by Roberto Dioletta

The Accademia Musicale del Lazio, with the support of the Lazio Region, has prepared a significant artistic event, consisting of two monographic concerts for organ, dedicated to the famous Roman composer Filippo Capocci (1840-1911) - on the occasion of the centenary of his death - held at the Roman Basilica of San Giuseppe al Trionfale. The cycle opened on Sunday 6 November 2011 at 16.45pm with Professor Jiri Lecian (organ teacher at Santa Cecilia), followed the following Sunday, the 13th at the same time, by Maestro Roberto Dioletta (director of the Accademia Musicale del Lazio ).
Both concerts were presented by the Musicologist Orchidea Salvati (teacher of History of Music at Santa Cecilia) who introduced all the pieces being performed, following a representative and reasoned monographic path. it is a small and well-deserved tribute that the Academy and the entire Community of San Giuseppe presided over by the parish priest Don Wladimiro Bogoni, have offered to their public, in homage to the most important Roman and Italian organist of the nineteenth century. In fact, Filippo Capocci was inexplicably forgotten as soon as his death occurred in Rome in 1911. Today we can say with certainty that he was a fundamental figure of Italian organ music, and unfortunately he still does not occupy the place he deserves in the consideration of music criticism. Yet there is an established historical and objective importance of his creativity: he composes pieces projected into the future for an organ that does not yet exist in the Italian organ building art of the time. Before him the desert with organs and organists who played opera and theatre. He chases organ and organ building progress and by assimilating the experiences from beyond the Alps, he does his utmost to ensure that our local organ masters adhere to the new construction dictates. His permanence in French circles allowed him to hypothesize, in organ building projects, the fusion of Italian organ building art with the futuristic Franco-German one. The fruit of this idea of ​​his was the creation of three magnificent instruments in Rome: the “Merklin” organ in San Luigi dei Francesi (1881) and the two “Morettini” in San Giovanni in Laterano (1886). Di lui, di lui are powerful, symphonic, grandiose compositions, completely new in Italy and disconcerte the audience. But from his path the direction in which subsequent organ creativity must move unfolds. A curiosity: Filippo Capocci was Queen Margherita's private teacher. In fact, the Queen was passionate about the organ and in addition to playing it discreetly, she was interested in the musical life of the capital. She founded the "Rome String Quintet" and once a week gathered around her at the Quirinale the best of Italian and European culture passing through the capital.

In Bethlehem, Lucifer sounded the trumpet of general mobilization and activated the plan prepared to deal with unforeseen calamities.
The news is not a secret for him: even the wise men of Herod's court know it, even more so he and his whole host of demons.
The messianic era has arrived and in Bethlehem we must search for the descendant of David.
For a few years we will have to keep an eye on all members of this lineage. It is clear that she belongs above all to those who enjoy a privileged position in the society of the time, that is, the rich and powerful, who usually accompany each other on the journey. There are a few thousand in Israel and among emigrants to neighboring countries. A decree has been promulgated for some time which decides the expulsion of those who have no social weight to deserve attention.
Joseph of Nazareth is also among them.

by Tarcisio Stramare

Our imagination can hardly enter into the mystery of the Incarnation. Even though we believe that God truly became man "in every way" similar to us, except in sin, we instinctively think that there must have been some exceptions. The apocryphal literature of the first centuries, in fact, could not help but present Jesus as the protagonist of many wonderful episodes, which the Church, however, instinctively rejected, even if not irreverent, but simply because they went "out of the norm" of life of man, as Jesus wanted to be considered: citizen of an obscure country, Nazareth; son of a craftsman, Giuseppe. Even the iconography to which we are accustomed was unable to resist the exception, always depicting Jesus with a luminous halo, which was certainly not part of his figure. The Gospel of Matthew clearly points out the divine origin of Jesus, conceived by Mary through the work of the Holy Spirit. In this case it is a necessarily exceptional event, because it concerns the divine "pre-existence" of the Person of Jesus; it, however, was not at all flashy and consequently Jesus was considered “the son of Joseph”. The stories immediately following that of the conception immediately clearly show us the "fragility" of this God made man, who makes no use of his power, but like all other human beings "flees" from the dangers that threaten the life of he.
We do not want to enter here into the biblical theology of Jesus' escape into Egypt, his entry into the "land of Israel" and his home in Nazareth, stories of great interest for the evangelist Matthew, who sees in such episodes the realization of a divine plan already contained in the Old Testament. Instead, let us focus our attention on the "behavior" of Jesus, who totally relies on the decisions made by his putative father Joseph, clearly guided by the divine will, transmitted to him through the ministry of an angel, but "without discounts" on their execution; this behavior highlights his faith, which brings him closer to that of Abraham, the introducer of the Old Covenant, as Joseph was of the New, according to the happy intuition of John Paul II in the Apostolic Exhortation "The Guardian of the Redeemer" ( n.32).  
Origen (183-255), one of the most important personalities of the ancient Church, had already focused on this behaviour, which is typical of the mystery of the Incarnation. What need did Jesus have to flee to Egypt, given that God had the possibility of using other means? None, but "it was necessary that he who had decreed to live in a human way among men should not inconsiderately expose himself to death, but should let himself be guided by nourishment... What is absurd about him who had assumed human nature , provide in a humane way to face dangers? Not because this could not have been done in another way, but because Jesus' salvation had to be provided for in a certain way and order. It was certainly more than enough for the child Jesus to avoid Herod's snares, fleeing to Egypt with his parents until the death of the attacker." In short, for the defense of Jesus, who wanted to live in a human way, following the ordinary path, paternal protection had to be enough. Obviously Joseph could not be the old man created by the imagination of the apocrypha, consequently forced to invent an uninterrupted series of miracles to reach the happy ending. It follows that the invention of the "old man", despite its long success, must be rejected for the simple reason of its contradiction with the law of "normality", which must characterize the mystery of the Incarnation.
Even the bishop Saint Peter Chrysologus (380-450), a distinguished theologian of the incarnation of the Word, after having described with great eloquence and richness of comparisons the dangers and difficulties faced by the Holy Family, asks himself the question about an appropriate intervention of God to avoid them or at least limit them. “He whom virginity did not stop in his birth, whom reason did not oppose, whom nature was unable to resist, what power, what force, what danger now prevails to force him to flee?... Christ yes save by running away!”. After an engaging description of Christ's flight, the speaker concludes: “Brothers, Christ's flight is a mystery, not the effect of fear; it happened for our liberation, not because of any danger from the Creator; it was an effect of divine power, not of human frailty; this escape does not aim to avoid the death of the Creator, but to procure the life of the world." In short, we must take into account that God's plans are not ours.
In a sixth century homily, erroneously attributed to Saint John Chrysostom, the same theological problem returns. The speaker puts the question into Joseph's mouth to the angel about the reason for the command to flee: “How does the son of God flee from man? Who will deliver from enemies, if he himself fears his enemies ”. Here is the answer: “First of all, he flees to fully respect the rule of human nature, which he had assumed; in the particular case, because it suits human nature and childhood to avoid threatening power." The question is actually ours, because in fact Joseph didn't ask any questions, so prompt and generous was his obedience. The same author's comment on the angel's order is interesting: “Take the child and his mother” (Mt 2,13.20). “Do you see that Joseph was not chosen for an ordinary marriage with Mary, but to serve her? On her journey to Egypt and back, who would have helped her in such great need if she had not been married to him? In fact, at first glance, Mary fed the Child, Joseph looked after it. In fact, the Child fed his mother and Joseph defended her. Therefore he does not say: Take the mother and her child, but Take the child and her mother, because this child was not born for her, but she was prepared as a mother for that child. Nor was it her son's glory to have that mother, but her blessedness to have this son." In short, Mary and Joseph exist and live only for Jesus, who occupies the central place.
How many useful teachings come to us from the Gospel text, a true school of daily life. First of all, the importance of institutions, marriage at the forefront, assumed by the Son of God himself for his incarnation and consequently the first human reality "sanctified" by his divine presence. Furthermore, the role that is assigned to spouses in marriage in relation to children, who are not a simple programmable and available product. In the case of Mary and Joseph, it is true, it is the same Son of God, the second Person of the Holy Trinity; however, as far as we are concerned, it is equally true that every human person is an adopted child of God. Finally, we must believe that "divine Providence" is always present and active, even in cases where its action is not always understandable and, at times, even disconcerting.
Saint Joseph remains an "outstanding example" of faith and obedience for all spouses and fathers. The fact of not taking it into sufficient account in the past, marginalizing or even ridiculing its presence and figure, today has heavy repercussions on the image of marriage and its components, headed towards the commodification of their values.

by Mario Carrera

An oriental proverb says: «He who shows off himself will never come to light; he who approves himself will never be considered; He who boasts in himself will never have value, and he who boasts in himself will never be glorified." Don Guanella knew this and throughout his life he repeated: "it is God who does", I am like clay in the artist's hands, I am the colors spread on a palette, only God is the artist who creates wonderful works. The canonization of Don Guanella is a hymn to humility: the word humility derives from humus - earth and the earth became the stage of Don Guanella's passage of light alongside people in need.
Don Luigi lived far from the limelight of men, in silence he honored the poor, for this reason the choir of the poor on 23 October 2011, through the voice of the Pope, honored him, calling him "father of the wounded in life". The rite of canonization requires the postulator to thank the Holy Father for the gift of the new saint to the universal Church; on that occasion, climbing the steps of the churchyard of St. Peter's Square, I felt the weight of a thousand poverty on my shoulders, but also the wind of gratitude that pushed my steps towards Peter's successor. The first words were of thanks: «Your Holiness, in the name of the poor, I bring you the joy and gratitude of the humble for having glorified a prophet of charity, a friend of the poor and a model of holiness». The Holy Father repeated to me with a smile of satisfaction: «You do so much good, you do so much good; continue to serve the poor with love."
On October 23, a dream of all the disciples of Don Guanella was crowned and, through the solemn magisterium of the Pope, a new champion of faith was presented to the universal Church, a model of love for others, a man full of hope, as well as a great intercessor for the people of God pilgrimage on the paths of physical and moral hardship. For over twenty years my superiors had assigned me the task of postulator of the causes of the saints of the Guanellian family. My role as postulator consisted in collecting the legacy of my predecessors who had led to the beatification of both Don Guanella and Sister Chiara Bosatta. Don Carlo De Ambroggi worked assiduously and competently in this field; upon his death he was succeeded by Don Ezio Cova, who was able to combine the role of postulator with that of unforgettable and esteemed director of the Pious Union of the Transit of San Giuseppe.
In these twenty years, there have been two work paths that have engaged me: the cause of Msgr. Aurelio Bacciarini and, since the beginning of the new millennium, the miracle attributed to Don Guanella, which occurred in the USA.
The cause of Msgr. Bacciarini required a lot of work. After the death of Don Carlo De Ambroggi, the cause remained stagnant without answers to some questions that the Promoter of the Faith had presented to the postulation. Having responded positively to all the objections of the Congregation of Saints, an alleged miracle, attributed to the intercessor of Msgr. Bacciarini, had a trial opened at the diocesan curia of Lugano. The process had a complete process and was also approved by the Congregation of Saints, but upon consultation with the doctors, the recovery, although extraordinary, on the basis of the medical literature was scientifically explainable both for the care provided and for the medicines administered.
In a parallel way, the examination of the heroic virtues of Msgr. continued. Aurelio Bacciarini with positive result. The Holy Father, Benedict XVI, signed the decree of heroic virtue of Bacciarini, proclaiming his venerability.
We are a family of saints, we are entrusted with the energy of a charism necessary for our neighbor, so that he feels the caress of God in the troubles of life, but above all so that we bear living witness to a divine presence that surpasses human energies. The testimony of charity is a living page of the gospel that even the illiterate can read and, every day, it is up to us to ask God for the strength to continue writing these pages of solidarity that made Don Guanella great.

of the card. Tarcisio Bertone

Dear brothers and sisters!

In the aftermath of the Canonization of Don Luigi Guanella, we meet with joy in St. Peter's Basilica to raise our thanksgiving to God. In this Eucharist we prolong yesterday's praise and anticipate that of the generations to come, who will find the name of San Luigi Guanella in the liturgical calendar of the Church today. I greet with affection the members of the Institutes founded by the new Saint: the Daughters of Saint Mary of Providence, the Servants of Charity and the Guanellian Cooperators. I greet with gratitude the civil authorities present and all of you, dear faithful![…]
Truly intense and unforgettable are the hours that the Guanellian Family spread throughout the world, in over 20 nations, is experiencing within the joy that belongs to the whole Church, on earth and in Heaven. For the second time, in its thousand-year history, the Vatican Basilica has solemnly heard the name of Luigi Guanella, presenting to our gaze the singular adventure that led a simple mountain man to the glory of God. This is the title of one of his books writings: The mountain man. With pages of an autobiographical flavour, he traces the line of his entire life, the red thread of his priestly vocation, until hearing him exclaim: "I am happy with God". A flood had hit the Valtellina and he, shocked by the conditions of need and precariousness that his people had to face, wanted to offer comfort and ensure that the memory of it was not lost. And so he was always: internally challenged by the pain of others, whether it was cholera in Naples, or war, the earthquake in Messina or Avezzano, the abandoned old man and the disabled, orphaned children or poor people defrauded of their rights, of sick priests or with a sad story... Every situation becomes a good moment for Don Luigi to help his brother find in the fragility of human nature the tenderness of God who «observes man with sighs of love [...] and takes care of him as if he only had to provide for himself." Every human person can say: I am "the only thought" of God. A truth that consoles every heart and a vital principle that inspired in Saint Luigi Guanella the sweet ministry of charity and every one of his and our good works. […]
Saint Luigi Guanella's passion was for the "half step further", for small improvements, for the slow opening of the poor to trust and hope: his people were certainly not those who could bring much glory to those who he took care of it. Nor could he often expect great improvements: little, sometimes very little he could hope for from certain lives now in decline; but he knew that life at sunset has colors of a rare beauty, just as autumn is often the most colorful of the seasons, or the sun is "most beautiful at sunset", as he liked to say. Saint Louis knew how to give up his plate when someone was without food, or his bed when someone didn't know where to lie down; and this he has left as a legacy to all of you, his sons and daughters of yesterday, today and tomorrow. His will is clear: do not do injustice to charity and providence "do not put in the last place in the house those who should be first, the poorest, the most abject and abandoned person". Therefore a strong call to commitment so that no one is left behind in life.
As we look at this heaven that all the saints have transplanted onto earth, my thoughts, as a Salesian, go to the "long-lasting" bond of friendship and profound understanding between Don Guanella and Don Bosco, "one next to 'other', many have always thought of them that way. And the Salesians join the voice of those who at the moment of Don Guanella's death wrote: «the name of this man [...] goes down gloriously in history as that of a new apostle of charity, and we declare ourselves proud to have had him in list of our brothers".
Together with the Guanellian family gathered from the four continents we want to pray to him:
Saint Luigi Guanella, servant of those who are often forgotten and left behind in life, remind us that serving is a grace, and always point us to the Sacrament of Charity, where God comes close so that we too become close to our brothers, in joy. Help us to "live by faith like Mary" and enable us to celebrate and bear witness with our hearts and deeds to a living and sincere faith in the Lord Jesus. Amen!