Last of the Romantics

By Mariano Fazio

“I love the freedom of others,” said St. Josemaria, “yours, that of the person passing by right now on the street, because if I didn’t love it, I couldn’t defend mine. But that’s not the main reason. The main reason is this: that Christ died on the Cross to give us freedom, so that we could live in the freedom and glory of the children of God.”

St. Josemaría Escrivá referred to himself as the “last of the Romantics,” and under this title Mariano Fazio portrays the founder of Opus Dei as a passionate defender of freedom. As he does so, Fazio offers an orderly, clear, and attractive presentation of many of St. Josemaría’s key teachings. These teachings will challenge his readers and hopefully awaken in them the same love of freedom that St. Josemaría bore in his heart. “Don’t let me be ‘the last of the romantics,’” he would say. “This is Christian romanticism: to love the freedom of others, with love and affection.”

Msgr. Mariano Fazio currently serves as Vicar General of the Prelature of Opus Dei. An Argentinian, he was ordained a priest in 1991 by St. John Paul II. He has been Rector of the Pontifical University of the Holy Cross in Rome, President of the Conference of Rectors of the Pontifical Roman Universities, and Regional Vicar of Opus Dei for Argentina, Paraguay and Bolivia. He is a historian and philosopher and has written several books of philosophical reflections on modern society and on secularization. Other books by Mariano Fazio published by Scepter include, Pope Francis: Keys to His Thought, A History of Modern Philosophy and A History of Contemporary Philosophy.