Antonio Maria Pucci

Antonio Maria Pucci was born Eustachio Pucci on 16 April 1819 at Poggiole, a hamlet of Vernio in Tuscany, then part of the Grand Duchy of Tuscany. He came from a humble family of limited means. From childhood he was known for piety and for an attraction to the religious life. As a young man he entered the Order of the Servants of Mary, the Servites, at the convent of the Santissima Annunziata in Florence, where he took the religious name Antonio Maria. After the novitiate and studies in philosophy and theology he was ordained to the priesthood in the 1840s and soon received his assignment to the growing coastal town of Viareggio.

Viareggio became the sole theatre of his priestly life. He was appointed to the parish of Sant'Andrea and in time became both its pastor and the prior of the small Servite community attached to it. He remained in that double office for close to fifty years, until his death. The townspeople nicknamed him "il Curatino," the little curate, on account of his short stature and his simple, fatherly way of dealing with everyone. He gave particular attention to the religious instruction of children, to the visiting of the sick in their homes, and to the relief of the poor. He lived poorly himself and was readily accessible to his parishioners at all hours.

The mid-nineteenth century brought repeated outbreaks of cholera to Tuscany. During these epidemics Pucci stayed in Viareggio and personally assisted the sick and the dying, administering the sacraments and organizing practical help. He fostered among the faithful a strong devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary under the title of Our Lady of Sorrows, which is central to Servite spirituality, and he encouraged confraternities and works of mercy. His pastoral method was unspectacular: daily Mass, confessions, catechism, and constant presence among his people. Contemporary witnesses later described him as a priest of remarkable humility, patience, and perseverance in the ordinary duties of parish life.

In January 1892, after decades of such service, he fell ill. Traditional accounts state that he had gone out in cold and rain to bring Viaticum to a dying person and thereafter developed pneumonia. He died in Viareggio on 12 January 1892. A reputation for holiness had already surrounded him in life, and after his death the faithful of Viareggio and the Servite Order promoted his cause. Pope Pius XII beatified him in 1952. Pope John XXIII canonized him on 9 December 1962, grouping him with other recently recognized saints of active apostolic life. The Church keeps his feast on 12 January. He is honoured as the patron saint of Viareggio, and his body is reserved for veneration in the church of Sant'Andrea, the parish church in which he had ministered for so long.