James Alberione, SSP ( it, Giacomo) (4 April 1884 – 26 November 1971), was an Italian

Catholic priest The priesthood is the office of the ministers of religion, who have been commissioned ("ordained") with the Holy orders of the Catholic Church. Technically, bishops are a priestly order as well; however, in layman's terms ''priest'' refers only ...

, and the founder of the Society of St. Paul, of the Daughters of St. Paul, of the Pious Disciples of the Divine Master, of the Sisters of Jesus the Good Shepherd, of the Sisters of Mary Queen of the Apostles, and other

religious institute A religious institute is a type of institute of consecrated life in the Catholic Church whose members take religious vows and lead a life in community with fellow members. Religious institutes are one of the two types of institutes of consecrate ...

s, which form the

Pauline Family The Pauline Family is a Roman Catholic congregation of nine institutes of consecrated life (religious and aggregated institutes) and an association of lay collaborators. it was founded by Blessed James Alberione in 1914. Mission The Pauline missi ...

. The first two groups are best known for promoting the Catholic faith through various forms of modern media.

Early life

Alberione was born on 4 April 1884, in San Lorenzo di Fossano, Cuneo, then in the

Kingdom of Italy The Kingdom of Italy ( it, Regno d'Italia) was a state that existed from 1861, when Victor Emmanuel II of Kingdom of Sardinia, Sardinia was proclamation of the Kingdom of Italy, proclaimed King of Italy, until 1946, when civil discontent led to ...

. The Alberione family, made up of Michael Alberione, Teresa Allocco and their six children, were farmers. He was the fourth son of a peasant family and had a more delicate physical constitution than his brothers.Lamera, Stephen, ''James Alberione: a Marvel for our Times'', Daughters of St. Paul, 1977
/ref> At the age of sixteen, James entered the seminary of

Alba, Piedmont Alba ( pms, label=Piedmontese, Arba; la, Alba Pompeia) is a town and ''comune'' of Piedmont, Italy, in the Province of Cuneo. It is one of the main cities in the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Vineyard Landscape of Piedmont: Langhe-Roero and M ...

,"Fr. James Alberione (1884-1971)", Vatican News Service
/ref> financially aided by his uncle James, who was his godfather from whom his name is derived. He and his father traveled to the seminary riding in an ox-driven cart. At the seminary of Alba, his spiritual director was Canon Francesco Chiesa, who is now a "Venerable". On the night of 31 December 1900, the night that divided the 19th and 20th centuries, he prayed for five hours before the Blessed Sacrament and contemplating the future, felt that he was called to do something for the people of the new century. Inspired by the example of Saint

John Bosco John Melchior Bosco ( it, Giovanni Melchiorre Bosco; pms, Gioann Melchior Bòsch; 16 August 181531 January 1888), popularly known as Don Bosco , was an Catholic Church in Italy, Italian Catholic priest, educator, writer and saint of the 19t ...

(1815-1888), he was one of the first to engage in a mission to educate and evangelize exclusively through the mass media.

Founder

Alberione was ordained on 29 June 1907 (Feast of Sts. Peter and Paul), and became a parish priest in

Narzole Narzole is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Cuneo in the Italian region Piedmont, located about south of Turin and about northeast of Cuneo. Narzole borders the following municipalities: Barolo, Bene Vagienna, Cherasco, La Morra, ...

. He received his doctorate in theology, in 1908. Alberione founded a total of ten religious congregations, aggregated institutes, and lay cooperators. These congregations use modern media technology and published materials to spread the word of God and help in personal devotions.

Society of St. Paul

On August 20, 1914, he put two teenagers, Desiderio Costa and Tito Armani, to work in a small pressroom under the guidance of a printer friend of his. Thus began the "Little Printing School of Typography" now known today as The Society of St. Paul whose purpose is to "Live and to Give Jesus Master the Way, the Truth, and the Life" through the most modern means of communications, press, cinema, television, radio and other modern media."Venerable James Alberione", Holy Family Institute
/ref>

Other congregations

After founding the "Little Printing School" (now Society of St. Paul) he gathered a group of women in 1915; together with Venerable Mother Tecla Merlo, he founded the female counterpart of the Society of St. Paul, the Daughters of St. Paul. More congregations and institutes followed after. Thus he founded: *1924: The Pious Disciples of the Divine Master (PDDM), with Servant of God Mother Maria Scolastica Rivata, the contemplative members of the Pauline Family whose members would be especially dedicated to Eucharistic Adoration, Liturgical Preparations, and Priestly Services. *1938: The Sisters of Jesus the Good Shepherd (also known as: "Pastorelle") works in schools and parishes by providing religious instruction *1957: The Sisters of Mary Queen of Apostles works and pray for vocations for the Pauline Family and to the Religious Life *1958: The Institute of St. Gabriel the Archangel (lay consecrated men whose apostolate is also that of the Society of St. Paul) *1958: The Institute of Mary of the Annunciation (lay consecrated women whose apostolate is also that of the Society of St. Paul) *1959: The Institute of Jesus the Priest (for diocesan clergy who would like to adopt the Pauline Spirituality to their ministry), *1960: The Institute of the Holy Family (for married couples) and *1918: The Association of Pauline Cooperators Alberione served during the

Second Vatican Council The Second Ecumenical Council of the Vatican, commonly known as the , or , was the 21st Catholic ecumenical councils, ecumenical council of the Roman Catholic Church. The council met in St. Peter's Basilica in Rome for four periods (or sessions) ...

as a ''

peritus ''Peritus'' (Latin for "expert") is the title given to Roman Catholic theologians attending an ecumenical council to give advice. At the Second Vatican Council, some ''periti'' (the plural form) accompanied individual bishops or groups of bisho ...

'' (theological expert), participating in the private sessions during which the decrees of the Council were formed and shaped, for the approval of the Council Fathers in full session.Blessed James Alberione: Communicator of the Gospel by Domenico B. Spolentini, SSP; Handouts in Pauline Spirituality by Celso Godilano, SSP

Death and veneration

Alberione died of natural causes on 26 November 1971 in the Generalate House of the Society in

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

. He had received a personal visit by

Pope Paul VI Pope Paul VI ( la, Paulus VI; it, Paolo VI; born Giovanni Battista Enrico Antonio Maria Montini, ; 26 September 18976 August 1978) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City, Vatican City State from 21 June 1963 to his ...

an hour before he died. He was buried in the sub-crypt of the

Basilica In Ancient Roman architecture, a basilica is a large public building with multiple functions, typically built alongside the town's forum. The basilica was in the Latin West equivalent to a stoa in the Greek East. The building gave its name ...

of Mary Queen of the Apostles in Rome. Alberione was declared

venerable The Venerable (''venerabilis'' in Latin) is a style, a title, or an epithet which is used in some Western Christian churches, or it is a translation of similar terms for clerics in Eastern Orthodoxy and monastics in Buddhism. Christianity Cathol ...

on 25 June 1996, and was

beatified Beatification (from Latin ''beatus'', "blessed" and ''facere'', "to make”) is a recognition accorded by the Catholic Church of a deceased person's entrance into Heaven and capacity to intercede on behalf of individuals who pray in their nam ...

on 27 April 2003 by

Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II ( la, Ioannes Paulus II; it, Giovanni Paolo II; pl, Jan Paweł II; born Karol Józef Wojtyła ; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was the head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 1978 until his ...

, along with five others:

Marco d'Aviano Marco d'Aviano, born Carlo Domenico Cristofori (November 17, 1631 – August 13, 1699) was an Italian Capuchin friar. In 2003, he was beatified by Pope John Paul II. Life Carlo Domenico Cristofori was born in Aviano, a small community in th ...

, a priest and member of the

Order of Friars Minor Capuchin The Order of Friars Minor Capuchin (; postnominal abbr. O.F.M. Cap.) is a religious order of Franciscan friars within the Catholic Church, one of Three " First Orders" that reformed from the Franciscan Friars Minor Observant (OFM Obs., now OFM ...

; Eugenia Ravasco,

virgin Virginity is the state of a person who has never engaged in sexual intercourse. The term ''virgin'' originally only referred to sexually inexperienced women, but has evolved to encompass a range of definitions, as found in traditional, modern ...

and founder of the Congregations of the Daughters of the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary; Maria Domenica Mantovani, virgin and co-founder of the Institute of the Little Sisters of the Holy Family;

Maria Cristina of the Immaculate Conception Brando Maria Cristina of the Immaculate Conception Brando (1 May 1856 – 20 January 1906), born Adelaida Brando, was an Italian saint, nun and the founder of the Congregation of the Sisters, Expiatory Victims of Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament, an intern ...

, founder of the Congregation of the Sisters, Expiatory Victims of Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament, and

Giulia Salzano Giulia Salzano (13 October 1846 – 17 May 1929) was an Italian Roman Catholic professed religious and the founder of the Catechetical Sisters of the Sacred Heart of Jesus (1905). Salzano served as a teacher prior to becoming a religious and sinc ...

, virgin and founder of the Congregation of the Catechist Sisters of the Sacred Heart."Pope beatifies "father of cappuccino"
BBC. Retrieved 9 August 2012. The pope said, during his homily for the ceremony, said that Alberione left "a formidable heritage". According to John Paul II, Alberione "felt the need to make Jesus Christ, the Way, the Truth and the Life, known 'to all people of our time with the means of our time', as he liked to say. He was inspired by the

Apostle Paul Paul; grc, Παῦλος, translit=Paulos; cop, ⲡⲁⲩⲗⲟⲥ; hbo, פאולוס השליח (previously called Saul of Tarsus;; ar, بولس الطرسوسي; grc, Σαῦλος Ταρσεύς, Saũlos Tarseús; tr, Tarsuslu Pavlus; ...

, whom he described as a 'theologian and architect of the Church', remaining ever docile and faithful to the Magisterium of the Successor of Peter, a 'beacon' of truth in a world that is so often devoid of sound spiritual references".

Legacy

Alberione used modern means of mass communication to spread his message.Bernadin, Joseph L., in the Forward to Lamera, Stephen, ''James Alberione: a Marvel for our Times'', Daughters of St. Paul, 1977
/ref>

References

External links

Writings of Bl. James Alberione, Pauline Family
{{DEFAULTSORT:Alberione, James 1884 births 1971 deaths People from Fossano 20th-century Italian Roman Catholic priests Italian book publishers (people) Italian Roman Catholic writers Catholic media Participants in the Second Vatican Council Founders of Catholic religious communities Pauline Family Italian beatified people 20th-century venerated Christians Beatifications by Pope John Paul II Venerated Catholics by Pope John Paul II Italian publishers (people)