Francesco de Geronimo, also Francis Jerome (17 December 1642 - 11 May 1716) was an Italian Roman Catholic priest and a professed member of the Jesuits.
[1] He was an energetic pastor who dedicated himself to missions across Naples either in large locations or in rural areas where he was known for succinct and concise preaching that resonated with all people regardless of their social status.
He had to receive dimissorial letters from his archbishop (regarding studies) and a papal dispensation from Pope Alexander VII in order to be ordained under the age required.
He would have preferred to serve in the missions of the Far East but his superiors told him to abandon the idea and to concentrate on his work there in Naples where he remained for the remainder of his life.
[3] He first devoted himself to stirring up the religious enthusiasm of a congregation of workmen called the "Oratio della Missione" which had established at the professed house of the Jesuits in Naples.
He was an energetic preacher and went visiting all the environs of Naples; his voice was loud and sonorous and could be heard at a great distance due to its distinctness.
[3] In March 1715 - the start of Lent - he was giving a retreat to some students when he suddenly felt a racking fever so strong that he had to be carried out of the room to his bed.
Not long after the Jesuit died, the Naples archdiocese petitioned the Congregation for Rites to begin the sainthood process; the Nola and Benevento dioceses made similar requests.
On 2 May 1758 he was proclaimed to be Venerable after Pope Benedict XIV declared in a formal decree that the late Jesuit priest had practiced the theological and cardinal virtues in a heroic fashion.