RMG – Ricerche Storiche Salesiane No. 78

08 November 2022

(ANS - Rome) – Issue Number 78, covering the January-June 2022 semester, of "Ricerche Storiche Salesiane" (RSS), the bimonthly journal of Religious and Civil History published by the Salesian Historical Institute (ISS), has been published. Studies on Fr. Paul Albera, II Successor of Don Bosco, and on the Salesian reality of Mogliano Veneto find space in this issue. There is also no shortage of other in-depth studies and contributions in the various other sectors of the volume.

The journal features two essays in the STUDIES section of this issue:

The article Il rettorato di don Paolo Albera (1910-1921): al governo per trasmettere il genuino spirito salesiano - The Rectorate of Fr. Paolo Albera (1910-1921): in government to transmit the genuine Salesian spirit - is the result of Stanisław Zimniak's study. The researcher points out that the rectorate of Fr. Paolo Albera has not been the subject of monographic, scholarly and systematic research, except for a few partial investigations, which, however, illuminate only a few aspects of his long government, which lasted over eleven years. With the present research, only a few important aspects of his work as Rector Major are exposed, that is, elements of government that, although of paramount importance, have not yet been thematized, or have been dealt with without due investigation. In addition to exhibiting documentation on several topics, studied here, it is of interest in this research to investigate the "core" of his being and acting as Rector Major of the Salesian Society. Throughout the chapters of this research, an attempt will be made to highlight and document the "mens" and "spirit" that animated, moved, and inspired him to do everything possible to ensure the further development of the precious legacy of his esteemed predecessors - Don Bosco and Fr. Rua - in a period marked by epochal cultural, social, political and religious transformations.

The second article - Alle origini del collegio salesiano Astori a Mogliano Veneto (1879-1888) - At the Origins of the Salesian Astori Boarding School in Mogliano Veneto (1879-1888) - is by Vito Maurizio. Not even a year after the opening of the boarding school in Este, in 1879 Don Bosco was approached by Engineer Saccardo on behalf of the Catholic movement and the patriarchal diocese to establish an agricultural colony for the benefit of the poor and abandoned youth of the city of Venice. But shortly thereafter he communicated a new proposal from Mrs. Elisabetta Bellavite Astori, who had a substantial sum available for the benefit of the youth of the nearby town of Mogliano Veneto. Don Bosco accepted the bequest, so from the beginning of 1881 construction of the new building began. The first Salesians arrived there on November 18, 1882. The new Rector had to face the difficult problem of recipients. But already at the end of the first year, the schools were started, imparting a remarkable development to the work, so much so that Don Bosco, shortly before his death, was informed that there were one hundred and fifty pupils, as many as the college itself could hold.

An original text is presented in the SOURCES section:

It is a comparative study by José Manuel Prellezo: “La pratica della educazione cristiana” di Antoine Monfat e gli “Appunti di pedagogia” di Giulio Barberis: una selezione di passi corrispondenti - Antoine Monfat's "The Practice of Christian Education" and Giulio Barberis' "Notes on Pedagogy": a selection of corresponding passages. This work is of timely importance for understanding the genesis of "Salesian Pedagogy." It proposes, as its main purpose, to document the influence of the French educator and pedagogist of the Society of Mary, Father Antoine Monfat (1820-1898), in Fr. Giulio Barberis (1847-1927), head of the "school of pedagogy" initiated, in 1874, by Don Bosco in his first charitable-educational work in Turin-Valdocco.

The PROFILES section features an essay by Pedro Ruz Delgado: Angel Martín González (1924-1994), profesor, investigador e historiador salesiano - Salesian professor, researcher and historian.

Completing the edition, as usual, are contributions published in the Note, Reviews, and Reports sections.

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