EXPOSED TO LOVE

A Bicentenary Reflection on Don Bosco's Mission amongst the young. 

  

1 Exposure

Don Bosco is  ordained a priest;

He goes  to the city

·         He walks its street,

·         he enters the slums,

·         he visits the prisons.

“I was horrified! I saw large numbers of youth, fine healthy youngsters, alert of mind, - seeing them idle there, infested with lice, lacking food for body and soul, really shocked me.

Public disgrace, family dishonour, and personal shame were personified in those unfortunates.

What shocked me most was to see that… they were aban­doned to their own resources.”

·         Don Bosco still walks the streets today

·         Still goes to the cities

·         Still meets the young.

2 Rejection:

It was a dark night when I came upon the little boy.

Who are you? I asked.

He replied.

I am abandoned.

I am alone.

I am an outsider, even in my own family.

I belong no where.

I belong to no one.

Living hurts me.

Each day I hear that I am nobody.

I am a throw away.

I am a mistake.

I am a burden.

I am a parasite.

People are right to get rid of me.

People are right to want me out of the way.

I am without a home.

I am without any true friends,

          Because I cannot trust anyone enough

          To let them be a friend.

The people who hurt me most

are the people I once trusted.

I am never going to trust another person again.

I know that there are others like me but that’s no comfort.

We live in quarantine

          each an inhabitant of his own universe.

Everyone else is a stranger, a user.

Each meeting with another person is just

          Another opportunity for being rejected

Another opportunity for being kicked

Another opportunity for being thrown away

For being told I am nothing

That I am useless

That I am trash

That I should never have been born.

3 MINISTRY

How can I minister to one who is so alone, to one who is so lost and so hurt? How can I break the good news upon him, upon her? How can I heal when everything says it is too late for healing, the damage is gone too far, the hurts are too deep? How can I say welcome to someone who does not know the meaning of home?

Don Bosco also was in anguish as to how he could reach out to them. He was disturbed by their situation but left it “to the Lord's grace what the outcome would be. Without God's grace, all human effort is vain.”

Scene : A youth sneaks into a sacristy.

  I come to you who are wounded, and lost in your world of pain. What do I say to you? Be healed? Not yet because you are not ready to hear it.

First, I show you my wounds because if I have no wounds I cannot heal you. I minister from my wounds. I minister from my brokenness. Paul tells me to be proud of my weakness. Paul tells me in my weakness is my strength. If I accept my wounds and if I let you touch them, then together we can go to Jesus. By his wounds we are healed.

Don Bosco too carried a deep wound – the loss of his father left a mark on him. His whole life was a search for the missing father he never had. His meeting with Garelli touched on this wound, and in reaching out from this wound he would become the father of so many poor youth. His whole life took on a meaning by becoming that which he himself never had.

Don Bosco had enough personal experience to know that for a child or young person in need,
the present moment is the only reality that he or she knows.

That is why,inspired by the Gospel call to welcome a child, he offered to help the young immediately

“Do you want to start now?”

4 Affirmation

Dawn was beginning to break when I came on the little boy. “Who am I?” he asked. I replied:

“You are accepted just the way you are.

You are cherished.

You will never be alone again.

You are of enormous value.

You have a dignity no one can take away from you.

You have a place you can call your own.

You have people around you

          Who care for you and who love you

Life now can become something we can celebrate together

Each day we will grow to understand new depths of beauty

          New heights of life’s mystery, which is love.

You can begin to trust again,

          For you are loved

          You are loveable

You have no need to be afraid

It is never too late for healing

It is never to late for love.

5 Kairos

One day I met a wise old man and I asked him, “What do I need if I am to minister to the homeless, to the broken?”

He answered. Remember. Remember all the home-coming stories you ever heard. The bible is a story of home-coming. Only in God can we really be at home. Let the homeless teach you. Through them you will learn the depth of yearning that is in all our hearts.

His Name is Today

We are guilty of many errors, of many faults,

but our worst crime is abandoning the children,

neglecting the fountain of life.

Many of the things we need can wait.

The child cannot.

Right now is the time his bones are being formed,

his blood is being made and his senses are being developed.

To him we cannot answer Tomorrow.

His name is "Today."

. Gabriela Mistral  (Nobel Prize-winning poet from Chile)

Magnifcat

A simple Hail Mary was the start of his work.

Let us sing that beautiful prayer asking Mary to once again intervene through us on behalf of the young and rejoice with her for the great things God has done for his little ones.

This Reflection on Don Bosco for the opening of the Bi-Centenary Celbrations can also be watched on Youtube.

Don Bosco Our Model

Our Salesian call 

When we think of our call to the Salesian life, how many of us can say: “I decided to be a Salesian after going through a deep study of the Preventive System and the Salesian Spirituality”?  How many of us can rather say: “If I am a Salesian it is because of father or brother so and so … My vocational journey started when I met him and I said to myself: “I would like to be like him!”.

Since this second alternative has been my experience I tend to think that the majority of the Salesians could say the same.

Models play an important role in the life of a person, especially at the early stages.  

 From the Constitutions

“The Salesian spirit finds its model and source in the very heart of Christ, apostle of the Father”. (C11)

“We study and imitate him (Don Bosco)”. (C21)

“Our living rule is Jesus Christ… whom we find present in Don Bosco who devoted his life to the young”. (C196)

“The first Salesians found their sure guide in Don Bosco. Living at the very heart of his community in action, they learned to model their own lives on his. We too find in him our model”. (C97)

1. Looking at the model “The Lord has given us Don Bosco as Father and Teacher”. Before being Father and Teacher of the youth, Don Bosco is OUR Father and Teacher!

As a father Don Bosco reflects in a special way the “fatherhood’ of God. All his life he displayed a father’s heart. He said to his Salesians: ”No matter in what remote part of the world you may be, never forget that here in Italy you have a father who loves you in the Lord”.

As a teacher Don Bosco reproduces some features of the Divine Master, Jesus Christ, who has been his guide from the first dream at the age of nine. Of Jesus Don Bosco incarnated certain aspects: gratitude for the gift of vocation, predilection for the little ones, zeal in preaching and saving, the gentleness and self-giving attitude of the Good shepherd. (C11)

Before being a teacher, Don Bosco is a good disciple! He reflects Jesus in his life and points to Jesus as the perfect model: “He will always be our Master, our Guide , our Model”. Don Bosco is there with all his “splendid blending of nature and grace … deeply human and deeply the man of God … with a closely-knit life project, the service of the young”.

We Believe....

“Blessed is she who believed”

It is interesting how sometimes discoveries or insights happen because of an accident or mistake.  This is what happened to me; I once had such an insight which really came about more through a mistake on my part.

A number of years ago I formed part of our Community in Tunisia, where we Salesians run  a school for seven hundred children all of whom are Muslims, including the teaching staff. Being in a Muslim country, there was no possibility of even mentioning the name of Jesus. Therefore a title like Mary Help of Christians may seem out of place in such a context. Tunis is also a French speaking country and the title Mary Help of Christians is translated as Marie Secours des Chrétiens.

Now here is where my ignorance in French came in. The word Chrétiens, sounds very much like the word Credenti in Italian which means believers. I used to say to myself what a wonderful idea to express the title Mary Help of Christians as  Mary Help of Believers. For indeed we are all believers, Muslims and Christian alike, in the one true God and Mary helps us to deepen our faith.  The challenge in today’s world is not so much as the clash of civilizations or struggle between different faiths, but rather the struggle against the systematic onslaught  by atheistic secularism seeking to obliterate any reference to God.

So Mary is truly a Help to those who believe. So many of our young people, when they encounter this secular and materialistic environment, are taken over. In the gospels, we see Mary being greeted by Elizabeth: “Blessed is she who believed that what the Lord has said will come true.” Lk1:45 She is the first one to believe, to ponder these things in her heart.     It is because of his disbelief that Zechariah was struck dumb. Our lack of faith also makes us unable to express ourselves, strikes us dumb and we find ourselves limited in expressing and communicating ourselves. We on our part very often have to struggle in our faith, a struggle so well expressed in the Gospel “Yes Lord I do believe; help my unbelief.” Mk9:24

But if we do have faith, we can with Mary let our souls sore high and proclaim with her: “My soul magnifies the Lord”. Lk1:46

Company Motto

Many companies and businesses nowadays have a mission statement, a short phrase that captures what the company is all about. The phrase is usually short and catchy, easy to memorize. In its simplicity it communicates to all, both consumers as well as workers, reminding them what their purpose is all about.

I would like to suggest that Don Bosco has given us such a mission statement and we may not realize it. It has been staring us in the face. What is this statement? Some identify it as ‘Honest citizens good Christians’. This is indeed very true but it talks of what we want to achieve in our students, and does not touch on what we ourselves are called to be.

No, our mission statement given to us by Don Bosco  is a phrase that has been staring us in the face. And this is Help of Christians. Yes Mary Help of Christians is a personification of our Salesian Charism, our Salesian vocation, of our Salesian identity. In Mary we see what are called to be and do. We are called to be a help to all the young people that we meet to grow in their faith. This would involve sharing our faith journey, at times our own struggles and doubts.

General Chapter XXIII was dedicated to this theme – Educating young people to the Faith. Mary is the Help; she cannot but not be actively involved. Her immediate and spontaneous reaction has been to set out in haste to help Elizabeth in her need. At Cana she cannot but observe that they lacked wine and she could not but intervene.  

We too are called to be a help, and in Mary we find a model. Devotion to Mary help of Christians will help us to grow and be affirmed in our vocation. As the Immaculate one she reminds of our consecration giving ourselves totally to God. As Help of Christians she reminds of the zeal we have to have for souls. Da Mihi Animas.  

Our Salesian Roots

January is a special month for us Salesians for  we celebrate the feasts of our Founder St John Bosco as well as that of our Patron St Francis of Sales, whom Don Bosco took as his model. These two great saints lived out that Salesian spirituality which was forged in their daily life as pastors. 

Both saints used writing as a means of reaching all categories of people to guide them in their spiritual life and help them live a more authentic Christian life.

These Animation Notes are an initiative of CONFORT, (CIVAM Ongoing Formation Team) with the  aim of helping in the on-going formation process of confreres and Communities. We know how very often the demands of the apostolate take up so much of our time. We hope that these Notes will help you remain in touch with the spiritual dimension of our active involvement in the apostolate.

We have taken Philip Rinaldi’s simple but profound insight into the spirituality of D Bosco – Union with God amidst so much business –as the mission statement of this initiative. 

CONFORT 

John Bosco and Francis of Sales

Vital ‘Salesian' affinities. Don Bosco tells us that he was attracted by two essential aspects of the moral and spiritual characteristics of Francis de Sales:

·  his apostolic energy, his zeal for the salvation of souls, his defence of the truth, his fidelity to the Church; and

·  the Christ-like gentleness that imbued his zeal: his charming manner, his patience, his extraordinary sensitivity.

The vital source of both these qualities is a deep, solid and decisive conviction, namely, that love is the totality of God and the totality of man. Thus it is possible to group the affinities found in our two saints under the three following aspects.

Staunch pastoral character. The first characteristic that both saints shared was their pastoral nature… Francis was an intellectual, a writer, a theologian - but first and foremost he was a bishop…. He was a man of many talents, and consecrated himself heart and soul to his duties and responsibilities as bishop. He was utterly selfless and never failed to give his all to his flock… As befitted a good shepherd he dedicated himself tirelessly to celebrate, sanctify and govern always for the good of his people, regardless of their social standing. All his writings were inspired by his episcopal activities. It was as a bishop that he guided so many Philotheas and Theotimuses along the path of devotion, and founded the Congregation of the Visitation. He wore himself out in his total dedication to this active apostolate, in accordance with his episcopal motto: Chosen by God, assigned to his people.

Young and Alive

 21. DON BOSCO OUR MODEL

The Salesian spirit finds The Lord has given us Don Bosco as father and teacher.

We study and imitate him, admiring in him a splendid blending of nature and grace.  He was deeply human, rich in the qualities of his people, open to the realities of this earth; and he was just as deeply the man of God, filled with the gifts of the Holy Spirit and living "as seeing him who is invisible".
  

These two aspects combined to create a closely-knit life project, the service of the young.  He realized his aim with firmness, constancy and the sensitivity of a generous heart, in the midst of difficulties and fatigue.  "He took no step, he said no word, he took up no task that was not directed to the saving of the young... Truly the only concern of his heart was for souls."

10. Pastoral charity the centre of our spirit

Under the inspiration of God, Don Bosco lived and handed on to us an original style of life and action: the Salesian spirit.

It is summed up and centred in pastoral charity, characterized by that youthful dynamism which was revealed so strongly in our Founder and at the beginnings of our Society.  It is an apostolic impetus that makes us seek souls and serve God alone.

* Our Salesian call When we think of our call to the Salesian life, how many of us can say: “I decided to be a Salesian after going through a deep study of the Preventive System and the Salesian Spirituality”?  How many of us can rather say: “If I am a Salesian it is because of father or brother so and so … My vocational journey

Since this second alternative has been my experience I tend to think that the majority of the Salesians could say the same.

Models play an important role in the life of a person, especially at the early stages. 

A Spontaneous Expression

C 20: The Preventive System and Salesian spirit

Under the guidance of Mary his teacher, Don Bosco lived with the boys of the first Oratory a spiritual and educational experi­ence which he called the "Preventive Sys­tem".  For him this was a spontaneous ex­pression of love inspired by the love of a God who provides in advance for all his creatures, is ever present at their side, and freely gives his life to save them.

Don Bosco passes this on to us as a way of living and of handing on the gospel message, and of working with and through the young for their salvation. it permeates our ap­proach to God, our personal relationships and our manner of living in community through the exercise of a charity that knows how to make itself loved.

Many of us are familiar with the famous paint of Rembrandt reproducing the encounter of the Prodigal Son with his merciful father. Many of us did read the comment made by Henry Nouwen   in his best seller some years ago. In the introduction to the text he described how he discovered in that picture so many meaningful details just “contemplating” it day after day.

The same happened during these days. Several times I have read, studied and reflected on our Constitutions in personal meditation or in community meetings. Nevertheless in these days, while “contemplating” some articles, I found out a kind of newness, freshness and richness that filled my heart with gratitude and joy.

We are rich, we are very rich. We are children of a great rich spiritual family. And like children of rich families, we run the risk of not appreciating enough our richness, the precious heritage that was laid down for us. We do not explore it any more, we are satisfied for what we have learnt, and we think we have reached the saturation proverbial for a conceited lecturer.

The title of Art 20 “The Preventive System and Salesian Spirit” matches together two fundamental topics that usually are developed in separated books. Here they become two parts of a same book interweaving each other.

I can trace back the time in which the Preventive System was presented to us - young Salesians - as a “method of education”. Following the short outlines laid down by Don Bosco - “The Preventive System in the education of the young” - we learned about the difference between repressive and preventive system, “in what the preventive system consists”, its application and advantages. It was an approach that helped us to revisit the previous periods of our education in Salesian environments and find out many good examples of its application in the style of life of our educators. By expanding a little into psychological and pedagogical areas of studies we presumed to be fully equipped for the task of our practical training in the communities. Wonderful juvenile enthusiasm!

Along the years the Congregation elaborated a new inside of the Preventive System to become gradually not only a “method of education” but “a spirituality”, “the” Salesian spirituality. Therefore the GC 25 (N 57) invited the communities to give greater emphasis to the “understanding and appreciation of the preventive system as the way to Salesian holiness”.

In the art. 20, the first Oratory of Don Bosco is seen as a “spiritual and educational experience”. The preventive system is referred to as “a spontaneous expression of love inspired by the love of God”. And so “it permeates our approach to God, our personal relationships and our manner of living in community”.

As Circumstances Demand!

19.   Initiative and flexibility

 The Salesian is called to be a realist and to be attentive to the signs of the times, convinced that the lord manifests his will also through the demands of time and place.  Hence his spirit of initiative and apostolic creativity:  "in those things which are for the benefit of young people in danger or which serve to win souls for God, I push ahead even to the extent of recklessness".

Timely response to these needs requires him to keep abreast of new trends and meet them with the well-balanced creativity of the Founder; periodically he evaluates his work.

There is a  story of Don Bosco which I always find  quite powerful and challenging, just as I did  when I first heard it. Even though it belongs to that apocryphal collection of stories which inevitably tend to accumulate in the life of saints, yet I find that it really captures his spirit and drive.

It concerns  a Salesian confrere who went to lament to don Bosco when he was on a visit to one of the houses. “Ah, these young people today, they are not what they used to be”, he moaned, “they are fickle and easily get distracted with these modern day innovations.” He proceeded to tell him how the numbers of those attending the oratory had dwindled drastically.

When don Bosco asked him as to the reason why this might be so, the confrere explained: “It’s these latest inventions that are leading them astray. This thing called Bicycle – they are all getting a bike and they prefer going off to different places rather than come to the Oratory.”

“Well then,” Don Bosco promptly replied, “learn how to ride the bicycle and go run after them.”

I think it is a lovely example  of how Don Bosco got his priorities right: his heart was for the young and they were the main objective of his concern and endeavours. Everything else was a means to this end, the welfare of youth. Therefore in a situation where society and young people are always changing and developing, one has to be able not only to read the signs of the times but also to have the ability to adapt. This inevitably requires one to be flexible as well as to have a creativity in one’s pastoral outreach.

“I push ahead to the extent of recklessness” where no mere idle words and he often took many risks.  The amount of work he did was phenomenal and the different initiatives he undertook were incredible, very often breaking new ground. “ When it comes to progress”, he once said to a young visiting priest who eventually became Pope Pius XI, “I want to be in the vanguard.”

“Ecstasy of Action”

18.  Work and temperance

"Work and temperance will make the Congregation flourish",¹ whereas the seeking of an easy and comfortable life will instead bring about its death.²

The Salesian gives himself to his mission with tireless energy, taking care to do everything with simplicity and moderation.  He knows that by his work he is participating in the creative action of God and cooperating with Christ in building the Kingdom.

Temperance gives him the strength to con­trol his heart, to master himself and remain even-tempered.

He does not look for unusual penances but accepts the dally demands and renunciations of the apostolic life.  He is ready to suffer cold and heat, hunger and thirst, weariness and disdain whenever God's glory and the salvation of souls require it.³

We dedicate this day to our brother martyrs St Luigi Versiglia and St Callistus Caravario as living examples of work and temperance; indeed their martyrdom  has made “the Congregation flourish”. To remember them is to renew our missionary commitment, a commitment that is disposed of laying down our lives for the Glory of God and the salvation of souls.

These two particular qualities of work and temperance that go hand in hand are mention in the dream of the Ten Diamonds which has a particular significance for our Province. Fr Wade, the first Salesian to arrive in Nigeria , had a special devotion  for  this dream,  following the words of the young visionary in Nigeria who on being asked what advice did our Lady have for them, she replied to be faithful to the dream of the diamonds .

In the letter which the Rector Major wrote in March reflecting on the significance of the 150^th anniversary of our Congregation, he makes particular reference to the dream presenting it as a important aid in our renewal process:  “It ought to be the guideline for our life and the subject of our meditation, so as to walk in the spirit of ‘Salesian consecrated persons.’”

This is not the first time the Rector major makes reference to this dream and he  seems to attach particular importance to it.  When he preached the retreat to the Rectors around the different regions, one talk was dedicated entirely to the dream. 

It is good to see what  the Rector Major himself  had to say on these tow qualities when he gave the retreat to the Rectors.

Let Nothing Disturb You.

C.17 OPTIMISM AND JOY

The Salesian does not give way to discouragement in face of difficulties, because he has complete trust in the Father. "Let nothing upset you", Don Bosco used to say.¹

Inspired by the optimistic humanism of St Francis de Sales, he believes in man's natural and supernatural resources without losing sight of his weakness.

He is able to make his own what is good in the world and does not bewall his own times; he accepts all that is good,² especially if it appeals to the young.

Because he is a herald of the Good News he is always cheerful.³ He radiates this joy and is able to educate to a christian and festive way of life: "Let us serve the Lord in holy joy".

Young people can see the world with a mixture of feelings but above all else with a sense of joy and optimism, Don Bosco too emphasised the need for optimism and joy and reminded us of St Francis de Sales advice that we should not bewail the times we live in.

Young people are the growing hope of society and they have within their hands a future that belongs to them. As Salesians we too need to become explorers in their journey of faith, finding new ways to connect the older wisdom of the Gospel to the wide range of options that the young people are facing today.

Young people don't need us to make their world safe, but they do need us to give them some sort of compass as they move into an unknown future. For Salesians that compass is the experience of Gospel love, "young people need to know that they are loved"; “education is mainly a matter of the heart” said Don Bosco.

Don Bosco was convinced that education must be a joyful experience and he strove always to create an ambient in which young people could grow in a spirit of spontaneity, and joy and laughter; in an ambient in which he felt very much at home. This was possible because deep down Don Bosco was an optimist. For Don Bosco there was not place for discouragement in the face of difficulties, but a calm and serene acceptance of whatever is good.

We can say that Don Bosco more than an optimist, was a man of faith. He was convinced that there was someone greater than him was in charge, someone greater than everyone and everything in this world. Someone who cared for and loved, young people in particular, in an intense and personal way. Don Bosco saw himself as being only a humble, unworthy servant of this great and loving God. It was this faith that kept him going, that gave him the strength to carry on in spite of everything.