St.
John Bosco, one of the greatest saints of modern times, was born in a
Piedmontese village in 1815. When he was 2 years old, he lost his father, a
humble peasant farmer; and he was brought up by his saintly Tertiary mother,
Margaret. It was no doubt due to her example and influence that John too
joined the Third Order of St. Francis.
Even as a youngster, John recognized that it was
his vocation in life to help poor boys; and he began to teach catechism to the
boys of his own village and bring them to church. Acrobatic stunts and
conjuring tricks were the means he used to get them together.
At 16 he entered the seminary at Chieri. He was so
poor at the time, that the mayor contributed a hat, the parish priest a cloak,
one parishioner a cassock, and another a pair of shoes. After he was ordained
a deacon he passed on to the seminary in Turin; and there, with the
approbation of his superiors, he began to gather together on Sundays poor
apprentices and waifs of the city.
Not long after his ordination to the priesthood in
June, 1841, he established what he called a Festive Oratory, a kind of Sunday
school and recreation center for boys, in Turin. His mother came to be his
housekeeper and mother of the Oratory. Two more Oratories in the same city
followed. When Father John Bosco's mother did in 1856, the Oratories housed
150 resident boys; and there were four Latin classes and four workshops, one
of them a printing press. Ten young priests assisted Father John in his work.
Father John was also much in demand as a preacher; and he spent half of his
nights in writing popular books in order to provide good reading.
Father John's confessor and spiritual director was
the saintly Tertiary priest Joseph Cafasso; and Father John too gained the
reputation of being a saint. Miracles, mostly of healing, were attributed to
him. By his kindness and sympathy and his marvelous power of reading the
thoughts of his boys, he exercised a profound influence upon his charges. He
was able to rule them with apparent indulgence and absence of punishment,
something the educationists of the day could not understand.
In 1854 Father John founded the religious order of
Salesians, so called in honor of St. Francis de Sales. Its members devote
themselves to the education of poor boys. The new society grew rapidly. Father
John lived to see 38 houses established in the Old World and 26 in the New
World. Today it is one of the largest orders of men in the Church.
Father John also founded a sisterhood called
Daughters of St. Mary Auxiliatrix; and he organized many outside helpers into
the Salesian Co-operators, who are pledged to assist in some way the
educational labors of the Salesians. In 1930 they totalled 800,000.
Father John's last great work was the building of
Sacred Heart Church in Rome, a task which was entrusted to him by Pope Pius IX
after it has seemed to be a hopeless project. The holy priest, who was
everywhere acclaimed as a saint and wonderworker, gathered funds for the
church in Italy and France; and somehow he succeeded where others had failed.
But in doing so he wore himself out. and on January 31, 1888, he was called to
his reward. Forty thousand persons came to pay their respects as his body lay
in state in the church at Turin; and his funeral resembled a triumphal
procession.
St. John was canonized in 1934.
ON THINKING KINDLY OF OTHERS
1. What was the
secret of St. John Bosco's wholesome influence on the boys who came under his
care? Was it not the spirit of St. Francis of Assisi and of St. Francis de
Sales, with which he was deeply imbued? A spirit, which made him think kindly
of these boys in the first place, and then caused him to do all he could for
their temporal and spiritual welfare? Thinking kindly of others, we will have
understanding for them, judge them charitably, and show them our esteem. To
understand another means to put ourselves in his place and to take into
consideration everything which has made and makes him what he is: his
character and disposition, his background and environment, his interests and
strivings, his problems and needs. To understand another means to go beyond
the narrowness of human judgement and to acquire something of the depth and
breadth of the vision of God, who has the deepest understanding for every
human being. It means to become similar to our divine Saviour, in whom the
goodness and love of God became visible, and who during His sojourn on earth
showed such deep and loving understanding for His Apostles and all who came to
Him with their problems or listened to His word. When there is perfect harmony
between two persons, we say that they understand each other; when there is
disharmony, it is often due to misunderstandings.
2. He who has
understanding for others, will also judge them with charity and mercy, even
when their faults are evident and undeniable. He will not be inflexible and
harsh in his judgement, for he will discover mitigating circumstances and
recognize many good qualities. The all-holy God does not cast off and despise
the sinner, even when his sins are grievous ands inexcusable. His love and
grace pursues every human soul in order to bring the good in it to victory and
perfection. Thinking kindly of others and judging them charitably makes us
like God; it is a sign that we are united with God in love. It is an
indication of greatness of soul and spiritual maturity. Like St. Francis de
Sales, St. John Bosco was criticized for being too kind and indulgent; but he
understood his boys and judged them charitably because of his nobility of soul
and his constant union with God.
3. He who thinks kindly of others will
also show them esteem; and sincere esteem is a source of great pleasure and
encouragement to the recipient. It makes him feel that we believe in the good
that is in him, or at least that we believe in his final victory. By showing
esteem to another we appeal to his sense of honor, and this is a powerful
moral force which the Creator Himself has implanted in all men. On the other
hand, a culprit who receives only contempt from his fellowmen often loses the
last particle of his self-respect and self-confidence and with it all moral
support and incentive. St. John Bosco believed in the good that was in his
boys; he encouraged them to keep on trying; he had compassion with them in
their difficulties; he was solicitous about their temporal and spiritual
progress. Always to think kindly of our fellowman, and to prove it by seeking
to understand him, to judge him charitably, and to show him our esteem -- that
is the Franciscan way of dealing with our neighbor and loving him
sincerely.
PRAYER OF THE CHURCH
O God, who hath raised up
in Thy confessor St. John Bosco a father and teacher of youth, and didst will
that through him with the help of the Virgin Mary new religious families
should flourish in the Church, grant, we beseech Thee, that enkindled by the
same fire of charity we may be able to labor in finding souls and serve only
Thee. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.
from:
The Franciscan Book
of Saints, ed. by
Marion Habig, ofm., © 1959 Franciscan Herald
Press
