Presentation of the book: “Fonti Salesiane” (Salesian Sources)

(Fr Francesco Motto)

Preface

1. Vatican II invited religious to return to the sources in order to be faithful to their charisms.

2. GC21 (1978) decided to found the Istituto Storico Salesiano (ISS) or Salesian Historical Institute, in English, which since 1982 has had as its primary aim to “make the documents of the rich patrimony left us by DB and developed by those who continued his work available in ideal technically valid form”.

3. GC26 (2008), the Chapter about “Returning to Don Bosco”, invited the Rector Major to see about publishing a collection of “the principal Salesian sources”.

4. Amongst the “principal Salesian sources”, we opted for the writings of Don Bosco and amongst these especially, but not only, as we will hear, the ones relating to the Oratory and the Salesian Work.

5. For much of these we have been able to make use of texts from the critical editions produced by the ISS (Epistolario [collection of letters], Memorie dell’Oratorio [Memoirs of the Oratory], Cenni storici [Historical Outlines], Costituzioni SDB FMA [SDB and FMA Constitutions], Testamento spirituale [Spiritual testament], Scritti pedagogico-spirituali [pedagogical and spiritual writings]…), which guarantee both their authenticity and originality. They are words of DB or words collected from well-identified authentic testimonies. Without this preventive work the book would have been a very difficult enterprise.

6. The book is divided into four parts, each with its own identity as indicated by the titles themselves. In presenting the individual parts the sections which make up the part are indicated and in each of these the criteria for selection of texts in them are clarified.

PART ONE: HISTORY, pp. 3-359

l. Don Bosco in context

To understand Don Bosco's “being and work”, the first effort to be made is to locate him within the historical context in which he lived. It is from this that he inherited concepts, mentality, habits, historical ideas and aspirations which he then passed on to Salesian work. Just consider his pre-understandings, such as holding to principles of faith and a tradition of Christian life and practice which was not open to discussion, the intangible nature of religion and the papacy, the incompatibility of Christian righteousness with any rebellion against legitimate authority, the "morality" which had to be part of any written work, interpreting human history from the point of view of the role of Providence in it…

a. The years of his formation (1815-1845)

b. Two turbulent years (1848-1849)

c. Salesian Work begins: a decisive event in the decade leading to Italy's unification (1850-1860)

d. The growth of Salesian work outside Turin during the decade when Italian unification reaches completion (1861-1870). National, European and South American development 1870-80.

2. Sections (1844-1888)

2.1 From the Pinardi House… to Patagonia

I. Beginning, development and consolidation of the work at Valdocco

II. Geographical expansion, nationally and internationally, of Salesian work

2.2. Don Bosco the founder : I. SDB II. ADMA III. FMA IV. SCs (Cooperators)

2.3. Don Bosco, the Holy See, Kingdom of Italy and the Archbishop of Turin

I. Confidential letters to the Pope regarding the political situation (1858-1867, 1873)

II. Indications for choice of new bishops for vacant sees (1867-1877)

III. Interventions on the matter of episcopal ‘temporalities’ (taking possession with Government approval) (1872-1874)

IV. Difficult relationship with the Archbishop of Turin (1872-1882)

2.4. Missionary initiative

I. Sources prior to the 1st missionary expedition III. A project in development

2.5. Looking for financial resources

I. Recourse to public charity II. Recourse to private charity

3. The hermeneutic task: going beyond the text

3.1. For the interpretation of a text to be valid a simple linguistic understanding is insufficient; one needs to take account of different literary genres: chronicle, narrative, biography, autobiography, legal, apologetic, hagiography, dramatic, edifying, homiletic, confidential, didactic, scholastic, compilation, allegory… Also ideas and linguistic expressions are always relative to the setting they come from, cultural customs, the spiritual attitudes of the era. The same word can have different content in different times and places.

3.2. Important to consider is the author's intention: is the text for private use or for publication, addressed to an individual or to more than one, directed to someone in authority or not, for educational purposes or to defend his own work, to inform or form, was it provoked or not...

3.3 Other factors which should not be overlooked:

- the existence or otherwise of earlier attempts to write up something: A text which was written on the spur of the moment has a different value to the one which has been reworked many times (see the critical apparatus in the critical editions)

- an entirely personal text is different from one which incorporates quotations from others…;

- the way DB presents them: as certain, possible, doubtful…;

- the time and circumstance in which he writes: is it real time or later, as a young priest or as an elderly founder when he is summing things up, at a time of success or a moment of crisis, when he was at the height of his strength or when he was ill, tired…

3.4. One has to bear in mind the fundamental feature of DB's writings: his effort to express himself as simply as possible, without pretence, and be neither speculative nor literary. In his writings and talks addressed to the formation of SDBs we are not looking at complicated doctrinal passages, deep sociological analysis or psychological introspection. DB preferred offering reflections from personal experience, codifying an educational system which he had experienced personally and which had been successful.

3.5. Obviously others before us have read, contextualised, analysed, and interpreted these readings. Wisdom suggests that the bibliographical references in the footnotes or at the end of the book, as also complete critical editions of individual texts, be part of a bibliographical apparatus which can be available when needed. This also serves for considering the altera pars, the other side (e.g. Gastaldi's letters against DB which are not part of the book).

4. Beyond the writings

DB's writings are not the only tool for understanding him and his work. They are not without their limitations, which can be overcome by studying DB's personal experience. His writings throw light on an active life, and this allows us to interpret them correctly.

5. For ways of reading the book and understanding its editorial criteria: see. pp. LVII-LXI.