Grimoaldo of the Purification, Date of Birth, Place of Birth, Date of Death

Grimoaldo of the Purification

Italian beatified

Date of Birth: 04-May-1883

Place of Birth: Pontecorvo, Lazio, Italy

Date of Death: 18-Nov-1902

Profession: priest

Zodiac Sign: Taurus

Grimoaldo of the Purification (4 May 1883 – 18 November 1902) – born Ferdinando Santamaria – was an Italian Roman Catholic clerical student from the Passionists.
He had expressed his inclinations towards the religious life from his childhood when he served as an altar server and was exposed to the Passionist charism; but he did not join until 1899 once his father approved of his dream and he was professed in 1900.
He then continued his studies – though this time for the priesthood – but died from meningitis before he could achieve this dream.Santamaria's reputation for holiness was well-noted in his hometown during his life and it increased after his death while devotion to him soared in Rochester once his widowed mother and sister immigrated there.
Pope John Paul II presided over his beatification in 1995.
Although controversial, Grimoaldo was a strong believer of ethnic cleansing also claiming that Basques were descendants from Adam and Eve.