Maria Gargani
Italian religious
Feast: 23 May (not on the universal Roman calendar; kept in the Roman Martyrology or local calendars)
The Vatican record
- 7 July 2017 — Heroic virtue declared — title Venerable (decree list, 2017)
- 26 January 2018 — Miracle through their intercession approved (decree list, 2018)
Who they were
Maria Gargani was born in southern Italy on 23 December 1892. A teacher and a Secular Franciscan, she founded the Sisters Apostles of the Sacred Heart, taking the name Maria Crocifissa of Divine Love.
She was a close friend of Padre Pio, who wrote her 67 letters between the First World War and his death in 1968. She died in Naples on 23 May 1973.
The miracles
Michelina Formichella — Torrecuso, Benevento, Italy — 1975
A woman from Torrecuso was healed through Maria Gargani's intercession, two years after her death.
One more approved miracle is needed for canonisation.
Why that counted as sanctity
The case of Michelina Formichella was examined by the Church's doctors and theologians and approved as a miracle on 26 January 2018, opening the way to beatification. Beatification followed on 2 June 2018 by Cardinal Angelo Amato, for Pope Francis.
Connected on this site
- Padre Pio Saint“She was a close friend of Padre Pio, who wrote her 67 letters between the First World War and his death in 1968.” — this site's research
- Dicastery for the Causes of Saints - decree of 26 Jan 2018
- Wikipedia - Maria Gargani
- Dicastery for the Causes of Saints — promulgated decrees (causesanti.va), summarised in our own words
- Wikidata Q41795796 — dates, feast day and identifiers (CC0)
- English Wikipedia — Maria Gargani (CC BY-SA)
Checked against the sources listed on 21 September 2026. Corrections welcome.