A study of the life of Fr. Francis Anthony Fasani shows clearly that his life was directed toward God in a singular manner from his very infancy, thanks to the Christian education received from his parents and to the workings of the grace of a religious and priestly vocation upon his soul. Born in 1681on August 6 at Lucera, southeastern Italy, Francis Anthony was the son of very poor peasants, Giuseppe Fasani and Isabella Della Monaca; but he was a bright lad, and received a good education from the Conventual Franciscans in his native town. There Giovanniello's (as he was baptised) understanding of his vocation became clearer-a vocation to which he gave himself with generous enthusiasm. He entered the Order of Friars Minor Conventual and took the names of Saints Francis and Anthony, thus expressing his fervent desire to follow their example by consecrating himself to an evangelical and apostolic life. When he was 14 he received the habit of St. Francis among the Conventuals, and in 1705 he was ordained to the priesthood. He was then sent to the Sagro Convento, adjoining the basilica in Assisi where St. Francis is buried, for the purpose of continuing his studies. Two years later he received the doctorate in theology, and he was then appointed lector of philosophy in the college conducted by the Conventuals in his home town. He was promoted successively to regent of studies, guardian, and provincial, which latter office he held from 1721 to 1723. After that he served as master of novices, and then as pastor of the church of St. Francis in Lucera. A bishopric was offered to him, but he declined it.
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From the process of beatification we learn that Francis Anthony was diligent in study, fervent in piety, prompt in his obedience to his superiors, devout in meditation, and most exact in the fulfillment of all his duties. His application to his studies, carried out with diligence and with a lively desire to assimilate the salvific value of the mysteries of faith, made him "profound in philosophy and learned in theology." The Venerable Antonio Lucci, bishop of Bovino, attests to this in the canonical hearings investigating Fasani's holiness. Bishop Lucci was a fellow student of his and imitated him in the exercise of religious virtue. At the same time, by means of an intense spiritual formation aided by enlightened spiritual masters, Francis Anthony progressed in a life of union with God, patterning himself on the Lord through religious consecration and the priestly charism. He was also mortified and given to the exercises of penance even to bloodshed. From his youth he was an “angel in the flesh, more an angel than a man.”
Among the devotions that he cherished there were especially a tender love for the Immaculate Mother of God, a childlike affection for the Infant Jesus, and fervent devotion, also night adoration, of the Holy Eucharist. Once, while he was absorbed in prayer, someone who happened to be in the church heard a voice saying: “This priest prays much for his people.”
The spiritual life of Fr. Fasani was characterized by those virtues that made him like his Seraphic Father St. Francis. In fact, it was said in Lucera: "Whoever wants to see how St. Francis looked while he was alive should come to see Padre Maestro." In imitation of St. Francis he built his religious life on the basis of a generous participation in the mysteries of Christ through the most faithful practice of the evangelical counsels, which he considered to be a radical expression of perfect charity. In his constant prayers, inflamed with seraphic love, he called out to God, saying to Him: "O Highest Love, Immense Love, Eternal Love, Infinite Love."
His fervent devotion to the Immaculate Mother of the Lord was nourished by his intense dedication to knowing ever better "who Mary is" and making her known to others, while at the same time knowing and making known the maternal role entrusted to her in the history of salvation with faith and love.
As a priest, he also became an eloquent preacher, a lover of the poor, a friend of the unfortunate. He was a missionary, a retreat-master, and a Lenten preacher. For hours he would sit in the confessional, hearing and absolving the sins of his penitents, consoling the afflicted, warning the hardened of heart. He spent much time in visiting the sick, the orphans, and the imprisoned. As a pastor he was a real father to his people.
The poor, the sick, and the imprisoned held a privileged place in his pastoral activities. Motivated by his ideal of gospel charity ("We must be charitable."), he loved to pray with the poor and for them. Every day he personally distributed to the poor the alms of his religious community and very often he gave them as well gifts and special goods gathered from benefactors. Oftentimes his prayers obtained extraordinary interventions of divine Providence for the poor. He visited and comforted the sick, exhorting them to seek reasons for hope and resignation in the goodness of God. The spiritual care of the imprisoned, an apostolate given him by the bishop of Lucera, permitted him to visit them daily and to exhort them to trust in the merciful love of God. He was given the responsibility of assisting those condemned to death in their last moments.
The witnesses at the canonical proceedings for his holiness assure us that God rewarded the apostolic zeal of Fr. Fasani with abundant fruits of conversion and a renewed Christian life among the faithful. In this way those values of the sacred ministry were totally fulfilled in the priestly life of Fr. Francis Anthony Fasani which Vatican Council II expresses in the following terms: "Priests, whether they devote themselves to prayer and adoration, to the preaching of the Word, to offering the Eucharistic Sacrifice and administering the other sacraments, or to carrying out other ministries in the service of mankind, always contribute to the increase of the glory of God and at the same time to enriching mankind with divine life" (PO, 2).
After 35 years in the priesthood and a life of penance, union with God, and intense labour the salvation of souls, God called Father Francis Anthony to Himself on November 29, 1742. On that day the people of Lucera came hurrying to the church of St. Francis, exclaiming as did the children at the death of St. Anthony of Padua, “The saint is dead! The saint is dead!” And for 200 years since then, they have continues to kneel and pray at his tomb. The cause of his beatification was introduced in Rome in 1832; in 1951 Pope Pius XII solemnly enrolled him among the blessed and Pope John Paul II canonized the saint on April 13, 1986.
The priestly life of Father Anthony Fasani is a splendid testimony to fidelity and dedication to the mission given to all priests in the Church. It is their duty-as Vatican Council II so vigorously confirms-to promote "the glory of God the Father in Christ by their ministry and their life" (PO, 2).
In exercising this evangelical mission Fr. Fasani gave himself
devotedly from the very moment of his priestly ordination, to such an extent
that a witness could assert: "He allowed himself no rest in the salvation of
souls." His pastoral ministry shows that he was involved zealously in many
fields and forms of the apostolate according to the needs of the particular
Churches in which he ministered. How do you minister to the needs of your
Church?
The ministry of preaching the word of God assumed a special role in his
apostolic life. He preached popular missions, retreats, Lenten devotions and
novenas almost constantly - at Lucera and wherever he was called. The duty which
falls to all priests "to invite all people to conversion and holiness" (PO, 4)
was carried out by Fr. Fasani through a type of preaching based on the
scriptures that was well prepared, persuasive, and had the particular purpose,
as one witness recalled, "of rooting out vices and sins and planting in their
place goodness and the exercise of virtue." How do you carry the Word of
God to others?
As a worthy ministry of "the one who uninterruptedly exercises his priestly mission for us in the Liturgy through the Spirit" (PO, 5), Fr. Fasani dedicated himself with zeal-especially the administration of the sacrament of Penance and the celebration of the Holy Eucharist. "He heard the confession of every type of person," asserted a witness, "with the greatest patience and kindness on his face". He was charitable and welcoming to all, giving as his reason the hope of being able one day to say to the Lord: "I was indulgent, I don't deny it; but it was You who taught me to be so."
The most holy Eucharist was the summit of his religious life and wholly represented the goal toward which be ordered his entire priestly ministry. In fact, he always considered the Eucharist "the source and summit of evangelization," and that the faithful were "fully incorporated into the Body of Christ through the Eucharist" (PO, 5). A fervent minister of the Eucharist, Fr. Fasani celebrated the sacrifice of the Mass with an intense ardor that lifted and nourished his spirit while at the same time it edified all who were present. In his preaching he inculcated in the faithful the love of the Eucharist, promoting even daily communion. How could you make more fervent use of the Sacraments of Penance and the Holy Eucharist to bring joy to the world?
Grant, we pray, O Lord, that Thy faithful people may ever rejoice in venerating Thy blessed servant Francis Anthony and all Thy saints and may be aided by their unceasing prayers. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.