Ambrogio Grittani

The work of Father Ambrogio Grittani is inseparable from the foundation of the Pious Work and the Congregation of the Oblate Sisters of Saint Benedict Joseph Labre. In October 1941, Father Ambrogio Grittani laid the foundations of his charitable work. In 1943, supported by volunteers, he officially founded the 'Opera Pia San Benedetto Giuseppe Labre' (Pious Work of Saint Benedict Joseph Labre), named in honor of the 18th-century beggar saint and pilgrim. Its goal is to offer a daily meal, spiritual education, and shelter to the poorest and most excluded members of society. To perpetuate and serve this work, he founded the Congregation of the Oblate Sisters of Saint Benedict Joseph Labre (Suore Oblate di San Benedetto Giuseppe Labre), which received the approval of the bishops of Puglia on October 7, 1945. Father Ambrogio designed a coat of arms for the institute representing a heart pierced by three arrows, symbolizing the three pillars of their mission: service to the poor, support for elderly priests, and apostolate among the wealthy in need of conversion. In 1948, he launched the construction of the 'Casa dei Poveri' (House of the Poor) in Molfetta to offer dignified housing to the needy. Father Ambrogio did not hesitate to beg in the streets himself to finance the work and feed his protégés. The institute has developed over the decades and has extended its action beyond Italy, notably by opening the 'Don Ambrogio Grittani Hospital' in Umuahia, Nigeria, in June 2026.

The reputation for holiness of Father Ambrogio Grittani spread rapidly after his death in 1951. Nearly forty years later, on November 24, 1990, the diocesan phase of his cause for beatification and canonization was officially opened in Molfetta by the bishop at the time, Msgr. Tonino Bello (Don Tonino Bello), who had himself been a student of Father Ambrogio at the seminary. This diocesan inquiry into the life, virtues, and reputation for holiness of the Servant of God concluded on May 3, 1998. The documents were then transmitted to Rome, to the Congregation for the Causes of Saints, to be examined there with a view to the recognition of his heroic virtues.

On January 26, 2018, Pope Francis authorized the Congregation for the Causes of Saints to promulgate the decree recognizing the heroic virtues of Father Ambrogio Grittani, thereby conferring upon him the title of Venerable. The official announcement of his venerability was received with great joy by the diocesan community of Molfetta and by the Oblate Sisters. For him to be proclaimed Blessed, the official recognition of a miracle attributed to his intercession by the Holy See is required. To date, no miracle has yet been formally approved, and the cause is following its course under the direction of the postulator, Father Gianni Califano.

The spirituality of Father Ambrogio Grittani rests on an intimate union between the Eucharist and service to the poor, summarized by his formula: "My life is Jesus Eucharistic, 'Gesù nel Povero'" (Jesus in the poor). For him, Christ present in the tabernacle is the same as the one who suffers in the members of the most destitute. Nicknamed the "priest of the beggars" (prete degli accattoni), he lived a life of great austerity and profound humility, becoming a beggar himself out of love for others. His legacy continues today through the work of the Oblate Sisters of Saint Benedict Joseph Labre, who continue to accompany the poor, the sick, and the elderly in Italy and in missions abroad. In Molfetta, a "Don Grittani Memorial" including his room, his office, and his chapel was inaugurated in 2016 to allow the faithful to pray and be inspired by his ideal of life.