Don Bosco and Other Saints
Serving Turinese Society
(ANS – Turin – Jan.
11-12, 2024) – In the 19th
century, Turin was an expanding city, but many of its inhabitants lived in
hardship. In this poor and degraded environment, however, there are those who
did their best to help them.
The so-called “social saints” of Turin were
apparently ordinary people; in reality they were extraordinary, because they
lived by putting God and their neediest neighbors first, forgetting about
themselves. The most famous was Don Bosco, but he was not alone: there was also
Cafasso, Murialdo, Frassati, Faà di Bruno, and others.
Precisely because of this commonality of
attitudes and because of their shared existence more or less at the same time
in the same geographical area, many of them knew each other directly and
cooperated – or at least, shared a part of the journey together. Many of these “social
saints” canonized during the 20th century and the early 2000s are also
remembered, with relics and panels, in the Casa Don Bosco Museum at Valdocco in
Turin.
A city in ferment, active and industrious,
growing at a fast pace: Turin in the 1800s was an ever-expanding agglomeration:
in just 3 decades, from the beginning of the century to 1830, it went from
80,000 to 127,000 inhabitants.
Growth continued throughout the 19th century,
but unfortunately it also had a downside: many who went there in search of a
job and better living conditions couldn’t achieve their dreams. The ranks of
the poor swelled day after day: crowded into poor homes, many barely survived
and only thanks to public assistance, which, however, was often not enough.
In this context Turin’s “social saints” took
on a fundamental role: religious and lay people who with their works ensured
essential help to the needy or, as in the case of St. Joseph Allamano,
contributed to the birth and spread of missions around the world.
Venerable Tancredi
Falletti of Barolo established free schools
The only son of Marquis Ottavio Alessandro
Falletti di Barolo and Paolina Teresa d’Oncieux, Tancredi was born in Turin on October
26, 1782. His father took him with him on numerous trips. It was during a stay
in France that he met Juliette (Giulia) Colbert, whom he married in 1806 in
Paris; they moved to Turin in 1814. Their inability to have children was
interpreted by the couple as a divine sign: they decided that their wealth would
be made available to the needy.
In his positions in municipal administration
(he was mayor for two years), Tancredi gave life to charitable initiatives such
as the establishing of free schools for the children of the poor, a
kindergarten, and an art school for the destitute. During the cholera epidemic
in 1835, he organized temporary hospitals to accommodate the sick. In 2018 he
was declared “venerable” by Pope Francis.
Venerable Giulia
Falletti di Barolo opened an institute for unwed mothers
Tancredi’s wife Juliette (Giulia) was born on June
27, 1785 in the castle of Maulevrier in Vendée (France); she was a daughter of
Count Eduard Colbert and Countess AnneMarie-Louise Quengo de Crenolle. Maid of honor
of Josephine Beauharnais, first wife of Napoleon, after her marriage and relocation
to Turin, she and her husband dedicated themselves to charity.
She carried out projects for the
rehabilitation and reintegration of female prisoners into society, an institute
for unwed mothers, a vocational school for the daughters of poor families, and
a house for girls at risk in addition to the construction of the church of
Santa Giulia in Turin.
She died on January 19, 1864, leaving the instructions to
found the Opera Pia Barolo, a charity to which she donated her family’s assets.
In 2015 Pope Francis declared her “venerable.”
Don Bosco founded the
Salesian Congregation
The future founder of the Salesians (who are
now in over 130 countries around the world) was born in a small farmhouse in
the Becchi hamlet, in the municipality of Castelnuovo d’Asti (today Castelnuovo
Don Bosco) on August 16, 1815 to Francis and Margherita Occhiena Bosco,
farmers.
Having lost his father before he was 2, he
began working at age 11 while his vocation grew stronger and stronger. He
worked several jobs in order to pay for his studies and in 1835 he entered the
seminary.
Six years later he was ordained and moved to
the Convitto Ecclesiastico in Turin. Here he began his work of approaching the
poorest young people he met on the street and in the city’s building sites.
It is precisely for them that he established
the first oratory in Valdocco (Turin) in 1846, a place dedicated to marginalized
young people where they were guaranteed concrete help, education, and job
training.
Soon the number of oratories increased,
helping an increasing number of children in need. In 1859 he founded the
Salesian Congregation, with which he carried out his mission on behalf of young
people.
He died on January 31, 1888, and was canonized
on April 1, 1934 by Pope Pius XI.
St. Joseph Benedict
Cottolengo opened an infirmary for abandoned patients
Born in Bra (Cuneo) on May 3, 1786, he was the
first of 12 children (6 of whom died at an early age) of Giuseppe Antonio
Cottolengo and Benedetta Chiarotti. Ordained a priest in 1811, he graduated in theology
in Turin with honors on May 14, 1816.
Increasingly interested in spiritual research,
on September 2, 1827 Fr. Cottolengo was called to the bedside of a mother of 3
children, and the 4th on the way, rejected by several hospitals in Turin.
The death of the woman shocked him, and he
decided to establish a small infirmary to avoid a recurrence of similar cases.
Thus, in 1828, Deposito de’ Poveri Infermi del Corpus Domini was founded,
dedicated to the sick who were not accepted into hospitals.
Four years later Fr. Cottolengo founded in
Turin the Little House of Divine Providence (known as the Cottolengo), where
poor and disabled people, epileptics, deaf, disabled, and orphans could find
health care, assistance, and education.
He died on April 30, 1842. In 1934 Pope Pius
XI proclaimed him a saint. He was listed among the
saints of charity by Pope
Benedict XVI in his 2005 encyclical Deus caritas est.
St. Leonard helped
street kids
Leonard Murialdo was born in Turin on October 26,
1828, to a wealthy family. Losing his father at the age of 5, he entered the
Piarist Fathers boarding school in Savona, but during his adolescence he
experienced an existential and spiritual crisis that brought him back to his
family in Turin. Here he made the decision to become a priest and was ordained
in 1851.
Appreciated by St. John Bosco, who entrusted
him with the St. Aloysius Oratory (near the Porta Nuova railway station), he
dedicated himself entirely to young people in need: through the oratory,
catechesis, school, vocational training, and recreational activities, he
approached and helped street children, the poorest.
It was thanks to him that a family home and an
agricultural colony were created in Rivoli (Turin). In 1873 he founded the
Congregation of St. Joseph, which continued its work of assistance for young
people after his death on March 30, 1900.
Pope St. Paul VI canonized him on May 3, 1970.
St. Joseph Cafasso assisted the condemned at the gallows
Joseph Cafasso was born in Castelnuovo d’Asti,
the same town where Don Bosco was born, on January 15, 1811.
His was a peasant family. The deep faith of
his parents was passed on to their son, who was ordained at 22 years of age.
Four months later he entered the Convitto Ecclesiastico of St. Francis in
Turin.
Teacher of moral theology first, spiritual
director later, and finally rector, he passed on his faith to future priests,
but not only that. He dedicated himself to prisoners, visiting dilapidated
penitentiary institutions. He was nicknamed the “priest of the gallows” because
he often accompanied the condemned to the gallows, comforting them until the
end.
He died on June 23, 1860. Don Bosco preached
his eulogy a month later. On June 22, 1947, Pope Pius XII declared him a saint.
Blessed Francesco Faà
di Bruno established “economic stoves”
Before donning the cassock, Francesco Faà di
Bruno lived a very intense life. Born in Alessandria on March 29, 1825, into an
important noble family, in 1840 he entered the Military Academy of Turin,
starting a brilliant career as an officer until he was appointed captain of the
general staff.
After leaving the army, his passion for
science led him to graduate in mathematics at the prestigious Sorbonne
University in Paris, and in 1857 he became a professor of mathematics and
astronomy at the University of Turin.
A man of faith, he dedicated himself to the
poorest and, in particular, to women, creating a house for young mothers and
founding the Congregation of the Minim Sisters of Our Lady of Suffrage.
Its initiatives include the economic stove (to
distribute hot meals to workers at a modest price), the mutual mobile library
(book loans extended to all of Italy), and public washrooms.
He decided to embrace clerical life in 1876.
He died on March 27, 1888, and Pope John Paul II named him Blessed in 1988.
St. Joseph Marello
gave a retirement home to the elderly in need
Born in Turin on December 26, 1844, Joseph
Marello lost his mother at the age of 3 and moved with his father and brother
to San Martino Alfieri (Asti). At the age of 12 he entered the seminary in
Asti: after a brief pause for rethinking during which he returned to Turin to
undertake technical-commercial studies, he returned to the seminary and was
ordained in 1868, assuming the position of secretary of the bishop of Asti,
Carlo Savio.
In 1878 he founded the Congregation of the
Oblates of St. Joseph. Appointed bishop of Acqui (Alessandria) in 1889, he
spent his time helping young people welcomed into the parish. It had to be a
welcoming formation school so that they could become “good Christians and
upright citizens.”
No less important was his intervention on
behalf of the elderly in need, for whom he established a nursing home.
He died on May 30, 1895, at the age of 50 and
was canonized by Pope St. John Paul II in 2001.
Blessed Joseph
Allamano started a missionary center
Joseph Allamano was born in Castelnuovo d’Asti
on January 21, 1851: he was a nephew and pupil of St. Joseph Cafasso.
He studied at Don Bosco’s Oratory in Valdocco and
was ordained in 1873. He graduated in theology from the Pontifical Theological
Faculty of Turin 4 years later and in 1880 he became rector of the Consolata Shrine
in Turin.
Eager to bring the Word of God and concrete
help to the poorest populations in the world, in 1901 he founded the Consolata
mission institute, which the following year sent 4 missionaries to Kenya. In
1910 he founded the Missionary Sisters of the Consolata.
Faithful to its motto “good makes little
noise: much noise does little good. Good must be done well and without noise,”
he worked to raise awareness among the Church and society about the activities
of missionaries, asking that a day dedicated to them be officially established;
that plea was granted in 1926 by Pope Pius XI.
He died on February 16, 1926 and was beatified
on October 77, 1990, by Pope St. John Paul II.
Blessed Pier Giorgio
Frassati: as a rich man he gave everything to the poor
Son of Alfredo Frassati, editor of the
La
Stampa newspaper and senator, and artist Adelaide Ametis, Pier Giorgio
Frassati was born in Turin on April 6, 1901.
After graduating from the classical high
school in 1918, he enrolled at the Polytechnic of Turin, choosing mechanical
engineering with a specialization in mining. When asked the reason for this
choice, Pier Giorgio replied that he wanted to study to help improve the
working conditions of miners.
His deep faith led him to enroll in the Italian
Catholic University Federation and to collaborate regularly with the St.
Vincent de Paul Society. His financial resources were put completely at the
service of the needy, and he often remained penniless because he gave
everything to the poor.
In 1922 his devotion led him to enter as a lay
tertiary in the Dominican order, further increasing his commitment to assisting
the poor.
Suffering from polio, he died on July 4, 1925.
He was beatified by Pope St. John Paul II on May 20, 1990.
Source: Airone magazine
