Clemente Recalcati

His missionary desire was realized at the end of 1894. On November 4, he received the missionary crucifix and embarked for Brazil, arriving in São Luís, in the state of Maranhão, on December 3, 1894. Upon his arrival, he was struck by polyneuritis, which he overcame thanks to his robust constitution. He then dedicated himself to itinerant evangelization, known as "desobriga," traveling by mule through remote regions and the peripheries of the mission to visit and catechize the indigenous populations of the Amazon rainforest.

In 1900, he was appointed superior of the Carmo convent in São Luís. On March 13, 1901, the Alto Alegre mission was the scene of a tragic massacre: indigenous people attacked the agricultural colony of Saint Joseph of Providence, killing four Capuchin friars, seven Capuchin sisters of the congregation of Blessed Francesca Rubatto, and approximately 280 lay faithful. Faced with this tragedy that deeply shook the mission, Father Giampietro was appointed acting regular superior to reorganize and rebuild the community. He transferred the main headquarters of the mission to Belém.

To compensate for the absence of the murdered nuns, he attempted to obtain the dispatch of a new group of sisters from Mother Francesca Rubatto, but the negotiations were unsuccessful. He then decided to found a new local congregation. On December 18, 1904, in Belém do Pará, he founded the Congregation of the Capuchin Missionary Sisters of Saint Francis of Assisi (Irmãs Missionárias Capuchinhas) with five young catechist women who had come from Canindé.

Under his leadership, the mission experienced a new surge. He had convents built in Fortaleza and Belém, restored the Carmo church in São Luís, and multiplied social works, schools, and hospitals for the education and care of the local and indigenous populations. Exhausted by his duties and struck down by a serious illness, he died in Fortaleza on December 5, 1913, at the age of 45.

The reputation for holiness of Father Giampietro spread rapidly after his death. The diocesan process for his beatification was opened in the Archdiocese of Fortaleza on September 18, 1997, after receiving the 'nihil obstat' decree from the Congregation for the Causes of Saints on October 20, 1997. The diocesan inquiry into his life, virtues, and reputation for holiness concluded in 2004.

On May 21, 2022, Pope Francis authorized the promulgation of the decree recognizing the heroic virtues of Father Giampietro da Sesto San Giovanni (Clemente Recalcati), thereby conferring upon him the title of Venerable. The cause is currently awaiting the recognition of a miracle attributed to his intercession to pave the way for his beatification.

The spirituality of the Venerable Giampietro is marked by a total abandonment to the will of God and a deep Marian devotion. His missionary zeal was expressed through a privileged attention to the poorest and to the indigenous populations of Northeast Brazil. His legacy continues today through the Congregation of the Capuchin Missionary Sisters of Saint Francis of Assisi, who carry on his work of education, evangelization, and social assistance in Brazil, as well as in Italy, Ecuador, and Mozambique.