A reflection on how consistency and perseverance transform individual choices into memory, community, and identity.

For many, the beginning of September marks the return to work after the summer holidays. This end-of-season atmosphere brings to mind Federico Fellini’s I Vitelloni and the Rimini that, as summer draws to a close, seems to slowly rouse itself from its holiday interlude. Today, however—partly due to climate change—September is increasingly perceived as the final month of summer rather than the first month of meteorological autumn.

We, too, took a few days off, but August was nonetheless a particularly significant month. I attended a conference dedicated to the beauty of Saint Francis, and—above all—our city had the privilege of welcoming Pope Leo XIV, who arrived in Rimini following a stop in the nearby Republic of San Marino.

Two very different experiences, yet united by the ability of certain messages to transcend time and continue speaking to the present.

Saint Francis and a message that is still alive

Following the chronological order, I would begin with the conference dedicated to Saint Francis—photos of which you can find on our social media channels.

I was struck by the high turnout, the punctuality, and—above all—the audience's attentiveness: aspects that are by no means a given. Credit certainly goes to the organizers, who had prepared the event with great care, but also to the surprising ability of the Franciscan figure and message to still speak to people today.

In a presentation dedicated to Saint Francis in local art, Professor Maria De Mola guided us in discovering numerous artistic works—some of remarkable quality—preserved just a few kilometers apart. These works reveal the profound way in which Franciscan devotion has shaped this region and endured through the centuries.

Pope Leo XIV's visit to Rimini

And so we come to Saturday, August 22, a memorable day: the visit of Pope Leo XIV, more than forty years after that of Saint John Paul II.

Locals and visitors alike—to borrow a famous line from Leonardo Pieraccioni’s film Il Ciclone, given the city’s influx of tourists in August—gave the Pontiff a warm welcome, forming a crowd that was almost certainly far larger than just the community of practicing Catholics. As was noted with Saint Francis, the figure of the Pope exerts a pull and a fascination that transcend the religious realm.

Saint Marinus, Saint Leo, and a thousand-year-old manuscript

Before visiting Rimini, Pope Leo XIV was received in the Republic of San Marino by the Captains Regent. Upon reaching the historic center of San Marino City, he met with officials at the Palazzo Pubblico and greeted the crowd gathered in Piazza della Libertà.

On this occasion, he was presented with a limited-edition reproduction of the Vita Sanctorum Marini et Leonis, from the same edition featured in the Antiquus catalogue.

It is worth taking a closer look at this work.

The Vita Sanctorum Marini et Leonis is a complete reproduction of the oldest known manuscript recounting the lives of Marinus and Leo, two stonemasons bound by a deep friendship. Its pages tell the story of their journey from the Dalmatian island of Arbe to the shores of Rimini—a path fraught with danger and hardship, undertaken with unwavering Christian faith.

Marinus settled on Mount Titano, where the community destined to become the Republic of San Marino was founded.

Leone, on the other hand, founded the Christian community from which San Leo developed.

To this day, San Marino and San Leo seem to gaze at one another from atop their rocky crags, just as their founders were close in life. An interesting side note: San Leo is also home to the fortress where Count Cagliostro—who died in 1795—spent his final years. The fact that his burial place was lost to history helped fuel the mystery that still surrounds his figure.

The manuscript, dating from the late 10th to the early 11th century, was inscribed in the UNESCO Memory of the World Register in 2025. A facsimile copy was also exhibited for six months at the Republic of San Marino Pavilion at Expo 2025 Osaka, presenting an ancient yet universal story of friendship, migration, faith, and freedom to an international audience.

Every year on September 3rd, the Republic of San Marino celebrates both the feast of its patron saint and the anniversary of its founding, bearing witness to the inextricable bond between the figure of the Saint and the identity of the State.

In this case, too, the message transcends the religious dimension and speaks to diverse sensibilities, invoking universal values ​​such as friendship, freedom, inclusiveness, and a sense of community.

Beyond the headlines: consistency and perseverance

Beyond the accounts of individual events—which have already been covered in much greater depth online and on social media—I would like to focus on a few elements that these diverse experiences have in common.

Saint Francis possessed a strong, radical, and uncompromising personality; he was not a man of scholarly learning. Only two autograph texts of his have survived—including the famous Chartula, which is also featured in our catalog in a limited edition. He was not an artist in the traditional sense, yet for eight centuries his message has continued to speak to the heart with power and clarity. His life and words have inspired frescoes, illuminated manuscripts, paintings, poetry, and music—an immense artistic legacy born of the meeting between the simplicity of his message and the sensibilities of generations worlds apart.

The warm welcome extended to Pope Leo XIV in San Marino and Rimini does not seem to stem solely from his personal qualities. The Pope is welcomed also—perhaps above all—for the ministry he embodies and for what he represents: a legacy that the Church has safeguarded for over two thousand years and whose roots lie in Saint Peter and the early Christian communities.

It is a very long history, marked by persecutions and divisions, by errors and rebirths, by dark chapters and eras of great light. It is a continuity explained not merely by the solidity of an institution, but above all by the universal power of the Gospel message and the witness of the early martyrs, who chose to bear witness to it at the cost of their lives.

The story of Saint Marinus and Saint Leo seems to remind us that friendship, freedom, faith, and determination can give rise to something unique—something capable of enduring through the centuries and leaving a tangible mark on history.

What, then, is the common denominator of these stories? In my view, it can be summed up in two words: perseverance and consistency.

At the origin, we find men with frailties, limitations, and contradictions who, on the surface, lacked the necessary tools to leave such a profound mark on history. Saint Francis chose poverty and a life far removed from power. The early Christians formed small communities, often forced to live and profess their faith under difficult conditions. Marinus and Leo were two simple stonemasons who had arrived from a distant land.

And yet, from such fundamental human experiences, a legacy has emerged that has come down to us.

Their strength did not depend solely on words, but on the consistency with which those words were translated into concrete choices. The fraternity proclaimed by Saint Francis became a way of life. The faith of the early Christians found expression in witness and sacrifice. The friendship, freedom, and determination of Marinus and Leo laid the foundations for communities that remain alive today. Ideas did not remain abstract principles; instead, they became behaviors, deeds, and visible signs.

To consistency was added perseverance: the ability of the key figures not to abandon the path in the face of obstacles, misunderstandings, and difficulties, but also the ability of subsequent generations to safeguard that legacy and keep it alive in their own time.

Over time, these testimonies have revealed remarkable generative power. They have not remained confined to the spiritual realm but have given rise to communities, institutions, traditions, works of art, manuscripts, celebrations, and places where we can still recognize their presence today.

They have adopted different languages ​​and forms without losing their original core.

Consistency makes a message credible; perseverance allows it to endure over time.

The first, without the second, risks leaving behind an intense yet isolated testimony.

The second, without the first, can be reduced to the repetition of gestures that have lost their meaning. When, however, they proceed together, they succeed in transforming the experience of the few into a heritage shared by the many.

Perhaps this is precisely the reason why such figures continue to captivate and challenge even those who belong to a different era, possess a different sensibility, or do not share the same faith. When a value is lived out fully and passed on with perseverance, it transcends an individual life and becomes memory, culture, and collective identity.

Consistency and perseverance in daily life

To what extent do consistency and perseverance shape our daily lives? Far more than we usually acknowledge.

Consistency stems from the alignment between what we believe, what we say, and how we behave. It does not require us to be infallible, but rather to maintain a recognizable direction even when we make mistakes. It is upon this continuity that trust is built, in both personal and professional relationships.

Perseverance, however, becomes crucial when initial enthusiasm wanes, results are slow to materialize, and the journey proves more difficult than anticipated. It does not mean stubbornly persisting without reflection, but rather continuing to devote time, patience, and effort to what we truly value.

In daily life these qualities are manifested above all in small repeated gestures: a promise kept, a commitment respected, a job done with care, the willingness to start again after a mistake. Considered one by one they may seem irrelevant; added up over time, they build reputation, trust, competence and lasting relationships.

The great testimonies of history remind us that what endures rarely stems from a single extraordinary act. More often, it arises from the continuity of our daily choices.