Abstract

Don Lorenzo Milani’s Pastoral Experiences was published by Libreria Editrice Fiorentina in the spring of 1958, in which he presented a lucid analysis that touched the exposed nerves of pastoral work in those years and triggered a national debate on the state of health of the parish and the de-Christianisation of the masses. After the positive reviews that decreed the success of the book, the diocese of Florence, the Secretariat of State and the Holy Office all took action to try to limit the circulation of the work, up until the decree of December 1958 that compelled its withdrawal from the market. The purpose of this article is to explain how this decision was reached, in the light of the new documentation that has emerged from the opening of the Vatican archives relating to the pontificate of Pius XII.