Leonardo Murialdo, CSI (26 October 1828 – 30 March 1900) was an
Italian Catholic
The Italian Catholic Church, or Catholic Church in Italy, is part of the worldwide Catholic Church in communion with the Pope in Rome, under the Conference of Italian Bishops. The pope serves also as Primate of Italy and Bishop of Rome. In add ...
priest and the co-founder of the Congregation of Saint Joseph - also known as the Murialdines (which he founded alongside
Eugenio Reffo).
Murialdo's call to the priesthood did not manifest until late in his education in
Savona
Savona (; ) is a seaport and (municipality) in the west part of the northern Italian region of Liguria, and the capital of the Province of Savona. Facing the Ligurian Sea, Savona is the main center of the Riviera di Ponente (the western se ...
; he pursued his ecclesial studies and 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 ...
as such in 1851 before dedicating himself to social work alongside the poor and with adolescent men.
This put him into contact with other priests of the era such as
Giovanni Bosco
John Melchior Bosco, SDB (; ; 16 August 181531 January 1888), popularly known as Don Bosco or Dom Bosco ( IPA: ), was an Italian Catholic priest, educator and writer. While working in Turin, where the population suffered many of the ill eff ...
and
Giuseppe Cafasso
Joseph Cafasso (; 15 January 1811 – 23 June 1860) was an Italian Catholic priest who was a significant social reformer in Turin. He was one of the so-called "Social Saints" who emerged during that particular era. He is known as the "Prie ...
who held Murialdo in great esteem.
His zeal for social concern saw his frequent calls for an end to worker exploitation and the granting of further rights to workers in factories.
Murialdo died in the
odour of holiness in 1900 and had a reputation for deep personal holiness. This became more prevalent in northern Italian cities where Murialdo and his religious order worked. The cause for his canonization opened under
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 with
Pope John XXIII
Pope John 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 on 3 June 1963. He is the most recent pope to take ...
later confirming his
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 naming Murialdo as Venerable in 1961.
Pope Paul VI
Pope Paul VI (born Giovanni Battista Enrico Antonio Maria Montini; 26 September 18976 August 1978) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 21 June 1963 until his death on 6 August 1978. Succeeding John XXII ...
beatified Murialdo in late 1963 and later canonized him just under a decade later in 1970.
[
]
Life
Education
Leonardo Murialdo was born on 26 October 1828 in Turin
Turin ( , ; ; , then ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital from 1861 to 1865. The city is main ...
as the seventh of nine children to the upper middle-class
In sociology, the upper middle class is the social group constituted by higher status members of the middle class. This is in contrast to the term ''lower middle class'', which is used for the group at the opposite end of the middle-class strat ...
Leonardo Franchino Murialdo (1776 or 1777-15.06.1833) and Teresa Rho (c. 1795-9.07.1849).[ His father - a ]stockbroker
A stockbroker is an individual or company that buys and sells stocks and other investments for a financial market participant in return for a commission, markup, or fee. In most countries they are regulated as a broker or broker-dealer and ...
- died in 1833 during his childhood. His nickname as a child was "Nadino". Before him, six sisters were born and after him, his brother and sister; his siblings were (in order):
Elder -
* Olimpia
* Aurelia
* Dionisia
* Emilia
* Clementine (died in her childhood)
* Domitillia
Younger -
* Ernesto
* Delfina (1830-???)
Murialdo received his baptism
Baptism (from ) is a Christians, Christian sacrament of initiation almost invariably with the use of water. It may be performed by aspersion, sprinkling or affusion, pouring water on the head, or by immersion baptism, immersing in water eit ...
on 27 October in the San Dalmazzo parish church.[
In 1836, both he and his brother Ernesto were sent to the ]Piarist
The Piarists (), officially named the Order of Poor Clerics Regular of the Mother of God of the Pious Schools (), abbreviated SchP, is a religious order of clerics regular of the Catholic Church founded in 1617 by Spanish priest Joseph Calasanz ...
boarding school (Scolopian College) in Savona
Savona (; ) is a seaport and (municipality) in the west part of the northern Italian region of Liguria, and the capital of the Province of Savona. Facing the Ligurian Sea, Savona is the main center of the Riviera di Ponente (the western se ...
which he attended until 1843; the pair arrived via coach on 27 October in the evening after having departed Turin on 25 October.[ His initial education there lasted until 1838 while he began his high school education there from 1838 until 1843. He studied the humanities and grammar and two of his educators were the priests Atanasio Canata and Giovanni Solari.][ But he felt a deep personal crisis from 1842 to 1843 due to his fellow pupils' poor behaviour and tendencies. He and his brother returned to Turin in September 1843 where he made his first Confession to the ]abbot
Abbot is an ecclesiastical title given to the head of an independent monastery for men in various Western Christian traditions. The name is derived from ''abba'', the Aramaic form of the Hebrew ''ab'', and means "father". The female equivale ...
Pullini. On 3 November 1843, he returned to Savona to begin a philosophical course but also chose ancient historical sciences to avoid bad companions that had forced his earlier departure from the school.[ In spring 1844 he listened to the Capuchin friar Vincenzo Oliva give a ]Lent
Lent (, 'Fortieth') is the solemn Christianity, Christian religious moveable feast#Lent, observance in the liturgical year in preparation for Easter. It echoes the 40 days Jesus spent fasting in the desert and enduring Temptation of Christ, t ...
en sermon about Hell which had a profound impact on Murialdo to the point where he decided to consecrate himself to God
In monotheistic belief systems, God is usually viewed as the supreme being, creator, and principal object of faith. In polytheistic belief systems, a god is "a spirit or being believed to have created, or for controlling some part of the un ...
.[ He decided he wanted to become a Capuchin in the spirit of detachment though the ]canon
Canon or Canons may refer to:
Arts and entertainment
* Canon (fiction), the material accepted as officially written by an author or an ascribed author
* Literary canon, an accepted body of works considered as high culture
** Western canon, th ...
Lorenzo Renaldi - a close friend - dissuaded Murialdo and suggested he just become a diocesan priest instead.
Murialdo's confessor during his time in Savona was Marcantonio Durando; Durando would be the one leading him in a spiritual retreat in preparation for his ordination
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 ...
.[ He completed his philosophical course (which he commenced in 1843) on 6 November 1845 and was then vested in the ]cassock
The cassock, or soutane, is a Christian clerical clothing, clerical coat used by the clergy and Consecrated life, male religious of the Oriental Orthodox Churches, Eastern Orthodox Church and the Catholic Church, in addition to some clergy in ...
for the first time after the abbot Pullini blessed the cassock in the Santa Chiara church once Murialdo began his ecclesial studies. Murialdo later wrote that "he never had a thought" about becoming a priest.[ Upon his return to Turin he began his ecclesial studies in 1845 at the college (as an external cleric student) there.
He never believed he would become a priest and it was believed that his brother Ernesto would do so. In his childhood, he wanted to pursue a career in the armed forces while in Savona entertaining notions of learning civil law. During his philosophical course, he set himself on becoming an ]engineer
Engineers, as practitioners of engineering, are professionals who Invention, invent, design, build, maintain and test machines, complex systems, structures, gadgets and materials. They aim to fulfill functional objectives and requirements while ...
. He began a theological course in Turin from 1845 to 1850 as an external clerical student and his two tutors during this time were the theologians Augusto Berta and Pietro Baricco.[ His academic course ended on 8 May 1850 and he received excellent results.
]
Priesthood
He received his ordination to the priesthood on 20 September 1851 in the Church of the Visitation from Monsignor
Monsignor (; ) is a form of address or title for certain members of the clergy in the Catholic Church. Monsignor is the apocopic form of the Italian ''monsignore'', meaning "my lord". "Monsignor" can be abbreviated as Mons.... or Msgr. In some ...
Giovanni Domenico Ceretti; the latter also made Murialdo a subdeacon (21 September 1850) and a deacon
A deacon is a member of the diaconate, an office in Christian churches that is generally associated with service of some kind, but which varies among theological and denominational traditions.
Major Christian denominations, such as the Cathol ...
(5 April 1851). He celebrated his first Mass at San Dalmazzo church with abbot Maximo Pullini and canon Lorenzo Renaldi co-celebrating alongside him.[ Murialdo's first focus after his ordination was to work in the poor Vanchiglia neighbourhood close to the Oratorio dell'Angelo Custode which his cousin Roberto Murialdo managed. It was one of the first oratories in Turin to minister to poor and abandoned children on the fringes of living.][ From 1857 until 1865 he was - at the request of John Bosco, the director for the Oratorio di San Luigi. Murialdo conferred and collaborated with Don Bosco as well as ]Joseph Cafasso
Joseph Cafasso (; 15 January 1811 – 23 June 1860) was an Italian Catholic priest who was a significant social reformer in Turin. He was one of the so-called "Social Saints" who emerged during that particular era. He is known as the "Pri ...
.[
On 28 September 1865, he left Turin and went to the Saint-Sulpice church in ]Paris
Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...
to further his theological studies in moral matters and to further himself in canon law
Canon law (from , , a 'straight measuring rod, ruler') is a set of ordinances and regulations made by ecclesiastical jurisdiction, ecclesiastical authority (church leadership) for the government of a Christian organization or church and its membe ...
.[ It was during this time that he attended a conference of the ]Vincentians Vincentian can refer to: People
*A citizen of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
*A person from Saint Vincent (island), the largest island in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
*A member of one of the orders or societies in the Vincentian Family, both ...
and later visited London
London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
. In Paris, he wanted to become a Sulpician
The Society of Priests of Saint-Sulpice (; PSS), also known as the Sulpicians, is a society of apostolic life of Pontifical Right for men, named after the Church of Saint-Sulpice, Paris, where it was founded. The members of the Society add the ...
but the superior Henri Icard dissuaded him from this.[ Murialdo returned to Turin in October 1866 and was put in charge of the Artigianelli Boarding School where adolescent men were educated and taught a trade. In 1870 he became the director of the Oratorio di San Martino. In 1871 he organized the Union of Catholic Workers on behalf of the women and other people who worked in factories. In 1871 he also was among the promoters of the popular Catholic libraries. In 1858 he met ]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 ...
in a private audience after Bosco wanted Murialdo to go with him to meet the pontiff.[
In 1873 he established the Congregation of Saint Joseph in honour of ]Saint Joseph
According to the canonical Gospels, Joseph (; ) was a 1st-century Jewish man of Nazareth who was married to Mary, the mother of Jesus, and was the legal father of Jesus.
Joseph is venerated as Saint Joseph in the Catholic Church, Eastern O ...
as a model for labourers
A laborer ( or labourer) is a person who works in manual labor typed within the construction industry. There is a generic factory laborer which is defined separately as a factory worker. Laborers are in a working class of wage-earners in which ...
and did this with Eugenio Reffo as his collaborator in this venture.[ He conferred with Father Icard and the theologian William Blengio to discuss his dream while also conferring with the ]Bishop of Alba
The Diocese of Alba Pompeia or Alba Pompea () is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Catholic Church in Italy. Its territory comprises eighty towns in the civil Province of Cuneo and two in the Province of Asti.
The Diocese ...
Eugenio Roberto Galletti and the Archbishop of Turin
The Archdiocese of Turin () is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory of the Catholic Church in Italy. Alessandro Riccardi di Netro as well as his successor Lorenzo Gastaldi. The aim was to support apprentices and people in trades. He further founded an agricultural school in addition to a centre for delinquents. In 1876 he founded the Association of the Good Press to improve Italian journalism while - alongside Pio Paolo Perazzo - founded the newspaper ''The Voice of the Worker'' which became the diocesan paper known as ''The Voice of the People''.
Murialdo contracted a grave illness in 1877 but his friend Don Bosco said that he would live for much longer and would not die from his illness. In 1878 he founded an agricultural centre in Rivoli and later in 1892 - in the spirit of Pope Leo XIII's ''Rerum Novarum
''Rerum novarum'', or ''Rights and Duties of Capital and Labor'', is an encyclical issued by Pope Leo XIII on 15 May 1891. It is an open letter, passed to all Catholic patriarchs, primates, archbishops, and bishops, which addressed the condi ...
'' - wrote to the local council to denounce the exploitation of workers. He also presented a reform project including schooling until age fourteen and the abolition of night work.[ His last surviving siblings Aurelia and Ernesto both died in 1890 causing Murialdo great grief since all his friends and relatives were deceased at this stage.][
]
Declining health and death
In 1885 he suffered serious bronchitis
Bronchitis is inflammation of the bronchi (large and medium-sized airways) in the lungs that causes coughing. Bronchitis usually begins as an infection in the nose, ears, throat, or sinuses. The infection then makes its way down to the bronchi. ...
that lasted from 1 January until 17 February; Murialdo believed he would die during this time due to the seriousness of his illness. Don Bosco visited him and blessed him.[
Murialdo died on 30 March 1900 in Turin due to ]pneumonia
Pneumonia is an Inflammation, inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as Pulmonary alveolus, alveoli. Symptoms typically include some combination of Cough#Classification, productive or dry cough, ches ...
; his final words were: "I'm waiting".[ His remains were interred after his funeral but later transferred to the Santa Barbara church in Turin.][
]
Sainthood
The formal cause of canonization started under 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 ...
on 23 November 1921 and conferred on him the title of 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 ...
. The diocesan process for investigating Murialdo's life and reputation for holiness took place in Turin from 1910 until 1913. His writings received theological approval on 13 December 1916; 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 ...
validated the diocesan investigation on 2 March 1932. The work culminated in the declaration of his 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 ...
on 26 April 1961 when Pope John XXIII
Pope John 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 on 3 June 1963. He is the most recent pope to take ...
proclaimed him to be Venerable. Pope Paul VI
Pope Paul VI (born Giovanni Battista Enrico Antonio Maria Montini; 26 September 18976 August 1978) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 21 June 1963 until his death on 6 August 1978. Succeeding John XXII ...
beatified him on 3 November 1963 and later canonized him less than a decade later in 1970.
General Audience
On 28 April 2010 - during his General Audience - Pope Benedict XVI
Pope BenedictXVI (born Joseph Alois Ratzinger; 16 April 1927 – 31 December 2022) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 19 April 2005 until his resignation on 28 February 2013. Benedict's election as p ...
spoke about Murialdo on the occasion of the Year of Priests that the pontiff had convoked. He referred to Murialdo's "loving response to God" in doing His will as well as "his conviction of the merciful love of God". The pope continued that Murialdo possessed a keen and "serene awareness of his own limitations" from his own education to his priesthood and during his social apostolate which the pope referred to as "the tireless zeal of action".[
Benedict XVI concluded that Murialdo "abandoned himself with trust to Providence" which motivated his life and had a profound influence on his social apostolate in Turin.][
]
Namesakes
Murialdo has become the focus for several locations and organizations such as:
* The San Leonardo Murialdo parish located in Milan
Milan ( , , ; ) is a city in northern Italy, regional capital of Lombardy, the largest city in Italy by urban area and the List of cities in Italy, second-most-populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of nea ...
.
* The Instituto Leonardo Murialdo is located in Albano Lazio; the Murialdines manage it to provide an education to children.
* The Oratorio di San Leonardo Murialdo in Popesti Leordeni for adolescents.
* The San Leonardo Murialdo church on Via Salvatore Pincerle 144 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, ...
was built in 1978 and consecrated a decade later in 1988.
References
External links
Saints SQPN
Salesians of Don Bosco
Murialdo official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Murialdo, Leonardo
1828 births
1900 deaths
Canonizations by Pope Paul VI
19th-century Christian saints
19th-century Italian Roman Catholic priests
19th-century venerated Christians
Beatifications by Pope Paul VI
Deaths from pneumonia in Piedmont
Founders of Catholic religious communities
Incorrupt saints
Italian activists
Italian Roman Catholic saints
Clergy from Turin
Roman Catholic activists
Social reformers