St. Leopold Mandić

Bogdan Ivan Mandić was born May 12, 1866 in a coastal town of modern-day Montenegro (then the Austrian Empire). He was the 12th child of an owner of a fishing fleet. The family was ethnically Croat and from a noble family, through over time they lost their wealth. Bogdan was a sickly and malformed child, growing to only about 4’5”. He had a clumsy walk and a stutter. But that did not stop him from pursuing his education and dreams of becoming a priest.

There were Capuchin friars serving the community, and when Bogdan was 16, he went to Italy to study and join their order. After two years, he was admitted into the novitiate and given the name Leopold. He continued his studies in Padua and Venice.

In 1890 he was ordained to the priesthood. He served in areas around northern Italy and Croatia as well as taught seminarians. In 1906 he was assigned to the friary in Padua where he spent the rest of his life. He was known as a sympathetic and compassionate confessor. He was also known for his work setting up orphanages and visiting the sick in the community.

During World War I, Father Leopold spent a year in prison for refusing to renounce his Croatian nationality. While in prison in southern Italy, he expressed the desire to return to his homeland and preach among his people, despite his deformities and other physical limitations, which included stomach ailments, arthritis, and poor eyesight.

Father Leopold died on July 30, 1942 from esophageal cancer. Before his death he said, “The church and the friary will be hit by the bombs, but not this little cell. Here God exercised so much mercy for people, it must remain as a monument to God's goodness.”

Indeed, the church and part of the friary in Padua were demolished by bombing during the war, but Father Leopold’s cell and confessional were left unharmed.
During the Year of Mercy (2015-16), at the personal request of Pope Francis, Father Leopold's remains were brought to Rome for veneration. Along with fellow Capuchin friar, St. Padre Pio, he was designated a saint-confessors to inspire people to become reconciled to the Church and to God.

Leopold Mandić dreamed of reuniting the Eastern and Western Churches. He became known as the “Apostle of Unity” and a forerunner of modern ecumenism. He is also a patron for cancer sufferers and those with physical limitations. His feast day is May 12.