Marcelo Benítez

A song that calls

The vocation of Pietro Casani

www.edicionescalasancias.org

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A song that calls. The vocation of Pietro Casani

Author: Marcelo Benítez

Year of publication: 2025

Publicaciones ICCE

(Instituto Calasanz de Ciencias de la Educación)

Conde de Vilches, 4 - 28028 Madrid

www.icce.es

ISBN: 978-84-7278-

Depósito legal: M-

Imprime: Gramadosa

Translator: Fr. Antonio Marco Sch. P.

Copyright is reserved.

Reproduction, publication and distribution, whether total or partial, of all the original material contained in this book is expressly forbidden unless written authorization has been given.

For further information contact: www.icce.es

A song that calls

The vocation of Pietro Casani

To the young people who, like Pietro Casani,

are led by God on surprising paths

to become members of the Pious Schools.

And to those who, in the name of Christ,

are committed to awakening

and forming new vocations

in fidelity to Calasanz.

Born to great things

The sun peeked over the walls of Lucca’s old town. It was a beautiful summer morning and there was activity everywhere. Pietro was walking along quietly and happily when he was surprised by the shouts of his friend Antonio, who greeted him enthusiastically:

–I have finally found you! Where have you been? Happy birthday, dear Pierino! We have been looking for you all over the town. Where have you been?

The emotions on Antonio’s face were changing from joy to concern.

–Are you avoiding us? Have not you forgiven us for last year? You know it was a youthful folly. We promised you we’d never do anything like that again! We confessed to Friar Paulino and repented! We would never forgive ourselves if you had been paralyzed by our stupidity.

Antonio barely caught his breath and continued to speak in short bursts without calming down.

–Pietro, Pierino, we are your friends and we need you. You are a godsend for us. You make it easier for us to be good. I thought you had forgiven us. Man, we admire you. None of us would have been able to resist the temptation to lock ourselves in with such a beautiful courtesan, to take such a leap from the balcony into the garden and come out in one piece. This year we will celebrate in a healthy way, just as you wish. There will be meat and fruit, wine and songs. Your cousin Giacomo and all his friends will come. Annibale’s sister will also be there, who is just as noble and good as you. There has always been a good harmony between you. She would be the ideal woman for you, Pietro. The families have been friends for years. Everything is planned, we will go for a walk and eat in the Fabrizzis garden. You will come, won’t you?

Pietro smiled at him with affection and sympathy, patted him on the back, almost like a child calming down, and said:

–Antonio, here I am, I am not going anywhere, I am not running away from you or from anyone, nor do I hold any grudges because of last year. Even you have become a good friend of Friar Paulino and confess to him every week! In the end, it did not get that bad. You have stopped doing stupid things, you think before you act and you are noticeably happier. Of course I will go to celebrate with you, I am happy to have you, I am happy about many things. Happy and grateful. You are a gift from God to me too, I am blessed to have so many friends. Besides, as you know, I have never suffered from being an only child because you always make such a fuss about me. Let us go to the others.

Antonio smiled again at this answer and hugged Pietro again, whispering to him with emotion:

–Thank you so much, dear friend. It’s just that I am the one who can not quite forgive the difficulties and risks I have caused you and myself. And I am afraid of losing you because of my empty head and crazy heart. But it’s all right now. Let us go and celebrate with the others.

They began to walk through the alleys of the old town to meet the others. While they were talking animatedly about the party, Antonio suddenly stopped and asked:

–Among so many other things, you did not end up telling me where you came from so early and where you are so happy.

Pietro cleared his throat before answering, deeply moved.

–To celebrate another birthday, because there’s one that’s more important than mine. Don’t you remember that today we are celebrating the birth of the Blessed Virgin? I was in the cathedral and helped with the mass at the altar of the Nativity of Mary. And then I went to the Church of Saints John and Reparada, where I was baptized right after I was born, to give thanks. It is a special gift for me to be born on the same day as Our Lady. She did it for something great: to be the Mother of Jesus Christ, our Lord. I too, who was born on the same day, want God to do great things to me.

When Antonio heard this, he became very excited:

–Yes, Pietro, let us do great things like our ancestors, so that Lucca may flourish and prosper compared to the other cities that subjugate it. We will regain our glory and emerge victorious.

Pietro smiled again and quickened his pace. He thought that this was not the greatness that Mary had sung about in the Magnificat.

The whole day passed solemnly and joyfully, from morning to night, not only with his friends in the field, but also with his parents at home, at night. The words of the Marian hymn, which accompanied him from Mass throughout the day, kept returning to his heart: “My soul sings the greatness of the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior.

Before going to bed, he knelt before the holy image of the crucifix that stood in his room and prayed from the bottom of his heart:

–Thank You, Lord, for creating me, for being born on the same day as Your beloved Mother, for making me a Christian through Holy Baptism, for receiving You this morning in Holy Communion, and for allowing me, by Your grace, to overcome the strongest temptations I have ever had. Thank You, Lord, for my parents and friends, for the health and well-being I have always enjoyed, for the good education I have received, for all the affection they have shown me today, for the music and because I am so happy. I have received so much, I have so much, maybe too much; I do not deserve it and it overwhelms me. Lord, so many gifts are flooding me. I do not know how to thank you better and how to use it well. Why have I been given so much?

When he raised his eyes to Christ again, he saw him naked on the naked cross and said resolutely:

–I know, Lord, I know. You have given me so much so that I too can distribute it and give it away. Like Mary, I want to give everything without keeping anything for myself.

At the end of the day, he was nineteen years old, on September 8, 1591, Pietro Casani recited the Magnificat again. Every word was filled with power and light, fulfillment and promise. He felt as if he was saying it for the first time.

Kneeling before the Light

The organ of the church of San Francesco de Lucca rang out loudly and the voices of the friars joined in praising the Blessed Sacrament displayed on the altar. The smoke of the incense rose and the gentle fragrance spread throughout the environment. Among the faithful kneeling in the darkness of the nave was our Pietro, who had his eyes fixed on the Lord.

She prayed for the soul of her beloved mother Elisabetta, who had recently died, and for his father Caspar, who was grieving for her and was going blind. He had left behind the joy of his summer birthday party. Now, in the cold winter, regret seemed to want to take possession of his heart. Pietro offered resistance to the temptation of melancholy. He did not want to rejoice in his pain or gloat over his sorrow. He overcame himself and thanked the Lord for the gift of such a good mother and a father who had loved him so much. If he was here now, worshipping the Lord and having the strength to endure the pain, it was because of the faith that had been instilled in him from an early age in his childhood home.

He felt at home in this Franciscan convent. There, as an external student, he attended the philosophy and theology lessons given to the student brothers every day. It was his passion to understand the created reality and to penetrate deeper into divine revelation in contact with the wisdom of the saints. Due to his family situation, he had discarded his original plan to study at the nearby University of Pisa and accepted his situation as the only son of a widowed father with calm and responsibility.

Moreover, in the convent he had the opportunity to practice the organ every day, and an old friar helped him to perfect his excellent qualities as an organist more and more. The old Franciscan publicly declared him to be his best student. In truth, music filled his life and he devoted his free time to practicing at home with the harpsichord and the lute, often in the company of his good friends, with whom he enjoyed singing all kinds of songs. He was also encouraged to repair and build some instruments. He carried music in his soul and singing and playing was, after prayer, his greatest comfort in this time of distress.

Wrapped in the darkness of the church and looking at the altar lit with so many candles, he focused his attention on the whiteness of the consecrated Host and lifted his heart to his King and Lord. Even in pain, he felt secure and strengthened in God.

Then he joined the choir of the friars who began to sing:

My God, my heart is firm,

I will sing and play with all my soul:

Awake, zither and harp,

for I will awaken the dawn;

I will give thanks to you before the people, Lord,

I will sing to you before the nations:

for your goodness that is greater than the heavens,

for your faithfulness that reaches to the clouds.

Rise above the heavens, my God,

and may your glory fill the earth;

that your favorites may be saved,

may your saving hand answer us.

At that moment, a ray of light passed through him. He lowered his moist eyes and bowed even lower in worship. In the silence that followed, he thought he heard a murmur dwelling within him. Finally, he dared to name what was coming from his heart:

I am an instrument of You, Lord.

I want Your voice to always echo on my lips.

I will sing and play for you. For you it is my music, Lord.

A miraculous vocation

Pietro was already twenty-one years old and had successfully completed his studies with the Franciscans. Many people from Lucca and of course all his friends had come to see him compete with an Augustinian friar as the crowning glory of his career. Everyone was impressed by the liveliness of his wit, the solidity of his arguments and the polite friendliness with which he treated his opponent. Such eloquence in a young man from such a prominent family in the city enhanced his reputation and perhaps foretold a career in politics or business.

Pietro looked after his practically blind father, worked with him in managing the family fortune and devoted himself to music. He became increasingly fervent in prayer and on days when the Blessed Sacrament was not solemnly exposed, he simply knelt before the tabernacle. The light that burned at the tabernacle was his beacon.

He still went to the Franciscan church to play the organ. The old Franciscan organist, his beloved teacher, had died. Pietro held his post provisionally while he helped a young, inexperienced friar, to take over.

He also attended, as he had always done, the church of Santa Maria de Corteorlandini, which was close to his home and where he had received his first communion as a child. His father favored this church not only because of its convenient proximity, but above all because of the fervor of the priests with whom he was related or friends. They were in the process of founding a new congregation dedicated to the Virgin Mary under the leadership of Father Giovanni Leonardi, a great preacher. They were few in number, came from the most select part of Luccan society and were passionate about the salvation of souls through a holy priesthood lived in community. They endeavored to reform the church in the spirit of the Council of Trent and cultivated a deep Marian spirituality. The Casanis had contributed to the purchase of a new organ for the church, which the young Pietro often played with fervor and mastery, especially on Saturdays dedicated to the Blessed Virgin.

One Sunday, after High Mass in Santa Maria de Corteorlandini, father and son returned to the house and ate together in animated conversation. The food had been prepared by the maids the way the deceased lady of the house liked it. These familiar tastes comforted and encouraged them. Caspar asked Pietro to play his favorite pieces on the harpsichord and they sang together in harmony. They ended, as was customary in the Casani house, with songs to the Virgin Mary, which warmed the family atmosphere with special intimacy and emotion.

After a deeply felt silence, the father spoke at length:

–Pietro, dear son, do not think that I cannot see you because I am blind. It seems to me that I see you even better now. In every tone and in your beautiful voice I sense a longing that I fear you do not realize yourself. I see that you are bound to my attention, that you are a young lion in a golden cage, and I think you should encourage yourself more. Do not think that I do not appreciate your love and care, as precious as your music and singing. I sense that there is something important you need to do, a fundamental step you need to take. Perhaps you need to visit our relatives in Pisa or Florence. I think that perhaps it was wrong for you to stay here by my side when your mother died. You could have gone to college, to Pisa, Bologna or Rome. My pain prevented me from realizing that at the time. But as I said, now that I am blind, I can see everything better. Believe me.

Pietro, who was shocked, answered hastily:

–‘But, father, do not say that. I feel at home here with you, in our house, and I am happy to help you in any way I can. I really enjoyed studying with the friars and I still have a lot to read and learn, thanks to the good books we have at home and that I like to read to you. In truth, I have not had a bad time at all. I have everything, I play my instruments, my friends are close to me...

His father did not let him continue:

–‘Shut up, silly boy. You are a Casani, but you are no longer a puppy, you have the fire of a lion in your heart. Enough of continuing to be tied to me and my pain. You must find your own way. Do not worry about me. I am blind and widowed, but not sickly or depressed. I have no lack of loyal servants and even less of loyal friends. That is the hallmark of the family. Besides, our inheritance ensures us a good life and will allow you to move freely. Travel, explore the world, find a good Pisan or Florentine girl, because the ones from Lucca do not seem to be for you; or be encouraged to resolutely follow whatever else God inspires in your heart. Sometimes I think if your mother had not died and I was not blind or you had more siblings, you might have dedicated your life to God.

Although I have such a terrible character, as they say about me in Lucca, I have old friends who put up with me and love me well, attentive servants who look after me, a nice house and a good income. God has also given me an even greater treasure: a son who will make me happy with whatever he decides for his life, because I am convinced that whatever it is, it will be very good, noble and holy and will bring honor to our family name. Pietro, I bless you and send you, just as the old and blind Tobit blessed his precious son Tobias and encouraged him to get his life on track. Perhaps even I myself, who have always gone ahead of you in everything, will find a better way to live what lies ahead, in your footsteps. Certainly yes.

Pietro had the feeling that his father’s words broke the walls of an inner dam that prevented the music that came from his heart from flowing freely. His blind father had helped him to see and now he had no choice but to act accordingly.

The next morning, he crossed the road to go to the church of Santa Maria de Corteorlandini, like someone crossing the Rubicon or conquering a new continent. When he met Father Gianbattista Cioni, the rector of the house and master of the novices, he kissed her hand and knelt at her feet. The priest was surprised and heard the sonorous words that came like a song from young Pietro’s loving heart:

–With the grace of God and your help, I want to become a priest of the Virgin Mary.

The chronicle of the Congregation of the Virgin Mary of Lucca, written by Father Cesare Franciotti, has recorded this happy event forever:

“That year it pleased God to move the spirit of a young man who was been taught by our people since childhood, because he was from the parish, son of the good Caspar, called the blind man…. and since his vocation was considered miraculous, especially because he had a father with a very terrible temperament, our people did not believe that the rigor of the usual six-month examination was necessary, and they gave him the habit on the Monday after the Sunday of the Octave of Easter. Later he achieved excellent results and even convinced so many to religious life, that even his own father, although blind, decided to join our people”.

Decisive meeting

The year 1614 begins, Father Pietro Casani is in Rome, he is forty-one years old and has already been a priest for fourteen years. He is on his way to a new and important mission entrusted to him by his superiors because he is one of the best religious in the small Congregation.

Expectation, anxiety, confidence and longing are interwoven in his heart, in the rhythm of every step. There is so much to thank and appreciate, so many miracles that God has worked in his life! Pietro sings with Mary in the Magnificat: The Lord has done great things for me.

He is moved by every memory that he collects and offers to Our Lady: the rigorous novitiate in which he had discovered that, if he wants God, he must become completely poor before Him and for Him; the close relationship with the venerable founder of the Congregation of Lucca, Father Giovanni Leonardi, whose assistant and secretary he soon became in the reform of several monasteries; the challenge of redoing all his philosophical and theological studies in Rome in order to assimilate the teaching of St. Thomas Aquinas; the solemn ordination to the priesthood in the Lateran Basilica in the Holy Year 1600; and the serene death of the founding father from whom he had learned so much. The Lord has done great things for me.

Of all the memories, some make his heart burn more: the apostolate with the young people of Lucca through the Confraternity of Our Lady of the Snows, which Pietro had founded shortly after his ordination; the priestly vocations that had sprung up among these extraordinary boys; the fruitful years as novice master and teacher of these same young people who had now become clerics and to whom he had given a part of his own soul as a spiritual father; and, the miracle of all miracles, that his old father had taken the step of leaving all honor and wealth behind to also become a member of the Congregation of the Virgin Mary, as a humble lay brother. Now he shared not only the blood with the old Caspar Casani, but also the religious vocation, in the same spiritual family.

All these memories mark the rhythm of his steps, while the recurring melody of his life keeps returning to his heart, the song of Mary in the Magnificat: The Lord has done great things for me.

On the advice of Cardinal Giustiniani, the current superior of the congregation, Father Alessandro Bernardini, had now sent him to a well-known priest in Rome. The people of Lucca wanted to join him and his flourishing work to consolidate and spread the Congregation. They have chosen Pietro to begin this delicate undertaking.

He turns the corner to the Basilica of Sant’Andrea della Valle and makes the sign of the cross, convinced that if God has already done and so much, even greater things will happen. Trusting in Our Lady, he reaches Piazza de Massimi and crosses it, putting a flock of pigeons to flight. Knock on the door of number 4 and wait to be received.

He is quickly ushered in and finds a crowd of children populating the small courtyard framed by pillars. In the background is a fountain from which several people are drinking and cooling off.

He has arrived at the Pious Schools, the work that is being talked about so much throughout Rome, and at this very moment the students are taking a break, playing in the courtyard, accompanied by their teachers. Several children approach him spontaneously and greet him with respect and trust, as if he were one of their teachers. One of them in particular catches his eye: bright eyes, worn but clean clothes, distinguished manners.

–What’s your name? –Father Pietro asks him.

–My name is Francesco Ruzzolo, to serve God and you, Father.

–Do you live around here, Francesco?

–Not so much, Father. My family lives next to the Madonna dei Monti church. My father repairs shoes and I work with him after school. You see –he says as he shows a small wound on his left hand –this is where I hurt myself yesterday when I was helping him, but it does not hurt at all anymore; my mother knows how to heal us well.

–Tell me, Francesco, how long have you been coming here?

–This is my fourth year at the Pious Schools. My parents are very happy and grateful. In the evenings at home, I always tell them what we learn at school. I am already reading Virgil. My favorite hero is Aeneas the pious, and I would like to be like him. My teacher is very old and very wise, his name is Caspar Dragonetti and he comes from Sicily. I am sure you know him because he is very well known in Rome and has even taught the Pope! He encouraged me to write Latin verses under his guidance. Would you like to listen to them?

Father Pietro encourages him and Francesco recites with perfect diction some simple and elegant verses dedicated to Our Lady that amaze the visitor.

Francesco was barely finished his recitation when another student made room in front of Father Pietro. He is younger and smaller, but very lively. He introduces himself with his name Angelo and really looks the part, although he is quite disheveled and very hot, due to the intensity of the break. The little one joins in with a cheerful voice:

–Here we learn to sing too. Father Abbot Glicerio teaches us, and I love it. Do you like singing too, Father? That would have to be on a Saturday, when all the students and teachers come together in church to sing to Our Lady. That’s my favorite day of the week. Would you like to join us?

Good Pietro feels his heart tremble; these children touch all the strings of his soul. As he is about to answer, the bell rings and Francesco immediately takes his leave, dragging Angelo with him:

–We have to go, Father. It was a pleasure to meet you. Now it’s my turn to the Continuous Prayer and I will ask the Lord for you. We hope to see you again. It’s better if you come on a Saturday, as Angelo says. You will enjoy it.

The students go in order to their classes or to the oratory with their teachers and Pietro stays behind and ponders what he has just experienced. Seeing poor children who are so well educated has moved and captivated him. One Saturday, when they invited him to sing to the Virgin Mary with them, he had to hold back his tears. The other words of the Magnificat come to his heart: He lifts up the humble and fills the hungry with good things.

Talking to Angelo and Francesco immediately puts him at ease and he is in a good mood for the conversation he has come to have. Although the courtyard is now quiet, you can hear the murmur from the classrooms and the church. That’s good music, says Pietro to himself. A moment later, he realizes that he is no longer alone. There, at the foot of the stairs, is a very tall priest with a white complexion and a venerable appearance, with reddish hair that is beginning to turn gray, who greets him with a friendly voice and a Spanish accent. It is Joseph Calasanz.

As soon as he has introduced himself, Pietro can no longer hold back and expresses his feelings:

–Father Joseph, I must congratulate you, I am amazed at what you are achieving here with these poor boys. I had heard it from many people, but now I have seen it and it has touched me. They have a fluency of expression and a kindness in dealing with them that surpasses the noble boys of Lucca I have had contact with so far. You can see how much they love the Blessed Virgin. Despite their poor clothing and humble origins, they look like princes.

–They really are, Father Pietro. These poor people are children of God and adopted brothers of Jesus Christ, who bought them as such with his precious blood. They are his dearest members, because our King and Lord was born poor, from a poor mother in a poor place, to enrich us with his poverty. He came to proclaim the good news to the poor, he declared them blessed, he said that he would consider what we did to his lesser brothers as what he did to himself, and he died naked, stripped of everything, on the cross.

Calasanz’s every word makes him vibrate. He continues passionately:

–In the Pious Schools we try to enrich these poor people with all the virtues that are the true treasure, so that they can have the best life on earth, according to the talents that God has given them, and go towards heaven. It is wonderful to discover the extraordinary qualities that God has distributed among these little ones. We must not despise or neglect them. With a little help in cultivating their talents, miracles will be accomplished, not only for their personal benefit, but also for the good of society as a whole.

Sitting by the fountain, the conversation flows lively and refreshing. Calasanz listens attentively and Pietro feels the depth of his gaze penetrate his soul. This moment will leave an indelible impression on his heart. He has found a source of life in Calasanz and will never doubt that “the water that comes from his spring is the purest”.

The conversation between Casani and Calasanz that began that day was a harmonious counterpoint between two souls brought together by God. Pietro will remember everything Joseph said to him at their first meeting, especially the words that challenged him the most:

–We need more laborers for this very fruitful harvest, endowed with great diligence and a special vocation. We insistently asked the Mother of God, who is also the Mother and Queen of these schools where the little ones grow up like her divine Son. Perhaps God listened to the Blessed Mother and sent you through Cardinal Giustiani and Father Bernardini. Some time ago, I had the grace of dealing with Father Giovanni Leonardi and I witnessed his beatification process, because I consider him a saint. I confess that I have asked him in my heart for the miracle of your taking charge of this work of the Pious Schools. The fact that you are here today and that you are surrounded by the boys and so enthusiastic as soon as you arrive fills me with hope.

Pietro had always had great teachers and very good friends, but on this happy day he met a priestly sister soul with whom, surprisingly, he felt in complete harmony. As they talked, he realized with admiration that Calasanz had received from God the score he had been trying to decipher all his life: radical devotion to Jesus Christ, renunciation of all earthly goods out of love for the Crucified One, in the service of his poor little ones, priestly apostolate focused on children and young people, and total consecration to the Mother of God, in a pact of eternal slavery. He can hardly believe it. To him, the only son, God gives an elder brother. To him, who had won his friends and even his own father for the service of God, the Lord now grants to be a faithful follower.

On January 24, 1614, Pietro writes to Caspar, his father, who lives in Santa Maria de Corteorlandini in Lucca:

“Pope Paul V. has entrusted to our congregation the great work of the Pious Schools of Rome, of which we have been told that it is, if not the first good work of Rome, at least the second, because there all the poor children of Rome are taught not only grammar, but also writing and to do accounts and the Christian life, frequently exhorting them to confess and take communion and teaching them Christian doctrine, so that Cardinal Giustiniani has said that through this work the reform of the Church would come about. Today there are about 800 students and alms come from everywhere. The house in which the schools are housed is located in one of the most prestigious squares in Rome and is attached to the church of St. Pantaleo. Pray to God to give me spirit and light to fulfill his will in all that the superiors entrust to me for this high and above all very useful work, not only in Rome but in the whole world”.

Soon he will move to the Pious Schools with some Luccan companions and will dedicate himself passionately to the school apostolate. Every day he will become more involved with Calasanz, also in growing friendship with Caspar Dragonetti, Glicerio Landriani and the other collaborators of the work.

Although the attempted union between the Pious Schools and the Congregation of the Virgin Mary of Lucca lasted just over two years, Pietro soon understood that there was no turning back for him. God wanted him to stay with Calasanz forever, in poverty and in the service of the young. Some companions from Lucca, who had been drawn to the religious life through him, also stayed with him in the Pious Schools.

At this decisive moment, his closest cousin and childhood friend came to Rome to visit him, accompanied by his twelve-year-old son, whom Pietro had baptized a few days after his birth. When they inquire about Father Casani, the brother porter says to them:

–Please come in. Father Pietro of the Nativity of the Virgin is waiting for you. In a moment, one of the novices will go to him to tell that you have arrived.

After the warm greeting with the cousin and his son, they have a lively conversation, with fond memories of the past and an update on things in Lucca. When, in a moment of greater intimacy, he is asked what it was like for him to leave his old community, Pietro answers with cheerful conviction:

–One day I left my father and my birthplace to become a Priest of the Virgin Mary. Now I am leaving my priests of the Virgin Mary, among whom is also my beloved father, to be a Poor of the Mother of God in the Pious Schools. This is how the Lord has shown me. Today I see clearly how he has led my life and I want to give everything without looking back.

The fire of these words marked the hearts of the two who heard them and, above all, ignited the spirit of the boy, who felt compelled to take the step with his uncle and would do so. Four years later, on March 7, 1621, the young Carlo Casani, a native of Lucca who had just turned 16, donned the Piarist habit and, like his uncle Pietro, became a Poor of the Mother of God of the Pious Schools.

Get-together in the novitiate

It was a cold winter’s night and after dinner the novices crowded around the fire for a fraternal gathering. Father Pietro, who had grown older in the meantime, accompanied them. The novices, their faces illuminated by the flames, began to ask him questions, one after the other:

–Is it true, Fr. Pietro, that you were the first to wear the Piarist habit from the hands of our founder and the first to take solemn vows after him?

–Is it true that you were the first novice master of the Order and the one who wrote the Rules of the Novices that we follow?

–Were you not also the first Assistant General of the Order, the first Provincial Superior in Liguria and Naples and the first General Commissioner and Visitator in Germany?

Old Father Pietro smiled and added in a lowered voice:

–Yes. And also the first to follow our founding father through the streets of Rome, as a prisoner of the Holy Office, on August 8 last year...

The logs crackled and the fire flickered, and everyone felt a special warmth envelop them. Father Pietro, making his voice a little clearer, inflamed their hearts with words that were hotter than the dancing flames.

–What counts before God is not to be first in anything, no matter how important it may seem in the eyes of men, but to love, because Christ humbled himself and out of love became the last and the servant of all. We, as Poor of the Mother of God, must imprint the words of the Holy Gospel in our hearts and choose the humility that Christ our Lord chose. Do you not realize that our Order is not called to occupy the first places in the Church, but to the littleness and poverty of the young whom we serve? As the apostle says, our life is hidden with Christ in God, and we give him glory with silent and daily devotion. Whether we stand here or there, higher up or to the side, is secondary and incidental as long as our place is next to the Lord. We are united to Christ by the most precious and valuable bonds, sweet chains of love, as it says in the song I taught you yesterday. What do you think if, instead of continuing to talk, we sing instead?

With the enthusiasm typical of youth, the novices brought him an instrument, which Pietro knew how to play masterfully despite his age and infirmity, and they sang in unison:

Marvelous chains given to me, bound to you, set free I am.

Wealthy with you, in my poverty.

Whatever I have I give it to you.

For your poor ones all my possessions,

your grace for me it is enough.

I have no nest No spot to rest, but at your side I have my place.

Beloved Jesus, thine is my life, and all my jewel,

thy holy love.

Gentle restrains given to me.

Bind me to You, since free I am.

Pietro felt that the Lord had awakened this song in his heart. He had composed it many years ago, kneeling before the tabernacle, when he was a young man who did not yet know what to do with his life. At that time, the living presence of the Lord in the Eucharist became so certain, attractive and captivating to him that he could not help but feel drawn to a total surrender.

Throughout his priestly life, he had experienced the celebration of the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass as the center of his day and the axis of his life. He had asked Our Lady for the gift of treating the Lord with the same love, the same reverence and the same care with which she received, treated and offered her divine Son. Through Mary’s intercession, he received the unique grace of one day seeing the infant Jesus on the altar and was also able to recognize him in the faces of the little ones and the poor in everyday life.

Now, as an old man, despite the terrible trials that the Order he had helped to found and build as Calasanz’s right arm had gone through, he felt it was all a precious gift. He was a happy man who had received infinitely more than he had given. He considered everything a loss as long as he had gained Christ Jesus. He confirmed the truth of the fulfilled promise: “I assure you that everyone who has left his house, brothers and sisters, mother and father, children and fields for me and the gospel, will receive from now on, in this world, a hundredfold in houses, brothers and sisters, mothers, children and fields, in the midst of persecutions; and in the world to come he will receive eternal life” (Mk 10:29-30).

On that cold Roman night, when he saw the novices’ faces lit by fire and their hearts illuminated by the flame of their common vocation, he encouraged them to improvise new lyrics. So, they added verses to the song in which the Constitutions of the Order, written by Calasanz, resonated and in which Pietro had recognized the final score of his life:

On the way to the summit I go up, as I go down,

narrow road that leads to love.

You have led me to the Pious Schools;

there is no doubt, they are my place.

The poor children, they are my treasure,

because in them hidden You are.

Enrich them with virtues, give them the letters with piety.

With all my brothers I was convoked

to labor hard in this your harvest.

Poor and chaste, for You, obedient,

co-operator of the truth.

I want to bear well-seasoned fruit,

rooted in You, Christ Jesus.

I seal with you, my Mother Mary,

the eternal covenant of slavery.

The fire went out, but none of them seemed to feel cold or darkness, while they sang, barely a whisper, in quiet prayer:

Gentle the chains you gave to me,

binding to you, unchained I am,

well-off with you, in my poverty,

how much I have today, I give to you.

Months later, Father Pietro fell ill. He died a saintly death in Rome on October 17, 1646, completing the sacrifice of his dedicated life. So many people attended the funeral that the church of San Pantaleón was filled for days with crowds of worshippers who came to venerate the remains of the servant of God who was buried in the same temple.

When someone wanted to console Father Joseph of the Mother of God, the founder of the Pious Schools, about the death of his friend and companion, at such difficult moments when the Order seemed to be failing, the old man responded with a fiery look and a confident voice:

–Father Pietro of the Nativity of the Virgin Mary tried all his life to follow the will of God. He discovered that his place was in the Pious Schools, and he persevered as a Poor of the Mother of God until he reached his goal. He was such a good and faithful companion on earth that I am sure he will not abandon us now that he is happily singing to God with the choir of angels in heaven. On the contrary, his help will be even more powerful and effective from there.

In Casani, Calasanz had found the treasure of an ever-faithful friend who looks in the same direction and walks with him, the companion of the greatest adventures and mirror in which to recognize the work of God.

With moist eyes and a burning heart, Calasanz silently made a single request to his friend in the Lord, which, dear reader of these pages, can also be yours today:

Attract, Pietro Povero, by the power of Christ, your only wealth,

others like you; let them come to the Pious Schools

to sing the praises of the Lord

doing good to the little ones.

Amen. Amen. Amen.

Biography

Blessed Peter Casani of the Nativity of the Virgin Mary was born on September 8, 1572 in Lucca, Italy, the only son of Caspar and Elisabetta Draghi in a wealthy Tuscan noble family. He received a Christian education in the parish of Santa Maria de Corteorlandini, which was close to his house, and completed higher studies in philosophy and theology as an external student in the Convent of St. Francis in his home town.

In 1594, he joined the Congregation of the Reformed Priests of the Virgin Mary (now the Order of the Mother of God), which had been founded in Lucca in 1574 by St. John Leonardi for the exercise of the priestly ministry in accordance with the reformist spirit of the Council of Trent.

After returning to study philosophy and theology at the Collegio Romano of the Jesuits, to assimilate the doctrine of St. Thomas Aquinas, he was ordained a priest in Rome in 1600 and devoted himself primarily to the formation and spiritual direction of young people, leading many to follow Christ through his word and example.

In 1614, sent by his community of origin to lead other companions, he joined the Calasanzian work. Three years later, when the Priests of the Virgin Mary gave up the continuation of the Pious Schools, Casani decided to stay with Calasanz and the children forever.

He was the right-hand man of St. Joseph Calasanz in the founding of the new Order, the formator of the first generations of Piarist religious –including the venerable Glicerio Landriani– and the organizer and superior of many Piarist houses and provinces in northern and southern Italy and in the areas of central Europe afflicted by the Protestant heresy.

With his fervent preaching and the example of his devoted and selfless life, he attracted many young people to join the Order of the Pious Schools and formed them into true Poor Men of the Mother of God in the service of Christ to the little ones.

He died at the age of 75 on October 17, 1647 in Rome and was beatified by John Paul II on October 1, 1995.

The Church prays in his memory this liturgical prayer:

O God, giver of all good,

who have granted to Blessed Peter Casani, Piarist priest,

to give precedence to the inscrutable riches of Christ

before anything else, and to teach them to others,

grant us, we beseech You, that illumined

by his example and his doctrine,

we grow up in the knowledge of your things

and to lead a faithful life

to the teachings of the Gospel.

Through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Table of Contents

Born to great things

Kneeling before the Light

A miraculous vocation

Decisive meeting

Get-together in the novitiate

Biography