Saint Joseph Calasanz and Galileo Galilei before the Inquisition

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In 1592, the Aragonese priest Joseph Calasanz (San José de Calasanz / Giuseppe Calasanzio) arrived in Rome and was deeply moved by the plight of the city’s street children, especially in Trastevere. At a time when education was a privilege, he defended it as a basic human right. In 1597, at Santa Dorotea, he founded what is often considered the first free popular school in Europe, and later established the Piarists (Pious Schools / Escolapios) to ensure the mission would endure. Calasanz became a forerunner of modern pedagogy, promoting not only humanities but also science and mathematics—and he admired Galileo Galilei, supporting him when Galileo faced difficulties with the Inquisition. Yet Calasanz himself suffered opposition, internal intrigues, and the painful suppression of his work, which he accepted with the patience of Job. The video then tackles the Galileo affair: What really happened? Was Galileo tortured or imprisoned? How did biblical interpretation, personal tensions, and political-religious conflict shape the trial—and later fuel the myth of an inevitable war between faith and science? From the historical context to the commission established by Pope John Paul II and the 1992 statement, we explore why the Church consistently affirms the harmony of faith and reason.