), and was opposed ...

died and

was elected in a chain of events that postponed their meeting until 22 February 1493 when papal permission was granted; he returned with the decree of approval in 1493. Construction of the church commenced in 1494 and the work concluded in 1491. The Bishop Marco Vigerio della Rovere consecrated the new church on 16 July 1498. Domenico Spadaforo died in his cell on 21 December 1521 after his health deteriorated during the previous few months. He died after the celebration of

Mass Mass is an Intrinsic and extrinsic properties, intrinsic property of a physical body, body. It was traditionally believed to be related to the physical quantity, quantity of matter in a body, until the discovery of the atom and particle physi ...

and asking the forgiveness of his brother Dominicans for his mistakes; the ailing priest also received the last sacraments and died at sunset as his fellow brothers sang the "

Salve Regina The "Salve Regina" ( , ; meaning "Hail Queen"), also known as the "Hail Holy Queen", is a Marian hymn and one of four Marian antiphons sung at different seasons within the Christian liturgical calendar of the Catholic Church. The Salve Regina ...

Exhumation

The priest's remains were exhumed in 1545 and were deemed to be incorrupt and moved once again in 1653 after the convent he was interred in was suppressed - the remains were instead taken to the Santa Maria in Recluso church. His remains were relocated on 3 October 1677. The remains were relocated once more on 4 April 2005 to the Chiesa della Santissima Trinità.

Beatification

The beatification process was initiated in April 1920 and on 12 January 1921 the members of the

Congregation of 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 ...

voted in favor of approving the local 'cultus' (or popular devotion) of the late priest without the need for following the normal canonical process. His beatification was confirmed on 14 January 1921 after

granted formal approval to the recognition of the 'cultus'. The process for subsequent sanctification was revitalized decades later when the diocesan process of canonization opened on 10 September 2006 in the Diocese of San Marino-Montefeltro when the Bishop Luigi Negri inaugurated the process. The diocesan process concluded on 14 September 2008 and 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 ...

validated the process on 17 July 2009. 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 ...

assigned to the cause - since 2006 - is Father Cristoforo M. Bialowas.

References

External links

Saints SQPN
{{DEFAULTSORT:Spadafora, Domenico 1450 births 1521 deaths 15th-century venerated Christians 15th-century Italian Roman Catholic priests 16th-century venerated Christians 16th-century Italian Roman Catholic priests Beatifications by Pope Benedict XV Dominican beatified people Italian beatified people Italian Dominicans Religious leaders from Catania Venerated Dominicans