In a time when appreciation for the sacrament of Anointing of the Sick is waning in certain areas, it's a gift from the Holy Spirit that we are given a "martyr" of this sacrament.
There continue to rise to the surface stories of heroism during World War II, such as the life and ministry of Fr. Nicola Capelli, an Italian priest who will soon be beatified by the Catholic Church.
On September 29, 1944, Capelli rushed to help a wounded man and was quickly arrested by Nazi soldiers. After two days of cruel punishment, he was killed by machine gun fire, along with 44 other prisoners.
In the midst of the massacre, Capelli gave a final blessing for those who were dying, likely including prayers that were part of the sacrament of the Anointing of the Sick.
Who was Fr. Nicola Capelli?
Born in Nembro in Val Seriana, in the Province and Diocese of Bergamo in Italy, Nicola Capelli was drawn at an early age to the priesthood and was enrolled at the age of 12 in the Apostolic School of the Priests of the Sacred Heart, called Dehonians, of Albino.
By 1930 he professed his first vows with the Congregation of Priests of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, and took the name of Brother Martin of Maria Addolorata.
At the time he heard of the Mexican Martyrs (from the Cristero War) and greatly desired to be a missionary. He would have gone anywhere in the world if his superiors would have approved it.
However, after ordination he was sent to Rome for further study at the Pontifical Biblical Institute, the Pontifical Urban University, and the Vatican School of Paleography. He was eventually appointed a professor in Bologna to teach Sacred Scripture.
Then war broke out in Italy and the community he was in had to relocate. They moved to Burzanella in 1944, but were not able to flee from the military operations in the area. It was at this time that Fr. Capelli would freely go to administer the Anointing of the Sick to those who were dying or condemned to death.
It didn't take long for the Nazi soldiers to eventually catch him, leading to what is now called his "martyrdom."
His martyrdom is classified as odium fidei, meaning that he was killed because of the Nazi hatred of his faith and ministry. VaticanNews also states, "it is also a martyrdom ex parte victimae, since, aware of the dangers and able to return safely to Bologna with his confrères, he chose instead to remain to assist the dying of the Creda massacre and the prisoners of Pioppe di Salvaro."
