PRESS RELEASE
It was a great and moving day for Francesco Bortolini, 20 years after the miracle.
Pieve and the Diocese now pray for a new miracle and for Toniolo to be a saint
Great turnout at the day promoted by the Parish and the Beato Toniolo Institute
Intense and choral, solemn and participatory: these are the adjectives that could be used to describe the truly special day that Pieve di Soligo experienced on Sunday, June 7, promoted by the Parish of the Cathedral and the Beato Toniolo Diocesan Institute. The Paths of the Saints, under the patronage of the National Committee for the Canonization of the great Catholic sociologist and economist, buried in the Pieve Cathedral. On the exact day of the twentieth anniversary of the miraculous recovery of local entrepreneur Francesco Bortolini, attributed to the intercession of the then venerable professor from Treviso—following the man's disastrous fall from a height at a party in the hamlet of Barbisano, which held the doctors at Conegliano hospital in no hope, and following a community prayer addressed to Toniolo himself—the city of the Quartier del Piave found itself united and in solidarity in grateful remembrance of this extraordinary event, and gathered to celebrate in the best possible way the memory of this exceptional event. The very account of those days in early June 2006 was one of the key passages in the homily at the solemn Eucharistic concelebration presided over by Monsignor Giuseppe Nadal, then archpriest of Pieve di Soligo and a direct witness to those events. This was then the focus of a specific medical and theological dossier requested by the late Monsignor Massimo Magagnin, vice postulator of the cause of beatification, from the Dicastery for the Causes of Saints in the Vatican. "Over these twenty years, how many beautiful celebrations have been held in honor of Toniolo in various parts of Italy, and particularly here in Pieve di Soligo," said Monsignor Nadal, "not only to promote devotion to our Blessed, but also to foster opportunities for culture, art, and education in the social, economic, and cooperative values sown by Toniolo." Francesco Bortolini attended the Mass in the front row of the pews, visibly happy and moved by the opportunity to relive that unforgettable experience of his life—he was 33 years old at the time—along with family, friends, parishioners, and people who had come from various parts of the diocese of Vittorio Veneto, as well as from other parts of the Treviso area and, with a group, even from Codroipo (Udine). And for Giuseppe Toniolo to rise even higher to the honors of the altars with the universal cult of sanctity, as we know, a second miracle is needed: the prayer for canonization became particularly strong and heartfelt at the end of the rite, after the procession that brought the concelebrating priests - together with Monsignor Nadal, Monsignor Luigino Zago and Don Luca Soldan - the authorities and the many faithful present to the tomb of the Blessed in the nave of the Cathedral. The Bishop of Vittorio Veneto, Monsignor Riccardo Battocchio, expressed his warm greetings, appreciation, support, and encouragement at this important church event. A message was read in church by Archpriest Monsignor Zago, who concluded his message with words of praise and gratitude for all those who promoted and contributed to the success of this beautiful day of celebration, entitled "Giuseppe Toniolo: Prophet of Peace, Saint for Today." The event began on Sunday morning with a round table discussion hosted at the Oratorio Beato Toniolo at the Patronato Careni in Pieve di Soligo. The proceedings were introduced and coordinated by the scientific director of the Beato Toniolo Institute, Marco Zabotti. The opening remarks included official greetings from Monsignor Zago, Annalina Sartori, president of the IBT, Enrico Ioppo, president of the diocesan Catholic Action of Vittorio Veneto, and Giuseppe Negri, deputy mayor of the city of Pieve di Soligo. In the presence of various representatives of local and provincial organizations and associations, the Toniolo discussions woven around the speakers' table were concrete, interesting, and appreciated by all. They included Matteo Filippetto, director of the Toniolo Institute of Catholic Action in the Diocese of Treviso; Cristina Franceschi, religion teacher and president of the Pro Loco of Trebaseleghe; Silvio Pasqualetto, well-known actor and director of the Centro Teatrale Da Ponte in Vittorio Veneto; and Stefano Uliana, director of the Balbi Valier Episcopal College in Pieve di Soligo. The message expressed and shared by the four participants in the roundtable was clear: Toniolo's sanctity is effective and modern, it must be narrated, communicated, and transmitted through personal testimony and community example, it must be shaped by the educational dimension, for the benefit of the youngest, and it becomes a generative factor of good for the entire ecclesial and civil community. There was no shortage of tributes to the speakers, with books by Tonio and bottles of Conegliano Valdobbiadene Dcgo donated by the Colli del Soligo winery. At the end of the event, after the Mass, right in the outdoor spaces of the Cathedral, there were wonderful moments of encounter, conviviality, friendship, and conviviality among the participants thanks to the toast carefully prepared by the Pro Loco of Pieve di Soligo, chaired by Mauro Gai, and the local Alpine Group, led by Cavalier Albino Bertazzon.
