Blessed Giovanni Merlini

Life story

Giovanni Merlini was born on 28 August 1795 in Spoleto, in the Papal States, the third of thirteen children. He was ordained a priest on 19 December 1818. In 1820 he took part in a retreat led by Gaspare del Bufalo at Giano dell'Umbria; the two became close friends, and he joined the Missionaries of the Precious Blood that del Bufalo had founded in 1815. He preached missions in the Papal States and the Kingdom of Naples, especially to the poor, and helped del Bufalo build mission houses, often outside inhabited areas and reportedly without an armed escort.

After del Bufalo's death in 1837 Merlini was widely expected to succeed him but was not chosen. On 28 December 1847 he was elected third Moderator General, after serving as interim leader from August 1847, and he held the post until his death. He was accused several times of collusion with bandits and of disobedience to the Church. He was spiritual director of Maria De Mattias. In the upheavals of 1848 he advised Pius IX to extend the feast of the Precious Blood to the whole Church; on 10 August 1849 Pius IX issued the bull Redempti sumus doing so.

He died in Rome on 12 January 1873, aged 77, and was buried at Campo Verano; in March 1946 his remains were moved to Santa Maria in Trivio beside del Bufalo. Paul VI declared him Venerable on 10 May 1973. Pope Francis recognised a miracle on 23 May 2024, and Cardinal Marcello Semeraro presided at his beatification on 12 January 2025 in the Lateran basilica.

Works and witness

• Ordained in 1818 and joined del Bufalo's Missionaries of the Precious Blood
• Preached missions to the poor in the Papal States and Naples
• Third Moderator General of the congregation from 1847 to 1873
• Proposed to Pius IX in 1849 the extension of the Precious Blood feast to the whole Church
• Spiritual director of Maria De Mattias

Saints from the same country

Saint Agnes, Saint Lawrence, Saint Cecilia, Saint Sebastian

References

• Missionaries of the Precious Blood: 'Don Giovanni Merlini will be the first Blessed of the Jubilee Year', cppsmissionaries.org
• Agenzia Fides: 'Blessed Father Giovanni Merlini, the missionary who spoke to the Pope and the bandits', fides.org (news 75885)

Written by Anawim from documented history. Some details about ancient saints rest on tradition and are marked as such.