Cardinal Marcello Semeraro, prefect of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints, presided at the beatification of Blessed Giovanni Fornasini (1915-1944) in Bologna.

“A parish priest zealous in charity, he did not abandon his flock during the tragic period of the Second World War, but rather he defended it to the point of bloodshed,” Pope Francis said. “May his heroic witness help us to face life’s trials with fortitude.”