BRUNI, BRUNO. – Missionary in Ethiopia, who died for the faith. Born in Civitella del Tronto (Abruzzi) on 7 November 1590, he entered the Society of Jesus in Rome on 14 August 1608. After completing his studies, he set out for Ethiopia and arrived there in July 1625. Out of a desire and hope for martyrdom, he then took the name Bruno di S. Croce. He had been working successfully for ten years when, following the death of the emperor Socinio, his successor Fasiladas unleashed persecution against the Catholics. While the patriarch Mendez withdrew to Goa with eleven missionaries, B. remained in Tigré with the bishop Apollinare d'Almeida and five other fathers. On one occasion, in 1635, he fell into the hands of the soldiers; covered with wounds, he was nevertheless rescued by the faithful and withdrew under the protection of Za Mariam. When the latter’s fortress, Amba Salama, fell, Fr. B. and his companion Fr. Luigi Cardeira were hanged (12 April 1640). The process for the beatification of the martyrs, which includes Bishop d'Almeida and his six companions, has been initiated.
BRUNI, BRUNO
BIBL.: C. Beccari, Rerum Aethiopicarum Scriptores occid., Rome 1903 ff., passim (cf. the general index in vol. XV, s. v.; vols. XII–XIII contain letters of B.); E. Martire, Un martire italiano in Etiopia: il p. B. di Santa Croce, in Riv. italiana di storia delle missioni, 1 (1938), pp. 88–115.
Cite this article
“BRUNI, BRUNO.” Enciclopedia Cattolica, vol. III (1949), p. 109. Azione Romana digital edition, https://azioneromana.com/article/bruni-bruno.