He entered the Franciscan minor seminary at S. Biagio in Acireale in 1918, taking the name "Gabriele Maria", and the novitiate in Bronte in 1923.

[2] The future course of his life was determined in 1928 when he attended the celebrations of the 6th centenary of another Franciscan, Giovanni di Monte Corvino, who had attempted a first translation of the Bible in Beijing in the 14th century.

This had an unfortunate side-effect in that during his trip through the Japanese-occupied territories, he lost more than half of the translated text during the war events.

Allegra organized a team of Chinese Franciscan friars to work with him on the translation of the Bible and inaugurated the Studium Biblicum Franciscanum in Beijing in 1945, dedicating it to Duns Scotus.

Yet, at times his letters show the softer side of a man who missed the sound of church bells in Rome.

A rest and recovery period was recommended in Italy, but he chose to return to the Studium Biblicum in Hong Kong to work to the end.

His expertise on that topic was internationally respected and Oxford University invited him to give the 700th centenary lecture on Duns Scotus.

Although the translation of the Bible was the main focus of Allegra's work, and he has usually been viewed as primarily a Scripture scholar, he took time to help the poor and the sick, particularly the lepers.

[citation needed] Allegra wrote two books, one on the primacy of Christ, the other on the Virgin Mary's Immaculate Heart.

Allegra was declared venerable by the Holy See in 1994, and the promulgation of a decree of one miracle attributed to him, required to conclude the beatification process, was approved in 2002.

However, on the feast of the Assumption in 2012, the Roman Curia announced through the Sicilian Franciscan Holy Name Province, that Allegra would be beatified on September 29, 2012, at the Cathedral of Arcireale, Catania in Sicilia.

[11] The Blessed Gabriele M. Allegra OFM Fraternity is part of the International College of St. Anthony (CISA) in Rome, Italy.