Saint Nunzio Sulprizio

Nunzio Sulprizio (13 April 1817 – 5 May 1836) was an Italian Roman Catholic from Pescara who worked as an apprentice blacksmith. He suffered from poor health during his brief life and was considered to those who knew him to be a gentle and pious individual. Sulprizio was beatified in late 1963 after the recognition of two miracles (direct healings) attributed to his intercession. Pope Francis confirmed his canonization on 8 June 2018 after the confirmation of a second miracle and Sulprizio was canonized on 14 October 2018. Nunzio Sulprizio was born on 13 April 1817 to Domenico Sulprizio (who was born in Popoli) and Rosa Luciani just after Easter; he was named after his paternal grandfather Nunzio who died on 8 September 1803. His parents had married on 28 May 1816 and he himself was born during a time of great famine. He was baptized before sunset mere hours after his birth. His parents took him to the Bishop of Sulmona Francesco Tiberi on 16 May 1820 so he could receive his Confirmation in the faith. His father died on 31 July 1820 and his mother remarried in 1822 for financial support to a much older man; his little sister Domenica died just months after their father on 7 December 1820. His stepfather viewed Sulprizio with little more than harshness and contempt. The relationship between the two was nonexistent and Sulprizio bonded more with his mother and maternal grandmother. During this period he attended the school in Corvara that the priest De Fabiis managed. It was around this time he also started to attend school that a local priest ran where he learned to read and to write. In his childhood he took the time to attend Mass and come to know Jesus Christ but also to follow His example and that of the saints. His mother died on 5 March 1823 and he and was sent to live with his maternal grandmother Anna Rosaria Luciani del Rossi who was illiterate but firm in the faith. The two often took walks together and attended Mass on a regular basis.