On May 9, 1993, Pope John Paul II famously decried the mafia culture in improvised remarks on a visit to Agrigento, Sicily, demanding those involved convert their lives or one day face God’s judgment. Benedict XVI followed suit some years later, calling organized crime “a road of death, incompatible with the Gospel.”
Pope Francis has added his own mark to this arena of church teaching this week, beatifying Rosario Angelo Livatino (1952-90), the “ragazzino” (boyish) magistrate who was assassinated by the Stidda mafia outfit on Sept. 21, 1990 at the age of 38, placing him on the path to sainthood.
Livatino was famously resolute and incorruptible in his condemnation of organized crime. His nickname comes from a 1992 novel by Nando Dalla Chiesa, titled Il Giudice Ragazzino (“The Kid Judge”).
Pope Francis sent Cardinal Marcello Semeraro, the Prefect of the Congregation of the Causes of Saints, to beatify him in the Sicilian Valley of the Temples, where John Paul II gave his speech 28 years ago. Livatino’s blood-soaked shirt was displayed as a relic, and as a graphic reminder of the perennial criminal “families” that still cast a shadow over so much of Italian life, particularly in the south.
During his recent Regina Coeli prayer, Pope Francis called Livatino “a martyr of justice and faith,” saying, “In his service to the common good, as an exemplary judge who never succumbed to corruption, he sought to judge, not to condemn but to redeem. His work placed him firmly under the protection of God. For this reason, he became a witness to the Gospel even unto a heroic death.”
Livatino is said to have marked many of his legal papers with the letters STD, the Latin Sub Tutela Dei, meaning “under the protection of God.” It is reported that he forgave his assassins as he perished.
Pope Francis wrote a preface for a recent study of Livatino’s life written by Vincenzo Bertolone, where he called mafia dons hypocritical for “the secular display of holy pictures, of sacred statues forced to disrespectful bows, of religiosity flaunted as much as it is denied.” It is speculated that the pope wants the boy judge to inspire young people to refuse to turn to crime, even in times of seeming desperation or degrading poverty.
An Italian press release called him “the first magistrate to be beatified in the history of the church.” These issues have been an ongoing concern for the pope, who continues to prioritize economic exclusion, political corruption and human trafficking during his pontificate, realities which are closely tied to organized crime. Francis had previously met with the Italian Parliamentary Commission against Mafias in 2017, where he recalled the many Italians who have paid for the fight against these networks with their lives.
He has now ordered the Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development to impanel a working group exploring potential excommunications for Mafiosi. They have set up an email address for those interested in learning more about the work: nocorruption@humandevelopment.va
Originally from Collingswood, Michael M. Canaris, Ph.D., teaches at Loyola University, Chicago.
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