BALLAINI, GIOVANNI. - Conventual theologian, born in Andria (Puglie) in the first half of the 16th century, died toward the end of the same century. He was a careful editor of the great Franciscan scholastics.
Master of Sacred Theology and regent of studies in Venice, he devoted himself to revising the Commentaries of s. Bonaventura in 4 libros Sententiarum (Venice 1573) and the Summa Theologiae of Alessandro di Hales (there 1576). He had already edited biblical writings by Giovanni Wild (there 1568) and philosophical writings by Pietro Tataret (there 1571). In 1574-78 he returned to s. Bonaventura, publishing the falsely attributed Expositio in librum Sapientiae and Compendium Theologiae. Some of his editions were held in high esteem. The edition of the Bonaventurian Commentaries was reprinted by Rocca in 1580 and in the Vatican edition of Pope Sisto V in 1588 ff.
BBL.: G. Franchini, Bibliografia di scritti, francese, Comp., Modena 1693, pp. 321-22; J. H. Sbaraka, Suppl. ad Script. Ord. Mus., II, Roma 1921, p. 33; E. d'Atenon, s. V. in DThC, II, coll. 130-50; L. Di Fonzo, Lo studio del Dott. Serafico nel Collegio di S. Bonaventura in Roma, in Misc. Franc., 40 (1940), pp. 169-70. Giovanni Odoardi