【慈幼通訊社 ─ 2018 年 12月 05 日阿根廷默西德斯堡訊】 ─ 慈幼會士亞瑟‧林迪神父(Fr. A. Lenti)寫道：「描述鮑思高神父的一生，述說他的天賦，並非易事。但這傳記仍是有關鮑思高神父資料最豐富的泉源。」對慈幼會士來說，這傳記彷如他的聖髑，然而第十七冊的初稿，已不存在於慈幼會中央檔案室。多年來，人們認為初稿已遺失了，然而在這幾天，卻又原好地回到慈幼會中央檔案室。
對慈幼會士來說，這傳記是鮑思高神父生平的基本資料來源：在這些手稿中，能夠找到他的說話、寫作及文書。無疑，這些出自偉大寫作家如謝理雅神父(Fr Eugenio Ceria)等的手稿，確立了這巨著的權威性，直到今天仍廣為研讀。
這些原稿如何找到？南美洲區地區議員Natale Vitali神父這樣告訴我們：「在特殊視察阿根廷南部會省時，我到了默西德斯堡會院，那是鮑思高第八位繼承人韋基神父多年工作的地方。那裡有一所以聖母進教之佑為主保的聖堂，真福澤菲林的遺體，多年來安息在那裡。會院有一所學校、一所靜修院和一座博物館。現在，這裡是一所沒有修道團體的慈幼會院。」
在視察會院圖書館期間，找到了隱藏的寶藏：由謝理雅神父(Fr. Ceria)編著的傳記第十七冊。作者把這兩本筆記簿，贈送給1905年出生於松德里奧會省，當時在巴塔哥尼亞傳教的意大利籍慈幼會士Giuseppe Parolini神父。在第一頁上，仍可清楚看到謝理雅神父親手寫下的贈言：「Parolini神父：在我死後，請為我祈禱。」
Natale Vitali神父繼續說：「在徵詢慈幼會歷史學院Francesco Motto神父的意見後，得悉這些就是羅馬慈幼會中央檔案室遺失了的原稿。在白港的檔案室把筆記簿複印下來，當我回羅馬時，便帶著兩本筆記簿原稿回去。」
在回憶錄首十冊作者雷蒙恩神父(Fr. G. B. Lemoyne)去世後，當時的總會長李納德神父，決定把這按歷史—時間先後順序編著的工作，交予謝理雅神父。林廸神父形容謝理雅神父，為一位「以清新易讀風格書寫」的作家。
Found: drafts of lost volume of “Biographical Memories of Don Giovanni Bosco”, work by Fr Ceria
(ANS – Argentina–Fortin Mercedes, 05 December 2018) – “Narrating Don Bosco’s life and giving an account of his genius is not an easy task,” wrote Fr Arthur Lenti, SDB. “The Biographical Memories remain an inexhaustible mine of information.” For the Salesians the Biographical Memories (MB) are almost relics, but the drafts of the XVII volume were no longer present in the Salesian Central Archives. For many years it was thought that they had been lost, but these days they have returned intact to the Salesian Central Archives.
The MB are for Salesians a fundamental source of Don Bosco: in those manuscripts it is possible to find his words, his writings, his documents. Undoubtedly the drafts elaborated by great writers like Fr Eugenio Ceria, SDB, assume the authoritativeness of the master works, to be studied still today.
And how were these original documents found? This is what Fr Natale Vitali, Councilor for the South America South Cone Region, tells us: “During the Extraordinary Visitation of the Southern Province of Argentina I reached the house of Fortín Mercedes, where Fr Juan Vecchi, VIII Successor of Don Bosco, worked for many years. The house has a Sanctuary dedicated to Mary Help of Christians where the remains of Blessed Ceferino Namuncurá rested for many years. This house had a school, a retreat house and a museum. Today it is a Salesian house without the presence of a religious community.”
And during the visit to the house’s library, the find: the hidden treasure, i.e., volume XVII of Biographical Memories, edited by Fr Ceria. These are two notebooks that the author had donated to Fr Giuseppe Parolini, SDB, born in Lanzada, province of Sondrio, Italy, in 1905 and an Italian missionary in Patagonia. On the first page it is still possible to read a handwritten dedication of the same Fr Ceria: “To Fr Parolini: when I die, pray for me.”
“After consulting Fr Francesco Motto, of the Salesian Historical Institute,” continues Fr Vitali, “I learned that these were the originals missing from the Salesian Central Archives in Rome. The Bahia Blanca archive made a copy of it and I brought the two notebooks with me when I returned to Rome.”
On the death of the author of the first ten volumes of the MB, Fr Giovanni Battista Lemoyne, SDB, the Rector Major of the time, the Blessed Filippo Rinaldi, decided to continue the historical-chronological work to Fr Ceria; a writer “with a fresh and readable style” comments Fr Lenti.