The First Public Session of the Cause of Beatification and Canonization of Fr Gaetano Nicosia SDB took place on January 17, 2026, in the Church Our Lady of Sorrows, Ka Ho, Coloane. The session was presided over by the Bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Macao Msgr. Stephen Lee, who explained the path of the process toward the beatification of the Salesian missionary in Macau. Fr. Nicosia was a professed priest of the Salesian Society of St. John Bosco, a missionary in China, and an apostle to leprosy patients. The session was a significant step in the process, inviting those interested faithful to provide documented and truthful information or testimonies for the better understanding of Fr. Gaetano’s ‘s life and work
The Canonical Process and the Edict
Following a request by the Postulator General, Fr. Pierluigi Cameroni, SDB, on January 24, 2024, and after receiving approval to transfer jurisdiction from the Diocese of Hong Kong to the Diocese of Macao, as well as the consensus of neighboring bishops and the Nihil Obstat from the Holy See on May 21, 2025, Bishop Lee Bun Sang issued the Edict to inform the ecclesial community of the intent to open the Cause. In this Edict, the bishop invites all the faithful to share any information either supporting or opposing the reputation for holiness of the Servant of God. Copies of the Edict have also been sent to the Dioceses of Hong Kong and Catania, and to the Patriarchate of Lisbon. The Vice-Postulator of the Cause is Fr. Gabriel Cruz, SDB. On July 16, 2025, Bishop Stephen Lee Bun Sang of Macao issued the Edict announcing the opening of the Cause for the Beatification and Canonization of the Servant of God Gaetano Nicosia.
Life and Mission of Gaetano Nicosia
Fr. Nicosia was born in San Giovanni La Punta, Catania Province, on April 3, 1915. He arrived in China as a missionary in 1935 and became a Salesian of Don Bosco in 1937. He continued his formation as a Salesian and as a priest in Hong Kong and Macao, where he was ordained in 1946 in the chapel of the Seminário de São José. For 17 years, he worked in various Salesian missions serving youth and the faithful across Macao, Hong Kong, and mainland China. In 1963, he was assigned to care for patients with Hansen’s disease (leprosy) in the area of Ká-Hó, Coloane, Macao. He served them—and later also poor and abandoned children—for 47 years with unwavering love and dedication.
A Legacy of Compassion and Holiness
After a serious injury in 2010, Fr. Nicosia was moved to Hong Kong, where he was lovingly cared for by the Little Sisters of the Poor at St. Mary’s Home, until his death on November 6, 2017, at the age of 102. Reflecting the spirit of the 72nd World Leprosy Day, celebrated on January 26, which affirmed that “a sick person heals only if someone embraces them,” Fr. Gaetano Nicosia made the human person—not the disease—the heart of his mission. His work emphasized inclusion, care, and support for the sick, becoming a beacon of hope and charity for many and helping to build a more compassionate future.
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