15
August
2013 -- If you have read the Memoirs of the Oratory
and enjoyed them (and who wouldn't, noting Don Bosco's
distinct
capabilities as a story-teller par excellence) then you simply
must
read Severino,
or the Adventures of an Alpine Lad (as told by himself
and as presented by Fr John Bosco).
If you do not know Italian and even if you do, chances are you
have
never read it - and at best seen fleeting reference to it. As
of today,
and perhaps it might be seen as a gift for Don Bosco's
birthday, it is
in English for the first time. But really, it is a must read!
Why,
you ask? This one is different from the Savio, Magone Besucco
set -
because Severino is different. If the first three are 'pious',
even
with Magone's rough edges, 'Severino' is picaresque. He
attended the
Oratory before it finally settled down, so the descriptions of
the
weekend gatherings in the Filippi field, the walks to the
Superga...
all add detail to the MO. And while Severino was no Savio he
was the
typical boy that Don Bosco set out to save from the thousand
risks an
eleven-year old ran (Severino's age at the time) when hanging
loose in
Turin. Severino does turn out ok in the end, right at the end,
but
there are some surprises in store amongst those adventures!
Bear with
the extensive historical detail at certain points - there are
always
twists and turns around the corner.
There are some fascinating
scenes in this 70 page or so 'novel', which might even have
Paul
Theroux entranced, though one of this latter's more famous
lines is not
one that Don Bosco agrees with where Severino is concerned:
“You go
away for a long time and return a different person - you never
come all
the way back”. You will thoroughly enjoy the account of the
long haul
from Pinerolo up through Aosta to the heights of the St
Bernard Pass
(the Gran S. Bernardo) all on foot of course, the day or so
pause with
the monks at the hospice, and the famous account of
Barrì, the dog who
saved many a traveller. Severino hopes you will be horrified
(that's
what he says he wants from you) by a sordid escapade in Geneva
- and
you probably will be!
One small warning: this is not what
you would call a politically correct piece of writing in
ecumenical
times. If you have any Protestant friends and want to keep
them, this
is not summer reading for them. It does, of course, have to be
understood in its historical context and DB does try his best
to soften
things at the very end with a comment such as: "let us be of
one heart
and one soul and ask God to show us and them his mercy. May he
grant
Catholics perseverance and may he lead those in error to the
right
path", but the rest of it is rather 'us' and 'them' one has to
admit.
Still and all, what you didn't know about the Waldensians, you
will
certainly know after reading this!
One
wonders why this particular work of Don Bosco's has not
received more
attention up till now. Could it be some of the reasons hinted
at above?
While he claims there was a real Severino, laces his narrative
with
some real dates and places and even uses ellipsis
if he wishes not to
name something, tells us elsewhere (at least as recorded in
the MB vol
9 ch 5) that he can name the pastors, and provide
documentation about
one of Severino's friends - who unfortunately dies, and dies
unfortunately - it is also clear that Don Bosco is using
this as a
platform for apologetics, historical knowledge and, well, yes,
just a
rollicking good story with the squalid and the
poverty-stricken, the
jollity and the conviviality all rolled into one in the best
Dickensian
tradition.
