Saint Pompilio Maria Pirrotti
Saint Pompilio Maria Pirrotti (Italian: San Pompilio Maria Pirrotti; born Domenico Michele Giovanni Battista Pirrotti; 29 September 1710, Montecalvo Irpino, Campania, Italy — died 15 July 1766, Campi Salentina, Apulia, Italy) was an Italian Catholic priest and a professed member of the Clerks Regular of the Pious Schools (Piarists), known as the Apostle of the Abruzzi for his tireless ministry of preaching, teaching, and the sacrament of Penance among the people of central and southern Italy. Among the first missionaries in Italy to spread devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus and to advocate frequent Communion for the laity, he exercised an apostolate remarkable for its breadth and depth. He suffered persecution from clerical opponents who accused him of being too lenient in the confessional; was suspended from hearing confessions; and was eventually expelled — unjustly — from the Kingdom of Naples by royal decree, though the expulsion order was later rescinded. He was beatified by Pope Leo XIII on 7 October 1890 and canonized by Pope Pius XI on 19 March 1934. His feast is celebrated on 15 July.[1][2][3][4]
Stored in Cargo: Saint Pompilio Maria Pirrotti
| Saint Pompilio Maria Pirrotti | |
|---|---|
| Feast Day | July 15 |
| Profession | Priest; missionary preacher; teacher; spiritual director |
| Rel. Affiliation | Catholic Church; Clerks Regular of the Pious Schools (Piarists / Scolopi) |
| Patronage | Montecalvo Irpino; Piarist Order; preachers; those unjustly accused; confessors |
| Attributes | Piarist habit; crucifix; image of the Sacred Heart |
| Birthplace | Montecalvo Irpino, Avellino, Campania, Italy |
| Death Place | Campi Salentina, Lecce, Apulia, Italy |
| Cause of Death | Sudden illness; taken ill after Mass on July 13, 1766, died July 15 |
| Primary Shrine | Santuario San Pompilio Maria Pirrotti, Campi Salentina (Lecce), Italy |
| Liturgical Class | Feast (in the Piarist Order); memorial in local calendars |
| Historic Class | Not in the General Roman Calendar of 1960 (he was beatified 1890, canonized 1934; included in the universal calendar only for the Piarists) |
Biography
Birth and early life
Domenico Michele Giovanni Battista Pirrotti was born on 29 September 1710 at Montecalvo Irpino, a small town in the province of Avellino in Campania.[1] His father, a local notary, died when Domenico was still a child, leaving the family in reduced circumstances. Despite these difficulties, Domenico showed early signs of a fervent religious life and a desire to serve the poor through education, which led him to the Piarists — the order founded by Joseph Calasanz in the seventeenth century for the free Christian education of children.[3][2]
Entry into the Piarists
On 2 February 1727, at the age of sixteen, Domenico entered the Piarist novitiate at the house of Santa Maria di Caravaggio in Naples, taking the religious name Pompilio Maria di San Nicola in honour of both a deceased brother named Pompilio and the Blessed Virgin Mary.[1][3] Unusually, he was granted a special dispensation to omit the traditional second year of novitiate; he made his solemn profession on 25 March 1728 at Brindisi.[1] After completing his theological studies he was ordained to the priesthood on 20 March 1734 by the Archbishop of Brindisi, Andrea Maddalena.[1][3]
Apostolate in the Abruzzi
Following his ordination, Pompilio Maria was assigned to the Piarist schools and churches of the Abruzzi region — the mountainous heart of central Italy. He proved to be a preacher of remarkable power, drawing large congregations who came not only for his sermons but above all to make their confessions to him. His confessional became a centre of conversion and reconciliation; he was noted for the patience and compassion with which he received penitents, never turning away even the most hardened sinners.[4][3]
In this apostolate he was among the earliest missionaries in Italy to promote two devotions that would become characteristic of modern Catholic life: devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus and the practice of frequent Communion for the laity. Both were then still controversial and far from universal; their later acceptance owed something to the example of pioneers like Pompilio Maria.[1][2] He is described by his contemporaries as a man of deep prayer, a demanding ascetic in his own life, and extraordinarily accessible and gentle to those he served.
Persecution and exile
From around 1747 Pompilio Maria became the target of sustained criticism from a faction of priests and ecclesiastical officials who accused him of being too easy with sinners who came to his confessional — a charge that in the eighteenth century could carry serious disciplinary consequences.[1] The Cardinal Archbishop of Naples, Antonio Sersale, acting on these complaints, suspended him from hearing confessions for a period.[3] Pompilio Maria accepted the suspension in a spirit of obedience, continuing his teaching and preaching ministry.
The conflict escalated when his opponents persuaded King Charles III of the Two Sicilies to sign a decree of expulsion from the Kingdom of Naples — an extraordinary measure rarely applied to a member of a religious order for internal ecclesiastical reasons.[1] Pompilio Maria departed peacefully, but popular pressure soon led to a reversal: the expulsion order was rescinded and he was permitted to return to his ministry.[4] The episode deepened his reputation for holiness and for patient endurance of injustice.
Death
On 13 July 1766, after celebrating Mass at Campi Salentina in Apulia, Pompilio Maria was suddenly taken ill and confined to bed.[1] He died two days later, on 15 July 1766, at the age of fifty-five, in the Piarist house at Campi Salentina (province of Lecce). He was buried where he died; in 1966 his remains were transferred to the sanctuary erected in his honour in Campi Salentina.[1][3]
Significant events
- Born September 29, 1710, at Montecalvo Irpino, Avellino; father died in childhood.
- Entered Piarist novitiate, Naples, February 2, 1727; religious name Pompilio Maria di San Nicola.
- Solemn profession, Brindisi, March 25, 1728.
- Ordained priest at Brindisi by Archbishop Andrea Maddalena, March 20, 1734.
- Apostolate in the Abruzzi: missionary preacher and confessor; "Apostle of the Abruzzi."
- Pioneer of Sacred Heart devotion and frequent Communion in Italy.
- Unjustly suspended from confessions; also expelled from Kingdom of Naples (expulsion later rescinded).
- Died at Campi Salentina, Apulia, July 15, 1766.
- Beatified by Pope Leo XIII, October 7, 1890.
- Canonized by Pope Pius XI, March 19, 1934.
Significant locations
Legend
Birth location: Montecalvo Irpino, Avellino, Campania, Italy
Death location: Campi Salentina, Lecce, Apulia, Italy
Notable location: Birthplace; site of the sanctuary and pilgrimage dedicated to him (Montecalvo Irpino, Avellino, Campania, Italy)
Notable location: Where he entered the Piarist novitiate (Santa Maria di Caravaggio), 2 February 1727 (Naples, Campania, Italy)
Notable location: Where he made solemn profession (25 March 1728) and was ordained priest (20 March 1734) (Brindisi, Apulia, Italy)
Notable location: Where he died (15 July 1766) and is buried; Sanctuary of San Pompilio Maria Pirrotti (Campi Salentina, Lecce, Apulia, Italy)
Notable location: Principal city of the Abruzzi where he exercised his apostolate; associated with his mission (Chieti, Abruzzo, Italy)
Dynamic content
Parishes
No parishes dedicated to Pompilio Maria Pirrotti have been added to the database yet.
Media
No media found for this saint.
Shrines
Dynamic shrines
No results
No shrines where this saint is the primary saint.
Canonization
Beatification
The cause of Pompilio Maria Pirrotti was introduced formally in the nineteenth century. Pope Leo XIII beatified him on 7 October 1890, approving miracles worked through his intercession and confirming the longstanding popular veneration in the Piarist Order and in the Diocese of Oria.[1][2]
Canonization
Pope Pius XI canonized Pompilio Maria Pirrotti on 19 March 1934, in a ceremony at Saint Peter's Basilica in Rome.[1][3] The canonization was the culmination of a cause that had gathered extensive documentation of miracles and virtue. He is venerated by the universal Church as a saint and is inscribed in the Roman Martyrology under 15 July.
Feast day
July 15 (anniversary of his death)
Veneration
Saint Pompilio Maria Pirrotti is venerated primarily at the Sanctuary of San Pompilio Maria Pirrotti in Campi Salentina (Lecce), where his relics rest, and at Montecalvo Irpino, his birthplace, where another sanctuary in his honour receives pilgrims. He is honoured by the Piarist Order as one of its canonized sons, alongside its founder Joseph Calasanz and other blessed members. He is invoked as patron of preachers, of confessors, and of those who suffer unjust accusations. In art he is represented in the black Piarist habit with a crucifix or an image of the Sacred Heart.[3][4]
Prayers
Authored
There are prayers authored by this saint in prayers list yet.
Intercessory
There are no prayers asking for this saint's intercession in prayers list yet.
External links
- Wikipedia – Pompilio Maria Pirrotti
- Vatican News – St. Pompilio M. Pirotti, Piarist
- Encyclopedia.com (NCE) – Pirrotti, Pompilius, St.
- Nobility.org – Saint Pompilio Maria Pirrotti
References
- ↑ 1.00 1.01 1.02 1.03 1.04 1.05 1.06 1.07 1.08 1.09 1.10 1.11 "Pompilio Maria Pirrotti," Wikipedia.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 "St. Pompilio M. Pirotti, Piarist," Vatican News.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 3.6 3.7 3.8 "Pirrotti, Pompilius, St.," New Catholic Encyclopedia, via Encyclopedia.com.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 "July 15 – Saint Pompilio Maria Pirrotti," Nobility.org, 2017.