Rome (Italy). On 17 February 2022, at the Pontifical Faculty of Educational Sciences “Auxilium” in Rome, the presentation meeting of the volume ‘Faces of the same charisma’ was held. Salesians and Daughters of Mary Help of Christians in the 20th century, edited by Francesco Motto and Grazia Loparco (ACSSA, Studies 10, Rome LAS 2021, 899 pp.).
The volume collects 48 profiles of consecrated women, 22 from Daughters of Mary Help of Christians and 26 from Salesians of Don Bosco, who have ‘written’ significant and innovative pages of Salesian history, without however reaching a high level of notoriety, operating in different forms in favor of young people of the working class, at home or on a mission, with resourcefulness, originality of solutions, flexibility calibrated on the needs of local realities.
The authors undertook an intense research and study in the historical archives to restore ‘biographical pieces’ that allow the reconstruction of the evolution of the charism of St. John Bosco and St. Mary Domenica Mazzarello through the concreteness of life, enriched with international traits.
The presentation of four profiles of Daughters of Mary Help of Christians from four continents is entrusted to as many FMA, two are Faculty teachers and two students. Prof. Rosangela Siboldi will speak about Iside Malgrati (Italy), while Prof. Josmy Jose will present Nancy Pereira (India). Sr. Karen del Pilar Vivanco Cerda will present Anna Maria Coppa (Ecuador) and Sr. Inácia Eugénio Chaquisse will illustrate the life of Gertrudes da Rocha (Mozambique).
Prof. Francesco Motto, editor of the volume and President of the Association of Salesian History Experts (ACSSA), will introduce the round table, of which he will be moderator, and will scroll through the gallery of profiles, to explain the expressive variety of the shared inheritance manifested in many operational fields.
At the end of the four presentations there will be a space for dialogue, with the intervention of Prof. Grazia Loparco, Professor of Church History in the «Auxilium» Faculty, who will highlight the contribution of ACSSA for a vital increase in historical research in favor of a dynamic identity of the FMA Institute.
The initiative, which takes place in the year of the 150th anniversary of the foundation of the Institute of the Daughters of Mary Help of Christians (1872-2022), takes place from 17:00 to 18:45 on 17 February 2022, in presence at the Faculty and live streaming on the YouTube Channel of the FMA Study Center.
Source: pfseauxilium.org
