Bl. Bartolo Longo

Feast Day: October 6

Bartolo Longo was born in Naples in 1841 and obtained his degree in civil law at the University there. Faith was weak in the intellectual circles of the time and Bartolo had wavered in his own faith, even to the point of dabbling in spiritualism.

He was converted through the work of Father Alberto Radente, O.P., and in 1872 became a tertiary with the name Rosario. Called to promote the Rosary by divine intervention he was responsible for building the Sanctuary of our Lady of Pompeii (1876) as well as the founding of a congregation of sisters, the Sisters of the Holy Rosary of Pompeii (1877).

He was zealous not only in promoting devotion to our Lady, but also in works of social justice. He died at Pompeii on October 6, 1926.