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Published online by Cambridge University Press: 12 December 2020
Abstract
In 1886, the archaeologist Ernesto Schiaparelli promoted an association with religious, cultural, and patriotic aims devoted to: the protection of Italian missions; the spread of Catholicism; and, at the same time, the spread of Italian language and culture. During the years of harsh conflict between Italy and the Holy See, this association found it difficult to collaborate with both the Italian government and the Vatican authorities. For the majority of Catholics in Italy at the time, the association was accused of contiguity with the Freemasons: to the Italian government, the association was considered a tool of the Vatican. It was only at the beginning of the twentieth century, when the ‘Roman Question’ began to fade, that the association met with the approval of the Holy See and the government, both of which then financed it. The association brought valuable help to the missions, supporting Italy's colonial policy.
Keywords: National Association for Aid to Missionaries (ANSMI), Holy See, Italy, France, Franciscans, Roman Question, religious missions, Italian schools abroad, colonialism
The founding of the Associazione Nazionale per Soccorrere i Missionari Cattolici Italiani
The Associazione Nazionale per Soccorrere i Missionari Cattolici Italiani (National Association for Aid to Italian Catholic Missionaries, ANSMI) was established by Ernesto Schiaparelli (1856–1928). During his first archaeological mission at Luxor (1884–1885), the young Egyptologist had the chance to listen to the recriminations of the Franciscans operating in Upper Egypt, all Italians coming from the Reformed Province of Tuscany. According to the Franciscans, both Protestant and Catholic missions belonging to different nationalities were supported significantly by their own governments and private associations, whereas the Italian ones were working without any aid in extremely difficult conditions. All Italian missions had fallen rapidly into decay from the mid-1800s because of the dissolution of religious orders as well as the closure of the novitiates in their homeland. Being therefore impossible to guarantee adequate staff turnover in such conditions, the institutes in charge of Italian missions had to seek help from foreign religious orders and finance from other countries, which then asked them to spread their language and culture in exchange.
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