Saint Anthony Maria Zaccaria

Anthony Maria Zaccaria, CRSP (Italian: Antonio Maria Zaccaria; 1502 – 5 July 1539) was an Italian Catholic priest and early leader of the Counter-Reformation. He was the founder of the Barnabites and a promoter of devotion to the Passion of Christ and the Eucharist and of renewal of the religious life among the laity. He is venerated as a saint in the Catholic Church, which celebrates his feast day on 5 July. Anthony Zaccaria was born in the city of Cremona, Italy, in December 1502 to Lazzaro and Antonia Pescaroli Zaccaria. He was baptized the same day in Cremona Cathedral, probably by his uncle Don Tommaso Zaccaria, canon of the cathedral. When he was two, his father died. His family was of the nobility, and in order to teach him compassion for the poor, his mother made him her almoner. After attending the Episcopal School annexed to the cathedral, he studied philosophy at the University of Pavia, and, from 1520, medicine at the University of Padua. After completing studies in 1524, he returned to Cremona and practised as a physician for three years. In 1527, he started studying for the priesthood, and continued his theological studies in Bologna. On 20 February 1529 Zaccaria was ordained a priest in the Chapel of Saint Joseph in Cremona Cathedral. Having explored his calling, mainly by working in hospitals and institutions for the poor, he became spiritual advisor to Countess Ludovica Torelli of Guastalla (then the tiny County of Guastalla), and in 1530 followed her to Milan. There, he became a member of the Oratory of Eternal Wisdom, where he met Bartolomeo Ferrari and Giacomo Antonio Morigia. Their devotions mainly focused on the teachings of St Paul with emphasis on love for the Eucharist and for Christ crucified. They were soon joined by others. They gave instruction in the rudiments of the faith, gave missions in parishes in the city and elsewhere, and cared for the sick in the hospitals.