Saint Leopold Mandic was a Croatian Capuchin friar and Catholic priest, ordained to the priesthood at the Basilica of Santa Maria della Salute in Venice. After his ordination, Mandić was sent to posts in various Capuchin friaries in the Venice region and in his native Croatia.
Saint Leopold Mandic was physically malformed and delicate, he grew to a height of only 1.35 m (4’5″), with a clumsy walk. He developed tremendous spiritual strength in spite of his disabilities and became extremely popular in his ministry as a confessor, often spending 12–15 hours in the confessional.
Common to all his assignments was that of the duty of a confessor at the church which the friars served. This went on until 1906, when he was assigned to the Friary of Santa Croce in Padua. It was there that he would spend the rest of his life. He became known as an Apostle of Confession and an Apostle of Unity. He made a famous prayer that is the forerunner of today’s ecumenism.
