On Sunday, 11 January 2026, the Feast of the Baptism of Jesus, a representation of the Eastern Sicily Delegation of the Sacred Military Constantinian Order of Saint George, at the invitation of the parish priest Father Bartolo Calderone, C.PP.S., took part in Messina, at the Parish Church of Santa Maria di Gesù Inferiore in Provinciale, in the solemn evening Eucharistic Concelebration presided over by His Excellency the Most Reverend Alfonso Vincenzo Amarante, C.SS.R., Titular Archbishop of Sorres and Rector Magnificus of the Pontifical Lateran University.

On the occasion of the first anniversary of the beatification of Father Giovanni Merlini (Spoleto, 28 August 1795 – Rome, 12 January 1873), Missionary of the Most Precious Blood, the delegation from Eastern Sicily—together with Archbishop Amarante and the parish community—welcomed and paid homage to the relics of Blessed Merlini, which had arrived in the City of the Strait the previous evening.

The Constantinian delegation was led by the Secretary General, Dr. Michele Lauro, Knight of Merit with Silver Star, accompanied by the Treasurer, Matteo Santoro, Knight of Merit with Silver Star; the Communications Officer, Antonino Lauro, Knight of Merit; the Provincial Representative for Catania and Acting Representative for the Provinces of Ragusa and Syracuse, Dr. Luigi Lauriola, Knight of Merit; and the Representative for the Province of Enna, Dr. Filippo Cuda, Knight of Merit. At the Offertory, Professor Donatella Romeo, Dame of Merit, took part together with Knights Luigi Lauriola and Filippo Cuda.

Drawing inspiration from the Gospel passage proclaimed (Matthew 3:13–17 – “When Jesus had been baptized, he saw the Spirit of God descending upon him”) and using the metaphor of pilgrimage—Jesus’ own journey from Galilee to the River Jordan to receive Baptism—Archbishop Alfonso Vincenzo Amarante, in his homily, offered an original re-reading of the grace-filled event of the Baptism of Jesus. He paralleled it with the life and extraordinary works of Blessed Giovanni Merlini, both in his priestly ministry of pastoral care and in his governance as third Moderator General of the Congregation of the Missionaries of the Most Precious Blood.

A journey of faith toward the new life that springs from the waters of Baptism, and listening to the Voice from on high that points to the beloved Son in whom God is well pleased—these, therefore, were the two fundamental actions proposed by Archbishop Amarante for walking along the one path of salvation offered to all people of good will. This path of sanctification, to which every believer is called, is illuminated by the radiant and charitable example of Blessed Giovanni Merlini, who centered his entire existence on the mystery of Christ, in whom he placed his trust and to whom he entrusted himself in his priestly vocation, listening to the voice of the Father: “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased” (cf. Mt 3:16–17).

Blessed Giovanni Merlini

Father Giovanni Merlini was born in Spoleto on 28 August 1795, the third of thirteen children of Antonia Claudi Arcangeli and Luigi Merlini, who descended from a noble family of Messina. After beginning his studies at the diocesan seminary as an external student—despite his parents’ resistance—he was ordained a priest on 19 December 1818.

In 1820, at the conclusion of a course of spiritual exercises preached by Saint Gaspar del Bufalo at the Abbey of San Felice in Giano dell’Umbria, the founding house of the Congregation of the Missionaries of the Most Precious Blood, he decided to accept the Roman preacher’s invitation to join the Congregation.

His priestly ministry was distinguished by his ability to guide with wisdom and gentleness those who turned to him, especially young people. Among those he spiritually directed was Saint Maria De Mattias, foundress of the Congregation of the Sisters Adorers of the Blood of Christ. He was also an accomplished architect, designing many houses of the Congregation. His artistic talent led him to create crucifixes for preaching, which are still preserved in mission houses today.

Like his spiritual father Saint Gaspar, he preached throughout nineteenth-century Italy. Particularly renowned was the popular mission he led in L’Aquila in 1826, during which the Missionaries of the Most Precious Blood worked to heal the tragic reality of brigandage.

In 1848, he was elected third Moderator General of the Congregation, which he governed for approximately twenty-five years in the spirit of the founder, Saint Gaspar del Bufalo. Highly esteemed by ecclesiastical authorities, he served as adviser to bishops and popes, among them Pope Pius IX, who—accepting Father Merlini’s petition—extended the Feast of the Most Precious Blood to the entire Church in 1849, fixing it on 1 July. In 1969, following the liturgical calendar reform after the Second Vatican Council, the feast was merged with the celebration of Corpus Christi. It remains, however, in the proper calendar of the Holy Land, where emphasis is placed not on the Eucharistic aspect of Christ’s Blood, but on His Passion, particularly the sweating of blood during Jesus’ prayer in Gethsemane.

Devotion to the Most Precious Blood of Our Lord Jesus Christ was a notable expression of Flemish piety in the 15th and 16th centuries, giving rise to iconic imagery of Divine Grace, such as the Fountain of Life, with blood flowing from the wounded Lamb of God or from Christ’s Sacred Wounds. This imagery—featured in numerous Flemish paintings—was partly inspired by the renewed veneration of the relic of the Most Precious Blood, known in Bruges since at least the 12th century, which led to the establishment, from the late 13th century onward, especially in Bruges, of the Procession of the Holy Blood from the chapel dedicated to it.

Father Giovanni Merlini died on 12 January 1873 in Rome, having been deliberately struck by a carriage. Before dying, he forgave the driver who, out of anticlerical hatred, had run him down. The incident occurred near the Church of Santa Maria in Trivio, then the General House of the Congregation, where his remains now rest beside those of his mentor, Saint Gaspar del Bufalo.

The beatification of Father Giovanni Merlini, the first of the Jubilee of Hope 2025, was celebrated on 12 January 2025 in the Basilica of Saint John Lateran by Cardinal Marcello Semeraro, Prefect of the Dicastery for the Causes of Saints.