Saint Giovanni Battista de Rossi
(or John Baptist de Rossi)
“Apostle of the Abandoned”
(1698 – 1764)

Saint’s Life Story

His Early Life

Giovanni (John) was born on February 22, 1698, in Voltaggio, Piedmont, Italy. He was the last of four children to Carlo and Francesca Anfosi de’ Rossi, who were poor but pious. At a young age, he was taken by a wealthy noble couple to Genoa, where he received his education while working as a page. It was during his time in Genoa that he encountered Capuchin friars who recognized his potential and assisted him in continuing his studies in Rome. In 1710, his father died suddenly and his mother pleaded for his return home, but Giovanni continued his studies.

After three years, hearing of his virtues, John’s cousin, Lorenzo Rossi, Canon of Santa Maria in Cosmedin, invited him to join him in Rome. So, at the age of 13, Giovanni began studying at the Roman College under the Jesuits. He became a member of the Sodality of the Blessed Virgin and the Ristretto of the Twelve Apostles, demonstrating his devotion to the faith from an early age. However, he also had to cope with the challenges of being epileptic, which affected his health throughout his life. Despite his health struggles, Giovanni continued his education and studied philosophy and theology under the Dominicans at the Dominican College of Saint Thomas.

Ordained Priest

At the age of 23, on March 3, 1721, Giovanni was ordained a priest and he celebrated his first Mass in the Roman College. He had visited hospitals as a student, and now he focused his attention upon them. He concentrated especially on the Hospice of St. Galla, an overnight shelter for paupers that had been founded by Pope Celestine III. Giovanni also helped start a nearby hospice for homeless women, which he placed under the protection of Saint Aloysius Gonzaga – one of his favorite saints.

Giovanni dedicated himself to serving the marginalized and needy. He played a key role in establishing a hospice for homeless women near Saint Galla’s hospice in Rome. Taking on the role of a missioner and catechist, Giovanni reached out to teamsters, farmers, herdsmen, the homeless, the sick, beggars, prostitutes, and prisoners in the Campagna region.

He faced challenges in his ministry due to the fear that his seizures could occur while hearing confessions. However, at the urging of the bishop of Civitá Castellana, he accepted hearing confessions as part of his vocation. Despite his physical struggles, he became a sought-after confessor in Rome, believing that guiding others to heaven through the confessional was the shortest road to salvation.

Canon

Later, his cousin obtained for Giovanni the position of assistant priest at Santa Maria in Cosmedin at the foot of the Aventine. The church had not been well-attended, but John now drew throngs of penitents of all classes to his confessional. He was so sought after as a confessor that he was released from his choir obligation. When his cousin died in 1736, the canonry was given to John, who used the compensation from the office to buy the church an organ and to pay an organist. He chose to live in an attic, giving the house that had been his legacy from his cousin to the chapter.

Giovanni worked tirelessly, spending many hours a day hearing confessions, particularly those of prisoners, the poor and illiterate in the hospitals or in their homes. He preached to them five and six times a day in churches, chapels convents, hospitals, barracks, and prison cells, so that he became known as “the apostle of the abandoned”, a second Saint Philip Neri.

Pope Benedict XIV chose John to instruct prison and other state officials, including the public hangman. His preaching was in great demand. Often, he was asked to give addresses in religious houses.

His Death

His ever-frail health compelled him in 1763 to move to the Trinita dei Pellegrini, Rome, Italy. Here, Giovanni suffered a stroke that same year and received the last sacraments. He recovered enough to resume celebrating Mass. Howwever, in 1764, he had another stroke. At the age of 66, Giovanni died on May 23, 1764, in the church of Trinita dei Pellegrini, in Rome, Italy, due to his multiple strokes. He died so poor that the hospital prepared to pay for his burial. But the Church took over and he was given a triumphant funeral with numerous clergy and religious, and the Papal choir, in attendance.

Initially, his relics were buried at the main altar of the church of Santissima Trinità dei Pellegrini in Rome, but in 1965, they were translated to the Saint John Baptist Rossi parish church in Rome, Italy.

Born:                   February 22, 1698 in Voltaggio, Piedmont, Italy

Died:                   May 23, 1764 in Trinita dei Pellegrini, Rome, Italy

Beatified:           May 13, 1860 by Pope Pius IX

Canonized:        December 8, 1881 by Pope Leo XIII

Feast Day:         May 23

Patron Saint:    Voltaggio, Italy

Source:

• • St. John Baptist de Rossi, Confessor, ‘The Apostle of the Abandoned’ (catholicfire.blogspot.com)
  • CatholicSaints.Info » Saint Giovanni Battista Rossi
  • Saint Giovanni Battista Rossi – Saint for a Minute: Blesseds & Saints
  • Giovanni Battista de’ Rossi – Wikipedia

Prayers

Video Link

St. John Baptist de Rossi – YouTube (Catholic Online)