The Postulator General stresses that "this is a great achievement, the result of the work done with passion and competence by the members of the diocesan Tribunal and by those who have contributed, in particular by the Historical Commission and the vice-postulator Fr Gabriel Cruz SDB". It is a stage greeted with joy by Archbishop Salvatore Rumeo, Bishop of Noto, together with the entire diocese, the family of the Servant of God and the Salesian Family of Sicily. The Postulator General will now ask the Dicastery for the Causes of Saints to appoint a Rapporteur to guide the preparation of the "Positio super virtutibus" of the Servant of God, which will be drawn up by Dr Lodovica Maria Zanet, collaborator of the Postulation. The diocesan Inquiry was held at the Episcopal Curia in Noto (Syracuse) from 2 March 2014 to 5 May 2024.
Nino Baglieri was born in Modica on 1 May 1951. After attending elementary schools and taking up the trade of bricklayer, at seventeen, on May 6, 1968, he fell from a scaffolding 17 metres high. Urgently hospitalised, Nino realised bitterly that he had been completely paralysed. Faced with a very dramatic situation, his mother Josephine, courageously and trusting in God, made herself available to take care of him personally throughout his life. This is how Nino's path of suffering began as he went from one hospital to another, but without any improvement. Returning in 1970 to his native town, after the first days of visits from friends, ten long dark years began for Nino, without leaving the house, lonely, suffering and in much despair.
On 24 March 1978, Good Friday, at four in the afternoon, a group of people belonging to the Renewal in the Spirit prayed over him; Nino felt a transformation in himself. From that moment he accepted the Cross and said his "yes" to the Lord. He began reading the Gospel and the Bible: rediscovering the wonders of faith. By helping some neighbouring youngsters to do their homework, he learned to write with his mouth. Thus, he wrote his memoirs, letters to people of every category in various parts of the world, personalised reminders that paid homage to those who visited him. Thanks to a bar, he could dial phone numbers and get in direct contact with many sick people and his calm and convincing word comforted them.
A continuous flow of relationships began that not only brought him out of isolation, but led him to witness to the Gospel of joy and hope. From 6 May 1982 onwards, Nino celebrated the Anniversary of the Cross and, the same year, he joined the Salesian Family as a Salesian Cooperator. On 31 August 2004 he made his perpetual profession among the Volunteers with Don Bosco (CDB). On 2 March 2007, at 8 am Nino Baglieri, after a long period of suffering and trial, turned his soul towards God. After death, he was dressed in a suit and sneakers, so that, as he had said, "on my last trip to God, I will be able to run towards him".
