Information on the activities of the Faculty of
Social Sciences, PUST - Roma
Celebrating our first fifty years...
The closing festivities of the year of celebration of the
50th anniversary of the (FASS) took place on Saturday 10th May 2003, Feast of St
Antoninus of Florence. Several hundred people were present, and the atmosphere
was really festive.
The day opened with a short welcome from the Rector,
Francesco Compagnoni OP, who pointed out some of the highs and lows of the 50
years of the FASS, and in particular mentioned some of the key figures who had
contributed to its development. There followed a challenging talk by Stefano
Zamagni on the possibility of recovering the 18th century tradition of "civil
economics" despite the philosophical attacks of Hobbes and Mandeville on the
principles of civil economy.
This tradition flowered in certain keys areas in the 18th
century, especially in Italy but also in Glasgow, and Adam Smith is one of its
last expressions there. It thus represents the oldest, "original" form of
independent economic thought, when the fledgling discipline was detaching itself
from that of philosophy. The first ever chair of economics, at the University of
Naples, was held at its inception by one of the most important exponents of the
civil economic tradition, Antonio Genovesi.
Subsequently,
however, this tradition of thought was submerged under Benthamite utilitarianism,
and when linked to increasingly Fordist types of technological development,
economic thought shifted to regarding marginal utility and scarcity as central
concerns; thus the dominant forms of economics as we know them today were born.
The main concerns of the civil economists, rather, had been happiness, the
virtues and the common good - all issues which are today seen, even by
economists, as increasingly urgent to address. Zamagni therefore argued
persuasively that the time has now come to transcend the dichotomy between a
technicist economics and abstract philosophical discussions about happiness by
re-discovering and developing the civil economic tradition of thought.
Speaking under the title "Memory and Prophecy", Gustavo
Gutierrez began with a remark of Bartolomé de Las Casas, the Dominican bishop in
Mexico who was among the first to defend the rights of the Indios, that the
insignificant and forgotten people are those remembered especially by God.
Throughout his talk, Fr Gutierrez developed the idea of memory as it is seen
biblically, particularly in relation to the situation of the poor. He emphasised
that the words "now" and "today" are key to understanding memory in the
scriptures. Another key point in his talk was that it is essential in this
complex and globalised world to "take a position", and for the Christian this
has to be one in favour of the poor (not because the poor are good or nice, but
because it is God who makes this choice, this preference, for the poorest and
most insignificant). God loves the poor in a special, preferen-tial way; he
loves us all, but has a special love for the insignificant, just as he has a
special "memory" of them as Las Casas reminds us.
These
major talks were followed by a concelebrated Mass, in which the intercessions
were made in all the languages of the students present in the FASS and at the
offertory procession the students brought up symbolic gifts, including a globe,
to represent their hopes of building more solidarity around the world, and an
empty jar, representing that while we have nothing to offer God or others, we
still give what we can. In his sermon, the Rector recalled the 15th century
Florentine Dominican bishop, St Antoninus, and what he had done to help the poor
and to develop the ethics of economics. After a party together, complete with
group photos and a toast to all those who had made it possible for the FASS to
arrive at this day 50 years on from its foundation, the group returned to the
lecture hall for a moving discussion between Gustavo Gutierrez and students,
lecturers and friends. Despite the large number there, people spoke from the
heart as well as the mind. One student from Salerno in southern Italy spoke of
the despair of the people around him who cannot find work; another from
Palestine talked of the desperate situation of his people, while others spoke
about their spiritual poverty and the need for them to connect their life more
to their faith. The talks described here have been published in the October 2003
issue of the internet journal OIKONOMIA, available at
http://www.oikonomia.it
Building our international network
One of the key objectives of the FASS in the near future is
to develop more international links with universities, the Dominican order, and
the local church in the various parts of the world. Here are some of the things
some of our professors have been doing in that regard . . .
Alberto Lo Presti: Argentina
Prof. Alberto Lo Presti was invited to Argentina for a week at the end of
January 2004 to speak to young people involved in politics. He inaugurated a
series of centres for social and political formation that have been set up under
the auspices of the Movimento Politicis por la Unidad, which aims to work
towards healing the wounds and the disunity that has characterised Argentina’s
recent past. The centres are in the main cities of Argentina, and attract many
young people from voluntary organisations and Catholic associations, as well as
professors from various Catholic and state universities. The students and
professors were able to learn about the programmes offered by the FASS, and were
especially attracted by its intercultural nature and its concern to view the
disciplines taught in an international light. Thus, ongoing contacts were
established that could lead, for instance, to an exchange of students between
the FASS and various institutions in Argentina.
José Ramon Lopez De La Osa: Istanbul and Berlin
José Ramon Lopez De La Osa is helping to build further links between the various
bodies of the Dominican order and the FASS, with particular reference to
interreligious dialogue and the intercultural society. In September 2003 he was
one of the speakers at a conference in Istanbul on the role of the Dominican
Order in interreligious dialogue in Islamic countries. Later in the year,
November 2003, José went to Berlin to participate in an international meeting at
the Catholic Academy on Ethical Guidelines for European Policy on Immigration.
The Marie Dominique Chenu Institute in Berlin, ESPACES (a Dominican institute
for spirituality, culture and society based in Brussels), and the FASS organised
the event. 82 specialists from 13 different countries took part, including
theologians, sociologists, ethicists and politicians.
Francesco Compagnoni: Krakow and Warsaw
Our specialist in bioethics and in human rights, who also happens to be our
Rector, was in the Jagellonian University, Krakow, in October 2003 to present a
talk on the social thought of John Paul II. The conference was part of a
celebration of the 25 years of this pontificate. Francesco took the chance to
meet with the Dominican students in Krakow, who number more than 100, and was
particularly impressed by their work with university students, hundreds if not
thousands of whom come to the Dominicans for intellectual and pastoral support.
In Warsaw, Francesco was able to visit the Thomistic Institute with its
impressive library and to meet more students there. We hope that in the near
future we may be able to have some Polish Dominicans in the FASS, both as
students and as teachers/researchers.
Helen Alford: Lviv and Kiyv
Our Dean was this year focused on building links with Ukraine, and hopefully
this will extend to other ex-communist countries in the future. Two visits were
made: one to the St Thomas Institute in Kiev and the other primarily to the
Ukrainian Catholic University (UCU) in Lviv. The first visit was primarily to
launch the Russian translation of the book Managing As If Faith Mattered,
published by the Kairos Press run by the Dominicans in Kiev. This went very well,
especially as there were many professors from the management schools in Kiev who
participated. The second visit brought the FASS into contact with the situation
of The monastery of Univ near Lviv Western Ukraine, the Greek Catholic Church
and the great progress and hope to be found in the UCU. Hopefully we will soon
have more solid contact with this very impressive, young and growing university.
In both areas, we are working to help set up programmes in the social sciences,
though this is more advanced in Kiev. We also hope that our contacts with these
two higher education institutions will bring them into a closer relationship so
that they can help each other directly too. Next year, the Dean hopes to make a
visit to the Philippines so that we can start to build links with the Dominican
university of Santo Tomas in Manila.
Our network continues to grow in new ways . . .
In September 2004 we will participate in a meeting to set up a network between
ourselves, a Catholic university in a developing country (University of St
Thomas, Manila), a Catholic university in an ex-communist country (Ukrainian
Catholic University, Lviv) and a US Catholic university (University of St Thomas,
St Paul, MN).
Degrees awarded From 1st May 2003 until 1st May 2004
Bachelors’ degrees
AGOM Gloria, BALVOCIUTE Elena, BUCUMI Jeanne, FOSCHINI Marco, FRUKACZ Mariusz,
JUOZAITYTE Jolita, KAZAKEVICIUS Romanas, PRZYDANEK Dorota Anna, FAIOTTO Stefano,
KRYJAK Joanna Maria, DEMBICKI Eugenij, GONZALEZ FALCON Edgard, ROTA Onofrio.
Licence degrees
TRAN Thi Thanh Luong O.P., The challenges of globalization for poverty reduction
in Vietnam, (Prof. P. Hop).
VINET Rodrigue, Iraq. The “Oil-for-Food” Humanitarian Programme as a tool to
alleviate the impact of the sanctions, (Prof. M. Aquini).
CALCARA fr. Giuseppe O.P., San Domenico in Soriano, un tentativo di lettura in
chiave sociologico-religiosa, (Prof. C. Longo O.P.).
LA ROSA Sr. Italia, Cittadinanza attiva e beni culturali, (Prof. A. Pilieri).
SASAKI Sr. Hiroko O.P., La sfida dello sviluppo integrale dell’uomo nella
società giapponese alla luce dell’enciclica Populorum Progressio, (Prof. P. Hop
O.P.).
GORINI Albino, Il lavoro sommerso in agricoltura, (Prof. A. Pilieri).
RODRIGUEZ PÈREZ Maribel, La previsione sociale: i problemi e i centri di
ricerca, (Prof. A. Lo Presti).
PELLÉ Alberto, La qualità nei servizi sanitari: considerazioni di carattere
economico e prospettiva etica, (Prof. G. Citoni).
CIGNA Rosario, La Casa Famiglia per persone HIV/AIDS e patologie correlate:
“Villa Sergio, luogo di ripartenza”, (Prof. A. Urso).
CRISTOFARO Claudia, Welfare:100 anni di legislazione sanitaria in Italia, (Prof.
F. Compagnoni).
PILLITTERI Giuseppa, Il ruolo della società civile (linee per uno sviluppo
sostenibile nella Città di Palermo), (Prof. P. Hop).
PARISINI Filippo, Storia della nascita della Coldiretti a Ferrara tra lotte
contadine e riforma agraria dal 1945 al 1960, (Prof. H. Alford).
FEDELI Daniele, Analisi dei costi e dei benefici in psicoterapia, (Prof. A. Urso).
SALOTTA Giovanni, Vigilanza etica nei rischi criminali della cyberfinanza, (Prof.
H. Alford).
AQUINI Marco, Il diritto allo sviluppo e le Organizzazioni Non Governative
(ONG), (Prof. H. Alford).
BALICE Don Giuseppe, La riforma agraria nella diocesi di Andria (1951 - 1961), (Prof.
A. Pilieri).
PATELLA Pasquale, La cooperazione allo sviluppo italiana in Albania, ruolo delle
ONG e presentazione progetto di formazione professionale, (Prof. M. Aquini).
CELESTINO Cesare, Roberto Assagioli: la sua via, new age e cristianesimo, (Prof.
A Urso).
SIDOR Beata, L’efficacia delle politiche dirette del mercato del lavoro nel
contesto della trasformazione della proprietà negli anni 1990-2000 in Polonia, (Prof.
H. Alford).
KATSAYAMBA KAMBUYI Anastasie, Le long parcours vers le Dibawu: Fiançailles, dot
et le mariage dans la culture bindji, (Prof. A. Lo Presti).
UKKEN Shaju, A Study of the Influence of Jacques Maritain on Human Rights Talk
in Pacem in Terris, (Prof. P. Compagnoni).
PYETUKHOVA Yanina, La cultura attuale della procreazione responsabile in
Ucraina, (Prof. A. Lo Presti).
KONONENKO Andriy, Il percorso storico del cattolicesimo ucraino come il fenomeno
politico-religioso nel contesto delle relazioni internazionali in epoca
contemporanea, (Prof. R. Pezzimenti).
MARETTOVA Petronela, Importanza dell’educazione degli adulti nella società di
oggi, (Prof. D. Van Ooijen)
Doctorate Exams Passed
DI CIACCIO SIMONA, Il capitale sociale come risorsa per lo sviluppo
economico, Uno studio su razionalità e relazionalità, Il caso Manila, (Prof. F.
Marzano).
MAWA MICHAEL, Humanitarian Action and Human Rights in Africa since 1990: An
Ethical Reflection on International Solidarity, (Prof. F. Compagnoni O.P.).
BIEDRZYCKI TOMASZ, Il Terzo Settore come espressione di solidarietà. Una
valutazione etica alla luce dell’Insegnamento Sociale della Chiesa, (Prof. F.
Compagnoni O.P.).
SERRERI SANDRO, Famiglia e lavoro nell’insegnamento sociale della chiesa da
Leone XIII a Giovanni Paolo II. Uno studio sui testi, (Prof. M. L. Gatto).
MATTIA ITALO, Il Congresso Eucaristico Internazionale Orvieto: 5-8 settembre
1896, (Prof. R. Pezzimenti).
Doctorates published
BIEDRZYCKI TOMASZ, Il Terzo Settore come espressione di solidarietà. Una
valutazione etica alla luce dell’Insegnamento Sociale della Chiesa, Romae 2003,
pp.211.
Doctorate projects initiated
CALCARA Don Giovanni, CIGNA Rosario, CONSO Vincenzo, GORINI Albino, MELEGA
Manuela, NDAYISHIMIYE Gabin, PARISINI Filippo, SIDOR Beata, TRAN THI THANH Luong.
. . . and looking forward to the next fifty
In the FASS, we are looking forward to meeting the many
challenges which we will face over the years to come. Here are some of the ways
we hope to face them:
By developing core competences or centres of excellence in
all the important areas of study of our department
We already have developed core competences in the following areas:
