Rocco Giocondo Pasquale Spoletini

Father Giuseppe Spoletini dedicated the essential part of his priestly ministry and religious profession to spiritual accompaniment, the formation of young religious, and the sacrament of Reconciliation. In 1898, he was sent to the convent of Fonte Colombo (Rieti) as vicar and vice-master of novices. From 1905 to 1906, he served as master of novices in Bellegra, where he worked alongside Brother Diego Oddi (now Blessed). From 1906 to 1919, he was appointed coadjutor to the parish priest of the Roman parish of San Francesco a Ripa. He then returned to Fonte Colombo from 1919 to 1925 to serve as master of lay brothers, confessor to the novices, and catechist to the postulants. From 1925, he continued his ministry in Rome: first as sacristan and confessor at the church of the Holy Stigmata of Saint Francis (1925-1940), then at the convent of San Pietro in Montorio (1940-1944) as sacristan, confessor, and vicar. During the dark hours of the Second World War, he spared no effort to offer refuge and protect those persecuted by the Nazi and Fascist regimes. In 1944, he returned permanently to the church of San Francesco a Ripa, where he humbly performed the duties of sacristan and confessor until his death.

Nicknamed the "Confessor of Rome," Father Giuseppe Spoletini acquired an immense reputation for holiness during his lifetime. Faithful of all conditions, as well as numerous priests, bishops, and cardinals, crowded to his confessional to receive his counsel and absolution. He passed away holily on March 25, 1951, the day of the solemnity of Easter and the Annunciation, at the convent of San Francesco a Ripa in Rome. Initially buried in the friars' tomb at the Campo Verano cemetery, his remains were exhumed on May 22, 1974, due to the influx of pilgrims and the numerous graces attributed to his intercession. His mortal remains were then solemnly transferred to the Annunziata chapel of the church of San Francesco a Ripa, where they now rest. His cause for beatification was officially opened on May 20, 1965, in Rome. The diocesan informative process was closed on March 23, 1968.

On October 1, 2020, the commission of theologians of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints examined the Positio of Father Spoletini and approved it unanimously (9 votes out of 9). On October 13, 2021, during an audience granted to Cardinal Marcello Semeraro, Prefect of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints, Pope Francis authorized the promulgation of the decree recognizing the heroic nature of his virtues. Father Giuseppe Spoletini was thus declared Venerable. The official recognition of a miracle by the Holy See is now awaited to pave the way for his beatification.

The life of the Venerable Giuseppe Spoletini is a model of evangelical simplicity, humility, and Franciscan joy. His entire spirituality is summarized in his familiar motto: "Agire e fare tutto per l'amore di Dio" (To act and do everything for the love of God). Conscious of his own smallness, he considered himself a simple instrument of divine mercy. He confided the following regarding his vocation: "To me, the Lord did not give the charism of preaching, but that of the confessional; that is what I want to do. If I were with one foot in Paradise and I were told that there was a person to confess, I would go to confess them first." Today, his memory remains particularly alive in Bellegra, his hometown, which honors him regularly, as well as in Rome, where many faithful continue to seek his intercession before his tomb.