Luigi Balbiano

From his ordination in May 1837, Father Luigi Balbiano was appointed vice-pastor (vicar) of the Santa Maria Maggiore parish, located in the historic Borgo Vecchio district of Avigliana. He would hold this position of vicar uninterruptedly for forty-seven years, until his death.

Shunning all personal ambition and systematically refusing to be promoted to pastor when the parish became vacant, he preferred to step aside to make room for younger priests. His spiritual and pastoral line of conduct was contained in this programmatic phrase that he often repeated: « Io non sono fatto per comandare, ma per ubbidire » (« I am not made to command, but to obey »).

Father Balbiano led a life of extreme poverty and simplicity. He dedicated himself tirelessly to the sick and the destitute, traveling long distances on foot to visit the barracks and the most isolated hamlets of the Susa Valley. He taught the catechism wherever he could: at the rectory, in public squares, along paths and roads.

He also distinguished himself as an exceptional confessor. His confessional, still preserved in the old Santa Maria Maggiore church, was constantly besieged by the faithful flocking from Avigliana and neighboring villages. To be as close as possible to his people, he preached with great success in the Piedmontese language, which would later earn him the designation as the patron of the Piedmontese language.

His charity was legendary: he gave everything he possessed to the poor, including his own clothes, his shoes, or his winter coat. It is reported that he once took off his shoes on the road to offer them to a destitute woman and returned home barefoot.

The life of Father Luigi Balbiano is marked by extraordinary events and supernatural charisms (gifts of healing, effective blessings for the sick, animals, and harvests) which earned him a solid reputation for holiness during his lifetime.

In March 1884, while seriously ill, he took to his bed out of obedience to his parish priest. He passed away serenely on Saturday, March 22, 1884, at exactly noon, a day and hour he had predicted himself. His funeral drew a massive crowd estimated at approximately 40,000 people who came from the entire region.

Initially buried in the cemetery of San Pietro d'Avigliana, his body was later transferred to the church of Santa Maria Vecchia, and now rests in a sarcophagus within the parish church of Santa Maria Nuova in Avigliana.

The cause for the beatification of Father Luigi Balbiano was initiated several decades after his death. The diocesan informative process opened in 1931 and closed in 1934. The decree on his writings was published on November 27, 1937. The cause was officially introduced in Rome on March 23, 1945, under the episcopate of Cardinal Maurilio Fossati, Archbishop of Turin. The "non cultu" decree was issued on March 8, 1946. On November 27, 1981, Pope John Paul II promulgated the decree recognizing the heroic nature of his theological and cardinal virtues, thereby officially conferring upon him the title of Venerable. For his beatification to be pronounced, the official recognition of a miracle attributed to his intercession is required by the Dicastery for the Causes of Saints.

The spirituality of Father Luigi Balbiano rests on two fundamental pillars: absolute humility and joyful obedience. Nicknamed "the priest without noise" (un prete senza rumore), he knew how to embody the holiness of daily life, far from honors and power. Although a contemporary of the great "social saints" of Turin such as Saint Joseph Cafasso, Saint John Bosco, or Saint Joseph-Benedict Cottolengo, Father Balbiano chose to remain a humble country vicar, acting in the shadows like a spiritual leaven for the populations of the Susa and Sangone valleys. Even today, his memory remains extremely alive in Volvera (his hometown) and in Avigliana (the place of his ministry). The faithful continue to make pilgrimages to his tomb and to keep his image in their homes as a model of humility and selfless service.