Lorenzo Massa

Father Massa (seated at centre) with an earlier San Lorenzo de Almagro team, c. 1908. Father Massa (center) with San Lorenzo's idol Rinaldo Martino (left).

Lorenzo Bartolomé Massa (November 11, 1882 – October 31, 1949) was an Argentine Catholic priest. He was one of the main founders of Club San Lorenzo de Almagro and scout group Don Bosco's Argentine Explorers.

Early years Lorenzo Bartolomé Massa was born in Morón, Buenos Aires, Argentina, and his father, Lorenzo Massa, and mother, Margarita Scanavino, were born in Genova, Italy. His sisters, Ángela and Blanca, were also religious. On February 13, 1898, Lorenza was ordained to the priesthood by Joseph Vespignani. In 1900, Massa took his first job as a Salesian of Don Bosco Agricultural School in Uribelarrea until October 1902. Massa then continued at the College Pius IX as a teacher and assistant in theology. In 1908 he was appointed as the manager of the Oratorio San Antonio, in 4050 Mexico Street in the Almagro neighborhood of Buenos Aires.

Los Forzosos de Almagro (San Lorenzo) During 1908, Massa met a group of boys from the neighborhood named Los Forzosos del Almagro. The group was led by a young man named Federico Monti. explorers of Don Bosco Oratory will just be like leaven among others. "And stressed: "You shall preserve lifelong autonomy and self-regulation."

"Explorers of Don Bosco have emerged in the name of God and country to preserve and advance the moral and religious values of youth, arousing noble sentiments of patriotism, twinned with family affection, and respect for authority in a climate of expansive joy healthy companionship. Before the end of year 1, and the battalion had 165 explodes in uniform and perfect discipline" - the first Captain and Chief of the General Command, Mr. Ramón Cortés Conde. That same year, Father Joseph Vespignani was drafted by the Law of Scouts Honor of Don Bosco, published on March 12, 1930.

Death On the morning of October 31, 1949, Massa did not open the door of his room in Buenos Aires. A janitor entered and found Father Massa dead in his bed. At sixty-six years old, it is believed that he died of cardiac arrest. On October 31, 2008, his remains were deposited in the mausoleum built in his honor located in the Oratorio San Antonio, in 4050 Mexico Street.

Works Massa arrived in Tucumán in 1916 where he founded the first Salesian work in the province, through an Arts and Crafts Workshop then called Salesian College General Belgrano. He actively participated in the foundation of other Salesian houses, one of which now bears his name: Lorenzo Massa Technical Institute.

Legacy The film El Cura Lorenzo in 1954, starring actor Ángel Magaña, freely recreates the story of Massa in the San Lorenzo de Almagro's foundation.