1941 - Gerolamo Lazzaroni

November 19, 1941

Dingcunji, Henan

Gerolamo Lazzaroni.

Born in an Italian village near Bergamo on September 27, 1914, Gerolamo Lazzaroni grew up with a devout Catholic mother, but his father left the family behind and emigrated to Australia to seek a fortune in the mining industry. Without their father, the Lazzaroni children’s lives were hard and tiresome. From the time he was a small boy Gerolamo helped out with small chores such as collecting potatoes, cutting grass, and gathering hay.

In 1927, aged just 14, Gerolamo left home and joined the seminary at Bergamo. He had been used to fresh mountain air and open fields, and now found himself confined to a classroom where incomprehensible things were taught in Latin, a language largely foreign to him. Many times his mind drifted off to the open spaces of home, and he considered quitting the seminary. It was only the thought of disappointing his mother that kept him there.

In 1935 Lazzaroni joined the PIME seminary at Genoa in preparation for service as a missionary overseas. In 1938 both his mother and father (who had returned from Australia) passed away. The blow in his heart was severe, yet his parents’ deaths also released him from home responsibilities, and he was now willing to go to the ends of the earth to proclaim Christ’s kingdom. Gerolamo Lazzaroni was ordained a priest at Milan on September 24, 1938. In August the following year he departed for China, where he was known for his sense of humour which constantly provided relief to his fellow language students. During this time he wrote to his sister:

“Pray that I learn this language as well as possible so that I can do much good here, where the Lord wants me to be. Every day I become more aware of how unprepared I am for the mission entrusted to me by the Lord. It is not beautiful homilies that convert souls, but rather all the daily sacrifices that Providence places before us.”[1]

After completing his studies, he finally commenced the journey to his appointed field— Hanzhong in Shaanxi Province—but the chaos caused by the Japanese war made it impossible to travel there from Henan. As each month passed, Lazzaroni grew more frustrated. He had been appointed to Shaanxi so that he could use it as a base to reach into Tibetan regions further west. While he waited for permission to proceed, Lazzaroni was assigned to work at Dingcunji, a village in Henan Province.

Lazzaroni was one of four Italian priests massacred at Dingcunji village on November 19, 1941.