Rev. TRAGELLA, Giovanni Battista PIME
鄢若翰神父

Death of Father Tragella, P.I.M.E.
Missionary Writer Formerly of Hong Kong
R.I.P.

Father John B. Tragella of the Pontifical Mission Institute (PIME) died in Rome on 13 January 1968 at the age of 82.

Father Tragella was well known for his writings on missionary subjects and for his influence in encouraging missionary cooperation, especially in Italy. Only two years ago, after his 80 birthday, he went to Asia for the sixth time to study the development and problems of the missions in India.

He began his missionary career as a young priest in Hong Kong in 1912, shortly after becoming a member of PIME. Bronchial asthma obliged his recall to Italy after a very brief service abroad but his entire life was spent for the missions. Having assisted Father Paul Manna in the publishing of the periodical Le Mission Cattoliche and other missionary publications, he himself became director. He also collaborated with the Rivista di Studi Missionary and other cultural publications including Stadium, La Scuola Cattolica and Concretezza.

When Benedict XV established the Faculty of Missiology at Propaghanda Fide University. Father Tragella became its first professor. During World War II he served as librarian at the University. He was Assistant to the Superior General of his society and also its archivist. While occupying these positions he made frequent visits to the missions in Asia and he collected 20 volumes of information on the work of missionaries of PIME. One of the fruits of his studies is a three-volume work on the Pontifical Foreign Mission Institute, which inspired John XXIII to call him a Baronius of recent mission history. He wrote a biorgaphy of Father Manna under the title Un’Anima di Fuoco (A Soul of Fire). He translaated Schmidlin’s from German. History of the Catholic Missions (Three volumes), Schurhammer’s Life of St. Francis Xavier and Thomas Ohm’s Western Christianity. As Seen by Asiatics. His last book Le Missioni ieri e oggi was published by Studium only two years ago.

His great joy was to meet missionaries and his great ambition was to be a missionary.
9 February 1968


◆ 先賢錄－－香港天主教神職及男女修會會士 (1841-2010), 天主教香港教區檔案處, 2010.
◆ 先賢錄－－香港天主教神職及男女修會會士 (1841-2016), 天主教香港教區檔案處, 2016.


TRAGELLA Giovanni Battista.pdf