Nell'ambito delle loro esplorazioni marittime e armati del padroado, un diritto concesso dalla Santa Sede in vista dell'organizzazione della missione nei Paesi da conquistare, i portoghesi iniziano l'evangelizzazione del regno Kongo nel 1491. L'opera non ha successo per mancanza di una preparazione adeguata e per via di abusi nell'applicazione del padroado. Istituendo la Sacra Congregatio de Propagande Fide nel 1622, la Santa Sede abroga il padroado e affida l'evangelizzazione del Kongo ai Cappuccini italiani. Così iniziò nel 1645 la Missio antiqua , che si estinse due secoli dopo, quando l'ultimo cappuccino lasciò il territorio congolese. La missione si arrestò poi per trent'anni, poiché i missionari avevano trascurato la formazione di un clero africano che potesse subentrare dopo la loro partenza. Con l'autorizzazione della Santa Sede, i padri della Congregazione dello Spirito Santo, con sede a Parigi, prendono in carico la missione nel 1865, grazie alle intuizioni del loro fondatore, François Libermann, e al lavoro sul campo di un uomo straordinario, il baobab della missione africana del XIX secolo, Padre Charles Duparquet. I Padri Spiritani concentrano la loro opera sull'educazione dei giovani, al fine di realizzare una nuova società impregnata di valori cristiani.
Within the framework of their maritime explorations and strengthened by padroado, rights granted by the Holy See for the organisation of the mission in the countries to be conquered, the Portuguese began the evangelisation of the Kingdom of Kongo in 1491. They did not succeed in their efforts due to a lack of adequate preparation and because of the abusive application of the padroado. By instituting the Sacra Congregatio de Propagande Fide in 1622, the Holy See repeals the padroado and entrusts the evangelisation of the Kongo to the Italian Capuchins. And so began the Missio antiqua in 1645; it died two centuries later when the last Capuchin left Congolese territory. The mission was then stopped for thirty years; the missionaries having neglected the formation of an African clergy able to provide relief after their departure. With the authorisation of the Holy See, the fathers of the Congregation of the Holy Spirit based in Paris resume the mission from 1865, thanks to the insights of their founder, François Libermann, and based on the work of an extraordinary man, the 'baobab' of the African mission of the 19th century, father Charles Duparquet. The Spiritan fathers focused their work on educating the youth with the aim of birthing a new society imbued with Christian values.
Geoffrey Hindley instructively unravels the story of the Christian military expeditions that have perturbed European history, troubled Christian consciences and embittered Muslim attitudes towards the West. He offers a lively record of the Crusades, from the Middle East to the pagan Baltic, and fascinating portraits of the major personalities, from Godfrey of Bouillon, the first Latin ruler of Jerusalem, to Etienne, the visionary French peasant boy who inspired the tragic Children's Crusade.
THE NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER In God, Reza Aslan sheds new light on mankind's relationship with the divine and challenges our perspective on the history of faith and the birth of religion.
From the origins of spiritual thought to the concept of an active, engaged, divine presence that underlies all creation, Aslan examines how the idea of god arose in human evolution, was gradually personalized, endowed with human traits and emotions, and eventually transformed into a single Divine Personality: the God known today by such names as Yahweh, Father, and Allah.
Bold, wide-ranging and provocative, God challenges everything we thought we knew about the origins of religious belief, and with it our relationship with life and death, with the natural and spiritual worlds, and our understanding of the very essence of human existence.
PrefaceElucidation of religionReligion plays an important role in the cultures of our world. Belief in a Superior Force and the behaviours and practices that relate humanity to this Force is what unites mankind, and also what defines its differences. In Elucidation of Religion, Kavi Yogi Maharishi Dr.Shuddhananda Bharati informs us of the basic nature of religion and the journey the human soul must follow to achieve true bliss and union with God. He imparts and explains to us the practices and rituals that guide us along this sacred pathway, and how we may overcome the obstacles our human nature places in our way. Those seeking to understand and follow the pure path of virtue will welcome this work.Phyl Stewart
