Gennaro Maria Sarnelli

Blessed Gennaro Maria Sarnelli C.Ss.R.
Painting unveiled at the beatification.
Born	(1702-09-12)12 September 1702 Naples
Died	30 June 1744(1744-06-30) (aged 41) Naples
Venerated in	Roman Catholic Church
Beatified	12 May 1996, Saint Peter's Square, Vatican City by Pope John Paul II
Feast	30 June
Attributes	Priest's attire Crucifix

Gennaro Maria Sarnelli (12 September 1702 – 30 June 1744) was an Italian Roman Catholic priest and a professed member from the Redemptorists. Sarnelli was one of Alphonsus Maria de' Liguori's earliest companions and a prolific writer on a range of religious topics. He wanted to become a Jesuit though was dissuaded from this before working in the Hospital of the Incurables where his call to the priesthood blossomed. His apostolic zeal knew no limits: he preached missions and aided his friend Liguori in his work; he tended to the sick and helped to get girls out of prostitution despite the threats levelled against him.^[1]

Sarnelli's fame for holiness was a well-known fact during his life. His beatification cause opened in 1861 in Naples; formal introduction came in 1874 and he was named as Venerable on 2 December 1906. Pope John Paul II beatified him in mid-1996.^[2]