Andrzej Towiański Influences, Criticism and His Thought in Italy

ANDRZEJ TOWIAŃSKI REFLECTS THE STRUGGLE BETWEEN TRADITIONAL RELIGION AND OTHER TYPES OF FAITH BORN FROM MODERNITY, THE NATIONAL ONE ABOVE ALL. IN HIM WE CAN FIND AN ATTEMPT TO CONCILIATE AN OLD WORLD BASED ON RELIGION WITH A NEW ONE BASED ON THE PEOPLE; A TOTALIZING CHRISTIANIZATION OF LIFE. THIS WORK IS BASED ON THE COMPARISON BETWEEN THOUGHT AND THE ANALYSIS OF LETTERS AND DOCUMENT CONCERNING TOWIAŃSKI AND HIS ADEPTS. THROUGH A COMPARISON BETWEEN WRITINGS WE WILL ANALYSE THE INFLUENCES WHICH PROBABLY INSPIRED HIM: KABBALAH, LOUIS CLAUDE DE SAINT-MARTIN, AND EMANUEL SWEDENBORG; AND THROUGH THE CRITICISM RAISED TO HIM BY THE RESURRECTIONISTS PRIEST SEMENENKO AND THE ARTIST CYPRIAN KAMIL NORWID WE WILL DEFINE WHY TOWIAŃSKI’S THOUGHT WAS ADVERSED BY THE CHURCH AND WAS AGAINST THE CATHOLIC DOCTRINE. ANALYSING THE CORRESPONDENCE, WORKS AND ACTIONS OF HIS ITALIAN DISCIPLES, AND WITH A COMPARISON WITH THE MOST FAMOUS ITALIAN PATRIOT GIUSEPPE MAZZINI, WE WILL UNDERSTAND HOW TOWIAŃSKI’S THOUGHT INFLUENCED THE SPIRITUAL AND NATIONAL RENEWAL IN THE PROCESS OF BUILDING THE ITALIAN NATION. TO UNDERSTAND MORE CLEARLY TOWIAŃSKI’S THOUGHT AND ACTION WE TRANSCRIBED AT THE END A MEETING BETWEEN HIM AND AN UNIDENTIFIED ITALIAN ACOLYTE.