Simone Stifani, Benedictine Oblate. "The Archbishop: May Your Life Be a Permanent Conversion"
by Friar Matteo Scarsella*
Category: Lecce | Created: December 13, 2025
Last Sunday, the second of Advent, in the Monastery of "St. John the Evangelist," Mother Abbess Benedetta Grasso and the Benedictine community received the oblation of Simone Antonio Maria Stifani, a collaborator in the field of communication for the Leccese Benedictine monastery, particularly through the voice of Radio Orantes.
The celebration was presided over by Archbishop Angelo Raffaele Panzetta and concelebrated by Fr. Vito Benedetto Caputo (himself an oblate of the monastery and parish priest of the cathedral) and Fr. Andrea Gelardo, the archbishop's secretary. The singing was animated by the Benedictine sisters and the vocal group of Gregorian chant 'Viri Cantores de finibus terrae', led by Maestro Giuseppe Lattante.
Surrounding Simone, in addition to the monastic community, were several oblates of the monastery, his parents, and friends of both the nuns and Simone. The words addressed by the Archbishop to the assembly during the homily were dense with meaning. Taking inspiration from the rich table offered by the Liturgy of the Word, the prelate indicated two dimensions proper to Christians: conversion, illuminated by the figure of John the Baptist, and welcome (accoglienza), forcefully recalled by the Apostle Paul in the Letter to the Romans. These are two key words that outline the profile of the believer who is called to live Advent as a true "event" for their own life.
John the Baptist: educator and initiator to truth and sobriety.
The Gospel according to Matthew does not present John the Precursor as the last prophet of the past, but as one who is already immersed in the newness that Christ inaugurates. His preaching coincides surprisingly with that of Jesus: "The kingdom of heaven is at hand" (Mt 4:17).
At the center of his mission is the announcement of a divine initiative: it is God who draws near to man; it is God who takes the initiative. For this reason, man is called to convert, not to improve himself or eliminate defects as if it were a mere voluntaristic exercise, but to tune his life to the coming and the demands of the Kingdom.
The celebrant emphasized that the success of the Baptist's preaching is to be found in the consistency of his life: indeed, he announces what he lives, and lives what he announces. However, the Evangelist also shows his frankness: Pharisees and Sadducees, though religious and practicing, are admonished. The exterior and formal practice of religious precepts is not enough. One can, in fact, know the Law, serve at the temple, guard traditions, and yet remain far from true conversion. The presumption of feeling "in order" can become the greatest obstacle. It is necessary, then, to prune what is superfluous. An authentic Advent requires pruning, courageous choices, changes of mentality (metanoia), and concrete fruits of new life.
One of these fruits is welcome. Paul, writing to the Christians of Rome, fears that the initial enthusiasm of faith might fade and leave room for a return to the old paganism. For this reason, he points the community toward an educational path of extraordinary relevance: to become a cohesive community in mutual welcome. One of the most characteristic traits of the Christ of the Gospels is precisely His total openness to the other. Jesus welcomes everyone: sinners, the fragile, the distant, the rich and the poor, the learned and the simple. Paul indicates this as the "high measure" of community life: "Welcome one another as Christ has welcomed you."
Welcome and conversion are thus revealed to be deeply connected. There is no authentic conversion without exiting the individualism that isolates, encloses, and rigidifies. At the same time, there is no true welcome without a life continually handed back to God, who dissolves our selfishness. These two dimensions presented by the Word, declared Monsignor Panzetta, also speak to the life of Simone, who chose Antonio Maria as his oblation name: "To you, Simone, today are delivered some fundamental ways for your life: the primacy of God, permanent conversion, the educational passion of the Baptist," and finally, "welcome, which becomes a style, a distinctive trait, the 'identity card' of the believer."
Those who have known Simone, remarked the Archbishop, "can testify to his educational sensitivity, his care for the growth of others, his desire to transmit the beauty of faith. Added to this is a natural charism of welcome that is present in him with a smiling gaze, a good word, a tone of voice that opens and does not close. A certain harmony is discernible between the voice of John the Baptist and the welcoming voice of Simone Antonio Maria. John the Baptist and Simone walk on two different but parallel paths, united by the same desire to give God the first place and to announce this primacy to others. The Baptist is the voice that prepares the way for the Lord: he announces conversion, lives in sobriety, and educates the people to open themselves to the Kingdom. His strength is born from the consistency and authority of a life completely surrendered to God."
Simone, with the Benedictine oblation, accepts the same call: to live a continuous conversion, to guard the primacy of God, to place his gifts at the service of the community, and to accompany those who want to know the Lord. The Archbishop continued: "Like the Baptist, Simone is called to cultivate an educational heart that knows how to draw out the beautiful, the good, and the true from the lives of the people he meets. In John the Baptist, Simone finds a model; in Simone, the Baptist's message somehow takes shape again today. Both remind us that preparing the way for the Lord means changing the heart (conversio) and opening oneself to others with truth and goodness. The Lord now calls Simone to make these charisms flourish, particularly welcome, so that they may become the identity card of his life for his own good and for the good of the Church."
*Benedictine Monk
