Curated by Gianpiero and Ester Gamaleri.

 

The magazine Milano Studenti is strictly linked to the creation and development of Gioventù Studentesca, the Movement set up by Father Giussani which was later called Communion and Liberation. Here we intend to showcase numbers going from 1958 to 1963 of the magazine. Loyalty, openness, and freedom are the three keywords which best describe the story of the magazine. Loyalty refers to the magazine’s strong adherence to the spirit of the Movement: aiming at experiencing reality through the encounter and investing all of the energy of our sensibility and conscience, i.e. all of our humanity, in doing so. The encounter with Christ sheds light on the dark aspects of reality, giving them a new meaning through a quest. It is the search in the ocean “for the story of the Word which dominates everything and gives everything a shape and a meaning. Acknowledging and understanding the proposal of the Man is the greatest adventure of our human life. It enables us to embark on a meaningful journey, instead of experiencing just a few fleeting moments”.
Openness refers to the magazine’s intent to consider the Christian hypothesis in analyzing every aspect of history and contemporary life. By doing so, the magazine helps us discover that every event or interpretation of events does not contradict, but enriches the Christian experience with more elements allowing us to enhance our humanity. No aspect the world we live in was ignored in the magazine. From the Movement’s life to education, from missionary to cultural events: literature, cinema, theatre, art, architecture, poetry. Everything was analyzed and considered carefully, but also with a great sense of humor. Freedom refers to the way the magazine was created. Being consistent with the Movement’s beliefs did not mean constantly knocking on Father Giussani’s door in the legendary building in Statuto Street. In fact, the magazine was always run autonomously by high school students who were about to go to university. It was Father Giussani who, having read the magazine, quoted some sentences during the “raggi” – meetings with the students – and in his own texts. Therefore, it becomes clear that the highest level of harmony and consistency is only achieved when we do not feel any kind of restriction or control within our community, but we are all driven by the same spirit.