An Italian Benedictine abbot who led monastic houses in Bologna and Lucedio in the early eleventh century.

Saint Bononio di Lucedio (died 1026) was an Italian Benedictine monk who served as abbot, first of Santo Stefano in Bologna and later of the monastery of Lucedio, until his death in 1026. He is remembered as part of the network of reform-minded Benedictine leadership active in northern Italy in this period.

Quick Facts

• Died: August 30, 1026, in Lucedio, Italy
• Role: Abbot of Santo Stefano in Bologna, later Abbot of Lucedio
• Order: Benedictines
• Venerated as: Abbot and monastic leader

Who Was Saint Bononio di Lucedio?

Bononio led the Benedictine monastery of Santo Stefano in Bologna before moving to govern the monastery of Lucedio, in Piedmont, where he died in 1026. His career across two significant Italian monastic houses reflects the mobility of capable abbots within the wider Benedictine network of this period.

Historical Setting

The early eleventh century in Italy saw ongoing efforts to reform and strengthen monastic discipline, with skilled abbots sometimes moving between houses to extend the influence of a particular reforming approach. Bononio’s transfer from Bologna to Lucedio fits this broader pattern of monastic renewal in the period before the more famous Gregorian reforms of the later eleventh century.

Why the Church Remembers Saint Bononio di Lucedio

He is remembered as an abbot whose leadership extended across two important monastic communities, part of the generation of Benedictine reformers who worked to maintain and deepen the observance of their houses in the decades before the wider reform movements of the century.

Canonization and Feast Day

Saint Bononio di Lucedio’s canonization is recorded as 1026, the same year as his death, an unusually immediate recognition for the period, reflecting the esteem in which he was evidently already held.

What Catholics Can Learn Today

Bononio’s willingness to take up leadership of a second community after already serving one well is a model of continued service, a reminder that faithful leaders are often called to give of themselves more than once in a lifetime.

A Prayer to Saint Bononio di Lucedio

Saint Bononio di Lucedio, faithful abbot of two communities, help those called to serve again and again to answer with generosity. Amen.

Sources

• Roman Martyrology
• New Advent Catholic Encyclopedia