PACIFICUS OF NOVARA, BL.

Also known as Pacific of Cerano (Ceredano), Franciscan Observant preacher; b. Ceredano, province of Novara, Italy, c. 1420; d. Sassari, Sardinia, June 4, 1482. After the death of his parents, he was educated by benedictines in his native city. In 1445 he joined the franciscan Order. He was engaged in preaching popular missions in most of the provinces of Italy (1452–71). Appointed apostolic nuncio to Sardinia, he preached the crusade, announced by sixtus iv, against Muḥammad II (1480). Shortly after, at the instance of the general chapter of the Observants in Ferrara (1481), he conducted the visitation of the Sardinian friars. In 1473 he prepared a Somma morale, a casuistic manual for confessors, known also as the Somma Pacifica; it was printed in Milan in 1479 and frequently thereafter. His cult was confirmed in 1745.

Feast: June 9; June 8 (Franciscans).

Bibliography: Acta Sanctorum June 1:406–407. l. wadding, Scriptores Ordinis Minorum (3d ed. Quaracchi-Florence 1931–) 14:190, 306, 375–376. m. cazzola, Il b. Pacifico Ramati (Novara 1882). j. h. sbaralea, Supplementum et castigatio ad scriptores trium ordinum S. Francisci a Waddingo, 2 v. (Rome 1806; new ed. in 4 v. 1906–36) 2:302. a. butler, The Lives of the Saints, ed. h. thurston and d. attwater, 4 v. (New York 1956) 2:506. e. grau, Lexikon für Theologie und Kirche, ed. j. hofer and k. rahner, 10 v. (2d, new ed. Freiburg 1957–65) 7:1333. a. l. stoppa, Il beato fra Pacifico da Cerano (Cerano 1974).

[o. j. blum]