Fulfilling His Calling in the North End

If you’ve lived in the North End long enough, you have seen Father Antonio Nardoianni.

Saint Leonard of Port Maurice Parish is at the corner of Hanover Street and Prince Street streets and he’s there quite often – seeing congregants, giving Mass and talking to volunteers in the gift shop.

Currently a pastor at the Parish, Father Antonio had a calling as far back as he can remember.

“I grew up in a practicing Catholic family and church was always central to my upbringing,” he said. “In my hometown, there was a Franciscan friary and my family was very close to the friars.”

Whether you’re a religious person or not, it’s comforting to know there are people in the world who devote their lives to spiritual matters.

“In my family history since the 1800s, there has been one or more friars in every generation,” he said. “I grew up with an attraction toward religious life and priestly ministry.”

In September, Father Antonio will celebrate nine years of being a pastor at Saint Leonard Church.

He came to the church after ministering all over the world.

“I was born and grew up in Italy where, following my religious vocation, I entered Franciscan order at the age of 17 and -- after years of formation to religious and theological studies -- I was ordained a priest in 1974,” he said.

“A year later, I was sent to Boston to minister to the Italian immigrants.”

After three years, Father Antonio spent a short period of time in Italy.

“In January 1979, I was called to work among Italian immigrants in Toronto, Canada, where I remained for the next 20 years,” he said.

“In December 1998, I was assigned a new task in Rome where I was involved with the formation of young Americans taking theological courses there before they would be approved to become priests.”

Six years later, Father Antonio moved on.

“In 2004, my superiors sent me back to Boston to serve as pastor at Saint Leonard – the first Catholic Church built by Italian immigrants in New England,” he said.

Now, Father Antonio ministers at Saint Leonard  -- the one Roman Catholic parish in the North End -- and the other churches it operates: Sacred Heart Church at 12 North Square and Saint Stephen’s Church at the corner of Hanover Street and Clark Street.

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