Curiosities - News Archive

In Rome there was a congregation for every need, every stage of life and every trade, including peasants. Reading the title of today’s article, we might think we are talking… Read more

Today we accompany some novices from the past to the door of the novitiate, to observe together what items they took with them at the beginning of their religious life.… Read more

Most Jesuit aspirants wanted to go on mission, but how many actually became missionaries? Very few, compared to the initial requests, let us read together some stories of vocation and… Read more

Thousands of men throughout the 20th century were able to obtain a degree by attending an institution, the Opera Massaruti, founded by a Jesuit, Fr. Carlo Massaruti. The education of… Read more

We often recount the religious life of Jesuit novices, fathers and brothers after they entered the novitiate, but before they became religious they had been sons, brothers, uncles, affections for… Read more

Today we board a ferry, alongside a young Jesuit on his way to China as a missionary. Letters sent by Fr Vincent Marchi to his family and confreres allow us… Read more

Organising a procession, yesterday as today, is not a simple matter, nor is it free of bureaucracy. It could have been even more difficult before 1929, when the relationship between… Read more

There were indeed numerous subjects studied by novices and scholastics on the way to becoming a Jesuit. Not only the Holy Scriptures, canon law and Church history, but also Latin,… Read more

For many fathers and brothers the vocation came at an early age. Sometimes letters survive from the aspiring novice asking to enter the Society, telling of his vocation. Today we… Read more

What roles could a laywoman play in the Catholic Church in the 20th century? Very few examples come to mind, which do not stray very far from the role of… Read more

Those living a vocation today are adults, often having finished their studies years ago: some leave important jobs, others feel the call early but need to mature the decision for… Read more

Today we take a closer look at the statement often found at the foot of some letters that bear a simple sign of the cross instead of a handwritten signature.… Read more