Armida Barelli
Italian activist, editor (1882-1952)
The Vatican record
- 20 February 2021 — Miracle through their intercession approved (decree list, 2021)
Who they were
Armida Barelli was born in Milan on 1 December 1882 into a well-off family that did not bring her up in the faith; she found it at school with the Ursulines and the Holy Cross sisters of Menzingen. A Franciscan tertiary, she co-founded the secular institute of the Missionaries of the Kingship of Christ.
With Fr Agostino Gemelli she helped found the Catholic University of the Sacred Heart in Milan in 1921, and organised the annual collection that funds it. She led the women's youth of Catholic Action, and in 1946 Pius XII made her vice-president of Italian Catholic Action. She died at Marzio, near Varese, on 15 August 1952.
The miracles
A 65-year-old woman — Prato, Italy — May 1989
On 5 May 1989 a woman of 65 cycling home was hit by a lorry and suffered multiple fractures of the skull, face, chest and abdomen. Her niece began praying to Armida at once, using a holy card with a relic, and asked the family to join her; on 18 May a day of prayer was held in the chapel of the Catholic University. She recovered, and afterwards enjoyed good health.
Why that counted as sanctity
The case of a 65-year-old woman was examined by the Church's doctors and theologians and approved as a miracle on 20 February 2021, opening the way to beatification.
Connected on this site
- Pius XII Venerable“She led the women's youth of Catholic Action, and in 1946 Pius XII made her vice-president of Italian Catholic Action.” — this site's research
- Dicastery for the Causes of Saints - biography of Blessed Armida Barelli, with the miracle
- Dicastery for the Causes of Saints — promulgated decrees (causesanti.va), summarised in our own words
- Wikidata Q522500 — dates, feast day and identifiers (CC0)
- English Wikipedia — Armida Barelli (CC BY-SA)
Checked against the sources listed on 21 September 2026. Corrections welcome.