Francesco Mottola

After his ordination, Father Francesco Mottola began a pastoral ministry of great intensity, characterized by constant attention to the most destitute, whom he called in the Calabrian dialect "i nuju du mundu" (the "people of nothing" or the outcasts of the world). He taught literary subjects and theology at the seminary of Tropea, where he served as rector from 1929 to 1942. In 1931, he was appointed penitentiary canon of the Cathedral of Tropea.

Very active in the cultural and social spheres, he founded and directed the "Francesco Acri" cultural circle as well as the journals Parva Favilla (founded in 1930) and Cor Cordium. He was also significantly involved in Catholic Action, particularly with the female youth.

In order to structure his charitable and contemplative work, he founded in 1930, with the Servant of God Irma Scrugli, the Family of the Oblates of the Sacred Heart. This secular institute has the mission of living the evangelical counsels in the heart of the world while dedicating itself to the service of the poor, the sick, and the disabled through the creation of "Houses of Charity" (Case della Carità) in Tropea, Vibo Valentia, and Rome. In 1935, he also organized groups of priests and laypeople, called the "Carthusians of the road" (certosini della strada), combining a life of intense prayer with an active apostolate among the most marginalized.

In 1942, at the age of 41, Father Francesco was struck by a severe paralysis that almost completely deprived him of the use of speech and severely limited his movements. Far from becoming discouraged, he accepted this trial with profound serenity, offering himself as a voluntary victim in union with the sufferings of Christ. He continued to spiritually guide his foundations through his silence, his prayer, and his writings until his death, which occurred on June 29, 1969, in Tropea. He is buried in the Co-cathedral of Maria Santissima di Romania in Tropea.

The reputation for holiness of Father Francesco Mottola spread rapidly after his death. The cause for beatification was officially opened at the diocesan level on February 11, 1982. After the closure of the diocesan inquiry in 1988, the file was transmitted to Rome. The 17th of December 2007, Pope Benedict XVI recognized the heroic nature of his virtues and declared him venerable.

The path to beatification was realized with the recognition of a miracle attributed to his intercession. This concerns the scientifically inexplicable healing, which occurred in May 2010 in Tropea, of a young seminarian (who later became a priest) suffering from a serious dysfunction of the detrusor and sphincter muscle with severe urinary retention (vesico-sphincteric dyssynergia). After seeing Don Francesco in a dream, the patient awoke totally and permanently healed. The decree recognizing this miracle was promulgated on October 2, 2019, by Pope Francis. Initially scheduled for May 2020, the beatification ceremony was postponed due to the Covid-19 pandemic. It was finally celebrated on October 10, 2021, in the Co-Cathedral of Maria Santissima di Romania in Tropea, presided over by Cardinal Marcello Semeraro, Prefect of the Dicastery for the Causes of Saints, representing Pope Francis.

The spirituality of Father Francesco Mottola rests on the concept of "oblation," that is, the total and unreserved gift of oneself to the Heart of Jesus and to one's brothers, finding its source and summit in the Eucharist. He wrote in his rule of life: "The master path of my spiritual life shall be the abandonment, complete and absolute, to the Heart of Jesus."

Nicknamed the "pearl of the Calabrian clergy" or the "eagle capable of flying to the spiritual heights," he knew how to reconcile in an admirable way the deepest contemplation and the most concrete charitable action. His legacy is perpetuated today through the Secular Institute of the Oblates of the Sacred Heart (recognized under diocesan right on December 25, 1968, by Bishop Vincenzo De Chiara) and the Association of Oblate Priests, as well as by the numerous Houses of Charity that continue to welcome the poorest in Italy and abroad.