Blessed Gherardo Boccabadati

Like a monumental marble reliquary, the high altar guards the remains of a man of peace who was also a close friend and faithful disciple of St Francis: Blessed Gherardo Boccabadati Maletta. He was born into a noble family in Modena between the end of the 12th century and the beginning of the 13th. What a unique experience it must have been to meet the saint of Assisi in person! Gherardo, who soon became Brother Gherardo, can vouch for that. He was in fact an early Franciscan, indeed the chronicles even recall his presence alongside the great saint as he preached… to the birds. But most of Gherardo's life was spent travelling. From city to city, the tireless friar would set public squares ablaze with his disarming message of 'peace and goodness', calling for an end to the internal conflicts between Guelphs and Ghibellines. Parma, Modena, Genoa, Venice and Ferrara were just some of the communities that listened spellbound to his preaching, and wherever he went, conversions and reconciliations followed. After an inspired sermon, in 1233, the city of Parma even granted him the powers of a podestà so that he might finally put an end to the escalating feuds. He also succeeded in bringing about harmony between rival families in Modena. It was precisely to his home town that he returned at the end of his life, dying there in 1257, as a revered holy man. His body was immediately moved to the church of St Francis where it still rests today. Although the date of his beatification is unknown, there are numerous accounts of miraculous events attributed to Brother Gherardo both during his life and after his death. "Blessed are the peacemakers,' says the Gospel... and indeed peace was Gherardo Boccabadati's first and most important miracle.