Agostino Roscelli

The ministry of Augustine Roscelli was resolutely oriented towards the excluded. Starting in 1858, he collaborated with Father Francesco Montebruno at the work of the Artigianelli (young artisans). In 1872, he became chaplain of the Sant'Andrea prison in Genoa, where he assisted inmates, including those condemned to death. In 1874, he was appointed chaplain of the provincial orphanage; according to hagiographic sources, he baptized more than eight thousand children during his years of service. Concerned about the fate of poor young girls who came to the city looking for work and were exposed to numerous dangers, he opened sewing workshops offering moral, religious, and professional training. To perpetuate this work, he founded the Congregation of the Sisters of the Immaculate (Suore dell'Immacolata) in Genoa on October 15, 1876; on the following October 22, he gave the religious habit to the first sisters. Before the foundation, it is said that he had sought the encouragement of Pope Pius IX. The congregation is dedicated to the Christian, intellectual, and professional formation of young girls.

The spiritual figure of Augustine Roscelli is that of a priest closely combining contemplation and action. Sources describe him as a "man of God," moved by a deep interior life that translated into concrete charity toward the abandoned, prisoners, orphans, and mothers in difficulty. His personal life was marked by poverty, austerity, and humility; it is reported that he liked to present himself simply as a "poor priest." His spirituality was rooted in devotion to the Immaculate Virgin, whom he placed at the heart of his congregation, as well as in a great trust in Providence. His reputation for holiness, already widespread during his lifetime due to his discreet ministry to the most destitute, only grew after his death, attracting many faithful to invoke his intercession. The canonization process collected testimony of graces obtained through his intercession, the foundation of the ecclesial recognition of his heroic virtues.

The cause for the beatification of Augustine Roscelli led to his beatification by Pope John Paul II on May 7, 1995, a date corresponding to the anniversary of his death. The same pontiff canonized him on June 10, 2001, on the Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity, in Saint Peter's Square, during a ceremony that simultaneously raised five new saints to the honors of the altar: Luigi Scrosoppi, Agostino Roscelli, Bernardo da Corleone, Teresa Eustochio Verzeri, and Rafqa (Rebecca) Pietra Choboq Ar-Rayès. As required by ordinary procedure, both the beatification and the canonization were preceded by the recognition of a miracle attributed to his intercession, examined by the Dicastery (then Congregation) for the Causes of Saints. His liturgical feast is set for May 7, the day of his birth into heaven. The Roman Martyrology mentions him as "Saint Augustine Roscelli, priest, who founded the Congregation of the Sisters of the Immaculate Conception."

The legacy of Augustine Roscelli continues primarily through the congregation of the Sisters of the Immaculate, which he founded in Genoa in 1876. Originating from a modest sewing workshop for disadvantaged young girls, the institute expanded well beyond Liguria. Today, the Sisters of the Immaculate continue his mission in the education and training of youth as well as in hospital and charitable works, present in Italy but also in Latin America, Canada, and Romania. The spirituality he bequeathed, centered on the Immaculate Conception, humility, and service to the poorest, continues to inspire his spiritual daughters. His memory is particularly honored in Genoa, where he lived and died, as well as in his native village of Casarza Ligure. Canonized a century after his death, he remains a reference figure for charity towards the marginalized: the poor, prisoners, orphans, and abandoned mothers.