The Love of God's People

Chapter 5

ishop Conforti dedicated a lot of time in prayer, even though he was not a monk.  In the serenity of that “nest of eagles,” as he used to call his community, and with the fresh air of his native Parma, he regained his strength.  On September 16, 1907 Pope Pius X sent Conforti a letter, asking him to become collaborator of the dying bishop of Parma, Bishop Magani.  The Pope began his letter with these words: “It’s two of us who are asking you this great favor, a service to be accepted at any cost and personal sacrifice.”  It was a request from both the Pope and the Bishop of Parma, and Conforti accepted with the words “On the tomb of the Apostles, I now vow to die on the Cross.”

Bishop Magani died soon after, and Conforti was a “missionary in his land,” ready to combat battles from many fronts.  His heart was saddened by the departure of many priests of the diocese.  There was social rebellion in Parma, with known anti-clericalism, which undermined the spiritual and social growth of the city and surrounding farming communities.  Bishop Conforti found himself trying to fight religious ignorance and indifference, with a gentle yet firm hand.  It was his first pastoral priority.

Once, during a pastoral visit, as he was having dinner with one of his priests, Bishop Conforti said to the priest: “Most Reverend Pastor, what a big difference between this table cloth and the altar cloth.  And yet, on the altar we feed ourselves of the Body of Christ, while here we eat only earthly food!”

Because of his closeness to his priests and his people, because of his many confessions and homilies, and because of his many visits to the sick, the dying, and those in prison, Conforti’s fatherly love reached out to many.  He told his secretary, as he was coming home from a mountain village: “Every pastoral visit reminds me of being a missionary!  How hard it is to be heading home!”  In many occasions, Conforti would find a group of poor beggars on the steps of the Cathedral or in front of his house.  It was the harsh reality of a city divided in two, by the river.  Those who lived across the river were poor families, searching for their daily bread.  And those on this side, affluent people, yet looking for their own good.  There was a Franciscan friar, Fr. Lino, true man of charity, who encouraged the rich of the city for the need of change in their lifestyle, and to consider the plights of the poor in their city.   They had become complacent in their ways, who thought of themselves as socially advanced, while forgetting that they were first of all Christians.  It was the height of social hypocrisy, atheistic thought, social materialism, all of which created an abyss of insensitivity and mistrust among the people.

Urged by a true missionary spirit, Bishop Conforti tried to bring peace among them, and to bring the Gospel deeply in those fertile and generous souls.  He used to say: “They are not bad people, but ignorance abounds among them.  We need to bring them a piece of bread wrapped in a page of the catechism.”  Bishop Conforti was a pioneer in teaching the Christian religion in a systematic way.  He also thought about a liturgical reform, for he saw how his “people are strangers to the Eucharistic Celebration.”

Bishop Conforti wrote a vast archive of letters and documents during his years in Parma, which showed the wide scope of pastoral activities and the many relationships he established in different fields, with the sole purpose of extending the Reign of God.  “Faith has always been the norm of my life and thought.  This faith, I have always desired to proclaim, the faith of the apostles, the faith of the Church.”