) Romano Bottegal was born on 28 December 1921 in San Donato di Lamon in the
Belluno province as the last of six children to the poor Romano Bottegal and Emilia Tiziani; his father later emigrated to
Australia where two children joined him. He received
baptism on 31 December as
Romano Donato with the latter name being given in honor of his paternal grandfather. His brother Guido lost his sight at the age of 21 in an accident while working in the
mines. He received his
Confirmation on 25 June 1927 from the
Bishop of Belluno Giosuè Cattarossi. He did his ecclesial studies first in
Feltre (entering on 2 October 1933 with the aid of his parish priest) and then in
Belluno from October 1939 where his
vice-rector was the future
pope Albino Luciani who took a liking to Bottegal. In July 1938 he made a
vow to remain chaste for the remainder of his life. He expressed his desire on multiple occasions to enter the monastic life but his superiors advised him to wait until he was
ordained before making decisions on pursuing the monastic life. He received the
tonsure on 20 March 1942 and then the
minor orders on 18 December 1943 before he was made a
subdeacon alongside six others on 1 July 1945. The Bishop of Belluno
Girolamo Bartolomeo Bortignon made him a
deacon on 22 December 1945. Bottegal was ordained a priest in Belluno on 29 June 1946 from Bishop Bortignon in the church of San Daniele di Lamon (celebrating his first Mass on 30 June) and then decided to join a monastic order. He entered the Trappists at
Tre Fontane in 1946 where he made his
temporary vows on 8 September 1948 before making his
solemn vows on 8 September 1951. On 15 June 1953m he received a
licentiate in
theological studies from the
Gregorian where he studied after his ordination. He served as the
novice master from 1954 until 1957. In 1961 – at the request of the abbot of
Latroun in
Israel – he helped to contribute to the founding of a Trappist
convent in
Lebanon that would follow the
Maronite Rite. While in Lebanon, he studied
Arabic and
Syriac in addition to the liturgies of the
Eastern Churches. But the project was abandoned in December 1963 and Bottegal was ordered to return to Rome even though he wished to remain in Lebanon. However, his superior saw his dedication to the monastic life so allowed for him to live in a monastic manner at Tre Fontane; the superior's successor in 1964 permitted him to go to live as a hermit in Lebanon since he found it was not feasible for Bottegal to live the monastic life at Tre Fontane in the manner he wished. He was granted a canonical indult -
Ad ducendam vitam eremiticam - that lasted from 1964 until 1967 and in between was granted the indult for perpetual exclaustration -
Ad nutum Sanctae Sedis - in 1966. Bottegal began living as a hermit from 1969 until 1973 in both Israel and Lebanon and then from 1976 began living as a recluse until his death. From 1964 onwards he lived in Jabbouleh in Lebanon (without
furniture or heating) and was under the direct supervision of the
Melkite Bishop of Baalbek Joseph Malouff. Bottegal died due to tuberculosis on 19 February 1978 in a hospital in Beirut; his remains are interred at the Saint Barbara Cathedral in
Baalbek. ==Beatification process==