Servant of God "Servant of God" is a title used in the Catholic Church to indicate that an individual is on the first step toward possible canonization as a saint. Terminology The expression "servant of God" appears nine times in the Bible, the first five in th ...

Candido Amantini (January 31, 1914 – September 22, 1992), was an Italian Roman Catholic

Passionist The Passionists, officially named Congregation of the Passion of Jesus Christ (), abbreviated CP, is a Catholic clerical religious congregation of Pontifical Right for men, founded by Paul of the Cross in 1720 with a special emphasis on and d ...

priest, Rev Fr Candido of the Immaculate, C.P., a Master

Exorcist In some religions, an exorcist (from the Greek „ἐξορκιστής“) is a person who is believed to be able to cast out the devil or performs the ridding of demons or other supernatural beings who are alleged to have possessed a person, ...

, spiritual director and

confessor Confessor is a title used within Christianity in several ways. Confessor of the Faith Its oldest use is to indicate a saint who has suffered persecution and torture for the faith but not to the point of death.Church of the Holy Staircase, he often saw 60 to 80 people per day. He also taught Sacred Scripture and Moral Theology. He wrote a book entitled ''Il Mistero di Maria'', about the

Virgin Mary Mary; arc, ܡܪܝܡ, translit=Mariam; ar, مريم, translit=Maryam; grc, Μαρία, translit=María; la, Maria; cop, Ⲙⲁⲣⲓⲁ, translit=Maria was a first-century Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Joseph and the mother o ...

Personal life

Candido Amantini was born Eraldo Ulisse Mauro Amantini in Bagnolo di Santa Fiora,

Province of Grosseto The province of Grosseto ( it, links=no, provincia di Grosseto) is a province in the Tuscany region of Italy. Its capital is the city of Grosseto. As of 2013 the province had a total population of 225,098 people. Geography The Province of Gros ...

, Tuscany, the second of four children born to Giovanni Battista Amantini and Diolinda Fratini Amantini. He was baptized 8 days after his birth, on February 7, 1914. He was confirmed on September 8, 1920 by Bishop Joseph Angelucci, Bishop of Città della Pieve. At age 12, he entered the

Minor Seminary in Rome (Nettuno) on October 26, 1926. At the age of 15, on October 9, 1929, he entered the Passionist Novitiate at the Retreat of St Joseph on Mount Argentario. On October 23, he received the religious habit and was given the name Candido of the Immaculate. On October 24, 1930, he took temporary vows as a Passionist. He was transferred to Tavernuzze, near Florence, where he completed Lyceum in 1936. Then he went to Vinchiana – Ponte a Moriano (Lucca), to complete his studies in philosophy and theology. On January 31, 1936, Amantini took his perpetual vows as a Passionist. Also in 1936, he was transferred to the Church of the Holy Staircase (La Scala Santa) in Rome, to study for his licentiate in theology at the Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas, ''Angelicum''. After a long illness, Amantini died at night on the Feast of Saint Candido, his patron. He was buried in Rome at the Verano Cemetery. The Roman Catholic Church has named him a

. His remains were transferred to the Church of the Holy Staircase on March 21, 2012, and his cause for beatification is under investigation by the Congregation for the Causes of Saints.

Ministry

He was ordained a priest at age 24 in Rome on March 13, 1937. Amantini obtained a licentiate in Sacred Scripture at the

Pontifical Biblical Institute The Pontifical Biblical Institute (also known as Biblicum) is a research and postgraduate teaching institution specialised in biblical and ancient Near Eastern studies. It is an institution of the Holy See entrusted to the Society of Jesus. His ...

in Rome in 1941. He had a capacity for languages and learned Greek, Hebrew, German and Sanskrit. From 1941 to 1945, he taught Hebrew and Sacred Scripture in Vinchiano (Lucca) and Vetralla (Viterbo). From 1945 to 1947 he returned to Rome, to instruct seminarians. He taught international students of the Passionist Order from 1947-1960, at the monastery of St John and Paul in Rome. Amantini studied exorcism with Fr. Alessandro Coletti, C.P., exorcist of the Diocese of Arezzo and performed his first exorcisms under his guidance. Amantini also had contact with St Padre Pio of Pietrelcina.

Padre Pio Francesco Forgione, OFM Cap., better known as Padre Pio and as Saint Pius of Pietrelcina ( it, Pio da Pietrelcina; 25 May 188723 September 1968), was an Italian Franciscan Capuchin friar, priest, stigmatist, and mystic. He is venerated as a s ...

said of him: "Father Candido is a priest according to God's heart." From 1961 until his death in 1992, Amantini practiced exorcism full-time at the Church of the Holy Staircase in Rome.

References

* Amantini, C. (1987). Il mistero di Maria (The Mystery of Mary). Frigento (AV) (2 ed.) * Anonymous (2012). Servo di Dio Candido Amantini dell’Immacolata -Eraldo Amantini- Sacerdote Passionista (Servant of God Candido Amantini – Eraldo Amantini- Passionist Priest). http://www.santiebeati.it/dettaglio/95422 * Amorth, G. (2000). An Exorcist: More Stories, ' Ignatius Press. * Amorth, G. (2002) L'esorcista della Scala Santa: Padre Candido Amantini (The Exorcist of the Church of the Holy Staircase: Fr. Candido Amantini). Il Crocifisso, Roma. * Pagliaro, M.C. (2009). Il Pastore delle valli oscure. L’esorcista, P. Candido Amantini. (The Shepherd of Dark Valleys: The Exorcist Fr. Candido Amantini). La Stella del Mare, Nettuno. {{DEFAULTSORT:Amantini, Candido 1914 births 1992 deaths People from Santa Fiora Catholic exorcists Passionists Italian Servants of God Pontifical Biblical Institute alumni 20th-century Italian Roman Catholic priests Italian exorcists Pontifical University of Saint Thomas Aquinas alumni