It is significant that the second of the three books was entirely dedicated to religious instruction and education and followed, content wise, the subject matter offered by the Catechismus ad parochos.... Don Bosco almost certainly did not read Antoniano’s work, but thanks to his Christian and priestly formation, ended up being perfectly in tune with post-Tridentine praxis and the notion of family education reflected in Antoniano's book which contributed to its continued existence.
The text mirrors and displays a well-outlined Christian and theological basis for human, religious and moral educational praxis. "The very first goal of this book and what makes it different from some other similar publications, is the fact that it deals with education as Christian education, which could never take place without the knowledge and observance of God's laws, and thanks to his holy grace”.92 This is what Antoniano focused on, at the end of the second book entirely dedicated to "Christian doctrine". But the learned Bishop did not forget that Christian education necessarily includes a human and civic dimension.
Therefore it is the fathers’ task to raise their children civilly and in a Christian fashion;93 to
make sure that the children grow up to be honest people, namely good citizens, children
really good in the intimacy of their heart, out of love for God and virtue...It is their task to
urge them not to yield to greed, which is the most cruel of tyrants, but to serve god 's
will.94… Right reason and faith are the means to contribute to the formation of children in
becoming upright people and good citizens from their early infancy.95
This formation can be accomplished when private ‘paternal’ education, and ‘common’ education under State authority work together, are integrated and are in harmony: "Private education should be linked with public education which, in turn, should perfect private education". "There is nothing more healthy for a Republic than to have private education oriented in such a way that the good discipline learned by a child through family education is continued in public education, and even be improved on, since it stands to reason that the public good is greater and more perfect than the private good”. It is also right that such cooperation should take place both on the moral and Christian levels, mainly because "any study of moral education turns out to be weak and imperfect if it is not connected with Christian education which is the highest and most excellent of any other form of education and its highest goal.” Therefore, "while the ecclesiastical rector makes sure to bring out the good Christian, with the spiritual authority and means his goal demands, at the same time, he does his best to bring out the good citizen... “Consequently, those who separate what should be joined make a great mistake. They think they can have good citizens by other rules and through different means than those which contribute to making a good Christian”.96
Summing up, once duties related to care of the body, natural life, moral and rational education have been responded to, the proper task of the Christian and of all the faithful is that of raising children according to the rules of Christ so that, by living and dying well and in a holy way, they may become God’s instruments on earth for the benefit and help of human society and, later on, heirs of the Kingdom of God itself."97
Antoniano prefaces his thoughts on family education with two brief points of clarification. First of all, family education should only take limited account of gender and age differences of the children being
Cardianle di S. Prassede, Arcivescovo di Milano. In Verona 1558, by Sebastiano dalle Donne et Girolamo Stringari,
Capmpagni [184 ff].
92 ibid, Dell’educazione, Book II, Ch. 140, sheet 122v.
93 ibid, book 2, Ch. 124, sheet 108v.
94 ibid, book 2, Ch. 128, sheet 111r-v.
95 ibid, book 1, Ch. 7, sheet 4r-54; book I, Chap. 37, sheet 2lv-22v; book II, Chaps. 126-127, sheet 116v-117v. 96 ibid, book 1, Ch. 43, sheet 25v-26r.
97 ibid, Dell’educazione, Book I, Ch. 4, sheet 2v.