Luigi Lenzini

Luigi Lenzini (28 May 1881 – 21 July 1945) was an Italian Roman Catholic priest that served as a pastor in the Archdiocese of Modena-Nonatola. Communist partisans killed him at his parish.

Lenzini started his studies for the priesthood in 1897 before his sacerdotal ordination in 1904. He served in several parishes around the area before he moved to Rome for several months in the hopes of becoming a Redemptorist. This effort fell through due to the fact that he discerned his path was to remain as a diocesan priest rather than a religious one. He opposed fascism and communism during World War II but tried to befriend some of the partisans in his parish to get to know and understand them better. This caused some to grow frustrated with him due to his repeated condemnations of their ideologies, leading them to confront Lenzini before killing him in an abandoned field not far from his parish. He received his sacerdotal ordination on 19 March 1904 from the Archbishop of Modena Natale Bruni before celebrating his first Mass in his hometown before his family and friends. He began as a chaplain in Casinalbo and then, his first parish was at Finale Emilia where the new mayor, a socialist, prohibited the religious courses. However, unbeknownst to them, Lenzini had already met that man earlier that day, so fearing a trap, he ran to the bell tower to ring it for help. However, no one came to the church to help, and the partisans forcibly took him about a kilometer away from the parish to an open vineyard where they attacked him. His remains were found the next day showing signs of torture.

Beatification The process for his beatification opened in the Archdiocese of Modena-Nonatola on 27 October 2009. The diocesan investigation of collecting documentation to support the case spanned from 8 June 2011 until 24 November 2012. Pope Francis confirmed that Lenzini had died "in hatred of faith" (In odium fidei) in a decree issued on 27 October 2020; this recognition enabled for Lenzini to be beatified in Modena on 28 May 2022. The postulator for this cause is Francesca Consolini.