Livorno, Italy - First Parish Named after Mother Seton

       In the old city of Livorno on the northwest coast of Italy stands the new church of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton. In fact, by special permission of Pope Paul VI the parish was established by Bishop Emilio Guano of Livorno on April 21, 1968, five years after Mother Seton's beatification. Ordinarily parishes are only named after canonized saints. Bishop Guano had announced his intention of opening the parish two years before during the Church Unity Octave. In 1966, Don Gino Franchi was appointed and remains the pastor.
Naming a parish after Mother Seton commemorates the link between the New York Setons and the Filicchi of Livorno. Commercial and personal relations between the two families predate the connections with Emmitsburg from the time of Mother Seton. When Elizabeth and William Seton went to Italy in the hope that William would recover his health, they landed in Livorno, home of Antonio and Amabilia Filicchi. It is there, in the English Cemetery that William is buried. After his death, Elizabeth and Anna-Maria were taken in by the Filicchi. It was in their home, that Elizabeth Seton first became seriously acquainted with Catholicism. The Filicchi took her to the shrine of Our Lady of Montenero and to Florence where she first went to Mass. It seems appropriate that Livorno, where the seeds of Elizabeth Seton's Catholic faith were planted, should have the first church in her honor.
Initially the parish was located in
a prefabricated building. With the help of John Cardinal Wright, who had been the Bishop of Pittsburgh, the Sisters of Charity, and the Italian government the parish purchased land. Plans were begun for a permanent church. Cardinal Wright came to Livorno in 1971 to celebrate the 150th anniversary of the death of Mother Seton. Later that same year a delegation from Livorno came to the United States. Led by Bishop Alberto Ablondi of Livorno, Father Gino Franchi, and Mario Ceccarini, a parish leader, the group visited a number of places connected with Mother Seton including Baltimore and Emmitsburg. From that time there was a renewal of ties between two places dear to Elizabeth Seton. Visitors from Emmitsburg were welcomed in Livorno and
pilgrimages from Livorno visited the Seton shrines in New York, and Baltimore as well as Emmitsburg. Bishop Ablondi and Don Gino represented the parish at the dedication of the statue of St. Elizabeth Ann at the Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington in 1983.
The next milestone for the parish came in 1974. A delegation led by Cardinal Wright, and Ambassador John Volpe came to lay the cornerstone for the permanent church. Several American Sisters of Charity were also present. In 1979, work was begun on the permanent church. Later a church hall was constructed.
The parish under Father Franchi continues to flourish, to witness, and to welcome all who come.
Sister Eleanor Casey, D.C.
Emmitsburg Province


Statue of Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton in a lovely
small garden at the side entrance to the Saint
Elizabeth Ann Seton Church in Livorno.

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