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Biography

Short Description

Pacificus of San Severino was born Carlo Antonio Divini on 1 March 1653 in San Severino in the Marche, a town then belonging to the Papal States in central Italy. His father was Antonio Maria Divini and his mother Mary Antonia Bruni. Both parents died when he was only about three years of age, not long after he had received the sacrament of confirmation. Orphaned so young, he was taken in by a maternal uncle. Sources describe his childhood and adolescence as marked by hardship. He received sufficient education to prepare him for religious life and from an early age showed a strong inclination toward piety and the Franciscan ideal.

In 1670, at about the age of seventeen, he entered the Reformed Franciscans (Riformati) at the convent of Forano in the March of Ancona and received the name Pacificus. After completing his novitiate and studies he was ordained to the priesthood in 1678. For approximately two years he taught philosophy to the younger friars. He was then assigned to the apostolate of preaching and traveled through the March of Ancona. Contemporary accounts, as later summarized in the Roman process and in standard hagiographical notices, state that his preaching produced a notable impression. In 1684 he was named guardian of the convent of Santa Maria delle Grazie in San Severino. He held various responsibilities within the province, remaining a member of the Observant Reformed family of the Order of Friars Minor.

From about 1692 until his death—a span of some twenty-nine years—Pacificus suffered a painful and debilitating illness. He became lame, lost his hearing, and was in the end nearly or entirely blind. Confined largely to the convent in San Severino, he accepted these trials as a participation in the sufferings of Christ. He continued to celebrate Mass when able and spent long periods in prayer, especially before the Blessed Sacrament. Tradition among the friars attributed to him mystical graces, including contemplative ecstasy, and a number of miracles both in life and after death. He remained gentle and patient in the judgment of those who lived with him.

Pacificus died in the convent at San Severino on 24 September 1721. A local cult arose promptly. The cause for his beatification was introduced in due course; Pope Pius VI beatified him on 4 August 1786. Pope Gregory XVI canonized him on 26 May 1839. His feast day is 24 September, the anniversary of his death, and is observed in particular by the Franciscan family and in San Severino Marche. He is remembered as a priest who combined an active apostolate in his earlier years with a long, hidden life of suffering and prayer.

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