S. Messa XXVII Dies Natalis Enzo Piccinini – Father Vinci

First of all, I would like to greet and thank His Excellency Monsignor Giovanni Mosciatti, Enzo’s family, the Foundation, and all of you.

As you may recall, the diocesan phase of Enzo’s Beatification and Canonization process concluded on February 22, 2025. On March 4 of the same year, we delivered the documents of the diocesan inquiry to the Dicastery for the Causes of Saints. Subsequently, on April 4, after the documents were delivered, I requested that the envelopes containing the documents of the entire process be opened.

And on June 20, 2025, after receiving notification that the envelopes had been opened—that is, that the seals affixed to the closure of the diocesan phase had been cut—I further requested that the Dicastery declare the validity of the diocesan process, if necessary.

Thus, starting on June 20, the study phase of the documents began, and on October 29, the Ordinary Congress of the Dicastery for the Causes of Saints, the weekly meeting of the Dicastery’s officials, deliberated the validity of the diocesan process. They determined that the diocesan process in the Diocese of Modena-Nonantola had been conducted correctly.

On March 4, 2026—some time had passed because the illness and death of Pope Francis, and the subsequent election of Pope Leo, had somewhat slowed the Dicastery’s work, and therefore the process had been extended—after being informed in writing of the validity—news I had already received by telephone, but had to wait for the letter—I asked the Dicastery for the Causes of Saints to appoint a rapporteur for drafting the Positio.

To date, I have not yet received any official communication, but I was informed by telephone that on May 18—that is, this very week—the Ordinary Congress of the Dicastery appointed Msgr. Maurizio Tagliaferri as the rapporteur. I have not yet been able to contact Msgr. Tagliaferri, whom I will speak to in the next few days, but we will certainly begin with him as soon as possible—after the summer, now—to study the proceedings and draft the Positio. In this regard, I will appoint an external collaborator to work with me and Msgr. Tagliaferri on this challenging step.

The timing? It’s difficult to say, because there is so much material to examine and study. If you recall, we delivered two copies of the proceedings to the Dicastery, so we must wait for the Dicastery to deliver the bound “public copy” to me before we can begin work. We hope—and pray—that next year, on this very occasion, we will at least have completed drafting the Positio. After that, a long wait will begin, until Pope Leo proclaims Enzo venerable. Everything depends on the Positio. I was telling Luca Rossi today that I am the postulator for the Cause of another doctor, Dr. Bertolotti of the Diocese of Lodi. I submitted the Positio a year ago, and they told me we might reach a conclusion between December and January 2027. The Dicastery handles Causes from all over the world—not just Italian ones—and they truly have a lot of work to do… So, once the Positio has been submitted, Enzo will join the queue: the Positio will need to be studied by the Dicastery’s historians, then by theologians, then by the cardinals; and finally, the Pope will sign the edict of venerability.

What role do we have? First and foremost, to pray: to continue praying that the work will proceed smoothly. To date, we have not encountered any obstacles, no blockages from the Dicastery. We hope that the Positio will also be written soon. And let us pray that Enzo’s heroic virtues will be increasingly known and recognized, not only in the Diocese of Modena and in Italy, but also beyond Italy’s borders. Let us entrust this process to the Lord, so that it may gradually—the times I have described—proceed toward Enzo’s beatification and canonization.

Father Walter Vinci