Giuseppe Beotti

After his ordination, Father Giuseppe Beotti served as a vicar in Borgonovo Val Tidone for fifteen months, distinguishing himself by his charity toward the poor. In January 1940, he became the parish priest of Sant'Ambrogio in Sidolo, an isolated mountain village. During the Second World War and the German occupation, he transformed his rectory into a refuge for fleeing soldiers, escaped prisoners, resistance fighters, and persecuted individuals. With the help of his parishioners, he saved about a hundred Jews. In July 1944, during 'Operation Wallenstein,' he refused to flee so as not to abandon his parishioners. On July 20, 1944, German troops surrounded Sidolo. Father Giuseppe, Father Francesco Delnevo, and the seminarian Italo Subacchi were arrested along with six civilians. After an interrogation, they were sentenced to death. Father Giuseppe Beotti was executed by firing squad at 4:15 PM, dying while making the sign of the cross and clutching his breviary.

The reputation for holiness and martyrdom of Father Giuseppe Beotti spread rapidly after his death. His cause for beatification was officially introduced to demonstrate his martyrdom in odium fidei (in hatred of the faith). The diocesan process opened in Piacenza on February 9, 2002, under the impetus of Bishop Msgr. Luciano Monari. The diocesan phase concluded on November 7, 2014, under the direction of Msgr. Gianni Ambrosio. The acts were then transmitted to the Dicastery for the Causes of Saints in Rome, which issued the decree of legal validity for the diocesan inquiry on June 1, 2018.

On May 20, 2023, Pope Francis authorized the promulgation of the decree recognizing the martyrdom of Father Giuseppe Beotti, allowing for his beatification without the requirement of a miracle. The solemn ceremony of beatification was celebrated on September 30, 2023, in the Cathedral of Piacenza by Cardinal Marcello Semeraro, Prefect of the Dicastery for the Causes of Saints and papal delegate. His liturgical memorial is set for July 20, the day of his birth into Heaven.

The spirituality of Father Giuseppe Beotti is based on a profound pastoral charity and the total gift of self. By choosing to remain with his parishioners despite death threats, he embodied the figure of the Good Shepherd laying down his life for his sheep. His heroic action on behalf of the persecuted and the Jews makes him a symbol of spiritual and moral resistance against violence and antisemitism. His mortal remains, initially buried in Sidolo, now rest in the church of San Michele Arcangelo in Gragnano Trebbiense, his native town.