ARACRI, GREGORIO. – Capuchin, born in Staletti (Squillace) in 1749, died in Catanzaro on 23 June 1813. Under the name of Father Fedele, he soon became well known for his philosophical and mathematical knowledge, which led him, around 1777, to extreme political and social ideas, to the point of joining, like several members of the southern clergy, Freemasonry. Having entered the secular clergy after
the earthquake of 1783, in 1787 he published his study on the Elements of Natural Law, which was placed on the Index. Harshly punished for the part he played in the events of the Jacobin Republic of 1799, he spent the rest of his life teaching.
BIBL.: O. Dito, s. V. in Diz. del Risorg. Naz., II, p. 96. Paolo Dalla Torre