| St. Francis Caracciolo, a descendant of a princely family, was born in the father's estate in Villa Santa Maria (Chieti) October 13, 1563. Recovered from a serious illness, he decided to renounce all his possessions and titles to devote himself totally to the service of God and men. He found a new religious order to meet the needs of the Church after the Council of Trent. The Order was approved by Pope Sixtus V on 1 July 1588 under the name of the Clerics Regular Minor. Approved, he employed all his energies to its diffusion in Italy and Spain and many, attracted by his sanctity, dedicated themselves to the Lord in this new religious family that was soon consolidated with the foundation of many communities. His life is a wonderful mix of episodes due to the intervention of divine grace and a genuine charity, for which he was called, the father of the poor, the preacher of God's love, the man of bronze, the hunter of souls. He distinguished above all an intense Eucharistic spirituality. The adoration before the Tabernacle was his life. Many were the miracles worked through his intercession, He was beatified by Pope Clement XIV in 1769 and consecrated by Pope Pius VII in 1807. In 1925 the bishops of Abruzzo chose St. Francis Caracciolo as the patron of Eucharistic congresses and Eucharistic whole movement of the Abruzzo region. On 26 March 1996, the recognized professional in the culinary chef of Villa Santa Maria, whose origins date back to the Caracciolo family, with the request of the Italian Federation Cooks and with the approval of the Italian Episcopal Conference, the Holy See has declared Saint Francesco Caracciolo the Patron of Chef in Italy. |