Romana

The fourth volume of Studia et Documenta (2010), the annual periodical dedicated to the history of Opus Dei and St. Josemaría Escrivá, appeared in June.

In this volume, Mercedes Montero discusses the beginnings of the first women’s residence opened through the initiative of St. Josemaría: the Zurbarán Residence in Madrid. Constantino Anchel provides information about the first corporate work of apostolate of Opus Dei: the DYA Residence-Academy. And Ramon Pomar looks at another important milestone in the history of Opus Dei that inspired similar institutions throughout the world: the Gaztelueta School in Bilbao.

Jose Manuel Cerda also speaks about a “pioneering spirit” in his article dedicated to Warrane College, in Sydney, Australia. Soon after it opened, it found itself in the “eye of the storm” of student protests in the early ’70s.

In the section Estudios y notas, we find two articles about St. Josemaría and two other prominent figures of the Church’s history in the past century. The first collects and comments on the correspondence between the Founder of Opus Dei and Juan Hervás Benet, bishop of Ciudad Real, and initiator of the Cursillos de Cristiandad. Its author, Francisca Colomer, describes the friendship that united these two great promoters of the spiritual life of the laity. In another article, Aldo Capucci describes the friendship between St. Josemaría and Blessed Ildefonso Schuster, Cardinal-Archbishop of Milan.

Other studies in this section focus on Harvard University and the Andean region of the Prelature of Yauyos, two very different parts of the world. John A. Gueguen continues an earlier article, published in the first volume of Studia et Documenta, about the beginnings of the apostolic work of Opus Dei in Cambridge, Massachusetts. While Esteban Puig writes about the Prelature of Yauyos, which the Holy See entrusted to Opus Dei. He stresses its role both in the growth of priestly vocations in Peru, and in the educational and economic growth of that socially disadvantaged region.

A biographical sketch of Narcisa (Nisa) Gonzalez Guzman, one of the first women of Opus Dei, by Francisca R. Quiroga, completes the Estudios y Notas section.

In the Documentation section, we find two series of letters. The first contains the letters St. Josemaría exchanged with Dolores Fisac, one of the first women of Opus Dei, which aside from their biographical interest, provide a look into the daily life of the refugees in legations and embassies during the Spanish civil war. The letters are edited by Yolanda Cagigas, with clarifying comments. The second group of letters, presented by Francisco Crosas, contains the correspondence between the Founder of Opus Dei and Bishop Javier Lauzurica of Vitoria, in the years 1934-1940. These are of interest not only for the history of Opus Dei, but also for the life of the Church in Spain during those turbulent years.

The section entitled Crónica (News) looks at the popular reception of St. Josemaría in the urban setting of Italy. Its author, Aldo Capucci, speaks about the many streets and squares that have been dedicated to the Founder of Opus Dei in Italian municipalities.