Book series features Jesuit historian’s life, works

Book series features Jesuit historian’s life, works

The four-volume book set about the life and writing of the first Filipino provincial superior of the Society of Jesus The Selected Writings of Horacio de la Costa, S.J. JESCOM

By CBCPNEWS

April 12, 2018

MANILA

The written works of Fr. Horacio de la Costa, a renowned historian and the first Filipino provincial superior of the Society of Jesus, are now enshrined in the well-documented four-volume book set The Selected Writings of Horacio de la Costa, S.J.

Compiled and edited by Roberto M. Paterno and published by the 2B3C Foundation, the book set is “a must-have for followers of Jesuit scholarship and thought, as well as for history buffs,” reads a press release by Jesuit Communications (JesCom).

The first volume, Selected Writings of His Youth, 1927-1945, revisit the early days of Horacio Villamayor de la Costa: from his humble beginnings in the town of Mauban, Quezon Province to his enrollment at the Ateneo de Manila at 11. The book also details the soon-to-be priest’s journey into manhood, where he displayed his academic brilliance, graduating summa cum laude with a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1935.

Priest at 30

Readers can explore the humble spirituality and faith of de la Costa in the second volume Selected Homilies and Religious Reflections.

The book also outlines his spiritual journey from entering the Sacred Heart Novitiate after graduating from the Ateneo. Twenty-five years after, after ordination as a full-fledged Jesuit at age 30, de la Costa eventually served in Rome as General Assistant and Consultor to Jesuit General, Fr. Pedro Arrupe.

Looking at PH history

In the third volume, Selected Studies in Philippine Colonial History, the communicator, writer, teacher, and servant of the Lord, looks at Philippine history as one of the founders of the International Association of Historians of Asia, and a member of the Philippine Historical Association and the National Historical Society. According to the press release, de la Costa’s extensive accounts provide a “holistic understanding of Philippine history.”

In the fourth volume, Selected Essays on the Filipino and His Problems Today, his writings also shed light “on the challenging social conditions and polarizing issues.”

The Selected Writings of Horacio de la Costa, S.J. is available at the Tanging Yaman stores located at the ground floor of the Sonolux Building in the Ateneo de Manila campus, and at the 5th floor Atrium of SM Megamall. For inquiries, interested parties may call tel. (632) 426-5971 local 113.