“Death for the Salesian is made bright by the hope of entering into the joy of his Lord, and when it happens that a Salesian dies for souls, the Congregation has won a great triumph,” said the Rector Major during the homily, citing article 54 of the Salesian Constitutions.
“These moments,” continued the Rector Major, “are not for making nice speeches, but for bearing witness to faith. I believe that not everything ends here, I believe that it is true that today Carlo is already in God, and we thank him for the life he has given us, joyful and passionate as a Salesian of Don Bosco. It is a day of pain but also of hope: in this present, which is not ours, death does not have the last word, God has already won it with the Resurrection and in a certain sense, Carlo has earned it. We thank God for giving us the life of our dear confrere.”
To remind all of the commitment and generous service of Fr Carlo were also prof. Fr Mauro Mantovani, Rector of the UPS, prof. Fr Mario Oscar Llanos, Dean of the Faculty of Educational Sciences, and Fr Stefano Aspitati, Provincial of the Salesian District of Central Italy, of which Fr Carlo Nanni was a professor. A greeting to Fr Carlo was also made by the Salesian Past Pupils who remembered him for his culture, "combative, concrete and full of active momentum."
Many sent a message of condolence for the loss of prof. Fr Carlo Nanni, the friend of the young. Among the messages, also that of Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone who, deeply saddened, wanted to remember "his sincere friendship, his relational ability, his competence and dedication as a scholar of education at the service of the Salesian mission, of the Italian Church and of the Holy See." Msgr. Adriaan van Luyn and Msgr. Luc Van Looy also spoke, highlighting Fr Carlo's joy and his fully Salesian charism.
On the afternoon of July 21, the funeral was also celebrated in the birthplace of Fr Nanni, i.e., Ischia di Castro (Viterbo), and he was buried in the family tomb.
