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VOLUME XIV - 1879-1880
of Saint John Bosco
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FATHER EUGENIO CERIA
FATHER EUGENIO CERIA (1870 · 1957)
already enjoyed the reputation of a dis-
tinguished scholar, author, and editor when
in 1929 Father Philip Rinaldi, Superior
General, asked him to continue the publi-
cation of the Biographical Memoirs, the
monumental work begun by Father John
Baptist Lemoyne. Father Ceria's qualifica-
tions had been enhanced by his personal
contact with Don Bosco during his forma-
tive years as a novice and a student of
Philosophy at San Benigno Canavese and
Valsalice. Don Bosco con Dio, published
in 1930 and now considered his master-
piece, is a penetrating and inspiring study
of his spiritual father.
By systematic and persevering effort Father
Ceria brought the Biographical Memoirs
to completion in 1939, his contribution
being Volumes XI-XIX. Other works fol-
lowed. Wh i le compiling the Annali della
Societa Salesiana in four large volumes
(1941-51), he published biographies of St.
Mary Mazzarella, the Venerable Father
Michael Rua, the Servants of God Father
Andrew Beltrami and Father Philip Rinaldi,
and many other outstanding Salesians.
Though advanced in age, he undertook the
collection and editing of the Epistolario di
S. Giovanni Bosco, in four volumes, two of
which were published before his death,
which occurred on January 21, 1957 at
the age of 86.
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Membership
Countries
Provinces
Houses
Bishops
Archbishops
Cardinals
17,561
118
89
2,026
74
15
5
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1995
Membership 16,603
Countries
83
Provinces
83
Houses
1,589
THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF ST. JOHN BOSCO
Already PubUshed
Volumes I through XVI
Order From:
SALESIANA PUBLISHERS
130 Main Street • New Rochelle, N.Y. 10801
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Don Bosco's Statue In St. Peter's, Rome
A Faithful Translation of the Original Expertly Done
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The
Bio9raphical Memoirs
of
SaintJohn Bosco
by
REV. EUGENIO CERIA, S.D.B.
AN AMERICAN EDITION
TRANSLATED
FROM THE ORIGINAL ITALIAN
REv. Drnao BoRGATELLO, s.D.B.
Editor-in-chief
Volume XIV
1879-80
SALESIANA PUBLISHERS
NEW ROCHELLE, NEW YORK
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IMPRIMI POTEST: Very Rev. Dominic DeBlase, S.D.B.
Provincial
New Rochelle, N.Y., January 31, 1985
Feast of St. John Bosco
Copyright © 1985 by the Salesian Society, Inc.
Library of Congress Catalog Card No. 65-3104rev
ISBN 0-89944-14-2
All Rights Reserved
Manufactured in the United States of America
Reprinted 1995
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llrbtratrb
WITH PROFOUND GRATITUDE
TO
THE LATE, LAMENTED, AND HIGHLY ESTEEMED
VERY REVEREND FELIX J. PENNA, S.D.B.
(1904-1962)
TO WHOSE
WISDOM. FORESIGHT, AND NOBLE SALESIAN HEART
THE ENGLISH TRANSLATION
OF
THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS
OF
SAINT JOHN BOSCO
IS
A LASTING MONUMENT
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This Volume is Fondly Dedicated
to the memory
of
REV. JOSEPH PEROZZI, S.D.B.
( 1919-19 8 3)
His pioneering efforts
to spread the Gospel message
through the resources of the mass media
have effectively promoted
the Ministry of the Word
in the Salesian Congregation
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Editor's Preface
SAINT JOHN BOSCO, the central figure of this vastly
extensive biography, was a towering person in the affairs of both
Church and State during the critical 19th century in Italy. He was
the founder of two very active religious congregations during a time
when other orders were being suppressed; he was a trusted and key
liaison between the Papacy and the emerging Italian nation of the
Risorgimento; above all, in troubled times, he was the saintly
Christian educator who successfully wedded modern pedagogy to
Christ's law and Christ's love for the poor young, and thereby
deserved the proud title of Apostle of youth.
He is known familiarly throughout the world simply as Don
Bosco. 1 His now famous system of education, which he called the
Preventive System, was based on reason, religion and kindness,
and indicated by its descriptive name that, also in education, an
ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. He always sought to
place pupils in the moral impossibility of committing sin, the moral
disorder from which all evils flow.
To ensure the continuation of his educational mission in behalf of
youth he founded two worldwide religious congregations, the
Society of St. Francis de Sales (Salesian Society) and the Institute
of the Daughters of Mary Help of Christians (Salesian Sisters)
which today number more than 40,000 members conducting 2,800
educational institutions throughout the world.
To help in the difficult art of educating the young, Don Bosco
planned to expound his method of education in a book but,
absorbed as he was in the task of firmly establishing his two
religious congregations and in unceasing other labors, he had to
content himself with a simple outline of his ideas in a golden little
treatise entitled The Preventive System in the Education ofYouth.
1Don is an abbreviation of the Latin do minus, master. It is used in Italy as a title for
priests: it stands for Father.
ix
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x
EDITOR'S PREFACE
Fortunately, the Biographical Memoirs of St. John Bosco are
ample compensation for a book which, if written, might have given
us only theories. These memoirs, a monumental work in nineteen
volumes, until recently reserved exclusively to Salesians and
published only in the original Italian, are now available in this
American edition not only to his spiritual children, devotees and
admirers, but also to all who are interested in education.
In these volumes Don Bosco is shown in action: not theorizing,
but educating. What he said and did in countless circumstances
was faithfully recorded by several of his spiritual sons, chief among
them Father Giovanni Battista Lemoyne. From the day he first met
Don Bosco in 1864 to his own death in 1916, Father Lemoyne
spent his life recording words and deeds of Don Bosco, gathering
documents,2 interviewing witnesses, and arranging raw material for
the present nineteen volumes of the life of Don Bosco, eight of
which he himself authored besides readying another volume for the
press before his death.
In the compilation of the Biographical Memoirs of St. John
Bosco, Father Lemoyne's primary sources were the Memorie
dell'Oratorio dal 1835 al 1855 (Memoirs of the Oratory from
1835 to 1855) written by Don Bosco himself, the diaries and
chronicles of various fellow Salesians who daily recorded what
Don Bosco said or did, numerous letters of the Saint, the Cinque
lustri di storia dell'Oratorio de S. Francesco di Sales (The
History ofthe First Twenty-five Years of the Oratory of St. Francis
de Sales) written by Father John Bonetti, S.D.B., and personally
checked by Don Bosco, the proceedings of the diocesan process of
beatification and other unimpeachable contemporary documents
and testimonies. Above all, Father Lemoyne, intelligent, conscien-
tious and well-informed, not only used reliable sources, but was
himself an eye witness. He recorded what he personally saw and
heard from Don Bosco. This enabled him to write a true history,
even though not according to modem critical methods. He
concerned himself principally with presenting chronologically his
vast selected material and therefore his narrative is somewhat
fragmentary and may lack scientific method. It is nevertheless true
history, even Volume I which deals mainly with Don Bosco's youth
2All the documents in the archives at the Salesian Motherhouse in Turin, Italy are now
being microfilmed and stored in the Don Bosco College Library in Newton, New Jersey.
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EDITOR'S PREFACE
xi
and the training he received from Mamma Margaret, his mother.3
When gifted writers and scholars of the future will produce a
critical biography of Don Bosco, the Biographical Memoirs will
still not be surpassed because Father Lemoyne lived at Don
Bosco's side, wrote what he saw and heard, and eminently
succeeded in giving us a living portrait of Don Bosco.
In editing the translation of the Biographical Memoirs accuracy
and readability were the goals we set. This was not easy and
occasionally, as regards the latter, we may have fallen short of the
mark. Nineteenth-century Italian does not readily lend itself to an
agile version that strives to be an accurate translation and not a
paraphrase.
May the reading of these Memoirs portraying the life of a man
whom Pope Pius XI called "a giant of sanctity" inspire his spiritual
children, to whom this work is primarily directed, and all men and
women of good will to walk their own path of life in a spirit of
service to God and man.
FR. Drnao BoRGATELLO, S.D.B.
Editor-in-Chief
New Rochelle, N.Y.
June 5, 1965
124th Anniversary of Don Bosco's Ordination
EDITOR'S NOTE
As with Volumes VI through X and Volumes XII and XIII, we
have omitted material from the original text that is oflittle interest to
American readers and of no direct consequence to these biographical
memoirs. Such omissions will always be pointed out in the footnotes.
New Rochelle, N.Y.
January 31, 1985
Feast of St. John Bosco
Fr. Diego Borgatello, S.D.B.
Editor-in-chief
3Cf. Francis Desramaut S.D.B., Les Memon"e I de Giovanni Battista Lemoyne, Etude
d'un ouvrage fondamental sur la jeunesse de saint Jean Bosco, Lyon, 1962, pp. 41 lff.
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Author's Preface
TrME and again in going through these pages, the readers
may feel that Don Bosco is visibly bleeding as he walks beneath the
arbor described in his now well-known dream. 1 It was a
magnificent rose arbor: roses above him, roses under his feet, roses
on every side, but all of them bristling with sharp, unseen thorns
which ripped his flesh at every step. Casual onlookers watched with
wonder or envy as he unhesitatingly moved along that flowered
path, but those who drew nigh to follow in his footsteps instantly
experienced at what price of pain this man of God gained every
inch of ground.
In this volume) as in others, we have recounted events and
produced documents covering a two-year period which could not be
broken up without detriment to our narrative. As we moved step by
step through the various periods of Don Bosco's life, we have
gathered and coordinated as much material as we possibly could
that is relevant to our founder, not only to serve for the edification
of our confreres, but also to prepare the raw content which a future
biographer will need for a stirring summary account ofDon Bosco's
exceptional personality as seen within the framework of his time.
Within this two-year period Don Bosco never slackened his
laborious diligence in the running of his growing Congregation, in
his sacred ministry, his management of countless business matters,
his frequent journeys and his countering of the attacks of his
adversaries, despite the relentless deterioration of his physical
strength. Some timely comments of Blessed Claude de La
Colombiere will help us understand and better appreciate such
intense activity on his part. At a moment of feverish apostolic
activity which was almost overwhelming, Claude wrote to his
sister, a Visitation nun:2
1See Vol. III, pp. 25ff. [Editor]
2Letter III. [Author]
xiii
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xiv
AUTHOR'S PREFACE
The problem is being constantly surrounded by people while seeking
only God; forever having three or four times more work than one can
possibly handle and yet never losing that peace of mind without which it is
impossible to hold on to God; to have hardly more than a few moments to
withdraw into oneself for prayer and yet, despite this, to keep one's mind
from wandering away. All this is possible, but not so easy.
That it is truly possible is clear enough from the lives of both
these holy men, with the difference, however, that this feverish pace
lasted scarcely two years for Blessed de la Colombiere, during his
first stay at Paray-le-Monial, but Don Bosco experienced it for at
least twoscore years. That both of them achieved what La
Colombiere called a possibility-a statement which proved true for
both of them-is due to the fact that they took upon themselves all
kinds of tasks for supernatural ends only in fulfillment of God's
will.
The statement made by Pope Pius XI at an audience of June 17,
1932 to the pupils of both major and minor pontifical Roman
seminaries casts new light on Don Bosco's spirituality. Among
other things, the Pope said of him:3
Every moment of his life was a constant sacrifice, a continual
withdrawing into prayer. The most striking impression on anyone talking
to him was his alertness to whatever was taking place before him. People
came from everywhere to see him about one thing or another, and in a
flash, as though he saw it all at once, he would listen, see the entire picture,
and offer an answer to every question without losing contact with God.
One might have said that he was paying no attention to anything being said
around him, his thoughts being elsewhere, and so it really was. In spirit he
was one with God, yet, in a manner truly surprising, he replied to all
questions, finding the exact word to say, causing astonishment and then
wonder. This was Don Bosco's life of holiness, contemplation, and
assiduous prayer in the hours of the night and at every hour of endless,
unyielding work through the day.
From this reservoir of spiritual life Don Bosco drew unlimited
trust in God, so that nothing he ever put his hand to seemed too
difficult, nothing in the future threatened him. He knew how to
3 0sservatore Romano, June 19, 1932. [Author]
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AUTHOR'S PREFACE
xv
imbue this same sense of trust in his co-workers and cooperators
who, never overly worried by spiritual or material problems,
followed the trail he blazed, the former sharing his daily labors, the
latter supplying the daily funds he needed for his religious family
and for his multiple enterprises.
Another concern which never escaped Don Bosco despite his
many preoccupations was his zeal in guiding his Salesians to God.
His secret of success in this was to love them dearly, each and
every one of them so that they willingly did what was expected of
them. This overall fatherly spirit-neither generic nor abstract-
gave him that sense of moderation which is the mark of enlightened
and truly superior men, enabling them prudently to adjust to
various temperaments and move firmly but gently wherever need
and duty so requires.
This leads us to anther important observation. Don Bosco's
intense efforts to train those who were to form the first nucleus of
his Society were long and arduous. For at least thirty years he
toiled to choose them, rear them, shape them, and win them over to
himself and to his mission. How often his hopes were crushed by
sad defections. But in the end he reaped the harvest of his
undaunted constancy, particularly in two matters: the close bond of
the first members with each other and with their head, and,
secondly, the firm unity which they have passed down to us. In fact,
to this day, over a period of sixty years, none of the deplorable
schisms which afflicted other religious families at their origins have
as yet shaken our enviable unity. What more shining proof of this
brotherly harmony can we have than the recent election of Don
Bosco's fourth successor? Over eighty electors from all four comers
of the globe unanimously and with no previous collusion chose
Father Peter Ricaldone in such marvelous unanimity, so promptly
welcomed by thousands upon thousands of non-electors that it did
not escape the keen eye of Pope Pius XI. In his first audience with
the newly elected rector major, he remarked on the significance and
merit of the event with pleasure:4
Walls will crack when their foundations are loose-he said-but solid
walls tell us that the architect erected them on solid rock. God, we hope,
4Acts of the Superior Chapter, June 22, 1932. [Author]
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xvi
AUTHOR'S PREFACE
will never allow harmful agents to draw near to such a substructure, but if
in the course of time destructive forces should assail it, we are confident
that they will not manage even to scar it, let alone break it up. The
thorough understanding of Don Bosco's life, works, and spirit will
perpetually exercise a sovereign influence to weld together ever more
firmly all the units of the great structure he created.
And now we come to ourselves and our own task. Despite the
factual evidence of Don Bosco's achievements found also in the
period covered by this volume, we must still deplore a sad,
extensive lack of understanding on the part of even intelligent
people. While the overwhelming evidence of fact forced most
people to proclaim "The finger of God is here," for others that
finger was hidden in the humility of His servant. Such is the fate of
those who work the hardest to sow in the evangelical field, for
generally it is not the sower who reaps. The seeds whose harvest
gives joy to the reaper are watered by the tears which usually go
with the work of sowing.5
5"0ne man sows, another reaps" [Jn. 4, 37]. "Those that sow in tears shall reap rejoicing"
[Ps. 125, 5].
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Acknowledgments
For the publication of The Biographical Memoirs ofSaint John
Bosco we owe a debt of gratitude to the Reverends August Bosio,
S.D.B., John J. Mall9y, S.D.B., and Salvatore Isgro, S.D.B.,
Provincials emeriti of the Salesians in the eastern United States
and sponsors of this project, and to the Very Reverend Dominic
DeBlase, S.D.B., their successor in office.
As regards this volume, we wish to express special thanks to
Rev. Paul Aronica, S.D.B., Provincial Councillor for the Salesian
Family, for his very valuable editorial assistance. We are also
grateful to those who have helped in one way or another, in
particular Mr. Joseph Isola of the Paulist Press in New York City.
Fr. Diego Borgatello, S.D.B.
Editor-in-chief
EDITORIAL BOARD
Rev. Diego Borgatello, S.D.B., Chairman
Rev. Paul Aronica, S.D.B.
Rev. Emil Fardellone, S.D.B.
Rev. Joseph Bajorek, S.D.B. Rev. William Kelley, S.D.B.
Rev. Peter Lappin, S.D.B.
DECEASED
Rev. Hugh McGlinchey, S.D.B.
Rev. Joseph Perozzi, S.D.B.
Rev. Chester Wisniewski, S.D.B.
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Contents
DEDICATION. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . v
EDITOR'S PREFACE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ix
AUTHOR'S PREFACE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xiii
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xvii
SALESIAN GLOSSARY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xxi
1 Don Bosco's Visit to the Salesian Houses in France . . . . 1
2 The Annual Conferences of St. Francis de Sales . . . . . . . 24
3 Four Weeks in Rome . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46
4 First Steps Toward Closing the Oratory's
Secondary School . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61
5 Return Trip to Turin. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70
6 The Soul of the Oratory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85
7 Shutdown of the Oratory School . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108
8 The First Triennial Report to the Holy See
on the State of the Congregation...................... 156
9 The Girls' Festive Oratory at Chieri. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 170
10 Conversion of a Young Jewess . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 191
11 Salesian Missionaries in Patagonia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 209
12 Unrealized New Foundations in 1879 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 234
13 Salesian Houses Opened in 1879 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . 248
14 Gleanings from the Year 1879........................ 271
xix
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xx
CONTENTS
15 At the Beginning of a New Year...................... 298
16 Don Bosco's Second Journey to France................ 307
17 To Rome and Naples from Liguria.................... 338
18 Roundabout Return to Turin from Rome . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 374
19 At the Oratory with Don Bosco from May to
December 1880 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 390
20 Accusations, a Misunderstanding and a Revealing
Dream . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 410
21 Cooperators at San Benigno and Borgo San Martino.... 427
22 Precious Documents about the Spiritual Life . . . . . . . . . . . 434
23 Looking Through Don Bosco's Letters................. 442
24 The Church of the Sacred Heart of Jesus in Rome . . . . . 455
25 The Salesians in France during the Religious Persecution . . . 475
26 The Beginning of the Real Missions of Patagonia . . . . . . . 494
27 The Daughters of Mary, Help of Christians . . . . . . . . . . . . 524
28 Foundations in 1880: Refused, Delayed or Hardly Begun... 534
29 Predictions, Reading of the Heart, Cures and Bilocation . . . . 546
APPENDICES........................................ 557
INDEX . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 589
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SALESIAN GLOSSARY
(For the General Reading Public)
ARTISANS: trade school students.
ASSISTANCE: Salesian method of supervision of boys and students, friendly and
informal in manner, stressing the prevention of disorders rather than the
punishment of offenders.
ASSISTANT: a Salesian engaged in supervising boys.
CLERIC: a member of the Salesian Society training for the priesthood.
COADJUTOR: a lay member of the Salesian Society.
COMPANION OF YOUTH, THE: a prayer book composed by St. John Bosco for the
use of boys, originally entitled II Giovane Provveduto.
COOPERATORS: Christians (laymen, lay religious or priests) who, even if they
have no religious vows, follow a vocation to holiness by offering themselves to
work for the young in the spirit of Don Bosco, in the service of the local church,
and in communion with the Salesian Congregation.
EXERCISE FOR A HAPPY DEATH: a monthly practice of piety that promotes
spiritual recollection and fervor by meditation on one's eventual death. It
stresses the reception of the sacraments of confession and Holy Communion as
if for the last time.
FESTIVE ORATORY: a Salesian work which offers boys and young men organized
recreational, educational, and religious activities, mostly on Sundays and
festive days.
The Festive Oratory was St. John Bosco's first work and, for a good many
years, his only one. He called it "oratory," that is, a place of prayer, because its
primary purpose was to teach boys to go to church and pray. "Its objectives were
the practice of religion and virtue, the boys' moral education, and, consequently,
the salvation of their souls; recreation, entertainment, singing, and schooling,
which followed in due time, were only the means." (The Biographical Memoirs of
St. John Bosco, Vol. II, p. 71. See also Vol. III, pp. 67f)
Goon NIGHT: a short talk immediately after night prayers, given by the Director
or someone in his stead. It consists of advice, exhortations, or occasional
remarks.
ORATORY: see Festive Oratory, Oratory of St. Francis de Sales.
ORATORY. THE: abbreviated form of "The Oratory of St. Francis de Sales" (See
below)
ORATORY OF ST. FRANCIS DE SALES, THE: the first festive oratory and the first
boarding school for boys founded by St. John Bosco in a district of Turin known
as Valdocco; the motherhouse of the Salesian Congregation.
On a rainy night of May 1847 a hungry youngster, drenched from head to foot,
knocked at Don Bosco's door. Don Bosco's mother fed him and prepared a place
for him to sleep. (See The Biographical Memoirs ofSt. John Bosco, Vol. III, pp.
141fl) Thus, side by side with the festive oratory there began a hospice that
eventually grew into a large boarding school and became the motherhouse of the
Salesian Congregation.
PREVENTIVE SYSTEM: the Salesian method of education and discipline, based on
reason and religion. It stresses vigilance, guidance, and sympathetic
understanding in the training of the young.
VALDOCCO: a district of Turin.
The name is probably a contraction of the Latin val/is occisorum, the valley of
the slain-i.e., some soldiers of the Theban Legion who were martyred under
Emperor Maximian. The Salesian motherhouse stands on the site of their
martyrdom. (See The Biographical Memoirs of St. John Bosco, Vol. II, pp.
233ff, 268)
xxi
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THE
BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS
OF
SAINT JOHN BOSCO
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CHAPTER 1
Don Rosco's Visit to the
Salesian Houses in France
THE rapid growth of the Salesian houses in both Italy
and France kept Don Bosco from the Oratory for increasingly
longer and more frequent periods, as he visited newly opened
houses and conferred with promoters and benefactors. Above all,
he could not lose touch with Rome, where the most vital interests of
the Congregation's future were under discussion. Luckily he had in
Turin the efficient Father Rua1 on whose good judgment he could
fully rely, as the experience of the past few years had amply
convinced him. Truly, he could not have asked for a more devoted
son, a more loyal interpreter of his every wish, a more tireless and
intelligent worker, a more enlightened mind and a superior of more
unchallenged authority. Nor could he have found a man so fully
dedicated to his mission, so totally imbued with his ideas and so
amply qualified not only to keep the reins of the Oratory in hand,
but also to be the founder's worthy spokesman at all levels and in
all matters. Therefore also in 1879 on several occasions Don
Bosco left the motherhouse for a considerable length of time,
without the slightest worry of what might happen in his absence. In
the next four chapters we shall follow him through France, Liguria,
Tuscany and Rome and homeward to Valdocco by another route.
Had he sought his physician's advice, he would certainly have
been told not to risk the discomfort, fatigue and rigors of such an
extended winter's journey, but when God chooses certain men to
accomplish spectacular feats for His greater glory on earth, we may
safely say, in a certain sense, that "though weak, they were made
1See Appendix 1. [Editor]
1
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
powerful" [Heb. 11, 34], so undaunted did they hold up under
every adverse situation.
He left Turin on December 30, giving Father Rua little money,
but leaving a circular2 describing a lottery of paintings3 which he
was to mail on January 1. He also gave him a letter for the
cooperators to be published in the f<?rthcoming January issue of the
Salesian Bulletin, in which he was appealing to their charitable
assistance.
Father Cagliero4 accompanied Don Bosco. They spent a few
days at Sampierdarena and then on January 3 went on to Alassio,
where they found the director ailing and the house staff in a state of
exhaustion. As the feast of the Epiphany was at hand, they all
begged Don Bosco to let his talented companion stay behind for a
few days to help their young students celebrate the feast and to
revive their good spirit with his pleasant humor. "I remained
there," Father Cagliero wrote, "working a good deal.5 My stay
served as a pastoral visit to the Salesians and as a formal visit to the
sisters." On this occasion Don Bosco formally appointed Father
Louis Rocca6 vice-director, which actually meant director, since
Father Cerruti's7 weak health and recent appointment as provincial
made such a move necessary.
Don Bosco left almost immediately for Nice, taking with him
three clerics who had joined him at Sampierdarena. Though no one
there had any inkling of his coming, somehow or other the confreres
seemed to feel that something extraordinary was in the air, for
during dinner they heard a very loud train whistle, an unusual
occurrence, and laughingly remarked, "Something's going to
happen!" After dinner as the director took his hat to go out on
business, the doorkeeper came dashing up to him, exclaiming:
"Don Bosco! Don Bosco!" At the news, the boys rushed out and
surrounded Father Ronchail8 at the gate. Calmly he stood there,
thinking that they were either dreaming or joking, but as he opened
the door he saw Don Bosco himself step out of a coach. The
20mitted in this edition. [Editor]
3See Vol. XIII, pp. 544f. [Editor]
4 See Appendix 1. [Editor]
51..etter to Father Rua, Nice. January 11, 1879. [Author]
6 See Appendix 1. [Editor]
7 See Appendix 1. [Editor]
8 See Appendix 1. [Editor]
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Don Bosco 's Visit to the Salesian Houses in France
3
heartiest welcome was hastily improvised for him. On entering the
house, Don Bosco asked the director about the health of Baron
[Amato] Heraud. That, too, was a strange coincidence, for at that
very moment, though uninformed [of Don Bosco's visit], the baron
himself suddenly appeared, bowing and presenting Don Bosco with
the keys. Then, no sooner had Don Bosco finished his dinner than
the telegram which he had sent from Menton to announce his
arrival was delivered.
Everyone felt sad at Don Bosco's frail appearance. Train rides
were usually hard on him, his eyesight was as always giving him
trouble, and he felt queasy and close to vomiting. "Nevertheless,"
Father Ronchail wrote, "he has great faith in the prayers of his sons
and wants everyone to receive Holy Communion devoutly for his
intention." Father Cagliero in turn wrote: "We must pray for Don
Bosco. Both his eyes and his stomach constantly pain him, and we
must realize that he is no longer the man he used to be. His
traveling companions must be especially thoughtful and alert, for,
unaccustomed to asking, he now never makes his needs known. We
have to anticipate them." During those days he dictated three
letters [to Father Rua].9 .
He spent Sunday, January 5, and the solemnity of the Epiphany
at Nice, leaving for Marseille on January 7 and taking Father
Ronchail along as his secretary, so that Father Cagliero arrived at
Nice to find instructions that he was to fill in for the director of St.
Pierre's Hospice during his absence. The French ecclesiastical hat
and clerical bib which Don Bosco wore on his departure provoked a
few laughs, since his sons thought it quaint of him to dress that way.
He laughed too, remarking, "Carnival begins today, and we've all
got to do something funny!" But his humor covered up a far wiser
attitude of his: as he dressed like a French ecclesiastic in France, so
he wore Spanish clericals in Spain. That same love of God and
neighbor which made him all things to all people in order to draw
all to Jesus Christ prompted him to present a fitting external
appearance that would break down and rid minds of all harmful
prejudices, such as, for example, that he meant to imprint a
distinctly Italian nationalism on his work outside Italy. Such fears
9 0ne was written by Father Joseph Bologna (Marseille, January 8), another by Father
Joseph Ronchail (Marseille, January 9), and a third by Father John Cagliero (Nice, January
11). [Author]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
could only irritate the sensitivities of those countries which hosted
him and raise doubts as to the sincerity of his zeal.
He and Father Ronchail went by rail to Frejus where they were
most graciously met by Bishop [Ferdinand] Terris; later that
evening, they continued on to Marseille. There they were greeted
by the first blasts of the mistral, an extremely cold northwest wind
blowing from the mountains, which persisted for two days and at
times threatened to overturn the house. Certainly it was not the best
weather for Don Bosco's delicate health.
But the chill was not just in the air. At the start almost no one
paid Don Bosco any heed, since he had come to Marseille without
prior announcement; the only joyful welcome he received was at
the parish festive oratory. Even [Canon Clement Guiol]1° the
pastor of St. Joseph Church seemed to have changed, so indifferent
was he to Don Bosco's presence. On his various visits to people
Don Bosco met only cold politeness, and on one occasion, when
calling on an important religious community, it was even worse. On
asking the concierge for the superior, he was pointed the way to a
staircase, corridor and room. Father Bologna11 was with him. They
went upstairs unescorted, looking about for the correct room. In it
they found three priests seated on a sofa, engaged in conversation.
Don Bosco humbly introduced himself.
"What do you want?" the superior asked.
"I'm looking for Father Superior," Don Bosco answered.
"Wait in the antechamber."
"I would only like to tell Father Superior...."
"Wait in the antechamber. We are busy just now."
Don Bosco obliged and waited for some time. Finally the
superior appeared and curtly, in a standoffish way, asked, "What is
your name?"
"I am Don Bosco."
"What can I do for you?"
"I'd like to recommend the new boarding school I have just
opened here in Marseille to your kind attention."
"Nothing else?"
"No, Father. Only this, and to pay my respects."
"Well, then ... I understand. Good day."
1osee Vol. XIII, p. 410. [Editor]
11see Appendix 1. [Editor]
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Don Bosco's Visit to the Salesian Houses in France
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And he withdrew, leaving Don Bosco to find his own way out.
Father Bologna staggered behind him, seething with resentment
and chagrin. "Don't fret," Don Bosco told him, totally unruffled.
"They will be more embarrassed than we when they realize how
rudely they have treated us." Indeed years later, when wonders
revealed the hand of Providence in Don Bosco's works, those same
priests were quick to call on him and pay their respects.
Shortly we shall point out what had caused such a radical shift of
sentiment among the people that Father Bologna felt very
uncomfortable and had to press Don Bosco to come to Marseille.
Undismayed, Don Bosco tried to reassure the young director. His
small room overlooked a hillock topped by three grand oak trees,
but from below an upward slanting courtyard made it possible to
look into the rooms of the house. One day, Don Bosco, pointing to
the hillside through the uncurtained windows, told the director,
"You will see that we shall soon be freed of this clumsy setup, and
up there we will have a large, handsome residence with a spacious,
level playground." These words cheered up the director somewhat,
but did not fully put him at ease, especially when Don Bosco
exclaimed, "I am wasting my time here!" The fact was that there
seemed to be no chance of getting anywhere.
Then Providence stepped in to help Don Bosco out of the
deadlock with an event which changed hearts and minds in the
twinkling of an eye. A Piedmontese woman from the Asti district
brought her son to him. The young boy was a pitiful sight-frail,
bent almost double with rickety limbs, propped up on two crutches.
He could have been no more than eight years old. Several day
students attending the Salesian school and members of the St.
Joseph choir saw him pass by. When mother and son were ushered
into Don Bosco's room, he said a few words to each and then,
blessing the little cripple, ordered him to drop his crutches. The
transformation was instantaneous and total: the boy straightened
up, threw down his crutches and ran off. Beside herself, the mother
snatched up the crutches and dashed out after him, shouting that it
was a miracle. Neither one of them was ever seen again. 12
12Huysmans recounted this episode in his well-known sketch of Don Bosco, but with two
mistakes: one of place and one of time. He wrongly states that the event took place in "Rue
Beaujour," and he assigned it to January 29, on which day Don Bosco was actually at Saint-
Cyr. Our account is based on the testimony of Father Bologna as given to Father Lemoyne,
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
It was just eight months later, during the spiritual retreat, that
Father Bologna ventured to ask Don Bosco privately what had
happened, he himself not having been present at the time. Don
Bosco replied confidentially, "You see, Don Bosco felt that he was
just getting nowhere in France, and so he told Our Lady, 'Come
now, let's get started!' "
And a great start it was. The news of the marvel spread like
wildfire through the city, creating such a furor that people flocked
to Don Bosco in endless lines. It cannot be said that Don Bosco
ever mastered French, but he spoke it with an engaging frankness
that lent a charm even to his inevitable mistakes. Then, too, his
unshakable serenity, all the more striking in its contrast to the usual
vivacity of the French, deeply impressed the people. His concerns
in those days centered upon the need to enlarge the building, and
many of his visitors, knowing this, vied with each other in
forecasting how rapidly that expansion would be made. Already
they were talking about sheltering two hundred and fifty boys
within six months. Don Bosco let them talk, but then with a down-
to-earth remark, uttered in a tone which sounded phlegmatic by
contrast, he brought his speakers back to the world of reality.
On January 12 Father Bologna wrote to Father Rua:
"Enthusiasm has been aroused." That day the bishop invited Don
Bosco to dinner and seated him at his side, flanked by ten parish
priests. On January 14 Father Ronchail again wrote to Father
Rua: "We never dreamed that we would find such generosity and
so much good will. Looking at all that is happening about us these
days makes us feel that we are living a fairy tale. Don Bosco is
beside himself and can't figure out how all his hopes and wildest
dreams have been surpassed. The events of this week will find a
glorious page in our Congregation's entire history." That same day
Father Bologna also wrote to Father Rua, "The movement is
spreading in a fantastic way." The endless stream of visitors kept
surging in such great numbers that his acting secretary, unaccus-
tomed to meeting the demands of his duties under these
and on the witness of Father [Louis] Cartier, then stationed in our house at Marseille, whose
several statements on this matter were recorded verbatim by our confrere Father [Frederick]
Riviere. As for the date, we are of the opinion that this event took place on either January 10
or 11. Readers will agree to this if they will check out the dates cited in our subsequent
narration. [Author]
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Don Bosco's Visit to the Salesian Houses in France
7
circumstances, wrote to Father Rua on January 20, "His name has
flashed through Marseille like a bolt of lightning! If he stays here
any longer, we will have to get Father Berto13 to come and keep the
crowds under control." Don Bosco personally informed Father
Rua on January 27: "As the world would say, our works are
moving fantastically, but we say prodigiously. May God's
goodness be ever praised and exalted!"
All this enthusiasm gave rise to the idea of a public conference to
be given by Don Bosco either in a parish church or in a public hall
to a select audience. Don Bosco had to oblige. However, he
managed to arrange for a meeting of his friends in one of the
school's dormitories converted into a hall. The flow of visitors
which gave him no respite made it impossible for him to give any
thought to what he was to say and how to say it.
The bishop also attended the conference. Father Bologna
marveled to hear Don Bosco speak French with such ease, as did
others of his listeners, one of whom, replying to an inquisitive friend
on how Don Bosco had managed with the language, wittily replied,
"He spoke French as though he knew it."
Such unanimous acceptance of his plan to expand the boarding
school soon began to bring in the first funds for financing the
project. To stimulate the generosity of Marseille's citizens further,
Don Bosco lost no time in calling in a builder and contracting for
the project at a cost of fifty thous and francs, the building to be
completed by August and large enough to accommodate two
hundred boys. One morning, as he was reviewing the blueprints
with Itier, the architect, Canon Timon-David14 showed up and
spent some time with them, examining, advising, approving,
objecting and finally disapproving. At last he left. Don Bosco,
though a cautious mover who coupled caution with a native acute
intuition, remarked to the architect, "I am afraid that when good
Canon Timon goes to heaven, he will find something there not
entirely to his liking."
Don Bosco would gladly have given a dinner for his most
13See Appendix 1. [Editor]
14See Vol. XIII, p. 75. We must correct an inauccuracy on that page. The Brothers of the
Sacred Heart mentioned there were not those of Puy, but a local clerical congregation,
known as Oeuvre du Sacre-Coeur de l'Enfant Jesus, founded by Canon Timon-David and
approved by the Holy See a few years ago. [Authorl
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
prominent friends in Marseille, but the premises were hardly
suitable. Fortunately, Monsieur Jules Rostand, chairman of the
Beaujour Society, had the bright thought of inviting the most
outstanding people of the city to a grand testimonial dinner in Don
Bosco's honor. While sipping their wine, the dinner guests
discussed the boarding school to be built and the big hostel for
artisans to be entrusted to Don Bosco's care. Two problems stood
out, both very challenging: collecting enough cash to finance the
actual construction and setting up a trust fund whose annual
interest would provide for the boys' needs. All agreed that it was a
bold project whose outcome was rather uncertain. Choosing the apt
moment, Don Bosco said with a grave smile, "Yes, of course it's an
ambitious project but only the people of Marseille can measure up
to it.'' His words electrified them, so much so that he himself could
never have imagined their striking effect. The cash problem
gradually disappeared and construction never had to be suspended
for lack of funds. When recounting the affair at Alassio, Don
Bosco admitted that then and there he had no idea of the effect his
words had produced since they had just poured out ofthe fullness of
his heart. It was Canon Guiol who told him of it later, and facts
bore him out. Be that as it may, we must recall Don Bosco's
masterly skill in saying the right things to his listeners.
Callers flocked in endless sequence. An account of one visit in
particular has come down to us, that of a certain Monsieur Olive,
one of Marseille's wealthiest citizens. He was suffering from an
incurable disease and asked Don Bosco for his blessing and
intercession for a healing. Our saintly father suggested a sure
means: he was to go to his bank, draw a sum proportionate to his
wealth, and give it to Don Bosco; it might not be a great sacrifice
but, should it be, he was to acquiesce, since it involved obtaining a
true miracle. Monsieur Olive asked for some time to consult with
his wife. "If you think it is too much," Don Bosco replied, "do what
you think is best, but I consider it an absolute condition. However,
God sees the heart, and He knows what sacrifice would be
adequate. Should you not wish to give that sum to me, you may
donate it to some other pious undertaking or to the bishop to use it
as he may judge best, but this is what you must do in order to
recover."
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Don Bosco's Visit to the Salesian Houses in France
9
Although the gentleman returned to Don Bosco several times, he
never got around to making up his mind. Finally one day while Don
Bosco was calling on the bishop, the latter handed him two
thousand five hundred francs on behalf of Monsieur Olive, who lost
no time in visiting Don Bosco again, convinced of his own
generosity. However, the sum was a mere trifle compared to what
he could afford. It would appear that God wanted to help him
detach his heart from his riches.
Don Bosco naturally thanked him for the donation, but to his
insistent queries as to whether he might hope to receive the
yearned-for favor, he replied, "When I made you that proposal a
few days ago, I knew that the Lord would grant your prayer, but
now I no longer feel so sure. Keep praying. He may still grant your
wish in His vast goodness, but the chances are slim. The moment
passed and it will not return. Scripture says that Jesus 'went about
doing good' [Acts 10, 38]. He did not 'remain.' Do you understand
the difference?" The man realized that he would not be cured, and
so it was.
Besieged by visitors, Don Bosco was no less pressed by business
matters. "Great projects are in the offing," he wrote to Father Rua,
"and much prayer is needed if everything is to tum out
successfully." A grave concern of his was to establish clearly and
precisely the Salesians' relationship to St. Joseph's parish, since
the director and the pastor had had a falling out. The latter wanted
St. Leo's Oratory to train both the choir and the altar boys for the
parish. In all reality, no one had ever mentioned this matter during
the negotiations for a boys' hospice; it came up only after Father
Bologna became director of St. Leo's Oratory. An unforeseen need
had made Canon Guiol tum the training of his choir and altar boys
over to the Salesians, who agreed to do it with great inconvenience
to themselves and without stipend, in order to please the man who
had so befriended them. They did their best, relying on the help of
the day boys, whereas it was expected that a better training would
be provided by the boarders. But this would only have jeopardized
the boarders' formation because, doubtless, they could not be
properly supervised ifthey had to leave the premises frequently and
no longer be under their director's full control. "We have a special
educational method, known as the 'Preventive System of Educa-
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10
1HE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
tion,' " Don Bosco later explained when the controversy over this
matter reached a climax,15 "and it is impossible to apply it if the
pupils are not totally under our control. We never use repressive
methods, relying at all times on supervision, reason and religion. It
is therefore indispensable that the parish choir provide its services
to the parish without involving the boarders in any way, although, if
needed for solemn occasions, the boarders will willingly strengthen
the ranks of singers and serve as altar boys."
Besides the choir, the parish priest regularly demanded as his due
the service of priests to help him in the care of the parish-
something unheard of in Italy. The first time Canon Guiol brought
this up, he had suggested it to Don Bosco as a source of income for
the house. Once the priests had celebrated Mass, they could devote
the rest of their day working at the festive oratory. No mention of
any other obligation had been made until Don Bosco went to
Marseille, and good Father Bologna could have obliged even in this
without endangering the smooth running of the hospice. In this
regard we quote a remark contained in the cited letter which
touches upon the life of our Society, "which," it states, "is
dedicated to the moral and temporal welfare of youth. The assistant
priest's duties of funerals and escorting the deceased to the
cemetery are so distasteful to the members of this Congregation
that some of them might well choose to leave it rather than alter the
purpose for which they pledged themselves to the Lord."
These two situations, we think, suffice to explain the ill feelings
arising between the hospice and the parish, the director and the
pastor, once the "honeymoon" was over. A side effect was the chill
which consequently fell over the relations between the latter's
friends and the Salesians. The suddenly restored enthusiasm,
heightened by the miraculous healing of the boy, helped to ease the
tensions, but the ill feelings had to be put to rest completely and
matters set aright. In all of this Don Bosco's magnanimity shone
forth. Always grateful to Canon Guiol, who had done so much to
bring his sons to Marseille, he kindly discussed the situation with
him, and, after a lively exchange of letters between Marseille and
15Letter to Monsieur Rostand in reply to a letter of his of September 8, 1879. We still have
the rough copy in two different handwritings, possibly because it was written under dictation.
The additions and alterations in the text are by Father Rua and Don Bosco. Don Bosco
signed it. [Author]
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11
Turin, our saintly father finally agreed to sign an agreement of sorts
with the pastor of St. Joseph's as a tangible proof of his genuine
gratitude. However, to keep matters in perspective, he had a clause
inserted which stated that St. Leo's Oratory would offer its services
to the parish as required, "in a manner compatible with the oratory
duties to which each individual is committed."16
There was another serious matter for which Don Bosco
requested special prayers in his letter to Father Rua on January 21:
"Much prayer is badly needed. If the boys really want to do
something to please me, let them offer a triduum of Communions
and prayers for my intentions and for the successful outcome of our
affairs." A new contract had to be drawn up with the Beaujour
Society to replace the old, no longer adequate for a new and very
important need: guaranteeing the existence of our houses at La
Navarre and at Saint-Cyr. To achieve this, the Beaujour Society
was to purchase the two farms owned by Father Vincent and his
tenants, paying only the liens on them with funds donated by
benefactors and then leasing land and buildings to Don Bosco
under terms to be arranged. The latter were worked out in
painstaking discussions and drawn up into a contract17 which was
to be signed within three months and become effective four months
later. When all was ready, Don Bosco informed Father Rua by
letter on January 27: "Today at two o'clock we shall have to make
two important decisions. Everything is set in our favor. Let us hope
that all will be concluded in accordance with God's holy will." Just
a few days before, he had written to him on this very matter:
"These decisions are very important, morally, materially, and
spiritually."
The Auteuil undertaking18 also called for his attention. Father
Roussel, long anxious to confer with him, took advantage of his
presence in Marseille for a personal meeting. His intent was to
register objections to the plan drawn up in Turin by the superior
chapter and signed by Don Bosco, which had been sent to him
some months before. However, once he saw the enthusiasm of
Marseille's people for Don Bosco, he felt overwhelmed and signed
16We are omitting the full text in French. [Editor]
170mitted in this edition. [Editor]
18See Vol. XIII, pp. 565ff. [Editor]
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TIIE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
the agreement as it was, insisting that it go into effect
immediately. 19
We have documentary proof of Don Bosco's activities in
Marseille also in his letters to Father Rua, of which we possess
five. More aptly they should be called memos of items done or to be
attended to. Their sketchy wording and listing show us how in
accord these two minds were. We record them in an Appendix to
this volume.20 Perusing them, the reader will notice how Don
Bosco, regardless of being bombarded on every side by problems of
all kinds, gave his attention to everything and everyone with the
solicitude of a superior general and the loving care of a father. Nor
was he concerned only about his vicar. In fact, in writing to the
novice master, for instance, he expressed his thoughtful concern for
the novices:
My dear Father Barberis:
Marseille, January 10, 1879
A few matters to keep between ourselves. I trust that our beloved
novices, the apple of my eye, are all enjoying good health and warmly
vying with each other to drive off the chill we usually feel at this time of
year. Please assure them that they are my joy and my crown. Roses, of
course, not thorns! May there never be a Salesian candidate who by his
bad conduct thrusts a thorn into the heart of his most loving father, Don
Bosco! God forbid! Indeed, I am sure that all will outdo each other in their
prayers and Holy Communions in order to comfort me by their exemplary
behavior.
Of the three novices I brought with me I assigned Boyer to La Navarre,
whereas Taulaigo, who is writing this letter, and Turin are here to edify the
people of Maison Beaujour. This house, now a seedling, needs a great deal
of initial care, but it will grow into a tree whose boughs and gentle shade
will extend their beneficial effects to far distant lands. This is my hope in
the Lord. On Saturday Foglino and Quaranta will board ship for
Montevideo. They are happy and content and want nothing more than to
fly to the aid of their confreres in Uruguay.
Father Ronchail will send you more news. Tell Father Depert to
sanctify the sacristy and everyone in it; tell Palestrino, the sacristan, to be
good and Julius to be cheerful; tell Father Rua to look for money and
Count Cays to care for his health as he would for mine.
19/bid., pp. 570f. (Editor]
2oomitted in this edition. [Editor]
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13
God bless you all and may He grant you all the grace of a good life and
a happy death. May He grant it especially to the one whom I will not see
again when I return to the Oratory.
Believe me always in Jesus Christ,
Your most affectionate friend,
Fr. John Bosco
The one whom Don Bosco would not see again on his return was
one of Father Barberis' helpers, Father Remondino, a postulant
who died on February 1.
He did not forget the Daughters of Mary, Help of Christians, to
whom he sent a message through their director at Mornese, Father
Lemoyne. Unfortunately we have not been able to trace it until
now.
My dear Father Lemoyne,
[No date]
I write this letter to the Daughters of Mary, Help of Christians while in
the diocese of St. Lazarus, perhaps from the very spot where St. Mary
Magdalene passed her days in prayer and penance. Either mother superior
or, better, you yourself should read it publicly with such timely comments
as you judge best. I would very much wish that copies be sent to all the
other convents of the sisters.
Here I am very busy with many grave matters. When you will learn
about them you will be astounded to see the Lanzo dream21 fulfilled. Next
Wednesday I go to La Navarre by way of Saint-Cyr, where we have our
house. God willing, I shall be at Nice by the end of the week. I do not
know how the question of my friend Musso' s ordination is doing; please
give him my regards. Give my best also to the others in the house, the
pastor, all our friends, and the Salesian cooperators.
God bless you, dear Father Lemoyne. Pray for me, who am always in
Jesus Christ,
Your most affectionate friend,
Fr. John Bosco
Another thoughtful concern of his was for the artisans at the
Oratory, whose best wishes he reciprocated in a very affectionate
and fatherly note addressed to their catechist.
21see Vol. XIII, pp. 413ff. [Editor]
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14
1HE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
My dear Father Branda,
Marseille [No date]
Were I personally to visit my beloved artisans every time I think of
them or pray for them, I would be spending a lot of time in talking to them
and encouraging them. Still, I want to prove to them in deed that I really
do particularly remember them. Tell them that I am most appreciative of
their best wishes for Christmas and New Year's and that I reciprocate
from the bottom of my heart. I have heard good things about them and
pray that God will grant them good will and the grace to be virtuous.
Here I am at St. Leo's Hospice, where some sixty lads will gradually
follow in the footsteps of the Oratory artisans. In fact, several are already
determined to outdo them in obedience and piety, though I've told them
that they'll never succeed. We shall see.
Meanwhile, tell them that I earnestly recommend frequent confession
and Communion, but they must receive both sacraments with proper
dispositions so that on each occasion some progress in virtue may be
perceived. I wish I could say, please God, that each and every artisan is a
model of good conduct to the others. It all depends on you, my beloved
boys, to give me such utter consolation.
I know you are praying for me, and I attribute my improved eyesight to
your prayers. Continue to pray. I thank you and God will reward you.
Give me the gift of one Holy Communion offered for my intention.
God bless you, dear Father Branda. May He also bless all our
assistants, workers and artisans and grant us the grace of forming a single
heart and soul to love and serve God here on earth, so that one day we
may sing His praises and eternally enjoy Him in paradise.
Yours affectionately in Jesus Christ,
Fr. John Bosco
At the time when contacts with France were becoming ever
more frequent and relevant, God inspired Count Cays to embrace
the austere life of the Oratory, despite his already advanced
years.22 This virtuous nobleman, who had perfect mastery of
French, which he wrote impeccably, and who so thoroughly
understood the French temperament, rendered outstanding services
to Don Bosco both personally and by his writing. The following
letter witnesses to Don Bosco's lofty esteem for him.
22/bid., pp. 157ff. [Editor]
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15
My dear Count Cays,
Marseille, January 20, 1879
I was delighted to receive your letter and I thank you for your news.
Father Roussel23 did in fact come to Marseille and after some discussion
did unconditionally sign the project we had outlined for him. I shall bring it
along with me on my return to Turin. I hope we can meet at Alassio by
next February 3 so that we can discuss some practical details.
See if you can sell part of the farmland at St. Ann's Villa24 before we go
bankrupt. I am still here in Marseille to settle some rather important
matters which I hope will greatly benefit our Congregation. We shall talk
about them at Alassio.
Monsieur D'Ycard25 came to ask about you and was delighted to learn
that you are already a priest. He had hoped to find you here.
My health has improved, thanks to God's goodness.
When you can, drop in on Marchioness Fassati and give her my regards
and news of me.
Give my best also to your whole family. Tell Father Ghivarello to be
good, Father Fusconi26 that I miss hearing from him, and Father Angelo
Savio to be a real angel. Take all possible care of your health. Look after
yourself as you would look after me.
May the grace of Our Lord Jesus Christ be with us always, and may He
help us ever do His holy will.
Pray for me. Always in Jesus Christ,
Yours affectionately,
Fr. John Bosco
Don Bosco also wrote to Mrs. Matilda Sigismondi, wife of Mr.
Alexander Sigismondi, whom we have often encountered in Don
Bosco's journeys to Rome. His letter is a proof of the lasting
devotion of this pious couple for our saintly father. How they loved
him! In the summer of 1931, as Father [Philip] Rinaldi [third
successor of Don Bosco]27 was at the office of our procurator
general in Rome, a gentle elderly woman, leaning heavily on her
cane, barely managed to climb the not too steep stairs to pay her
respects and give him a charitable donation. It was Matilda
Sigismondi, now a widow. She had by chance heard that Don
23/bid., p. 565. [Author]
24/bid., p. 632. [Author]
25Monsieur Jean-Victor D'Ycard de Barbarin was Marseille's first Salesian cooperator
and the first benefactor of St. Leo's Oratory. He died on February 24, 1979. [Author]
2 ssee Vol. XIII, p. 499. [Editor]
27See Appendix I. [Editor]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
Bosco's third successor was present in the office and could not
resist her overwhelming eagerness to call on him and talk to him
about Don Bosco.
Marseille, January 21, 1879
Most esteemed Mrs. Matilda,
Your letter caught up with me here at our house in Marseille. Father
Rua has already had a Mass celebrated at the altar of Mary, Help of
Christians in Turin for your intention. I too offered Mass here, and our
orphan lads prayed and offered their Communions for you.
This house was inaugurated last year when I came to Marseille from
Rome. It was named St. Leo's Festive Oratory in tribute to our new
Pontiff.
My dear Mrs. Matilda and Mr. Alexander, how much we shall have to
talk about!
Since my stay in the Holy City will be brief, we must really set aside a
whole day just to chat together.
God bless you and dear Mr. Alexander and Mrs. Adelaide. Asking a
remembrance in your prayers, I am happy and honored to be,
With filial love,
Fr. John Bosco
P.S. My acting secretary wrote this for me since my eyes,
notwithstanding some improvement, still pain me.
Along with Canon Guiol, pastor of St. Joseph's, Don Bosco
went to Aix on January 27 "for a very important matter," as he
wrote to Father Rua. It seems that on this occasion he delivered a
fund-raising sermon which was followed by a collection.28
A strange event took place in this ancient Roman city as Don
Bosco himself narrated and Father Lemoyne recorded. Don Bosco
called on Baron Martin and was hosted at a luncheon with his
family, who enjoyed his deepest confidence. While crossing the
parlor on his way to the dining room, Don Bosco spotted on a table
silverware and platters of sterling silver. He stopped to admire that
small treasure. Then, with feigned gravity and great calm, he
28A sympathy letter from Father E. Vinson, a Vincentian, to Father Rua, February 6,
1888, on the death of Don Bosco, reads: "Should the Holy Father ever assign a patron saint
to our Institute for the Young, and to other institutes, I hope that they and all the Salesian
cooperators will entreat him that this patron be St. John Bosco!" [Author]
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17
reached out and put piece after piece into his pockets, stowing away
the rest in a bag which stood in the comer. The baron and the others
stood by watching the game. When he was through moments later,
Don Bosco asked the baron how much that table service might be
worth. "Ten thousand francs, if you were to buy it new," the baron
replied, "but you would probably get no more than one thousand if
you were to sell it."
"Well, then, since my dear baron is so wealthy and I have such a
hard time easing the hunger of my poor boys," Don Bosco said,
"why don't you give me one thousand francs and I will give you
back your silverware?"
As though it were the most natural thing in the world, the baron
handed Don Bosco one thousand francs, and, just as simply, Don
Bosco returned every piece to its place.
Still escorted by Father [Joseph] Ronchail, he left Marseille on
January 29 for Saint-Cyr, where Father Cagliero had preceded him
two weeks earlier on his return trip from La Navarre, whither he
had accompanied two Daughters of Mary, Help of Christians. He
had rushed back, he said, because there was no one at St. Pierre's
Hospice to be the community's confessor.29
Although Don Bosco arrived at Saint-Cyr on the feast of St.
Francis de Sales, supper that evening was not very lavish: lentil
soup, a lentil salad, and two fried sparrows which the boys had
caught during the day and which had to make do for three persons.
They were expected at Toulon the following morning to look
over the choir-school which was to be entrusted to the Salesians.
We must add that in some places these so-called choir-schools
were really small junior seminaries. Don Bosco's inspection was
long and thorough. During his stay he blessed a very sick young
woman, who recovered almost instantly and lived five more years.
We have no other details of this recovery, but we do know that as a
result the young person's aunt became a most fervent Salesian
cooperator for the remainder of her life.30
Since the inspection was taking more time than expected, Don
Bosco whispered to his secretary to look for a trattoria for their
noon meal. However, the overly polite hosts who were escorting
29Letter to Father Rua, Nice, January 16, 1879. [Author]
30Letter from Mrs. J. Thomas to Father Rua, Toulon, February 8, 1888. [Author]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
them would not leave their side and insisted on walking them to the
railway station. They got there just in time to catch the train to
Hyeres. Nagging hunger pains were not the only upsetting thing
that severely tested their patience. Night had fallen, and the coach
that Count Buttigny was supposed to have sent was not there. They
had telegraphed him from Toulon, but Father Perrot31 had sent a
second telegram to him from La Crau to inform him of their arrival.
Certain of the coach's coming and spying some distance away a
pair of lanterns looking very much like a coach's headlamps,
Don Bosco did not avail himself of the local bus. The town was
some twenty minutes' walk from the railway station. The two
travelers began heading for the two lamps, but hardly had they gone
a few steps when the lights suddenly went out. They turned out to
be street gas lamps lighting the road to the station.
They had no choice but to walk through ankle-deep mud since it
had been raining all day at Hyeres. The night was pitch-dark and
their luggage weighed them down. Making a virtue of necessity,
they set out in the Lord's name. When their arms ached too much
for them to continue, they rested their suitcases on roadside posts
or gravel heaps to catch their breath. Don Bosco would then tell
funny stories, encouraging Father Ronchail to do likewise. Thus,
after many such stops they finally trudged into Hyeres. Meeting a
woman, they asked for Monsieur Buttigny's home, but she, a native
of Cuneo, had no idea where it was. They stopped at a cafe, only to
be told that there were three families with that name in town. So
they walked the empty streets in an aimless search until they met a
man and asked for directions to the home of a certain Buttigny who
owned an estate near La Navarre. He called a young lad over, gave
him directions, and asked him to take them there.
Meanwhile, the count was on pins and needles, having sent his
coach to meet Don Bosco at La Crau instead of Hyeres. The count,
in formal dress for a meeting he was to attend, insisted that he had
received two telegrams about their arrival, and so kept heaping
unkindly words on the luckless coachman. Just then Don Bosco
and Father Ronchail appeared. "Here I am," Don Bosco said,
dropping his valise wearily, but still smiling. The travelers were
mud-stained to their waists, having walked a good hour from the
31See Appendix 1. [Editor]
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Don Bosco's Visit to the Salesian Houses in France
19
station to the house. The count welcomed them warmly, and,
seeing their messy clothing, ordered his servants to have it cleaned.
"Count, we've had no dinner today," Don Bosco said. "Please get
us something to eat first."
A hot fire was crackling on the hearth. A meal was soon
prepared, and they did it great credit. When they finally went to
bed, they left their clothes with the servants who, after letting them
dry, had a hard time cleaning them.
At eleven o'clock the next day, Dr. [Charles] D'Espiney, the
local physician, came to escort Don Bosco to Count de Villeneuve.
Father Ronchail went with them. The count had fallen from a horse
and struck his head against a tree, sustaining a severe brain injury
that threatened to impair his mental faculties. To add to his
problems, death had deprived him of his wife, whom he dearly
loved, and it was almost driving him out of his mind. Though not
violent, he was so disoriented that his doctors had decided to put
him into a nursing home that very week.
Dr. D'Espiney, a man of the old faith, suggested that they first
have recourse to heavenly aid. Don Bosco found the patient
smoking. "Count, this is Don Bosco who has come to visit you,"
t.1.e doctor said. The count stared blankly at Don Bosco and then
called out to his maidservant, "Madeleine, it is time for my stroll."
"But, Count, please delay it a bit," the doctor begged. "Don
Bosco would like to give you his blessing."
With serious mien, the count resumed his seat. Don Bosco gave
him a medal of Mary, Help of Christians which he accepted, and
then blessed him. From that moment a perfect calm came over him,
replacing his usual nervous restlessness. Toward evening he had
someone fetch Don Bosco from the house of Count Buttigny and
kept him engaged in conversation for a long time. Don Bosco urged
him to trust in Mary, Help of Christians, asked him to say some
prayers, and then told him that he expected to see him in Turin,
fully recovered, for the feast of Mary, Help of Christians in May.
The count went to Turin a month earlier, no longer showing any
signs of his former illness.
Don Bosco's visit to La Navarre and Saint-Cyr enabled him to
learn at first hand the material and moral condition of both houses.
He found that La Navarre had more fertile land than did Saint-Cyr,
though here, particularly in early spring, the first crops of fruits and
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1HE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
vegetables and the evergreens which could be woven into funeral
wreaths, so popular in France, brought a good income. He had to
choose between leasing the land in both places or hiring men to
farm it or establishing two agricultural schools. These institutions
were well liked by all and everyone would have helped them.
As to the religious life of the communities, he found carry-overs
from the past which he did not like. At La Navarre he picked up
stories of the former owner's moral life which made him shudder, so
that he had to use every possible means to erase the memory of
such moral squalor. Some fifty boys were living there, of whom ten
showed strong signs of a priestly calling. But at Saint-Cyr he found
a veritable bedlam. There were some forty people there, ranging
from three to thirty years of age. The so-called nuns, of whom we
spoke in the foregoing volume,32 supervised the dormitories; boys
and girls worked side by side in the workshops, mostly without
supervision. It was urgent, therefore, that he speed up negotiations
with the Beaujour Society and assume full charge of the normal
operation.33 At his superior chapter's meeting in Alassio, Don
Bosco reported, "Let us ask God to bless us and keep His hand
upon us. Surely, had I known about this situation before signing the
contract, I would have been much slower to accept it, but I was told
that the school was doing badly only because of incompetent
administration.''
With these and similar remarks, Don Bosco preventively
silenced those who might in days to come be tempted to regard him
as a visionary who chased the illusions of his own fantasy.
Certainly he had not forgotten the glowing dream he had had in
1877 at Lanzo,34 and so how could he now state that, had he
known what he later discovered, he would not have signed the
contract? We see here once again that, regardless of his dreams,
Don Bosco, in the nitty-gritty of daily life, felt that he was in no way
excused from following an enlightened prudence. In the long run,
Providence always guided events.
We have no further information on this, Don Bosco's first
journey to southern France, where his name stirs hallowed echoes
32See Vol. XIII, p. 555. [Editor]
33Letter to Canon Guiol drafted and written by Father Rua and signed by Don Bosco,
Sampierdarena, February 15, 1879. [Author]
34See Vol. XIII, pp. 413ff. [Editor]
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21
even today. He was back at Nice on February 2, on his way home,
and here again God graciously honored His servant in a miraculous
cure which we related on the basis of a signed report submitted by
the person concerned35 and on the lengthy testimony of her
attending physician.
Countess de Villeneuve had suffered from acute peritonitis in
1876 and had nearly died. She managed to recover, but never got
over its consequences. Intermittent fevers which assailed her in the
past now persisted obstinately despite every medication, becoming
at times so violent that they threatened her life. Throughout 1878
her strength kept failing daily and her case was considered
hopeless.
In November a friend of hers happened to mention Don Bosco
and the favors he obtained through the intercession of Mary, Help
of Christians. She became keenly anxious to meet this man of God
and request his prayers. Her physician, Dr. D'Espiney, advised her
to go to Nice for its mildness, and she was there in January 1879.
Her condition showed no improvement. Rather, an overall
weakness, loss of appetite, insomnia, and inability to exert the
slightest effort-even to go up a few steps-made life unendurable.
On hearing that Don Bosco was in Nice, she sought and obtained
an audience with him on February 3. Her first sight of him made a
deep impression upon her. He asked her to be seated and tell him of
her illness, listening with fatherly concern. Then he rose and said,
"Certainly there is nothing on earth more precious than good
health. But we do not know God's will in these matters.
Nevertheless, He promised to open to all who would knock, and so
we shall knock so loudly that He will be forced to keep His promise
and open to us. You will be healed, so that you may give your
children a Christian education."
The countess knelt for Don Bosco's blessing. Having blessed
her, he asked about her children and suggested she go to Turin for
the May 24 celebration. In her statement she wrote, "I returned
home full of hope, with hardly a thought of having been sick an hour
earlier. That evening I walked some six kilometers with my sons. I
no longer have problems in climbing. My appetite is fine, and I
sleep well. I feel no trace at all of my prolonged sufferings.
35Letter of the countess of Villeneuve to Count Cays, Nice, June 6, 1879. [Author]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
Instantaneously I felt strength restored to my limbs, so much so
that soon afterward I was able to walk twelve kilometers with a
friend of mine in less than three hours, hardly resting at all along the
way." Her physician issued a statement of recovery in a detailed
report.36
Two other incidents most likely took place during Don Bosco's
stay in Nice. The first we heard from Cardinal Cagliero37 when he
was relating the power of Don Bosco's glance and words. Don
Bosco had just finished a sermon and was leaving the sanctuary to
walk to the door, his passage blocked by people crowding about
him. A dangerous-looking man stood stock-still, staring at him as
though deliberating a violent move. Somewhat concerned, Father
Cagliero kept an eye on him as Don Bosco slowly drew nearer to
him. Finally they stood face to face. On seeing him, Don Bosco
asked, "What do you want?"
"I? Nothing!"
"You look as though you have something to tell me."
"No, not at all!"
"Would you perhaps like to make your confession?"
"I? How silly!"
"Why are you here then?"
"Because . . . well, because I cannot walk away...."
"I understand. Friends, leave us alone for a while," Don Bosco
said to those about him.
When they pulled back, Don Bosco whispered briefly into the
man's ear. He fell to his knees and made his confession then and
there in the middle of the church.
The other episode is related in D'Espiney's Life ofDon Bosco.
The author heard it from the well-known Parisian publisher Josse.
Monsignor Postel, a learned prolific writer and a deeply pious man,
went to Nice to visit Don Bosco. As they were conversing, he
abruptly asked Don Bosco, "Tell me, now, is my conscience clear
before God?" Smiling faintly, Don Bosco made as if to walk away,
but the other cut off his exit, double-locked the door and slipped the
key into his pocket. "Don Bosco," he said, "you are not leaving
this room until I know how I stand in God's eyes."
360mitted in this edition. [Editor]
37Father Cagliero was created cardinal on December 6, 1915. [Editor]
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So determinedly did he speak that Don Bosco became very
serious, clasped his hands upon his breast as he usually did, looked
at the priest kindly, and as determinedly answered, "You are in the
state of grace."
"I have the feeling you are saying that out of kindly
consideration.''
"No, my dear Monsignor," Don Bosco assured him. "I say what
I see."
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CHAPTER 2
The Annual Conferences
of St. Francis de Sales
DoN Bosco's extended stay in Rome during 1878 kept
him from holding these yearly conferences. However, determined
not to omit them the following year, he planned well ahead of time.
"We must convene the St. Francis Conference," he wrote to
Father Rua from Marseille on January 11. "I suggest we hold it at
Alassio or at Sampierdarena, possibly on February 3. You could
come over with Father Durando1 and others who you think are
competent. Tell me what you think about its opportuneness.
Personally, I'd like to meet in Turin, but then I would have to
change my plans." Father Rua had to leave it to Don Bosco, only
expressing a preference for Alassio. On January 21, Don Bosco
replied, "Let's set up the conference at Alassio on February 3."
The date was later moved to February 6.2
With Father Cagliero and Father Ronchail Don Bosco left Nice
on February 5, stopping briefly at Vallecrosia to give the confreres
a word of encouragement and reaching Alassio at dusk. The
following midday Father Rua, Father Lazzero, Father Ghivarello,
Father Barberis and Count Cays,3 who had spent the night at
Sampierdarena, arrived from Turin. Their encounter with Don
Bosco in the dining room was very touching. They entered
separately, having been detained by clerics and boys outside, and
Don Bosco welcomed each very warmly as they came in to greet
him. He inquired about their health, about the clerics and boys, and
about individual confreres. "Excellent!" he kept exclaiming. "I
1See Appendix 1. [Editor]
2We are following Father Barberis' notes, taken during the conference. [Author]
3For these priests see Appendix 1. [Editor]
24
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The Annual Conferences of St. Francis de Sales
25
must get in touch with them.... I must drop a line to so and
so.... When you write to your boys, tell them that I am thrilled to
know they are all healthy and doing well and that I am longing to
see them. Ask them to pray for the success of the pressing matters
we have in hand at this time."
The conference opened at four o'clock on the afternoon of
February 6. Besides the above-mentioned, the directors of the
houses in Liguria were all present. The first session was devoted
entirely to discussing our work in France. Don Bosco told them of
his warm welcome in Marseille and spoke in detail of the houses of
La Navarre and Saint-Cyr. He mentioned proposals he had
received at Frejus, Aix, Toulon, and Hyeres. "Canon Guiol," he
said, "has been more than generous in giving material and moral
support to our Salesians in Marseille. We must also be generous in
meeting some of his requests." The public reading of two letters
from Father Bologna prompted him to comment, "I am sure that no
Frenchman who had come to Turin, even if he worked miracles
[upon his return], would ever have received the offers that were
made to us in France, especially in Marseille, a city so averse to
foreign interference." Later they went over the agreement co-signed
by Father Guiol and Don Bosco regarding the choir-school of
Marseille, as well as the main clauses of the Beaujour Society
contract. Two ad hoc committees were set up, one headed by
Father Rua to provide personnel for the house of Marseille, the
other to complete the staff at Sampierdarena. Don Bosco and
Count Cays reserved to themselves the handling of correspondence,
particularly with France. The last topic of discussion was Autreuil,
which we have already treated at length in Chapter 19 of Volume
XIII. The very fruitful meeting closed late that night.
The two personnel committees worked separately through the
following morning. In the afternoon three provinces were created-
Piedmont, Liguria, and South America, with headquarters
respectively at Turin, Alassio, and Buenos Aires. Houses in Italy
outside the two Italian regions were assigned to one ofthem. Father
Francesia4 was appointed provincial of Piedmont, though he was to
finish out the school year as director at Varazze; Father Cerruti
became provincial of Liguria, since he already had a vice-director,
4See Appendix 1. [Editor]
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1HE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
Father Louis Rocca; Father Bodrato,5 who was acting superior of
the houses in South America for the last two years, was appointed
provincial. The superior chapter met alone with Don Bosco in his
office while appointing provincials. At the end of their meeting,
they joined the directors, and Don Bosco announced the erection of
provinces and the appointment of provincials, stating that he hoped
they would relieve the superior chapter of much responsibility and
be a big help to the individual directors.
We must note, as Father Barberis pointed out, that Don Bosco
did not consider this setup permanent but wanted it merely as an
experiment so that shortcomings which might surface could be
remedied. We note too that at this conference in Alassio central
Italy was not even mentioned, probably because there would soon
be only one house there, the seminary at Magliano Sabino; later,
however, this was changed, as we learn from the official
communication6 sent to the houses under the Turin dateline of
March 10, 1879, when Don Bosco was in Rome. From it we learn
too of another matter which had been brought up confidentially at
the Alassio conference. The members of the superior chapter were
reaching the end of their six-year term and a general chapter would
have to be summoned for elections. However, since it would disrupt
the flow of the school year, Don Bosco appealed to Rome for a
delay of elections to the next general chapter. The petition was
granted.
The second part of the session was devoted to one of Don
Bosco's favorite themes-vocations. He dwelt on these concepts:
We must first consider how we can foster vocations; we shall draw up
proposals for the forthcoming general chapter about this. The source of all
vocations we already possess: the frequent reception of the sacraments; let
us hold firmly to this sacred premise and make sure that confession and
Communion are properly received. But we must go further and build on
this premise: directors are to give talks on vocation several times a year.
We are not to state bluntly, "Be a priest," or "Don't be a priest." Rather,
boys are to be taught that there are two paths of life they are to choose
from. One may save his soul by taking one path, another by taking the
second. Urge frequent prayer that the Lord may enlighten them as to
5/bid. [Editor]
6 0mitted in this edition. [Editor]
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The Annual Conferences of St. Francis de Sales
27
which choice they are to make, for there He has strewn His graces for their
taking. Urge them also to consult their confessor.
Some excellent ways of arousing or safeguarding a priestly vocation or
even kindling a desire to become a Salesian are:
1. Treat boys with kindness.
2. Be kind to one another. No boy will want to become a Salesian ifhe
sees that we do not treat each other kindly, bicker among ourselves, and
are critical of the superiors' directives.
3. Another effective means is to foster an understanding and an
appreciation of our regulations and of the deliberations of the Lanzo
general chapter. Each Salesian should have his copy of our school
regulations and study them, so that when questioned he may give the
correct answer concerning the particular rules of his office. Even if a
director were to accomplish no more than succeed in having each member
of his staff carry out properly the tasks assigned to him, he would be doing
well enough. He would be ensuring orderliness, and orderliness prevents
many evils that cause the loss of vocations.
I also wish that all Salesians have a copy of the general chapter's
deliberations, not only to know them, but especially to suggest what could
be added. Directors, prefects and all who hold office should insert blank
sheets into their copies for those suggestions and emendations they
consider advisable from their own experience. We aim at refining our rules
as much and as soon as we can. The basic principles that we establish now
with everyone's consent shall last. The boys who are with us now will
easily absorb our ideas and traditions as they grow up. Once this first
generation of students leaves us, any further changes will not be accepted,
even if they are necessary, or at best they will be accepted only
begrudgingly. So we must bring the task to completion. We know what has
happened in other religious orders; they soon found that they had need of
reform, or they splintered into factions to the scandal of all.
The general chapters which will take place thirty or fifty years from
now, when we shall all be dead, will have little value.
But let us get back to vocations. Another factor in fostering vocations
and promoting the overall well-being of our houses is the choice of the
boys' confessors. It is essential that all our boys be guided by confessors
who are animated by the same spirit. Sometimes excellent diocesan
priests come to stay in our houses, and they hear confessions. Some may
be truly holy men, but, not knowing our spirit, they advise the boys
differently from us, and a youngster may lose the trust he has in his regular
confessor and in his director. There are few things that can harm a lad as
much as this. During the Lanzo retreat one boy sought my counsel on
some delicate, personal matters and then asked the advice of another
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1HE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
priest, a non-Salesian, who gave him advice diametrically opposed to
mine. It was the beginning of the boy's downfall, and now his life is in
shambles. Let it be a policy in our boarding schools that no one is to hear
the boys' confessions without the director's personal permission. Priests
not belonging to our Congregation are not to be regular confessors in our
houses, even should they be as holy as Monsignor [Anthony] Belasio and
Father [Joseph] Persi. We would always stand to lose. Be cautious, too, in
assigning our newly ordained priests as the boys' confessors.
A second grave threat to vocations and overall discipline comes from
those who try to set themselves up as leaders among the boys. It must be
stressed that in each of our houses the center of unity is the director. When
asked for counsel, one is to reply, "What did the director say? Ask Father
Director, seek his counsel, trust in him, and you will see that you will be
glad you did. The Lord has appointed him to understand your needs and
help you out. He is especially enlightened to tell you what you are to do or
avoid."
Two centers of unity in a house are disastrous. They are like two
pitched camps-if not in conflict, at least always divisive. Love centered
on one will detract from love for the other. That trust which is won from a
youngster is taken away from the person who properly should have it
totally. Such coolness leads to indifference, to lack of respect and finally
to dislike. A kingdom divided against itself is self-destroying. Therefore,
let the director strive to preserve the unity of his house.
On this matter let us not now set up any hard and fast rule; rather, let us
leave it to the discretion of each director to act along the lines set forth
above. At any time he is entitled to say, "As bishops have the right to
authorize priests for confessions in all institutions, so our rule holds that a
director exercises that same right in regard to those entrusted to his care.
This is his exclusive right. Everyone else must apply to him." If we have
good diocesan priests residing with us, we may allow them to hear the
confessions of day students, but the day-by-day confessor of the boarders
is to be the director of the house. On Sundays, however, he should offer
them a wider choice of confessors.
What policy should we follow as regards frequent Communion? Let
reception be frequent, but take note of a few points:
1. Confession for the boys should be only once a week. If they need to
go to confession more often in order to receive Communion, I think it
wiser that they abstain. This is a general rule which admits of exceptions
for particular individuals and particular circumstances.
2. If boys ask for permission to receive Communion whenever their
conscience does not reprove them, that permission should be granted.
How about venial sins? Bear in mind that one who confesses weekly and
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during that time keeps committing many venial sins does not give much
promise.
He then went on to offer two recommendations about admitting
outsiders to live with the confreres. No outsiders were to be allowed
to live in our houses either as craftsmasters or in any positions of
some influence unless they intended to join our Society. Nor was
any salaried craftsmaster to be permitted to live with us. On hiring
outsiders, lodging in our house was never to be included; they were
to be considered as outside staff members and were to live
elsewhere.
The last item of business was the admission of several novices to
final vows. As regards some who had applied for triennial vows,
Don Bosco reiterated a viewpoint he had often stated, that a three-
year commitment was too tempting a prospect for young men, who
saw it as a provisional position from which they could easily be
shaken and therefore found it hard to reject the allurements of the
world. On the other hand, perpetual vows gave them a feeling of
stability for the future and they looked nowhere else. "When we
introduced the triennial profession," he clearly stated, "my idea of
the Congregation was quite different. I intended to found something
far different from what we have today, but I was forced to do things
this way, and so be it. Life being what it is today, a three-year
commitment creates risks. We will do better to admit only to
perpetual profession those candidates who we see meet our require-
ments and have the necesary virtues and to exclude the rest." The
meeting was closed late that night.
Don Bosco had voiced the same view on the subject of triennial
vows the evening of October 18, 1878 while strolling in the corridor
by his room with Father Barberis and Father Guidazio.7 After
stating his opposition to a three-year profession, he added, "I went
along with three-year vows because my original plan was to found a
Congregation which would assist the bishops. Since this was not
possible and I was forced to do otherwise, a three-year commitment
is now more of a hindrance than a help."
This reiterated assertion calls for some clarification. The
definitive form which the Congregation took on did not spring up in
1 See Appendix 1. [Editor]
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TIIE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
Don Bosco's mind all at once. The idea of enlisting collaborators
came very soon to him, and his mysterious dreams artfully instilled
it and kept it alive. The concept was vague, but it gradually became
clearer and more well defined. In 1855 he determinedly began to
seek the knowledge he needed to draft a rule. This he did in 1857,
submitting it that year to eight volunteers who were to examine it
and judge whether they felt they could follow it. Two elements in
that original rule stand out which later underwent considerable
modifications. One concerned the vows: "The vows," it read,
"shall be renewed twice consecutively for three-year periods. After
six years, one is free either to keep renewing them for three-year
periods or to pronounce final vows, that is, to obligate oneself to
keep them for the rest of his life." This statement makes one regard
the triennial profession not as a preparatory step to perpetual vows,
but as an entity in itself, a simple means of binding for a time the
will of the members while they helped Don Bosco with his festive
oratories and with fostering priestly vocations. This was primarily
the help he wished to extend to the bishops. The second element
linked to the above is to be understood in its light: "The vows bind
one as long as he remains in the Congregation. Those who leave the
Congregation for any reasonable motive or on the advice of their
superior may be released from their vows by the superior general."
Another significant article touches on relations with bishops. "If a
new house should be founded," it reads, "the superior general shall
first come to an understanding with the ordinary of the diocese in
which it is to be opened as regards both spiritual and temporal
matters in accordance with our regulations." Since the new houses
needed to have but two members, of whom one was to be a priest, it
appears that Don Bosco was looking toward setting up more festive
oratories outside the archdiocese of Turin, but all of them under his
direct control and in the service of the bishops. It was only after the
papal audience of March 9, 18588 that the work of organizing the
Salesian Congregation and giving it definitive form took place,
although the practice of triennial profession continued for more
than a decade, when it became the exception rather than the rule
until the promulgation of the new code of canon law.
The morning of February 8 was taken up in studying the
8See Vol. V, pp. 558-562. [Editor]
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situation at Saint-Cyr and seeking to provide for the orphanage. We
need not add to what we recounted in the previous volume9 except
to report Don Bosco's concluding statement: "Let us take comfort,
for this is truly a vineyard which Divine Providence has opened up
to us. Much good will be done for souls, thanks to these two works.
We have good hopes of priestly vocations, for among these boys
there are many well-brought-up lads who are priestly material.
Several have told me they want to become Salesians; one shall also
join the Sons of Mary, and there will be a few who will stay with us
as coadjutor brothers. France today has very few congregations of
men who serve the working people. Such as there are have become
inactive or have gone into schools for children of the upper classes.
There is no one who does the educational work we do. All love our
spirit and the class of boys whom we care for. This is why we find
so much affection wherever we go, and why I hope we shall never
be interfered with." This statement included our works both at
Saint-Cyr and at La Navarre.
The afternoon session was shorter than the others. The first item
on the agenda was a tour of Italy to be made by Father Durando
and Father Cagliero to check out the most important localities
which had been offered to Don Bosco. The tour had been delayed
several months by various circumstances. The itinerary was now
marked out: by rail to Naples, then by ship to Catania, Randazzo
and Palermo. They were to return to Naples by sea and go on to
Brindisi, where the bishop anxiously awaited them. From there
they were to follow the Adriatic coast by train to Venice. Their
return to Valdocco was to be through Milan. Principally their aim
was to conclude negotiations at Randazzo, Brindisi and Cremona.
At Randazzo they were to get acceptance of the contract already
made with the township of Varazze, and at other places where they
were being sought they were to promise that they would come once
they had sufficient personnel. In addition, Father Cagliero was to
make a decision for a girls' home which the duchess of Carcaci
wished to entrust to the Daughters of Mary, Help of Christians in
Catania. Don Bosco closed the discussion by saying: "Go, but
since time is pressing make sure you get a good night's sleep.
Tomorrow you can meet again and get many things done. In the
9 See Vol. XIII, pp. 408, 418. [Editor]
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TIIE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
places you visit call on the bishop and civil officials and give them
my greetings."
The reference to the sisters drew the assembly's attention to a
sad state of affairs. The number of sisters was growing considerably
from year to year, but so too was the number of the sick and dying.
Something had to be done to better the living conditions of their
communities. The problem was given detailed attention, and
Father Cagliero was asked to make an in-depth study. Meanwhile,
since he was more acquainted with their communities, he promptly
suggested some simple improvements which were easy to carry out:
more physical exercise, lots of fresh air, frequent change of kitchen
staff, a courtyard or garden for each convent where the sisters could
have recreation and relax in privacy. He felt also that they should
rid themselves of crushing mental anguish; he believed that many of
them were suffering internally from scruples and inner fears which
made them ill. Don Bosco closed the session by inviting all to thank
God and declaring the conference at an end.
Those three days of meetings with Don Bosco afforded the
chapter members and directors an opportunity of carefully
observing his manner of living, as they did on every possible
occasion, and of greatly admiring his virtues. For our benefit
Father Barberis has reported the impressions they shared with each
other. Above all they were struck by his heroic spirit of sacrifice.
Anyone who did not really know him and judged him solely by his
exterior would never have guessed the extent of his suffering, for,
despite all he had on his mind and the difficulties he had to contend
with, he never showed harshness to anyone or betrayed frayed
nerves even for an instant. Rather, he manifested a graciousness
and tolerance of others' faults which one would take to be his
second nature.
He fully appreciated good health and would not neglect the
means to preserve it, but it was very edifying to see how calmly he
adjusted to change of weather and other unavoidable discomforts.
On a cold day he would say, "Well, we need the cold every year.
Just keep well covered and take care of your health." In summer's
sultry heat he would react by saying, "Very good! The farmers need
this hot weather," and he would extol the season's blessings. When
he was weary, he would say with a smile, "I am a little tired, but
one of these days, when I have free time, I'll rest." Yet he would
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not let others overtax their strength. His eyes were still paining him,
his right eye being practically blind. "True," he would say, "I see
less with one eye than two, yet I trust that the Lord will leave me
this good eye, because I would otherwise have to stop working.
Well, the Lord knows how to put things right." When he sat in on
meetings in which proposals were discussed which he had already
thoroughly examined, it must have cost him endless effort to listen
to half-baked plans, groundless objections, and unreasonable
opposition. It must have been hard for him to have a clearly
designed plan in mind and know positively how to realize it but still
not be free, with good reason, to explain more than part of it, while
having to listen to lengthy arguments why the whole thing was
tenuous and impossible. In such cases he would merely state his
viewpoint with no defense and then and there would defer to their
decision, even if contrary to his wishes. Later on, at an opportune
time, he would again introduce the case and show that the
impossible was really possible. Yet he did so without the slightest
hint of triumph.
During his stay at Alassio he was kept so busy that he had no
chance to talk to the boys individually except for confessions during
community Mass. Still, on walking out of the chapel after eight
o'clock, it never took him less than twenty minutes to cross the
playground, for, as soon as the boys spotted him, they would dash
up to him and he would stop to make a funny comment or to say a
kind word. He had a stock of questions and answers for all
situations. He did the same with teachers and assistants.
Several prominent people met with him to offer him schools and
houses. He won them all over with his attitude, calm, and genuine
goodness. They were taken by his depth of purpose and wise
advice, his friendly dealings, and his loving smile. A delegation
from the municipality of Port Maurizio came to ask him to assume
the direction of the municipal schools and to open a boarding
school which the city would erect and pay for. Though the proposal
was turned down, the gentlemen left with the feeling that their
interview with Don Bosco had been a blessing.
While at Alassio, Don Bosco gave two talks, one to the boys, the
other to the Salesian cooperators. He gave the boys the "Good
Night" on Saturday, February 8, addressing himself particularly to
the upperclassmen and lyceum students. He recommended
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TIIE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
cheerfulness, stressing that it came from peace with God. He
suggested they share their cheerfulness with the holy souls in
purgatory by praying for them and receiving Holy Communion on
their behalf on the morrow, a Sunday. Lastly, he exhorted them to
prolong their happiness by praying for enlightenment about their
vocation during Holy ·Communion, for thus they would find
happiness for the remainder of their lives. He closed by saying that
he wanted them to rejoice not only in heart but also in body-
hence, he had asked Father Director to make sure they were given
something special at dinner. "By being good and joyful now," he
concluded, "you will be storing for yourselves eternal happiness
such as I wish you with all my heart and pray that God will grant to
you."
He also made time for a conference to the local Salesian
cooperators, who filled the central aisle of the spacious church. It
was not the first conference of this kind to be given. One had been
delivered the previous year by Bishop [Cajetan] Alimonda of
Albenga, who was one of the very first cooperators. Warmly
attached to the school and its director, with whom he loved to
converse, he held the Salesians in the highest esteem and regarded
Don Bosco, whom he had known even before becoming a bishop,
as a man of God. Hoping that he had returned from his trip to
France, the bishop had gone to the school to deliver the panegyric
of St. Francis de Sales on February 2. On that occasion he had
spoken lovingly of Don Bosco. Shortly before, on January 29, he
had eulogized St. Francis de Sales, who was named a Doctor of the
Church in 1877, to his own seminarians. He had also emphatically
stated:
What shall I say of you, Don Bosco, my dearest friend, revered father of
our clergy? You first came to know of St. Francis de Sales when you were
a young boy, and you drank in his gentle wisdom, his charming holiness,
his full array of kindly Christlike virtues which do you such great honor.
From him you drew the concept of the Salesian Congregation and its
spirit. I saw its birth and its first growth, like that of a heavenly flower
transplanted on earth so closely resembling the development and spread of
the Visitation convents. In you St. Francis de Sales lives on and multiplies
himself, as he does throughout the world of our laity. This homage of
praise I owe you to give vent to my gratitude, for in the dedicated work of
your sons my dearest diocese finds both benefit and joy. The Catholic
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Church itself reserves far more precious praise and worthier thanks for
you, for through the Salesian apostolate it has become throughout Europe
and America the mother of countless children reared in virtue, of
converted barbarians and sanctified Christians. 10
As soon as he found out that Don Bosco had returned, he sent to
ask for time for a friendly chat. On his part Don Bosco was
planning to forestall him by calling on him at Albenga, but the
bishop acted faster, came to Alassio and talked with Don Bosco at
length. When he finally took his leave, Don Bosco and all the
superiors escorted him to the railroad station.
Before the chapter members and directors departed, Don Bosco
called all the Salesians of the house to a conference. However,
feeling too tired, he asked Father Rua to speak in his stead, while,
with the chapter members, he presided over the meeting. This was
the first time he had ever asked anyone to speak for him in such a
gathering.
He gave Father Rua two letters and a note to deliver when the
latter left for Turin. The letters were addressed to his dear friend
Father Vallauri and to his ailing sister.
My dear Father Peter,
Alassio, February 9, 1879
Please give the enclosed letter to your sister Teresa. If she cannot read
it, please read it to her and assure her that all ofus keep her in our personal
and community prayers. You too, my dear Father Peter, take good care of
your health. I always commend you to God. I am on my way to Rome at
the Holy Father's request. If I can be of any service to you while I am
there, please let me know. Pray for me and for all our poor boys (forty
thousand of them). Always in Jesus Christ,
Yours affectionately,
Fr. John Bosco
My dear Miss Vallauri,
Alassio, February 9, 1879
Father Rua has told me about you. Indeed, I am very grieved to learn
that your pains have worsened. God knows how much we have prayed for
1ocardinal G. Alimonda, II Mio Episcopato, Vol. II, p. 444, Torino Tipografia Salesiana,
1886. [Author]
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1HE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
your recovery. We have not been heard, but we shall not give up, trusting
that our community prayers will benefit your soul. Put your faith in Jesus
and in Mary, Help of Christians.
You have been very generous to us, and as long as the Salesian
Congregation lives, prayers shall be offered for you morning and evening.
God bless you. May His holy grace comfort you. Pray for me too.
Always in Jesus Christ,
Yours devotedly,
Fr. John Bosco
P.S. As soon as I get to Rome I shall ask the Holy Father to send you a
special blessing.
The note, meant for the cleric Eugene Armelonghi, a teacher at
our junior seminary in Borgo San Martino, was written [in Latin]
on a visiting card: "Armelonghi, my son: if you love me follow my
teachings, i.e., our constitutions. I am glad to know that you are
well and that your young charges are growing in learning and piety.
God bless you. Pray for me. Fr. John Bosco, Alassio, February 9,
1879."
On leaving Alassio, he stopped off briefly at Varazze and then
went on to Sampierdarena, where he stayed until February 19.
From Alassio he sent to Monsieur [Jules] Rostand of the Beaujour
Society a report of his visit to La Navarre and to Saint-Cyr,
detailing personnel conditions and the value of the estate. It proved
to be of inestimable value to the society's administrative board in
promoting a successful financial drive then being planned for
launching new undertakings. Meanwhile the Beaujour Society
scrupulously complied with all legal formalities concerning their
project, so that all might proceed in perfect order. The chairman
sent a long, affectionate reply to Don Bosco at Sampierdarena,
hailing him as a messenger of Providence and expressing the hope
that the work at Marseille would develop as fully as possible, now
that the city would have the triple blessing of a Salesian novitiate, a
secondary school for the fostering of priestly vocations, and a
technical school. The Beaujour Society was ready to support his
endeavors enthusiastically and would help him fund them.
Don Bosco, having just then to write to Canon Guiol, expressed
the pleasure this letter had brought him with its glowing sentiments.
Father Rua wrote the letter under his dictation and in his name: "I
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have just received a marvelous letter from Mr. Rostand. I shall
treasure it as a precious souvenir of a man who is a model of
charity, faith and sound wisdom. I hope to answer him from Rome.
Should you see him before then, let him know that his ideas are
precisely those which have always been and still are uppermost in
my mind. A novitiate, an orphanage, a school to foster vocations:
this is what, God willing, we hope to accomplish at the Maison
Beaujour. The time, the place and the people all counsel us to go
forward with greatest caution and equal steadfastness.''11
While at Sampierdarena he imparted a blessing which had an
amazing effect. Mrs. Anna Chiesa's daughter Pia suffered from
very persistent headaches. On hearing that Don Bosco was at St.
Vincent's Hospice, she brought Pia to him for his blessing, but,
since he was busy with others, she could not get to him. Not giving
up, she waited very patiently some four or five hours. Several times
Don Bosco stepped out of his room escorting someone but did not
glance in her direction. Finally, on passing by her, he asked, "What
can I do for you, Madam?'' Briefly the woman told him of her
daughter's plight. "It is but a matter of a moment," Don Bosco
replied, resting his hand gently on the girl's head. Instantly the pain
vanished, never to return.
This episode gave rise to another equally extraordinary event.
After Don Bosco's death, a certain Mrs. Casanova, who had sadly
neglected an ailment in her foot, was told, when she finally
consulted a doctor, that she had no choice but to lose the entire leg.
·In utter desolation, the poor woman could not resign herself to such
a fate.· When her friend, Mrs. Chiesa, heard of it, she told her about
her daughter's instant healing and urged her to commend herself to
Don Bosco. She also gave her a relic from cloth used by him, which
was in such demand after his death. Mrs. Casanova thanked her
and prayed to Don Bosco, placing the relic on her leg. On the day
set for surgery, the doctors prepared their instruments and
unbandaged her leg. To the astol}ishment of all, they could see clear
signs of healing, which progressed until the leg was perfectly
normal.
It was understood that Count Cays was to join our saintly
11 Sarnpierdarena, February 16, 1879. The letter was written by Father Rua and signed by
Don Bosco. [Author]
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TIIE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
founder at Sampierdarena and accompany him to Rome as his
secretary, along with Father Berto. The count, now a humble
Salesian, had said that he would gladly share a room with Father
Berto, even sleep on a mattress on top of chairs if he had to, just so
that he might be privileged to travel with Don Bosco. The latter
therefore had sent him from Alassio back to Turin to take care of
some matters before rejoining him a week later at Sampierdarena.
Father Cays went to the Oratory, got his things ready, and said his
good-byes to his many friends, accepting errands to do for them in
Rome. The day before his departure, however, a telegram from
Don Bosco instructed him to remain in Turin and to be replaced by
Father Bonetti. Serenely the count unpacked his bags and told
everyone he saw, "I am not going to Rome after all. Don Bosco has
sent me word to stay here."
Escorted by his trusty Father Berto, Don Bosco boarded the
train at Sampierdarena for La Spezia, where he stayed two days,
writing and making visits. He was hosted by Chevalier [Joseph)
Bruschi, who was later to become a Salesian priest, and celebrated
Holy Mass in his family private chapel. A chevalier's nephew, who
was the city's mayor and lived in the same building, could not bear
the sight of priests and had openly declared his hostility on several
occasions. Don Bosco, paying him a call, found him sick in bed,
and stayed to chat a while with him. From then on the mayor was a
changed man. He personally admitted to his friends that Don
Bosco was not at all like anything he had expected, and on and on
he talked, lavishing high praises upon him.
Don Bosco invited the pastor, the vicar forane, several canons,
and a few other priests to dinner at the Salesian day school.12
Chevalier Bruschi and other laymen were also invited. It created a
real problem for poor Father Rocca, who had only a would-be cook
and not a single room where he could properly accommodate his
guests. Still, Father Rocca tells us, all went well, and everyone was
as delighted as they would be at a king's table, so honored did they
feel to eat with Don Bosco.
After visiting the school and speaking to the confreres, he went
on to Sarzana on the morning of February 27 to pay his respects to
the bishop who invited him to stay for dinner. That evening he went
12see Vol. XIII, pp. 512-519. [Editor]
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on to Lucca. 13 The director, Father Marenco,14 and several
gentlemen of Lucca gave him a warm reception at Pisa's railroad
station. Then, although it was raining when his train pulled in at
Lucca, the boys were there to give him a rousing ovation-a
welcome not usually accorded a priest in those days. Three
handsome coaches drove him and his friends to the town where,
after a brief visit to the Burlamacchis, he continued to the Holy
Cross Festive Oratory. Here several distinguished citizens paid
their respects and then, noting the hour, withdrew, "leaving us
alone in pleasant talk with our father," as Father Marenco wrote.
The following day, a Sunday, people jammed the Church of the
Holy Cross to see him and attend his Mass. His visit to Lucca was
marked by a vast array of requests for his blessing on behalf of the
sick. It was precisely at midday that he imparted his first blessing to
the eighty-eight-year-old Marquis Burlamacchi, at the request of
his wife. The elderly man, burning with fever and exhausted by
insomnia, could not utter a single word. Don Bosco blessed him
and almost instantly he fell asleep, to awake feeling much better
and to rise from his bed on Monday. Further appeals that afternoon
brought Don Bosco to other bedsides, and that evening he imparted
Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament upon the entire congregation.
In spite of the darkness and foul weather the boys stayed up to greet
him and, as their director put it, "to hear a few words from our good
and wonder-working father."
The following day, Marquis Massoni also sent for him to receive
his blessing. Don Bosco found him confined to his bed by paralysis,
a condition that had persisted through six years. At this time the
poor man could not move a finger. So advanced was the paralysis
that, unless someone kept supporting his head, it would drop
heavily upon his chest and cause him to fall to the floor. His family
had to do everything for him as for an infant. His wife and daughter
and one of his sons wept pitifully. "Heal this poor unfortunate
man!" his wife kept pleading and sobbing. Kneeling before Don
Bosco, she kept begging, "Heal him for me, Father!" Don Bosco
sat down and began to speak, but his words stressed patience and
13From this point to his return from Rome we have only the laconic diary of Father Berto
to guide us. For his stay at Lucca we have an account sent to Father Rua by Father
Marenco. [Author]
14See Appendix 1. [Editor]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
resignation and gave no ray of hope. When the family had
somewhat calmed down, he blessed the sick man and asked him to
make the sign of the cross. Wonder of wonders, he raised his right
hand and did as he was told. Don Bosco told him that he was to
make the sign of the cross daily and call upon the most holy names
of Jesus and Mary.
Despite the amusements of the carnival season, Don Bosco's
name kept echoing throughout the city. When he walked down the
street, people stopped to look at him respectfully. Some followed
him or asked him for his prayers. Even the masked holiday revelers
would momentarily forego their waggery and reverently greet him
as they passed by. Many people delayed receiving Communion
until the 8:30 Mass so as to receive from his hands. No one will
ever know what transpired between him and the persons who
sought his counsel. Father Marenco saw many of them leave Don
Bosco's room so lost in thought that they could not even find the
way out. "Such a stream of people in those days!" he exclaimed.
"Our Salesian house looked like everybody's home."
On February 25 the crowds broke all records; by evening he was
so exhausted and tormented by such a severe headache that he had
to cancel further interviews and withdraw to his room. The weather
of those days was brutal, with heavy winds and rain. The morning
of February 26 was marked by thunderstorms, snow, and then
unrelenting rain. Using a coach kindly lent him by a lady of Lucca,
Don Bosco visited several well-deserving townspeople who were in
poor health. Among them was Count Sardi who later recounted
how his little son, at the point of death, was instantly healed at Don
Bosco's prayer and was now in perfect health.
Toward three o'clock he spoke to the Salesian cooperators in the
little Holy Cross Church. The procedure was the usual one. Some
one hundred and fifty people attended, including the archbishop.
Don Bosco described the running of the schools and festive
oratories and explained the meaning of the Association of Salesian
Cooperators. His listeners hung upon his words religiously. 15
Later, a large crowd poured into the sacristy and house, pressing
1sn Fedele, Catholic newspaper of Lucca, Number 51, 1879. [Author]
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The Annual Conferences of St. Francis de Sales
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around him to whisper their needs and to hear from him some word
that could help them cope with their temporal and spiritual needs.
The report of one particular incident spread like wildfire through
the city. With the [Salesian] director at his side and a crowd of
prominent men about him, Don Bosco was making his way to the
cathedral to venerate the Holy Face-a miraculous sculptured
crucifix venerated in Lucca since the eighth century and said to
have been commissioned by Saint Nicodemus. It was rarely
displayed to public veneration and never unveiled, even privately,
save for very important people, and then behind doors. Don Bosco
gave no thought to being allowed that privilege. While he and his
party were walking to the shrine, a shout of"A blessing!" suddenly
was heard. A twenty-year-old young man-the victim of palsy
which had afflicted him for years-was being propped up by his
parents. He could hardly even drag his feet and could not stand
erect unaided. "Am I to bless him in the middle of the street?"
asked Don Bosco. Then, raising his gaze to heaven, he added, "Yet
God can bless us here too!" He lifted his hand in blessing, and all
about him knelt. A crowd was pressing on all sides. After the
blessing, the young man's parents helped him to his feet. "Can't
you take even one step?" Don Bosco asked him.
"No, I have no strength."
"Are you in pain?"
"No, Father."
"Come, let's see you take a step or two."
The young man tried and managed to totter. "Come on, walk
with me," Don Bosco coaxed him. "I am going to see the Holy
Face." And he kept talking to him as they went along. The young
man took some two hundred steps with no support of any kind.
When the shock wore off, the crowd began to voice its wonder. The
parents, recovering from their surprise, veered away with their son,
followed by a number of people. Lost in wonderment, the young
man made his way home, never to be seen again, just as had
happened in Marseille.'
An unexpected welcome awaited our saintly founder. He was
grandly received at the cathedral entrance by the canons in their
choir robes and by four clerics bearing lighted candles. They
escorted him to the chapel of the Holy Face, uncovered the holy
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
image and accorded him the very special favor of kissing the feet of
Jesus crucified.16
Even the devil experienced in his own way Don Bosco's
presence in Lucca. A woman, about thirty-five years old, who lived
in St. Leonard's parish, was possessed and afflicted with
bewildering diabolical vexations. On learning that Don Bosco was
on his way to Lucca, Father Cianetti, her pastor, consulted with
Church authorities to have her exorcised, keeping his intention
secret. Still, one day, the poor woman suddenly burst out into a
scream: "Let that sack of coal come, the protege of that
woman ..." and she spit out a horrible blasphemy against the
Blessed Virgin. It was quite an ordeal to drag that unfortunate
woman to Don Bosco. He blessed her as soon as she came into his
presence, but, when he tried to trace the sign of the cross on her
forehead with a picture of Our Lady, no one could hold her down.
She struggled wildly and writhed like a serpent. This happened on
the morning of February 25. On leaving, Don Bosco stated that she
would be set free on the feast of the Immaculate Conception. And
so indeed it happened, for on December 8 the woman was suddenly
shocked by a deafening thunderclap in her room and at that
moment she was freed from her diabolical possession.
Don Bosco was deeply comforted by the sight of so many well-
behaved boys in the festive oratory. So much had been done with
those lads in less than a year. Shocking blasphemies, once
resounding throughout the day, were no longer heard. Once so dead
set against going to church that they even scaled walls to escape on
the first sound of a bell, now when it rang the boys would
immediately stop their games and quickly line up. In their
frequenting of the sacraments, their devout behavior in the church
and their love for their little priests, Don Bosco's experienced eye
spotted the joyous spontaneity which characterized the educational
16Father Berto thus describes the crucifix: "The countenance is truly noble, a blend of
quiet dignity and unspeakable tenderness, whose very sight overwhelms the spectator with
religious awe; he is filled with a holy fear and is held spellbound by those sparkling, tear-
glazed eyes, while some unseen power forces him to his knees, making him admit his
nothingness and bewail mankind's sinfulness. Something more than human emanates from
that countenance; it is the divine which is harbored there. A magnificent, precious crown of
gold truly makes Him the Rex tremendae maiestatis [the King of awe-inspiring majesty].
Since the image is made more venerable in that it is blackened by the smoke of incense and
candles, one can have an idea of the miraculous crucifix which the people of Lucca showed
Don Bosco." [Author]
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system he practiced and taught. On one occasion he was delighted
to preside at an assembly, as they all gathered about him with song,
declamation, and poetry. He was happy to see among them
cobblers, tinkers, tailors, carpenters and cloth dyers-all young
men-attending evening classes. He noticed that the church was
well serviced by the Salesians and very well attended by the people.
In a word, he said he was so pleased with the work at Lucca that the
director was to write and tell Father Rua about it.
He wrote to Father Rua himself just four days before leaving
Lucca:
My dear Father Rua,
Lucca, February 25, 1879
Burlamacchi17 insists that he has to change climate. His family does not
want him at home. Shall we send him to Alassio? Think about it. Let
Father Barberis know.
You may publish the biographies of our Salesians after looking them
over; just make a brief notation of those of Arata and Father Gamarra.
These may be printed separately later with human interest stories to be
contributed by Father Scappini, Father Albera, Father Notario, Father
Barberis, myself, and others. This way we will have two fine issues of
Letture Cattoliche. Turin too may add something to them. As regards
Cinelli, talk it over with Father Barberis. Father Bonetti is waiting for the
parcels from Turin,18 and here in Lucca I am waiting for parcels and
Bonetti. Tomorrow I will address the Salesian cooperators; the archbishop
will attend. The following morning, February 27, we leave for Rome. I'll
write from there. My heartiest gatherings to all the boys. Tell them I wish
them well, that I love and bless them in the Lord, and that I hope to send
them the Holy Father's special blessing, and see to it that they enjoy some
treat at table. Remind them to be good and pray for the success of our
affairs.
Father Bologna insists on having Grosso for music. If it is all right with
you and it doesn't overly inconvenience the house of Lanzo, I think we can
go along with him.
Always in Jesus Christ,
Yours affectionately,
Fr. John Bosco
11A clerical novice, of the noble Lucca family of that name. [Author]
1BFather Bonetti had stayed behind at Sampierdarena. [Author]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
Almost as a postscript he included a note for Father Barberis.
We can readily see how, loving father that he was, he was
concerned not only with the community but with individuals as he
tried to meet each one's needs and condition.
My dear Father Barberis:
Lucca, February 25, 1879
I have already answered Father Rua on some matters you wrote me
about. See him.
I anticipate with joy the excellent marks which the novices will receive
on their term examinations. Tell the clerics the same, particularly Gresino
and Aime.
I see no problem with the outing to St. Ann's. Just make sure the
weather is good and the roads in fair condition. Take great care of their
health.
Tell Father Bertello I realize how well he bears the cross, but he must
do so if he is "to enter the kingdom of God." Assure Father N otario that I
do care for him. Tell him I rely a great deal on his gentleness and firmness;
I know he will not fail me.
Hearty regards to my dear Ghiglione, Pelazza, Bandino and Lisa.
Chide Father Savio for not having yet written me a long, long letter.
God bless you, my dear Father Barberis, and with you all our dear
novices. I wish them abundant health and holiness for this life and the
next.
Keep praying for me. Always in Jesus Christ,
Your loving friend,
Fr. John Bosco
He also enclosed a third letter for a cleric, Alexander Mora, one
of those entrusted with handling the correspondence for the lottery
to be run at the end of the year. 19 Though far from home and busy
with so many different concerns, Don Bosco had not forgotten
about it and wrote for tickets to sell in Rome, encouraging the cleric
and his helpers to work for the lottery's success.
My dear Mora,
Lucca, February 25, 1879
I know you are working. May God reward you. I am awaiting tickets for
10see Vol. XIII, p. 544. [Editor]
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The Annual Conferences of St. Francis de Sales
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Rome. Do your best and try to recruit others to help you. This lottery
should net us a hundred thousand francs. Just remember that you will have
no peace of mind until we hit that figure.
My best wishes to your helpers. Best regards to Valentini, Marcellus
Rossi, and Palestrina, and to Father Deppert for the fine letter he wrote
me. May God keep all of us in His holy grace. Always in Jesus Christ,
Yours affectionately,
Fr. John Bosco
Father Bonetti, long awaited, finally arrived from Sampierdarena
on the evening of February 26. Don Bosco had planned to leave for
Rome the following day, but he was so exhausted that he feared he
could not endure the trip and so spent two more days in Lucca,
staying indoors all the time and handling details for the purchase of
a building. Father Berto's letters about Don Bosco, read to the
Oratory boys by Father Lazzero, stirred keen enthusiasm for the
father they so dearly loved.20
20Letter from Father Lazzero to Father Berto, Turin, March 4, 1879. [Author]
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CHAPTER 3
Four Weeks m Rome
:tis we learned from Don Bosco himself in the preceding
chapter, he was about to set out for Rome "at the request of the
Holy Father." From Rome Father Bonetti wrote: "Don Bosco has
already had two audiences with Cardinal [Lawrence] Nina and
other prelates on important matters. The secretary of state assured
him that the Pope wishes to see him about things which I cannot
mention here." 1 It is a reasonable surmise that one such thing
concerned the exequatur which the Italian government had refused
to grant Cardinal [Lucido] Parocchi for his archdiocesan see of
Bologna; we shall come back to this in Chapter 5.
We can reasonably conclude that the sudden substitution of
Father Bonetti for Count Cays as traveling companion to Don
Bosco was prompted by something that had happened to the former
in those days: on February 12 a decree of Archbishop Gastaldi had
suspended him indefinitely from hearing confession anywhere in
the archdiocese and had demanded that another priest take his
place at the St. Theresa Festive Oratory for girls in Chieri. Being
out of town, therefore, would prevent suspicions, and being in
Rome would make it easier for him to take defensive measures.
A week after receiving this injunction from the chancery, the
Oratory had an unexpected visit which roused much comment and
conjecture; detailed reports reached Don Bosco in Rome shortly
before and shortly after he got there.2 On February 20 a
performance of a sacred play featuring the martyrdom of St.
11.etter to Father Rua, March 10, 1879. [Author]
21.etters from Count Cays to Don Bosco (Turin, February 21, 1879) and from Father
Lazzero to Father Berto (Turin, March 4, 1879). [Author]
46
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Four Weeks in Rome
47
Pancratius was held. That very morning a messenger of
Archbishop Gastaldi called at the Oratory and, after learning from
the doorkeeper the exact hour of the performance, informed him
that the archbishop would attend. Everyone was astonished. Since
he arrived at the Oratory somewhat late, the band could not be on
hand to receive him since it was already performing for the
audience, which consisted entirely of outside people. However, the
superiors of the house met him and escorted him into the
auditorium. From the stage one of the boys read a welcoming
address with great finesse, and His Excellency seemed quite
pleased. The interest he showed during the performance, his
frequent applause and his generous compliments reassured those
who had feared that he might frown upon the drama's subject
matter. The boys and young clerics were absent, because, as
customary when stage plays were open to the public, they were out
on a walk. The head superiors, too, were away on business. Some
days later the archbishop made another surprise appearance at
Valsalice. Don Bosco merely sent word that they were to try to
learn the reason for so unusual an occurrence, but, apart from more
or less plausible possibilities, no one could discover anything
tangible.
From March 1 to March 28, the entire duration of Don Bosco's
stay in Rome, we find little more in Father Berto's diary than a long
monotonous list of names of people on whom Don Bosco called,
visitors and persons he met by chance, and places he visited.3
Standing out on this list are numerous cardinals and prelates with
whom Don Bosco conferred at length. He also had several
extended interviews with the [papal] secretary of state. Bishop
Charles Laurenzi, auditor to His Holiness, and Monsignor
Marzolini, his personal secretary, both of whom had come from
Perugia to the Vatican with the new Pope, were very anxious to
meet Don Bosco. One day, when they had been able to have him all
to themselves for two and a half hours, the bishop was heard to
exclaim in great admiration, "What a man! He really deserves his
renown!"
Distinguished ecclesiastics who were not yet Salesian cooperators
3 We have also gleaned information from the letters which Father Bonetti and Father Berto
sent to the Oratory. [Author]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
asked to be enrolled in the association as soon as they learned of it
in their talks with him. Wherever he went, our founder usually
returned with more names for the membership list.
At the Vatican, where he was fairly well known, he so impressed
the Swiss Guard and gendarmes that they saluted him as they
would a prelate. On one occasion, in St. Damasus Court,
Commander Lambertini showered him with kindness, kissing his
hand repeatedly, claiming that he was blessed to meet and know
him personally, and asking to be enrolled as a Salesian cooperator.
And the dinner invitations! On March 17 he celebrated St.
Patrick's feast at the Irish seminary, where the rector, Monsignor
Kirby, as usual made sure that he was surrounded by a
distinguished gathering of guests. He was warmly welcomed by the
Benedictines of the Basilica of St. Paul Outside-the-Walls on
March 21, feast day of their founder. Some forty guests were
present: Cardinal [Dominic] Bartolini, their cardinal protector,
Cardinal Chigi, with a fair number of Roman patricians and
distinguished guests from outside Rome, among them the famous
archeologist John Baptist de' Rossi and others. Don Bosco was
always at ease in such company and was able to mix well with
everyone present. While he was in private conversation with
Cardinal Bartolini after the banquet, a cluster of gentlemen looked
on, and one of them remarked, "How venerable he looks! He is
truly a saint!"
As always, the Sigismondi spouses surrounded him with loving
care, having him and his two secretaries at dinner several times. On
one occasion he told them that on a morning of December in 1878
he had observed a boy kneeling near his confessional rise to a
noticeable height, while another lad, while in the midst of his
companions, was likewise lifted more than a meter high. The
secretary cites their names, but it does not seem probable that he
heard Don Bosco mention them at that time.
We mentioned Don Bosco's audiences with Cardinal Nina,
secretary of state, who had been appointed to that high office by
Leo XIII seven months before, upon the death of Cardinal
[Alexander] Franchi. Don Bosco was anxious to pay his respects,
but for two consecutive days he found it impossible to obtain an
audience. On his third try, on March 5, he had an endless wait
since so many others were ahead of him. When finally his tum
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Four Weeks in Rome
49
came, the cardinal remarked, "I am sorry you had to wait so long
because I know you have work to do." He received him and spoke
to him with a friendliness which he had always shown him. Forty-
five years later, the secretary who was the receptionist that morning
wrote this touching account:
The waiting room was already full when I saw two priests come in. Like
the rest, they were asked to take a seat and await their turn. Accustomed
to studying visitors' faces, I was instantly struck by the rare modesty,
serenity and rapt composure which shone from them, especially from the
older-Don Bosco. I kept looking at him all through his long wait and had
to wonder at his calm and his total lack of anxiety as he appeared absorbed
in serious thought, intent on reading or jotting something into a notebook.
Meanwhile the time of audiences was running out, and many ofthe visitors
that morning would have to leave without an audience, among them Don
Bosco, who had arrived rather late. However, he made no attempt to be
received before the others. Always at ease, he just sat and waited. Never
before had I seen anyone wait so calmly in such circumstances, when the
audiences were drawing to a close. I was convinced that Don Bosco had to
be a man of God, a saintly soul, for his singular calm stemmed either from
an unshakable serenity and sweetness or from a certainty heavenly
inspired that he would surely be received.
Filled with reverence and admiration, I decided that nothing would keep
him from being received. When the time for audiences was over and those
who had not been received were leaving, I told Don Bosco to wait. Then I
went to the cardinal and earnestly begged him to grant him an audience,
explaining how much he had impressed me by his holiness. The cardinal
consented, and Don Bosco was well received. As he was leaving, I could
see that he had been given a favorable audience, and I detained him,
asking him to tell me something about himself. He amiably obliged, telling
me about his Congregation, quite unknown to me, and about his
cooperators, among whom he gladly enrolled me.
I recall another detail. When Don Bosco took his leave of me and
walked through the entrance hall, he gave a gratuity to the cardinal's
servants, who gladly accepted it. I believe that this was the way he wanted
to repay them for having to wait beyond the regular closing time. This
gesture too, with such delicate thoughtfulness of others, revealed the man
of God in him.4
41.etter from Father Raphael of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, C.P., La Spezia (Bugnato),
December 1, 1924, Bollettino Salesiano, February 1925, p. 26. [Author]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
Ecclesiastics and lay persons vied for his rare free moments at
his lodgings at Tor de' Specchi. The nobility also visited him and
invited him respectfully to their palaces. Count Charles Conestabile
and Marquis [Angelo] Vitelleschi both went to visit him, and from
them he learned that the Pope had spoken with genuine enthusiasm
about him. Prince Gabrielli, who called while Don Bosco was at
table, would not let anyone disturb him but left his visiting card
with a note that he would return a half hour later, as he did. At the
home of Duchess Salviati, who was anxious to speak to him, Don
Bosco spent three hours; Marquis Patrizi was present to talk with
him.
Don Bosco met also with cabinet ministers and high government
officials. We know of only one matter discussed in these circles. A
threat which, if carried out, would close the secondary school [at
the Oratory] had been hanging over him for the last five months. It
was a very grave situation, of which only the first phase was then
unfolding. We shall describe it in detail in two distinct chapters.
Though caught up in the midst of these many trying situations,
Don Bosco never forgot the needs of the Oratory. He tried to
scrape a little money together for Father Rua, who was in need. At
one time he sent twelve hundred and fifty lire, at another nineteen
hundred lire, and six hundred lire a third time. One day he said to
Father Bonetti:5 "Tomorrow or the next day we shall receive word
that money is pouring into Father Rua's purse." When the
prediction came true Father Bonetti asked him how he had known
it. "Yesterday, when I told you that," he answered, "I seemed to
see white wine being poured into Father Rua's glass, and
assumed that he must be celebrating his joy in the help he had
received." Apparently a donation of five thousand lire had been
sent in by an anonymous donor.
While in Rome, Don Bosco liberally disposed of lottery tickets to
provide for the Oratory's needs. He advertised the lottery in a
circular dated March 7, 1879, addressed to Salesian cooperators.6
Membership in the Association of Salesian Cooperators in
Rome, though already large, grew considerably after the conference
of 1878, and kept growing every day, thanks to Don Bosco's
51.etter to Father Rua, March 10 1879. [Author]
6 This sentence is a condensation. [Editor]
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propagandizing efforts. On March 177 he held a conference
prescribed for the feast of St. Francis de Sales in the church of the
Noble Oblates at Tor de' Specchi. Cardinal Vicar Monaco La
Valletta presided over the meeting, which was remarkable for its
attendance and the high standing of the participants. Don Bosco
related the Salesian Congregation's achievements over the past
year, with the help of God and the support of cooperators,
particularly those benefiting poor, homeless boys of Italy, France,
and South America. When speaking of these houses in Italy, he
singled out those opened in localities threatened by Protestant
influence, especially the day school and night classes at La Spezia,
which were due to the generosity of Pius IX and his successor.
Some two hundred boys had been rescued there from Protestant
influence. He was asked by many of those present why he had not
founded a technical school also in Rome. In reply he stated that
some one hundred boys from Rome and its suburbs were already
being taken care of at the Oratory in Turin or in other hospices, and
that he too was anxious, as was everyone else, to do something for
Rome. He hoped to succeed in this with the help of God and of the
cooperators. Then the cardinal vicar spoke, confirming Don
Bosco's words about the need of founding a house in Rome for poor
boys. He went on to describe how recent events had wrought havoc
among the charitable institutions of Rome, and he urged the
cooperators to support new endeavors which necessity made
imperative, especially in view of everyone's bounden duty to take a
stand against Protestant influence. In the very heart of Catholicism
every possible means of offering material assistance was being used
in order to destroy the soul, as Pope St. Sylvester had once
deplored in regard to certain foreigners.
This time too8 some steps were taken to open a house in Rome, a
very strong wish of the cardinal vicar. When Don Bosco called on
him one day, he bade him sit at his right, saying affably: "Don
Bosco, I want you to sit at my right. That is highly significant. Do
you understand? I want you to be my right-hand man at all times."
Cardinal [Louis] Oreglia too was pressing Don Bosco, arguing that
7Father Bonetti was also present and sets the date as March 18 (Bollettino Salesiano,
April 1879), but Father Berto's diary leaves no room for doubt. [Author]
8 0ther attempts had already been made in 1877. See Vol. XIII, pp. 105f, 502-506.
[Editor]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
the Salesians would be far more esteemed if they had a house in
Rome. Archbishop [Ludwig] Jacobini, secretary of briefs, and
Chevalier [Adolph] Silenzi, president of St. Peter's Club, both
suggested a building owned by the Augustinian nuns near the
Basilica of the Santi Quattro Coronati. Don Bosco checked out the
premises and found everything in excellent condition. He could
house five hundred youngsters there at a yearly rental of three
thousand lire. He gladly accepted a dinner invitation from
Chevalier Carosio, a Piedmontese, who was a councillor of the
prefecture, so as to have some idea how he could circumvent
bureaucratic red tape. This official had already promised him full
support in this endeavor; in fact he himself had introduced him to
the prefect as a first move in preparing the way for further
negotiations. They readily came to an understanding, but as for the
actual negotiations, nothing concrete ever came out of them, as we
have elsewhere already explained.9 Had any firm financial
guarantee followed upon the generous verbal offers made to him,
Don Bosco would never have left Rome without a positive start of
negotiations. 10
A second splendid proposal was made to him: Prince Gabrielli
offered him nothing less than St. Michael's Hospice, of which he
was chairman. This vast charitable institution, which had been
founded by Popes and expropriated by the Italian government, was
going from bad to worse. 11 The moral tone left much to be desired
and two-thirds of its income ended up in the pockets of officials. As
usual, Don Bosco agreed on principle, but first and foremost laid
down three preliminary conditions: absolute freedom of action in
9/bid., pp. 504-506. [Editor]
10We may infer this on the basis of Don Bosco's manner of speaking on April 16 when
briefing the members of the superior chapter about unsuccessful attempts. [Author]
11 The liberal scandal sheetDovere of May 10, 1879 described the conditions of this lay-
administered hospice as follows: "In the boys' arts and trades section imorality is rampant
and breaks out into unheard-of perversions. There are frequent robberies at night, thanks to
picklocks and false keys. Recently three cases of these criminal tools were found-clear
evidence of the evil tendencies and pastimes in which the pupils indulge. Again and again
dishes and food are hurled in protest across the cafeteria, down the stairs, and even into the
offices of the board of directors. Furthermore, all this was accompanied by wanton and
malicious vandalizing of doors and walls. For five consecutive days also, a fierce riot broke
out with rock throwing and the smashing of over twenty large stone slabs." Further on, the
newspaper deplored the administration of a certain Lovatelli, the director, who succeeded in
"destroying, discrediting and undermining such an old and respected institute." [Author]
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53
everything pertaining to internal discipline; dismissal of all
personnel and families which had somehow managed to install
themselves on the premises; a free hand over two-thirds of the
revenue. With the best of intentions the prince told Don Bosco that
he would summon the board immediately and give him an answer
should a decision be made. Meanwhile Don Bosco asked Turin to
send him a copy of the Oratory house rules When a month went by
and the members of the board were still talking, it was fairly
obvious that the prince's good will would not prevail. No answer
came.
In the meantime Don Bosco was completing a report on the
spiritual and material conditions of the Salesian Society to be sent
to the Holy See. We pass over it now and will return to it later.
Not content with this general report to the Holy See, he
submitted two further reports to the cardinal secretary of state with
the avowed purpose of obtaining a subsidy. The first listed all the
Salesians' efforts to counteract Protestant intrigues, especially in
Turin, La Spezia and Vallecrosia, stating that if they were to
strengthen and develop the good work they had begun, they needed
appreciable financial and moral assistance, since in all three cities
they had to set up churches and hospices. The bishops of Italy were
at that time sorely distressed by Protestant propaganda. Liberal
laws had let loose a horde of Protestant propagandists who
operated with no restraint whatever. It is no small matter that
among the works of charity entrusted by his rule to the Salesian
Society, Don Bosco listed counteraction against heresy, for he saw
all too plainly in how many ways the Protestants sought to
influence the simple and the ignorant. The tide of Protestantism
rushed upon the city of the Popes through the breach made at Porta
Pia12 and reached out far and wide. The Protestants fell just short
of setting themselves up in the Church of the Spaniards in Piazza
Navona only because the Belgian Missionaries of the Sacred Heart
fortunately intervened in time. At the Salesian cooperators'
conference, the cardinal vicar commented: "These enemies of the
faith of Jesus Christ have not only built churches and opened
schools of error here, but charitable institutions as well, and they
use every possible deceit to make converts, especially among the
121talian troops entered Rome through this gate on September 20, 1870. [Editor]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
lower classes, among inexperienced, underprivileged youth."
Publicizing what the Salesians had already accomplished in this
field helped to confirm the urgency of calling upon them to exercise
the same zeal in Rome.
In his second report, Don Bosco stressed the needs of the South
American missions, pointing out that the Sons of Mary Program
which he had founded at Sampierdarena13 offered an abundant
source of [adult] vocations for the missions. Here too he requested
donations of sacred vestments, books and money. He had already
mentioned the South American missions in his first audience with
Cardinal Nina. "The Holy Father knows you are in Rome," the
cardinal remarked. "When I see him tomorrow morning, I'll tell
him what you have said to me. Meanwhile, go to Cardinal Simeoni,
the prefect of Propaganda,14 and tell him in my name to take up
this matter with me so we can see how we can help your missions."
Don Bosco discussed the matter with the prefect of Propaganda on
the evening of March 8 for more than an hour and a half. He also
conferred twice with one of the clerks, Monsignor Zitelli, but we do
not know the outcome of these talks. Always with this same intent,
Don Bosco addressed a petition to the Holy Father, describing the
Oratory in Turin and the hospice at Sampierdarena as seminaries
for the foreign missions, asking for a favorable recommendation to
the prefects of the sacred congregations concerned.
He also addressed three other petitions for spiritual favors to the
Holy Father. In the first he asked that Salesian priests approved for
confessions by a diocese might be assigned as confessors of
students and residents of Salesian houses by their respective
directors, and that these same priests, when traveling in missionary
territories either on land or at sea, might also be allowed to hear the
confessions of the faithful. The second petition requested that
indulgences and other spiritual benefits granted by Pius IX on May
9, 1876 be extended to residents of Salesian houses and to the
Salesian cooperators. In the third he again raised the question of
privileges, asking that the two which had been already granted by
Pius IX on April 21, 1876-namely that covering confessions and
13See the Index of Volume XII under "Sons of Mary." [Editor]
14The Sacred Congregation for the Propagation of the Faith, now known as the Sacred
Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples. [Editor]
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Four Weeks in Rome
55
that of ordinations extra tempora [outside the appointed time]-be
renewed. He left this last petition with Attorney [Constantine]
Leonori when he left Rome.
He also petitioned the Pope for honorary titles for four
distinguished benefactors whom he wished to acknowledge publicly
in token of his gratitude. They were Monsignor Jules Rostand,
Canon [Clement] Guiol, Baron Aime Heraud, and Signor
Benedetto Pela of Este. Three of the titles were granted, as were the
indulgences and spiritual favors requested in the second petition. 15
We do not know the outcome of the other petitions. We should
bear in mind, however, that Don Bosco did not aim such petitions
exclusively or even mainly at obtaining favors or benefits. He used
these means simply because they were the easiest and most natural
to draw the attention of the Pope and the Roman Congregations to
his work and thus to strengthen his Society and counteract
erroneous reports. This explains why he inserted into his petitions
detailed information which at first glance would seem irrelevant.
Don Bosco had but one audience with the Pope, and then he had
to wait until March 20, since papal audiences had been suspended
for two weeks and of some five hundred applications only four were
said to have been granted. 16 His name had also been on the waiting
list from March 8, when he wrote to Monsignor Macchi. Anxious
for this audience and planning to go to Magliano and then leave for
home, he appealed on March 20 to Monsignor [Gabriel] Boccali,
the Pope's private chamberlain, begging him to get him a few
moments' audience. This prelate, born in Perugia, was a confidant
of the Pope and had met Don Bosco the previous year. 17 He replied
almost immediately that Don Bosco was to report that same
afternoon at 3:15 to the Pope's antechamber. Don Bosco complied.
Punctually the Pope appeared, alone, wearing his red cloak and hat
for his daily walk. Don Bosco, who was waiting for him in the
throne room, saw that the Holy Father was listening to him with
pleasure. He asked that the Pope's secretary of state be cardinal
protector of the Salesian Congregation, and the Pope replied that
this had already been done. Don Bosco spoke about his South
15This paragraph is a condensation. [Editor]
1sLetter from Father Bonetti to Father Rua, Rome, March 21, 1879. [Author]
11see Vol. XIII, p. 532. [Editor]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
American missions and requested papal blessings. He mentioned
other matters too, but only Father Bonetti and Father Berto, who
were standing at some distance away, knew about this. Leisurely
Don Bosco moved with the Holy Father toward the litter which
was waiting to take him to the Vatican gardens for his walk. The
Pope's manner of reception, as well as his far from usual
friendliness, confirmed what he had already heard from several
prelates about the Pope's favorable attitude toward him. Though he
had no other private audience, he did again confer often and at
length with the secretary of state and with other heads ofthe Sacred
Roman Congregations-about what other matters it was never
known, and we may probably never know, at least in their entirety.
Six days after his audience with the Pope, Don Bosco was
officially informed that his cardinal protector had been appointed in
a communication from the secretariat of state, signed by Monsignor
Seraphim Cretoni, and couched in words of praise: "The Salesian
Congregation daily merits greater thoughtful consideration from the
Holy See because of its works of mercy and its accomplishments in
evangelizing various areas of the world. It is the Holy Father's wish
that it be granted a special protector, and he has graciously
appointed Cardinal Lawrence Nina, his secretary of state." At the
time of Pius IX, Cardinal [Louis] Oreglia had been the nominal
protector of the Salesians since that Pope had taken the Salesian
Congregation under his personal protection because at its origins it
needed his special fatherly assistance. Now it had a true cardinal
protector as did the other religious congregations. Nor could his
choice have fallen on a more benevolent prelate, for, having known
Don Bosco before he became cardinal, the secretary of state had a
lofty admiration and a warm love for him, having declared himself
more than willing when Don Bosco had first asked him to be the
Salesians' protector. "I could not volunteer for this to the Holy
Father on my own," he told Don Bosco, "but if he asks, I shall
accept immediately." He gave eloquent proof of his good intentions
when Don Bosco proposed that, in view of His Eminence's
responsibilities, he might appoint an official of his with whom Don
Bosco could deal in matters concerning the foreign missions. "No,"
the cardinal replied, "I want to handle this myself. Come tomorrow
at half past four so we can discuss this at greater ease. It is a wonder
that your Congregation can thrive in such times as these, while
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Four Weeks in Rome
57
others fall to pieces and everything is threatened."
Don Bosco frequently experienced the benefits of such a loving
patronage.18 After he returned to Turin and told the superior
chapter that the Pope had appointed a protector, he wrote a letter of
thanks to the cardinal on behalf of the entire Congregation, paying
him a most cordial tribute and soliciting his help for the Salesian
missions and perhaps also for the granting of privileges. This seems
to be brought out by His Eminence's reply dated April 29, 1879.
Among other things, he stated: "I did not fail to represent you
without delay to the Holy Father in the matter you requested, and I
am glad to assure you that he received it very favorably." 19
We have so far made no reference to Don Bosco's health. It
seems to have been fairly good, except for his eyesight, concerning
which we find some indications in his two secretaries' correspon-
dence with Father Rua. On March 2 Father Bonetti wrote, "We
arrived safely yesterday; Don Bosco is well, and there is no
worsening of his eye condition. Could this last until the end of the
century, it would be a bountiful favor. You little saints of the
Oratory have to obtain it from Mary, Help of Christians." On
March 7 Father Berto stated, "Our dear Don Bosco's eyesight still
leaves much to be desired. Pray and ask others to pray." Two days
later he added, "Yesterday and today his eyesight has been better.
He did some walking, no more than that. Obviously, his best cure
would be to get away, and that he cannot do." That same day his
chronicle states, "Sunday, feast of St. Francis. Mass at the
Oblates' church at Tor de' Specchi. Cardinals Bilio and d'Avanzo
were present. We stayed indoors all day. Toward evening we took a
walk, reaching the foot of the Campidoglio just as the Angelus was
18Cardinal Lawrence Nina was born at Recanati May 12, 1812, and died in Rome on July
27, 1885. The son of a notary, he studied in Rome, where he was ordained in 1845 and
where for many years he served as a non-certified attorney. Later he became assistant
secretary to the Congregation of the Council, dean of the chapter of St. Mary Major, and
canon of St. Peter's. Pius IX appointed him assessor to the Sacred Congregation of the Holy
Office and prefect of studies in the lyceum of St. Apollinaris. In 1869 he became a member
of the preparatory committee for the Vatican Council, and on March 12, 1877 he was
created cardinal and appointed administrator of the Sacred Congregation for the Propa-
gation of the Faith and of the funds raised through Peter's Pence. After the death of Cardinal
Franchi (on the night between July 31 and August 1, 1878) Leo XIII appointed him
secretary of state. In 1880 he was replaced by Cardinal Jacobini and retained only the office
of prefect of the Apostolic Palaces. [Author]
19Excerpt from Cardinal Nina's letter. [Editor]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
ringing.20 The sky was clear, and after strolling around the
Campidolglio we returned home." Don Bosco's lodgings,21
recently demolished, faced directly the convent of the Oblates of
St. Frances of Rome near the slope of the Campidoglio, not very far
from the spot where the Rarpeian Rock juts out. On March 10,
Father Bonetti wrote, "Don Bosco is fairly well; his eyes have been
somewhat better these last two evenings. Tell the boys to make the
novena to St. Joseph devoutly that our dear Don Bosco's eyesight
may be preserved and that the spiritual eyes of a few unfortunate
persons may be opened. Poor Don Bosco keeps praying for them
and keeps also recommending them to their good companions'
prayers. We may ask whether these poor lads are students or
artisans. Don Bosco has seen a few from each group." Finally on
March 24 Father Berto wrote, "Don Bosco feels quite well, but his
eyes are not getting better. We must pray and keep praying. Tell
this to the boys." Don Bosco's eye affliction pained his friends. On
March 18 Osservatore Romano translated a long article from
Semaine Liturgique on Don Bosco. Among other things, it stated:
"The admirable Don Bosco, whose health has always been frail, is
now in danger of [completely] losing his eyesight; one eye is
already unseeing, and the other is clouding up. This good priest
keeps saying, 'I feel that I will soon be called to render an account
to God. I would like to give some last touches to the Salesian
Congregation.' Meanwhile, he continues to work with the
enthusiasm of twenty years ago."
A visit of Don Bosco to our seminary at Magliano was advisable,
if not actually needed. Arguments stemming from misunderstandings
made life difficult for Father [Joseph] Daghero, who went to Rome
with three board directors of the seminary. A conference with
Cardinal Bilio, at which Don Bosco was present, cleared the air,
and his visit to Magliano set things right. He left in the afternoon of
March 24 with Father Bonetti and Father Berto, arriving at
Magliano at one in the morning. Some forty seminarians and
boarding students were waiting for him at the station at Borghetto.
Father [Peter] Guidazio, who had come purposely from Montefi-
20At Angelus time, the ringing of the bells from the top of the capitol fills the air with
mystic harmonies, flooding the soul with tender emotions. [Author]
21see Vol. XIII, pp. 360f. [Editor]
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Four Weeks in Rome
59
ascone, was also there. Don Bosco spent the entire day visiting
friends in town and stayed indoors throughout March 26 so as to
give the confreres a chance to talk with him. The following day he
returned to Rome with Father Berto, leaving Father Bonetti behind.
In Rome all he had to do was hastily wind up some business and
pack his bags.
This time he did not visit Albano but made up for it in a most
satisfactory manner, as Father [Francis] Piccollo22 tells us in a
report from which we now glean this colorful episode.
During my last year at Ariccia, the confreres at Albano and those of us
who lived in a little house nearby received a wonderful happy surprise.
Father [Joseph] Monateri got a letter from Don Bosco saying that he was
in Rome and wanted his sons of both houses to go to Rome as soon as
possible so that he could visit with them. Can you imagine how thrilled we
were? The first free day we had we set out for Rome in several train
coaches. We were bursting with rare joy, and our hearts were throbbing
when we arrived at the modest apartment of Tor de' Speechi, knowing that
we were close to the longed-for moment when we would see and welcome
our dearest father again. When we entered his room, we saw him smiling,
looking almost rejuvenated by his pleasure at seeing us. We spent the full
day with him as he listened to us all and gave us whatever advice he
thought was useful. At the simple lunch we ate with him we had the feeling
that we were in heavenly bliss. Smiling, he spoke to each one ofus in turn.
Never had I ever seen him so cheerful. After dinner he told Father John
Rinaldi to send a gift to Cardinal Nina, who was then our protector, and I
was chosen to accompany him. It was a very modest gift: a bottle of wine
eighty years old. The cardinal accepted it with open pleasure, detecting
behind the actual gift itself Don Bosco's heart, and he asked us to convey
his thanks. When evening came, Don Bosco repeated his counsels, added
encouraging words and blessed us. On our part, we felt that the joy which
had flooded us all day was fading away because we had to leave him, and
we deeply felt the separation. I must admit that while he was blessing us he
too grieved that he had to say good-bye.23
22See Appendix 1. [Editor]
23Under that day's date we read in Father Berto's diary: "March 23, Fourth Sunday of
Lent. Mass at Tor de' Specchi. Seven people-priests, clerics and laymen-came from
Albano and Ariccia to see Don Bosco and also stayed for dinner. Then Don Bosco went
back to the Pope's secretary of state with Father [John] Rinaldi; he also called on
Archbishop [John Baptist] Bianchi, secretary to the Congregation of Bishops and Regulars,
and again on the cardinal secretary of state, who agreed to become the protector of the
Salesian Congregation. Finally, Don Bosco met with Monsignor Boccali and brought him a
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
We have three letters from Rome signed by Don Bosco, all
dictated to his secretaries because of his poor eyesight. The first
one was addressed to Canon [Clement] Guiol, the second to
Chevalier Charles Fava, an old friend and benefactor. The third
letter was one of thanks and counsel to Father [John] Marenco and
the students of Lucca. We also have a letter, probably dating from
1879, which seems to have been drafted in French by Count Cays
and addressed to the superior general of the Carthusian grand
monastery at Grenoble.24
After a papal audience Don Bosco would usually have his
secretary write a personal notification to distinguished benefactors
of the special blessing he had obtained for them from the Holy
Father, and he would sign it. He did not have to state every name,
since the Pope gave his blessing to all whom the petitioner had in
mind. Don Bosco did the same on this occasion. Our files contain
replies indicating the sincere delight of the persons to whom this
communication had been sent.
bottle dating back to about the year 1800. He delivered three memoranda to the cardinal
secretary of state-one on our South American missions, another on our European missions
in their struggle against Protestant influence, and finally a petition for some privileges.
"When he came home, he blessed the confreres from Albano and Ariccia, and then with
the cleric Varvello he went to dine at about eight o'clock at the home of Chevalier Carosio,
underprefect of Rome. Chevalier Gilardini, official reporter to the Council of State, was to
have been there also, but could not come. This enabled Chevalier Carosio to speak more
freely with Don Bosco about the plans for opening a Salesian house in Rome. This gentleman
is Piedmontese; perhaps he comes from somewhere near Ovada."
Father Berto remarks that Don Bosco "again called on the secretary of state" because he
had been with him only the day before, besides several other times. He sent the gift to the
cardinal after his visit in the morning through Father Rinaldi since he was already known to
His Eminence; he personally handed the gift to Monsignor Boccali. These were Don Bosco's
usual ways to express his gratitude. On this occasion he wanted to thank the cardinal for
accepting the position of protector and to the monsignor for having obtained a papal audience
for him. Those bottles of old and choice wine had been sent to him by noble families of Turin
for his own health, but he turned them to other purposes. [AuthorJ
24This paragraph is a condensation. [Editor]
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CHAPTER 4
First Steps Toward Closing
the Oratory's Secondary School
THROUGHOUT the long, shameful campaign being
waged against the Oratory School, the government officials acted
more or less knowingly as tools of the [Protestant] sects. Once the
ruling power passed into the hands of the parliamentary left wing, it
multiplied its sneaky attacks on the ever increasing numbers of
private schools being opened and directed by the priests and
religious. We shall probably keep returning to this theme again and
again, but here we will restrict ourselves to events which threatened
our motherhouse. Therefore, delaying our account of Don Bosco's
return to Turin, we will relate the first sallies directed against the
secondary school at Valdocco and Don Bosco's defensive reaction
during his stay in Rome.
The first decree, signaling the opening salvo, was dated October
10, 1878, and came from the provincial school board, warning Don
Bosco that his teachers had to be properly certified to teach their
classes and threatening severe measures, not excluding the
shutdown of his school, should he not comply with the law. It also
demanded that a list of teachers for the school year 1878-79,
specifying each one's qualifications, be sent to the provincial
superintendent of schools.
Don Bosco ignored this injunction; the reason was that he was
trying to obtain a three-year period of grace from the Department of
Public Education, during which uncertified teachers might still be
allowed to teach the Oratory classes. To this end he petitioned
Minister [Michael] Coppino with the following letter:
61
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
Your Excellency:
Turin, November 1, 1878
Your obvious dedication in fostering and supporting schools for the
children ofthe poor has encouraged me to plead for an outstanding favor. I
place my hopes solely on your well-known clemency and power. It will
benefit the Oratory of St. Francis de Sales in Turin, which has accepted
several hundreds of poor boys, sent by various government departments,
and trains them in arts and trades or in academic subjects, thus preparing
them to earn an honest living in later life. The Oratory has no steady
income but relies solely on God's providence. Hence, the education
department has always shown us consideration, looking upon our school
as a type of family institution-as it truly is-and has never raised any
difficulties with teacher certification. Now, however, the provincial
superintendent of schools has notified me that all our teachers must hold
personal certification in each subject.
This would spell disaster for these poor boys, many of whom, well
talented, would never be able to achieve honorable positions in business,
the military, or the teaching profession.
In this my grave need I appeal to your Excellency that you graciously
allow our present teachers, all well experienced, to be authorized to
continue their free services in their respective classes for at least three
years. During that time, these same teachers will have reached the
required age to take the state examinations and obtain the needed
certification.
I request this favor in the name of my underprivileged boys and ask God
to brighten all of your days with happiness.
Deeply gratefuly, I am honored to remain,
Fr. John Bosco
A note written originally by Don Bosco, but copied and signed
by Father Durando, was attached to the petition. It stated:
As dean of studies in this hospice, the Oratory of St. Francis de Sales, I
knowingly and freely declare that the following teachers (here followed
their names and respective classes) have taught their classes diligently,
with notable profit to their pupils, and have given unquestionable proof of
their ability and skill in their respective areas. I attest to their self-sacrifice
in teaching the poor youngsters of this school without salary. I also appeal
to His Excellency the Minister of Public Education that he graciously
allow these teachers to keep their positions in their respective classes as
they have done for so many years, etc. Rev. [Celestine] Durando.
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First Steps Toward Closing the Oratory's Secondary School 63
Unwilling to leave any stone unturned in his efforts to avert this
disaster, Don Bosco also appealed to a Jewish friend of his who
was general secretary at the Department of Foreign Affairs,
Chevalier [James] Malvano.
Dear Sir:
Turin, October 19, 1878
I am truly in need of your help. I have filed a petition with the Minister
of Public Education, asking that the school in this hospice for poor boys be
regarded as "a charity school conducted by the children's wards" and
therefore not be required to employ legally certified teachers. My petition
will come up possibly on Monday or Tuesday. I have requested that our
present teachers be given temporary authorization or that they be allowed
to take the state examination with a waiver of age requirement as required
by law.
A word of yours on my behalf will help very much, especially since the
minister is new in his office and may not be aware that our school is a true
orphanage and that the greater part of our pupils have been sent to us by
the state.
I rely on your goodness, my dear sir, and let this be a further debt of
gratitude we owe you.
Please accept the regards of Professor Pechenino and Professor
Durando, both of whom are with me now and ask to be remembered to
you.
God grant you good health and a life of happiness! With heartfelt
thanks,
Most gratefully yours,
Fr. John Bosco
The Minister of Public Education instructed the prefect [of the
province of Turin] to express his regrets to Don Bosco that, as on a
previous occasion, no exception could be made to the common law
and that the provincial school board's decision was to be
implemented in every detail. The prefect followed orders and also,
on his own, requested Don Bosco promptly to send him a list of the
teachers and their certifications, warning him that legal sanctions
would follow should he not comply with the request. On November
15, Don Bosco sent in the names of Father Rua, Father Durando,
Father Bonetti, Father Bertello, and Father Pechenino. To the list
of these certified teachers he added the names of teachers' aides in
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64
TIIE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
each class who had not yet received certification. A man of bold
initiative himself, Don Bosco apparently hoped thus to win implicit
approval of the teachers' aides. He always had in view that the
Oratory should be regarded as a family institution. Two weeks
later, [Joachim] Rho, the provincial superintendent, came unexpect-
edly to conduct an inspection of the Oratory school and its
premises with the school superintendent of Novara. Two of the
certified teachers who were in that day barely managed to rush into
their classrooms; all the other classes were covered by teachers'
aides. The superintendent made no attempt to hide his dissatisfac-
tion on leaving, but, having been a fellow student of Don Bosco,1 it
was hoped that no drastic measures would be taken because of their
friendship. However, it was commonly known that he looked
askance at Salesian institutions, though he was equally capable of
usually wearing a smiling countenance to cover up his real
intentions. The surprise inspection had expressly been ordered by
Turin's school board to ascertain whether the teachers were really
certified and whether the people on the list did in fact make up the
teaching staff. The superintendent's report was devastating. In
consequence, the school board stiffened its demands, threatening
severe penalities if matters were not all put right before January 30,
1879. Very shortly after this warning, Don Bosco received another
official memo, this time a request in the prefect's name, to take a
poor boy into the Oratory.
A second inspection on March 7, also conducted by the
superintendent, was even more disastrous, so that Don Bosco was
forced to take vigorous countermeasures himself. A reliable source
had assured him of two particulars very important to him: the
communication of the Minister of Public Education to Turin's
superintendent had called for compliance with the law, but had not
urged severe sanctions; evidently, then, the initiative had not been
taken by Rome but by Turin's local authorities, citing disciplinary
measures prescribed at a higher level. This information made it
easier for Don Bosco to act. When pressured by the [local]
authorities, he bypassed them and carried the issue directly to the
top. On March 15 he wrote for an audience with Premier
[Augustine] Depretis, and was answered by the cabinet director,
1He had first met Don Bosco in 1840. See Vol. I. p. 373. [Editor]
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First Steps Toward Closing the Oratory's Secondary School 65
Baron Celesia of Vegliasco, that His Excellency would receive him
that same afternoon at two at the Department of the Interior. Don
Bosco arrived punctually but had to wait a half hour for the minister
to appear. When he did, Don Bosco stood up, and the minister,
doffing his hat, immediately ushered him into his office. They
opened their discussion by recalling their meeting at Lanzo2 and
then spoke for forty-five minutes. Don Bosco first told him about
the [Salesian] missions, and the minister expressed his wish to
extend his support. Then Don Bosco broached the hot topic of his
visit, alluding vaguely to obstacles thrown up in his path,
whereupon the minister remarked that, since public opinion was
now on his side, he had nothing to fear. Don Bosco replied by
recalling the "fickle crowd" of Sallust and then launched into his
topic. Depretis was sympathetic and promised to recommend his
school to the Minister of Public Education. The sailing was smooth
enough and so Don Bosco made a further move. With the help of
his friend, Mr. Ferdinand Fiore, an employee of the Department of
the Interior, he drew up a memorandum for the premier, so that he
might have at hand all that he needed to justify his approval of Don
Bosco's request to have uncertified instructors teach at the Oratory
school. Don Bosco summed up the matter to him as follows:
MEMORANDUM
Our aim is to come to the aid of an institution which strives to improve
the lot of society's most needy group-our morally endangered youth.
Bearing in mind that this hospice, the Oratory of St. Francis de Sales in
Turin:
1. has always been regarded by state and municipal authorities as a
charitable institution, being declared such by both the senate of the realm
and the Chamber of Deputies;
2. has time and again come to the public aid by sheltering homeless
boys and has consequently won the continued favor, commendation, and
financial support of the aforesaid authorities;
3. has been exempted by the school authorities for over thirty-six years
from the requirement of having certified teachers in its secondary school
classes;
4. would run into prohibitive expense of paying teachers because it has
no income of any kind, and the financial burden would gravely harm its
pupils, whose numbers would have to be cut down if it is to survive;
2see Vol. XII, pp. 301ff. [Editor]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
5. [also bearing in mind] that the present Department of Public
Education, willing to continue the support enjoyed by the Oratory of St.
Francis de Sales under previous cabinets, is now being requested to
recognize this institution, as it has already been, as a charitable home or
family in which the Reverend John Bosco is considered a father to the
youngsters he has charitably taken in;
6. that it is our intent to lend a kindly interpretation to the laws on
public instruction, so as to have them benefit rather than harm the most
needy class of society;
7. that it is our desire, finally, to cooperate with and to support
obligatory education for the poorest underprivileged classes of society:
We authorize Father John Bosco to impart personally or through others
a secondary education to the poor boys of his charitable institutions
without being obliged to have certified teachers in the classes.
This petition was to be accompanied by a covering letter3 which
was meant to serve as both a presentation and a timely reminder.
However, the premier did not think it wise to go along with this
memo, feeling that he might more effectively act unofficially. He
added in a friendly manner: "Whenever you wish to see me, you
don't have to request an audience. Just come and have yourself
announced. I would like to have us act like friends. Tell me the next
time you are sending a band of missionaries so that the government
may help at least by financing their transportation." He also asked
Don Bosco to mention several things to the Pope, which Don
Bosco promised to do. While leaving the Braschi palace where the
Department of the Interior was then located, he happened to pass
by a group of deputies. One of them greeted him in Piedmontese.
Just before that, Father Berto had overheard a loud remark in one
of the corridors: "He looks like a saint."
Mr. Fiore had singled out a certain "grim Commendatore
Barberis," director general of secondary schools, as a man of very
great influence in that department. However, characterized as a
dyed-in-the-wool autocrat, he was loftily distant and deaf to all
suggestions. Don Bosco had gone to school with him, and so,
trusting in this former association, he went to see him. He was
quickly ushered into the office and remained there some two hours.
Since we are mainly writing for our confreres who are familiar with
30mitted in this edition. [Editor]
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Don Bosco's way of describing all sorts of encounters, we shall not
refrain from reporting the focal point of his conversation in a lively
dialogue of question and answer. Father Berto and others heard it
from his lips and jotted it down for posterity.
Don Bosco began by addressing the Commendatore politely in
the third person, as did the latter with him, but once the ice was
broken the official inadvertently broke in with, "Let's put niceties
aside. You know very well we are old schoolmates. Let's just
address each other as friends do, so we can talk more trustfully.
Understand that in my position I speak without regard to
persons.''
"But you could really help me," Don Bosco interrupted.
"There's the law, my friend. That's the only thing I must
consider.
"But you see that the right [is on my side]."
''The school board has taken a stand, and so the right is on their
side."
"But do me a favor. See if you can bend the minister to less
drastic measures...."
"I can't."
"Look, I am not here to make demands on you. I only beg you to
help me, to give me some advice."
"Obey the law. That's all I can say."
"Listen, I can handle a pen," Don Bosco said somewhat
facetiously. "History will tell how you treated a poor man whose
only intent was to help destitute, homeless youngsters."
"Write whatever you wish. Once I'm gone, I couldn't care less
about what others will say of me."
"Look, my dear Commendatore, you now hold this office, but
not forever. Your interpretation of the laws makes you odious, and
when you will be out of office people will curse your memory.''
Barberis became quite thoughtful and then said, "But the law
must be upheld."
"True, but laws are also open to a kindly interpretation, not just
to a harsh one."
"Enough! You will never have anything to fear from me. It is
Turin that is yelling ... the school board ... they have sent us
protests.... Get in touch with the heads of that board." Then he
told him how to keep within the law and concluded: "Later on try to
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
see Minister [Michael] Coppino directly, or at least the secretary
general, Commendatore Bosio."
Certain remarks of the director general of secondary schools
afftrmed a strong suspicion of Don Bosco. Every year at least some
thirty Oratory pupils used to report for state examinations, vying
with pupils of the public school, whom they often surpassed. Their
success irritated some of the bigwigs and stirred up envy, creating
jealousy and resentment among people who could not tolerate that
public schools should cut such a sad figure when compared with
Don Bosco's schools. This was one reason for their hostility.
Following Barberis' advice, Don Bosco called on Commendatore
Bosio, secretary general of the Department of Public Education,
since any attempt to approach Minister Coppino himself would
have proved useless; past experience had taught him that. Bosio
was delighted to have Don Bosco visit his offtce, for he was very
anxious to meet him. He conferred with him for two hours, giving
Don Bosco some helpful advice concerning his teachers.
While Don Bosco was busy in Rome going up and down the
stairs of government buildings, the school superintendent of the
providence of Turin filed this report of his second visit to the
Oratory school with the provincial school board.
I found discipline and perfect order in all the classrooms, but as was
foreseen, all the classes, save the first year, were being taught by young
Salesian clerics and priests who, in the previous inspection, had been
listed as teachers' aides for the regular school staff. The fourth year
teacher was definitely present on campus but did not appear in his
classroom until he learned that I was visiting the classes one by one to see
for myself who was really doing the teaching. A third teacher, apparently
warned of my visit, showed up all flustered after my inspection was
finished and his class was over.
The teacher who had "showed up all flustered" was Father Mark
Pechenino, noted for his Greek dictionaries and his highly praised
Forme verbali [Verbal Forms]. When he left the Oratory after that
visit he imprudently remarked to an acquaintance of his, whom he
considered a friend, "We tricked the superintendent this time!" It
was this trivial host which his gossipy friend rushed to repeat that
enraged the grumpy official.
After studying the superintendent's report, the school board
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69
decided to propose to the Department of Education the shutdown
of the secondary school of the Oratory of St. Francis de Sales.
Assuring himself that no hostile campaign was being waged against
his schools in Rome, Don Bosco imitated the delaying tactics of
Fabius Maximus and kept the question open while playing for time.
The school year was coming to an end in the meantime. If his
school was shut down, he had time to find some way of opening it
the next year.
We must mention that as this storm brewed in Turin a few honest
voices were raised in Don Bosco's defense, even in the liberal
ranks. Attorney Giustina, whose journalistic name was Ausonio
Liberi (he was the editor of the Cronaca dei Tribunali) published
an article entitled Un po' di pieta ... e di giustizia [A Little
Compassion ... and a Little Justice] throbbing with admiration for
Don Bosco. It described him as an "upright citizen," a credit to the
city of Turin, before whom he bowed respectfully "not as a priest,
but as the angel of public concern, the apostle of Christ." He
appealed to the media and added: "Let's not make this a party
issue. Before the public welfare all factions must disappear. Let
there be only a united front of volunteers who are intent on working
in the public interest and are concerned with public mores." It's too
bad that this Mr. Giustina was not always so fair-minded.
Regardless of all these anxious cares which swelled the tide of his
other problems in Rome, Don Bosco calmly remarked that this too
would somehow be settled. "He has the serenity of a saint!"
remarked Father Bonetti when writing of these matters to Turin.4
41.etter to Father Rua, Rome, March 10, 1879. [Author]
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CHAPTER 5
Return Trip to Turin
i l lE would find it hard to understand how Don Bosco
could calmly absent himself from the Oratory for months at a time,
were it not that he left a man there who did much and did it
unobtrusively-the providential Father Rua. He was Don Bosco's
masterly creation as well as a kindred helper whom God Himself
had given him, lest his mission be hindered in any way from its
achievement. Without being repetitious, we call the reader's
attention to one item. The report to the Holy See, already cited,1 on
which we shall soon dwell, merely touches upon the financial
situation [of the Congregation]. "We have debts," it reads, "but
also some property whose sale will settle them." Quite true! There
was, for one, the highly priced estate bequeathed to Don Bosco by
Baron Bianco of Barbania. The trouble was that no sale had as yet
been made, nor was there any satisfactory prospect in sight. In the
meantime the financial situation kept worsening. Father Rua did
not conceal from his closest friends that the Congregation had
never before found itself in such a tight situation. The lottery
brought in daily returns, so that Don Bosco decided to keep it going
until it netted a hundred thousand lire, but this daily trickle of funds
could at best momentarily plug a few of the many holes. In such
straitened circumstances the economic pinch could have devalued
the Oratory's credit and lowered its spirit, eventually bringing
about bankruptcy and the breakup of the Congregation had it not
been for the calm, capable control of a man like Father Rua.
Instead, all went tranquilly about their duties, their thoughts with
the distant Don Bosco. Even those who best knew the true situation
1See p. 53. [Editor]
70
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71
never realized how much credit was due to Father Rua for this calm
environment. While his prudence taught him to administer wisely,
his virtue led him unobtrusively to the quiet accomplishment of his
desired goals.
Don Bosco was always very anxious not to be absent from the
Oratory during Holy Week which was now at hand, but the route
he planned for his return was rather long. He left Rome for
Florence [with Father Berto] on the morning of March 28, being
met at the railroad station of Orte by Father Bonetti, who had
remained behind at Magliano. The Tuscan capital had its citizens
whose names merit a place in the annals of the Salesian
cooperators: people like Nerli, Uguccioni and the lesser known
Dominican Father Verda who staunchly promoted Letture
Cattoliche and Italian Classics for the Young. 2 Don Bosco and his
two traveling companions were guests of Marchioness Nerli, who
sent her coach for them. He comforted the pious, ailing
Marchioness Uguccioni by his visit, celebrating Mass in her own
private chapel and speaking with her of spiritual matters. He also
offered Mass in the convent of St. Mary of the Angels, where the
body of St. Mary Magdalen de' Pazzi is preserved, and after Mass
he said a few uplifting words to the sisters living there who had been
dispossessed of their goods by the sects. At the Nerlis, many people
called on him, among them Countess Digny. Without delay he paid
his respects to Archbishop [Eugene] Cecconi, who cordially
welcomed him, saying, ''I entrust you with opening a home for poor
boys here in Florence. Just tell me what you expect of me and I
shall do as you say." Negotiations were thus opened for a Salesian
hospice of that city.
In Florence he finally found time to pen a letter to Canon Guiol,
who had sent him while in Rome a brief pamphlet on Don Bosco
and his Congregation put together by his assistant, Father Louis
Mendre.3
Dear Father:
Florence, March 29, 1879
I received Father Mendre's paper, a classic in its genre. Its lavish praise
2See Vol. IX, pp. 51, 195f, 391f. [Editor]
3L. Mendre, pretre, Don Bosco Pretre, Fondateur de la Congregation des Salesiens.
Notice sur son Oeuvre. L'Oratoire de Saint Leon a Marseille et Jes Oratoires Salesiens
fondes en France. Marseille, 1879. [Author]
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TIIE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
ofmy humble person often caused me to blush. May it redound to God's
greater glory and profit the work it commends. My thanks to him and to
you. The Holy Father was delighted with the two copies presented to him
and sends you both his special blessing.
His Holiness spoke at length of St. Leo's Oratory and often voiced his
thanks to its sponsors with a cordial blessing. He also promised me a holy
card4 for you and another for Monsieur [Jules] Rostand. Once they are
ready, I'll mail them to you.
I am now on my way to Turin. As soon as I get there I will supply tor the
needs of Marseille and of our two agricultural schools at Saint-Cyr and La
Navarre.
I have many things to say to you personally; I hope I will be able to next
May.
I owe urgent letters to Messrs. Jacques and Prat and others. In the
meantime, please inform them of the Holy Father's special blessing. If our
pamphlet is on sale, please mail ten or so copies to Turin for me. Those
you sent me at Rome went like hotcakes.5
Pray for me, dear Father. With all esteem, affection and gratitude in
Jesus Christ, I am
Yours affectionately,
Fr. John Bosco
P.S. This is the first letter I have personally written in four months.
Having received and paid a number of visits, Don Bosco left
Florence for Bologna on March 31. He was met by Countess Mary
Malvasia, who brought him to her own residence and provided
private, comfortable quarters for him and his two companions. Don
Bosco's first thought was to pay his respects to Cardinal
Archbishop Lucido Parocchi, who was delighted by his visit and
asked the three to his palace on the following day. There was good
reason for such a gracious reception, for the cardinal well knew of
Don Bosco's mediation in Rome at the request of Leo XIII and the
secretary of state, and how much effort was still being exerted to
ease his painful situation. Having been promoted from the see of
Pavia to become archbishop of Bologna on March 13, 1877, and
having been formally installed in his cathedral, he had not been
able to obtain the [government's] exequatur. In the senate session
4This is a humorous allusion to honorific papal titles he had sought for each of them.
[Author]
5We are omitting a detailed description of Father Mendre's pamphlet given by the author
of this volume immediately after this letter. [Editor]
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of January 23, 1879, Senator [Charles] Pepoli again demanded a
reason for denying the cardinal's request. Minister Taiani replied
that, since "a milder wind was now blowing from the Vatican," the
rigorous refusal of the exequatur could be eased, but he
shamefacedly added that "this was not to imply that Pius IX's
death had also buried all anger and rancor." Then, citing this
particular case, he justified the government's action against
Bologna's archbishop by alleging the opposition of the local
authorities, the prefect, police commissioner, and magistrates in
particular. It is quite probable that Leo XIII summoned Don Bosco
to Rome to make it easier for the secretariat of state to handle the
trying and delicate negotiations. The Italian government had really
been more conciliatory with the other bishops, but it maintained a
hard stand with the archbishop of Bologna. Aware that this
opposition was deeply rooted in the local political parties' portrayal
of Cardinal Parocchi as a dangerous, unyielding opponent, Don
Bosco hoped that he might break down the opposition by speaking
personally to the provincial prefect. The cardinal was completely
won over to him and consequently, as later events proved, he
dropped certain prejudices he had harbored against him. Marquis
[Prospero] Bevilacqua, still determined to give Bologna a home for
destitute youth, had so moved forward with his plans that he was
ready to head for Rome and tum the whole thing over to Don
Bosco. However, when he brought the matter up to the cardinal, the
latter refused his consent and offered the project to another
congregation, which declined it for lack of personnel. It was then
that he learned of Don Bosco's intervention for him in Rome and in
Bologna, and so he totally reversed his attitude.
Determined to act directly with the prefect, Don Bosco called on
him. The first time he went he was told that the prefect was out.
The second time he found him in the office and was given an
audience. The prefect acted as if Don Bosco had come to beg for
funds and, after opening remarks, commented, "Don Bosco is
always at work begging for his boys."
"True," was the reply. "This time however I am not here to beg,
but to offer my respects to authority."
"Why should you? You rank higher than the deputies and cabinet
ministers themselves. Whenever your name is mentioned, we all
bow to you."
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
Whether this exchange was subtle irony or just an excuse to
avoid the issue, it went on for some time, and Don Bosco got
nowhere. Anticlericalism would not back down. Five years later,
Leo XIII summoned Cardinal Parocchi to Rome as his episcopal
vicar to end the painful situation. There, we shall see, he
encountered Don Bosco again in a matter deeply touching the
Salesian Congregation.
Don Bosco regularly celebrated Mass in the private chapel of
Countess Malvasia who generously hosted him; many distinguished
persons attended, among them Marchioness Marianne Zambeccari
who consulted him extensively about setting up the institutions she
envisioned, as we have already mentioned.6
On the afternoon of April 2 he arrived in Este and was
immediately escorted to the home of his dear benefactor, Benedict
Pela, who was observing his seventy-ninth birthday that very
evening with a grand banquet for all his friends. At all costs he
insisted on waiting for Don Bosco's arrival. On seeing him, this
worthy gentleman's happiness knew no bounds; yet, he could never
guess what surprise awaited him. In the midst of the dinner, Don
Bosco arose to offer a brilliant toast in praise of the zealous charity
ofEste's people for the poor Salesians and in a hearty expression of
thanks. Then he made an announcement which thrilled his host.
"On this happy day," he continued, "I joyfully bow to our dear
Benedict Pela, Knight of the Order of St. Sylvester-an honor
which the Holy Father has bestowed on him in token of his
pleasure for all he does for the new Salesian boarding school and
the care of Christian youth." The guests were all deeply moved,
and Mr. Pela himself wept with joy. No one could have asked for a
warmer and more joyful gathering.
From the Pela residence, Don Bosco went to the Salesian
school, where the kind-hearted Benedict Pela had thought of
everything, even to furnishing Don Bosco's bedroom with soft-
toned curtains to ease his hurting eyesight. The next day Pela
called on him with a friend, Anthony Venturini, and, taking from
his wallet an IOU for eight thousand lire which Father Sala7 had
given him, he offered it to Don Bosco as an outright gift, saying that
6 See Vol. XII, p. 351. [Editor]
7 See Appendix 1. [Editor]
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he was prepared to shoulder any expense to equip the school
properly. This dear benefactor was always a real father to the
Manfredini Salesian school.
At this writing [1933] a certain Dr. Francis Venturini, nephew of
the above-mentioned Anthony Venturini, still lives at Este. Having
attended the school from 1878 to 1886, he is an unquestionable
witness of an extraordinary event occurring at his home in 1879.
His mother was suffering from a serious womb infection. Her
attending physicians, as well as Dr. Vanzetti of the royal university
at Padua, who was called in for consultation, diagnosed her case as
very serious.8 On the second day of Don Bosco's stay in Este, her
father-in-law begged Don Bosco to see her and he obliged. Taken to
the sick wman, he asked her if she had faith in Mary, Help of
Christians. With deep feeling she replied that she had the greatest
faith. He gave her a picture of Mary, Help of Christians to keep
beneath her pillow and asked her to say a Hail Mary with him. He
blessed her and assured her that Our Lady would obtain her
recovery. In fact, a few days later, she felt perfectly healed and was
back to her usual work.9
A howling wind and a downpour of rain forced Don Bosco to
stay an extra day at the school, keeping him from journeying to
Padua and paying his respects to the bishop, as he had previously
planned. However, he was able to hold a meeting with the Salesian
cooperators of Este. He addressed a large gathering of priests and
nobility in the school auditorium. After the meeting, they adjourned
to the chapel for Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament. All left
after kissing Don Bosco's hand and receiving his special blessing or
an encouraging word. Many kissed even his cloak or cassock.
Until then the conferences of Salesian cooperators had always
been personally planned and chaired by Don Bosco, as in Este,
Rome, Turin, Marseille, Nice, Alassio and Lucca. Now, however,
he learned from a newspaper article dated March 25 that a
conference ofthe Modena cooperators was held in the usual form in
the Church of Our Lady of Paradise. This was a noteworthy event,
marking the first time that the cooperators in a metropolitan area
organized on their own initiative-a clear indication of how firmly
8This sentence is a condensation. [Editor]
9 Report by Dr. Francis Venturini, Este, August 29, 1931. [Author]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
established they were-and we will dwell upon it.
Archbishop Joseph Guidelli, a Salesian cooperator for several
years, sent his vicar general, Monsignor Prospero Curti, to
represent him. The prior of St. Agnes Church, Father Henry
Adami, was the keynote speaker. After citing the new perils
threatening young people, he hailed Don Bosco as a man sent by
God to save them through the Salesian Congregation, whose
history he briefly outlined. He went on to talk about the Salesian
cooperators and their work. He answered questions such as: "Did
Modena have places caring for boys of working families? Did it
have zealous laymen willing to help the clergy? Why, then, this new
association?" His answer was: "The Association of Salesian
Cooperators aims at inviting you to join forces in a holy league so
as to make your efforts more effective. It also offers you spiritual
benefits in recompense for your work; it begs you to do your best
for the welfare of boys by encouraging others to join you in
supporting, promoting and fostering with all your strength our city's
educational institutions." He closed with a rousing appeal to his
listeners' goodness, urging them to do their bit as individuals and, as
Don Bosco stressed, by joining forces with others. A telegram from
Cardinal Nina brought the Pope's blessing, as it stated, on "that
first meeting of Salesian cooperators."
Don Bosco was thrilled by all this, but his words of special praise
were prompted by the conclusion of the newspaper report that
properly grasped the spirit which should inspire the Salesian
cooperators. It read:
In keeping with the regulations, Don Bosco was always to be considered
as their superior. The local officers, approved by Don Bosco and by the
bishop, were as follows: Monsignor Severino Roncati, president; the
pastor of St. Peter's Church and the prior of St. Barnabas Church, vice
presidents; Dr. Louis Marchio, secretary, and Marquis Julius Campori,
treasurer. The secretary then read an appendix to the regulations for the
Modena chapter of the cooperators, and there followed a brief discussion
of the chapter's promoting of Christian education of youth. It was agreed
that, in keeping with the regulations, a donation was to be sent to the
superior in Turin for Salesian houses and missions at least once a year;
also that members should actively volunteer to teach Christian doctrine in
parishes and festive oratories, and that the Modena chapter's funds should
be used to support the Sons of Mary Program, a free popular library for
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the young, recreational activities on Sundays and holy days, and the
maintenance of a meeting hall. Meanwhile, a fund-raising drive was to be
started with a lottery, a collection at every meeting, and the payment of
monthly dues of at least twenty-five centesimi from benefactors among the
cooperators.
The meeting ended with the singing of Iste Confessor and a
blessing with a relic of St. Francis de Sales which had been
venerated on the altar with a picture of the saint.
Late after supper that evening, Don Bosco set out for Padua
where Bishop Frederick Manfredini, eighty-six, had stayed up to
welcome him to his residence. The following morning Don Bosco
went with Father Bonetti and Father Berto to say Mass in the
cathedral. The only town visit he made was to Countess Da Rio. At
eleven o'clock that evening he arrived in Milan and stayed at the
home of his good friend Attorney [Charles] Comaschi. That same
day, April 5, Father Cagliero and Father Durando returned to
Valdocco from their trip to Sicily and other towns in Italy.
During the four days he stayed in Milan, Don Bosco comforted
several of the sick with the blessing of Mary, Help of Christians,
among them a former pupil of our Valsalice College, Bonola by
name. He had fallen from a trolley car and fractured his leg which
later had to be amputated. His condition turned critical. After Don
Bosco blessed him and gave him a medal of the Blessed Virgin, he
quickly began to improve, but by the following evening his
condition again worsened. 10 Don Bosco called on Father Usuelli,
pastor of the Church of the Incoronata, only to find him out, but he
met his housekeeper, who for the last four years had been unable to
move about without help. He blessed her and told her to stand up
on her own; she obeyed. When told to walk into the kitchen, she did
so, ecstatic with joy.
The following day Don Bosco again called on Father Usuelli,
who gave him a thorough tour of his boarding school in the hope
that Don Bosco would take it over, starting with the arts and trades
section. The archbishop, who was most cordial toward Don Bosco
and spent two hours with him, was very favorable to the idea. "At
least I shall have friends by me!" he exclaimed. But his preference
1°Toe youth died before the month of August, as we gather from a sympathy letter written
by Don Bosco to his mother on August 19, 1879. [Author]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
was that Don Bosco should first take care of the students. Don
Bosco was of the same mind, but the artisans were to be a foil for
the students, since the school authorities were too hostile to private
schools. It was agreed that a contract would be signed by the end of
May, but " 'twixt the cup and lip is many a slip." Father U suelli
could not make up his mind. When the time came to close the deal,
he wanted to prolong negotiations. He was politely informed in
time to forget about having the Salesians there.
Milan was the final stage of Don Bosco'sjoumey. The news that
he would be arriving on the evening of April 9 set the Oratory afire
withjoy. He had been away for three and a half months. That day,
Wednesday of Holy Week, after the evening service, the boundless
expectation overshadowed everything not connected with prepara-
tions for his reception. When he arrived at supper time, the clamor
of the boys drowned the strains of the band. The two long, deep
rows of boys through which he was to walk broke down in no time,
and there was no way to contain their rush toward Don Bosco and
their crowding about him. In vain did Father Lazzero, Father
Cagliero and Father Barberis try to restore some kind of order. Don
Bosco took at least a half hour to cross the playground, go to his
room and immediately come down again for supper. Then an air of
serenity descended upon the house, as over a family which knows
that father has safely returned. This exchange of loving feelings
which link a father to his children peaked at two special moments of
mystic silence and joyous liveliness. At dusk on Maundy Thursday
Don Bosco performed the ceremony of the washing of feet in the
Church of Mary, Help of Christians before the entire community, a
service which, repeated every year, never lost its freshness,
tenderly moving all hearts. Then, on Easter Sunday, an assembly,
carefully planned to celebrate his long-awaited homecoming, was
an hour of genuine exultation with song, music and recitation,
delighting everyone.
His poor eyesight made it impossible for Don Bosco to extend
his Easter wishes to his benefactors by personal mail, but he
dictated a letter for Chevalier Fava to his secretary:
Dear Chevalier,
Turin, April 10, 1879
Having just returned from Rome, I hasten to inform you that the Holy
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Father has again sent a special blessing to you, your wife and your little
girl. May God keep you all in good health.
Please accept my greetings for a Happy Easter.
Most gratefully yours,
Fr. John Bosco
Father Rua substituted for Don Bosco with a circular inviting
friends and benefactors to the welcome-home entertainment and
giving them the whole Oratory's Easter greetings. 11
It was still a custom at the Oratory to take no important decision
without first consulting Don Bosco verbally or in writing. His
arrival had been pending for some time and decisions had been
delayed, so that no sooner did he get back from his long, toilsome
journey than he found himself engulfed in a sea of things. We will
recount the little we know about them.
His first concern was the house. He asked Father Lazzero and
Father Barberis about the boys and clerics: was anyone sick, had
anyone misbehaved seriously, who were those outstanding in good
conduct, did the students and artisans attend to their duties? The
director singled out three boys whose conduct hurt their
companions and asked for permission to send them home. Don
Bosco inquired if they were older or younger boys, and when he
learned that they were upperclassmen, with no evident hope of
improvement, he told him to send them home immediately.
Ordinarily, he had strong hopes for younger lads doing better. Even
in an instance of serious misconduct, such as insolence or public
defiance, he would be understanding, because he considered it an
isolated incident within the context of an overall satisfactory
behavior. But when an older lad, not altogether bad, consistently
was half-hearted and lazy, he set no great hopes on him and told the
superiors to take in his name whatever action they judged
necessary.
The novice master also had two problems for Don Bosco. He
had a novice-a Frenchman, a subdeacon and former Carthusian-
who had been recommended by the superior general of the Grand
Chartreuse at Grenoble. Though pious, talented, and ready to
admit his faults, he had a somewhat fiery temperament which had
11 This sentence is a condensation. [Editor]
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TIIE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
twice exploded into quarrels and even fights during Don Bosco's
absence. Convinced that he would be dismissed because of this, he
had gone to the novice master and asked leave to pack up and go,
but the latter decided to wait for Don Bosco's return. Don Bosco
listened to the case and suggested they wait in the hope that the
young man's good will might prevail. At times such generosity of
heart caused others to wonder, but in these matters Don Bosco
followed his Divine Teacher's instruction not to smother the
smoking wick. Scandal made him adamant, but he was patient with
young clerics whose conduct was mediocre, as long as there was no
danger of their ending up badly. Such was his reaction to a cleric
from Lucca who, during his absence, had seriously misbehaved,
although basically he was not a hopeless case. This gave Don
Bosco an occasion to express his views on clerics whose behavior
was mediocre. "Let such clerics stay on," he said. "There will
always be mediocre persons in every religious congregation and in
every community. If one were to be unduly severe and dismiss
everyone who is mediocre, I am afraid that even some of the better
religious would become mediocre too, for it seems to be the way of
Divine Providence that perfection is not of this world, at least
among most of us."
More than anyone else, Father Rua was the person most needing
to see Don Bosco. He was the Oratory's treasurer-a word
denoting an administrator who only too often had no treasury at his
disposal. The [Oratory] chronicle reports an amusing dialogue
between Don Bosco and Father Rua in the presence of Father
Lemoyne, Father Barberis and several other priests on one of the
first evenings after Don Bosco's return.
"Father Rua," Don Bosco said, "everyone asks for money, and I
hear that you send them away empty-handed."
"That's because our coffers are empty."
"Then sell the bonds that we have so we can meet our most
pressing debts."
"I have sold some already, but I don't think it advisable to sell
the rest, because every day unforeseen, serious needs arise, and we
would be left without a penny."
''So be it. Then the Lord will provide. In the meantime, let's pay
the most urgent debts."
"I have already earmarked the little money at my disposal to pay
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a debt of twenty-eight thousand lire falling due within two weeks.
That's why I have been putting aside all the money coming in these
last few days."
"No, no, it is sheer folly to neglect debts which we can pay today
so as to meet those which fall due two weeks from now."
"But today's debts can wait. The other debt is a heavy one."
"In due time the Lord will provide. Let's start by settling today's
debts. Earmarking money for future needs closes the door to Divine
Providence."
"But prudence says we are to think of the future. Haven't we
been in enough serious trouble before? To pay one debt we were
forced into another. This is the shortest way to bankruptcy."
"Listen to me. If you want Divine Providence to take us fully
under its wing, go to your room, gather all the money you have, and
pay off all the debts you can. Leave future needs in God's hands."
Then, turning to the others, he went on, "I simply can't find an
administrator who will fully back me up in this, who will have
unlimited faith in Divine Providence and not store up funds for a
rainy day. I fear that we are in this critical financial situation
because we rely too heavily on ourselves. When we do, God holds
back.''
Still, despite his firm reliance on Divine Providence, he did not
neglect to do all he could to find material aid. One of his first
actions on returning to the Oratory was to eke out some more funds
from the still unexhausted lottery; he reprinted the circular of
January 1, sending it out with a liberal supply of tickets. He even
mailed packs of them to his cooperators for distribution to others.
Then, to avoid any possible waste of money, he directed that the
Oratory find some way to set up an office exclusively to make
decisions regarding expenses. At first, everything depended on him;
later, when he could no longer handle so many disparate matters
personally, he entrusted to individual members of the superior
chapter the more urgent problems as they surfaced. But this system
proved harmful financially. "Things went along haphazardly," he
commented, "but where important matters are at stake, this
procedure is bad." At this point, Father [Joseph] Leveratto, the
Oratory prefect, offered a plan which would organize the various
offices and their respective responsibilities in a scheme that would
link everything under the one person who had to get things moving.
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
Don Bosco then directed that a committee be set up to study this
plan. It included Father Rua, Father Lazzero, Father Sala and
Father Leveratto.
In another effort to improve the financial situation, Don Bosco
decided to resume visiting charitable, wealthy families who were
always willing to help him. In most cases, he would skillfully inject
into the conversation the topic of charitable undertakings which
would draw God's blessings on those helping the needy. He would
draw God's blessings on those helping the needy. He would cite
examples showing that almsgiving was a sure means of obtaining
favors from God. He would also point out that the Oratory was one
of the needy institutions and that it stood under the special
protection of Mary, Help of Christians, who in so many ways had
shown how much She appreciated the assistance given to the boys.
Father Barberis, who often accompanied him in his visits,
remarked that Don Bosco always spoke calmly, mentioning
benefactors and impressively describing in various ways the
importance of material charity motivated by a spiritual purpose.
People enjoyed listening to him on this subject.
Having but recently returned from Rome, he was frequently
questioned about the situation there. In those years of transition
from the old to the new political order, people devoted to the Pope
took a passionate interest in any news from Rome, and there were
many such people among the Piedmontese aristocracy. They paid
scant attention to the newspapers, relying rather on the confidential
reports made from mouth to mouth because they held such news to
be closer to the truth. Since Don Bosco was thought to be a party to
secret matters, he was avidly questioned, at times somewhat to his
embarrassment. This happened, for example, at the home of the De
Maistre family in Borgo Comalense where he had gone with Father
Barberis to visit the duchess ofMontmorency and Count Eugene de
Maistre who was there spending Easter with his children. In a
conversation both the duchess and the count heatedly attacked
Italy's terms to the Pope and the Church, but Don Bosco, letting
them talk animatedly, only made a few serene remarks here and
there. So calm, in fact, was he that he somewhat irritated the noble
lady, who was prompted to ask how he could remain indifferent to
so vital a question.
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"Of what use is it to bewail these evils?" he replied. "It is better
to do all we can to offset them. Then, too, people presently in power
merit our compassion because their reckoning with God will be a
heavy one."
The reports made by his two envoys-Father Cagliero and
Father Durando who had returned to the Oratory a few days ahead
of him-were very encouraging. Both men were happy to have
completed their long journey in so short a time, seeing so many
places and dealing with so many matters. We shall speak of this
later. Noteworthy are two long letters of Father Cagliero from
Sicily. They had been astonished to find how well the bishops and
clergy of Acireale, Catania and Randazzo knew Don Bosco and his
Congregation, and how much trust they had in the Salesians' work
on behalf of young people. One remark which very deeply
impressed both priests and led them to interpret Don Bosco's
instructions to them somewhat broadly was: "The Salesian
Congregation was the first to be called upon to rebuild the horrible
destruction wrought by the recent suppression and banishment of
religious orders." 12
One of the first things on which Don Bosco focused his attention
on returning home was Marseille. Father Angelo Savio had been at
St. Leo's Oratory since April 5, having been sent there to supervise
the new construction to make the newly purchased house
comfortable. Since the money raised in Marseille was insufficient,
he asked Turin for financial help. It so happened that a former
schoolmate and intimate friend of Don Bosco while he was at
Chieri-Hannibal Strambio of Pinerolo-was stationed in Marseille
as Italian consul. Don Bosco mentioned him in the first of his
writings in our possession. 13 Could not this intimate friend help
Don Bosco obtain a substantial subsidy from Rome? Don Bosco
wrote to him on April 15, 1879, earnestly begging him to take the
matter to heart, pointing out lengthily the benefits which would
accrue to Italian immigrants14 from Salesian action in the city.
121.etter to Don Bosco from Acireale, March 9, 1879. [Author]
13See Vol. I, pp. 262-267, 337f. [Editor]
14This sentence is a condensation. [Editor]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
Just then Don Bosco received a piece of heartening news: Bishop
Cajetan Alimonda, who had been so benevolent toward him at
Alassio, was elevated to the cardinalate. A great prelate, he had
always shown Don Bosco open proof of his affection. However, the
strongest proof was yet to come when Don Bosco's life would
approach its end.
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CHAPTER 6
The Soul of the Oratory
JF charity was Don Bosco's realm, then the Oratory of
Valdocco was his palace. Here he set up the home he loved,
personally guiding it through so many years. From it radiated the
beneficial works he kept ever expanding in a worldwide apostolate.
But such growth unavoidably compelled him to relinquish little by
little the day-by-day management of house affairs and to entrust it
to reliable confreres. We have now reached that point in our
narrative when the Oratory attained self-government under Don
Bosco's watchful eye.
The committee we spoke of in the preceding chapter carried out
its mandate. Its major deliberations were approved and implemented
as follows: the prefect was to be the sole top administrator of all the
Oratory's finances, with responsibility for direct supervision and
control of the printshop, the bookstore and the workshops. The
economer general was freed from that area of concern, except
insofar as the Oratory was a house like the others of the
Congregation. The Oratory's director had the authority of the
directors of the other houses though he was always careful to keep
Don Bosco informed of serious matters, as he wished that no major
decision be taken without his knowledge. The members of the
superior chapter were not to butt into the director's responsibilities,
since all important matters, particularly the admission of pupils,
were exclusively his responsibility. The assistant prefect for
extems, whose office was by the doorkeeper's post, was to serve as
his secretary and assistant, acting in concert with him, his main
duties being to receive visitors, give information about the Oratory
and process new pupils by checking out their papers and records.
However, he could take no decision without first conferring with
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1HE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
the director. If a boy did not meet entrance requirements but was
recommended by a bishop or an influential civil official, such as the
prefect of Turin who had just then recommended a boy barely eight
years old, he was to refer the matter immediately to the director,
who could authorize an exception to avoid offending people in
authority. If a boy was too young for the Oratory, he was to be sent
to Lanzo or elsewhere, even though tuition-free. The assistant
prefect then had but a subordinate role in registration and was
always to follow the regulations; free or reduced tuition, overdue
notices, and admission or dismissal of pupils were reserved to the
director. The same rule applied to provincial houses: provincials
kept the overall supervision of their houses and were the liaison
with the superior chapter, but they were not to interfere in routine
local administrative matters. The new setup at the Oratory was
underscored also by the fact that the superior chapter moved to
separate quarters. Their offices, until then shared by the local
superiors, were moved to a complete section of the second floor in
the main building adjoining the Church of St. Francis [de Sales].
Each chapter member was given two rooms. Likewise, the
chapter's dining room was set up on the same floor; formerly they
had eaten their meals with other confreres on the main floor.
A ministry at the Oratory which Don Bosco never relinquished
was that of hearing confessions. Nearly all went to confession to
him. During the students' spiritual retreat in late April, though
there were plenty of priests, he heard many confessions. One
evening he was so totally drained of strength that he could not eat.
His right arm was so numb after many hours of resting his elbow on
the kneeler and of giving absolution that he could not hold his spoon
between the fingers of his right hand, and after four tries he had to
use his left hand. Don Bosco regularly heard a large number of
penitents in a relatively short time because his advice was brief and
forthright. 1 In valuing the effect of his terse comments we must
appreciate the unction with which he spoke-a factor which all who
experienced it praised to the skies.
The prevailing belief that he could read consciences served
greatly to draw boys to his confessional. Though this happened
1Some wrote down the advice they had been given, and we still have a few such
documents. See the notes taken by a young cleric, whose name naturally is not revealed, in
Appendix 2. [Author]
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rarely, the mere realization that it was possible was enough to swell
the number of his young penitents. From time to time, however, his
reading of consciences did take place and was not always kept a
total secret. One day in 1879 he stood among some twenty lads
crowding about him in the playground, one after another kissing his
hand. Unexpectedly one lad felt Don Bosco pull him aside to show
him a long, red scratch mark on his arm. "Do you see what you
have done to me?" Don Bosco asked. The boy looked at the scratch
and instinctively at his nails, which he had trimmed that very
morning. Don Bosco kept his gaze riveted upon him, and a silent
understanding came between them. The youngster was stung to the
quick. Normally a well-behaved lad, he had been listening to a
rather indecent conversation and had later yielded to temptation.
The next morning he made his confession to Don Bosco, convinced
that he knew all about it, as indeed he did. Stunned and deeply
contrite, he avoided all evil occasions from then on and conceived
an even deeper horror of sin. Eventually he became a priest and
declared that he was ready to swear to the truth of this incident: that
Don Bosco had clearly read his conscience.
Don Bosco's eyes still gave him much trouble. While some
feared cataracts and others wondered whether total blindness could
be averted, Dr. Raynaud, a highly esteemed eye specialist, stated
categorically that there was no hope. During this period Don Bosco
was trying a cure of his own which he had mentioned to Father
Berto while journeying from Florence to Bologna. On March 31,
just as they were about to arrive at Pistoia, Don Bosco confided
that several nights before a mysterious lady had appeared to him in
a dream, holding a small bottle of a dark green liquid in her hand.
"If you wish your eyes to be healed," she told him, "use a few
drops of this chicory extract every morning for fifty days.'' On their
arrival in Turin, both Don Bosco and Father Berto forgot about the
dream. However, one evening at the beginning of May, Don Bosco,
while in the dining room with Father Rua and Father Berto,
suddenly asked Father Lago, who had been a pharmacist,2 "Tell
me, Father Lago, is an extract of chicory good for the eyes?"
"It is a recommended medication," he answered.
"Fine. Prepare me some."
2 See Appendix 1. [Editor]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
Father Lago promptly obliged. From the first application Don
Bosco felt an improvement. On May 22 he stated that his eyes were
markedly better. After the prescribed fifty days, his improved
eyesight remained stable, regardless of his increasing desk work
from morning to night. Some two years later, however, he lost the
sight of his left eye.a
Think as we may of this particular dream, Don Bosco had
another dream which he narrated on May 9. In it he saw the fierce
battles which faced the men called to his Congregation, and he was
given several valuable instructions for all his sons and sound advice
for the future.
[I saw] a hard-fought, long-drawn-out battle between youngsters and a
varied array of warriors who were armed with strange weapons. Survivors
were few.
A second fiercer and more terrifying battle was being waged by gigantic
monsters fully armed, well-trained tall men who unfurled a huge banner,
the center of which bore an inscription in gold, Maria Auxilium
Chn.stianorum. The combat was long and bloody, but the soldiers fighting
under the banner were protected against hurt and conquered a vast plain.
The boys who had survived the previous battle linked forces with them,
each combatant holding a crucifix in his right hand and a miniature of the
banner in his left. After engaging together in several sallies over that vast
plain, they split, some heading eastward, a few to the north, and many for
the south. Once they all left, the same skirmishes, maneuvers and leave-
takings were repeated by others.
I recognized some boys who fought in the first skirmishes, but none of
the others, who nevertheless seemed to know me and asked me many
questions.
Shortly afterward I witnessed a shower of flashing, fiery tongues of
many colors, followed by thunder and then clear skies. Then I found
myself in a charming garden. A man who looked like Saint Francis de
Sales silently handed me a booklet. I asked him who he was. "Read the
book," was the reply.
I opened it, but had trouble reading, managing only to make out these
precise words:
3In another version of this dream the person who appears to Don Bosco was a man rather
than a lady. This was stated by Attorney John Baptist Gal of Torgnon (Aosta Valley) in a
letter to the Bolletino Salesiano. The attorney was a close friend of Don Bosco from whom
he heard the dream. His letter is listed as Document 16 in the Appendix of Volume XIV of
the Memorie Biografiche de/ Beato Giovanni Bosco. [Editor]
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"For the Novices: Obedience in all things. Through obedience they
will deserve God's blessings and the good will of men. Through diligence
they will fight and overcome the snares set by the enemies of their souls.
"For the Confreres: Jealously safeguard the virtue of chastity. Love
your confreres' good name, promote the honor of the Congregation.
"For the Directors: Take every care, make every effort to observe and
promote observance of the rules through which everyone's life is
consecrated to God.
"For the Superior: Total self-sacrifice, so as to draw himself and his
charges to God."
The book said many other things, but I couldn't read any further, for the
paper turned as blue as the ink.
"Who are you?" I again asked the man who serenely gazed at me.
"Good people everywhere know me. I have been sent to tell you of
future events."
"What are they?"
"Those you have already seen and those which you will ask about."
"How can I foster vocations?"
"The Salesians will harvest many vocations by their good example, by
being endlessly kind toward their pupils, and by urging them constantly to
receive Holy Communion often."
"What should we bear in mind when admitting novices?"
"Reject idlers and gluttons."
"And when admitting to vows?"
"Make sure that they are well grounded in chastity."
"How are we to maintain the right spirit in our houses?"
"Let superiors very often write, visit and welcome the confreres, dealing
kindly with them."
"What of our foreign missions?"
"Send men of sound morality and recall any who give you serious
reason to doubt; look for and foster native vocations."
"Is our Congregation on the right path?"
"Let those who do good keep doing good. [Rev. 22, 11] Not to go
forward is to go backward. [St. Gregory the Great] The man who stands
firm to the end will be saved." [Mt. 10, 22]
"Will the Congregation grow?"
"It will reach out so that no one will be able to check its growth, as long
as the superiors meet their obligations."
"Will it have a long life?"
"Yes, but only as long as its members love work and temperance.
Should either of these two pillars fall, your entire edifice will collapse and
crush superiors, subjects and followers beneath it."
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Just then four men showed up bearing a coffin and approaching me.
"Whom is that for?" I asked.
"For you."
"How soon?"
"Do not ask. Just remember that you are mortal."
"What are you trying to tell me with this coffin?"
"That while you are still living you must see to it that your sons practice
what they must continue to practice after your death. This is the heritage,
the testament you must bequeath to them; but you must work on it and
leave it [to your sons] as a well-studied and well-tested legacy."
"Can we expect roses or thorns?"
"Many roses and joys are in store, but very sharp thorns also threaten.
They will cause all of you acute distress and sorrow. You must pray
much."
"Should we open houses in Rome?"
"Yes, but not hurriedly; proceed with extreme prudence and caution."
"Is the end of my mortal life near at hand?"
"Don't be concerned. You have the rules and other books. Practice
what you preach and be vigilant."
I wanted to ask more questions, but muffled thunder rumbled through
the air with flashes of lightning. Several men, rather horrid monsters,
dashed toward me as if to tear me to pieces. But then a deep darkness
enveloped me, shutting everything out. I felt that I must be dead and
started to scream frenziedly. I awoke and found I was still alive. It was a
quarter to five in the morning.
If we can draw some good from this dream, let us do so. In all things let
honor and glory be given to God forever and ever.
He spoke again in June on the theme of vocations in an important
letter to the upperclassmen of our juniorate at Borgo San Martino.
Turin, June 17, 1879
My dear upperclassmen at Bargo San Martino:
I wish I could have promptly answered your brief letters and those of
your good teacher, but since I cannot do so individually, let me write to all
of you as I look forward to speaking privately with each of you on the
approaching feast of Saint Aloysius.
Keep in mind that in this life we must take the road to heaven either in
the clerical or in the lay state. If one's vocation is to the lay state, he
should select those courses of study or those professions which will not
block him from meeting his obligations as a good Christian and which are
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in accord with his parents' wishes. As for the clerical state, you must go by
the norms which Our Divine Savior gave us: forego earthly comfort, glory
and pleasure so as to give yourself to God's service and to be better
assured of unending heavenly joys. Before reaching a decision, you must
each listen carefully to your confessor's advice without heeding those
above you or under you, relatives or friends, and then choose whatever
makes it easier for you to follow the path of salvation and feel tranquil at
the point of death. A young man who chooses the priestly state with such
intentions can be morally certain of doing what is right for his own soul
and the souls of others.
The clerical state has many branches; to be genuine they must stem
from and tend to the same source-the desire to serve God. Evangelical
laborers can work for God's glory in three ways: as diocesan or religious
priests or as missionaries. You are all free to choose which you prefer or
that which is more in keeping with your physical and moral capabilities,
after seeking the counsel of a prayerful, learned and prudent person. At
this point let me clear up for you many knotty areas concerning life in the
world-a world which would have all the young in its service, while God
wants them totally for Himself. I will do so in person and will explain the
obstacles each of you will face in choosing a state of life.
Frequent reception of Holy Communion and saying every Saturday the
prayer to the Blessed Virgin Mary for the choice of one's calling are the
foundation of a happy future. You will find the prayer in The Companion
of Youth.4
May the grace of Our Lord Jesus Christ be with all of you always, and
may He grant you the precious gift of perseverance in virtue. I shall pray
for you every day. Please pray for me, too.
Yours always in Jesus Christ,
Fr. John Bosco
At the beginning of May Don Bosco had another occasion to
verify the helpful influence of his evangelical charity over misled
politicians. Senator Siotto-Pintor of Cagliari, a worthy lawmaker,
was a militant ultra-liberal who even in 1871 5 had published a book
imbued with heresy and anticlericalism.6 In 1879, however,
4A boys' prayerbook compiled by Don Bosco and first published in 1847 under the title of
fl Giovane Provveduto. See Vol. Ill, pp. 6-18. [Editor]
5Af'ter the seizure of Rome by Italy. [Editor]
6Fuori la Francia. Pensieri di Giovanni Siotto-Pintor [Away with France. Reflections],
Torino, 1871. [Author]
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"troubled in mind and body,"7 he had a change of heart and again
called on Don Bosco to ask for a special papal blessing. Don Bosco
wrote to Rome and obtained it. This gracious gesture of the Pope
led the senator to reconsider and recant his former views on the
makeup of the Church and its leaders as expressed in several books
of his. He returned therefore once again to the Oratory on May 4
together with Professor [Joseph] Allievo of the Royal University of
Turin to thank Don Bosco cordially. After a detailed tour of the
entire Oratory, he left with a deep sense of satisfaction, and from
then on, until his death on January 24, 1882, he gave repeated
proof of his sincere affection for Don Bosco, as we shall later see.
The novena of Mary, Help of Christians in May 1879 was
marked by four singular events: a pilgrimage, two conferences and,
between the latter, an abjuration.
Two hundred French pilgrims concluded their Roman journey at
the Oratory. The scene of 18778 repeated itself. Arriving on the
evening of May 15, the first day of the novena, they immediately
joined the boys and faithful for the Marian services, listening to the
fervent words of Monsignor Stanislaus Schiapparelli, canon of
Corpus Domini Church, who addressed them in French. Afterward
they streamed into the Oratory playground where they were
rousingly welcomed by the brass band and Don Bosco. They were
served refreshments by the members of the Turin chapter of
Catholic Youth, headed by Count [Prospero] Balbo. The reception
was held in the arcade which was festively decked for the occasion,
with the participation of cheering boarders and day boys. Several
speakers addressed the pilgrims; Count Cays spoke on behalf of
Don Bosco. The last talk was given by Father [Francis] Picard,
second superior general of the Assumptionists, who thanked
everyone eloquently and affectionately; he spoke highly ofthe Pope
and then, recalling previous speakers' words of praise, turned to
Don Bosco with the exclamation "Here is the king of pilgrims!" He
then went on:
Don Bosco can be rightfully called a pilgrim..He frequently visits the
Salesian houses in Italy and France and he multiplies his presence by
sending his sons where he cannot go. These substitute pilgrims of his we
71..etter to Father Margotti in Unita Cattolica, June 6, 1879. [Author]
asee Vol. XIII, pp. lOlf. [Editor]
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see all over the world; crossing oceans, they penetrate even into the hostile
domains of the Pampas and Patagonia. I conclude by expressing two
wishes on behalf of my fellow pilgrims. It is my ardent hope that
pilgrimages will continue, increase and spread. France too has its many
holy places, precious relics and renowned shrines, and so I invite the Turin
chapter of Catholic Youth to promote pilgrimages to our country. We shall
look forward, my brothers, to seeing you in Paris, which, notwithstanding
its reputation as today's Babylon, still boasts, as of old, zealous followers
of the true God, courageous worshipers of Jesus Christ, and deeply
devoted sons of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Yes, we shall expect you, so that
we may repay the charity and courtesy of your welcome to us in the devout
city of Turin. Secondly, we wish that God may soon send a band of
Salesians, led by Don Bosco, to our own city of Paris, to open a boys'
home such as this. We on our part shall pave the way for them by word
and prayer.
They left the Oratory late that night, escorted to their hotels in
different groups by members of the Catholic Youth chapter.9 A
news release of May 16 [1879] from Turin to the Univers of Paris
described the welcome given to the French pilgrims "at the
Oratory" as "an admirable reception."
Three letters, of which two were written in 1880 and the third in
1883, testify to the deep impression which the visit to the Oratory
made on these good Catholics. A gentleman from Bordeaux and a
priest from Lille, thanking Don Bosco for enrolling them as
Salesian cooperators, recalled with emotion their meeting with him
on May 15, 1879. The gentleman wrote: "I have not forgotten the
brotherly, affectionate welcome you gave us at your blessed house
in Turin and have the fondest memories of the delightful evening we
spent among your boys and their well-loved superiors. I find no
words to thank God for the grace I received to savor a few precious
moments in the presence of His great servant, who has done such
wonders for His glory." "As a pilgrim from Rome," the priest
wrote, "I saw the magnificent works God has accomplished
through you. I feel highly honored to be enrolled as a Salesian
cooperator." In the third letter, Viscountess de Lagregeoliere, nee
de Beauregard, after reiterating her request that he pray for a
hospice she had very much at heart and which had run into
PBollettino Salesiano, June 1879. (Author]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
obstacles and difficulties, informed him that since her visit things
had taken a decisive tum for the better.
The warm concluding wish of Father Picard vibrantly echoed the
hope that the Salesians would soon go to Paris. Other matters
concerning France, which we have already seen, surface in this
letter of Don Bosco to [Canon Clement Guiol] the pastor of St.
Joseph's [in Marseille].
Dear Father:
Turin, May 20, 1879
Last winter you gave me some hope that you would visit us on the feast
of Mary, Help of Christians. Shall we really have the pleasure? We all
heartily await you. Would you know whether there is any likelihood that
the bishops of Marseille and of Frejus might drop in for a brief visit on
their return from their pilgrimage to Rome?
I often receive news of our [festive] oratory,10 but I would like to learn
what you have noticed: good, mediocre or bad. You know I have full trust
in you and wish to follow your prudent advice. Six weeks from now it will
be a year since we began our pious undertaking, and by then I'd like to
know that we have taken some root.
The house at Auteuil is too much of a problem for us, and so, following
your counsel, I have definitely terminated negotiations. Other proposals
have come from Paris, but for the time being I am not taking any decisions.
Just now, La Navarre and Saint-Cyr are in an organizational phase. As for
Saint-Cyr, we have no contract and without it we cannot take possession.
Still, a few of our priests will go there next week to size up the situation
and take up what is more urgent.
If you have a chance to talk to the members of the Beaujour Society,
please tell them that we shall be saying special prayers on Saturday at the
altar of Mary, Help of Christians for God to keep them and their loved
ones in good health. All the Salesians send you their regards, and I pray
that God will shield you. Pray for me too.
Respectfully and affectionately yours,
Fr. John Bosco
Salesian cooperators attended the first of the two conferences
mentioned a while ago; their limited number-some forty in all-
was due to bad weather. Don Bosco's talk in substance followed the
10st. Leo's in Marseille. See Vol. XIII, pp. 558f. [Editor]
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same pattern: new foundations of that year in Italy, France and
South America; the role of the cooperators and encouragement to
continue their help. He particularly singled out the Church and
hospice of St. John the Evangelist, with a stress on their beneficial
purpose.
The feast of the Ascension marked the adjuration of a boy, a
Waldensian, Concourda by name, son of Catholic parents, who
had been enrolled as a child in a Waldensian hospice near
Ventimiglia. A bright lad, he did well in school while absorbing at
the same time the poison of heresy and arousing great hopes in the
Waldensian leaders. By nature a good thinker, as he grew up he
began to harbor strong doubts, which had been provoked and
strengthened by the endless invectives and abuse he constantly
heard directed at the Catholic Church and the Mother of God. One
day, while he was conversing with the director, the latter's wife and
some of his teachers and schoolmates, the talk turned to Mary's
virginity. For some time he let them have their say, but finally he
interjected, "You keep maintaining that Mary was not a virgin. If
so, why does the Apostles' Creed you make us recite say that Jesus
Christ was born of the Virgin Mary?" A slap in the face-which he
warded off-was the answer the director's wife gave him. "That's no
answer," he protested quite rightly. His doubts became so strong
that he began thinking of becoming a Catholic. But how could he
escape the hands of his tutors? And where could he find shelter?
Both parents were dead, and his only relatives were W aldensians.
Divine Providence came to his aid. A pious Catholic who had an
idea of what he was going through helped him to escape and
brought him to Don Bosco. He was then fifteen. He received
instruction in the Catholic faith, and on May 22, 1879, before the
usual novena service, he publicly renounced his former allegiance
and was conditionally baptized in the crowded Church of Mary,
Help of Christians. Monsignor Tammi, vicar general of Piacenza,
then a guest at the Oratory, administered the sacrament in the
presence of the godparents, Marquis [Ludwig] Scarampi and
Marchioness [Mary] F assati. His baptismal name was Leo, that of
the reigning Pope. After the ceremony, Monsignor [Anthony]
Belasio11 went up to the pulpit and, taking his cue from the
11 See Vol. XII, pp. 230f, 240f. [Editor]
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TIIE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
baptismal event, extolled the Catholic apostolate from the day of
Our Lord's ascension to the current apostolic activities of the
Salesians. He later developed this twofold theme more extensively
in the August 1879 issue of Letture Cattoliche, which he dedicated
to both godparents as a lasting remembrance of the rite in which
they had taken part.
The W aldensians did not take their humiliating defeat quietly.
The Protestant minister and the director of the Waldensian hospice
where the youth had boarded free of charge for five years published
a scurrilous booklet in which they declared that the superiors of the
Turin Oratory had exploited the boy's poverty to pervert his mind,
as they had previously tried to do with three other boys of the same
hospice. Furthermore, their periodical, Le Temoin, viciously
attacked the young convert and heaped such abuse on him as to
surpass even a maddened vixen. In an open letter which Don Bosco
helped him to write, Leo set the facts straight. 12
A new first was a conference for Salesian women cooperators on
the eve of the feast of Mary, Help of Christians. Two hundred
ladies were present. The procedure was the usual one, except that
the reading from the life of St. Francis de Sales was replaced by a
reading from the biography of St. Jane Frances de Chantal that
described her husband's tragic death and her heroic patience as she
dedicated the rest of her life entirely to God's service and to works
of charity. In his address, Don Bosco told them that in planning the
Association of Salesian Cooperators he had at first intended to
limit its membership to men only, but that Pius IX himself,
wishing to extend its spiritual favors to women, had personally
added these words to his rescript: "To all the faithful of both
sexes." He then went on to acquaint them minutely with what the
Daughters of Mary, Help of Christians were accomplishing-under
the guidance of the Salesians-on behalf of girls with God's grace
and the help of women cooperators. After describing the frightening
perils to which girls were exposed in Italy and particularly in South
America, he urged his listeners to aid the Salesians and Daughters
of Mary, Help of Christians in bringing the benefits of a Christian
education to an increasing number of girls. How was this to be
done? Here are a few suggestions Don Bosco offered to them.
12Bollettino Salesiano, July 1879. [Author]
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First, make great efforts kindly to instill love of virtue and horror for sin
into your children's hearts and those of your neighbors, relatives, friends
and acquaintances. If you come to know that some young girl's morals are
being threatened, promptly strive to save her and put her beyond the reach
of rapacious wolves. Should you know or hear that some family has boys
or girls of school or work age, be quick enough to suggest, advise and
exhort their parents or family to place them in schools or shops where, as
they learn knowledge and skills, they may also absorb the holy fear of God
in a morally safe environment. Bring Catholic books and publications into
your own homes, and when the family has read them, pass them on to as
many people as you can. Give them as gifts to boys and girls who
faithfully attend catechism class. Above all, whenever you come to know
that a girl can be saved from moral dangers only by placing her in a
boarding school, make every effort to do so.
I most earnestly commend to your care well beloved, pious boys who
give signs of a priestly vocation. Yes, esteemed ladies, take these hopes of
the Church to your hearts and do all you can-even the impossible, I'd
say-to cherish and bring to blossom the precious seed of a vocation in
their young hearts. Direct them to a school where they can continue their
studies and, if they are poor, help them with whatever means Divine
Providence has put into your own hands, or as your own piety and love for
souls suggests to you. How fortunate you will be ifyou provide the Church
with priests in these times when they are so scarce that some of our own
villages have no Sunday Mass or worship service. You will have the
thanks of God, His angels, the Church and the souls you have saved for
your noble efforts, and even here on earth your action will be rewarded a
hundredfold with God's blessings in anticipation of the glorious crown
which He keeps in trust for you in heaven.
Some might say, "But money is needed to do all these things, and I am
not in that position." My answer is that a pious woman who loves God,
His Church and souls can always find a way to contribute to works of
mercy. I realize that you are doing so and that you give evidence of it every
day. But let me deplore-in fact let us all deplore-the utter blindness of
many people in this day and age. They can always find money for a
pleasure trip, for fine clothes or whatever will enable them to shine at some
party or other. They have wealth enough to buy not one but two or more
teams of fine horses and magnificent coaches, but when they are asked for
a donation to build or restore a church or an orphanage, to feed and clothe
destitute youth or to provide one more priest for the Church, they have a
thousand excuses at hand and end up doing little or nothing for the Church
or to relieve human suffering.
Some time ago someone threw a party here in Turin. One person told
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
me that it was stupendous, magnificent, princely. "How much did it cost?"
I asked. "Seventy thousand lire." Seventy thousand lire for one evening!
What blindness! That money could have sheltered and educated seventy
boys, and possibly have even provided seventy priests who, with God's
grace in due time, could have saved thousands of souls. Note, too, thatjust
weeks before that same person had been asked to fund the board and
tuition of a poor boy for three months, and he refused! God will certainly
in His time ask him for an account of that party. This is an excellent
example of how some people become deaf to the call of charity.
What I have said about squandering God's gifts on a large scale is true
also on a smaller scale. If repeated often enough, it will have the same
effect: it will keep families from supporting institutions and activities most
beneficial to the Church and society.
My dear cooperators, I do not mean to raise scruples in your minds and
tell you that it is wrong to live in a manner befitting your station. I only
wish to urge you not to let the deadly scourge of luxury pervade your
hearts and households in greater or lesser measure. Shun that scourge, and
you will always have something to contribute to charitable endeavors, to
dry compassionately the tears of many a poor family, and to save many
lads who have found refuge in institutes supported by your charity....
There are indeed numerous proofs that the women cooperators
were contributing generously to Don Bosco's charitable work. As
at the Oratory in its first days, every new house which Don Bosco
opened found a mother in some good-hearted lady. A recent case in
point was that of Madame Jacques at St. Leo's Festive Oratory in
Marseille. Nor did these pious women limit their charity to a
nearby Salesian house, but they reached out also to the
motherhouse. We have some touching documents of such motherly
love which well deserve to be handed down to posterity. We have
mentioned Mrs. Susanne Saettone [nee Prato]1 3 as the Salesians of
Varazze called her. Born in Celle [Liguria], she had married and
made her home in Albissola, where she gave incalculable aid to the
local Salesian house from its very beginning. Such was her
influence with Genoa's civil authorities that several times she was
able to ward off hostile measures being planned against the school
she loved so dearly. Following is a letter of hers to Father Rua for
the feast of Mary, Help of Christians:
13See Vol. X, pp. 125, 128; Vol. XI, p. 114; Vol. XII, p. 293. [Editor]
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Dear Father Rua, my dear adopted grandson:
May 22, 1879
Tomorrow morning I will be very happy to send you by the first train
leaving for Sampierdarena a fruit basket for our dear, wonderful and
thoughtful Don Bosco, your loving papa. At the bottom of the basket you
will find a package containing four handkerchiefs: three are of fine
cambric, ten lire each; the fourth has my name embroidered on it. I do not
care to use them or just leave them in a drawer. They are brand-new, and
Don Bosco can put them to good use. I hope that the peaches and oranges,
sent to me yesterday from Finale, are ripe and sweet and that the apples
which I purposely saved for the forthcoming feast are tasty. Please pray
that the Blessed Virgin Mary will obtain for me the grace of a good, holy
death.
Father Angelo Riello, a Vincentian in the boarding school for the
nobility at Savona, has written to me that he did not receive the May issue
of the Salesian Bulletin. I have already sent him my own copy. Please do
not forget him; he is one of those who contributed the most for the first
expeditions of your missionaries. He collected substantial sums of money
which I handed over to Don Bosco.
My fondest regards to you, to him, to Father Cagliero, Father Durando,
Father Lazzero and Father Pechenino.
Your devoted and grateful self-named grandmother,
Susanna Saettone, nee Prato
That year's feast of Mary, Help of Christians was marred by a
downpour from morning to night. Still, the church was packed
throughout the day. Bishop Garga, auxiliary of Novara, officiated
with permission from Archbishop Gastaldi. The previous day
Bishop Berengo, who had been transferred twelve days earlier from
Adria to Mantua, had also pontificated with his permission. Two
casual remarks made by Don Bosco in a letter to Father Bologna
reveal his happiness for the successful outcome of the festivities.
My dear Father Bologna:
[No date]
Enclosed are a few letters for you to address and forward to their
destination.
Ifyou succeed in persuading [Canon Guiol] the pastor at St. Joseph's to
come with you for the feast of St. John the Baptist, you will make it a first-
rate celebration. Tell him that his last letter was excellent and I shall reply
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
to all points. Madame Jacques should take heart in her concern for her
health; the sisters are preparing themselves and will be ready at a simple
request. What a spectacle was the feast of Mary, Help of Christians: over
six thousand Communions on the day itself! Take care.
Fr. John Bosco
Though Father Guiol did not go to Turin for the feast of St. John
the Baptist, Don Bosco's name day offered his sons another
treasured opportunity to express their love for their father in
personal notes, group gifts and public demonstrations of affection
and respect. A song written by Father Lemoyne and set to music by
our young composer Joseph Dogliani14 symbolically portrayed the
four recently established Salesian provinces and Don Bosco's four
major achievements: the Salesian Society, the Institute of the
Daughters of Mary, Help of Christians, the Sons of Mary Program
and the Association of Salesian Cooperators.
In addressing the public, Don Bosco stirred vibrant chords of
enthusiasm in the hearts of boys and of guests when he announced
in a voice moved with emotion that he had that very morning
received a letter from Father Costamagna bringing him from the
very heart of the Pampas heartening news about the evangelization
of the natives. How could anyone looking upon his serene
countenance ever imagine that on the very eve of that festive day
the police vice-commissioner had handed him the decree shutting
down his school?
Dogliani's musical composition was a superb delight. He made
use of the rich variety of lyrics which called for a fantasy scenario
and of the excellent voices at his disposal. The general public
thoroughly enjoyed the performance. Then, when supper time came
around, Dogliani resumed his routine task of waiting on the
superiors' table. At this time they still ate in the community dining
room. When everyone had finished and had left, he cleared the
tables and then went up to Don Bosco to kiss his hand before
leaving, but Don Bosco, firmly gripping his right hand, told him to
stay. He was about to have coffee, a sign that he had a bad
headache. The tray held two cups. "Here, Dogliani, have some
14See Appendix 1. [Editor]
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coffee too!" Don Bosco said. Father Cagliero was there, and
Dogliani looked at him as if to say that such an honor was for him,
and not for himself. But Don Bosco poured the coffee and handed
Dogliani the cup. He drank it, thanked him heartily and left. To this
day [1933] he is still moved by the remembrance of Don Bosco's
gracious gesture.
Baron [Amato] Heraud of Nice had sent Don Bosco a box of
candy to grace the table on his name day along with a generous
donation. Affectionately Don Bosco sent him a thank-you note.
Dearest Baron:
Turin, July 19, 1879
Your brother, or, should I say, your good friend, Baron Felix Arnaud, is
leaving for Nice, and I take this opportunity to send you some news. The
matter you know about15 is constantly considered as settled, but I am still
waiting for what makes it final. We shall see.
Your candy was delicious! Personally, I discovered that the donor's
sweetness and goodness were blended into the gift which made an
excellent majestic appearance at table.
As I wrote before, your one thousand francs were duly received and
immediately spent on behalf of Father Joseph F agnano,16 who will be
leaving Buenos Aires at the beginning of August to open our first parish in
Paraguay as ordered by the Holy Father.
I'll tell you more some other time. I have some problems and badly need
your prayers.
God bless you and the baroness and keep you both in good health.
Yours gratefully and affectionately,
Fr. John Bosco
It had been hoped at the Oratory that Attorney [Charles]
Comaschi of Milan, whose veneration for Don Bosco is well known
to our readers, would be present on Don Bosco's name day. Since
he did not show up, Don Bosco hastened to write to him.
1sToe baron had a case pending in Rome. Writing to Father Ronchail, director at Nice,
Don Bosco had asked him to convey this message to the baron: "Tell him that Cardinal Bilio,
prefect of the Sacred Congregation of Rites, has informed me that he has already given his
case serious consideration and has entrusted it to one ofhis secretaries for further study and a
report." [Author]
1ssee Appendix 1. [Editor]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
Dearest Chevalier:
Turin, June 29, 1879
Your letter gave me hope that I would welcome you in our midst any
time during these last few days, but as yet we haven't seen you. Are you
ill, perhaps, or is there any problem at home? I sincerely hope not and pray
God it be not so. At any rate, you know perfectly well that we are all yours
and that our home is yours too. God bless you and your family.
Most gratefully yours,
Fr. John Bosco
Some of the Oratory's festive preparations for Don Bosco's
name day were also used to honor Bishop Gerlando Genuardi, first
bishop of Acireale. He had hosted Father Cagliero and Father
Durando on their tour of Sicily with "rare finesse and kindness,"
summoning all his clergy to the episcopal residence and solemnly
introducing them to the diocesan senate; he had wholehearted
praise for Don Bosco and his Salesians, of whom he claimed to be
"a confrere." 17 Don Bosco was very anxious to have him
pontificate in the Church of Mary, Help of Christians on the feast
of Sts. Peter and Paul, but Archbishop Gastaldi set down such
restrictions that they were very much a refusal of permission, with
the result that, far from pontificating, he could not even assist
pontifically at the solemn High Mass.
As we have seen, there was an endless line of illustrious guests at
the Oratory, and it is always gratifying to know their impressions.
One such testimony came to Don Bosco at the end of May, and we
shall add it to those we have already presented elsewhere. Father
Leonard Guerra of the Friars Minor wrote: "I always fondly and
gratefully recall the happy days which, thanks to your goodness, I
spent at the Oratory, a haven of genuine virtue, of most kindly and
courteous hospitality. I really needed a rest when I returned from
my mission in Algeria, and, thanks to your charity, I also had the
opportunity of being edified and enjoying some spiritual insights."
Don Bosco's name day was also the stage for the alumni's annual
testimonial dinner which was generally held within the last few
weeks of the school year. That year it took place on August 17.
17Letters from Father Cagliero to Don Bosco from Acireale, March 3 and 9, 1879.
[Author]
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More than sixty alumni, all united as brothers regardless of rank,
social position or merit, sat in the dining room honoring Don
Bosco. Their toasts recalled the early days, extolled the progress,
forecast the future, or just reminisced about incidents in Don
Bosco's life. In words pouring straight from his heart, Don Bosco
thanked God for having granted him the joy of seeing himself
surrounded by a crown of his earlier pupils, and he exhorted them
to persevere in virtue, wishfully inviting them to return for these
heartwarming gatherings for at least another hundred years.
It is indeed true that Don Bosco's former pupils loved to return to
the Oratory, for which they cherished fond memories. "Truthfully,
I was really fortunate to spend part ofmy youth under Don Bosco's
guidance at the Oratory," a former pupil18 who could not be
present wrote to a classmate of his. "There is something special
about the Oratory, a totally unique system of educating young
people not to be found anywhere but in Don Bosco's schools."
The day after Don Bosco's name day marked the end of a contest
which had been going on for two years with Don Bosco's active
participation. It had been sponsored by Unita Cattolica in 1877 at
the closing of another contest for a book on St. Joseph. On that
occasion, the newspaper had expressed the hope that someone
might soon sponsor a contest for a book on St. Peter. At this time
Monsignor Peter Ceccarelli, pastor at San Nicolas de los Arroyos
in Argentina, was in Turin with his archbishop. He read the article
and, recalling that he had celebrated his own first Mass on the
centenary of the prince of apostles, whose name he bore, went
along with the idea. He offered a prize of one thousand lire to the
author of the best book on St. Peter in a simple, popular style. This
did not mean, however, that the author could not include in the text
or in an appendix two studies dealing with St. Peter's coming to
Rome and papal infallibility. Monsignor Ceccarelli entrusted the
matter to Father [James] Margotti, editor of Unita Cattolica, on
the condition, however, that Don Bosco head a committee of
competent Salesians appointed by him to evaluate the entries
according to the rules followed in similar contests: an identifying
motto on the manuscript and the author's name in a sealed
18Letter from Father Frederick Mulattieri, Clavesana, March 24, 1879. [Author]
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envelope, not to be opened until after the winner had been chosen.
Shortly afterward, an anonymous devout Catholic of Mantua
made a similar proposal to his bishop regarding a book about St.
Paul, and put up equal prize money for the best work submitted.
The bishop, knowing of the previous offer, asked Father Margotti
to combine both contests and also submit the second entries to the
committee to be formed in Turin. Father Margotti gladly acceded
to his wish and announced the contest in his newspaper.
The manuscripts soon began to arrive. The deadline had been set
for June 29, 1878. Don Bosco appointed the committee on August
1 and its members19 began to evaluate the manuscripts. Their
verdict was to be announced on January 18, 1879, but the number
of manuscripts and their size forced the committee to move the date
to June 29 [1879].
Only four manuscripts were submitted in the contest on St. Paul,
and the prize was awarded to Father James Murena, a Vincentian
born at Piacenza and resident in Ferrara.
The other contest, for which ten manuscripts had been
submitted, required a longer time, and judging was slow in the final
weeks. After a thorough check of all the entries, the committee
decided to exclude those manuscripts which did not fully meet the
required conditions, thus bringing the contestants down to three.
Questions and problems arose as to the lesser or greater merits of
each and opinion was divided. Noting that the majority leaned
toward one entry, Don Bosco ordered that the final verdict be
shelved and that all three manuscripts be sent to Bishop [Peter]
Rota, former bishop of Mantua, who was now titular archbishop of
Carthage. A high-ranking prelate esteemed for his learning and
virtue, he was the one to make the final decision. The committee
190fficial list of the nine committee members: Rev. John Bosco, chairman; Count Charles
Cays, doctor of both civil and canon law, secretary; Rev. John Bonetti, professor ofliterature
and theology; Rev. John Cagliero, doctor of theology; Rev. Francis Cerruti, doctor of
literature, professor of history and theology, director of the lyceum at Alassio; Rev. Francis
Dalmazzo, doctor of literature and director of the secondary school and college at Valsalice;
Rev. Celestine Durando, professor of literature; Rev. John Baptist Francesia, doctor of
literature, professor of theology, and director of the municipal secondary school at Varazze;
Rev. Michael Rua, professor of literature, biblical hermeneutics and theology, and prefect of
the Oratory of St. Francis de Sales. Substitutes: Rev. Julius Barberis, doctor of theology;
Rev. Joseph Bertella, doctor of theology, literature and philosophy; Rev. Dominic Belmonte,
professor of philosophy, director of St. Charles Junior Seminary at Borgo San Martino.
[Author]
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The Soul of the Oratory
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members unanimously agreed, setting aside their preferences in
their desire to be scrupulously honest in their judgment, as Don
Bosco wanted them to be. Bishop Rota agreed to act as arbiter, and
on May 13, 1879, he wrote to the committee secretary as follows:
I have read the three biographies of St. Peter. Not relying fully on my
own judgment, I asked other competent people to evaluate them. The work
which should be declared winner seems to be the biography made up of
five chapters, whose identifying motto is Tu es Petrus et super hane
petram aedifieabo Eeclesiam Meam [You are Peter and upon this rock I
will build My Church-Mt. 16, 18], and this quotation from Origen: Nee
adversus Petram, super quam Christus Eeclesiam aedifieavit, nee
adversus Eeelesiam portae inferipraevalebunt [The gates of hell shall not
prevail against this rock upon which Christ established the Church, nor
against the Church itself-Origen on St. Matthew's Gospel].
The bishop's readers thus summed up their verdict: "In our
modest opinion it would seem that the author ofthe Life ofSt. Peter
in five chapters has met the objectives of the contest. The book's
clarity, simplicity and persuasive tone should both please and help
the readers for whom it was written." Then, after noting a few flaws
in language and style, they went on: "In conclusion, we
unhesitatingly assert that St. Peter's accomplishments are presented
here in a manner which will be of great help to the majority of
ordinary readers."
The evaluating committee went along with this verdict and so the
prize money offered by Monsignor Ceccarelli was unquestionably
awarded to the author of the manuscript which bore the two mottos
mentioned above.
The committee met on June 25 to open the envelopes bearing the
inscriptions identifying the authors of the lives of St. Peter and of
St. Paul which had been declared winners. Father Margotti was
also present and was asked to open the envelopes. The name in the
one bearing the two texts from St. Matthew and Origen was: Father
John Bosco. Don Bosco immediately explained that he had had no
intention to strive for the prize, but, since the contest aimed at
glorifying the prince of the apostles, he had not been able to resist
his desire to share in singing his praises. By privately adding his
own manuscript to those entrusted to the committee, he had only
wanted to reassure himself that his own work might be as beneficial
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
to the general public as had been the intention of the contest's
sponsor. He declined the prize in favor of whatever charity
Monsignor Peter Ceccarelli, the sponsor, might choose.20
The contest rules did not specify unpublished works, and so Don
Bosco had simply touched up his own Life of St. Peter, published
for the centenary of the apostle, with proper deletions and
modifications.21 The book was not published until 1884.22
We have often mentioned in these pages a small lottery initiated
toward the end of 1878. Don Bosco's attempts to get as much
money from it as possible advised that he defer the drawing as long
as there was hope of selling more tickets. He sent out a further
circular on May 24.23 The persistence with which he pursued his
undertakings once he had decided to initiate them was truly
admirable. 24
Between mid-September and mid-October he visited the Salesian
houses in Liguria, probably on the occasion of the spiritual retreat
at Sampierdarena, but, except for an allusion to this journey in a
moving sympathy note to Count Eugene de Maistre who had just
lost his wife, we would know nothing at all of this journey.
Dear Count Eugene:
Turin, October 15, 1879
I do not know how to begin this letter. Upon my return home from a visit
to our houses in Liguria, I received the very sad news of your wife's death.
I can well understand the grief and sorrow that has fallen upon you and
20 Unita Cattolica, August 17, September 2, October 6, 1877; January 16, June 27 and
29, 1879. [Author]
21 0ur own Father [Albert] Caviglia made a thorough comparative study of this
manuscript and of the original manuscript in his work entitled Don Bosco, Opere e scritti
editi ed inediti, Volume II, Part 1: Le Vite dei Papi, Series 1: Da San Pietro a San
Zeffirino, pp. 1lf. Remarkably he noticed that in his re-edited work Don Bosco deleted all
the quotations which he had previously included from a manuscript by Canon Lawrence
Gastaldi. [Author]
22 Vita di San Pietro, Principe degli Apostoli raccontata al popolo, Father John Bosco,
Second Edition, Sampierdarena, 1884. The front cover bears the imprint of Letture
Cattoliche without the issue number. [Author]
23Qmitted in this edition. [Editor]
24We are omitting three pages detailing the progress, extension and results of this lottery.
Suffice it to say that the royal family of Italy accepted five hundred tickets and that numerous
bishops and cardinals gave their support. Don Bosco sent also a circular to French
benefactors, and part of the lottery proceeds were given to the Salesian houses in Nice,
Marseille, La Navarre and Saint-Cyr. [Editor]
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your entire family. I only regret not being able to do anything but pray.
This we have already done, and are still doing both for you and for your
loved ones. When she was seriously ill, the duchess informed us and asked
us to pray. We did pray in all our houses, but God did not see fit to grant
our prayer, or perhaps He judged that that rose had attained such beauty
in His eyes that it was ready to be culled from this earthly garden and
transplanted in the heavenly garden of eternal delight. We bow to His
divine will and say "Thy will be done!"
But, my dear Count Eugene, you have several consolations in your
affliction. You have lost a devoted wife on earth but have acquired a
patroness in heaven, and you may rejoice at the thought ofjoining her one
day, perhaps soon, in a life far better than this on earth. Furthermore, all
through our lives we can help her, if needed, by prayer and good works.
Better still, we may enhance her glory in heaven in the event that she is
there already.
God bless you, ever beloved Count Eugene, and with you your whole
family. May He inspire you and guide all of you safely along the road to
heaven. Amen.
Yours affectionately in Jesus Christ,
Fr. John Bosco
We were forced to omit from this chapter the account of Don
Bosco's struggle in 1879 in defense of the Oratory. Since the
narrative is rather lengthy and cannot be interrupted, we have left it
out. However, we already saw its first indications in the
controversy over the teachers' certification. The most stormy phase
of it was still to come. Don Bosco said that the Oratory had been
born and had grown under siege; it also survived it.
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CHAPTER 7
Shutdown of the Oratory School
THE temporizing techniques to which Don Bosco
resorted1 in his controversy with Turin's school board over the
Oratory's teachers did nothing to stall the course of events, much
less to halt it. Lest some reader misinterpret the stand he took and
maintained unyieldingly throughout the confrontation, we must
clearly explain Italy's school laws of those years as regards private
secondary schools which were not certified as on a par with public
schools. Education throughout Italy, both public and private, was
then governed by the law of November 13, 1859, the so-called
Casati Law, named after its author, Gabrio Casati. It was a liberal
law that, along with public education, allowed several other forms
of private education, of which only two need concern us. Article
246 stated: "Any citizen over twenty-five who meets established
moral standards has the right to open a secondary school, either
boarding or day." Three specific conditions were laid down, the
main one being that all classroom subjects be taught by state
certified teachers. These were the so-called "private schools"
which, according to law, the minister of education was to supervise
but not run-this supervision meaning the safeguarding of good
morals, health, discipline and the very existence of the schools.
A second type of private secondary education was covered by
Articles 250 and 251 [of the Casati Law]-i.e., schooling imparted
"in the privacy of the family by the father or legal guardian to his
children or to the children of relatives"; it also applied to schooling
"imparted to children under the supervision and responsibility of
1 See pp. 66ff. [Editor]
108
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Shutdown of the Oratory School
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several parents who join together for that purpose." This was the
so-called "parental school" which by law was "exempted from all
state inspection." It also applied to hospices set up by generous
philanthropists to house poor and abandoned youth, for whom they
could, therefore, be [logically] considered as "parental schools."
The truth was, however, that directives from the Department of
Public Education, interpretations given by school superintendents,
and regulations issued by school boards kept whittling down the
legal principle of private secondary education to mere pretense.
Undoubtedly no executive can rightfully set himself up as law;
likewise, no citizen who tries to counteract arbitrary interference
and enforcement may be charged with civil disobedience.
Knowing the statutory law, let us now see how it was applied in
Turin by the responsible officials, primarily by the prefect of the
province who distinguished himself as the most zealous campaigner
against the Oratory. The prefect was Minghelli Vaini, whose career
was described by the then celebrated city counselor, Dupraz, in a
long confidential letter to Don Bosco. Here is a brief summary. In
1848 Vaini was a very militant revolutionary in Modena, a member
of the provisional government of that duchy, and, after its
annexation [to Italy], a minister. In 1849 he was appointed chief
warden of the new prison at Oneglia, in which position he showed
that he had no talents of organization or governance. After an
investigation and hearing he was transferred to Turin as warden of
the women's prison and of the syphilitics' hospice. Later on, he
became a member of parliament, superintendent of prisons, prefect
of Cagliari, and, finally, prefect of Turin. Another member of the
ex-duchy of Modena, Nicomedes Bianchi of Reggio Emilia,
assessor of public education in Turin, was really the driving power
in this controversy, injecting into it that sectarian mentality which
he abundantly evidenced in his historical studies. Superintendent
[Joachim] Rho was backed up by his priest-brother, a simple
elementary school teacher who illegally acted as school inspector.
Both brothers had been schoolmates of Don Bosco at Chieri, and
both harbored a long resentment against him from the time that a
nephew of theirs had been expelled from the Salesian boarding
school at Mirabello. The priest, a hot-tempered individual, had
actually threatened to avenge what he termed an affront, and in
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TIIE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
1879 he went about blustering against the Oratory and predicting
as certain the shutdown of its secondary school-manifestly, of
course, an occurrence that he would not regret. Returning from
Rome, Don Bosco paid a visit to the superintendent and, alluding to
his inspections, remarked: "I hope that you at least will treat me
fairly." The other's reply was that he totally abided by the law.
Don Bosco continued to insist, citing their years of friendship and
alleging his reasons, only to be told repeatedly, "Keep within the
law!" Inadvertently, the superintendent had let out a reason for his
adamant stand while talking with someone in the Oratory
playground: he feared being transferred as superintendent to
Palermo or even losing his job.
Let us now line up the facts. During the novena of Mary, Help of
Christians, the secretary of the provincial school board sent Don
Bosco a copy of the education minister's injunction of May 16
mandating the shutdown of all secondary classes at the Oratory of
St. Francis de Sales; the order was signed by the prefect as
chairman of Turin's school board. This drastic measure was based
on two reasons: non-compliance with existing laws regarding
teacher certification and Don Bosco's alleged repeated duplicity in
sending to the local board a list of certified teachers while
employing non-certified ones. The minister's injunction, however,
was not yet a formal order, but rather a notification to take the
necessary steps to comply with the law. The prefect took this step
because most of the board members favored Don Bosco and agreed
that the order was not to be formally issued until the day before the
pupils began their vacation. Don Bosco had to act swiftly to avert
the disaster. He called on the prefect to thank him for his
thoughtfulness and to state his case through the following
memorandum.
Dear Sir:
Turin, May 18, 1879
Allow me to bring a few things to your attention concerning the poor
youngsters who are being sheltered at the Oratory of St. Francis de Sales.
I offer some clarifications concerning the decree issued by the minister
of public education to shut down the secondary school of this institute, the
Oratory of St. Francis de Sales.
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BACKGROUND HISTORY
In 1841, keenly anxious to do something for so many unfortunate lads
whom neglect drives to a miserable future, I endeavored to draw as many
as I could to suitable recreation centers. In 1846 I opened a hospice for
the most destitute and theatened youngsters, and government officials
made it a point to send unfortunate boys there. My aim was to teach them
some skill or trade which would one day enable them to earn an honest
living. Among the young lads I took in there were some who had a natural
talent for studies as well as others of middle-class or aristocratic families
who had fallen upon hard times, and they were given a chance to get a
secondary school education. The results were good: a sizable number
achieved honorable careers in business, in the military or in the teaching
profession; a few even managed to obtain professorships in state
universities. Several, anxious to enter the printing trade, were taught at our
own graphic arts shop. At all times the city school authorities considered
this school as a work of charity, a hospice, a parental school, con-
forming to articles 251-252 of the Casati Law. Furthermore, the school
superintendents as well as the ministers of public education and the
reigning sovereign himself, Humbert I, have always been our most
distinguished benefactors through counsel and financial support. This past
year, 1877-78, was the first time that the provincial superintendent of
schools demanded certified teachers for all classes, and he even
threatened to shut down our secondary school for these underprivileged
boys. This would be disastrous for so many poor lads who would be
deprived of a chance to earn an honest living; perhaps some might even
have to return to their former tragic destitution.
On the other hand, anxious as I am to comply to the best of my ability
with government regulations, I assigned duly certified teachers to classes.
However, some of them holding administrative offices in the school
availed themselves of qualified teachers' aides for the supervision and
instruction of their classes at such times when they could not do so
themselves. Such was the state of affairs when, during my absence from
Turin, the provincial superintendent (see his letter of January 2) appeared
unannounced for a second school inspection. He found nothing amiss in
terms of cleanliness, sanitary conditions, discipline and good conduct; his
only complaint was that three of the certified teachers were taken up with
administrative duties and their classes were being taught by substitutes.
For this reason, and this reason alone--as you may see in the above-cited
letter-he threatened to close the whole hospice if the teachers we had
listed [as certified] were not always in their classrooms. Let me point
out that the school year in our hospice runs from October 15 to the
following September 15 and that we manage to adjust the school timetable
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1HE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
to meet the teachers' needs. So, while at certain hours on certain days all
teachers may not actually be present in their classrooms, they do not in
any way neglect their teaching. If their multiple responsibilities keep them
from following the regular class schedule, they more than make up for that
time whenever they are free of their administrative duties. Let it be further
observed that no law obliges private institutions to follow the schedule of
public schools. I know of no law which forbids a teacher's aide from taking
over a certified teacher's class when the latter cannot be there, particularly
when instructors are used who hold equivalent diplomas. There are many
such instances: here in Turin, one instructor has been teaching in a top-
rate lyceum even though he holds no certification of any kind, unless the
superintendent's approval is rated as a certification. Be this as it may, it is
my desire not only to submit but also to be deferential to school
authorities. Hence I request, as a personal favor, a reasonable time
extension to allow me to make arrangements to follow not only the law's
requirements but also the wishes of the superintendent. In the meanwhile,
I beg you, dear sir, as father of the children of our poor citizens, to use
your kindly offices with the provincial school board of Turin and, if
needed, with the minister of public education, to grant this extension not
so much to me as to these young people whom I care for.
It is my hope that I will be granted the favor I ask. However, should it
not be forthcoming, rather than endanger the future of my poor boys and
throw them out into the street, I will at the cost of grave sacrifices modify
the school's administrative policies so as to guarantee each certified
teacher's presence in his classroom at the required time.
I am,
Yours respectfully,
Fr. John Bosco, Petitioner
Aiming at the withdrawal of the decree, Don Bosco sent copies
of this memorandum to influential people in both Turin and Rome,
among them Commendatore Barberis, Premier Depretis, General
de la Roche, minister of defense, who was a friend of Father
[Francis] Dalmazzo,2 and several other important officials. On
June 8 he told the members of the superior chapter: "Minister
Coppino will at least realize that we have champions in high places,
and that, despite his evil intent, the Lord will make sure that we will
overcome even with only human means. It is not worth my while to
write to him because whenever I have done so or spoken to him in
2 See Appendix I. [Editor]
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Shutdown of the Oratory School
113
the past he always promised me the moon while in reality he did his
best to entangle me in all sorts of ways."
Convinced that the crisis was not imminent, he dropped in to see
Nicomedes Bianchi,3 who wielded weighty influence over Turin's
provincial and local school board. They knew each other well. In
the above-mentioned chapter meeting, Don Bosco updated the
members on the situation and reported the highlights of this
interview, as we find in the minutes of the meeting. On seeing Don
Bosco, Bianchi, without giving him a chance to say a word,
immediately exclaimed, "Don Bosco, you are here because of that
decree."
"Precisely."
"Have no fear. The council has decided not to serve the decree
until the eve of your pupils' departure for vacation."
"That is all well and good, and I heartily thank all who extended
me this kindness. But you understand, sir, that such a decree is a
slap in the face and a sign of mistrust in me. I don't think I deserve
that.''
"What can we do? It has been issued."
"What would you advise? I would like to have it rescinded by
presenting pertinent documents."
"I have studied the situation, and I believe that you have enough
arguments to get it legally rescinded, but I advise against it for two
reasons. First, should they be forced to withdraw it, they will with
set malice make things much worse for you. Second, though you
may have strong arguments, they would counterpose arguments of
their own, and willy-nilly the order would stand. You must realize
that this matter involves the Turin school board, city hall and the
Department of Public Education."
"So I must submit to this act of mistrust?"
"Look, finish up this year and next year get yourself certified
teachers for your classes."
"I do have certified teachers and they do teach.... Are we being
forced to follow government school hours? We certainly are not
bound to do so."
"The report made to the provincial school board states that the
Oratory does not have certified teachers."
asee Vol. VII, p. 311. [Editor]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
"But we do."
"Then send immediately a list of their names to the prefect,
showing him that you really have these teachers and citing their
degrees. One more thing: neither as a city councilman nor as a
school board member, but as a friend, I can tell you that indeed you
are not obliged to keep government school hours. [Do this:] To
forestall future difficulties with importunate visits, let them know
that for the greater convenience of your teachers and pupils you are
not following the government's school schedule. Tell them that you
run early morning and late evening classes or that your own method
calls for morning and evening classes at certain hours. Thus, if the
school superintendent drops in on you unannounced in the
morning, you can claim that the students are having a study period
because classes are held in the evening, and should he come in the
evening, you can say that they have already had their classes in the
morning.''
"Thank you for your kind suggestion. However, I assure you that
I have never tried, and never will, to dodge the law or infringe it. I
am firmly determined to abide by it. All I can say is that, in the
overall picture, it is not always feasible to follow a rigid timetable,
and at times a substitute teacher has to be used."
Don Bosco was anxious to know more about his standing with
the school board and the city authorities, and he kept asking
questions to find out what else had put him in a bad light. He was
assured there was nothing else. The assessor even made it clear that
the school board's lengthy discussion had words of highest praise
for Don Bosco's institute, for his charitable enterprises, and for the
poor boys whom he was taking in. However, he stated, it was
charged that Don Bosco wanted to dodge the law and deceive the
authorities by putting uncertified teachers in his classes (the
Oratory still had elementary classes for day students) under the
pretense that they had certification.
"This is the only black mark against you," Nicomedes Bianchi
said, continuing: "The superintendent personally went to inspect
your school and did not find certified teachers in the classes. A
second time he came and found the same situation. Furthermore,
one of your teachers or someone else told somebody after this
second visit, 'We really fooled him this time!' This was because one
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Shutdown of the Oratory School
115
or two of your certified teachers managed to dash into their
classrooms just before the superintendent entered. He found out
about this and told the school board, which became distrustful and
led them to propose that the Department of Public Education issue
a decree for the closing of the school."
Don Bosco remonstrated how ungrounded and unfair the board's
order was, having been issued because some unknown person had
made a disparaging remark about the superintendent to some other
unknown person. However, he did appreciate this lengthy
interview. Later he declared, "Outwardly Nicomedes Bianchi
acted kindly with me and disclosed things that it was important I
should know. Without doubt he is the board member who most
poses a threat for us, and probably he is the one who gave us the
coup de grace. However, the Lord sometimes speaks to us even
through Balaam's donkey."
The Oratory's top superiors were told all about the school
problem, but no one else in the house knew. Don Bosco kept hoping
for a two-year extension, which was allowed by law; in two years
he could get much done. Hence he earnestly appealed his case to
Father [Peter] Baricco, a city councillor and close friend of his,
whose only answer was, "I have every intention of supporting the
Oratory of St. Francis de Sales which you founded and have been
maintaining to the great advantage of the public, but I see that it is
problematic, not to say impossible, that the school authorities will
ever grant you a two-year extension to comply with regulations.
For years now the Department of Public Education has been
insisting with provincial school boards to bring all private schools
into line with the law, and so at this late stage such an exception is
unthinkable. Should an exception be made for the Oratory of St.
Francis de Sales, which is well known for its large enrollment,
smaller schools would all be clamoring for the same. As things are
going today, I think it is wise to urge you to do all you can to put
full-time, qualified teachers in your classrooms. You will thus
guarantee your school's smooth running without fear that anyone
will disrupt it. The Providence in whom you place your trust will
provide the means you need to do this.''
In view of the situation, Don Bosco clarified his position with the
following letter to the prefect:
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TIIE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
Dear Sir:
Turin, June 20, 1879
Although I have already given you orally the names of the teachers in
our secondary school, I think it proper to give an official record to the
school authorities over whom you so worthily preside.
The teachers who are currently teaching the classes for these few
remaining weeks of the school year are as follows:
5th year: Father Celestine Durando
4th year: Father Michael Rua
3rd year: Father John Bonetti
2nd year: Father Mark Pechenino
1st year: Father Joseph Bertello
Their certifications are on file in the offices of the provincial
superintendent; if necessary, I will send a copy also to you.
Some changes will be made next year, 1879-80, and I shall duly inform
you in good time. I assure you that they will all have proper certification.
I am honored to remain,
Yours sincerely,
Fr. John Bosco
But there was not the ghost of a chance for a two-year stay. Once
[Michael Coppino] the minister of education heard that plans were
afoot to propose delaying the school's closing to the end of the
school year, not only did he reject the proposal, but he peremptorily
ordered the provincial superintendent to shut down the school no
later than June 30. The superintendent unofficially forewarned
Don Bosco in a friendly manner, adding:
Our personal friendship over the years compels me to suggest that you
resignedly accept the order in unfeigned and sincere compliance. After
that, you can send the minister an appeal in which you declare that, as a
good citizen, you have carried out the government's directives and are
requesting permission to reopen your secondary school for 1879-80,
promising to staff it with certified teachers who will personally and
regularly conduct their classes. Such a request, backed up by some
influential person, will, I think, be favorably received. On the contrary,
your former, twice refused appeal to the prefect to be allowed to use
uncertified teachers for at least two or three years will, in my opinion, fall
on deaf ears.
The lightning was followed by a clap ofthunder! At ten o'clock in
the morning, on the day before the feast of Saint John the Baptist,
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Shutdown of the Oratory School
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Don Bosco's name day, a police officer called at the Oratory and
delivered the order into Don Bosco's hands, requesting and
receiving a receipt. Then, the following morning, Don Bosco found
in the mail a letter, dated the prior day, asking him to admit a boy
named Michael Gabbero to the Oratory on the request of Mr.
Angelo Boggiani, a member of the Council of State, a sector of
which had voted in favor of the closing of the secondary school.
How was anyone to think that Don Bosco could "resignedly
accept the order" which would force him to shut down his school so
suddenly? The Oratory was no tiny school furtively hidden in some
lost comer of the land. Its head superior was a respected household
name throughout Italy and half the world. Nor could so many boys
be cast out into the streets so abruptly. He thought it best to change
his mind and write immediately to Minister Coppino. He drafted a
letter but hesitated to mail it, doing so only three days later after
some rewriting. It read:
Your Excellency:
Turin, June 26, 1879
I have been served with a copy of the decree of the Department of
Public Education ordering the shutdown of the secondary school in this
Salesian Oratory. Please allow me to bring to your attention that the
deliberation of closure reached by the provincial school board, on which
your decree is based, has no legal basis (please see the enclosed
document) for two reasons: first, the various courses offered in this school
are assigned to certified teachers as Article 246 of the [Casati] law, cited
against me by the decree without reason, prescribes; second, none of the
serious reasons specified by Article 247 concerning the closure of any
school exist. That certified teachers of secondary school classes have
substitutes to replace them when they cannot be present in the classroom
is no reason to authorize an enforced closure of a secondary school,
primarily because this practice contravenes no article ofthe law; secondly,
it takes place in all schools, public and private.
I therefore request that out ofjustice you rescind the order to close this
school. I await your courteous response so that, should you reject my
request (which I believe improbable), I may use legal means to protect my
poor pupils.
I am honored to remain,
Your humble servant,
Fr. John Bosco
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
If nothing else, Don Bosco saw this letter as gaining him some
time, since every moment counted. He then wrote to the prefect of
the province, as follows:
Dear Sir:
Turin, June 26, 1879
I have received your courteous letter with the enclosed decree of the
Department of Public Education ordering the shutdown of our secondary
school. Since it is quite impossible for me to comply with the order in the
brief span of only four weekdays, and because the reasons for such a
measure have no foundation in law, I have decided to carry my appeal to
higher authority.
I am informing you of this so that you may suspend action on the above
order until you receive further clarification, which is sure to come.
I am honored to remain,
Your humble servant,
Fr. John Bosco
Since he had to leave Turin, Don Bosco asked Father Rua and
Father Durando to call on the prefect and hear from him directly
what he intended to do with the order to shut down the school.
Things went from bad to worse. In their interview they were
informed that the boys had to leave the Oratory. He would not
retreat from his adamant stand, and so they pleaded with him at
least to give them time both to end the examinations-which was
impossible by the terms of the order-and to make some provision
for those boys who were orphans. The prefect seemed inclined to
agree, and so they felt that the school could go on without any fear
of disruption for a few days beyond June 30.4
But their wishful thinking was soon shattered. On the very day of
their interview the prefect replied to Don Bosco's letter stating that
in no way would he suspend the implementation of the order and
that should Don Bosco fail to do so by June 30, he would resort to
legal force to safeguard the respect due to the government
department which had issued the order. "You were given not four
days, as you erroneously stated, but eight to obey the order," he
wrote, "since you were served the decree on June 23." Don Bosco
justifiably excluded the two festive days of Saint John's Nativity on
41...etter from Father Rua to Don Bosco, June 28, 1879. [Author]
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Shutdown of the Oratory School
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June 24 and Sunday, June 29; nor did he count the day of issuance
and the day of closing. Unshaken, he calmly and frankly wrote
back:
Turin, June 30, 1879
Dear Sir:
Having appealed to higher authority for grave and justified reasons, I
believed that action on the order to shut down our schools for poor boys
would be deferred until the competent authority could rule on it. Your note
ofyesterday makes it clear that you are demanding immediate compliance
as of today, June 30.
Your order leaves no alternative but full and unquestioning compliance.
I therefore inform you that as of today all secondary school classes in this
hospice have ceased. I shall endeavor to place the students in some trade
or craft suited to their age and condition. Those who have parents will
most likely be returned to their families.
Lastly, some fifth year students will have to stay here until they can take
their state examinations.
I am honored to remain,
Your humble servant,
Fr. John Bosco
The prefect got in touch with the city magistrate to ask for his
cooperation in forcing the Oratory's evacuation, but the magistrate
had no stomach for such ruthless measures against so many
impoverished youngsters. He was mindful of the many orphaned
and destitute lads who were showing up at the prefecture seeking
food and shelter. Finally, on July 2 a few days' stay was granted to
hold examinations. What had happened to temper the animosity?
The government was tottering and its fall seemed imminent. At
such times, smart public officials often recall Talleyrand's dictum:
Surtout, pas de zele [Above all, no zeal]. But Don Bosco's zeal
gave him no rest. Again he drafted a defense of his position for the
minister of public education, more clearly proving that his schools
fell in the category of "parental schools," as described in the Casati
Law. In an eloquent outburst of holy indignation, he also let his
heart refute the allegation that he had willfully deceived the school
authorities. 5
5We are omitting this memorandum which substantially repeats and somewhat amplifies
the "Background History." See pp. 11 lf. [Editor]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
By the time this document got to Rome, the government had
fallen. Unita Cattolica6 neatly characterized the notorious order to
shut down Don Bosco's schools as "the government's last glorious
accomplishment. ' ' 7
On July 5, his usual serenity unruffled by these worries, Don
Bosco opened a bird museum at the Valsalice College and invited
Senator Siotto-Pintor to preside. It was a small collection, well
ordered and in excellent condition, the patient labor of Canon John
Baptist Giordano, a priest widely admired throughout Turin as a
speaker and as a man of virtue. A dedicated, knowledgeable
naturalist, he devoted his spare time in his retreat at Rivalta to
searching out rare birds which he then stuffed and classified. A
room in his villa served as a museum, which displayed national and
foreign birds in glass showcases. When he passed away in 1871,
his heirs offered the collection to Don Bosco, who purchased it for
his Valsalice College. This dedication ceremony promoting culture
was his reply to the insult of having the Oratory schools shut down.
Siotto-Pintor took a very keen interest in the Oratory's crisis, and
his speech was filled with allusions and fairly caustic quips
comprehensible only to those who knew the facts. Some are still
alive [1933] who recall the sharp contrast between Don Bosco's
serenity and the Sardinian senator's vehemence in attacking the
troublemakers in his private conversation with Don Bosco. Nor did
he limit himself to noisy but ineffective talk. He made his voice
heard in Rome in defense of the "incomparable" Don Bosco.
Though he was to set out for Cagliari, he did not leave Turin until
he had fired a letter to the resigning minister of public education,
who merely replied that if the Salesian hospice really found itself in
the legal entanglement he claimed, its director should submit a legal
protest to the provincial school board to have the closure order
rescinded, since that was within its competence.8
However, there was little to be had from the local authorities,
and so the day after the museum's inauguration, Don Bosco sent a
letter to King Humbert I, imploring His Majesty to come to the
rescue of the Oratory boys.
6 Unita Cattolica, Tuesday, July 8, 1879. [Author]
7This paragraph is a condensation. [Editor]
81.etter of Minister Coppino to Senator Siotto-Pintor, Rome, July 10, 1879. [Author]
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Your Royal Majesty:
Turin, July 6, 1879
Most fervently and humbly I commend to your sovereign clemency a
work of charity which your parents and you have often generously
subsidized. I mean the Oratory of St. Francis de Sales, whose only
purpose is to shelter the poorest and most needy sons of the people. Last
June 23 the Department of Public Education ordered the shutdown of its
schools, which have existed thirty-five years, thus forcing me to drive
some three hundred boys back into hopeless destitution. With but a year
or two of further schooling, they might be returned to society as self-
sustaining, law-abiding citizens.
I am sick at heart. Your Majesty is my last recourse to aid and rescue
this poor band of unfortunate lads.
I plead with you to read the enclosed short, factual account of the
situation as it stands. I have neither blame nor disapproval for the school
authorities. I only ask that, if Your Majesty were to decide that the order
of closure should stand, you would at least grant a period of grace within
which I can make some provision for the future of my unfortunate boys,
who reach out their shaking hands to Your Majesty's heart for thoughtful
consideration.
They all pray to God with one voice that He will graciously grant
protection to your Royal Majesty.
Your most humble subject,
Fr. John Bosco
Since time was pressing, on July 8 he telegraphed Count Visone,
minister of the royal palace: "Forced to tum three hundred poor
boys into the street. Urgent. Immediate action needed." That very
day the count wired Chevalier Crodara Visconti, head of the royal
household in Turin, from Rome: "Please advise Father John
Bosco, director of St. Francis de Sales Oratory, that His Majesty
has ordered his appeal to be taken up by the Department of Public
Education." Don Bosco's immediate reply telegram to Count
Visone read: "Boys and superiors gratefully offer heartfelt thanks in
undying gratitude for the king's kindness."
Because of this series of events the dismissal of the secondary
school students seemed to be indefinitely postponed. With all
classes suspended, they took long walks by class groups into
different parts ofthe countryside and there sat around their teachers
for open air lessons. Apparently they had no idea that their school
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TIIE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
was threatened with a shutdown. Don Bosco, convinced at the time
that the respite was genuine, notified [Cardinal Lawrence Nina] his
cardinal patron, who congratulated him on July 11, writing: "My
deep regret at the news that your hospice was to be closed has
yielded to genuine pleasure on receiving your note of July 8.
Hoping that the delay order will soon bring about a definite end of
aggravation against you, I rejoice with you and your homeless
students for this happy step."
But the painful succession of troubles was not to end so soon.
Don Bosco brought Chevalier Crodara's telegram to the prefect,
who gave it no heed and refused to delay the execution of his order
until action had been taken on the royal appeal. His only
concession was a ten-day deferment for those boys who had no
home to go to. Don Bosco was not to be put off; he was set on
getting a deferment at any cost, and so he wrote9 to the minister of
the royal household to hasten the king's help.
Following the example of Unita Cattolica, another Turinese
school periodical, II Baretti, edited by Professor Perosino,
commented on this lamentable incident as follows: 10 "In his
downfall Minister Coppino chose to leave Turin a souvenir of
himself by shutting down Don Bosco's schools at Valdocco.
Further comments in our next issue."
Unita Cattolica returned to the charge in an article which
substantially rephrased in journalistic style Don Bosco's report to
Minister Coppino, concluding: "There is still someone in Turin, a
man·of eminent rank, who has a human and loving heart, and that
man is King Humbert I." Then followed Don Bosco's appeal to the
king and his reply. 11 A third newspaper, Lo Spettatore, Milan's
Catholic journal of politics and business, likewise entered the fray
with two sharply critical articles, of which we quote the second as
remarking ironically: 12
In a desire to safeguard these poor youngsters' education and to
eliminate imaginary deficiencies, they will all be turned out into the street,
where many of them, deprived of any semblance of education, will
9 We are omitting this letter informing the minister of the prefect's refusal to wait until the
appeal had been acted upon. [Editor]
1011 Baretti, July 10, 1879. [Author]
11 Unita Cattolica, July 12, 1879. [Author]
12£0 Spettatore, July 12-13 and 14-15, 1879. [Author]
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necessarily have to tum to the trade of vice and licentiousness. And this is
supposed to be in keeping with the aims of the law! Even supposing that
this strange concept of education-which apparently can be meaningful
only when sanctioned by the minister's certification-cannot be given to
these youngsters, why should they be evicted? Does inadequate teaching
preclude the charitable mission of rescuing homeless youngsters from the
streets and providing for their daily care?
Now, Father [Angelo] Rho, as self-appointed defense lawyer for
his brother, the provincial school superintendent, wrote Don Bosco
a very long letter, whose beginning and end are worth quoting. The
opening was not too bad:
I must say that I have always held you in high esteem, as does everyone
who has come to know your excellent character and your wonderful work
for the poor in particular, but I must tell you quite honestly that I find you
very wrong in the matter of your school's closing. I believe-pardon me if
I talk as a sincere friend, wearing my heart on my sleeve and hiding
nothing-that your love for your institute may have slightly blinded you
about its drawbacks, much as a parent's somewhat excessive love can
make him overlook his children's shortcomings.
The charges which followed were totally based on Don Bosco's
inability or refusal to see the difference between a private
secondary school and a parental school. All the grave evils he
complained about stemmed from the lack of certified teachers. The
heart of his long-winded diatribe is in the lengthy postscript, amply
watered with crocodile tears.
I assure you-he went on-that my brother was very much grieved at
having to enforce the law, as was his duty, and he still grieves at your
refusal to grasp this and comply once and for all with the law. However,
law and duty come first. Things had gone too far; though others may have
closed an eye to it in the past, he could not in good conscience do so. Can
you blame him for that? Doubtless, you are honest enough not to blame an
old friend for what he did; upon serious consideration, you will have to
admit that my brother simply did his duty, neither more nor less, and that
you should comply with the law, so as not to have any problems in the
future and avoid compromising others. It is certainly true that your
institute, as you say, is well trained in morality, but is that enough? The
answer is an emphatic, everlasting no! Teaching must be well ordered and
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
in keeping with the law, which no one must ever dodge, supersede or resist.
Then all will be well. Don't you agree? My dear friend, I speak in all
honesty: certain people advise you, but their motives are not always just or
honest.
This last insinuation was aimed at Father [James] Margotti,
editor of Unita Cattolica, and at Joseph Allievo, professor of
pedagogy at the University of Turin. Apart from all this, one can
sadly see how even a good priest can become legalistic when he
allows himself to be tainted with bureaucracy.
Rather Rho restated his opinions [on July 17, 1879] in an
acrimonious letter to Father Margotti, who disdainfully ignored it
and forwarded it to "his deeply revered Don Bosco," remarking
that he might help the cause and certainly do him a favor if he
would "privately" answer the superintendent's brother. Don Bosco
took his advice.
Father Rho:
Turin, July 20, 1879
Father Margotti has sent me your letter to him, asking me to reply to the
section which concerns me.
I do so gladly because our disagreement calls for some clarification,
without which everything is distorted.
Had you come to the Oratory I would have shown you that the charge of
our teachers' not being certified is false.
Your brother, the superintendent, has on his desk the complete list-
names, surnames, and certificates-of our teachers: Michael Rua,
Celestine Durando, Joseph Bertello, John Bonetti, and Mark Pechenino,
all of whom are duly certified. The order to close the school, therefore,
citing uncertified teachers as the reason, is founded on an error of fact.
You claim that I am using older pupils to teach in the classrooms. By
older students [I suppose] you mean the above-mentioned teachers who
are in fact former pupils of mine.
So too are Professor Rinaudo at the University of Turin and Professor
Marco at the University of Rome, and others elsewhere. Why couldn't I
avail myself of their services in our school? Furthermore, since private
schools are free to set up their own daily schedule, no one can object if
classes are held when it's more convenient for the teachers. The law also
plainly states that no hospice may be shut down unless public order,
morality, or the health of the pupils is gravely affected. No one can say
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Shutdown of the Oratory School
125
this of our schools for poor boys. Indeed, the superintendent himself,
reporting to the provincial school board after his visit, affirmed that he
found nothing to be desired in cleanliness, discipline, moral behavior, and
scholastic proficiency.
Furthermore, the law states that even in the face of some abuse, the
hospice may not be shut down before the director's observations are
presented to the provincial school board. This was not done. The
superintendent dropped in during my absence, dashed through the
classrooms, and found nothing lacking in sanitation, moral behavior,
cleanliness and scholastic progress.
On my return to Turin, I found a letter from the superintendent insisting
that the certified teachers had to be in their classrooms throughout the
school hours set for public schools. The law does not call for this.
However, to please the authorities, I asked for an extension oftime lest the
school administration be set topsy-turvy, and I concluded, "Should this
favor be refused, please inform me, so that I may change the school's
administration schedule and make sure that the certified teachers are in
their classrooms during the hours the education department may require."
I received no reply until last June 23, when I was told that the secondary
school was being closed down. You keep appealing to the law as above
everyone and everything. I would rather say that justice must govern the
law.
Which article of the law have I violated? I keep asking and waiting for
an answer, but all in vain. And again, how can the superintendent or
anyone else order the eviction of poor boys from a hospice, as he is doing
in this case?
You also add that for the past three years the superintendent has been
insisting that I comply with the law. My reply is that all superintendents,
all ministers of public education, have always commended, approved,
assisted and subsidized this hospice over the past thirty years. It had to be
a friend, a schoolmate of mine, to propose that it be shut down in spite of
the fact that I was going out of my way to comply fully with the law. See, I
too write with my heart on my sleeve, and you will be doing me a real favor
by reading the Casati Law and citing the articles I have violated. I have
written all this to protect the poor lads who are sheltered in this hospice.
Apart from that, I assure you that I wish to be on good terms with you and
your brother and would consider it a pleasure if I could ever be of service
to you.
With due esteem,
Your affectionate friend,
Fr. John Bosco
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1HE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
Father Rho took offense. He was waiting for an answer to his
eight-page letter to Don Bosco, opening with "My dear, good friend
Don Bosco," but there was no answer. Then the letter he had sent
to Father Margotti had been passed on to Don Bosco for a reply,
and, in courtesy to Father Margotti, Don Bosco had obliged with a
cold salutation: "Father Rho." Peppery by nature, Father Rho felt
that he had to fight back. Following is Don Bosco's calm, dignified
reply to his second letter:
My ever dearest friend:
Turin, July 24, 1879
When an honest man is disbelieved, he must withdraw in strict silence.
You have not understood me and have not replied to a single one of the
points raised in my letter. Then, too, the contempt with which you speak of
the priests in this house makes it impossible for me to respond in decent
terms. So it is quite useless for me to discuss the matter, as I ardently
wished. Apart from this, we shall always be good friends, and I shall
continue to rely on your kind offices and those of your family, particularly
the superintendent. I shall always gladly be of any service to you and to
your dear ones. In Jesus Christ, always and unalterably,
Yours affectionately,
Fr. John Bosco
Father Rho wrote again on July 24, 1879, fretting and fuming,
and urging Don Bosco to search for grounds of reconciliation, but
Don Bosco kept his peace. It apears from the above that it was the
superintendent himself who had engineered these maneuvers, but
he miscalculated the results and so now sought to save face. After
all, Father Rho had no ill feelings for Don Bosco; probably he may
have been pressured from without and by the fear of losing his
job.13
An obvious comment arises from the perusal of the priest's two
letters. In each he praises Don Bosco's sterling character. "No one
doubts your honesty," he writes in the second letter. "I would be
the first to rise in your defense (as I assure you I have done and
more than once), for, indeed, everyone acknowledges the immense
good you have done and are doing. Let me say that you even try too
hard. That is when (forgive me, my friend) trouble may arise. Am I
13See pp. 109f. [Editor]
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Shutdown of the Oratory School
127
wronging you by saying that you do too much good? I think not."
How could he hold Don Bosco in such high esteem and yet believe
that he was knowingly stubborn in pursuing a line of conduct
contrary to duty and justice? Wasn't there something seriously
questionable in this priest's reasoning, and would not the zeal ofthe
others deserve a worthier cause?
When the new government was formed under Premier [Benedict]
Cairoli, the Department of Public Education was entrusted to
Francis Perez, a Sicilian. Immediately Unita Cattolica published
an article [on July 16, 1879] headed "A Plea for Justice," authored
by "a renowned person, neither a cleric nor clerically minded." It
proved that the closing of the secondary Oratory school was illegal.
Its author was none other than Joseph Allievo, professor of
pedagogy at the Royal University of Turin. The editor prefaced the
article as follows:
We are sending a copy of this article to the new minister of public
education. It would be an excellent start for him to redress a gross injustice
and prevent a grave violation of moral rightness and law. Just a few days
ago we were honored to greet here in Turin an illustrious bishop14 from
Sicily, who came to our city expressly to request Don Bosco to open
schools on his island. Soon afterward it was our lot to witness, in our own
Turin, the harassing of the Salesian Oratory and its schools. How fitting it
would be for a Sicilian minister to repair the harm done by a former
Piedmontese minister upon the education of the good youth of Turin.
Professor Allievo not only highlighted the illegality of the
shutdown order, but also excoriated the arbitrariness of its
execution by the prefect of the province.
The minister of education-he declared-had decreed the closing of the
private secondary school. Since a school is a place where pupils are
taught, the closure order is implemented as soon as instruction ceases-as
it actually did at the Oratory school on June 30. But he arbitrarily decided
to strike out against the charitable hospice as well by ordering the eviction
of all the boys, children of the people, who were peacefully attending to
their studies in that institute. Tell us: by virtue of what law and by whose
authority is he entitled to wrest so many poor boys from the protection of a
hospice and throw them destitute into the streets?
14Bishop Gerlando Genuardi of Acireale. Seep. 102. [Editor]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
The author closed with a fierce defense of Don Bosco's honor.
In this dismal instance of illegality and raw power even the manner in
which it was presented is outrageous.
Don Bosco wanted (so alleged the superintendent and the prefect in the
ministerial decree) to deceive the Turin school authorities repeatedly.
And so this good priest who in the name of Christian charity cares for so
many poor children is said not merely to deceive, but to intend to deceive
the authorities. His enemies were not satisfied with attacking everything
he holds dearest, his boys' school; they had to assume the role of
inquisitors and probe his motives, charging him with bad faith, with
devious and deceitful conduct.
The newspapers now pitched into the fray. Bypassing the
scurrilous remarks of the anticlerical press, we go directly to the
promised article of II Baretti which appeared in the July 17 issue
and surprisingly put the school board on the defensive.
We demand to know who counseled, ordered, and executed the
aforesaid school closingjust because one day someone was found teaching
who was not duly certified. We ask the school board if Turin's currently
employed public school teachers have all received their degrees and
certification. And let it be known that such uncertified teachers-the same
as those in Don Bosco's school-are being paid a salary, rightfully so,
while the Oratory teachers are donating their services in a commendable
spirit of charity, just as do all who belong to that charitable institution. We
might add that from the so-called illegal schools of Don Bosco have
emerged learned teachers and authors of highly valued books, as well as
distinguished college and university professors. To this day, these same
schools tum out students all of whom nearly always pass the state
examinations and stand out as the top students in the universities. But let
us pass that by. Let's just say that when it comes to Minister Coppino's
involving himself in legal matters as judge, we rightfully question his
competence because of his far too many past and present performances.
Since it is difficult to resolve conflicts swiftly and properly at a
distance or by mail, and since the change of government suggested
an on-the-spot investigation, Don Bosco was wisely advised to send
Father Durando and Professor Allievo to Rome to seek the
government's deferment of the shutdown order and especially of the
eviction of the pupils. He gave them a letter of introduction to
Attorney Aluffi, secretary to the Department of the Interior.
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Dear Sir:
Turin, July 20, 1879
Commendatore Allievo, professor of the Royal University of Turin, and
Reverend Professor Durando are in Rome for matters concerning our
schools. It is most urgent that they meet with Commendatore Villa,
minister of the interior, who has always been a friend of ours.
Please help them find the quickest way of setting up this meeting.
Should you have acquaintances in the Department of Public Education,
please introduce them to those parties.
I trust that you are in good health and pray that God will keep you so.
Thank you.
Your humble servant,
Fr. John Bosco
The Honorable [Thomas] Villa, former deputy of Castelnuovo
d'Asti, was then minister of the Department of the Interior, having
succeeded Depretis in the new cabinet. He had personally known
Don Bosco since 1859,15 and their contacts had been frequent and
friendly. Don Bosco's envoys were to hand him this letter:
Your Excellency:
Turin, July 20, 1879
Forever grateful to you for the kind support you have so often given the
poor boys of this home, I feel encouraged to seek your help at this time.
On June 23 of this year, I received an order from the minister of public
education, dated May 16, shutting down our schools on the sole basis of
lack of certified teachers. The charge is unfounded, since the school
superintendent himself stated that a list of our certified teachers had been
handed to him on November 13, 1878.
Nevertheless, we complied with the order and shut down all secondary
school classes on the prescribed date, June 30. But what overwhelmed us
with consternation was the order of the prefect of this city that the pupils
themselves be dismissed immediately from the home and, consequently,
turned out into the streets and their former sad life of destitution.
I appeal to Your Excellency as Minister of the Interior, as a well-
deserving citizen of this city, and as the representative of my own native
Castelnuovo d'Asti that you countermand the order and allow these
unfortunate boys to continue living here, where they can learn a trade that
1ssee Vol. VI, p. 140. [Editor]
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TIIE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
will someday help them earn an honest living. You would thus ease their
present anxiety and their families' trepidation. We will all unite in
thanking you and calling heaven's blessings upon you.
The bearers of this letter are Reverend Professor Durando, director of
our schools, and Commendatore Allievo, professor at the Royal
University of Turin, who freely lends his assistance to our boys. They will
gladly supply any further information which Your Excellency may seek,
should you make time for them in the midst of your many duties.
I am honored to remain,
Your most grateful servant,
Fr. John Bosco
Don Bosco also compiled a summary report of the incident for
the minister of public education.1s
On the very day of the departure of Father Durando and
Professor Allievo for Rome, the Catholic Emporio Popolare
pointed out to parents that in shutting down Don Bosco's school,
the radical left had committed one of the worst arbitrary actions
ever inspired by left wing animosity since it had seized power in
1876. The paper made three points in view of such a monstrous
abuse: the self-styled liberals were clamoring for education of the
masses while callously closing down Don Bosco's parental schools
which had been precisely set up for the poor; the officials had not
acted for justice's sake but in blind envy and hatred for Don Bosco,
whose schools were patently more successful than many public
schools; Minister Coppino, a Piedmontese, disgraced himself when
in his loathing for religion he did not hesitate to strike down an
institute which all regarded as one of his native Piedmont's finest
assets. 17
The two professors had a surprise encounter in Rome as
heartening as unexpected. At the Vatican, upon calling on
Monsignor Ciccolini,18 private papal chamberlain and president of
the Arcadia in Rome, they immediately obtained a papal audience
through his good offices. Leo XIII, who was pacing in a nearby
hall, agreed to receive them without further ado in order to hear
16This report substantially repeats a previous one sent to the prefect of the province of
Turin, and we refer the reader to pp. 1llf. [Editor]
17Emporio Popolare, Corriere di Torino, July 20, 1879. [Author]
1asee Vol. XII, p. 109. [Editor]
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Shutdown of the Oratory School
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first-hand the actual details of what had happened at Valdocco even
though he had already been briefed by Cardinal Nina. "Waste no
time," he told Father Durando. "Call on the minister of public
education and on the minister of the interior, seek the king's
support, enlist people of influence!" When the Pope was told that
this was precisely Don Bosco's strategy, he expressed his
satisfaction.
Both ministers received them promptly and with heartening
words,19 which the Honorable [Francis] Perez [minister of public
education] later confirmed in writing on July 24 as follows: "In
answer to your note of July 15,20 I sincerely hope that your
institution will prosper ever more for the benefit of the poor. I am
sure that it will not suffer from the last setback given it by the
former minister of public education because your administrative
board, by staffing your secondary school with certified teachers,
will not only abide by the law as the Department of Public
Education desires, but will also guarantee your students' sound
instruction and intellectual proficiency.'' This prompted Don
Bosco to write to Attorney Aluffi:
Turin, July 26, 1879
Dear Mr. Aluffi:
My sincere thanks for helping my two envoys. This morning I received a
letter from the minister of public education, assuring me that the decree of
closure of our schools has been voided. However, the prefect's order to
dismiss all our boys from the Oratory still hangs over our heads. No one
can see any reason for such an order. The decree we received referred
mainly to the teaching and not to the eviction of the pupils. Hence, I am
requesting an assurance from the minister in the enclosed note. Please see
to it that he receives it safely.
I shall again thank you when all this is over.
Yours gratefully,
Fr. John Bosco
Meanwhile, Superintendent Rho, very imprudently venturing
into the journalistic fray and attacking the Oratory, left himself
wide open to public criticism of his action as a school official when
19Telegram from Father Durando to Don Bosco from Rome, July 22, 1879. [Author]
20Probably a courtesy note to the new minister. [Author]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
he requested that Unita Cattolica publish a letter of his on the
matter. The newspaper, legally bound to honor such a request,
gleefully declared that it was doing so "most willingly." Basically
his pet argument had not changed: the Oratory was a "private
institution," not a "parental school." Since at the start of the school
year 1877-78 Don Bosco had directly petitioned the minister of
public education for permission to avail himself of uncertified
teachers for at least the next three years, the superintendent
claimed that he had caught him in flagrant contradiction; this, he
said, was proof that Don Bosco himself acknowledged the
"private" but not "parental" nature of his school.
He further went on to charge him with deceit because, having
been cornered, Don Bosco had sent a list of teachers who taught
little if at all.21
Father Joseph Bertello, as principal of the Oratory schools,22
counterattacked in two articles published in the same newspaper. In
the first he proved that Don Bosco's institution was "parental" and
as such exempt from regulations governing "private" institutions.
Though not an association of parents, as the law prescribed, it was
open to fatherless boys and housed them with fatherly love and
care. For well over thirty years, until 1876, the government had
given him free rein to do as best he could with his means, as charity
prompted him. Had he begun a private secondary school, his intent
should have been stated in writing to the provincial school
superintendent, under Article 247 of the Casati Law. He had never
done so, nor had he even been called to order. How strange that an
illegal school had been allowed to run undisturbed for thirty years!
As for the claim that Don Bosco had requested temporary license
to employ uncertified teachers, it was true, but only when the
Department of Education had abruptly left him no alternative. It
was either/or: either submit a list of certified teachers or close down
the institution. Under these circumstances, as a last remedy Don
Bosco had asked for a three-year period of leniency during which
he could get certification for his teachers or otherwise provide for
his boys' future. In the second article Father Bertello contended
that the superintendent could not prove that the certified teachers
21 Unita Cattolica, July 22, 1879. [Author]
22Jbid., July 24 and 25, 1879. [Author]
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Shutdown of the Oratory School
133
were shirking their duties and passing them on to young priests and
clerics, as the superintendent's report to the school board had
stated. Admittedly, at this point the argumentation became
casuistic, and he would have done better to simply reiterate his
former position, for herein lay the Achilles' heel, but he made it
easier for the superintendent to counter him in another article.23
Father Bertello replied by literally dissecting the argument which
the superintendent had cleverly passed over by stating offhand that
Father Bertello's first article had contained nothing worthy of
attention. 2 4
It was high time that Don Bosco spoke out. He broke his silence
in a letter to La Gazzetta de! Popolo in its issue of August 4, 1879.
To the Editor:
Turin, August 2, 1879
In several issues, particularly number 211, your paper has commented
on the shutdown of the schools in the boys' home known as the Oratory of
St. Francis de Sales.
For the sake of truth and the well-being of the poor boys who are
sheltered here, several statements must be corrected, and so I ask you, in
all courtesy, to publish the following factual account.
The Oratory has always been considered a hospice, a shelter for poor
boys, never a private secondary school.
A good number of these boys are learning various trades and crafts,
while others, either because they are intellectually gifted or because they
come from formerly affiuent families, are given a secondary school
education, lest their talents go to waste and they be thwarted from
achieving their goals.
The Boncompagni Law of 1848 and the Casati Law of 1859 both
backed these schools, and for the past thirty-five years all the provincial
superintendents and ministers of public education favored this home as a
shelter for poor boys, as a parental institution in which the real father was
the superior in accordance with Articles 251, 252 and 25 3 of the Casali
Law. It must also be borne in mind that this house subsists entirely on
charity, that the students are given a free education, and that the teachers
are not paid for their work. In spite of all this, the superintendent chose to
23/bid., July 31, 1879. [Author]
24We are omitting excerpts from the notoriously anticlericals // Fischietto and La
Gazzetta de/ Popolo siding with the provincial superintendent of schools and hoping that the
shutdown of the Oratory would be permanent. [Editor]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
apply regulations governing private schools to this home and to force its
superior to provide certified teachers at grave sacrifice on his part.
Wishing to show respect not to a law which did not apply to me, but to
its representative which so demanded it, I provided five certified teachers
and assigned them to the various classes as required by Article 246 [of the
Casati Law].
The superintendent was not satisfied, but demanded the hours set by
him. This violates the law, which permits private secondary schools to set
up a schedule that is more convenient to them.
Because we did not follow public school schedules and because some of
our certified teachers occasionally availed themselves ofteachers' aides as
substitutes, the Turin provincial school board, acting on the superinten-
dent's report, decided to shut down our school.
The minister of public education, believing the report to be based on
fact, ordered the closing on May 16, though I was not notified until June
23.
Others will judge the legality of this act. I will only say that the above is
a c01Tect report of the facts and nothing can change it or cause the facts to
be interpreted in any other way.
There is one thing that those who love justice will not be able to
swallow: the party most concerned was never given a hearing. Civil law
and school regulations everywhere allow the accused to state his case. I
was not allowed to do so, to the harm of these poor children ofthe people,
who deserve the protection and earnest efforts of honest citizens to better
their lives.
It is my unwavering hope, however, that the new minister of public
education will redress the harm done to the public good in conformity to
the freedom of education granted by our current laws.
I thank you in advance, sir, for the courtesy that you will extend to me in
publishing this letter.
Gratefully yours,
Fr. John Bosco
More and more convinced that Don Bosco was right, Professor
Allievo no sooner arrived from Rome than he published a pamphlet
entitled The Casali Law and Private Secondary Education. This
was precisely what Don Bosco needed. His own name never
appeared, but sound arguments were stated in his favor. He
immediately put it to good use by sending a copy to Minister Perez
with a covering letter of his own.25
2somitted in this edition. [Editor]
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Shutdown of the Oratory School
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The newspaper debate spread. Between August 5 and August 9
four more dailies joined in, one firing a double salvo. On August 5,
Unita Cattolica carried Don Bosco's letter to La Gazzetta de!
Popolo with this comment: "Don Bosco is a living example of that
charity which gives life; his enemies stick by the word that kills.
The cry once raised against Jesus Christ is now directed against
Don Bosco: 'We have a law, and according to that law he must die.'
The law is now being just as brutally applied against Don Bosco as
it was against the Divine Redeemer. Be this as it may, we now call
an end to this debate. A man of charity has no wish to stir up
dispute." That same day La Gazzetta de! Popolo published two
letters, both from priests, but how different! The first came from
Father Rua and consisted of a brief resume; the other came from a
dyed-in-the-wool liberal, Father Mongini, whose only merit was
that he was so outspoken that he kept disclosing the enemy's secret
strategy. The legal aspect of the problem was merely a pretext; the
crux was political in nature. Mongini wrote:
Operating schools in Italy and elsewhere, even in [South] America,
Don Bosco has a political clout which he hides under the cloak of
humanitarianism, so-called "doing good." His clout consists of the
education he imparts, imbued as it is with the principles of the Syllabus,26
and under whose guise he is training generations hostile to Italy and to
worldwide civilization. Don Bosco, who seems to have the gift of being
everywhere at the same time, may well be called "the traveling Syllabus."
Coated with honey he doles out the Syllabus to his pupils in small
spoonfuls to make it more tasty and easy to go down, much as a mother
gives her children pills. He is a genius in inflaming people with love for the
papacy, and in this he is far more successful than a thousand priestly
teachers or a thousand Catholic journalists, even the extremists. Woe to
Italy if its hundred cities harbored a Don Bosco in their midst. At the very
least, the government would be embarrassed without end, and the
consequences would be clearly in evidence. All this is to say that even if
the law cannot correct all the blunders plaguing secondary education, it
must still be severely applied to institutions of this kind, with regular
inspections, and, if necessary, they must be shut down.
26A series of propositions condemned by the Congregation of the Holy Office, an action
ratified by Pope Pius X. It denounced the tenets ofModernism and repudiated its errors. The
basis of these false doctrines was the pseudo-scientific theory of evolution in human
knowledge and belief. [Editor]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
A fine example of interpretation of a law according to ultra-
liberal principles! On August 6 Father Rua replied to a few queries
raised by the Gazzetta Piemontese which published the letter quite
impartially. On August 7, Father Bertello refuted a few minor
allegations in Unita Cattolica which he had sidestepped in a
previous reply to the superintendent on August 3, but they contain
nothing new. Finally, on August 9, L'Osservatore Romano in a
double column entitled "An All Too Loyal Defense" juxtaposed
Don Bosco's case with that of Father Ferrari. When Father
[Angelo] Secchi, S.J., the world-renowned astronomer and
mathematician, died in 1878 he was residing in the wing of the
building housing the Vatican Observatory, his brainchild and his
sole care, where the Italian government had left him undisturbed, as
a final lingering tribute to human decency, after confiscating the
Roman College. His brother Jesuit and assistant, Father Ferrari,
however, who should have inherited the position because it was
right and proper, was expelled, once the master was gone. So, too,
Coppino, seeing his own arbitrary action to be in his party's best
interests, hastily rushed into action. According to the Vatican
paper, Minister Coppino had acted in the selfsame sectarian
interest in deciding on the "arbitrary closing of such a distinguished
and well deserving Catholic institution as Don Bosco's secondary
school." It hit the nail on the head. In the confusion of this
newspaper melee Don Bosco once more intervened in a letter to
Father Margotti, a letter "truly worthy of him," stated the editor,
who gladly brought it to the public's attention. "Some may still
persist in doubting whether or not Don Bosco's schools can be
called 'paternal,' but no one will refuse to acknowledge that his is
truly a fatherly heart."
Dear Father Margotti,
Turin, August 9, 1879
Your kindness to me and my boys calls for sincere thanks from me and
from the children you have benefited. Let me now request a different favor
from you in this controversy of the Oratory with Turin's provincial
superintendent of schools. The legal issue has been amply addressed, and
now the debate has turned to personal attacks.
Since this house relies upon everything and everybody and since I wish
to do my own little share in cooperating with the government for the
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Shutdown of the Oratory School
137
community's well-being, I request that you kindly put off any further
consideration of this issue, so as to make room for that active charity
which should unite all groups of our citizenry.
However, I think it opportune to single out the error which caused this
entire regrettable controversy. It was claimed that this home had a private
secondary school attached to it. Such was never the case. If any Turinese,
even those living in this very house, had been asked where such a school
was located, no one would have been able to give any information because
no private secondary school exists in this hospice. What we have here,
instead, is a free school where selected lads who are especially gifted or
who come from upper but impoverished families are charitably given a
secondary education.
Despite the groundless assertion for the verdict passed against us and
despite the fact that there was no reason whatever that the shutdown order
should include the dismissal of the boys, I obeyed not only the law, as in
the past, but also its local representatives. And so, complying totally with
the minister's order, I halted all secondary school teaching on the
prescribed date and shortly afterward sent the pupils home to their
families, friends or benefactors who would charitably give them temporary
shelter.
My dear Father, it is difficult for you to understand with how heavy a
heart I had to summarily break off the studies of some three hundred ofmy
adopted children, to whom for years I had given my undivided attention, at
the cost of no little material sacrifice, and-what hurts me even more-to
dismiss them under the cloud of a sad future.
Still I fully trust that the school authorities, once they have recognized
the nature of this institution vis-a-vis the law and civil society, will allow
me to recall my boys with all haste, so that they may continue their
education and be enabled to live as honest citizens and earn a decent
living.
Meanwhile I gladly keep the doors of this home open to any destitute
lad whom the government may choose to send me for training in a skill or
trade. I close with a hearty thank you.
Your humble servant,
Fr. John Bosco
On August 10 II Risorgimento, another of Turin's liberal papers,
taking no side, frankly wrote: "It seems to us that the strict
enforcement of a law sometimes operates as a great wrong when it
goes after an institution which is not only educational but charitable
as well in providing for the physical and spiritual well-being of
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
hundreds of poor boys." Then, after the usual liberal reservations
about the spirit prevalent in Don Bosco's many institutions, it went
on, "Despite all this we cannot help but be dumbstruck by these
wonders of faith and charity which no one else has ever surpassed,
let alone achieved.'' With this preamble to justify the length of its
article, the paper, abstracting from the legal points of the matter,
went on to describe the true status of the much discussed Oratory,
an understanding of which was indispensable "to pass fair judg-
ment on the legality of the shutdown order and on its serious
consequences." After recounting its founding, development, and
constant contacts with the government, the article compared the
school authorities' drastic measures to Herod's slaughter of the
innocents and closed with the hope that the new minister of
education would be of a better mind.
The press debate reached beyond the Alps. Le Figaro, a Paris
paper certainly not above bias, gave its many readers a witty
account of the shutdown of Don Bosco's school. In the August 13
issue its Turin correspondent, citing Coppino and Rho as
protagonists, briefly sketched a friendly profile of their victim and
then lashed out at the absurd childish order.
The day that this issue of Le Figaro appeared in Turin, a strange
coincidence occurred, such as we usually ascribe to divine
intervention in turning the tables on man's spitefulness. That day
the notorious Fischietto tickled its readers with a cartoon
portraying a scowling cassocked figure enthroned on clouds,
clasping a candle-snuffer in his right hand, tucking a heavy tome
and a bundle under his arm, and balancing a stick on his left
shoulder with another bundle slung from its end. The caption read:
"A fine way to promote industry! The wonder-man of Turin,
Dominum Lignus [Don Bosco], turned out enemies for Italy with
tools uncertified by the Department of Public Education, which
promptly shut down his plant! Shall we see him fly to America
astride a cloud and there expand his present operations?" Aside
from any wishful thinking to see Don Bosco leave Turin,27 the
candle-snuffer was a blunder, for, while the readers were laughing
at this light-snuffer who was being forced to export his
obscurantism far away, the readers of II Baretti were learning some
27See Vol. XII, p. 399. [Editor]
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Shutdown of the Oratory School
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interesting facts, such as that, of some thirty-two Oratory boys who
had taken the state examinations at the Monviso public secondary
school, twenty-two had passed, while only seven out of sixteen of
the school's own students were promoted. Furthermore, twenty-
two of Don Bosco's illegal school's students had obtained top
scores. One of them had even beaten the very best of all eighty-two
candidates by at least ten points, and the nine boys who had not
made the grade in varied subjects would easily pass the October
remedial examinations. The article commented: "This success
came in spite of the school's unrest caused by the arbitrary
shutdown order." Naturally, the city dailies prudently made no
comment.
The summer holidays tempered the heated debate somewhat and
suspended direct attacks, but they did not keep Don Bosco from his
efforts to have the Oratory recognized as a parental hospice exempt
from all regulations applying to private institutions. To this end, in
September he wrote to the minister of public education and to the
minister of the interior explaining that the Oratory was a charitable
institution which also provided a free secondary education to
qualified youngsters.2a
The new school year was about to start, and still no word had
been received from Rome. Don Bosco once more appealed to
Minister Perez' sense of fairness and compassion.
This time the minister replied. On October 28 he wrote: "Your
kind letter of October 19 assures me that you have provided
certified teachers for your secondary school. This will allow you to
reopen your school; therefore, please contact the provincial school
board for authorization. With great esteem, etc.'' The minister was
playing both sides of the field. Don Bosco knew that this would get
him no further than reopening his school upon presentation of his
teachers' diplomas. He followed the minister's advice and sent the
superintendent a list of his certified teachers, of whom two were not
accepted: Bartholomew F ascie,29 a university student in his second
year of literature, and Besso Gallo, a second year mathematics
student. This meant that he had to supply a certified teacher for the
first year students in all subjects, and another one for the math
courses in all grades. Only then would the superintendent ask the
28This sentence is a condensation. [Editor]
29See Appendix 1. [Editor]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
school board to authorize the reopening of the secondary school
department. Don Bosco replied:
Dear Sir:
Turin, November 29, 1879
Professor Mark Pechenino will replace Bartholomew Fascie as teacher
of the first year students in this hospice.
Since I cannot find a substitute for Besso Gallo, I am temporarily
suspending all math courses. The law does not prescribe what subjects
must be taught in private institutions.
Convinced as I am that this is a charitable institution and not a private
secondary school, I am not bound by Article 246 of the Casati Law as
regards the certification of teachers. I have submitted my list solely in
deference to the local school authorities while awaiting a higher ruling.
Fr. John Bosco
Don Bosco could not let the closure order hang over the Oratory
like a Damocles' sword. He had to get it revoked. Basically, his
best approach was the attempt he was making to force an official
recognition of the Oratory as a parental institution. At just this time
leading European nations were experiencing a new struggle for edu-
cational freedom. Everywhere, it seemed, a tide of resistance was
surging against an oppressive [state] monopoly of education, and
public feelings ran high. In Italy the National Catholic Convention
held at Modena during the last week of October faced the issue.
[Albert] Buffa of Turin drafted a petition to be heavily subscribed,
addressed to both houses of parliament demanding freedom of
education. "As parents," the petition stated, "we have the right of
conscience to educate and train the children God has given us. As
Italians, we have the right to rear a generation which will be our
nation's pride and glory, not its disgrace. As citizens, we rightfully
demand that all school laws conform to the first article of our
Constitution and to the principle of freedom of education decreed
by the sub-Alpine parliament in 1857. This principle was
incorporated into the law of November 13, 1859, but was ignored
and rendered a dead letter by those who should have enforced it."
During the discussion, when Buffa happened to mention Don
Bosco and his charitable institutes, he drew a hearty round of
applause.
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Minister Perez was liberal in his view of educational freedom.
His choice for personal secretary was Professor Allievo of Turin, a
firm outspoken champion of freedom-which sufficiently reveals
his own orientation as minister and which was confirmed by other
facts. However, that very orientation of his was no mean factor
determining his short-lived administration.30 On November 19 he
submitted his resignation, and shortly afterward internal strife
caused the entire Cairoli cabinet to resign. Entrusted with choosing
a new cabinet, Cairoli offered Perez the post of minister of
agriculture, but he flatly refused: it was either the education post or
nothing. His successor was Francis De Sanctis, a man of letters.
Don Bosco was determined to bring the issue to the Council of
State and to have Coppino's order declared unconstitutional since
the Oratory was a charitable institution. Warily he began paving
the way with a memorandum to the new minister of public
education to acquaint him with historical background and to supply
him with a correct picture of the Valdocco Oratory. He attached
five appendixes of documents dating from 1850 to 1866. In order
that the state authorities might be thoroughly informed of the true
situation, he had this memorandum printed as a pamphlet31 and
sent it with or without the booklet authored by Allievo to all who
wanted to know the truth of the matter. Then he sought some
favorable way to approach the Council of State.
The Council of State was allowed to accept deliberations and
documents only from state ministries, and so all petitions had to
reach it through official channels. In our case, Don Bosco's appeal
would have to be taken under advisement by the chairman of the
provincial school board, who would then present it to the entire
board. The latter would then issue a report to the minister of public
education, who would study the matter and submit all documenta-
tion to the Council of State. But how could Don Bosco trust Turin's
provincial school board? Would it not strive to twist the whole
matter to suit its own purpose? If nothing else, would it not
3°Cf. Unita Cattolica, December 16, 1879, "La tirannia dell 'insegnamento in Italia ed
opportuni ricordi del professore Allievo" [The Tyranny of Education in Italy and Timely
Reflections by Professor Allievo]. [Author]
31L'Oratorio di San Francesco di Sales, ospizio di beneficenza [The Oratory of St.
Francis de Sales, Charitable Institution] by Father John Bosco, Torino, Tipografia
Salesiana, 1879. [Author]
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TIIE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
endeavor to drag the issue out interminably by bureaucratic delays?
There was another more reliable and speedier way: to appeal
directly to the king. He could under the law, and so he did. True,
the king's cabinet, after registering the appeal, would send a copy to
the Department of Public Education, which in tum would contact
the Turin provincial school board for an explanation. However, the
appeal could not then be shelved or bureaucratically postponed.
Furthermore, Don Bosco had trustworthy friends in both the
Department of Public Education and the Council of State, who
would follow it through, forestalling delays and winning others to
his cause.
Don Bosco therefore drafted an appeal to the king amplifying the
report he had sent to the minister of education and backing it with
extensive documentation. "It could not have been better drawn
up," wrote Mr. Benedict Viale, a Turinese friend and a veteran in the
secretariate of the Council of State, in a letter to Father Rua. He
showed it to a close colleague of his who held an important post in
the Department of the Interior, and he too agreed that it was "very
well written and quite embarrassing to the minister of public
education" who had ordered the school's closing. IfDon Bosco did
not receive justice he could very well have recourse to parliament
and even to the courts. On his own, Mr. Viale assured Father Rua,
"Have no fear. I shall keep on top of it with suggestions and
counsels for a favorable outcome, because that is only just."32 Don
Bosco later published his appeal to the king,33 and after receiving
from Mr. Viale a list of the State Council members who formed the
board dealing with public education, he sent each a copy along with
his own pamphlet and that of Professor Allievo.
On December 11 Don Bosco's appeal was forwarded by the
king's cabinet to the Department of Public Education, which on
December 24 sent all documentation on the case to the Council of
32Letter to Father Rua, Rome, November 19, 1879. Viale really did display most
commendable zeal. His feelings on the matter are clearly set forth in his letter to Don Bosco
on December 11: "Ifyou need further instructions, do not hesitate to call upon me-both you
and your countless communities everywhere, even as far off as Patagonia. I look to God for
an abundant reward." [Author]
33Le scuole di beneficenza del/'Oratorio di San Francesco di Sales in Torino davanti al
Consiglio di Stato [The Charity Schools of the Oratory of St. Francis de Sales in Turin
Defended before the Council of State] by Father John Bosco, Torino, Tipografia Salesiana,
1879. [Author]
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Shutdown of the Oratory School
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State with a covering letter which smacked of acrimony and
consequently slanted the information received from Turin.
Commendatore De Filippo, who seemed unbiased, had already
been appointed to present the case, but internal changes within the
State Council dictated that all questions pertaining to the
Department of Public Education were to be handled by the
Department of the Interior, and so the case was to be assigned to
others. However, thanks to orders from higher-ups-Mr. Viale's
influence is not to be discounted-it was left in the hands of De
Filippo. Senator Siotto-Pintor also supported Don Bosco, using his
influence with the minister of education, with President [Raphael]
Cadoma of the State Council, and with several councillor friends
of his. "This is a flagrant violation of the law!" declared Siotto-
Pintor, the fiery senator from Sardinia.34
The Turin provincial school board did not see it that way. As
though nothing had happened, the prefect requested the school's
curriculum and daily timetable. Don Bosco replied:
Dear Sir:
Turin, January 11, 1880
In deference to your letter of December 24, 1879, I hasten to inform
you that we have no standard curriculum in our schools since the boys we
befriend are at different levels of learning.
As for schedule-though constrained by no law-I freely inform you
that for the most part classes are held between 9:00 and 11:30 each
morning and between 2:00 and 4:30 in the afternoon.
However, since our instructors also have administrative duties, this
schedule may often vary. Yet there is sufficient time to cover the whole
course during our school year, which runs from October 15 to
September 9.
I am honored to remain,
Fr. John Bosco
34Letter to Don Bosco, Cagliari, December 29, 1879. In another letter dated January 5,
1880, he stated, "Today I am writing an urgent letter to Councillor De Filippo, asking him to
rush that famous report; I hope that my letter will help. With all your sons please continue to
pray for me that, God willing, I may attend Mass next June in the Church of St. Francis de
Sales, with whom I am head over heels in love after reading his wondrous biography. At that
Mass I shall dedicate all my strength to promoting your Oratory, with the trust that I shall be
true to my promise. If there is anything else I can do, please let me know, for I shall spare
neither time nor effort." In closing, he asked Don Bosco: "Save me a little place in that
wonderful heart of yours." [Author]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
As though nothing had happened, Don Bosco also appealed to
Minister Depretis of the Department of the Interior for a subsidy,
pleading hardship in having to feed so many boys who sought
shelter at the Oratory. The minister instructed the prefect to
express his regrets to Don Bosco that he could not grant the subsidy
since his budget contained no funds earmarked for that purpose and
since the limited funds he did have at his disposal had all been used
up to help the countless victims of the winter's hardships all through
the realm.35
The president of the Council of State had named a special
committee of eight councillors to investigate the matter. They met
on February 26, 1880. They concluded that since the standpoint
and nature of the school were not sufficiently clear, the committee
would reserve decision until it could receive further clarification.
Being confidentially notified, Don Bosco sent the following paper
to the minister of education.
On November 13, 1879, I appealed to Your Excellency to revoke the
order to shut down the secondary school of the Oratory of St. Francis de
Sales, where many homeless boys are housed and given a Christian
education. Having received no reply and not knowing whether my appeal
has been filed with the Council of State or with the Department of
Education, I write to Your Excellency and ask you kindly to let me know
whether my appeal has been taken into consideration along with the
documents which I submitted, and which made evident the charitable
scope of the institution I founded. All the more am I concerned because,
as I have heard, the word in Turin is that the school superintendent of
Turin and its province recently communicated with the Department of
Education in regard to this situation.
I would like to think that these are wild rumors at best, but should it be
true that statements damaging to this already badly hurt institution are
rife, it would certainly be my duty to show up the falsehood of such
assertions. It has been said, if I hear correctly, that the superintendent of
schools presented the Oratory to Your Excellency as a private secondary
school with pupils paying a regular monthly tuition. This is a grave error,
for the Oratory of St. Francis de Sales was founded for poor boys, and not
a single lad pays as much as a penny in tuition, nor are any of the teachers
paid even a minimal salary. The students receive a free education, and
35Letter from Prefect Minghelli Vaini to Don Bosco, February 7, 1880. [Author]
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their teachers are given no payment of any kind. I feel that this clearly
brings out the true nature of this institution as a charitable home. Thus did
the Council of State rate it last December. Still, let me cite, in proof of this
assertion, several instances of boys being accepted free of charge on the
recommendation of various past ministers, police commissioners, and
even of Prefect Minghelli Vaini himself just days before the shutdown
order was issued. True, there are a handful who can afford a tiny monthly
or annual sum, and possibly one boy out of a hundred can pay twenty-four
lire a month, but how can such a mite pay for the food, clothing, and
housing of even one lad? It certainly does not alter the nature of this
charitable institution for poor boys who live on the goodness of Divine
Providence. Our regulations for admission make this point very clearly:
1. Boys must be between twelve and eighteen years of age.
2. They must be orphaned of both parents, unless particular reasons
allow an exception.
3. They must be abandoned. Whatever they bring with them is to be
shared with the whole institution.
It is further asserted that the lads in this school are being pushed into the
priestly or religious life.
To answer this charge properly, it would suffice to visit, besides the
Oratory in Turin, the hospices in Lucca and Sampierdarena, where
hundreds, even thousands of poor boys are being trained in various crafts
and trades, and they have never set their eyes on the priesthood. Many of
the youngsters we have sheltered have gone into a wide range of careers,
and-contrary to what is being charged-none of them have become
misfits in society. I have always made it my duty to place the boys in
proper jobs if, because of limited intelligence or funds or through personal
choice, they felt that they did not want to continue their schooling and left
the instutition.
In further proof, I can name thousands of lads who were rescued from
an idle and abandoned life and are now earning an honest living, just as I
could cite numbers of our students who by hard work have achieved
outstanding careers in law, in the armed forces, and in politics, and not a
few-graduates in letters and philosophy-are highly lauded teachers
throughout Italy's cities, not only in secondary schools and lyceums, but
also in state universities. It is true, nonetheless, that a good number of
these boys show signs of a priestly or religious vocation, and they find in
our schools those means and helps which they require if they are to
respond to the divine call. And we need them, for they teach, supervise,
and guide the boys of the hospice, and they care for the lads who flock to
our many recreation centers on Sundays.
I trust that Your Excellency is now sufficiently knowledgeable about the
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TIIE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
real points at issue. Should they be necessary, I will promptly send you
documents and proofs before a decision is made which-were it based
solely on unfounded hearsay-would be damaging to so many poor
youngsters who once used to hang out together in gangs on the city streets,
posing a manifest threat to society, and now have decided to better
themselves. A sound education gives them a strong chance of becoming
good, honest citizens, the pride of society, the hopes of a happier future.
I have deep trust in Your Excellency's wisdom and goodness. It is my
hope that you will have the kindness to bring my statement to the attention
of the Council of State, so that, before giving a verdict on this regrettable
situation, they may have a clear picture of the state of affairs.
As we can see, proceedings moved at a snail's pace. It was only
after April 7 that Superintendent Rho sent to the minister of
education the report that had been requested on the status of Don
Bosco's Oratory. Ifwe compare this latter report with Don Bosco's
previous memorandum to the Department of Public Education, we
clearly see how well grounded were his suspicions about the
charges being made against him in the superintendent's report to
Rome. The latter charged that a very small number of boys were
receiving a free education, and that two-thirds of them, on leaving
the institution after interrupting or completing their studies,
returned to society with no way of supporting themselves, neither fit
for the manual labor they had formerly exercised, nor sufficiently
educated to enter upon a civic career. This was a damaging
assertion, enough to show that the Oratory was no charitable
institution. Don Bosco unassumingly anticipated both charges in
his report to the minister.
Don Bosco was in Rome when the superintendent's report
reached the minister of education. He must certainly have
concerned himself with this matter, but we have no information on
it until April 28 [1880] when the committee held its second
meeting. It was inclined to issue a verdict based solely on the
information supplied by the minister of education-that is,
essentially by the provincial superintendent of schools-but Baron
Celesia, a committee member, indignantly opposed the motion,
exclaiming: "What? Are we going to pass judgment without even
hearing the other side? Gentlemen, is this a rigged court?" His
bluntness carried the day and the chairman instructed Commenda-
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Shutdown of the Oratory School
147
tore Gerra to present in writing the committee's opinion on the
matter.36 Substantially it ran as follows:
Father John Bosco, having been ordered to close his school, appealed to
higher authorities to have the order revoked, but was not given a hearing
on the data which the provincial superintendent of schools collected and
submitted concerning the nature of the Oratory of St. Francis de Sales.
Father John Bosco's testimony can readily be obtained by the prefect of
the province in the manner he judges most suitable; such testimony can
prove very useful for a fuller and more factual picture of the situation. The
prefect will thus be able to ascertain and evaluate all the data we need to
establish whether the institution in question is a charitable institution or a
school, and, if it is a school, whether it falls under Article 260 or Articles
251 and 252 of the law of November 13, 1859. It will be well for the
Department of Education to clearly state its opinion on the basis of the
findings of the interrogation. It is the committee's stand that it cannot issue
a judgment until the matter is further clarified as above suggested.
In the meantime, Turin's civil administration had undergone
several changes. A new prefect, [Bartholomew] Casalis, had been
appointed. Following the Council of State's instructions, he sent
Don Bosco five questions to be answered in writing: "1. What is
the overall character of the Oratory and particularly what is your
reason in conducting a secondary school? 2. How many boys are
learning arts and crafts at the Oratory, how many attend secondary
classes, and how many clerics are studying philosophy and
theology there? 3. Are all the Oratory pupils, particularly those
taking secondary classes, maintained free of charge? If not, how
many receive free room and board and how many pay reduced
fees? 4. How many pupils have usually taken the state's final
examinations each year to qualify for a secondary school diploma,
and how many passed the examinations last year? 5. How many
students completed the fifth year of secondary school within the
past five years? Of these, how many went on to study philosophy
for the priesthood in order to become members of the Salesian
Society founded by you?"
Don Bosco's reply follows:
36Letter from Mr. Viale (undated) and from Father Dalmazzo to Don Bosco, May 3,
1880. [Author]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
Turin, July 7, 1880
Dear Sir:
I respectfully reply to the questions you kindly sent me on instructions
from the Department of Public Education concerning the Oratory of St.
Francis de Sales.
1. What is the overall character ofthe Oratory and particularly what
is your reason in conducting a secondary school?
Here is my answer to the first part ofthe question. A judgment issued by
the Council of State in 1879 set this norm: "The character of an institution
is determined by its objectives and the kind of people it benefits." I doubt
that I could better explain my objectives in founding the Oratory of St.
Francis de Sales in Turin than to restate what I wrote when I first drafted
its regulations, which were filed with the government and published in the
Gazzetta Uffzciale: "We sometimes encounter boys who are orphans or
are deprived offamily care because their parents either cannot or will not
assume responsibility for them. Without skills and without education these
lads risk grave spiritual and physical harm. Unless someone reaches out
and takes them in, trains them for a trade, helps them to straighten out
their lives and teaches them religion, there is no way of averting their ruin.
The purpose of the Oratory of St. Francis de Sales is to shelter boys ofthis
kind.
To be accepted as a resident of the Oratory of St. Francis de Sales, a
boy must meet the following conditions:
1. He must be between the ages of twelve and eighteen.
2. He must be orphaned of both parents and have no family or relatives
who can care for him.
3. He must be totally destitute and abandoned. These conditions being
met, a boy must bring with him whatever he owns, and it shall be used for
him, because it is not fair for one to live on charity if he has some means of
his own.
4. He must be healthy and strong, with no bodily deformity and no
repulsive or contagious diseases.
5. Preference will be given to boys attending the festive oratories of St.
Aloysius, Guardian Angel and St. Francis de Sales, because this hospice
is particularly meant to take in those boys who are utterly poor and
abandoned and who attend one of these oratories.
This is the purpose for which the Salesian Oratory was founded, and I
have always faithfully adhered to it, endeavoring to meet my goal with all
the means Divine Providence sends me. Having said this, I think it is quite
evident that the character of this Salesian Oratory is that of a charitable
institution for abandoned boys. This is the way it has always been
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Shutdown of the Oratory School
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regarded by city hall, the police department, the prefecture and even the
central government departments: they have all sent me hundreds of
homeless boys. Both the parliament and the senate ofthe realm recognized
it as such, as have also upright, generous-hearted people who have helped
it by their kind attention and generous donations, with the result that from
humble beginnings it has grown to reach out to a thousand residents, with
workshops and classrooms, where the finest skills and learning are given
to the children of the people, so that they will one day be useful members
of society.
To confirm the above, I can provide a long list of youngsters who came
from this Oratory and today hold positions in various ranks of society, in
lyceums and universities, in the armed forces and government offices. I am
happy to assert that none of those lads who have been docile students of
this institution have ever left unequipped to earn an honest livelihood. So
also, to my knowledge, no one has ever turned out to be other than an
upright person and a worthy citizen. Indeed, in some instances there have
been those who in crises have proven themselves to be real heroes.
Now, replying to the second part of the question, I say that my specific
aim in conducting a secondary school at this Oratory is to carry out an
important function of education: to meet the varying needs and wide-
ranging career possibilities of the residents. Some have talent for valued
and skilled crafts, like printing and allied trades, but would be unable to
learn them thoroughly and apply them profitably without some knowledge
of Latin, Greek, French, geography, arithmetic, etc. Seeing that others
were even more gifted and naturally inclined to higher knowledge, I felt
that I should favor their inclinations, believing that with further schooling
they could be a great help to society. Many of them, aided by us or by
charitable foundations or by winning state scholarships, were able to enter
colleges and universities; they are now successful teachers and writers.
For the sake of brevity I do not list their names, which will be made
available to public authorities upon request.
Then, quite a few other lads come from noble families whose fortunes
have waned. In all fairness they cannot properly be combined with the first
group, and so they are steered toward careers more befitting their station.
To meet the needs of these last two groups, the Oratory had to go into
secondary education. This special aim, you can see, far from hindering the
Oratory's overall beneficent goal, actually furthers it.
To reply to the second question: We have five hundred and ten boys
learning crafts and trades or doing work about the house, and about three
hundred are enrolled in the secondary classes, as stated in my report to the
provincial school superintendent. These numbers, I need not point out,
keep fluctuating, as boys enter or leave nearly every week for various
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reasons. Understandably, too, the Oratory houses more boys during the
fall and winter than in the summer.
I make two comments concerning the clerics:
1. The Oratory offers no regular philosophy courses, but, as time and
circumstances permit, the elements of philosophy are taught to those
youths who are engaged as assistants or who hold other positions within
this institution and seek to dedicate themselves to the priesthood. This
prepares them properly for the supervision of the boys in the workshops
and dormitories, in teaching catechism and conducting evening classes in
Italian and vocal and instrumental music, and in performing other similar
duties which are necessary and proper to their calling.
2. Not all the clerics now living at the Oratory and at other institutions
of Don Bosco received their primary education at the Turin Oratory. In
fact, the greater number are students from other boarding schools or
seminaries who, wishing to join Don Bosco in his wide-ranging charitable
activities, asked to be allowed to work under him. The following listing
completes the answer to the second question.
The clerics taking philosophy courses at the Oratory as explained above
number twenty-five; seventeen attended secondary school at other places
and eight at the Oratory. The theology students number twelve, of whom
five came from other schools.
To reply to the third question: An article of our house regulations reads:
"If the applicant owns anything he must bring it with him and it will be
used for him, because it is not fair for one who is not in dire need to live on
charity." Consequently, not all the boys residing at the Oratory live here
gratis; some pay a small monthly or annual fee, according to what they or
their families can afford. However, in view of the kind of boys whom we
take in at the Oratory, this leaves most of the financial burden on the
Oratory, as the following figures show:
Out of eight hundred and ten boys, free room and board is given to four
hundred and fifty. Among the students, one hundred and six pay no fees
whatever; as regards the rest, one out of a hundred pays a monthly fee of
twenty-four lire, and others contribute five, eight or ten lire. Considering
the number of boys who live here gratis and those from whom fees cannot
be collected, we may correctly say that the average fee of a student is no
more than six lire a month. Obviously, this small sum cannot feed a boy,
let alone pay for tuition. Neither do teachers draw a salary, nor does any
member of the large staff that is needed for maintenance and the
supervision of so many youngsters.
To give a complete answer let me point out that Don Bosco runs other
educational institutions in various parts of Italy which care for the middle
classes; there the tuition is twenty-four lire or more per month, and all
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teachers are certified. The Oratory in Turin is not to be mistaken for these
other schools, as it sometimes is, because its character and objectives are
totally different.
To reply to the fourth question: Each year some twenty Oratory boys
take the state examinations for their diploma. Last year, of the thirty-one
who took the examinations, twenty-six passed, and several obtained the
highest scores at the government's Monviso School in Turin. One student
won the top award, his grades a good ten _points above the others.
To reply to the fifth question: First, I had better point out that we are not
a [religious] order, but rather a Pious Society named after St. Francis de
Sales, whose aim is to educate boys, especially the poor and the
abandoned. All members are free citizens, subject to our country's laws.
In the past five years two hundred and ten pupils completed their fifth
year of secondary schooling here at the Oratory. Of these, thirty-one have
continued their studies here to enter the priestly life and join the Pious
Society of St. Francis de Sales.
I feel that it casts no discredit on the Oratory if some of its pupils freely
join Don Bosco to pass on to others the benefits they themselves once
enjoyed. However, considering all the statistics above, one would
obviously be wrong in thinking that the Oratory school exists for the
benefit of the Pious Salesian Society.
I believe that I have now sufficiently responded to your five questions. If
necessary, I am ready to add further explanations upon request. However,
at the same time, I make bold to ask that, besides passing judgment on the
first part of my appeal, the Council of State also give me its explicit
opinion concerning the second part, namely: Was it lawful for the
Department of Public Education to order the shutdown of the Salesian
Oratory schools?
In any event, I commend this work of charity to your kindly protection.
With highest esteem I remain,
Yours gratefully,
Fr. John Bosco
The first people who saw copies of this statement felt that it was
well done. Mr. Viale claimed that it gave well expressed and
uncontestable answers to all the questions, putting to rest any
doubts concerning the eminently charitable scope of the Oratory.
"The sound reasoning-he stated-is matched by tempered,
dignified language, so that its overall impression is one of genuine
truth and of a clear conscience which deceives neither itself nor
others." He then expressed the wish that the prefect would forward
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
Don Bosco's report to the minister and that the latter would see the
justice of it and make amends for the harm done him.37 Baron
Celesia also read it and wrote to Don Bosco: "While traveling
through the city I received your kind letter of July 17 and its
enclosure. I thank you for your courtesy and trust that all will be
cleared up for the benefit of the charitable work to which you are
dedicated. I regret that I cannot pay you my respects personally."38
Mostly, however, we are interested in the prefect's reaction. In
acknowledging his receipt of the document, the prefect wrote:39 "I
have read the defense of your institution. I am already convinced
and hope that others will be also." Kind words these, still to be
backed and confirmed by facts, but they gave Don Bosco some
inkling of the man's temperament-the one on whom the entire
outcome of the issue depended. Don Bosco, we recall, usually
passed on gifts he received from his friends to benefactors or to
government officials. He had just been given a young live hare and
thought that he might send it to the new prefect as token
congratulations for his recent appointment. The prefect expressed
his thanks in a somewhat singular manner in the same letter
containing his five questions. "I thank you," he wrote, "for the
hare, but I chose to give it a future worthier of me, of yourself and of
its Creator by setting it free."
Incredibly, however, Prefect Casalis delayed so long in sending
Don Bosco's replies of July 7, 1880 to the Council of State through
the Department of Public Education, that the report did not get
there until June 7, 1881. This delay enabled the new superintendent,
Commendatore Denicotti, to conduct an investigation of his own.
The prefect, in tum, merely summarized and adopted as his own
the farmer's unfavorable comments, concluding that the closure
order was not to be revoked until Don Bosco stated that he was
ready to abide by the law like every other citizen.
The chairman of the department handling the Council of State's
responsibilities for public education set up a de facto committee of
nine members to re-examine the appeal. Privately alerted to this,
Don Bosco immediately published the prefect's five questions,
along with his reply and an introductory comment as follows:
37Letter to Don Bosco, Rome, July 27, 1880. [Author]
38Letter, Turin, July 24, 1880. [Author]
39Letter, Turin, July 15, 1880. [Author]
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Dear Sir:
Turin, July 2, 1881
Pursuant to my plea to His Majesty protesting the order of the
Department of Public Education to shut down the secondary school of the
Oratory of St. Francis de Sales in Turin, the minister of public education
sent me the following questions concerning the nature of the Oratory. I
replied as far back as July of last year, and I enclose my answers.
I think it best to include here a summary of my presentation to the
Council of State:
1. The aforesaid institution is to be considered a true parental and
charitable institution.
2. Granted but not conceded that this is a private institution subject to
existing laws, it could not be shut down since the certified teachers who
were duly registered actually did teach their classes, being substituted for
only in case of necessity; it is therefore an error of fact that their classes
were handed over to non-certified instructors.
3. Everything over the past years favors the petitioner, who was never
asked by previous school authorities to submit lists of certified teachers
and who did so only on request, citing Articles 251 and 25 2 of the Casati
Law in his defense and only when the nature of the school was questioned.
Since my appeal has been referred to the Council of State for review, I
am enclosing for your information a copy of both the questions and my
answers, with the hope that it may prove of some use to you in better
understanding the issue.
The Petitioner,
Fr. John Bosco
Without letting on that he knew the contents of the prefect's
report and the makeup of the committee, Don Bosco sent printed
copies of the above to them and to other members of the Council of
State. He knew full well that supporting documents would not be
read, much less studied; he knew, too, that committee members
sided mostly with the government and vice versa. He therefore sent
them both letters, briefing them on the issues to enable them to take
a stand, reject the prefect's views, and cast a responsible vote.
The committee was apparently set to meet in mid-July, but the
meeting was postponed to November 29, since most of the
members were away on vacation. The delay hurt Don Bosco's case
all the more, especially because of Abignente's spiteful insinuations.
Two committee members took up Don Bosco's defense and Baron
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TIIE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
Celesia also bravely battled on his behalf, but to no avail.40 After a
lengthy series of "whereas" and "considering"-the final item
being that the minister's shutdown order did not preclude Don
Bosco's reopening his school once he fully complied with the law-
the conclusion was that his appeal protesting the shutdown order
had no merit. On December 22 the king signed the decree rejecting ,
the petition and the drawn-out controversy came to an end.
But success did not bless those responsible for it. Soon afterward
Minister Coppino lost his position; Minghelli Vaini, prefect of
Turin-a top-rated position-was demoted to the prefecture of
Catania-a third-rate station-then to Lecce and was later forced
to resign. Nicomede Bianchi, who had engineered the whole mess,
was quietly ousted from office; Superintendent Rho, who so feared
being relegated to Sicily, was ordered in 1880 to head the office in
Palermo. He appealed, rejected the order, and shortly afterward
was relieved of all duty and suspended without pay; finally,
mentally disturbed, he retired to his native village. His priest-
brother suffered a stroke and became bedridden for a long time. To
bring this painful narrative to a close, we will just say that during
these distressing maneuvers, a certain Professor Castelli called on
Don Bosco with proposals and documentation which could have
utterly destroyed the luckless superintendent's reputation, but Don
Bosco rejected the offer, spurning any such dealings as unworthy of
a Christian. Nor did Mr. Rho have any personal complaint against
Don Bosco, even while taking harsh measures against him. After
Don Bosco's death, he recalled "the burning Christian charity
which had inspired him"; he fondly claimed to be "an old friend of
the man to whom our country and all of the Christian world is
eternally indebted." 41
In all truth, this was not the first of Superintendent Rho's actions
of this kind. He had already rejected the bishop's claim that the
junior seminary at Borgo San Martino was replacing the Mirabello
seminary. He had also worked to revoke the accreditation of the
Barnabites' boarding school at Moncalieri. In a word, Superin-
tendent Rho, either through weakness or personal decision, sided
40Letter from Father Dalmazzo to Don Bosco, Rome, November 29, 1881. [Author]
41 Letter to Father Piccollo, a fellow townsman of his, Pecetto, 1889. [Author]
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with those who rejected freedom of education in an effort to de-
Christianize the nation's schools. In 1875 Roger Bonghi, the
minister of public education, stated openly in the chamber that Italy
had no hope of achieving its moral regeneration or restoration until
the clergy's influence was removed from the education of youth.
Such then was the aim of the harsh measures taken by hook or by
crook to suppress the parental schools approved by the law of
November 13, 1859. In January 1875 Bonghi sent out a circular
arrogating to himself the right to interpret, mutilate and apply that
law as he saw fit, and school boards as well as the Council of State
followed his opinions and interpretations in refusing to authorize
the opening of any parental school. Their excuse was that the spirit
of the law could not be stretched to allow as many as one hundred
fathers to unite and provide for the education of their children
jointly under their personal supervision, and also that the law did
not permit parents to transfer their rights and authority to others to
run parental schools.42 The intent was that no school, day or
resident, nor any children's home should succeed in keeping out the
prevailing official spirit of atheism masked under a so-called
laicism.
Pursuing this goal, freemasonry-still powerful in the education
department today [1933]-quietly made a clean sweep of the
Casati Law then in force. Ministerial decrees and even more
circulars issued arbitrary interpretations of both the letter and the
spirit of the law. Often a mere objection raised by any nonentity
was enough to induce the Department of Education to clamp down
where the law was silent and to hold its ground in spite of
everything and everyone. And when the controversy reached the
Council of State, that Council stood by the minister and passed
judgment against those who acted according to law.
Don Bosco, who clearly sensed the secret aims of the
anticlericals very early and strove quietly to check the rising tide of
evil, was also one of the first to experience the effects of the
tyrannic monopoly of education exercised by Italy's government.
42Cf. L'Opinione, August 8, 1875. [Author]
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CHAPTER 8
The First Triennial Report
to the Holy See on the
State of the Congregation
mHILE these and other burdensome worries to be
recounted later would certainly have driven anyone out of his mind
who did not have Don Bosco's saintly serenity, he also had to
extricate himself from an embarrassing situation he had unknowingly
gotten into with the Holy See because of an official act of his as
superior general.
While in Rome in March 1879, he drafted a report on the
material and moral state of the Salesian Society, which he then had
printed1 and submitted it to the Holy See, sending a copy also to
the director of each Salesian house. The report opened as follows:
Chapter 6 of our constitutions prescribes that a report of the Society's
moral and material state, as well as of its development, must be submitted
to the Holy See every three years. Formerly we drew up only an estimated
report since opening new houses and adapting our new-born Congregation
to particular circumstances of time and place made it impossible to draw
up the required complete and detailed report. Eager to show proper regard
to the Holy See in all matters and trusting that we will receive in return
such observations and counsels as may contribute to God's greater glory,
the rector major, in performance of his duty, now humbly reports on the
present state of this Pious Society in the various nations where it is
involved in the sacred ministry and actively engaged in academic and
trade schools for youth.
1Esposizione a/la S. Sede de/lo stato morale e materiale de/la Pia Societa di S.
Francesco di Sales nel Marzo de! 1879 [Report to the Holy See on the Moral and Material
State of the Pious Society of St. Francis de Sales in March 1879], Sampierdarena,
Tipografia Salesiana, 1879. [Author]
156
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Then follows a clear summary of the beginnings and subsequent
expansion of the Pious Society from 1841 to 1879, with an overall
sketch of its governing structure. Our saintly father wrote:
In 1841 this Congregation was but a Sunday catechism class and a
recreation center to which, in 1846, a hospice for homeless young
apprentices was added, thus forming a private family-like institute.
Several priests and a few laymen offered their outside help to cooperate in
this pious enterprise. In 1852 the archbishop of Turin approved the
institution and, on his own initiative, granted all permissions which were
proper and necessary to Father John Bosco, appointing him superior of
the festive oratories. From 1852 to 1858 a type of community began to
shape up, with a school and a program of formation for clerics, of whom
some, being ordained, stayed on in the institution. In 1858 Pius IX, of
holy memory, advised Father John Bosco to set up a pious society to
safeguard the spirit of the festive oratories. He himself kindly drafted a
constitution which was then adapted to suit actual community life in a
clerical congregation with simple vows.
After six years the Holy See issued a decree of commendation and
praise for the [Salesian] Congregation and its constitutions and appointed
a superior.
In 1870 the Congregation and its constitutions were definitely
approved, with permission to issue dismissorial letters for any Salesian
clerics who had lived in a house of the Congregation prior to their
fourteenth year.
In 1874 the individual articles of the constitutions were definitively
approved, with the faculty of issuing dismissorial letters ad decennium
[for ten years] without restriction. Later, at various times, the Holy See
granted this Pious Society privileges which are necessary for a clerical
Congregation with simple vows. Meanwhile more houses of the
Congregation were founded as Divine Providence gradually provided both
opportunity and means. Because of their considerable growth, these
foundations were gathered into inspectorates or provinces.
The confreres assigned to the various houses of the Congregation are
responsible to the director of their respective communities. The directors
are accountable to their provincial, who presides over a number of houses
constituting his province. In tum, the provincials are subject to the rector
major, who, with the superior chapter, governs the entire Congregation
under direct and absolute control of the Holy See.
Although the specific aim of this Congregation is to care for youth, its
members willingly offer their services to parish churches and charitable
institutions by means of triduums, novenas, spiritual retreats and
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
tmss10ns, by celebrating Holy Mass, and by hearing confessions.
Furthermore they are engaged in writing, publishing and spreading good
books, of which they distribute over a million copies a year.
The report concluded with a brief overview of the moral state of
the Congregation. Two details are of particular note also for the
tactfulness of their presentation: one concerns relations with the
archbishop of Turin, the other deals with the long-standing issue of
privileges. We quote the passage.
After reporting on the material state of the Salesian Congregation and
on the growth God has graciously given it, we briefly comment on its
moral state.
1. Thank God, all our houses faithfully observe the constitutions, and
to date no Salesian has ever been a cause of scandal. Although our work
far exceeds both the strength and the size of our membership, no one is
fainthearted, and work seems to nourish their spirit as does earthly food
their bodies. True, both in Europe and in the foreign missions some of our
confreres have fallen victim to their own zeal, but this has only served to
intensify desire for work in their brother religious. However, care has been
taken that no one jeopardize his health through overwork.
2. Many apply as Salesian aspirants, but we find that a good number
are called to other religious orders or to the diocesan priesthood rather
than to the Pious Society of St. Francis de Sales. Every year some three
hundred apply to us, of whom we accept a hundred and fifty into the
novitiate; of these an average of a hundred and twenty take vows.
3. We have an excellent relationship with diocesan priests and bishops
whom we can well characterize as fathers and well-wishers. With only one
ordinary have we ever run into difficulties, without ever being able to come
to the root of the misunderstanding. We trust that with patience, the Lord's
help, and our obedient service within his diocese we may achieve that
good relationship which we enjoy in all the other dioceses.
4. Another major obstacle we run into is that of the privileges. It is
presumed that the Salesians enjoy those same privileges which are
commonly granted to other religious orders and clerical congregations, but
the Holy See has not as yet seen fit to grant them. Both our material and
moral development would be greatly enhanced if we too enjoyed those
privileges which we humbly and earnestly request.
5. Our first general chapter met in September 1877. Many very
important issues touching on the practice of our constitutions were
discussed, but we decided that, before sending our deliberations to the
Holy See, we had best implement them for a term, with modifications, so
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The First Triennial Report to the Holy See
159
as to determine appropriate corrections to be made before submitting them
to the next general chapter which, God willing, will be held in September
1880.
6. All members of the Congregation join the rector major in homage to
the Holy See, for which we express our inviolable loyalty as we implore
the fatherly support of the Church's supreme authority. We all pledge
ourselves with total commitment never to cease upholding faith in and
obedience to the Vicar of Jesus Christ in every nation of Europe and
America in which we labor.
Non nobis, Domine, non nobis, sed nomini Tuo da gloriam [Not to us,
O Lord, not to us, but to Your name give glory-Ps. 113, 9].
Fr. John Bosco, Rector Major
The longer portion of the report2 dealt with material matters.
Don Bosco gave importance to every activity he had begun and his
Salesians had continued, regardless of its extent. Therefore, no
endeavor of the Salesians or of the Daughters of Mary, Help of
Christians escaped his attention. The resulting report contains a
breakdown of many and varied items which certainly stirred the
Salesians to mixed emotions of surprise and satisfaction, so that
they could exclaim: Digitus Dei est hie [This is the finger of God-
Ex. 8, 15].
Every section of this first triennial report of Don Bosco was
minutely scrutinized by the Sacred Congregation of Bishops and
Regulars, prompting seven "observations" which Cardinal [Inno-
cent] Ferrieri, the [Congregation's] prefect, sent to him on April 5.
He found the letter waiting for him on his return to the Oratory four
days later. He had no problem with supplying the requested
clarifications, but it took him quite some time. Those months, as we
have seen, and shall again see, were crammed with too many
problems for him even to be able to think over those matters and
weigh well his words. He drew up a rough draft of which he had a
good copy made; on that he made some important additions and
amendments. Very probably, he had to consult competent persons
willing to help. The result was that his answer did not leave Turin
until August 3. It is a most interesting reply. We reproduce it, citing
in italics those "observations" to which Don Bosco was replying.
2For those interested, this report is published in the Appendix ofthe original Italian edition
of this volume, Document 35. [Editor]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
Your Eminence:
Turin, August 3, 1879
I have received a copy of the observations kindly drawn up by the
Congregation of Bishops and Regulars on my report of the moral and
material state of the Pious Society of St. Francis de Sales.
First, with humble thanks to Your Eminence, I assure you that I shall
treasure these observations for the good of our Salesian confreres and use
them as a guide in the required future triennial reports to the Holy See.
As of now I promptly comply with your request for clarifications in the
order of your comments.
1. This report makes no mention of the financial condition of the
Institute, nor of the novitiate; the latter must be made according to the
norms of the sacred canons and the apostolic constitutions.
CLARIFICATION: The Pious [Salesian] Society has no legal status;
therefore it cannot own property, contract debts or acquire credits. The
Congregation's houses (please see page 13 of the report) are the property
of the members who reside there. We do have debts, but one member of
the Congregation owns a building whose value will cover them. However,
both as a moral and as a legal body, the Congregation neither does nor can
own anything.
Our novitiate here in Turin is duly approved and regulated by the
Sacred Congregation of Bishops and Regulars, and by the prescriptions
set down and approved in Chapter 14 of our constitutions. Under the same
ruling, with a decree of approval from the Sacred Congregation for the
Propagation of the Faith, a second novitiate was opened at Buenos Aires,
capital of Argentina. Also with the aforesaid Sacred Congregation's
approval, a novitiate has been set up at Marseille, where a new building
which conforms to all [canonical] requirements is now under completion.
Another novitiate will soon be opened in the diocese of Seville, Spain, for
which we will apply formally to the Holy See for necessary authorization.
We at one time sought authorization to open a novitiate also in Paris, but
unexpected difficulties make further action in this matter unfeasible and
we have dropped the project.
The novice master is a priest of proven virtue and learning and is
assisted by two other priests. The novices have regular daily meditation,
spiritual reading, a visit to the Blessed Sacrament, and the recitation ofthe
rosary with Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament each evening. They go
to confession once a week and receive Holy Communion almost every
day.
Two conferences a week are given, one dealing with the constitutions.
To date religious observance has not slackened.
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2. The Pious Society may not be divided into so-called inspectorates-an
uncommon practice-but into provinces, which may be established only
with the Holy See's permission.
CLARIFICATION: The Pious Society was divided into inspectorates in
compliance with Chapter 9, Article 17 of our constitutions, which reads:
"If need arises, the rector major, with the approval of the superior chapter,
will appoint visitators, giving them the responsibility of looking over a
certain number of houses, when distance and number shall require it. Such
visitators or inspectors or assessors shall take the rector major's place in
the houses and in those matters assigned to them."
His Holiness Pius IX of venerable memory recommended that
terminology dissonant with the spirit of the times be deleted from the
constitutions of the Salesian Society. Therefore, rather than call our
houses monasteries, he suggested we term them house, college, hostel, or
orphanage; likewise, not father general but rector major; not prior or
guardian, but director; not provincial or province, but some equivalent
term. We should point out that this division into inspectorates is not yet a
reality, but has been proposed ad experimentum, so that as soon as we
feel it is feasible, we will duly apply to the Holy See. In these sorry times
and in the face of the endless grave obstacles daily being thrown up in our
way, we see no other form or organization, and so request that for the time
being this term be allowed to stand.
3. Under the article "Piedmontese Inspectorate" it is stated that
several institutions ofwomen have been entrusted to the priestly ministry
ofthe Salesians. Such responsibility can be given only by the pertinent
episcopal authority, and it should have been stated if such really is the
case, and in what this sacred ministry consists.
CLARIFICATION: In founding institutions for women and assuming
their spiritual direction, we have observed all the rules set forth in Chapter
10 of our constitutions. These institutions totally lack material means, and
the Salesians charitably provide religious services at the ordinary's
request. Our priestly ministry is always arranged and controlled by the
diocesan ordinary in all that concerns the sacraments ofpenance and Holy
Eucharist, the celebration of Holy Mass, preaching the word of God,
teaching religion, and so on.
4. The report shows that the Salesians run boarding and day schools,
etc., but it does not say whether or not this is done with the permission of
the respective ordinaries and if the norms of the sacred canons,
particularly those ofthe Council ofTrent regarding education, are being
followed.
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
CLARIFICATION: We have followed the rules approved by the Holy
See as described in Chapter 10 of our constitutions regarding the opening
of new houses. Therefore, all the necessary steps were taken with the
diocesan ordinaries as the sacred canons and the Council of Trent
prescribe.
5. The report includes a supplement on an institute ofwomen named
after Mary, Help of Christians, but nothing is said as to whether this
institute has a superior general to whom the nuns are subject and
whether it is totally independent, as it should be, from the Salesian
Institute.
CLARIFICATION: When the Salesian constitutions were approved,
whatever concerned the Institute of the Daughters of Mary, Help of
Christians was also treated and discussed.
The Institute of Mary, Help of Christians is governed in temporal
matters by the superior general of the Pious Salesian Society, but in all
matters of religious worship and administration of the sacraments it is
entirely subject to the diocesan ordinary. The superior of the Salesians
gives the sisters financial aid and, with the bishop's consent, appoints a
priest to be spiritual director of each house of the sisters.
Several bishops have already approved this congregation of women, and
we are now in an experimental period to ascertain practically which
modifications we should make before seeking the Holy See's required
approval.
Furthermore, since several articles of their rule state the limits of the
sisters' obedience to the superior of the Salesians, a copy of the sisters'
rule is enclosed for further explanation.
Let it be noted also that the motherhouse of these sisters is located at
Mornese, in the diocese of Acqui, whose bishop has always had a say in
the institute's founding, growth and development.
6. It is also stated that these sisters do the cooking and take care ofthe
linen and clothing in seminaries and in boys' hospices-a practice which
has always been frowned upon by the Holy See.
CLARIFICATION: In each instance this arrangement was made after
previous understanding with the diocesan ordinaries; furthermore, they
themselves personally requested such services, and all the norms
prescribed by the sacred canons and dictated by prudence are observed.
7. This Sacred Congregation cannot help but lament as unusual and
ill-advised the printing of this report. The triennial report of superior
generals ofinstitutes has been mandated exclusively for acquainting the
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The First Triennial Report to the Holy See
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Holy See on the disciplinary, personal, material, andfinancial status of
each pious institute, and the -running of the novitiates.
CLARIFICATION: My only purpose in printing this report was to make
its reading easier. Since this was the first time that I was filing such a
report with the Holy See, I followed the advice of the superior of another
congregation who assured me, "The Holy See prefers a printed report." In
the future I shall be sure to send a handwritten report.
Having thus given Your Eminence the clarifications you requested, let
me ask you to keep this humble Society in your kindly favor.
The present times, the government officials, the civil laws, and the
efforts being expended to wipe out all religious orders lead me to beg Your
Eminence for all the support and understanding which the laws of Holy
Church allow you to give.
These replies were to have been sent to Your Eminence last May, but
the serious problems which beset this house forced this delay.
With highest esteem, I am honored to remain,
Your humble, obedient servant,
Fr. John Bosco
Don Bosco's clarifications drew further observations, dated
October 3 and forwarded to him on October 6 by Attorney
[Constantine] Leonori with a covering memo: "Excuse my
boldness, but make your replies complete, convincing and to the
point, so that the Sacred Congregation will have no more
questions." It was not until January 12 that Don Bosco found time
to reply as he was leaving for France and sending Father Dalmazzo
to Rome as procurator general of the Salesian Congregation. He
did not repeat the cardinal's observations, but, to make his replies
understandable, we have inserted those observations in italics.
Your Eminence:
Turin, January 12, 1880
I am truly grieved that, despite all my efforts, I did not succeed in giving
you the clarifications you called for relating to our humble Congregation's
triennial report to the Holy See. To ensure that this matter and other
concerns will be presented as this Congregation understands them and as
the sacred canons require, I am sending Father Francis Dalmazzo to
Rome as our procurator general with instructions to place himself at Your
Eminence's disposal or at the service of anyone you may designate.
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TIIE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
Meanwhile let me express some thoughts of my own in respectful reply
to Your Eminence's letter of October 3, 1879. Father Dalmazzo will be
able to give you whatever clarifications may be needed.
[FURTHER OBSERVATIONS AND CLARIFICATIONS]
1. [LEGAL STATUS] In clarifying your reply to Observation 1 you say
that the Pious Society has no legal status; therefore it cannot own property
or contract debts. You then go on to say that the houses of the
Congregation are the property of some members; we do have debts, but
one member owns a building whose value will cover them. You then
conclude that both as a moral and a legal body, the Congregation neither
owns nor can own anything.
This Sacred Congregation thinks that all these affirmations ofa non-
legal status are to be understood in reference to civil laws hostile to pious
institutes because in the Church's view, before which civil laws have no
force, all pious institutes, including your own, have a legal status
according to the sacred canons. Hence they are subject to the Holy See
for all goods they may own under any title, regardless of whose name
they may have been acquired in and are now owned. All pious institutes
ignore the civil laws of any government in drawing up their triennial
reports. They state theirfinancial situation, briefly listing the goods they
own under any title, their income from any source, and their expenses. If
they must sell goods acquired by a third person or take on debts, this
Sacred Congregation has always impressed upon them the need of
receiving the Apostolic See's permission, and all have obeyed. Your
Reverence is the only one who cites civil laws to exempt himselffrom this
obligation. Please bear in mind that the Holy See approved the Salesian
constitutions with the stated obligations resulting from Article 2 of
Chapter 6 and Article 3 of Chapter 7, even though at the time of this
approval the civil laws you cited were already in existence.
CLARIFICATION: Our Pious Society is not a moral body before the
Church or state and therefore cannot own property. Chapter 4 of our
constitutions states: "Therefore, those who are professed in this Society
can retain a so-called radical ownership of their goods." The second
article of this chapter states further: "The members can freely dispose of
their right either by testament or (with permission of the rector major) by
an act 'inter vivos.'"
Because of the present sad times, this article was of basic importance to
us, and so while seeking the approval of our constitutions I was asking how
we were to understand the wording of Chapter 7, Article 3, which states:
"In disposing of the Society's goods or acquiring income, let those norms
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be kept which have been set by the sacred canons and the apostolic
constitutions."
Through Archbishop, later Cardinal Salvator Vitelleschi, who was then
secretary of the Sacred Congregation of Bishops and Regulars, the
cardinal's reply was: "The response is already contained in the article
itself, namely "in disposing of the Society's goods"; this must be
understood to mean that as soon as time or place makes it possible for the
Pious Society to own anything in common or in its own name, this article
is to be observed as all other religous and clerical congregations observe it.
This seems to be in keeping with Chapter 7, Article 2, which says of the
rector major: "He has no right to buy or sell property without the consent
of the superior chapter."
This is the interpretation I have always given to our constitutions from
the very beginning of this Pious Society. This too was always the
understanding of the Supreme Pontiff, Pius IX, of ever glorious memory,
and of the eminent cardinals he appointed to examine and approve our
constitutions.
To consider buildings personally owned by our members as Church
property and therefore subject to the prescriptions of the sacred canons
would cause confusion in our administration, since all our Salesians took
their vows with this understanding of Chapter 4, Article l, De voto
paupertatis, which states: "The vow of poverty, of which we speak here,
concerns only the administration, not the ownership, of any goods."
2. [NOVITIATE IN MARSEILLE] Again, in clarifying your reply to
Observation 1 you assert that a novitiate has been set up in Marseille with
the authorization of the Sacred Congregation of Bishops and Regulars.
This Sacred Congregation has no record that any such authorization
was given. Please see to it that a copy of the rescript containing
authorization to open a novitiate in Marseille is forwarded to us.
CLARIFICATION: Regarding the authorization for a novitiate in
Marseille, which we intend to set up, the misunderstanding was mine. The
Sacred Congregation of Bishops and Regulars sought the opinion of the
ordinary of Marseille on February 5, 1879, and on February 23, 1879 he
sent a favorable reply. Hence I felt that the matter was settled, whereas it
is still pending. I herein enclose the relevant documents and renew my
request for authorization.
3. [INSPECTORATES] In clarifying your reply to Observation 2 you
state that the Pious Society was divided into inspectorates in compliance
with your constitutions, Chapter 9, Article 17. Now Article 17 makes
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
reference to "visitators" to be appointed by the rector major if need be,
with the approval of the superior chapter; it does not mention
"inspectors." All other congregations, regardless of where they are
located, are divided into provinces with previous approval of the Holy
See, which has never tolerated the use of any other name. You must
adhere to the general norm.
CLARIFICATION: I divided the Congregation into inspectorates rather
than provinces because I saw this as a practical application of our
constitutions, Chapter 9, Article 17: "If the need arises, the rector major,
with the approval of the superior chapter, will appoint visitators, giving
them the responsibility of looking over a certain number of houses."
In these sad times using the words "province" and "provincial" would
be like throwing ourselves to the wolves to be devoured or scattered. Pius
IX, of ever blessed and beloved memory, suggested this term himself. If,
however, we positively must use the traditional terminology, I request that
we be restricted to do so only in our dealings with the Holy See and that in
our relations with the world we be free to use the best terminology we can
in these times.
4. [INSTITUTES FOR WOMEN] In clarifying Observation 3 you
state: "In opening institutes for women and assuming their spiritual
direction, we have observed all the rules set forth in Chapter 10 of our
constitutions." This chapter refers to houses for clerics and for young
men and boys to be educated by Salesians. Nothing is said about
opening houses for women and their spiritual direction. Nor can it be
held that it was the intent ofthe Holy See to allow the Salesians to open
and direct such houses when their constitutions were approved, since this
violates the very principles it set up for very understandable reasons. The
Salesians may assume spiritual direction of women communities when
they are entrusted to do so by the respective ordinaries, and then their
ministry is limited to administering the sacraments and preaching God's
word if and as the ordinaries charge them.
CLARIFICATION: In matters concerning the Daughters of Mary, Help
of Christians, the Salesians have no other function in their houses than
that of spiritual direction, and that within the limits and in the manner
permitted and prescribed by the ordinaries in whose diocese those
convents are situated.
5. [INSTITUTE OF THE DAUGHTERS OF MARY, HELP OF
CHRISTIANS] Your reply to Observation 5 was: "When the Salesian
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constitutions were approved, whatever concerned the Institute of the
Daughters of Mary, Help of Christians was also treated and discussed.
The Institute of Mary, Help of Christians is subject to the superior general
of the Pious Salesian Society." In reviewing the rather voluminous
material on the Salesian position especially regarding the approval of
their constitutions, we observe that matters concerning the Daughters of
Mary, Help of Christians were never mentioned, much less discussed.
Had this been done, most certainly this Sacred Congregation would have
mandated the separation of the two institutes. It has never been this
Sacred Congregation's norm, especially in these times, to allow
communities of women to be governed by communities of men, and, if
such a case has arisen, it has immediately demanded that such
governance be ended. You would like to introduce a contrary norm which
this Sacred Congregation can do no less than reject.
CLARIFICATION: Regarding whether or not the Institute of the
Daughters of Mary, Help of Christians was discussed when the
constitutions were approved, I can state that in the summation which this
Sacred Congregation had printed in the process of definitively approving
our constitutions, when a list of the houses then in existence was drawn up
on page 10 and page 16, we read: "Added to the Salesian Congregation
and depending from it is the house of Mary, Help ofChristians, founded
with the approval of the ecclesiastical authority of Momese, diocese of
Acqui. The aim of this house is to do for poor girls what the Salesians do
for boys. The sisters already number forty and they care for two hundred
girls."
The aforesaid eminent cardinals asked several questions about the
nature and scope of this institution and, showing themselves satisfied with
my oral statements, they concluded by saying that the matter would be
more thoroughly studied when the sisters' constitutions would be
submitted for the Holy See's timely approval.
6. [GOVERNMENT OF THE DAUGHTERS OF MARY, HELP OF
CHRISTIANS] When this Sacred Congregation inquired into the
government ofthe Institute ofthe Daughters ofMary, Help ofChristians,
in Observation 5, it asked whether it had a mother general and not a
male superior general as you erroneously state in quoting the
observation.
CLARIFICATION: In the request of April 5, 1879 for clarifications, I
was asked "whether this institute has a superior general to whom the nuns
are subject and whether it is totally independent, as it should be, from the
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Salesian Institute." I replied in the affirmative, adding that our authority
was in conformity with the sisters' constitutions. Your Eminence now
inquires whether these sisters have a mothergeneral. I reply affirmatively:
they do have a mother general and their own superior chapter in
conformity with Article 3 of their constitutions.
Having offered these clarifications, I beg Your Eminence to remember
with fatherly concern that the Pious Salesian Society was begun without
material resources and held its own in treacherous times in the midst of
increasing difficulties, besieged in countless ways. It consequently needs
all the benevolence and all the understanding which are compatible with
the authority of Holy Mother Church.
At present we number one hundred houses, in which some fifty
thousand boys are given a Christian education. Of these, more than six
hundred enter the clerical state every year. On the other hand, I believe I
can assure Your Eminence that the Salesians have no other aim than to
work for God's greater glory, the welfare of Holy Church, and the spread
of the Gospel of Jesus Christ among the Indians of the Pampas and of
Patagonia.
On my knees I ask Your Eminence's forgiveness if I have inadvertently
answered in an unbecoming manner. I declare it my honor to remain,
Your most obedient servant,
Fr. John Bosco
The letter sent by the Sacred Congregation to Don Bosco had
also this passage:
In answer to Observation 6, that the Sisters of Mary, Help of Christians
take care of linen and clothing in seminaries and do the cooking-
something the Holy See has always frowned upon-you state: In each
instance this arrangement was made after previous understanding with the
ordinaries; furthermore, they themselves requested such services." Any
time this Sacred Congregation has become aware of women religious
performing such tasks in seminaries or boys' hostels, it has always
forbidden it, even if the respective ordinary had given his consent and had
personally asked the sisters to do such work.
Don Bosco offered no answer, probably because he was not the
only person concerned since several bishops, those of Casale and
Biella for example, were involved more than he.
His reply drew no further observations from the Sacred
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The First Triennial Report to the Holy See
169
Congregation. However, as we shall see in due course, the
aftermath was distressful.
Through all the vicissitudes of this period [of Don Bosco's life],
what outshines all else is the holiness of this man of God, who
forged his way resolutely and calmly, never slowing down his many
activities because of obstacles, never seeking pretexts from his
undertakings to justify stem measures. It certainly takes heroic
virtue in such circumstances in order not to deviate from one's
course of action through human weakness or bold attempts. "I
cannot hide my bitter grief," he wrote in reference to the above
matter,3 "that I could not make myself understood. I labor and wish
all Salesians to labor for the Church to their dying breath. I ask for
no material assistance, but only for that indulgence and charity
which are compatible with the Church's authority." On another
occasion he wrote: "Every time they set up roadblocks my
response always is to open another house." 4 In these two quotes
there vibrates the spirit of our saintly founder. That the second
quote was not an empty phrase will be clearly proven in his next
triennial report of 1882. Briefly, for saints, activity is no hindrance
to holiness; rather, their activity arises from and grows from their
holiness.
31..etter to Father Dalmazzo, Sampierdarena, May 7, 1880. [Author]
4To the above, Turin, July 21, 1880. [Author]
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CHAPTER 9
The Girls' Festive Oratory at Chieri
lN 1879 the flourishing girls' festive oratory conducted at
Chieri by the Daughters of Mary, Help of Christians faced fierce
opposition which incredibly dragged on to 1883. Though centering
on the person of its director, Father [John] Bonetti,1 it involved
Don Bosco also, since he was at the heart of all Salesian activity
and the target of any conflict in and about Turin. We take up the
thread of our story where we left off,2 but we will have to break it
again to resume it in Volume XV.
The New Year opened ominously for St. Theresa's Festive
Oratory. In 1878 Don Bosco had opened an adjoining hostel for
girls of middle income families, a free school for poorer and
younger girls, and a Sunday school for older girls, but the bone of
contention was always the festive oratory. Acting under misin-
formation supplied to him by several local priests, foremost among
them the cathedral rector, Father [Anthony] Oddenino, Archbishop
Gastaldi made a surprise appearance in Chieri on January 12. He
called a meeting of the cathedral canons and harangued them with
an address which left them confused and disturbed. He questioned
the good work being done by the Salesians in the girls' oratory,
calling them very generous workers, but likening them to steam
locomotives which require stout brakes and safety valves if they are
to function at all. Despite this charge, when it came to a showdown,
the majority voted against closing the oratory, and so the
archbishop agreed to put up with it a little longer.
Since Don Bosco was absent from Turin, his vicar, Father Rua,
having learned of the meeting, was anxious to clarify the situation
and nip the dispute in the bud, and so he wrote the archbishop a
letter which is a masterpiece of diplomatic finesse.
1See Appendix 1. [Editor]
2See Vol. XIII, pp. 539f. [Editor]
170
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Your Excellency:
Turin, January 13, 1879
I have learned that Your Excellency had occasion yesterday to meet
with several canons of your respected chapter at Chieri concerning the St.
Theresa's Festive Oratory, conducted by the Salesian Congregation, and
its Sunday program for the town's girls. I was also informed that Your
Excellency acknowledged the good work being done there and made your
stand clear to the few who view it negatively. Trusting that Your
Excellency will continue your kindness toward us, I think it well to enclose
a copy of a brief granted by His Holiness, Pius IX, of blessed memory,
which is our guide in holding religious services in the oratory as in all
churches which we conduct in Italy, France and South America. In Don
Bosco's name-he is presently in Marseille-I am sending you a copy of
this brief with the sole purpose of furnishing you another argument with
which to silence those who oppose us, to assure them that the Salesians
are acting legally and are authorized not merely by yourself but also by the
Holy See, so that no one out of petty fears need throw up obstacles to the
good being done.
I also take this occasion to inform Your Excellency that, after our
private interview with you toward the middle of last month, we submitted
the following working plan to the Very Reverend Canon Lione, vicar
forane of Chieri, which seemed reasonable to us and did not frustrate the
objectives of the oratory:
1. When religious services coincide with catechetical instructions in the
parish, married women and older girls will not be allowed to attend the
oratory.
2. The other girls will be free to attend either function as they wish.
Contrary to our expectations, this proposal was rejected as unacceptable.
I thank Your Excellency for your kind support which encourages us to
work in your archdiocese according to our objectives, and I beg you to
continue your good will toward us.
To the charity of your prayers I commend my own humble person, this
entire community, and especially our dear Don Bosco.
Kindly accept my profoundest respects as I reverently sign myself,
Your most humble servant,
Fr. Michael Rua
However, the festive oratory still had its enemies who gave it no
respite but kept wagging their tongues without restraint. Distressed
by the relentless slander, Father Bonetti wrote to the curate,
begging him to desist from his hostility which was badly harming
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
the welfare of souls and kept fomenting unseemly gossip. He asked
the curate's pardon for any offense he might have given him, and
invited him to visit the oratory as a token of reconciliation, but he
also protested that, rather than depress him, such vexations only
inspired him to greater fortitude. The straightforwardness of tone
and the curtness of some expressions upset Father Oddenino.
Misconstruing their meaning, he consulted with his colleagues,
and denounced the letter to the archbishop as a provocation. The
archbishop, being then engaged in a fierce newspaper controversy
over Rosmini3 with Monsignor fPeterl Balan, who was updating
Rohrbacher's work [Universal History ofthe Catholic Church], let
three weeks go by without answering the letter. However, on Father
Oddenino's personal insistence that he intervene, he abruptly
revoked Father Bonetti's faculties for confession until the latter
should apologize to the curate "for the disrespect he displayed in
his letter." He took this action on February 12, with no previous
canonical admonition and without notifying Don Bosco.
Father Bonetti was stunned. Without delay he rushed to the
archbishop's residence to find out what irreverence he had shown in
his ill-fated letter, but he was refused a hearing. It was most urgent
that Father Bonetti remove all reasons for surprise or scandal
among the people by having the censure revoked before the
following Saturday, when he regularly went to Chieri. On
Thursday, January 13, then, he decided that it was wiser to yield to
the imposed terms. Swallowing his pride, he wrote a letter of
apology to the parish priest. However, since it had never been his
slightest intent to offend anyone by his letter, he thought it only
proper and fair to state the same. Having mailed his letter, he then
wrote to the archbishop, expressing the hope that the censure would
automatically cease and hinting at the same time that, were it not,
he would not be averse to using unpleasant measures, such as
recourse to Rome, to justify himself and to defend the Congregation's
honor. These last words were really unnecessary and inappropriate.
The archbishop not only took offense, but, without even bothering
to find out if Father Oddenino had been pacified, he reiterated
Father Bonetti's suspension, this time adding to its harshness by
declaring the censure total and unlimited, revoking all conditions
3See Unita Cattolica, January 22, 1877, and following issues. [Author]
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The Girls' Festive Oratory at Chieri
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and leaving it completely up to his own judgment as archbishop.
We should state here that a rescript of the Sacred Congregation
of Bishops and Regulars dated November 20, 1615, dug out by
Father [John Baptist] Rostagno [S.J.] for Father Bonetti's benefit,
forbade any such summary procedure against members of religious
congregations. The article stated: "In the name of the Holy See and
by its authority, the eminent cardinals decide and declare that
bishops and archbishops are not allowed to suspend religious from
hearing confession, unless it be for reasons touching upon the act of
confession itself." The decree which so well fit Father Bonetti's
case encouraged him to proceed with his appeal, since the cause of
his censure had been a letter, not a confession, and it still had to be
proven that a letter constituted a criminal act. In his opinion his
punishment was a travesty of law and justice. Be that as it may, at
the present moment the suspension was binding, and so early the
following Sunday morning, February 16, Father [Joseph] Leveratto,
the [Valdocco] Oratory's prefect, set out to hear the confessions of
the girls at Chieri, while Father Bonetti, the director, went for the
evening catechetical instruction and sermon. Careful to cover up
nicely his absences on following Sundays, he stated publicly that he
had to accompany Don Bosco to Rome and, while there, also
straighten out some problems about the St. Theresa's Festive
Oratory, asking for prayers for the success of his journey. This was
the reason why Father Bonetti suddenly took Count Cay's place as
Don Bosco's traveling companion to Rome.4
Don Bosco departed, as we recounted, and it was then that
Archbishop Gastaldi unexpectedly turned up at the Valdocco
Oratory and at the Valsalice College to attend stage plays being
then presented.5 We have already recounted the astonishment that
his appearance caused and the various interpretations put on it.
However, he delighted everyone when he agreed to admit several
Salesians to minor orders, subdiaconate and diaconate during the
Lenten rogation days. He really had no reason to refuse them, but
everyone was so used to last-minute objections and refusals that
both the ordinands and others were thrilled by his friendliness.
Moreover, at the end of the ceremony he graciously returned the
candles to the newly ordained. Better still, on spotting young
4See p. 38. [Editor]
5 See p. 47. [Editor]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
[Francis] Scaloni, later a provincial, returning the sacred vestments
to the sacristy, the archbishop called him over and said, "You
played the part of St. Pancratius. Excellent!" And he gave the lad a
holy picture. In a word, the feeling was that His Excellency was
finally about to make his peace with the Oratory.
Father Bonetti arrived at Rome on March 2, and on March 6 he
filed a formal appeal to the Holy Father through the Sacred
Congregation of the Council against Archbishop Gastaldi's action.
Don Bosco had already briefly reported the incident to Cardinal
[Innocent] F errieri, prefect of the Sacred Congregation of Bishops
and Regulars in February. We do not know whether he had
received a reply. However, it seems likely that Don Bosco's letter
may have prompted the notice to him that the matter was within the
competence of the Sacred Congregation of the Council.
Your Eminence:
[No date]6
I regret having to bother you in the midst of your many cares for the
worldwide Church. However, I feel it my duty to write this letter, because
I see God's greater glory and the welfare of souls being obstructed. This is
now the third time that Turin's archbishop has suspended Salesian priests
from hearing confessions, ignoring due canonical procedure. Without
giving me any advance warning, he suspended me by not renewing my
faculties. Then he suspended Father John Lazzero, director of our
motherhouse in Turin, without previously advising his superior or anyone
else and without ever specifying the reason for his action. Recently he has
suspended Father John Bonetti who does excellent work as director of a
festive oratory in Chieri.
Both the local parish priest and the archbishop were of the opinion that
Father Bonetti had sent them disrespectful letters. Even if the letters were
truly disrespectful-which remains to be seen-matters c0uld have been
rectified immediately had he only informed the Salesian Congregation's
superior. Instead, he revoked Father Bonetti's diocesan faculties for
confession. It seems to me that the Church's laws-reaffirmed
successively by the competent Sacred Congregation of Bishops and
Regulars-require that such action be preceded by some admonitions by
duly informing the superior and be for reasons concerning the sacrament
of penance.
sHandwritten copy by Father Berto, Don Bosco's secretary, who states that the letter was
written in February 1879. [Author]
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I therefore request Your Eminence to ask the archbishop of Turin to
observe the Holy See's prescriptions for such measures and, before
inflicting such serious ecclesiastical penalties, be fair enough to investigate
whether the facts warrant it, making sure that as far as possible a public
scandal be avoided, such as did occur in the case of Father Bonetti, who is
still allowed to hear confessions. Such a zealous preacher as he is known
to be in Chieri, he has had to absent himself from his confessional,
thronged by crowds of penitents, and to leave the archdiocese so as not to
become an object of public curiosity and gossip.
Having simply and respectfully stated my case, I will abide
unreservedly by whatever Your Eminence may decree or advise in this
matter.
Honored to pay my respects to you, in deepest gratitude I remain,
Your most obedient servant,
Fr. John Bosco
That Don Bosco's praise of Father Bonetti was not undeserved is
confirmed by a statement dated February 16, 1879, signed by five
of Chieri's canons7 and stating that, during his six months'
administration of St. Theresa's Festive Oratory, "he truly achieved
much good, to the delight of all upright, God-fearing people,
especially parents." This statement is further corroborated by
Canon [Francis] Calosso in a letter dated February 12, which he
wrote to Don Bosco on his own initiative to thank him
enthusiastically for sending to Chieri every week "that excellent
Salesian, ideally suited to instruct and correct the evil ways of so
many uneducated, wayward girls." In the meantime Father
Leveratto had temporarily taken over the direction of the festive
oratory and was doing a fine job. "Still," wrote Canon [Matthew]
Sona8 to Father Bonetti, "the Chieri oratory would remain unjustly
defamed and the honor of the Salesian Congregation be made to
suffer, should your reputation not be restored and you be free to
exercise your sacred ministry."
It is standard procedure among the Sacred Roman Congregations to
send a copy of a recourse to the ordinary of the priest-plaintiff for
his information and opinion, and to the superior also if the priest is
a religious. Father Bonetti's recourse prompted Archbishop
7Canons Cantore, Caselle, Mosso, Calosso and Savone. [Author]
BChieri, March 6, 1879. [Author]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
Gastaldi to have second thoughts on the ill-advised step he had
taken, and he decided to straighten out the matter without sending a
reply to Rome. Calling Father Rua, he welcomed him with
cordiality and asked him to tell Father Bonetti that the archbishop
was ready to restore his faculties for confession "when and where"
he should wish. Yet, in the course of their conversation he added,
"Father Bonetti is a good priest, but it's not advisable that he return
to Chieri. After all, he cannot get along with the local clergy. On
my visit I summoned all the clergy; the vicar forane, the pastor and
serveral canons, except Canon Sona, agreed that it would not be
wise for Father Bonetti to return to Chieri."9 At this point, as we
infer from a footnote to Father Rua's letter, Father Bonetti felt that
either Father Rua had misunderstood the archbishop or the
archbishop had mistaken the canons' attitude. Be that as it may,
Father Bonetti could not swallow the condition of never again
setting foot in Chieri, for it was obviously a measure that savored of
punishment and cast a cloud over him in the eyes of the faithful as if
he were guilty of God knows what crime.
Tensions had reached this pitch when a very unpleasant incident
occurred which recalls that well-known [Italian] proverb: "May
God guard me from my friends; I can handle my enemies." Father
Bonetti had described briefly but frankly in a letter to a very close
friend in Chieri what had happened up to March 24. Instead of
keeping the letter confidential, this good friend came up with the
unhappy idea of doing Father Bonetti a favor such as the latter
could never have dreamed of. He immediately transcribed the
letter, changing the singular "you" to the plural as though Father
Bonetti were writing to the festive oratory's girls, adding a few
remarks of his own; then he had the letter read publicly to them at
the oratory. When and on what day this happened we do not know,
but certainly Father Leveratto was not forewarned nor did he have
any inkling of it. After the reading, the letter was passed on from
person to person, and copies were even made. It was a deplorable
shame that only too late were the copies of that distorted version
retrieved. We need not say that the news, spread about in that
manner, filled the town with a flurry of gossip and added more fuel
to the fire.
9Letter to Father Bonetti from Father Rua, Turin, March 22, 1879. [Author]
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The Girls' Festive Oratory at Chieri
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On returning from Rome, Father Bonetti was anxious to know
the archbishop's mood, and he soon found out. The Turin chancery
used to renew the diocesan priests' faculties for confession within a
few weeks after Easter. Father [Anthony] Notario, who taught
theology at the Oratory, went to the chancery to pick up the
Salesians' certificates and at the same time to get the feeling of the
chancery staff. Father [Louis] Deppert went along as a witness. No
certificate was issued for Father Bonetti's faculties, and when
Father Notario respectfully pointed this out, he was told that it was
the archbishop's order. He therefore asked for a written statement
of this to present to his superiors, but Father Chiaverotti, the
secretary, hemmed and hawed. An argument followed which drew
the attention of the chancellor, Canon [Thomas] Chiuso, whom
Father Notario asked for an audience with the archbishop. The
canon agreed and the archbishop received both Father Notario and
Father Deppert. However, on learning the reason of their visit, he
refused to grant faculties to Salesians residing outside the diocese,
among them Father Bonetti, regardless of the fact that his
permanent domicile was Turin. The Salesians residing in other
dioceses retained faculties from the Turin chancery so as to hear
confessions on the many occasions of their visits to the Oratory.
Archbishop Gastaldi now refused both the faculties and the
statement which Father Notario had requested. On questioning
Father Notario about his identity and work and on being told that
he was the new director of St. Theresa's Festive Oratory in Chieri
the archbishop burst into virulent invectives and charges against
Don Bosco and the Salesians. Father Notario listened with
restraint, and when the cloudburst was over he bowed and turned to
leave.
"What! So soon?" the archbishop asked.
"Do you expect me to stay here and listen to my father and
superior being thus viciously maligned? I am in Your Excellency's
home and so cannot speak up in his defense."
The archbishop calmed down, took Father Notario by the arm
and prevailed upon him to sit down. Then he spoke in a calm and
almost cordial tone. On rising to leave, Father Notario stated$"As
regards the faculties, since the chancery refuses to give me an
official statement [of refusal] I have a witness here who will testify
for me to my superior."
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1HE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
Father Bonetti received his faculties on May 2, but still on
condition that he not go to Chieri without the archbishop's express
permission. Since he had already begun a series of Marian talks just
two days before, he pleaded with Archbishop Gastaldi for
permission to continue till the end so as not to arouse surprise by a
sudden interruption and also in order to reap the fruits of his
preaching in the sacrament of penance. His request was rejected.
Hence, on May 4, he again appealed to the Holy Father against
this odious measure.
It did not take long for the effect of this second appeal to become
apparent. On May 26 the archbishop sent Don Bosco this note: "It
is most urgent that I speak with you on a very serious matter.
Please come to see me today. Even though I may be confined to
bed, we can still discuss matters. I hope to have the pleasure of
seeing you again after nearly eleven months since I blessed the
cornerstone of the Church of St. John the Evangelist. Yours
sincerely, etc." Don Bosco called on him that same evening. The
"very serious matter" was of course Father Bonetti's appeal, of
which a copy had been sent him by the Sacred Congregation of
Bishops and Regulars. The upshot was that the archbishop would
restore Father Bonetti's faculties for confession throughout the
archdiocese, leaving it to Don Bosco to decide whether Father
Bonetti would return to Chieri or not.
Father Bonetti heaved a deep sigh of relief, and everyone was
happy that the matter had been definitely settled. But their joy was
very short-lived indeed. Very early the next morning another letter
was delivered to Don Bosco from the archbishop, taking back all
that had been said the previous evening. Its tenor was as follows:
My need to put an end without delay to the unrest in Chieri makes it
imperative that Father Bonetti be kept away from there until I personally
reinvestigate the whole matter on site and, once I have complete
lmowledge of the facts, come to a decision. Therefore, I deem it necessary
that throughout that time this priest not exercise the ministry of confessor
in Chieri. I consequently revoke Father Bonetti's faculties of hearing
confessions until my investigation is completed. My present condition of
health makes it impossible to set a definite time. This is what I had told
Father Rua at the beginning of this month, and what I feel I must tell you
on rethinking our discussion of yesterday evening.
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Disappointed and deeply afflicted, Father Bonetti immediately
sent this new appeal to the Holy Father:
Prostrate at the feet of Your Holiness, I, Father John Bonetti of the
Salesian Congregation, humbly inform you of my appeals to Your
Holiness dated March 6 and May 4 for the revocation of a suspension
inflicted upon me by the archbishop of Turin, which, in my opinion, is in
conflict with repeated decisions of the Apostolic See. Pursuant to the
latter appeal, yesterday, May 26, the archbishop sent for Father John
Bosco, superior general of the Salesian Congregation, and informed me
through him that he was revoking the suspension and was restoring my
faculties for hearing confessions unconditionally in the archdiocese. I was
overjoyed and most grateful to Your Holiness. However, this very
morning, May 27, hardly twelve hours later, another letter comes in from
the archbishop, in which he informs my superior that the suspension is still
in effect and yesterday's revocation must be considered as never having
been made. No one can adequately describe the painful surprise that both
my superior and I experienced on receiving this unexpected news. Hence,
for the third time I humbly appeal to Your Holiness and respectfully but
earnestly beg you kindly to use your supreme authority and free me from a
situation which is distressing to me and to the Salesian Congregation and
most harmful to souls, impeding God's greater glory and causing scandal
and real unhappiness among the faithful.
The unending series of such conflicts kept giving Don Bosco new
reasons why it was incontestably necessary for the Salesian
Congregation to be granted full autonomy through the concession
of privileges. Hence he sent a petition to Cardinal [Lawrence]
Nina, the Salesian cardinal-protector, requesting a renewal of some
privileges which had already been granted him temporarily by
Pius IX. 10
Your Eminence:
Turin, June 13, 1879
As it is my earnest desire that you truly understand the humble Salesian
Congregation's affairs, let me briefly acquaint you with the grave troubles
which our motherhouse in Turin had to put up with because of our
archbishop.
10These were the privileges granted by Pius IX on April 21, 1876, and which, together
with several others, had been revoked after his death. See Vol. XIII, pp. 432tf. [Author]
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TIIE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
The opposition he has raised has always coincided with that of
government and school officials. Hence Your Eminence will readily
understand how exhausting and painful it has been to start, uphold and
strengthen a new Congregation which has no temporal support and
financial means. Yet we have never lacked the counsel, guidance and
support of the Supreme Pontiff, who has always treated us with the
kindness of a loving father.
Your Eminence may ask why we did not appeal to the Holy See. We
have done so on several occasions, but our lack of a cardinal-protector
always rendered those appeals of mine fruitless.
All the originals of the correspondence referred to in this letter are on
file in the archives of our Congregation.
A favor which is most pressing at this moment is the granting of
privileges, such as those possessed by the Passionists, Redemptorists and
Oblates of the Blessed Virgin Mary, which are generally enjoyed by all
approved clerical congregations. Since this may pose serious problems, I
ask that at least three privileges which we have enjoyed over a period of
three years be renewed, since their delayed renewal has caused us serious
hardship and brought us grave harm.
I think it opportune to enclose a copy ofthe petition which in the past we
have sent to the then Archbishop Jacobini, so that, with Your Eminence's
previous consent, he would push our cause through the Sacred
Congregation of the Council.
We pray the Lord to keep Your Eminence in good health for the good of
the Church and in order that you may help us regularize the status of the
Salesian Society in the eyes of the Church, thus enabling it to withstand
the attacks to which it is presently being subjected.
We all respectfully request your blessing. I am honored to pay my
respects to you and remain,
Your most obedient servant,
Fr. John Bosco
The attached memorandum was "a handwritten report of
Archbishop Gastaldi's doings against the Salesian Congregation
taken from his own letters." 11 They were meant to show the
consequences of not having privileges.
It took His Eminence quite some time to review all the items in
11 Marginal note by Father Berto, Don Bosco's secretary, on a copy of the letter sent to
Cardinal Nina. He had himself written this "report," as he was in the habit of doing with
every document that was to be presented to ecclesiastical or civil authorities. [Author]
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181
the report, and so he expressly delayed his answer. As for the
privileges to be renewed, he asked Don Bosco to send him the text
of the original concession.12 Don Bosco sent a copy of the rescripts
to the cardinal, who recommended that the Holy Father renew
them, but the latter was not disposed to grant the favor. The reason
was that Don Bosco had addressed his petition to the Sacred
Congregation of the Council, but competency in this matter be-
longed to the Congregation of Bishops and Regulars, and the latter
had already reported negatively to the Pope. Hence the good offices
of the cardinal-protector came too late and were ineffective. His
Eminence, however, commented: "This should not cause you to
fear that the Holy Father has little regard for your well-meriting
Congregation; it only shows that for the time being the Sacred
Congregation of Bishops and Regulars thinks it inopportune to
freely bestow further privileges." He concluded: "As for the rest,
be assured that I shall always gladly favor to the best of my ability a
Congregation which dedicates itself so earnestly to the welfare of
souls and for which I have been appointed protector." 13
Don Bosco did not give up his attempt. Having let the summer
vacation go by, he tried another way of obtaining these privileges.
Since experience told him that the prefect of the Congregation of
Bishops and Regulars was rather unfavorable to him, he appealed
to the newly created Cardinal Cajetan Alimonda14 to use his
influence with Cardinal Nina to have his application processed by
the Congregation of the Council. The cardinal's most heartwarming
response, if nothing else, served to mitigate somewhat the many
bitter frustrations which afflicted him in those days, as we have
seen in the previous chapters. ''I already told you orally, and repeat
in writing," Cardinal Alimonda wrote, "that whenever possible,
within my competency, the Salesian Congregation, your beloved
spiritual child, may always rely on me with assurance. Hence I am
presently ready to serve you [...] I shall go to the Holy Father and
do my very best [...] My dear Father John, God knows how much
12Letter, Rome, June 19, 1879. [Author]
131.etter, Rome, June 26, 1879. [Author]
14Born in Genoa in 1818, he was ordained a priest in 1843. In 1877 he was appointed
bishop of Albenga and in 1879 he was created cardinal; lastly in 1883 he became archbishop
of Turin till his death in 1891. Scholarly and eloquent, he wrote extensively on spiritual
matters. As archbishop of Turin he was a great blessing for Don Bosco. [Editor]
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1HE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
I love and respect you. It is an honor for me and a comfort to be
counted among your servants." 15
He wrote again after he spoke with the Pope: "I can assure you
that the Pontiff is kindly disposed to the Salesians and appreciates
the priceless services they render the Church, but he cannot back
up your request to the competent Sacred Congregation, as you will
understand." Then, having lengthily conferred with Cardinal Nina
on the advisability of appealing to the Congregation of the Council,
he wrote: "The cardinal does not think it wise to switch your
petition from the Congregation of Bishops and Regulars to that of
the Council; he thinks that both the delay in this matter and the
difficulty of putting the Salesians on a par with other congregations,
which are older and also underwent the very same problems at their
beginning, do not arise from any hostile intent against the Salesian
Congregation, but just from its recent origin. At any rate, he did
accept your petition personally and will bring it up with the Holy
Father. He seems to me quite ready to direct that your case be
aired and decided as soon as the Sacred Congregations resume
their work. I warmly insisted and shall continue to insist that at
least the two privileges previously granted be confirmed. Certain it
is that my influence means little in matters belonging to a Sacred
Congregation of which I am not a member, especially since I am
the last one to be admitted to the college of cardinals. Yet, what
little I can do, I'll do with all my heart." 16 Though the proceedings
came to a standstill, it was to Don Bosco's advantage to keep alive
issues which were so close to his heart and thus foster and speed
their attainment.
Let us now return to the matter of this chapter. Suspension is a
most humiliating punishment for a priest, especially when, his guilt
being in no way public, there is ample room for even worse
interpretations. It is therefore very understandable that Father
Bonetti could hardly wait to rid himself of that disgrace. After all
those appeals, there was not one glimmer of hope. On July 16 he
unburdened himself to Archbishop Verga, secretary of the
Congregation of the Council:
15Letter, Rome, October 7, 1879. [Author]
16Letter, Rome, October 21, 1879. [Author]
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The Girls' Festive Oratory at Chieri
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For six months I have been weighed down by the burden of a suspension
enjoined upon me by the archbishop of Turin even though it is judged to
conflict with decrees repeatedly issued by the Holy See and to hinder
God's greater glory. During this time I submitted three appeals to the
Holy Father through your Sacred Congregation, but so far none has been
brought up for deliberation and I still cannot freely exercise my priestly
ministry, to the grave scandal of many poor souls. Hence, with a heavy yet
trusting heart I appeal to your well-known kindness and ask you kindly to
push for a definitive decision in this matter and thus free my soul from
such a painful state and bring this evil situation to an end. I write this letter
to Your Eminence with the consent of my revered superior, Father John
Bosco, and in his name I beg you, for the love of Jesus Christ, of Mary,
Help of Christians and of St. Francis de Sales, our dear patron saint, to be
so good as to send me a reply so that he and I may know how we stand.
The help he sought did not come because the Sacred
Congregation was awaiting a reply from the archbishop of Turin to
make its decision, and the archbishop was not replying. Father
Bonetti, therefore, thought up a new approach. On July 27 he
sought the advice of Attorney Leonori. He wrote:
My censure has aroused a grave suspicion that I might be guilty of
indecent conduct, especially since I was assigned to a girls' institute.
These days we are being battered by the sword of the government17 and
the cross of the archbishop's authority, and we are being slandered as
unworthy priests and betrayers of souls. It is a war too unjust and too
cruel, and I cannot see how the Holy See can any longer, on its part, allow
such a disgraceful situation to continue when it arouses the indignation of
upright people. If I am believed to be at fault I should be told, and if I fail
to prove my innocence I do not refuse to die. But ifl am not guilty, why am
I forced to undergo such protracted and undeserved punishment which
destroys my good name and that of my Congregation and causes such
serious scandal to the faithful?
He intended to take legal action and asked the attorney to act on
his behalf. While the attorney admitted that he preferred an out-of-
court decision and would strive for it, he stated that he was
nonetheless ready to defend him. 1B
17An allusion to the closing of the Oratory secondary school. [Author]
18Letter to Father Bonetti, Rome, July 31, 1879. [Author]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
Don Bosco's forbearance checked Father Bonetti's impatience,
and so the latter did not precipitate matters. However, he again
insisted with Archbishop Verga on August 20:
... Being refused a hearing by Archbishop Gastaldi, I have several
times, with my superior's permission, appealed to the Holy Father through
the Sacred Congregation of the Council, which repeatedly has asked the
archbishop for information and his opinion on the matter, but he neither
replies nor revokes my suspension. In the meantime, I am looked upon as
a priest in disgrace by my confreres, by the festive oratory I once used to
direct, by the people I have counseled, in Chieri, my own home town and
the entire archdiocese. The vicious rumors keep becoming more and more
credible since it is common knowledge that I have appealed to Rome and
after seven months have gotten nowhere.
He was, in a word, putting himself into the hands of Archbishop
Verga and through him into those of the Holy Father, hoping for a
reassuring answer which would put an end to his affliction.
August came to an end, September went by, and then it was mid-
October, and still nothing had happened, despite the anxious efforts
of Archbishop Verga and Attorney Leonori. Father Bonetti tried
again to obtain a hearing with the archbishop on October 15, but
while others were granted an audience, he was refused. There is no
hope to solve this problem here, he thought. Rome must intervene.
I'll try another peaceful solution. Since the archbishop refuses to
give me back faculties and refuses even to answer the Sacred
Congregation's repeated letters, can I not obtain faculties from
Rome to resume my priestly ministry until he has either sent his
reply or has cleared up the situation in some way?19 Hoping that
the Holy Father would take the matter into his own cognizance, he
drew up a fourth appeal, attaching to it the statements of the five
Chieri canons and a testimonial letter from Don Bosco, which read
as follows:
Turin, October 28, 1879
Father John Bosco, Superior of the Pious Salesian Society, certifies
that Father John Bonetti, a member of this Congregation, has always led a
19Letter to Attorney Leonori, October 24, 1879. [Author]
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The Girls' Festive Oratory at Chieri
185
virtuous and exemplary life as befits a good religious. He has distinguished
himself in the education of youth by his various writings and by directing
the junior seminary at Borgo San Martino, in the diocese of Casale, for a
period of twelve years. He has also been a successful preacher for spiritual
retreats, missions, triduums, novenas, and so on.
As director of the St. Theresa Festive Oratory in Chieri, he has
zealously labored at no small sacrifice in catechizing, hearing confessions
and instructing girls of poor families, drawing more than four hundred into
the festive oratory through the help, supervision and management of the
Daughters of Mary, Help of Christians. I affirm the above so that Father
Bonetti may put it to good use whenever necessary.
Father John Bosco
Father Bonetti sent the appeal to Cardinal Nina and asked him to
use his influence in presenting it to the Holy Father, adding:
This matter should have been put into Your Eminence's care from the
very beginning, but our Congregation had not yet been honored by your
appointment as our cardinal-protector, and so we tried other ways. I think
that this is the reason why everything is at a standstill. I wish to point out
that in my eagerness to settle this affair without bothering the Holy See,
several times, with my superior's permission, I requested an audience with
the archbishop of Turin, but he refused each time.20
Father Bonetti sent the appeal to Cardinal Nina through
Attorney Leonori, asking him to deliver it and to do all he could to
have the whole question resolved before the start of the novena of
the Immaculate Conception, which was the principal feast day of
the St. Theresa Festive Oratory. But his fourth appeal never got to
the Holy Father because Archbishop Verga and Attorney Leonori
judged it wiser to hold it up. It was going to take a great deal of time
to clear up this matter.
The year went by without a trace of a solution appearing
anywhere. Father Bonetti grieved more and more so that he had to
give vent to bitter remarks in his letters.
Let me assure you that I am suffering intensely-he wrote to Attorney
Leonori.21 I cannot for the life of me understand how within almost an
20Letter, October 24, 1879. [Author]
21 Letter, Turin, January 2, 1880. [Author]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
entire year the Sacred Congregation of the Council has not been able to
get Archbishop Gastaldi to state his reasons for acting contrary to the
prescriptions of the Holy See to the harm of a helpless· religious priest or
order him to revoke my suspension so that I may again hear confessions
freely as before and thus restore my reputation, so necessary to a priest. I
thank God that He has given me from my childhood a lofty esteem and
warmest love for the Holy See and all that appertains to it. Otherwise, I
should be in serious danger today, because, my distressful situation being
public knowledge, there is no lack of malcontents who would be only too
ready to advise and push me to scandalous action. However, with God's
help, I shall never cause the slightest scandal, even were I to die under
censure, reputed to be an unworthy religious. To avoid heaping any
unpleasantness upon our Holy Father and Don Bosco, I shall keep my
suffering to myself, satisfied that my innocence will be revealed on
judgment day. Still, I can't help wishing that I were relieved of this
extended punishment, not only so that I might work freely in the Church
under my superior's direction, but also so that I might preserve the good
name of the Salesian Congregation, to which I belong, and that of my
family which has been reviled and disgraced by this most unjust
punishment.
Father [Francis] Dalmazzo, newly-appointed procurator of the
Salesian Congregation in Rome, was also hard at work, doing all he
could for Father Bonetti, but everywhere he ran up against
arguments of prudence cautioning him to let time take its course.22
At last, on March 23, he was able to write to Father Bonetti:
"Today the Sacred Congregation of the Council is sending a real
ultimatum [to Archbishop Gastaldi], perhaps with this morning's
courier." It was not until June 28 that Archbishop Gastaldi replied
to the secretary of the said Congregation, only to assert that it was
not a matter of punishment, but only of a measure dictated by
prudence. We may well appreciate the disappointment that this
evasion caused Father Bonetti, but there was nothing he could do
except to let the summer go by and await the fall.
But well into the fall two incidents further complicated matters,
creating a pretext for two more charges. In early November 1880, a
Daughter of Mary, Help of Christians died at Chieri. No sooner
was the good sister interred than charges of a serious violation of
parish rights and canonical procedure went flying to the chancery.
22Letter of Father Dalmazzo to Father Bonetti, Rome, March 20, 1880. [Author]
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The Girls' Festive Oratory at Chieri
187
Canon [Emmanuel] Colomiatti, the chancery prosecutor, without
waiting for further details, summoned Father Rua immediately for
a hearing, giving him no hint of what it was all about. These were
the charges: two Salesian priests had given the dying sister the last
rites, taking Viaticum from the convent chapel and borrowing the
holy oils from the Jesuit house; then, at the funeral, they had
accompanied the deceased through the city streets to the cemetery.
Talcing that statement to be the truth, Father Rua offered the best
explanation he could, excusing the two priests as being "rather
inexperienced." Then he wrote to the archbishop, putting this same
explanation in writing. He closed as follows: "I humbly ask Your
Excellency's pardon for these two priests. If you feel I should, I am
ready to apologize to the local parish priest as well. If any
reimbursement is required for this violation of parish rights, at a
simple hint from you we shall do all that is needed. " 23
But imagine his astonishment when he later learned what had
really occurred! It was not two Salesian priests who had
administered the last rites to the dying sister, but Canon Matthew
Sona of Chieri. Nor had the two Salesians accompanied the bier to
the cemetery. After the funeral Mass the deceased was escorted to
the cemetery in pauper's style by a cortege of teenage girls. The fact
that the accusation had not been checked as to its truthfulness
served the archbishop quite well in presenting this distortion of
truth as proof that the Salesians never missed a chance to "offend
him and cause him displeasure."24
The second incident had to do with the issue itself, rather than
Chieri. Tired of being left in suspense for twenty-two months,
Father Bonetti, on November 17, 1880, sent directly to the Pope
his appeal of October 24, 1879, which Archbishop Verga had held
up. In it he declared that he was ready in advance to accept most
reverently whatever His Holiness would decide in his regard. The
effect was swift. Five days later, Cardinal Caterini, prefect of the
Congregation of the Council, instructed its secretary, Archbishop
Verga, to notify Father Bonetti that his appeal would be considered
in a full session of the eminent cardinals within one month.
Attorney Leonori, instructed to notify both parties to the dispute of
231,etter, November 7, 1880. [Author]
241,etter to the cardinals of the Sacred Congregation of the Council, Turin, December 5,
1880. [Author]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
the coming meeting, wrote to Don Bosco and enclosed a letter to
the archbishop with the request that he kindly deliver it without
delay. 25
Don Bosco received it while he was at the new novitiate in San
Benigno and immediately forwarded the letter addressed to the
archbishop, bearing the Sacred Congregation's seal, to the Oratory
with instructions that it be delivered without delay. Father Deppert
was entrusted with this task, and on December 3 he brought it to
the archbishop's residence. Catching sight of the archbishop, he
asked to speak with him, but was denied. He then called on the
chancellor, Canon Chiuso, stating that he had a letter from Rome
for the archbishop and politely requesting a receipt certifying
delivery. The chancellor indignantly turned him down. Father
Deppert then went to the chancellor's secretary, Father Como,
who treated him likewise. He pointed out that the letter was not
from Don Bosco but from a Roman Congregation whose seal it
bore; he also reminded him that, just a few months before, the
archbishop had sent a messenger to deliver a similar letter from the
Congregation of Rites to Don Bosco, and his messenger had
requested and obtained a written receipt. Father Deppert might
well have spoken to a stone wall. Fearing possible repercussions,
he decided not to deliver the letter. Truly, a request for a receipt is
not only a simple matter, but normal procedure.
The next day Father Deppert returned to the chancery with
another Salesian and asked to deliver the letter personally to the
archbishop. He was refused. He left it with the secretary, telling
him, "I hope this letter reaches the archbishop. If it does not, my
confrere can witness that I performed my duty." The archbishop
held the letter for twenty-four hours and then returned it to Don
Bosco, who, after seeking advice from Rome, sent it back to the
archbishop with a courtesy note. As he had to go to Borgo San
Martino for the belated patronal feast of St. Charles, he wrote as
follows:
Your Excellency:
Turin, December 13, 1880
I must leave Turin for a few days, but before I do, I wish to expedite the
25Letter from Attorney Leonori to Don Bosco, November 29, 1880. [Author]
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The Girls' Festive Oratory at Chieri
189
distasteful case concerning Father Bonetti. Neither he nor I have any
further comment to add to what we have already stated to the Sacred
Congregation of the Council. The enclosed letter of that Congregation was
sent in a packet to me for delivery to Your Excellency, and this I am now
doing.
Assuring you that it has ever been a pleasure to do Your Excellency any
service, I am honored to remain,
Your most obedient servant,
Fr. John Bosco
Father Deppert delivered the letter but, as it bore Don Bosco's
return address, he did not ask for a receipt. The archbishop read
Don Bosco's note and then mailed it back to him with the Sacred
Congregation's letter without a single word of explanation.26
But he did offer an explanation to the members of the
Congregation of the Council. After giving his version of the entire
incident, he added, "I have been deeply humiliated and hurt by the
way I have been treated, especially in view of so many crosses with
which I must daily cope. I most earnestly beg this Sacred
Congregation to have the goodness not to send me any more letters
through this priest who, forgetting my zealous and tireless
cooperation-not disjointed from financial assistance-in putting
his Congregation on a solid footing between 1848 and 1867, now
keeps persecuting me and never neglects an opportunity to discredit
and aggravate me."27 However, Rome saw this just as being his
way of delaying a decision which inevitably had to be taken and
abided by.28
There are three sharply distinct phases in this conflict. There was
first the period of recrimination of Chieri's clergy against St.
Theresa's Festive Oratory, preceding the censure of suspension.
The second phase, that of the appeals from Turin to the Holy See,
ran from February 12, 1879, to November 17, 1880. The third will
stretch out through the entire period when the issue rested with the
Sacred Congregation of the Council. During the early part of the
second phase, soon after Father Bonetti's suspension, an
anonymous pamphlet (the author claimed to be a family man of
2sLetter from Father Deppert to Father Dalmazzo, Turin, December 18, 1880. [Author]
27Letter, December 5, 1880. [Author]
2~Letter from Father Dalmazzo to Don Bosco, December 21, 1880. [Author]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
Chieri) was printed by the Bruno Press of Turin, entitled:
L'Arcivescovo di Torino, Don Bosco e Don Oddenino ossia Fatti
buffi, serii e dolorosi raccontati da un Chierese [The Archbishop
of Turin, Don Bosco and Father Oddenino, or Some Comic,
Serious and Sorrowful Events Narrated by a Resident of Chieri].
The anonymous writer assumed a heavy-handed defense of Father
Bonetti, fiercely attacking Archbishop Gastaldi and the rector of
Chieri's cathedral. The Salesian superior chapter learned of this
publication on May 29 during their meeting. Immediately they
most forcefully protested the public and disgraceful mockery of the
archbishop's authority. In reality, the pamphlet was a meager thing,
meant to vex rather than to convince, and would never have been
cited were it not for the repercussions it caused during the legal
proceedings. Nevertheless the vicar forane, Father Lione, and the
cathedral rector, Father Oddenino, blamed Father Bonetti as the
author, formally submitting their charge against him to the
archbishop.29 Such polemical expedients are deplorable in them-
selves and result only in poisoning the whole issue irredeemably, as
we shall soon have occasion to see.
29Their respective letters to the archbishop, Chieri, December 9 and 13, 1880. [Author]
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CHAPTER 10
Conversion of a Young Jewess
THERE is little else to add about the Daughters of Mary,
Help of Christians that is strictly connected with Don Bosco's
biography for the rest of this year [1879], except for an incident in
which the underhanded complicity of evil-minded persons impli-
cated the Salesians and the Daughters of Mary, Help of Christians.
Mother Mazzarello, while accompanying the ten sisters who
were leaving for South America, met Don Bosco at Sampierdarena,
and together they made plans to put on a firm footing once and for
all the old motherhouse, now almost deserted, and the new one
which was now practically full. On January 3 [1880] Mother
Mazzarello left for Momese while Don Bosco went on to Alassio
on his way to France.
At Alassio Don Bosco assembled all the sisters and, before
discussing anything else, invited them, starting with their superior,
to tell him then and there about their meals, nightly rest, and other
needs. Then, after urging fidelity to their rules, he added, "As for
work, yes, go ahead and work, but don't overdo it. Don't shorten
your life by privations or excessive toil or depression or such other
nuisances." He saw them again, but not on a stopover, on his return
from France, when he held the directors' conference in their
convent. He then received the sisters individually and, with fatherly
concern, set up a schedule that would allow time for rest and
relaxation in their garden, and for whatever else would keep them
happy and content. Once, while escorting a parish priest through
the dining room, he saw Sister Succetti tidying up the room. "Oh,
here is Martha!" he exclaimed. "Ah, Martha, Martha!" He alluded
to the Gospel in such a tone as to make a deep impression on the
sister's mind and ever afterward help her to keep recollected in God
while doing her routine chores.
191
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
The transfer of the sisters' motherhouse from Momese to Nizza
Monferrato took place at the beginning of February. Leaving that
haven of fond memories was a painful sacrifice for Mother
Mazzarello. Only obedience could tear her away from the place
where she had learned to love and serve the Lord, and which she
had been certain she would never leave until the moment came for
her to exchange earth for heaven.
There were only three new foundations in 1879: one at
Cascinetta near lvrea and two in South America-at San Carlos
School in Almagro [a suburb of Buenos Aires] and at Las Piedras
in Uruguay. Concerning new foundations, Don Bosco gave Mother
Mazzarello this norm: "For the moment, you may accept
kindergartens, but always with the condition that you open also a
festive oratory and a dressmaking shop for girls of the working
classes."
As regards Las Piedras, we have a letter showing us how closely
attuned Mother Mazzarello was with Don Bosco's ideas of dealing
with one's subjects. The sisters' small community, formed as well
as possible with the available personnel, was somewhat ill at ease,
and so Mother Mazzarello wrote to the local superior: 1
I am sorry that our new house at Las Piedras is not doing very well.
Sister Joan is too young and not steady enough yet to be acting superior.
But have no fear. Be convinced that shortcomings will always be there,
and so we must correct and remedy all we can, but calmly, leaving the rest
in God's hands. Then, too, we are not to be too concerned about trifles.
Too often we fret over minor things and overlook big ones. By this I don't
at all mean that you should ignore little faults. Always correct and
admonish, but in your heart be understanding and kind with all the sisters.
We must study their natural inclinations and put them to good use; we
must win their trust. Be patient with Sister Victoria; train her gradually in
the spirit of our Congregation. She has been too short a time at Momese to
have absorbed it. I believe that if you handle her carefully, she will do
well. So too with the others. They all have their faults; we must admonish
them charitably, but we cannot expect them to be without faults or to
correct them overnight. That is not possible. It can be achieved little by
little by prayer, patience and watchfulness. Put your trust in Jesus, confide
all your worries to His heart, let Him take over, and He will straighten
1Letter to Sister Angelina Vallese, Nizza, July 22, 1879. [Author]
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Conversion of a Young Jewess
193
everything out. Be always cheerful and optimistic. When you do not know
what to do, ask Sister Magdalene,2 do whatever she tells you, and put
aside all worries. Besides, you have a kind director, so you need not be
anxious. Be sure to obey him. You tell me that you have a lot of work, and
I rejoice, because work begets virtue. When we are busy, all whims vanish
and we are happy. While I encourage you to work, and to work only to
please Jesus, not for earthly motives, I also urge you to take care of your
health. I would like each of you to instill into all hearts love of sacrifice,
self-contempt and detachment from one's own will. We became sisters in
order to be assured of paradise, but sacrifices must be made to earn it. Let
us bear our cross bravely, and one day we will all be happy.
Mother General's letter had probably just arrived when Father
Costamagna3 wrote to Don Bosco after preaching a mission at Las
Piedras:
I could never have believed that the Daughters of Mary, Help of
Christians could be so helpful on a mission. I can safely say that we could
never have accomplished so much good among the women and girls
without the sisters' help. Crowds ofwomenjoined the catechism classes of
the girls and hung on every word of the sisters, just as they had done with
the preacher. Attendance at the mission grew day by day, and during the
last four days the vast church was packed. We sent for Father Rizzo and
other priests from Montevideo, and all heard confessions from morning to
very late at night. Every now and then a young man or woman-eighteen,
twenty or older-would come. They had never been to confession before
and knew nothing at all of the elements of our faith. How could we have
gotten anywhere without the catechists' help. While we sat enclosed in the
confessional, the clerics Rota, Chiara and Baccigalupi and four sisters
were continually instructing the young penitents but a few steps away and
sending them to us so well prepared that many of them confessed their sins
in tears.4
Don Bosco went to Nizza twice. His first visit was on the feast of
the Assumption, at the close of the sisters' spiritual retreat, when
religious profession was made. The keepsakes he gave them
centered on prayer, work, humility, seclusion, and sacrifice solely
for God and for souls and in imitation of our heavenly Mother so as
2 Sister Magdalene Martini, provincial. See Vol. XIII, pp. 155, 611. [Editor]
3 See Appendix 1. [Editor]
4Letter, Buenos Aires, August 19, 1879. [Author]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
to share more abundantly Her heavenly glory. He returned on
August 21 for the ladies' retreat. The chronicle records one of his
"Good Nights."
There are wealthy, devout, generous people who leave a portion oftheir
wealth after death to works of mercy. This is a good and holy thing. But
remember that the Gospel does not say, "Give what is over and above
your needs to the poor when you die," but rather, "Give what you don't
need to the poor." This is quite different.
He also spoke separately to the superiors and the sisters. To the
superiors he made the recommendation: "You have ample grounds
here and no close neighbors. Give the young sisters opportunities to
exercise with some light work in the garden and vineyard. It will do
them good." His fatherly advice to the whole community was:
"Write to your parents. Don't let them worry by a prolonged
silence. This hurts both you and them and discourages many
vocations. If your families hear from you often, they will be glad
that they offered you to Our Lord. They will benefit spiritually from
your words and pass your letters on to friends and acquaintances,
who will more gladly let their daughters become sisters."
He tells of this retreat in a letter to Countess [Gabrielle] Corsi.
Monsignor [Anthony] Belasio, who is mentioned in the letter, had
given the retreat. "La Bruna," as the farmhouse which had been
bequeathed to the sisters was called, stood atop the little hill where
they later built their novitiate.
My dear, kind Mamma:
Nizza, August 27, 1879
I write from the shrine of Our Lady of Grace, where some one hundred
women made an excellent spiritual retreat. All the sisters and their pupils
took off for "La Bruna." The devotion, piety and happiness which shone
from everyone defies description. We missed our Mamma Corsi, but we
talked a great deal about you and prayed for you. What's more, I said
Mass for your intentions on one day, and the retreatants offered their Holy
Communions and special prayers that God would grant you and your
family good health, and shield your little children from the illnesses
plaguing this area. But you must really try to come sometime, for I am sure
you will love it. Please ask Count Caesar and Countess Mary to forget
about coming to Nizza this year. The diphtheria epidemic has abated, but
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some cases linger here and there. Smallpox, too, is becoming more and
more alarming, claiming six victims only last week. As of now there are
twenty-five cases of smallpox, twelve of them in St. Hippolytus' parish.
Last Sunday and Monday the bishop came to administer confirmation in
St. John's Church. To avoid problems with the health authorities he spent
two hours only in each of two churches. In the evening a new preacher
substituted for Monsignor Belasio. Guess who? Don Bosco himself.
Father Cagliero and Father Lemoyne are here too, both exhausted.
Tomorrow they start a second retreat for the sisters.
I don't know whether I shall have time to see grandmother because I am
deluged with work. All ask to be remembered to you-the sisters and
preachers, Mr. Rosaligno who is also with us, and everyone. God bless
you and your family. Please pray for me.
Yours affectionately,
Fr. John Bosco
P.S. This evening I leave for Turin.
The problems afflicting Chieri, which caused all the neighboring
sisters to grieve in silence, did not affect the girls' attendance at St.
Theresa's Festive Oratory, nor did it weaken the enthusiasm of the
sisters who looked after them under the expert direction of Father
Anthony Notario, whom Don Bosco had sent to substitute for
Father Bonetti during the latter's suspension. The Sunday school
contributed a tone of its own to the festive oratory. Hundreds of
girls and young women were working in Chieri's textile mills; many
of them, unable to attend elementary school, were illiterate-a
serious drawback even in those days. Hoping to change this
situation, Don Bosco arranged for the sisters to conduct free classes
on Sundays between ten and twelve noon. Over a hundred girls,
nine to fifteen, and some forty older girls divided into three groups
according to age and learning attended these classes.5 Had anyone
entered the oratory on a Sunday and seen the girls' fervent piety
and their wide range of scholastic and recreational activities under
the nuns' supervision, it would immediately have become clear to
him why the enemy of good fought so fiercely against them.
Also at Lu, the local petty politicians scowled at the sisters. A
dispatch to a Turin newspaper in F ebruary6 vehemently remonstrated
5See Bollettino Salesiano, January 1879. [Author]
6 La Nuova Torino, March 7, 1879. [Author]
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TIIE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
that "such a place as Lu" should witness such extreme tolerance in
the "brazen partnership between a notorious reactionary like Don
Bosco and a pro-clerical mayor.'' It denounced to the world at large
"a state of affairs fatal to the social progress of this outstanding
village of Monferrato.'' All this evil, it claimed, stemmed from the
fact that Don Bosco, "thanks to the overwhelming blindness of
those who should have taken preventive measures," had opened a
convent there, "and through those sisters" strove to achieve
"complete control" [of the village]. This gave the "Bosconians"
license to preach "bigotry, a virus which inevitably will destroy
domestic and social peace." The parish priest too was blasted
because, while he "made a show of liberalism," he took part in
some shadowy "Jesuitical gatherings with the mayor and his
assessors.'' Finally, the dispatch appealed to both the people of Lu
and to the local civil authorities who were "responsible for such a
deplorable situation to avail themselves of the "formidable
weapon" of the ballot in future elections to rid themselves of such
individuals. But the populace and the authorities turned a deaf ear
to those outcries-so deaf in fact, that the beneficial work of the
Daughters of Mary, Help of Christians at Lu has never known
interruption to this present day [1933].
On June 1 a more serious attack threatened the peace of the
motherhouse. The community was in a festive mood because the
postulants were about to receive the religious habit, blessed by
Father Cagliero. Around 11:30 that Sunday morning, after the
solemn high Mass, Father [Stephen] Chicco, the director, was
unexpectedly called to the waiting room to face the underprefect of
Acqui and the vice-mayor of Nizza. The government official asked
Father Chicco whether it was true that a group of spinsters were to
be vested with the religious habit. His affirmative answer prompted
the question whether the young women were acting freely, under no
enticement or pressure. We may well imagine how Father Chicco,
partly stunned and half suspicious, reassured them as to their
freedom. By no means satisfied with his answer, the underprefect
demanded to see the young women and question them.
At this point, Father Cagliero, who was present but had till then
kept silent, intervened as director general of the sisters. Had the
underprefect come as an official or as a friend? Ifhe was conducting
a formal investigation, he had better produce a warrant. A long
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Conversion of a Young Jewess
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argument followed during which Father Cagliero kept demanding
to know by what authority an underprefect could investigate a
private institution concerning unmarried women who wished to
become nuns. After all, the convent was a private residence, the
young women were legally free by age, and those who were not had
their parents' permission. So, he firmly told the official, he was not
about to yield except under threat of force, and then in the presence
of witnesses and with a formal, written protest against this violation
of privacy. However, he added, though he would never tolerate the
underprefect's investigation as a government official, he was ready
to satisfy his every wish if he acted as a friend. The vice-mayor
fretted and fumed, harshly inveighing against the laws which had
not adequately provided for the suppression of religious institutes.
The underprefect, bidding him to keep silent, realized that he had
taken a wrong tack and stated that he had come as a private citizen.
"I am Germaine Magliani," he said. "Fine," Father Cagliero
exclaimed. "Now I will fetch Mary Terzano, our only minor."
A new problem arose. Magliani wanted to interview her privately
for greater freedom, but Father Cagliero pointed out very
respectfully that since her father was not present, he was taking his
place for propriety, if for no other reason. The young postulant
came and, as a pure formality, the underprefect asked her very brief
questions to which she gave suitable replies. After she left, the
underprefect admitted that he had come especially for her, so that
he might have grounds for action against her father, who, it was
rumored, had induced her to take the veil for financial reasons.
These allegations, however, were no more than spiteful rumors
begun by evil-minded people. Father Cagliero then took the
underprefect through the dining room, where the sisters were seated
at table, and the dormitories. The official expressed his deep
satisfaction and with extreme courtesy took leave of Father
Cagliero, who reciprocated just as cordially, explaining that his
former resistance was required by his duty.
The visitor then strode to the coach outside the gate, entered it
and in a huff ordered the coachman to speed off, not without first a
look of scorn on a group of men who had been on the watch for
quite a different outcome. Among them was the district attorney of
Acqui, a few carabinieri, and several townsmen. Once they realized
that nothing was going to happen, they broke up disappointedly,
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1HE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
following the road so speedily taken by the underprefect. The vice-
mayor's hostile attitude clearly showed the motive of that visit, but
the whole truth came out shortly afterward. The local anticlericals,
annoyed by the presence of so many nuns, and even more at the
ease with which they won followers, had hatched their little plot in
the hope of foiling the sisters' plans and gradually forcing the
unwelcome newcomers out. But this time all they got was derision
and failure because, apart from the expense of staging the show,
they had to swallow the ridicule of most of the townsfolk.
However, another full-fledged storm was in the offtng in Nizza.
Whether or not this hostility had been coordinated, the coincidence
of time, place and target is certainly striking. On that same June 1,
the newspaper which had published the dispatch from Lu regaled
its readers with an anticlerical article coming in from Nizza itself.7
Under the sensational title, "Clerical Infamies," the short article
gave a further proof of the close watch that the anticlericals kept on
Don Bosco and of the schemes they cooked up to destroy him. The
article ran as follows:
We know that politicians are busily trying to unravel the murky clerical
plot which suddenly drew a lovely maiden of Nizza Monferrato to leave
her parents, enter the convent and ship out to Turin. On fleeing her home,
she left a letter for her parents, declaring that she would never give up her
faith-she is Jewish-and that she would never in any way sully her
family honor. One of her relatives has just arrived in Turin to ask city
officials to help find out where the girl is being held and wrest her from the
clutches of this black-garbed gang. Throughout this whole affair the name
of a notorious black-garbed man of our city keeps coming up, and this
makes us suspect that the whole escapade can be traced to the crooked
schemes of the accomplices of this influential reactionary agitator. And
here we are, living in the nineteenth century when cloistered orders are
abolished by law! Once this plot has been fully disclosed, we shall duly
inform our readers.
However, this boastful newspaper had no chance to shed light on
the matter nor to keep its readers informed, for it died that same
day. Bees, too, die when they sting!
Let us first retrace what precisely had happened. Some very
7La Nuova Torino, N. 152, June 1, 1879. [Author]
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Conversion of a Young Jewess
199
wealthy Jews of Alessandria had forced a woman relative of theirs
to marry a fairly rich shoe store owner of Nizza so as to keep her
from doing as she wished and converting to Christianity. Twenty-
three years later the pious desire of this woman became the firm
resolve of her daughter, Anita Bedarida, who then entered the
limelight for a brief moment. For two years she had been secretly
yearning to be baptized, and when the Daughters of Mary, Help of
Christians came to Nizza, her desire gradually led her to them. She
had originally been introduced to the sisters' festive oratory by
friends, but thereafter she continued to visit the sisters on her own,
sharing her hopes with them. The memory of her mother, under
whose pillow her relatives had found a catechism immediately after
her death, drove her to take a decisive step. Realizing that if she
stayed at home she would never go through with her purpose, she
planned to run away. One evening she went to the convent of Our
Lady of Grace, begging the sisters not to refuse her their hospitality
because she had no intention of returning home. The sisters were
deeply moved, and, feeling that it was their duty to help her, agreed
to a plan with her. They consulted the parish priest, but the latter
wisely washed his hands of the entire matter. A friendly family then
lent them their coach, and Anita Bedarida, accompanied by two
sisters, rode to Incisa, where they boarded a train for Turin. It
would have been unwise to take a train at Nizza because her
relatives might easily have gotten wind of it. In Turin her two
companions introduced her to the sisters at Valdocco, who
affectionately welcomed her and made it easy for her to take
instructions in the Catholic faith.
As soon as her relatives discovered her absence, they raised an
uproar, mobilized the Jewish community in Turin and informed the
press. And so it came about that the dying Turin newspaper gave its
last gasp in echoing their outcry. But the hoped-for quick results
never came. For the next three months the young Jewish woman
lived peacefully with the sisters, even walking out on the streets of
Turin without being disturbed. Naturally, her family immediately
set about searching for her hideout, and when they found it they
reported her escape to the police as an act of violence ordered by
Don Bosco, pressing charges against him. However, since the
young lady was of age, the police were slow to take action. Some
days after her arrival at Valdocco, a police inspector had indeed
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
called on her and questioned her, but she told him that she had
freely requested the hospitality of the Daughters of Mary, Help of
Christians and intended to stay there and prepare for her baptism.
Consequently, the authorities backed down. Relatives and even her
father called on her. She reassured him of her filial love, and they
gave her no trouble for about three months.
Having been sufficiently instructed in Christian doctrine, the
young Jewish woman now hoped to be baptized on June 24 or
August 15 at the latest. Countess Balbo was to be her godmother.
Father Cagliero who was instructing her, and Father Bonetti, her
spiritual director, suggested that she delay so as to be better
prepared for the great step.
The calm, however, was only forerunner to the storm. [The
relatives'] frustrated hopes turned into fury, prompting them to
strike out at her weakest spot, her love for her father, and then to
rouse public opinion and prepare the way for a vigorous
intervention by the civil authorities.8
On August 25 one of her brothers came to see her, remaining
closeted with her several hours-five, according to hearsay. He
was accompanied by a rabbi's son, said to be Anita's fiance, but he
kept to himself and appeared again only when his friend was about
to leave. The poor girl weakened during the long interview. Her
brother's tears as he kept begging her to return home deeply
touched her, and her heart betrayed her. Aware that this was the
right moment, her brother put paper and pen before her and
dictated a few lines for her to write for the authorities, asking them
to rescue her as though she were being kept there forcibly. She
8This narration is mainly based on two documents: a letter signed by Anita Bedarlda
herself (Unita Cattolica, No. 209, September 7, 1879) and another letter from Father
Bonetti to the Department of the Interior. The copy of Anita's letter bears her own signature,
but the letter itself is in another hand. It contains also this declaration signed by three
witnesses: "The undersigned herewith certify that in their presence, Miss Anita Bedarlda
read this letter and had it read aloud to her, confirming that it expressed her thoughts and
feelings. Therefore she gave it her full approval and freely signed it." The letter had been
drafted by another, perhaps Father Bonetti, and hence this declaration. The second
document is a letter from Father Bonetti, who wrote in Don Bosco's name. It is headed by a
notation: "Attorney Caucino read and approved this. Will Don Bosco also approve it? Ifso,
would he please sign two sheets of paper like this one-one to be sent to Villa and the other to
Vare?" Vare was the minister ofjustice; Villa was an attorney. Don Bosco wrote beside it:
''Unadvisable for many reasons." We also have two other documents in longhand: a lengthy
paper by Attorney De Gregori, and one still longer by Father Bonetti. Though overblown,
they do contain some reliable information. [Author]
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Conversion of a Young Jewess
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wrote mechanically, though not entirely unaware of doing wrong,
and left the paper with him, giving no thought to the consequences.
Alone for a few minutes, she realized her blunder and, shortly
afterward, in the presence of her brother and two witnesses,
retracted her statement. Furthermore, although she had promised
to leave with her brother to please him, she now refused to do so,
having determined that she needed more time to think things over
seriously. Indignant and bent on violence, her brother left with his
companion.
Fearing retaliations, the young woman thwarted his plans by
moving the next morning to the home of a kind lady not far from the
Oratory. Hardly had she left the convent when her brother, a cousin
and a friend of theirs turned up looking for her. Upon learning that
she was no longer there, they went away fuming with anger. On the
morning of August 27 the district attorney called at the Oratory.
Shortly afterward the young woman came and, after telling him that
she freely wanted to remain where she was, pleaded with him to
protect her personal freedom. A written account of the interview
was taken and she signed it. The district attorney then left, utterly
convinced that there was not even a shadow of coercion.
The matter now appeared to be solved, but it was only the
beginning. In its issue of September 1 the Gazzetta def Popolo fed
its readers a dispatch from Nizza Monferrato, describing the
occurrence like a tale from The Thousand and One Arabian
Nights. The deception was already apparent in the title, "Story of a
Maiden Taking the Veil," as though a young woman could be
forced to take the veil, especially when she was not even baptized.
One absurd detail, lapped up and reported very indignantly by
other journalists, went as follows:
Since the young woman seemed not entirely convinced of the faith they
were trying to force her into, they even got someone to come up with a
short drama entitled, "The Jewess Converted," in which the unlucky lady
was subjected to threats of dire punishments. She was repeatedly made to
watch the play, sitting by a priest who would scowl at her and sharply
reprimand her if she ever let herself be overcome and break into tears over
her parents' grief and that of her relatives....
In all reality this drama was but a travesty of a very well known
school play staged by the sisters some time before Anita's flight
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
from home, and Anita was sorry that she had not left a week earlier
so as to be able to play the part of the Jewess. It goes without saying
that the Nizza correspondent made a great fuss about Anita's
statement which had been forced from her, as we have already
described. The Gazzetta def Popolo, after reporting the vicious
Nizza dispatch, urged authorities to exert the law's fullest force
against Don Bosco, and it dragged politics into the case in an effort
to rekindle the furor that had raged in 1852 in the case of the child
[Edgar] Mortara.9
Religious orders have been outlawed [the paper stated]. So why are they
still allowed to have convents and monasteries and to keep undermining
family freedom and peace? Did the left wing come to power to view such
scandals and leave them unpunished? Italy had its male Mortara, though
at that time this infamous deed was understandably carried out by the
Pope's jailers. Now are we, under a liberal Italian government with a left-
wing cabinet, to have a female Mortara?
The prefect of Turin, the same Minghelli Vaini whom our readers
know,10 was quite receptive to the crystal-gazers of the Gazzetta
def Popolo. Promptly in the early hours of September 3, a squad of
plainclothesmen and uniformed police surrounded the house where
9 See Vol. VIII, pp. 268f and Pelczar, Pio IX e ii suo Pontificato [Pius IX and His
Pontificate], Vol, II, pp. 195ff, Torino, Berruti, 1910. Edgar Mortara [1851-1940] was a
priest of the Canons Regular of the Lateran. He was the object of abuse by enemies of the
Church who posed as champions of freedom of conscience. On July 7, 1879 his name was
cited by Madiez de Montjau, deputy of the French Assembly, in his diatribe against
Catholics demanding the freedom granted everyone under the law. Father Mortara replied in
an indignant letter published in Univers and again in Unita Cattolica on July 17, 1879.
Among other things he stated: "A Catholic in principle and by conviction, I am ready to
withstand your attacks and defend the Catholic Church even at the price of my blood. I
affirm that your words are a grave insult to my honor and my conscience, forcing me to make
this public protest." But Mortara was not a convert [from Judaism]. Though born of Jewish
parents, he had been baptized at the age oftwo at the point of death by a Christian housemaid
and thus, on recovery, was a member of the Catholic Church. Consequently, the Church had
both the right and the duty to give him religious instruction in keeping with his baptism. The
outcry which stirred an uproar in Europe and America had been raised by the synagogue at
Alessandria della Paglia. Jewish, Masonic, Protestant and schismatic newspapers-which
had been silent when Czar Nicholas wrested thousands of Catholic children from their
mothers and reared them in his own schismatic beliefs-now raged against Pius IX, the
intolerance of the Roman Church and the violation of parental authority. Our archives
contain a letter from Father Mortara to Don Bosco, dated [October 10] 1880, which clearly
shows the intensity of his inner joy at having been reborn to grace in the waters of baptism
and his fondness for Don Bosco. [Author]
10See pp. 109f, 154. [Editor]
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Conversion of a Young Jewess
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Anita Bedarida was a guest and hammered on the door as if to force
it open. It was all in vain, but the noise awoke the Jewish girl who
was terrified and went into convulsions. The vast display of force
and the consequent wild rumors soon attracted a huge crowd who
came to watch what promised to be an imminent assault on the
house. Toward nine o'clock, the prefect of the province and the
district attorney arrived at the Oratory by coach and asked to speak
with Don Bosco. He arrived in some ten minutes, having just
finished hearing the last of his penitents. The prefect's greeting was
a reprimand for making him wait so long, and on the spot he bluntly
asserted his suspicion that he had rushed to coach the young
woman on what to say. Don Bosco silently pointed to the house
where the girl was staying, hardly a stone's throw from the Oratory.
All in a huff the prefect hurried over. Once the young woman stood
before him, he rejected all witnesses but the district attorney. The
girl did not panic, but, collecting her wits as best she could, she
remarked that she had already gone through two similar
interrogations and saw no reason for a third. The prefect, expecting
to be greeted as a savior, was very bitterly disappointed, but in the
presence of the district attorney he had to control himself. The
young woman told the two officials that she was there of her own
free will, that at no time had she been coerced into staying, and that
her written statement of a week before had been wrested from her
by her brother without her foreseeing its consequences. They sent
for her father, brother and sister, and a long parley followed during
which the prefect expressed the hope that the girl would return
home and put an end to her family's grief. The district attorney,
however, very calmly declared that she was no longer a minor and
had the legal right to choose her religion as she saw fit.
The prefect, nevertheless, was not going to let go of his role of
rescuing her from the nuns. Her reiterated protests that she had
never been coerced and was not now being coerced in any way fell
on deaf ears. He kept cudgeling his brains to find some words to
persuade her that she would do better to leave and seek hospitality
in some other kind of institution. Evidently the Jewish community
had found the right man they needed.
"I know of no other institute than that of Don Bosco's sisters,"
she objected.
"I will take care to find a suitable one for you," the prefect
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
assured her. "Try the home for the Daughters of Soldiers."
"Why should I move?" she remonstrated. "I am no longer
residing with the sisters, and there is no reason to assume that their
counsel makes me want to become a Christian."
"Yes, but here you are, still living with people closely related to
Don Bosco's institute. And your lodging is not befitting your social
position either. I can readily find you a place far more comfortable
than this. And your relatives agree with me, don't they?"
"Yes, certainly! I am ready to pay whatever it may cost," her
father replied.
''Very well, then. I will find a place and inform her as soon as it is
ready."
The police remained to guard the house until the next morning.
Fearing that they would be waiting to seize her should she set foot
outside the house, the young woman remained closeted indoors and
wrote an indignant note to the prefect:
Thank you for your anxiety on my behalf, but let it be understood that I
intend to enjoy my freedom to remain where I am and that I claim my right
in the name of the law. I declare that I have no wish to leave this house. I
also protest the presence of a police guard as if I were under house arrest.
Efforts are being made to make it look as though I were a victim of priests
and nuns; yet I am really the victim of other people, who are acting under
the pretext of freedom. If I should no longer desire to remain here, I am
perfectly capable of moving to some other location more to my taste,
without having anyone else decide for me. I was free and able to find this
house, I can still do so, and I intend to retain my full freedom of action. I
trust that you will kindly order the police to withdraw from here. It is a
disgrace to be treated in such a way, when I am an innocent, free citizen
and no longer a minor.
But the prefect, under the false pretext of protecting her personal
freedom from imaginary attacks by Don Bosco, kept up this state of
siege for five days, arousing among her neighbors suspicion of
puzzling crimes presumably committed by Anita and others. At
night the police carefully watched every passerby, lest their prey
might escape disguised as a man. Some guards were also guilty of
defamation against Don Bosco by alleging that he wanted to force
the Jewish girl to become a nun so that he could lay hands on her
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Conversion of a Young Jewess
205
money;11 others, more shamelessly, said far worse things. This was
confirmed by neighbors who watched their children lest they should
go near those foul-mouthed guardians of the law. The morbid
curiosity of the crowd was sharpened by a booklet of catchy ballads
and ribald tales salaciously concocted to resemble what had
happened to Anita. The heroine bore the romantic and tear-jerking
name of "The Hapless Esmeralda."12
Father Bonetti had quickly rebutted the libelous accusations of
the Gazzetta def Popofo. In a letter to the editor on September 2 he
proved that the young Jewess had come to the convent of the
Daughters of Mary, Help of Christians of her own free will, was
willfully there, and was free to leave at any time. But the Gazzetta
def Popofo published his letter only on September 4, adding
"remarks" of its own to invalidate the rebuttal.
Now events followed at a faster pitch. Twice more the district
attorney returned to visit the girl, during the morning and afternoon
of September 6, advising-or rather begging-her to accept the
prefect's suggestion of moving somewhere else. She finally agreed,
but-to her credit-we must point out that she yielded only when
the prefect made her understand that if she did not give in, Don
Bosco and his Congregation would pay dearly for it. Having thus
prevailed over her, on September 7 the prefect sent her the
following letter:
I have the honor to inform you that the mistress of the Ferraris Institute,
at 10-A St. Francis of Paola Street, will welcome you at whatever hour
you wish to call at her second floor apartment. On the door you will find a
brass plate with the inscription Ferraris Institute. There you will be
absolutely free to make up your mind. The mistress has orders to second
your wishes and also to escort you to a villa which she rents out in the
vicinity of the Madonna of the Pillar, should you wish to breathe some
country air. Your parents will pay all expenses for room and board and
whatever else you wish, as befits the standing of your distingished family.
Dear mademoiselle, whether you wish to remain in the faith of your
parents or become a Catholic, you are absolutely free to decide your
11It was later known that Anita Bedarida's wealth amounted to fifteen or twenty thousand
lire at the most, no great sum indeed. [Author]
12 Un Ebrea monaca perforza [A Jewish Maiden Forced To Become a Nun], Ronchetti
Publisher, Turin. [Author]
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TIIE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
future. I shall do my very best in order that, in all conscience, you may
persuade yourself and others that the prefect of Turin, or, I had better say,
the king's government, which he represents, neither sought nor did
anything whatsoever other than leave you utterly free to follow your
vocation, becoming a Catholic or remaining in the faith in which you were
born. Should you want for anything, or should it seem to you that the
hospitality of the Ferraris Institute does not quite measure up to what I
promised, please let me know and I'll give orders that your freedom of
action be fully respected.
In the meantime, however, he was depriving her of her freedom
to remain where she was. Before leaving, the young woman handed
over this statement written in her own hand to a trustworthy person.
The statement is now in our archives.
I, the undersigned, in the presence of witnesses who are co-signing this
statement, declare that I am leaving this house at 31 Cottolengo Street not
because I have been pressed or am now being pressed to become a
Christian, but solely in compliance with advice given me by the district
attorney who asked me to do so in order to prevent troubles and insults to
my benefactors who have helped me so generously.
On September 7 she entered a boarding house for young student
teachers conducted by Mrs. Ferraris, a close friend of the prefect
and a fan ofthe Gazzetta del Popolo. As soon as Mrs. Ferraris met
Anita, she suggested that the girl should let no one fill her head with
fanatical ideas. The following morning her brother was introduced
into her bedroom, but on awakening and seeing him she drove him
away indignantly. On September 10 a doctor, falsely claiming to
have been sent by Father Cagliero, tried to speak with her, but she
became suspicious and refused to see him. The same day her self-
styled fiance, accompanied by her brother, asked the mistress for
leave to visit her, but she turned his request down.
The moves were no more than snares, but when these failed,
recourse was had to slander. When for eight days Anita refused to
see anyone who might try to weaken her determination, the matron
did not hesitate to ridicule her as a visionary and circulate rumors
that "Anita had very seriously told her that she had seen God as a
handsome old man with a long white beard, offering her advice and
suggestions." The Gazzetta del Popolo reported it and other
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Conversion of a Young Jewess
207
newspapers followed suit. 13 But the matron had another card to
play. Before entering the Ferraris Institute, Anita had a chance to
speak with Attorney Caucino, a laywer of Biella very much feared
by anticlericals for his successful defense of the clergy in lawsuits,
and had asked his help. The lawyer called on her at her new
residence and made a second appointment, but Mrs. Ferraris
convinced Anita that it had been Caucino who had labeled her a
visionary and a fanatic. She became so incensed that she vowed
never to see him again, thus placing herself at the mercy of her
enemies. One day, in the presence of another woman, the matron,
trying to impress upon Anita that her parents were right to forbid
her deserting her faith, asked the visitor: "How would you feel if
you had a daughter who wanted to become a Protestant? Would
you not do your utmost to stop her?"
Anita's family forbade her to have any contact at all with the
Salesians or sisters for at least two weeks, but, fed up with those
endless vexations, she refused to wait any longer. From a letter
written to her by Father Bonetti on September 18 we can imply that
she had by then made up her mind to return to Nizza. "It is a
comfort to know that you are persevering in your good intention to
receive the sacrament of baptism," he wrote.
On September 18, the very day Anita left for Nizza, a flyer
entitled "Defeat Faces Don Bosco, Father Margotti and Attorney
Caucino" and a retouched, repulsive woodcut of Don Bosco were
widely distributed throughout the town to hail this sour victory.
According to police reports, Jewish wrath had risen to such heights
that the Oratory had to keep a twenty-four-hour watch to guard
human life. What a fanfare was made to celebrate such a meager
victory!
In the Cronaca dei Tribunali, Attorney Giustina, the editor,
prodded the district attorney to prosecute, but nothing came of it,
for the city officials realized that no crime had been committed, and
that the newspaper's charges were vicious slanders.
L 'Unita Cattolica immediately issued another handbill publishing
three documents previously released separately: Anita Bedarida's
letter to the editor [of the Cronaca dei Tribunali], her letter to the
13La Gazzetta de! Popolo, September 13 and 15. The other newspapers, especially the
Cronaca dei Tribunali, took up the cue from it. [Author]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
prefect which we have already reported, and a telegram she had
sent to the Department of the Interior in protest against persons
who "were meddling in matters of her own conscience."
This was the only time that Unita Cattolica intervened, and it
was at the peak of the controversy. Such reserve was certainly in
deference to Don Bosco's natural inclination. Once he stated his
case in a calm overview of the facts, he would shy from polemics.
Had people listened to him in this particular controversy, it would
promptly have died down. From the start he felt that it would have
been wiser to hasten her baptism. "Once she is baptized," he had
said, "all will blow over." In fact, Anita's brother, believing that
she had already been baptized when he first visited her, seemed to
take it in stride. However, Father Cagliero had thought it better to
proceed slowly. It was then that Anita's brother, realizing his error,
kicked up that uproar. In conclusion, this controversy was more
than an ill wind that blew no good. Through the Jews, many good
Christians came to know of the Daughters of Mary, Help of
Christians and of their motherhouse at Nizza Monferrato.
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CHAPTER 11
Salesian Missionaries in Patagonia
110 missionary expeditions took place in 1879. While in
South America the Salesians felt that the moment of affirmation of
their missionary apostolate was fast approaching, Don Bosco
exerted every effort of his own to win canonical recognition for his
missions. His initial efforts while Pius IX was Pope had brought
but meager results; he now broadened his objectives. His first step
was to acquaint Leo XIII of his mission endeavors in Europe,
namely, the contribution he was making by training apostles for his
own and other missions. However, he chose to embody this in a
petition for financial help from the two largest mission aid societies
[of Europe].
Most Holy Father:
Rome, March 20, 1879
Prostrate in homage to Your Holiness, I respectfully wish to point out
that for a number of years a hospice or seminary, known as the Oratory of
St. Francis de Sales, has been nurturing and training evangelical workers
for the foreign missions. In fact, a noteworthy number of our alumni are
now working in China, Australia and Africa, and well over a hundred are
in South America.
This seminary, whose enrollment exceeds five hundred, has regularly
been supported so far by contributions of the faithful and exceptionally by
those of the Supreme Pontiff himself. But now our financial straits are so
seriously hurting our goal of supplying missionaries for foreign fields that I
am forced to ask Your Holiness to recommend this seminary of ours to the
Society for the Propagation of the Faith in Lyons and to the Holy
Childhood Association, requesting that they give us some financial help.
Thus we will be able to continue cultivating badly needed missionary
209
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TIIE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
vocations also in our other houses, such as the St. Vincent de Paul's
Hospice in Sampierdarena,1 the St. Pierre's Hospice in Nice,2 the St.
Joseph's Orphanage near Frejus,3 another orphanage at Saint-Cyr near
Toulon,4 and lastly the St. Leo's Festive Oratory in Marseille.5 True, the
names of these institutes may not be expressive of their objectives, but one
can readily understand the reason why we chose them.
I beg Your Holiness to bless the work I have brought to your attention
and to grant it your favor as you see best in your highly enlightened
wisdom.
With deepest reverence, filial respect and loyalty, I remain,
Your most humble and obedient son,
Father John Bosco
A month later Don Bosco took a more decisive step. He sent a
second petition to the Holy Father through the Salesians' cardinal-
protector, containing detailed information on the work of his
missionaries in South America. With that he enclosed several
papal documents to highlight the importance of the Salesian
missions, hoping that the Church's supreme authority would kindly
establish their standing with the Sacred Roman Congregations.
Most Holy Father:
Turin, April 20, 1879
The Salesians first opened negotiations for their foreign mission
apostolate with His Eminence Cardinal Barnabe> in 1872, at his
encouraging suggestion. Then in 1874 His Holiness Pope Pius IX
signaled out Argentina as our mission territory and urged us to go there to
care for' Italian immigrants and make new attempts to evangelize the
Indians of the Pampas and Patagonia. He likewise very thoughtfully
provided financial assistance for the first expedition, which set out on
November 14, 1875.6
The first ten Salesian missionaries paid their respects to the Holy
Father on November 1, 1875 to receive his blessing and apostolic
1See Indexes of Volumes XII and XIII. [Editor]
2/bid. [Editor]
3See Index of Volume XIII under "Navarre." [Editor]
4 See Vol. XIII, p. 418. [Editor]
5/bid., pp. 557ff. [Editor]
6 See Vol. XI, Chs. 16-17. [Editor]
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Salesian Missionaries in Patagonia
211
commission. The Pope addressed heartwarming words to them and then
gave them a letter ofintroduction dated that day from the secretary of state
to the archbishop of Buenos Aires. The Sacred Congregation for the
Propagation of the Faith granted required faculties in a decree dated
November 14, 1875. Pope Pius IX approved and commended the new
mission, expressing his satisfaction in a brief dated November 17, 1875.
Informed of the expanding harvest of souls and of the vocations which
God was raising up in those lands, and desiring to consolidate the Salesian
missions, the Congregation for the Propagation of the Faith authorized us
to open a novitiate in a decree dated July 6, 1875.
As the present Sovereign Pontiff-God grant you long life and good
health-you kindly expressed your fatherly affection by approving and
sanctioning the Salesian missions of [South] America in a brief dated
September 18, 1878. Burdened though you are financially, as Sovereign
Pontiff, once you learned of the problems facing the fourth [Salesian]
missionary expedition7 for lack of funds, you offered us a generous
subsidy in a letter dated November 23, 1878, and urged us to continue the
work we had begun.8
One real problem we are facing is whether our South American
missions come under the jurisdiction of the Congregation for the
Propagation of the Faith or that of the Congregation for Extraordinary
Ecclesiastic Affairs. We entrust the matter fully to the zeal and charity of
His Eminence Cardinal Nina, secretary of state, and we ask him as our
cardinal-protector:
1. To identify the sacred congregation to which the Salesian
missionaries in Uruguay and Argentina are to apply when petitioning the
Holy See.
2. To meet the requirements set by the General Council of the Society
for the Propagation of the Faith in Lyons9 by formally approving these
missions and thus entitling us to the allotted funds of which we are at this
time in dire need.
3. To notify the General Council of the Society for the Propagation of
the Faith that all correspondence for funds and related matters should be
addressed to Father John Bosco, rector major of the Salesian
Congregation in Turin. This is the site of the principal seminary which
sends forth our missionaries and which keeps in correspondence with them
wherever they exercise their sacred ministry.
1See Vol. XIII, Ch. 25. [Editor]
8Jbid., p. 609. [Editor]
esee Vol. XI, p. 376. [Editor]
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212
THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
4. We would also appreciate a letter of recommendation to the Holy
Childhood Association in which he might point out that many young boys
were saved from certain death when they were sent from Kabylia (North
Algeria) to our motherhouse in Turin, where they received instruction in
the faith and were baptized.10 Some were given schooling, others were
taught a trade, while a few were trained for the priesthood and have
returned as missionaries to their own country. Some who came from the
city of Damascus are now in school and will later be sent back home. Far
greater is the number of Indian children baptized in their own tribal
territories by the Salesians, while others have been sheltered in various
hospices in Buenos Aires. Today, April 20, 1879, three Salesian
missionaries are setting out for Buenos Aires with Argentina's minister of
defense. They will then go on to the Pampas tribes to rescue a vast number
of children from the extermination to which the Argentinian government
seems to have doomed them. Only too often thousands of them roam
about looking for someone to save them, body and soul, but we lack the
material and moral means to save them all. Yet we shall always manage to
save some of these Indian children for God and for civil society.
Fr. John Bosco
As a follow-up, it was important that he keep the Pope mindful of
the Salesian missions. Hence he asked the provincial, Father
[Francis] Bodrato, to send warm greetings-personally and on
behalf of his confreres-to the Vicar of Christ twice a year on the
occasions of his name day and the New Year. The first greetings,
postmarked Buenos Aires, July 6, arrived in Rome in time for the
feast of St. Joachim, which fell on August 16. It informed the Holy
Father that the Salesians were making progress in Patagonia, but
badly needed a central settlement at the mouth of the Rio Negro,
and that one of the confreres had preached a mission in Paraguay.
The second letter was also sent from Buenos Aires on November
27, meant to reach Rome in time for the New Year. It gave the
Pope news of recent progress made in Patagonia, told of the
forthcoming opening of a Salesian house at Patag6nes, and praised
the assistance given by the Daughters of Mary, Help of Christians.
Without waiting to ascertain whether this approach to the Holy
See was having its desired effect, Don Bosco sent a third appeal on
September 17, asking for mission aid from the Holy Childhood
1osee Vol. IX, pp. 216, 348f, 452f. [Editor]
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Salesian Missionaries in Patagonia
213
Association and from the [Society for the] Propagation of the Faith
[of Lyons]. To his appeal he attached a copy of a letter from
Archbishop Aneyros, which described the meritorious work of the
Salesians in the Argentine Republic. Once more the reply came
back, as courteous but as negative as ever. The Holy Childhood
Association granted aid only to missionaries engaged in the
threefold apostolate of ransoming, baptizing and bringing up pagan
children; it supported new mission foundations only if they had
already put up orphanages for this purpose. Neither could it make
regular grants to new missions until they had accumulated
sufficient funds to enable it to expand its scope.
The association's letter alludes-very helpfully, we think-to the
director general's satisfaction with what he had heard about Don
Bosco's "wonderful work" at the Congress of Angers. This
congress, held shortly before, had dealt exclusively with Catholic
labor organizations. Ernest Harmel, brother of Leo Harmel, known
as the "good father" of Val des Bois, had read a paper describing
Don Bosco's trade schools and their growth. It was that congress
which prompted Father Machiavelli-born in Paris but incardinated
in the diocese of Nancy and well known in France for his social
work and his expertise in labor relations-to write to the Oratory
the following year for further information on Don Bosco's work. He
had heard of it, he said, at the Angers Congress but knew nothing
more than it existed.11 He was sent all the issues of the Bulletin
Salesien which had appeared since its beginning in April 1879 and
which also contained in translation the first thirteen chapters of the
Storia dell'Oratorio [History of the Oratory] written for the
Bollettino Salesiano by Father John Baptist Bonetti.
The reply of the [Society for the] Propagation of the Faith [of
Lyons] came somewhat later, since the central councils, first in
Lyons and then in Paris, had to process Don Bosco's application
for funds. The usual statutory problems arose: the society was
allowed to grant aid only to missions in pagan countries, that is,
11Letter to Father [Peter] Pozzan, director of the Bollettino Salesiano, dated Nancy,
April 16, 1880: "All I ask in return is as much information as you can supply concerning
Don Bosco's work, which I heard highly praised last year in Angers at the Congress of
Catholic Labor Organizations. All I know of Don Bosco's institute is that it exists, and I am
so impressed that I must know more about it." Father Machiavelli was replying to a request
made of the Nancy chancery for a copy of the diocesan directory of priests, to whom the
Bulletin Salesien might be sent. [Author]
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1HE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
existing in lands not belonging to Catholic states and not having a
regular hierarchy; such missions also had to have the Holy See's
official recognition and be headed by specific religious superiors.
These letters, however, serve to show us how well Don Bosco's
work was known and appreciated in France.
On October 21 Cardinal Nina informed Don Bosco that the
Holy Father was granting his missions a generous subsidy.
I did not neglect to tell the Holy Father of the news you gave me in your
letter of September 16, and in that of September 27 about your
missionaries in Buenos Aires as well as about those who are about to leave
Europe for Paraguay. His Holiness, duly appreciative of the substantial
blessings brought by your missionaries to the people, especially in distant
lands, who are in dire need of spiritual help, was very pleased with the
report and favorably received your petition for financial assistance,
graciously assigning you a grant of one thousand lire to help defray the
expenses of your forthcoming expedition. While notifying you of His
Holiness' kind gesture, I also urge you to hasten as much as possible the
longed-for departure.
Don Bosco's New Year's greetings to his cooperators later cited
this instance of the Pope's generosity, emphasizing its fuller
meaning and expressing his personal thanks, as follows:
We shall endeavor to repay such goodness on the part of the Holy
Father by fervent daily prayers for his well-being and that of the Church,
of whom he is the visible head. Since the donations he receives end up
where the needs of the Church and of the faithful are greatest, we shall do
all within our power to promote Peter's Pence as a project whose aim
cannot be surpassed.12
Was Don Bosco planning to send missionaries to Paraguay that
year? As we have already seen, yes, he was. 13 On January 3, 1880,
heartily responding to the urgent request made to him in the name
of His Holiness, he quickly informed Cardinal Nina that by the
following October he would have ten Salesians and as many
Daughters of Mary, Help of Christians ready to go to Paraguay and
give the people the spiritual assistance they so much needed. As
12Bollettino Salesiano, January 1880. [Author]
13See Vol. XIII, p. 604. [Editor]
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Salesian Missionaries in Patagonia
215
October drew near and the local apostolic delegate renewed his
insistence, the Vatican's secretariat of state pressed him to speed
up the departure of the ten missionaries, who first were to stop at
Buenos Aires and not continue to Paraguay until proper
arrangements were made with the Pope's representative, Archbishop
Angelo Di Piero. As for the Daughters of Mary, Help of
Christians, they should wait until a residence was properly
prepared for them; the missionaries were to go first. These were the
instructions Don Bosco received from Rome, where the Church
authorities relied on his ability to honor the promise he had made in
January to the Holy Father's great delight.14 However, unforeseen
obstacles had meanwhile arisen to frustrate Don Bosco's plans, and
he so informed Cardinal Nina, secretary of state:
Your Eminence:
Turin, September 16, 1879
I hasten to reply to your kind letter of September 10. As I have had the
honor of informing you, two Salesians were to leave for Buenos Aires on
August 1 and assume charge of at least the parish church of Asuncion,
Paraguay. A few days before their scheduled departure, however, they
were advised, I don't know by whom, to postpone it because a revolution
had broken out in that country. I have no idea whether the apostolic
delegate's request is recent or was made before August 12. At any rate, I
am now writing to our missionary superior in Buenos Aires to ask him
whether or not they may soon leave for their destination and prepare a
place for those who will shortly afterward follow them. However, it is most
necessary for us to have access to some funds to defray our very heavy
personal expenses and the cost of the journey.
I expect further news from Argentina and perhaps from Paraguay by the
twentieth of this month and, if necessary, I shall immediately
communicate it to you.
Most respectfully yours,
Fr. John Bosco
For some fifteen years we fmd nothing else being done about
Paraguay. We refer our readers to our account of that country's
political unrest in Volume XIII.
14Letter from Monsignor Cretoni, acting deputy of the secretary of state, September 20,
1879. [Author]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
In May the bishop of Santo Domingo had also reminded Don
Bosco of a promise to send him missionaries in March, according to
the Holy Father's wish. 15 "What are we to answer?" Father
Cagliero had asked Don Bosco after reading the prelate's letter.
"Write as follows," Don Bosco replied, "and let it be recorded in
our chronicle. Say that we are very interested in his request and
anxious to help him, but that, while we were trimming the personnel
in some houses to meet his needs, the Holy Father himself pressed
more urgent needs upon us. Hence, we ask him to be patient." For
the Dominican Republic, too, we find no new insistence for several
years.
This "trimming the personnel in some houses" so as to open new
ones or strengthen others was being done every so often, even when
the foreign missions were not involved. This was the complaint that
some superiors made on April 29. They contended that the scanty
personnel put an excessively heavy burden on the confreres to the
detriment of their health, all the more so because in most places the
confreres were helping out the local churches. Don Bosco
commented:
We already have too many things to do without going out to look for
more work-especially because such commitments interfere with our
duties and draw our hearts to certain outside works which boost self-
complacence and make us neglect our own tasks. Even in South America
our confreres overburden themselves with outside work. True, we aim at
God's greater glory, but it is also true that our primary goal is the care of
youth, and, consequently, every concern which draws us from that cannot
be good. To let a boarding school run down in order to go and hear
confessions elsewhere makes no sense.
We close this little aside, leaving the Italian scene to concentrate
our attention on our missionaries in South America. The year 1879
is of historic importance in the early annals of the Salesian missions
in South America. That was the year our first contacts were made
with the Indians of the Pampas and Patagonia on their own lands,
all of which were still largely unexplored. Having had to abandon
their first efforts to go by ship the year before because of a raging
15See Vol. XIII, pp. 598f. [Editor]
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Salesian Missionaries in Patagonia
217
storm at sea16 which threatened their lives, Bishop Espinosa and
Father [Jatnes] Costatnagna drew up a second travel plan by land.
Their apostolic zeal was favored by a happy coincidence, as we
shall relate.
In 1879 periodic expeditions of exploration and conquest began,
which in a few years were to end Indian rule over the territory,
opening the vast expanses of the Patnpas and of Patagonia to
colonization and exploitation. The government's first move was to
push its frontiers to the Rio Negro, either subjugating the Indians as
they went or driving them out beyond the impassable mighty river,
navigable with its tributary, the N euquen, from the Andes to the
sea. Facing the government troops were twenty-five thousand
Indians, of whom but forty-five hundred were warriors without
modem weapons, ignorant of military strategy, and totally
undisciplined. The plan of the military catnpaign had been
legislated on October 4, 1878. The expeditionary corps, numbering
forty-five hundred men, set out on April 16, 1879, divided into five
battalions under the supreme command of General [Julio] Roca,
minister of defense. Three battalions invaded the Patnpas plains,
another marched to the western border, and the fifth, the largest,
pushed into the frontiers of Patagonia, then held by five caciques.
Though it had been the government's intent only to flush out and
subdue the tribal lands between the Rio Negro and the Andes,
which included all of the Patnpas and a comer of northern
Patagonia, indirectly it was conquering all of Patagonia, since later
on, with little or no show of force, the rest ofthe region was taken. It
was first thought that the Indians would move southward to ally
themselves with the Patagonians; however, some retreated across
the Cordilleras toward Chile, while others surrendered or scattered
out atnong the civilians with the intent of merging with them. Very
many lost their lives even when they offered no resistance. This
military operation lasted from April to July of 1879; the Rio
Negro's catnpaign ended successfully in April 1881.
As we noted elsewhere,17 previous isolated raids had taken place
with no overall plan. Many Indians had been killed or captured and
given as slaves to various Buenos Aires households, engendering in
the survivors such rancor that it made it extremely difficult for the
16/bid., pp. 612ff. [Editor]
17/bid., p. 123. [Editor]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
whites to deal with them. It was not the government's intent to
strike out inhumanely at the natives during its military campaign;
indeed, the defense minister had at heart also their spiritual welfare.
In fact, on learning of plans to send missionaries to the Pampas, he
offered the archbishop his assistance, promising aid and protection
for those he would send on the long, perilous journey. Archbishop
Aneyros accepted the offer and entrusted to his care his vicar
general, Monsignor [Anthony] Espinosa, and two Salesians,
Father [James] Costamagna and the cleric Louis Botta, who were
given the rank of military chaplains.
On April 16, Wednesday in Easter week, the three boarded the
train at Buenos Aires with the commander-in-chief and several
officers to go to Azul, the last outpost of civilization, beyond which
stretched the endless expanse of the Pampas wilderness. The
archbishop had all the church bells rung at their departure. At Azul
the party was issued horses and a covered wagon to transport their
baggage and to shelter them during the night or in foul weather. A
week later they arrived at Carhue, where the troops were mustered
and the battalions formed.
The settlement of Carhue lay deep in the Pampas, marking
Argentina's western frontier with the Indian territory. Rising above
the plain, it was mirrored in a magnificent saltwater lake. Some
forty homes stood grouped about a stockade; beyond them the
toldos or tents of two friendly tribes, the Eripayla and the Manuel
Grande, both named after their respective caciques, could be seen.
Father Costamagna, who had arrived a few days before his
companions, lost no time in repeatedly visiting the Indians, as they
lived but a short distance away. Both caciques welcomed him, the
first acting as interpreter. With their consent, he gathered the
children of both tribes together and tried to teach them the Sign of
the Cross and the basic truths of the faith. Once his companions
arrived, they all set zealously to work, baptizing the children of
both settlers and Indians, blessing marriages, and even predisposing
cacique Eripayla's elder son to the faith. Seeing them tirelessly
engaged in their beloved apostolate, the defense minister asked
them to go along with him as chaplains to his two thousand troops
to the Rio Negro along the northern borders of Patagonia, where
they would find all the Indians they wanted. Monsignor Espinosa
agreed that they should go.
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Salesian Missionaries in Patagonia
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It was a very arduous journey of over thirty days on horseback.
When two strong companies of Indians mistakenly tried to halt the
troops' progress, they were hopelessly routed. By the solemn feast
of Mary, Help of Christians, Father Costamagna was already at
the shores of the Rio Negro, while his two companions were still
riding from the Rio Colorado to the Rio Negro. Too often, alas,
they had to grit their teeth and silently witness the soldiers'
brutality against the Indians. They made a stop at Choele-Choel on
the left bank of the Rio Negro and then went south to Patag6nes
near the river's mouth, where they took a well-earned rest. How
well earned indeed they knew! After endless days on horseback,
enduring hunger and thirst and sleepless nights as well as the
ordeals brought on by poor and insufficient food, having felt the
glacial cold penetrate their very bones as they slept outdoors
without the benefit of roof or tent-the last leg of their journey took
them into the very heart of winter-they finally were able to pause
for rest to regain their strength and get themselves back in shape for
work.
All along the way and at camp stops they had met Indians whom
they tried to help as best they could. In a letter to Father Bodrato
from Patag6nes, dated June 16, 1879, Monsignor Espinosa wrote
of Father Costamagna's ministry at Choele-Choel:
With his unique zeal, as soon as he arrived among the Indians he began
instructing many adults to prepare them in a short time for baptism. All
three of us felt more than amply repaid for our efforts and pains as we
offered God these first fruits of the harvest on the shores of the mighty Rio
Negro. On June 1, Pentecost Sunday, assisted by both Salesian
missionaries, I celebrated Mass in a lovely prairie under a cloudless sky.
General Roca and his entife staff along with the full regiment in dress
formation attended it. It was the first time that the Holy Eucharist was
offered in that wilderness, the first time that the standard of the cross had
ever blessed those lands traversed by uncivilized, hapless natives. After
Mass the Te Deum was solemnly sung as Patagonia was officially
annexed to Argentina. We then baptized sixty natives who were promptly
inducted into the army. On June 2 Father Costamagna baptized twenty-
two Indian children, three babies of Christian families, and fourteen adult
Indian women. Finally, on June 4 he baptized the last nine Indians who
had not been judged ready on June 2. The following day, after the troops'
reconnaisance of the Neuquen region, we set out for Patagones. We
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
reached_there on June 21 and started a parish mission with high Mass and
a sermon by Father Costamagna. We hope to reap a bountiful harvest.
After the mission is over, we shall go deeper into the interior and more
leisurely teach the faith to so many hapless Indians who are waiting for
missionaries to bring them spiritual and material assistance.
We will do well to learn more about this strategic center of future
Salesian missionary endeavor. Patag6nes, dating from a century
before, had four thousand people who lived on either side ofthe Rio
Negro about thirty miles from the Atlantic Ocean. The settlement
on the left bank of the river was named Carmen de Patag6nes, after
Our Lady of Mount Carmel, whose image had been taken from
Brazilian settlers by the Patagonians in a river battle, and the right
bank was named Mercedes de la Patagonia, as it bordered on that
territory. Here the missionaries again encountered Father Savino, a
Vincentian, who had been with them on the unfortunate shipwreck
of 1878. With him was [Anthony] Calamaro, a sacristan, alumnus
of Lanzo and a native of Voltri; on June 23 he sang a hymn
honoring Don Bosco's name day, which he had learned fourteen
years before.
The missionaries returned to Buenos Aires at the end of July.
The archbishop was so thrilled by the account of all they had
accomplished with God's grace in the three and a half months of
their expedition that he wrote Don Bosco a long letter on
August 5. 18
The time has finally come-he began-when I can offer you the
Patagonian mission which you have so strongly desired. I also offer you
the parish at Patagones which would make a good mission center.
He then described the very sorry plight of those poor natives and
the Protestant proselytizing, commenting:
I appeal to you with the liveliest solicitude of a pastoral heart and beg
you through the merciful heart of Our Lord Jesus Christ to come to our aid
and to that of these poor, benighted souls.... You might set up mission
headquarters at Carmen de Patagones or at Mercedes de la Patagonia to
18The Bollettino Salesiano published an Italian translation in November 1879. A French
translation was sent to the Association of the Holy Childhood and to the Society for the
Propagation of the Faith of Lyons with two petitions from Don Bosco. [Author]
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Salesian Missionaries in Patagonia
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direct your mission work in the settlements ... and send missionaries to
all of Patagonia's countless thousands who still live in the darkness of
idolatry.... The government, too, is earnestly pressing me to send
missionaries as soon as possible, promising me a substantial grant from
the legislature to begin January 1, 1880, larger than the usual annual
subsidy which we now receive. You can readily perceive that I am
anxiously awaiting your reply.... My heart rejoices in the hope that you
will heed my plea in this pressing situation and without delay will gladly
accept this mission, which is so necessary for God's glory and for the
salvation of so many souls now living in a state of utter abandonment for
lack of missionaries. I am sure that Father Cagliero, who knows this land
and has personally come in touch with its needs, will assist me in this holy,
strenuous endeavor. I am very happy to hear that your eyesight is
improving. I earnestly pray that God will grant you a long life and perfect
health, for we need you so badly.
The archbishop enclosed a copy of a letter he had sent to Edward
Calvari, emigration chief [at the Argentinian consulate] in Genoa,
asking him to use his influence in obtaining free passage to Buenos
Aires for the Salesian missionaries. It seems that the government of
Argentina was at the same time officially entrusting Don Bosco
with the task of evangelizing Patagonia, promising substantial
support. Don Bosco received the archbishop's letter on September
5 while at Lanzo for the spiritual retreat. As he was reading it,
Father Barberis entered his room and found him "filled with joy,"
so he tells us, adding that on giving him the news Don Bosco had
remarked, "Who knows where all this will end?"19
Thus the Lord comforted Don Bosco for the grief caused him by
the very painful disappointments which the reader is aware of. His
joy is warmly attested to in a letter of his to Father Costamagna:
My dear Father Costamagna,
Turin, August 31, 1879
Thanks be to God! Your mission has been successful and you are safe
and sound.
In your next letter tell me in minutest detail about the reception the
caciques gave you, their dwellings, their clothing, and what they said to
you.
19Notebook, bearing few entries, entitled BriefChronicle ofthe Lanzo Spiritual Retreat,
1879. [Author]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
The time has come for you to talk seriously with Father Bodrato and the
archbishop about a mission center for both Salesians and Daughters of
Mary, Help of Christians at Patag6nes. Would another center be also
needed at Carhue? I'll take care of necessary personnel, and all together
we'll pool financial resources.
My sight is much better, thank God. My fondest regards to Fathers
Daniele, Vespignani, and Rabagliati, and all the confreres and boys. Any
news of Mr. Gazzolo? Did Monsignor Espinosa get through the
expedition safely?
Your letters have been published and are read with pleasure
everywhere. How is my dear Father Allavena doing? How is he? I am
most eager to know. Write me about the Rio Negro and the Rio Colorado
regions. We love your letters.
God bless you, my dearest Father Costamagna! God grant that we may
love each other prayerfully here on earth, and that one day we will all be
together with Jesus in heaven!
This fall we sent you a shipment of candles at Buenos Aires. Did it
arrive, and is the cost of such shipments really worth it?
The grace of Our Lord Jesus Christ be with us always. Amen.
Yours affectionately,
Fr. John Bosco
The handwritten letter from Don Bosco deeply touched Father
Costamagna, and in his reply he gave free rein to his feelings.
How gracious of you to write me in your own hand! In these times a
personal letter from you is a memorable event for your poor Salesians in
America. You can never guess the thrill we experience in seeing our
dearest father's own handwriting. Timothy himself certainly felt no greater
joy on receiving a letter from St. Paul, his beloved father in Jesus Christ.
Can you imagine, my dear Don Bosco, as we read the account of our
Congregation's beginnings and the first endeavors of our founder20 in the
Bollettino Salesiano, our eyes fill with tears as we realize that you are still
living and we are your sons. So what is it like for us to receive your letters,
to see your handwriting, to hear you speak to our innermost hearts with the
same warmth of love with which you one day snatched us away from the
world without our being ever aware of it to set us within the chosen
Salesian vineyard and there to work solely for God?
2°Father Bonetti was just then publishing the chapters which were later printed separately
as a new volume, which became known as Twenty-Five Years ofHistory ofthe Oratory of
St. Francis de Sales. [Author]
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Salesian Missionaries in Patagonia
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Since Don Bosco had requested further details about the Indian
life, Father Costamagna sent him for the moment a set of
photographs in lieu of a written report, in which Don Bosco could
see the Indians whom he and Monsignor Espinosa had instructed
and baptized in the faith on the shore of the Rio Negro. Brief
captions explained essential details.21 The following year a report
written and certified by Francis Arrachez, secretary general of the
Buenos Aires chancery, and dated Buenos Aires, November 3,
1883, stated that during that mission expedition two hundred and
twenty-three boys of both Indian and European families had been
baptized along with one hundred and two adult Indians.
Cardinal Desprez, archbishop of Toulouse, was one day gazing
intently at a globe resting on his desk, thinking of all the Church's
efforts to evangelize the nations. When his eyes rested on
Patagonia and Tierra del Fuego, he was pained to realize how little
attention had been given to those outermost bounds of the new
world. Only handfuls of missionaries had ever visited the shores of
Patagonia, and then unsuccessfully, while no one at all had ever
ventured into the hinterlands of Tierra del Fuego. He was still lost
in this pensive mood when the Bulletin Salesien arrived,
announcing that the Salesians had undertaken a mission in those
lands. Overjoyed, he exclaimed, "I am glad that Don Bosco was
chosen to fulfill the great prophecy: 'Through all the earth their
voice resounds, and to the ends of the world, their message' " [Ps.
18, 4]. Some years later the same cardinal told this to Don Bosco
himself in the presence of Father [Paul] Albera. A month later Don
Bosco wrote a beautiful letter to Father Tomatis who had just been
appointed director of the boarding school at San Nicolas. The
school's first director, Father [Joseph] Fagnano, previously
stricken with a grave attack of typhus, had suffered a relapse and
had to be sent to Buenos Aires for convalescence. As we shall later
see, he did not return to the school but went directly to the
Patagonian missions.
My dear Father Tomatis:
Alassio, September 30, 1879
I have always kept up to date with everything going on in our boarding
21 Bollettino Salesiano, January 1880. [Author]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
school at San Nicolas, and I see it now entering into a new phase under
your direction. Let's hope so! Take heart! All our trust and hopes are in
you. Here are some guidelines I always give our directors. Try to follow
them:
1. Take good care of your health and that of your confreres. See to it
that no one works too hard or sits idly by.
2. Strive to lead the others in piety and observance of our rules and
make sure that they are kept by the others as well, particularly meditation,
visits to the Blessed Sacrament, weekly confession, devout celebration of
Mass, and frequent Communion for those who are not priests.
3. Valiantly put up with the shortcomings of others.
4. Be very kind to your boys; give them every chance and freedom for
confession.
God bless you, my dear Father Tomatis and with you all our confreres
and boys and our friend, Monsignor Ceccarelli, to whom I owe a letter.
May God grant you all good health and the grace of a holy life. Fondest
regards to everybody.
Pray for me, always in Jesus Christ,
Yours affectionately,
Fr. John Bosco
P.S. This letter will show you how much my eyesight has improved.
The first few lines are a clear hint that the school was slipping.
Enrollment had dropped. The main reason seems to have been the
arrival of Father Fagnano's relatives who were clearly poor people.
The rumor began to spread that, like so many others, the director
had come to South America to set his family up in money-a
rumor, Father Cagliero maintained, which in that part of the world
was enough to wipe out any good a priest might do. We need hardly
state that Father F agnano had acted most honestly in his concern
for the good of the school by hiring only people he could trust for
various jobs in the house, but in this world of ours honesty has to be
backed up by a strong dose of prudence. The following year, the
boarding school picked up considerably while Father F agnano was
actively involved [in Patagonia] in a ministry which he alone could
carry out so effectively.
Don Bosco was anxious that, before the end of the year, every
one of his Salesians should share in his joy by learning about the
Salesian apostolate in Patagonia. He also appealed to their sense of
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Salesian Missionaries in Patagonia
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solidarity so that the missionary undertaking might have the best
beginning possible. Father Rua was asked to be Don Bosco's
spokesman, and on December 18, 1879, he wrote to the directors
of all the houses to give this news to all the confreres and boys:
The gateway to Patagonia has swung open to the Salesians.... God
has chosen to entrust this important mission to us, as so many events have
clearly shown us. Our missionaries in South America tell us in their latest
letters that at Patag6nes and in all the settlements, the people have the
loftiest expectations of the Salesians. It can well be said therefore-as the
Divine Redeemer stated-that the harvest is ripening and awaits but the
reapers to gather it. And here is precisely the heart of the problem: we
need personnel for the many undertakings we have underway. It will be
wise to do what Our Divine Savior suggested to His apostles: "Ask the
Lord of the harvest to send laborers into His harvest" [Mt. 9, 28]. Our
beloved Don Bosco has asked that on receiving this letter you begin
offering an Our Father, Hail Mary, and Glory Be every day in the
community through the month of January, that the Lord may deign to
show us which of the Salesians He has chosen for this mission and that He
may inspire them with the sentiments of zeal, charity and courage which
they will need to meet this magnificent challenge. May it also be His
pleasure to provide new personnel to replace those who will go to the
missions.
On New Year's day Don Bosco informed the Salesian
cooperators of this joyful news in a circular we have mentioned
elsewhere: 22
The most wonderful field of work which Divine Providence now opens
to your charity is Patagonia, a comer of our globe until now closed to the
Gospel of Jesus Christ. The hour of mercy seems to have struck for those
hapless Indians. Archbishop Aneyros of Buenos Aires and the Argentine
government have jointly asked us to evangelize the Patagonians, and I
have accepted this arduous undertaking with fullest trust in God and in
your charity. Thanks to some initial attempts, five hundred Indians have
already been instructed in the faith, baptized and brought into the flock of
Jesus Christ. Traversing the endless wilderness south of the Rio Negro,
we find six settlements, somewhat like hamlets, each a few days apart,
where trading and agriculture have already begun. Next March the
Salesians, accompanied or followed soon after by the Daughters of Mary,
22see p. 214. [Editor]
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1HE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
Help of Christians, will open mission posts and schools in those
settlements. God willing, they will form a base camp from which
evangelical workers will go forth into the trackless wastes and unknown
hinterlands of Patagonia.
By remarking, a few pages back, that Don Bosco's aggravations
had been mitigated by the comforting news from Patagonia, we did
not intend to restrict ourselves to the shutdown of the Oratory's
secondary school nor to his conflict with the Turin chancery, nor to
the vexations related to the conversion of a Jewish maiden. We
were also referring to hostile attacks being made against him
through a charge that he had abetted a young man to dodge the draft
by sending him to South America. Michael Foglino, a cleric just
turned twenty, had been a member of the fourth missionary
expedition in 1878. Having failed to report for military service, he
was sentenced in absentia to a year in a military prison. Another
young fellow, Athanasius Torello, of Nizza Monferrato as was the
Foglino, a student attending the University of Turin, was drafted in
the latter's place. He therefore brought suit against Don Bosco for
having favored Foglino's desertion-not so much that Torello was
personally out to get Don Bosco, as that he was a tool of the press.
It was the rabid anticlerical lawyer, Giustina, who fired the first
shot on October 18, 1879 by a sly hint in an article entitled
"Sempre a Don Bosco" [Always to Don Bosco] in his weekly
Cronaca dei Tribunali in which he threatened to drag Don Bosco
into court. A week later, he reiterated his threat.
In our next issue-he promised-we shall expose Foglino's escape and
show that he is now residing in a school operated by Father John Bosco.
We will also publish an authentic letter detailing other interesting points
which the public has a right to know.
On October 30, 1879, the Catholic Corriere di Torino issued a
sharp rebuttal with transparent allusions to the recent handling by
the newspaper of the Jewish family affair, which had also begun in
Nizza, decrying the scandal sheet as "a Turin periodical which sees
the light of day only on Saturdays," and commending Don Bosco
as "too big a man to fear such attacks or to need defending."
The Saturday weekly kept its word. Its November 1 issue
formulated a legal charge and demanded an investigation from the
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Salesian Missionaries in Patagonia
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district attorney. However, the charge was prefaced by irrelevant
comments whose harshness unwittingly revealed the hidden
machinations behind this and other attacks.
For those who do not know-ran the article-Nizza Monferrato is the
citadel, the stronghold of Don Bosco's army. It is composed of priests,
clerics, nuns and numerous local young ladies; they all believe in his
miraculous powers, even calling him a saint well ahead of time.... Don
Bosco, furthermore, has the backing of noblemen who cling to him. Their
leader is a certain countess, Don Bosco's right hand. The young are
yearning to throw off this yoke and hoist the banner of rebellion, but
unfortunately they lack the numbers to hold out against the ranks of bigots
who so loyally take up the cudgels for the clergy.
After an irrelevant aside about the Bedarida affair,23 the writer
continued:
Foglino, a textile worker, son of a humble family, was accepted into a
boarding school of Don Bosco, where he was steeped in Catholic teaching.
After being immersed into the darkness of every conceivable superstition,
he ended up as a so-called Salesian. Then came his time to be drafted.
Foglino went home to Nizza Monferrato for the draft lottery. His number
came up with other qualified young men of draft age. He was now a soldier
and had to report for duty. We have no way of knowing just how the
Salesian Congregation reacted to all this, but we do know one thing and
we have sworn testimony to prove it. While F oglino was at Nizza
Monferrato, he received pressing overtures to report to Don Bosco in
Turin. F oglino himself was heard to remark, "I don't want to go to Turin,
because they want to ship me to [South] America." It is no secret that
there Don Bosco has institutes for the propagation of the faith and
apostolic missions. It is also no secret that missionary vocations are not on
the increase today because it is hard to find persons willing to go to the
New World to preach the Gospel. Don Bosco needs young men.... The
rest you can easily surmise. Put two and two together, draw your own
conclusions, and you will see the light of truth in this matter.
The truth, however, eventually came out in snatches but not as
described above. Foglino had first come to the Oratory in
November 1871; the alleged "pressing overtures" to go to Turin
23See Chapter 10. [Editor]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
were the invitations made to him and to many other classmates of
his during the summer of 1875 to join the Salesian Congregation,
which shows the high esteem he enjoyed. That year the Oratory
buzzed with talk of the [Patagonian] missions as preparations were
being made for the first expedition. Uncertain as to whether he
wished to enter the diocesan seminary of Turin or that of Acqui, the
young man did say he did not want to go to Turin, in the context in
which he meant it at the time. Another glimmer of truth is that then,
as now, no one was ever sent out of his country without having
formally requested it of one's own free will in writing. Three years
elapsed between 1875 and 1878, during which Foglino had time to
consider, reflect and make up his mind. As St. Paul says "When I
was a child, I spoke as a child, I felt as a child, I thought as a child.
Now that I have become a man, I have put away the things of a
child" [1 Cor. 13, 11]. The newspaper's bad faith comes out in the
ambiguity of "while Foglino was at Nizza Monferrato," which
misleads readers to think that F oglino had said this after the draft
lottery, that is, three years after he had become a cleric and taken
his religious vows.
11 Corriere di Torino retaliated the next day-November 2,
1879-with a humorous quip, and the battle of words waxed strong
on November 22 and 23. La Cronaca dei Tribunali beat about the
bush, but its evasion brought out two items more meaningful to
history than to the actual event of the day. First, there was this
clarification which truly touched the raw nerve of the whole matter:
By dodging the draft, F oglino made matters hard for one of our excellent
young students, Athanasius Torello, who was forced to break off his
studies and replace the deserter.
Then, after a long list of rhetorical questions about the
authorities' inaction, the writer hastily put up a barricade to hide
the real motives for his hostile stand.
No one has more regard for Don Bosco's social action than we-he
protested-but no one has greater respect for the equality of all citizens
under the law. To guarantee it we willingly give up all liking, all deference,
all friendship and all family ties.
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Such highbrow rhetoric left the author open to a master
counterblow. In a later article La Cronaca dei Tribunali had taken
the stance of a knight ready to slay a dragon about to rear its head,
and therefore, on November 23, II Corriere di Torino commented:
We've been awaiting the famous "dragon" of La Cronaca dei
Tribunali with bated breath! Alas, what a letdown! It's only a bat, and
blow it up as much as one may, it's still only a bat. Let the bat beware-we
lmow what happened to Aesop's frog! We have been told that this bat
lmows Don Bosco, because ... he has shared his bread. Not surprisingly,
among all the tiny birds which Don Bosco has fed and sheltered-and still
does-there must be a bat or two ... who imagine themselves to be
dragons. However, a few bats will never divert Don Bosco's loving care
from his little birds and make him worry about the bats!
It was a fact that La Cronaca's editor had attended the boarding
secondary schools at Lanzo and Varazze. Swept away by politics
and making himself a tool of the anticlericals, he played the
iconoclast to the very twilight of his life. He was angered by II
Corriere' s allusion to him and tried to justify himself in a letter,
which by law the paper had to publish. In it he admitted that he had
been a pupil of Don Bosco in both schools, but only because it was
"his parents' decision," and they had paid his "full tuition." A little
show of gratitude might have been better, but God willed that Don
Bosco should drink also of this bitter cup given to him by a former
pupil.24 May this comfort other teachers who cannot set their mind
at rest because of the ingratitude of pupils on whom they have
lavished their care. Even Don Bosco was not spared such
disappointment.
For three months the press maintained silence. On February 28,
1880, La Cronaca dei Tribunali heralded the news:
Don Bosco in court. Our readers will recall our account of [Michael]
Foglino, a recruit of Nizza Monferrato who fled northern Italy when
24Toward the end of his life, Giustina came to his senses. He had always kept a warm
place in his heart for his teacher, Father [Peter] Guidazio, and he fondly remembered his
other superiors. Whenever he learned that Bishop Costamagna or Bishop Fagnano was in
Turin, he called on him, and it was Father Lemoyne who assisted him at death. Regretfully,
he was cremated, but that was not his intention. He had forgotten to cancel his membership
in a cremation society. [Author]
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drafted into military service and is now in Buenos Aires as a missionary
affiliated with a well-known Turin priest. Our readers will recall the
polemics raised by La Cronaca and II Corriere di Torino on the subject.
Well, the law is now seeking action against Father John Bosco, alleging
that he planned and abetted Foglino's desertion. We shall cover the trial
as it develops.
However, despite the newspaper's great interest in the case, it
issued no report until June 12. Apparently, no one took it seriously.
Between June 12 and July 10, both newspapers exchanged
comments, of which two alone are worth our attention. First, Don
Bosco was acquitted "for lack of evidence"; in other words, not
because he was innocent-a verdict just falling short of a
pronouncement of "guilty." Second, "this verdict was passed
because not all the witnesses who could have given evidence were
interrogated."
La Cronaca in its July 10, 1880 issue does tell us something
very notable about the witnesses who had not been questioned. It
stated:
We were only asked for clarifications, but we pointed out that there
were other witnesses who could better enlighten the judge.
This is but a hasty condemnation of the judiciary's neglect of
duty in a weighty matter. More probably Giustina, finally having
the opportunity to show off the evidence which he boasted he had
access to, did not skimp on his contribution to the enlightenment of
justice, but the whole thing turned out to be just a blown-up affair.
In the poet's words: Parturiunt montes, exit ridiculus mus [The
mountains are in labor and a ridiculous mouse is born]. The fact
remains that the news he so blasted far and wide made no
impression on his hearers.
What is more unpardonable is his statement that Don Bosco was
acquitted "for lack of evidence.'' This way of putting it amounted to
saying that there had been at least the start of criminal proceedings
against Don Bosco, and certainly this is what his readers
understood, for the terminology he used is precise. Our own
extensive research into the files of the Nizza magistrate's court has
revealed that, while there is no lack of documentation on this case,
there is absolutely nothing even hinting at criminal proceedings.
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From another source we did learn that the police had conducted an
investigation, but it was the normal, routine check into the
possibility of a cover-up of criminal doing. The investigation was
closed after the parents of F oglino were questioned with the usual
frightening warnings.25 The matter was shelved. Certainly neither
Giustina nor those responsible for the uproar were happy to see
their soap bubble burst. This explains their reshuffling of the facts
to cover up their own loss of face.
What lent an aura of truth to the whole story was that Giustina's
articles contained details which could only be known by one who
was familiar with the Oratory's intimate life. Our account of this
episode would be incomplete were we to omit mentioning one of his
informants. A certain Ferrero, physicist, natural history student
and photographer, had been living at the Oratory for some three
years, absorbed in unsuccessful experiments which cost the
Salesians a good deal of money. Finally, realizing he was a phony,
they threw him out and then discovered that he was a high-ranking
Freemason. He it was who had given the newspaper a "good
scoop.''
It would be naive to ask whether Don Bosco knew that F oglino
was dodging the draft. That the cleric heroically chose exile to the
possible loss of his vocation is beyond doubt; that Don Bosco did
not interfere with his choice is equally doubtless. But who of us
does not know what kind of law it was which forced men of the
cloth to live in army barracks? The truth is that sixty years later
Italy's legislators courageously reviewed and amended that law in
agreement with Church authorities who had always denounced it.
With good reason we have dwelt at length on this episode. First,
we had to redeem Don Bosco's memory from the hateful
accusation of exerting moral pressure on one of his young men.
Second, whatever caused Don Bosco suffering should have a place
in his biography. And there is a third reason. The charges of using
uncertified teachers, of violating freedom of conscience, and of
breaking his country's laws were all but pretexts which the
anticlericals seized on to wage relentless war against Don Bosco
and everything his name stood for. Testimonies which his assail-
ants let slip through in their wild fury we have already brought
25Letter from Father Lemoyne to Don Bosco, Nizza (undated). [Author]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
out in several places. There are two others we consider valuable.
Giustina also edited a bi-weekly periodical, Turin's illustrated
Romanziere Popolare. The January 11, 1880 issue published a
very silly profile along with an offensive cartoon. Our interest
centers on this excerpt of the profile:
John Bosco, in his loyalty to the Pope, has followed in the latter's
political footsteps, concentrating all his efforts on raising up a progeny of
priests, an army of anti-liberals, servants of the Church and enemies of
Italy. True, he never trampled on charity, but he misconstrued it and
manipulated it to serve the interests of his party. Miraculously coming into
prominence, and prodigiously powerful, Don Bosco is the Vatican's far-
seeing eye, the soul of the Catholic party, the educator of the new slayers
of liberty who abide by the motto: "Long live the King-Pope! Long live
papal Rome!" No honest liberal can blame the government when it seeks
as best it can to shrink this man's sphere of influence. He has several times
turned down the cardinal's hat, and at will he could have become by wit
and effort one of the most famous and cunning Father Generals of the
Jesuits. But he prefers-not for love of money nor for his party's glory-to
stay with the young and to imbue the masses with the reactionary
principles of the Church's political catechism, which he polishes and
plates with the gold of charity.
Speaking of the youth of Don Bosco's schools, the write-up
commented:
It knows neither patriotism nor reverence for the king and the laws,
deserting its nation's armed forces and hiding in clerical garb to conspire
against liberty, against the greatness of Rome, Italy's capital.
On July 10 Giustina launched a more violent attack:
No one more readily than we acknowledges a man's contributions to his
country. But when this benefactor of humanity stuffs the heads of young
people with principles that are the props of the papacy and the Orsini
bombs26 which will one day blast the sacred temple of freedom into
nothingness-well, then we close our eyes to his benefits, and see him as
an enemy who uses his charitable undertakings as a shield in his struggle
26Felix Orsini (1819-1858) was a conspirator who on January 13, 1858 attempted the
assassination of Napoleon III in Paris. He was put to death by the guillotine on March 13.
[Editor]
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Salesian Missionaries in Patagonia
233
for the Pope, so as to tumble what our fathers built at the price of endless
sacrifices.
Rhetorical bombast of the times, yes, but a revelation of what
politicians were cooking up in their caucuses while shaping the
destiny of a godless Italy.
Don Bosco might have easily made his own the words St. Paul
wrote when he saw a handsome opportunity of winning souls for
Jesus Christ at Ephesus: "For a door has been opened wide for my
work, but many are the adversaries" [1 Cor. 16, 9]. While God was
opening Patagonia's gate for him, which he had already seen in his
"dreams" as the field of his Gospel labors, hell kept raising up all
sorts of oposition from every side to render him powerless. But like
St. Paul before him, he not only did not lose heart, but he saw this
hostility as a sign he was on the right road.
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CHAPTER 12
Unrealized New Foundations zn 1879
DoN Bosco received a far greater number of proposals
for new houses than those to follow, but, because of problems
plaguing our archives, several pertinent documents have been lost;
besides, in many cases no negotiations were actually started.
Availing ourselves of whatever documentation is still available we
shall therefore narrate what Don Bosco did in this area during the
troublesome year 1879. First we shall recount the unrealized
proposals and then pass on to houses that were closed in order to
make better use of their personnel elsewhere.
By way of introduction we shall make a few points to be borne in
mind if we are not to misjudge Don Bosco's handling of these
matters. All these fruitless negotiations have mainly three phases.
Initially, Don Bosco welcomed the proposals with a sincere desire
to realize them, if feasible, thus raising the proponents' hopes.
Secondly, formal negotiations were opened enthusiastically by the
proponents and level-headedly by Don Bosco. In this second
phase, obstacles which had either been willfully concealed or
overlooked by the proponents would come to light. Finally, in the
third and most crucial moment, the bitter word had to be spoken:
"Impossible!"
In such matters, the more serious obstacles are usually of a sort
that makes it preferable to plead lack of personnel or some other
reason rather than state the plain truth. The result is embarrassment
on the one hand, and disappointment, dejection and resentment on
the other. When he was directly involved, Don Bosco had to use his
gracious manner or his wise counsel to soothe inevitable hard
feelings. 1
1Since this chapter deals with topics of scant interest to our readers, we shall often
condense the narration. [Editor]
234
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Unrealized New Foundations in 1879
235
1. MODENA
We begin with Modena, the first town where Salesian
cooperators, acting on their own, organized and held a conference
[in 1879].2 Later, in 1894, a local committee supporting Don
Bosco's works sent out a circular which declared that all good
Christians had long looked forward to the opening of a Salesian
house in Modena. It had indeed been so, and even more remotely
than those good people thought. The first proposal [to Don Bosco]
was made on March 21, 1875, while he was a guest of Count
[Ferdinand] Tarabini.3 Learning of the urgent need for a festive
oratory in that town to stem the growing corruption ofyoungsters of
poorer families, Don Bosco had stated he was willing to cooperate
with the townsfolk as soon as it would be possible to start such a
project. Unfortunately, funds were scarce, but Count Tarabini,
noting the deeper inroads that evil was making among the poorer
classes, once again appealed to Don Bosco on January [2] 1877.
His reply was favorable, but temporizing. When the Salesian
cooperators' conference was held in 1879, priests and laity were
already running a festive oratory according to Don Bosco's
method, hoping to hand it over to the Salesians as soon as possible.
At that time, however, Don Bosco could only encourage them to
continue their project since he had already too many irons in the
fire. Besides, Archbishop Joseph Guidelli of Modena was
continually pressuring him to reopen the diocesan junior seminary
at Finale Emilia, which had been closed for the past seven years.
Don Bosco told him that he was willing to help but needed more
time. In 1879 the archbishop became more and more insistent in
view of the crucial need, and so Don Bosco, realizing that he could
not satisfy his request so soon, notified him in June that the
harassment he was experiencing at the hands of the government
kept him from meeting the archbishop's wishes as promptly as he
2See pp. 75f. [Editor]
3 Count Tarabini, former state councillor and minister to the duke of Modena, had met
Don Bosco in Rome at the home of Count Vimercati on the evening of January 13, 1867. In
his diary, the count remarked that during Don Bosco's visit there had been "a constant
coming and going of people." From then on, whenever Don Bosco passed through Modena,
he would trustingly rely on the count's hospitality, a clear sign that their meeting in Rome had
not been a chance encounter. The entries in the above-mentioned diary show that the
nobleman felt highly honored to have Don Bosco as his guest. [Author]
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TIIE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
really desired. Only in 1913, sixteen years after the opening of St.
Joseph's School in Modena, did Father Paul Albera, Don Bosco's
second successor, find it possible to send Salesians to Finale
Emilia and take over the junior seminary, dedicating it to Mary,
Help of Christians.
2. ISILI
Don Bosco received the first request for a Salesian house in
Sardinia in 1879. His name was already widely known by then,
particularly through his books, Letture Cattoliche and the Salesian
Bulletin. Proof of this is the fact that five students4 at Ales wrote to
him collectively, requesting to be enrolled as Salesian cooperators
and placed on the Salesian Bulletin's mailing list. They also
promised to perform any spiritual work of mercy he might suggest
and to send him their savings at the end of each year.
It was a Jesuit priest, Father Porqueddu of Genoni, who first
suggested inviting Don Bosco to extend his work to Sardinia. This
priest zealously promoted devotion to Mary, Help of Christians,
and recommended to Don Bosco young men of good character.
Several were admitted to the Oratory as artisans or Sons of Mary,
as, for instance, Father [Francis] Atzeni. Concerned at the
alarming drop in priestly vocations, Father Porqueddu had for a
number of years been urging the local bishops to convince Don
Bosco to open with their help one or more schools on the island.
Unfortunately, despite their good will, the bishops were in such dire
financial straits that they lost heart at the thought of an undertaking
whose importance was not grasped by many people, including the
clergy.
When Father Porqueddu saw that his efforts with the bishops
were unsuccessful, he turned to the laity. Very soon he found a man
who offered a substantial contribution, asking nothing more than
how much Don Bosco would need to open a boarding school, a
junior seminary, or a festive oratory. His only concern was that
young men might receive a good education and learn in their youth
to accept sacrifice-"something which is almost completely
4John Baptist Tomasi, Anthony Cannas, John Scalas, Felix Matta and Louis Cossu.
[Author]
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Unrealized New Foundations in 1879
237
unknown here-Father Porqueddu wrote-so that divine grace
may more readily waken in their hearts a desire to consecrate
themselves to the Lord and become His worthy ministers.'' Would
Don Bosco send him word and let him know what to do? Don
Bosco gave the letter to Father Cagliero with this notation: "To be
brought up at the next chapter meeting." The chapter decided that
Father Porqueddu should be informed that momentarily no action
could be taken, but that he should keep trying to raise necessary
funds: "a house and a piece of bread." Father Porqueddu wrote
back, asking exactly what Don Bosco meant by "a piece of bread."
The second reply was not very encouraging toward opening a
house, but the Jesuit was not a man to go halfway in any
undertaking, especially when God's service was involved. In fact
he did succeed in finding a house which had been vacated by the
Piarists, to whom the municipality of Isili had ceded the rights on
condition that the building be used as an educational institution. As
soon as the Piarists left, the municipality reclaimed it with its
income and offered it to Don Bosco with a revenue of two thousand
lire and other resources. "Do not tell me that you lack personnel,"
the Jesuit wrote to Don Bosco.5 "Hunt around, search every nook
and cranny, accept the offer and send someone at any cost. How
much good can be done! What a fine Patagonia this is!"
So far the offer had not been official. The project had been first
presented to the municipal aldermen by John Zedda, a councillor,
at the request of Peter Ghiani Memeli, another councillor and
deputy of Isili. The latter had met Don Bosco, probably in Rome,
and had informed his colleagues that "a certain Don Bosco from
Italy planned to open a secondary or elementary school in Sardinia
if a municipality would provide premises and an annual income of
four thousand lire." Mayor Antiocus Porceddu seconded the
proposal, saying," Since this is a project of Don Bosco, with whom
I am well acquainted, that's reason enough to accept it." After a
brief debate, the municipal council voted in its favor and agreed to
open negotiations. Three weeks later the provincial committee also
gave its approval.6 Then, on May 24, Father Porqueddu again
pleaded with Don Bosco: "Dear Don Bosco, for heaven's sake, do
5Letter, Genoni, April 29, 1879. [Author]
6Minutes of April 29, 1879, with later additions. [Author]
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TIIE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
your very utmost to make this project a reality. We need it even
more than the poor Patagonians do. Sardinia does not have a single
boarding school or junior seminary in which to train boys with a
reasonable hope of success."
Don Bosco gave it serious thought but did not commit himself to
anything until favorable circumstances would allow him. Five
months later, the mayor of Isili renewed his request. Father
[Celestine] Durando, then charged with negotiations for opening
new houses, replied on November 21 in Don Bosco's name. After
thanking the municipal councilmen for their many signs of trust, he
informed them that the Salesians would gladly oblige ifthey had the
personnel. Hopefully what was not then feasible could be
accomplished later on. In the meantime he needed to know the
distance from Isili to the nearest railway station, the capacity of the
building, and whether it had an adjoining playground and garden.
The mayor sent him all the requested information.
By now the school year was well advanced and so there was no
urgency to speed up decisions. However, on April 22 [1880], the
mayor, rather concerned at the long silence, wrote Don Bosco an
earnest appeal on behalf of the municipal council to send a
representative to inspect the premises and negotiate, adding that the
municipality would fund all travel expenses. Meanwhile, two years
went by, during which municipal elections were held in Isili. The
new mayor, Anthony Cicalo, again took up the matter and, on
December 13, 1882, voicing the sentiments of his townspeople,
pleaded that speedy action be taken to open the long-desired
Salesian school. But the time was not right, and nothing was done
about Isili until after a Salesian school was opened at Lanusei, the
region's capital. We may feel that, despite his half-promises, Don
Bosco's indecisiveness lasted too long, but we must point out that at
that time municipal and government offices were well established in
the former Piarist boarding school. In view of this, it would not
have been wise for Don Bosco to intervene and dislodge those
tenants.
3. PisoGNE
A voluminous pile of correspondence dating from 1878 to 1886
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Unrealized New Foundations in 1879
239
concerns negotiations with the municipal council of Pisogne, a
small town in the diocese and province of Brescia, where a
diocesan priest, Father James Mercanti, had opened an elementary
and secondary boarding school in 1822. Named after him, the
school prospered until 1865, when it began to decline because of
mismanagement and political unrest. Since Don Bosco's works
were already well known and admired in that area, ~ishop James
Coma Pellegrini, a native son of Pisogne, thought of him as the one
most able to restore the school's former reputation. "In this vast,
religious-minded province," he wrote on October 8, 1878, "there is
not a single first-rate boarding school to meet present-day needs. A
school under your auspices and direction would do a great deal of
good." Don Bosco's reply was that he could not oblige that year,
but that there were hopes "for some other year."
Since the school was registered as a legal body and was being
administered by the municipality, the town council was informed of
the proposal and gratefully accepted it. Certain that they could
safely rely on Don Bosco's "eminent civil and moral qualities"
which had brought him renown and merit before society," they
contacted Don Bosco directly. Their first request was that the
secondary school be certified by the board of education, though no
one was blind to the fact that to return the school to its former
condition would make considerable demands upon Don Bosco.
Other sources alerted Don Bosco to the danger of being dragged
"into a hornet's nest of problems, expenses and headaches." Then,
too, nearby Lavere had a boarding school, and its administration,
fearing competition, offered to affiliate the Mercanti school. To
make matters worse, the provincial school superintendent, abetted
by local liberals, was striving to sabotage the invitation to Don
Bosco, going so far as even to write libelous letters against him
which the mayor indignantly discounted.
These problems, along with scarcity of personnel, justified fears
of serious future difficulties and obstacles. Consequently Don
Bosco instructed Father Rua to write in his name that he intended
to withdraw from all negotiations. Four new attempts were made
between 1892 and 1905, all in vain, mainly because the
municipality of Pisogne would have tied the director's hands by its
excessive interference.
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
4. MONTEROTONDO
When Canon Gerard Procacci, parish priest of St. Hilary's at
Monterotondo, called on Don Bosco in Rome at the beginning of
1879, the latter promised to send Father [Joseph] Daghero from
Magliano to inspect a building which was to be entrusted to the
Salesians on condition that they run the public elementary school
and start a secondary school. Quite certain of pleasing the
townspeople, the noble Boncompagni family, along with Cardinal
[Louis] Bilio [bishop of Sabina] and the municipal authorities,
looked forward to the arrival ofthe Salesians. Father Daghero went
there, checked out the premises and gave Don Bosco a very
favorable report. The mayor promptly took the matter in hand, with
the intention of dismissing the lay teachers and replacing them with
religious, as was within his power. Hugo Boncompagni, eldest son
and president of the local chapter of Catholic Youth, joined in the
mayor's plea to Don Bosco not to defer action.
On Don Bosco's behalf Father Durando replied that for the
moment it was impossible, but held out good hopes "for some other
year." "We can wait," came the reply, "but let us draw up a
contract now since elections are near at hand and a new municipal
council might not be as favorable as this." The answer again
promised that everything possible would be done but it also
carefully avoided anything like a firm commitment. This was
interpreted as a courteous refusal, and the matter ended there. In
1911 Hugo Boncompagni, a prelate, renewed the proposal to
Father [Paul] Albera [Don Bosco's second successor], but it too
was denied for lack of personnel and other reasons.
5. ACIREALE
Bishop Gerlando M. Genuardi of Acireale was the first bishop in
Sicily to request Don Bosco's Salesians for his diocese. Although
he had already supported a similar appeal from Randazzo, also in
his diocese, he was particularly anxious to have the Salesians in
Acireale. He planned to reopen the St. Martin School, formerly run
by diocesan priests, and he arranged to tum it over to Don Bosco
for a nominal rent.
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Unrealized New Foundations in 1879
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Don Bosco sent Father Cagliero and Father Durando in his
place to inspect the building. They found it splendidly suited for a
boarding school. Later, after his ad limina visit to the Vatican,
Bishop Genuardi went on to Turin to discuss the matter personally
with Don Bosco. We only know of one specific item of their
discussion. Since the municipal authorities of Acireale had in the
past granted the St. Martin School an annual subsidy of two
thousand lire, the bishop persuaded them to continue these funds
for the Salesians when they would come. He even hoped to have it
doubled, should Don Bosco agree to open a lyceum on the
premises. In view of this, on June 30, 1879 Don Bosco officially
informed the mayor of his intention to open a secondary school and
inquired about the municipality's willingness to subsidize it.
The municipal council agreed to give the Salesians an annual
subsidy of four thousand lire once they opened a certified lyceum-
a stipulation which must have grated in Don Bosco's ears.
Fortunately, however, matters took quite another tum, and
negotiations came to an end. Apart from other considerations, the
bishop's proposal for Acireale was abandoned because the
Oratorians of St. Philip Neri had already opened a boarding
secondary school-St. Michael's. In 1880, therefore, Bishop
Genuardi turned his thoughts to another plan. His diocese, which
had been established by Pius IX in 1872, had no seminary of its
own, as it lacked the government's official recognition. As soon as
that came in 1880, the bishop immediately concentrated on the
seminary and, in full agreement with his chapter, wrote to Don
Bosco to ask him to take over its administration and to conduct
boarding elementary and secondary classes. Don Bosco promptly
opened negotiations, suggesting a contract basically similar to that
for the junior seminary of Magliano.7 The diocesan council agreed,
but the written contract made it clear that the proposed undertaking
had become quite different from that envisioned by Don Bosco and
his chapter. A frequent exchange of letters between the bishop and
Don Bosco continued until July 1881, and the bishop furthermore
sent his chancellor and secretary to Turin to clarify plans and
smooth out difficulties, but notwithstanding the good will of both
1See Vol. XIII, pp. 60f. [Editor]
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lHE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
parties, the superior chapter turned down the plan because details
were still not sufficiently clear and unpleasant surprises were likely
to arise in the future. The bishop was taken aback, but, being a man
of eminent virtue, he did not close his heart to Don Bosco and his
successors and kept voicing his pleasure at having within his
diocese a Salesian boarding school which had opened Sicily's gates
to the Salesian Congregation.
6. CATANIA
As a matter of fact, Catania had requested the Salesians one year
before Acireale did, but despite the fact that many of the clergy
were Salesian cooperators, no serious negotiations were ever
initiated. Father Rosario Riccioli, rector of the seminary, tried to
get things started by authorizing two priests who were going to
Turin to discuss the matter with Don Bosco, but the latter simply
advised them to confer with their ordinary, Archbishop [Joseph
Benedict] Dusmet. Canon Cesareo made a second attempt, pro-
posing that Don Bosco open a school of arts and trades with
diocesan help, but no action was taken.
In 1879, finally, Bishop Guttadauro of Caltanissetta expressed
his desire to open a girls' orphanage in his diocese under the
direction of the Daughters of Mary, Help of Christians, but this too
met with no success.
7. ROME
Even as late as 1879 the hour for a long-cherished foundation in
Rome had not yet come. Two houses seem to have been ready for
the Salesians in May of that year. One, in the neighborhood of the
Church of the Santi Quatro Coronati [Four Holy Martyrs],8 was to
be a small hospice for young apprentices; the other, across the
Tiber, was to be a technical school, by the Pope's express wish.
Don Bosco was asked to promptly send a capable priest to
supervise the establishment of the former and to negotiate for both
8 Four Roman soldiers massacred for refusing to worship a statue of Asclepius, the Greek
god of medicine. [Editor]
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Unrealized New Foundations in 1879
243
foundations. It was asserted that enough money was already on
hand to meet the most pressing needs of the hospice and that the
Pope would cover all expenses for the technical school.
This information, imparted on May 7, 1879 by Archbishop
Ludwig J acobini [secretary of the Sacred Congregation for the
Propagation of the Faith], was greeted by the Salesian superiors as
a special grace of Divine Providence. Promptly Father [Joseph)
Monateri, director at Albano, was chosen to negotiate and was
instructed to listen, observe and then report without committing
himself one way or another. "We have already pledged our word
for other houses this year," Father Barberis wrote in Don Bosco's
name, "but we must not let the opportunity of opening these houses
slip by, because we really do need a foothold in Rome."
Father Monateri's report was not long in coming, but it was
disappointing. The attitude of the Romans differed strongly from
that of Don Bosco. They planned to give all powers, including
internal government, to a commission, thus turning the Salesians
into little more than lowly servants. In fact, the commission, which
had already been appointed, gave Father Monateri a draft of the
rules which they intended to impose. He pointed out that his
superiors w_ould not approve them and suggested an alternate plan
which he thought would be acceptable to both parties. His
recommendation fell on deaf ears, and reluctantly he relayed the
tightly worded draft to Turin. The superior chapter unanimously
rejected it while approving Father Monateri's own proposals. Thus
the matter ended.
Concerning a Roman foundation, however, the final word had
not yet been spoken for St. Michael's Hospice.9 In June 1879,
Prince Gabrielli, chairman of the government's board of directors,
formally invited Don Bosco to assume the internal direction of the
hospice. We have already seen that this institution, on which the
Popes had lavished money and anxious care, had fallen into a sad
state of decadence. Don Bosco had previously been reluctant to
accept the responsibility because he was given no freedom. The
prince, who had done his very best to overcome this obstacle, now
assured him that the Salesians would be free and unhampered in
anything dealing with internal government. Don Bosco replied that
9See pp. 52f. [Editor]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
he accepted in principle and that the Salesians were highly honored
by the trust shown them. As a follow-up, he developed his concept
in a reply which he sent to the prince.
Moved by the sincerest intentions, the prince asked for further
clarifications, which Don Bosco gave him in greater detail. In
addition, since Father Durando was then in Rome because of the
hostile campaign being waged against the Oratory's secondary
school, Don Bosco instructed him to deal with the matter
personally.
It seems that the progress of negotiations was slow. Anxious to
have someone who could properly represent him in Rome, Don
Bosco, on October 1, 1879, wrote to his dear friend [Commendatore
John Baptist] Aluffi,10 asking him to intervene on his behalf. It was
an excellent choice, and Don Bosco had nothing but praise for the
assistance of this first-rate official of the Department of the
Interior. In his position he wielded great influence on the
negotiations, which still proceeded slowly, but Don Bosco had
good reason to avoid haste.
Among the scanty documentation concerning St. Michael's
Hospice there now remain only the sketchy minutes of a superior
chapter meeting which show that the freedom to be granted to the
future director was more imaginary than real. For instance, he
would not have been free to choose his prefect or appoint a
workshop manager or even a Salesian doorkeeper who would be
under his sole control, Negotiations, therefore, ground to a halt.
Apart from this, it was advantageous for the Salesians that the
Roman people came to learn that the government was negotiating
with them and showed its trust in such an important matter.
8. MONTEFIASCONE
To these unrealized projects, we must add a few which, once
established, failed to take root. The dire need for personnel would
not let Don Bosco leave confreres in places where they felt
hopelessly locked in and subject to others. We allude to
Montefiascone, Albano and Ariccia, where Don Bosco had sent his
10See Vol. XIII, p. 428 and also pp. 128f of this volume. [Editor]
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Unrealized New Foundations in 1879
245
Salesians mostly to please some eminent people and always with
an eye on Rome; there was little belief that these would be
permanent foundations.
At Montefiascone11 Father Guidazio felt like a fish out of water.
His position became very uneasy after he opposed the unrealistic
project of opening a lyceum staffed by Salesians. Soon enough the
bishop and the rector became increasingly cold toward him, though
no one ever thought he might leave, for the mere hint of his being
recalled to Turin would have signaled a direct appeal to the Pope.
In view of Leo XIII's affection for Bishop Rotelli [the local
ordinary], it was more than probable that a papal intervention
would block such a move.
Nevertheless, at the close of the school year, Father Guidazio
was called to Turin for genuine health reasons, and later the bishop
was informed that, since Don Bosco had stipulated to loan Father
Guidazio for only one year, the latter would now be transferred
elsewhere. The letter added that, if necessary, Don Bosco would
look for and readily find a lay professor whom he might recommend
to the seminary rector. Immediately the acting deputy of the
Vatican's secretariat of state sent an earnest request that Don
Bosco reconsider and send Father Guidazio back, also to forestall
serious embarrassment to the bishop and grave displeasure to
the Pope. After due consideration to this openly exaggerated
statement, Don Bosco decided to stand by his decision.
9. ALBANO AND AruccIA
The Salesians felt very uncomfortable also at Albano and
Ariccia. Cardinal [Camillus] Di Pietro, who had brought them
there, had been transferred to the see of Ostia and Velletri, and
shortly afterward his successor, Cardinal [Charles] Morichini, had
died. Both cardinals had loved the Salesians, but now the Salesians
were no longer in the good graces of the new bishop.
Cardinal Morichini was succeeded by Cardinal D'Hohenlohe,
who made an extraordinarily solemn entrance into his diocese.
Father [Joseph] Monateri was invited to the gala reception, but,
11see Vol. XIII, pp. 532ff. [Editor]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
when he called on the cardinal shortly afterward with another
Salesian, he received a somewhat glacial welcome. Later, Father
[Stephen] Trione12 went to pay his respects along with a newly
ordained diocesan priest and was well received, but not one word
was said about either Don Bosco or the Salesians.
Everything seemed to confirm the rumor that the cardinal was
dead set against our Congregation; furthermore, as a champion of
Rosminian philosophy, he was also a friend of Archbishop
Gastaldi. When sounded out by someone about letting Don Bosco
open a boarding school at Albano, he firmly rejected the idea.
Likewise, there was hardly anyone of the diocesan clergy who
would speak favorably of the Salesians to him. The local priests
had never looked graciously upon these "outsiders," and of late
they had been waging a covert war against them. Even the slightest
incident would have kicked up a storm, as it happened when Father
[Charles] Montiglio lost his patience during class and, unfortunately,
slapped a seminarian. Squabbles, gossip and slanderous comments
resulted. To make matters worse, the Salesians' quarters in Ariccia
were very uncomfortable, unsanitary, and tight and noisy because
of the endless movement of municipal employees to and from their
offices. All requests for improvement met with only vague
promises, because the municipality was practically bankrupt. The
situation became simply intolerable.
It was a relief for them to have Father Cagliero and his traveling
companion enjoy carnival with them. Father Cagliero's report to
Don Bosco read: "We see it as a waste to keep our Salesians at
Albano when we have so many pressing requests for schools and
hostels elsewhere and there is no hope for one here. What little
good our priests are doing in these two small towns could just as
readily be done by the local clergy. We have personnel here who
are gifted and well disciplined and capable of far more good
elsewhere." 13 Shortly afterward, Father Monateri was instructed
to inform the cardinal bishop of Albano that the Salesians were
resigning. Father Gallo was given identical instructions for the
municipal authorities of Ariccia, who at first demurred but then had
to yield.
12see Appendix 1. [Editor]
131.etter, Acireale, March 3, 1879. See also Bollettino Salesiano, August 1879, pp. 7f.
[Author]
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There was good reason for the Ariccia authorities' reluctance.
Both the parish priest and aldermen had secretly and unsuccessfully
tried to lure other teachers, and now they did not know what to do.
Under the circumstances it was no place for Salesians.
At Albano only two boarding seminarians remained, and the
clerics, forced to attend public schools with irreligious teachers and
all kinds of schoolmates, felt very much out of place. The situation
made it necessary to close the seminary, and it has remained closed
to the present day [1933].
Nevertheless, the people of both towns were very fond of the
Salesians because of their priestly ministry, their splendid liturgical
services, and the care they lavished on the children both in and out
of school. The boys liked them so much that they were constantly
at the Salesian house. The few surviving confreres who once
enjoyed this affection from young and old have fond memories of it.
Their successors, who later established themselves in neighboring
Genzano, kept hearing how much the old-timers missed Don
Bosco's sons who had preceded them in the Castelli Romani twenty
years before.
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CHAPTER 13
Salesian Houses Opened zn 1879
IN his 1880 New Year's greetings to the Salesian
cooperators, Don Bosco listed the houses he had opened the year
before, citing Saint-Cyr as the first. In fact, it was opened on June
10, 1879, when the Daughters of Mary, Help of Christians took
possession. For the moment we will add nothing to what we have
already said in this1 and the preceding volume.2
1. SAN BENIGNO CANAVESE
Destined to become most important for the life of the
Congregation, this house was opened in the summer of 1879,
marking the return of an active and fervent Christian life to an
historic abbey which had been a peaceful haven of prayer, study
and work for a large community of Benedictine monks from the
year 1001. As in so many other instances, a sizable town had
gradually grown around the abbey, from which it took its name, San
Benigno di Fruttuaria. Its founder, William of Volpiano, former
Benedictine abbot of St. Benignus of Dijon, who founded forty
other monasteries, was widely known throughout Christian Europe
for his holiness and learning. So weighty an influence did the abbey
of San Benigno Canavese exert during the Middle Ages that its
abbot governed thirty other monasteries, wielding temporal power
in Italy, France, Austria and Corsica, thanks to Popes, kings and
1See Index under "Saint-Cyr." [Editor]
2 See Vol. XIII, pp. 407f, 418. [Editor]
248
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feudal lords who had generously endowed it with villages, castles
and estates. At one time as many as twelve hundred monks were
under his jurisdiction. A true center of virtue and knowledge, it gave
the Church two Popes, Innocent IV and Sixtus IV, and five of its
abbots were princes of the House of Savoy. Its early history gained
renown when King Ardoin, disheartened by political strife,
withdrew there to find peace, donning the monastic habit and
leading an austere, cloistered life to the end of his days. His
memory lives in the folklore of nine centuries.
The abbey began to decline toward the end of the fifteenth
century when it was canonically erected as a commenda. 3 Abbots
continued to be appointed to the benefice even after the monks had
left and the dukes of Savoy had taken over the abbey. The last
abbot to hold the benefice was Cardinal Amedeo delle Lanze, who
died in 1738 after a life of charity and priestly zeal. The abbey
lands were then absorbed into the diocese of Ivrea. On August 15,
1865 the historic estate was totally dissolved by law and the
remaining revenues deposited into the government's Cult Fund,
while the lands reverted to the state. In 1877 the king decreed the
main abbey building a national monument, and the state lands were
put under the municipality's trusteeship. This was the abbey's legal
status when a lease was first negotiated with Don Bosco.
It was the local parish priest, Father Benone, who first thought of
asking him to take it over; though his initial attempt failed, he
succeeded the second time. We should point out that in 1852 the
Fathers of Christian Doctrine had opened a certified secondary
school with facilities for boarders, and another fine priest ran a
branch school in adjacent premises for poorer boys. In 1867,
however, differences of opinion with the municipal authorities
caused the Fathers of Christian Doctrine and the priest to leave.
Father Benone then suggested that Don Bosco come in and
establish his own boarding school. Don Bosco gladly agreed,
provided that the parish priest first obtained the consent of Bishop
[Louis] Moreno of Ivrea. Foreseeing no obstacles, Father Benone
called on the bishop and with the informality of an old friend put the
matter before him. "Never, absolutely never, will I allow Don
3An abbey became a commenda when its rentals were granted by the Pope to an
ecclesiastic or layman not belonging to the abbey. [Author]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
Bosco to set himself up within my diocese," the bishop replied.4
Thoroughly crushed, Father Benone left, not even staying for
dinner with the bishop as he usually did on such occasions. Later,
Bishop Moreno, in an effort to get the building for his own use and
to block attempts of others, undertook a vast program of repairs,
bringing pressure to bear on the government to declare it a national
monument. He achieved his goal and immediately added a further
fifteen thousand lire of restorations which ultimately benefited Don
Bosco. Because of the building's new status, no investors came
forward, and so, after the bishop's death in 1878, Father Benone
succeeded in having the Salesians take it over.
Don Bosco's aim was to move the clerics' novitiate to San
Benigno. This novitiate passed through three phases. At first the
novices fully shared the Oratory's family life of prayer and action
according to each one's capability: they supervised the boys, taught
catechism or school subjects, worked in the city's festive oratories,
and carried out secretarial tasks under the direct guidance of the
local superiors. They took philosophy and theology courses at the
diocesan seminary.
During the novitiate's second phase, the novices studied at the
Oratory in classrooms of their own under their own superior,
Father Julius Barberis, while continuing for a couple of years to
supervise the boys. At this time, they were gradually grouped apart
in a private dormitory, playground and dining room. Finally, on
being freed from the duty of supervising the boys, they became
totally separated from the rest of the Oratory community. The
novitiate entered into its third phase when it was moved to San
Benigno Canavese, where everything was directed to their religious
formation.
Don Bosco himself acknowledged this intention of his in opening
the house of San Benigno Canavese, but he also advised against
giving it too clerical a look, and he set up workshops for young
apprentices, thus also providing for its living expenses.5 Events
were not slow to prove how wisely he had acted. When the
municipality transferred the building to Don Bosco, the prefect of
4For the background of Bishop Moreno's animosity see the Indexes of Volumes VII and
VITI under Letture Cattoliche. [Editor]
schronicle of Father Barberis, April 18 and May 7, 1879. [Author]
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Turin sent the following caution to the mayor before giving final
approval:
Since the terms of the contract ceding state lands and buildings to the
municipality bind the latter to allow the abbey's main building to be used
exclusively for endeavors benefiting the public, you are obliged to specify
distinctly what use Father John Bosco will make of that building and why
such use may be considered a benefit to the public.
When Don Bosco was informed of this instruction,6 he sent the
mayor the following reply:
Dear Sir:
Rome, March 10, 1879
I am honored to reply to your letter of March 1 concerning the use I
intend to make of the main building of San Benigno Abbey. As already
stated in the deed of cession, I intend to use it for the public good, as I have
done with all other houses under my direction. Specifically, I intend to use
the abbey's main building:
1. as a day school for the area's children;
2. as an evening school for adults;
3. as a youth center for the area's young men.
4. I would turn any remaining space into a home for needy youngsters
who wish to learn a craft or trade, as is done in the [Valdocco] Oratory in
Turin, where homeless youngsters from various places of Italy are
sheltered.
5. Finally, if possible, I would also set up a center for our young
personnel, to train them in practical ways of maintaining discipline in
dormitories, workshops, and classrooms.
These are the projects I have in mind, space permitting.
I believe this is an adequate explanation of my plans. Should you
request further details, I shall gladly answer your questions.
Obligingly yours,
Fr. John Bosco
His main purpose was mentioned last and only conditionally. But
[we must bear in mind that] if the deed of cession stated nothing as to
the way Don Bosco was to use the abbey's main building for the
public good, he himself specified it in his contract with the board of
6Letter to Don Bosco from the mayor, March 1, 1879. [Author]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
aldermen in which he declared that he and his successors agreed to
abide by three conditions: 1. To honor the municipality's
obligations to the government as stated in the deed of sub-
cession; 2. To open an elementary school in the abbey premises
for the area's children; 3. To honor the obligations which the
municipality had contracted with the teachers of the elementary
school.
The agreement with the municipality made reference only to
matters of concern to the municipal authorities, nothing being said
of Don Bosco's main purpose, which was then better left unsaid.
Nevertheless, his intentions were amply intimated by the wording:
"To open an elementary school in the abbey premises."
Once things were well under way, Don Bosco openly revealed
his mind in the 1880 circular to the Salesian cooperators.
Describing the new house as being "directed in many ways toward
the public good," he added, "Many poor boys will learn a trade
there, while others will be trained to become good teachers and
assistants in our schools and workshops. Local children will attend
the school, and an oratory will be opened on Sundays and holy
days." His reasons for so cautiously avoiding all mention of a
religious novitiate are obvious. On the other hand, the town was all
the better off for giving Don Bosco leeway, since he enriched it with
a charitable institution and helped ease some areas of the municipal
budget.
Nor was his promise to house young artisans in the house a mere
cover-up. In fact, Father Barberis, the director, on taking office
immediately mailed a circular announcing that in San Benigno Don
Bosco had opened "a new hospice for an increasing number of
destitute boys who would be trained in goodness and work so as
later to be able to earn an honest living." Father Barberis urged the
readers to recommend boys from twelve to eighteen who needed a
home and schooling and to help provide work for the existing shops:
carpentry, tailoring, shoemaking and bookbinding. He also
appealed to the faithful's generosity for donations, household goods
and food. Soon more workshops were added. The novices
themselves were not a bit bothered by the presence of so many
young workers sharing their home. Throughout their usual routine,
they were hardly aware of them, since each group had its own
chapel, playground and living quarters.
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That year was an extraordinary jubilee year to celebrate the
election of Leo XIII. The parish priest of San Benigno came to the
Oratory in May to ask the Salesians to preach a triduum and
prepare the people for the papal indulgences. The reply was a
prompt yes, and Father Barberis, who had been appointed director
of the new house, went to San Benigno. Thus he was able to check
on the work to be done before the premises could be occupied. Don
Bosco later sent both Father Cagliero and Father Barberis to Ivrea
to pay their respects in the name of the Salesians to the newly
installed Bishop David Riccardi and to request the needed
faculties. Graciously the bishop replied, "If needed, I grant you
every faculty a Catholic bishop can give." In due time, when the
Salesians finally came to his diocese, he was very happy and
wished them a pleasant, permanent and spiritually fruitful stay.7
The first residents of San Benigno were the fifty clerical novices
of 1878-79. On completing their fmal exams on July 3, they left
Turin two days later and walked the entire road to San Benigno for
their summer vacation. Both city officials and the people joyfully
welcomed them. They lacked many things, but experience has
shown that in the initial stages of a new undertaking it is always to
the pioneers' interest to shift for themselves and meet their creature
needs.
Despite his wish-indeed, his intention-of moving the novitiate
to San Benigno, Don Bosco, anxious that the premises be ready
before permanently transferring the novices of the new school year,
had decided to send the clerical novices there for their summer
vacation. Furthermore, during the September spiritual retreats at
Lanzo, he asked Father Rua, Father Lazzero and Father Barberis
to study the situation and make a report to the superior chapter.
Their findings were quite favorable, except for two items: first, the
new house would always be a financial burden to the Oratory since
hardly any novices could afford to pay their way; second, it was too
far distant for Don Bosco to hear the novices' confessions, as he
had done in the past, and to imbue them with the true spirit of the
Congregation.
The reply to the first difficulty was that the Lord, who had
always generously cared for the needs of the Congregation, would
7letter to Father Barberis, lvrea, July 8, 1879. [Author]
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1HE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
certainly not stop now, especially since this undertaking aimed
exclusively at His greater glory. As for the second difficulty, Don
Bosco pointed out that he was already absenting himself from the
Oratory several months of the year so that even then he found it
hard to get to know all the clerics. He could make up for this by
frequent visits, particularly on the occasion of the monthly Exercise
for a Happy Death.
The final decision was taken on September 17: the clerical
novitiate would from then on be situated at San Benigno. The result
was that candidates accepted by the superiors during the spiritual
retreat were immediately transferred there. On October 20, Don
Bosco vested the novices with the clerical habit in a private chapel
of their own and fervently encouraged them to grow in virtue.
Among those fifty novices, two deserve special mention: Michael
Unia,8 heroic apostle of the lepers, and Philip Rinaldi,9 Don
Bosco's third successor.
2. CREMONA
In the New Year's circular to the Salesian cooperators which we
have mentioned, Don Bosco listed three other houses after San
Benigno. All were short-lived, not because of his poor foresight or
faulty preparation, but because their very origins were marked by
overwhelming difficulties.
The house at Cremona came first. Don Bosco's deputies, Father
Cagliero and Father Durando, stopped there on their return journey
to Turin10 and found it doing fairly well. In September, Father
[Anthony] Sala, economer general, visited the house and was also
pleased with the preparatory work of a special committee. Toward
the end of that month, then, three priests, two clerics and two
coadjutors left for Cremona. Father Stephen Chicco, who was
replaced at Nizza Monferrato by Father Lemoyne, was the
director. Don Bosco's circular letter stated: "A festive oratory and
a public church named after Saint Lawrence, as well as day and
evening classes, have begun in Cremona."
8 See Appendix 1. [Editor]
9Jbid. [Editor]
1osee p. 31. [Editor]
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For three years the Salesians bucked serious obstacles put up by
intolerant anticlerical parties who were dead set against anything
even remotely seeming to curry clerical favor. Unfortunately, a
teacher took exceptionally severe measures in disciplining some
pupils, and a great hue and cry arose once it became known. The
anticlericals seized this excuse to organize demonstrations against
the school for several days, shouting threats and even attempting to
overrun the premises. To make matters worse, Father Dominic
Bruna, who had succeeded Father Chicco11 at his death, unwisely
defended the impulsive teacher, stiffening popular hostility and
causing his own immediate dismissal by the prefecture.
Honest people, however, sided with the Salesians, and some fifty
fathers of the students quickly signed a declaration of support
which Don Bosco immediately sent to Commendatore [James]
Malvano at Rome through Father Durando. The commendatore,
on the point of leaving to dine with the king, promised to bring the
matter up to the minister of public education, who would be a
fellow guest. That evening, Father Durando, learning from the
commendatore that things had taken a bad tum, conferred with
Chevalier Costantini, the minister's secretary and informed him
that Attorney Villa would handle the problem. Costantini's only
comment was that this would certainly aggravate the situation.
Cremona's Freemasonry had sent word to their colleague not to
budge from Rome, so he pocketed the five hundred lire given him
for traveling expenses and was not heard from again. Father
Durando then hastened to Cremona to confer with the local
authorities, but the prefect was away, the school superintendent
was in hiding, the mayor had not yet been installed, and the acting
manager had no intention of getting involved. It was the
anticlericals' hour of triumph. Since the Salesians' position had
become untenable, they withdrew on July 1, 1882, leaving the
entire project in the hands of the committee which had first sent for
them. Bishop [Jeremiah] Bonomelli of Cremona was deeply
concerned, but he could do nothing to ease the anticlericals' wrath,
nor did he care to look for a scapegoat. His love for Don Bosco and
the Congregation never wavered. We shall return to this matter in
the next volume.
11ffe had died on September 8, 1881. [Editor]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
3. BRINDISI
After citing Cremona, Don Bosco stated: "On November 8, a
similar foundation was opened at Brindisi, the second southern-
most city ofltaly." This laconic reference seems to forecast a very
brief existence. The Salesians never had a home of their own, being
lodged in an apartment of the bishop's residence. That good
prelate, Archbishop Louis Aguilar, a Bamabite, had once visited
Don Bosco at the Oratory and had been deeply edified by what he
had seen.12 He longed for something similar in his own
archdiocese, but his hopes went all awry. Misunderstandings not
promptly cleared up begot lack of trust and hostility among the
clergy against the Salesians, all the more so since the local priests
saw no need for them. The few Salesians who had been sent to get
the project started felt the cooling off of the initial favor and, seeing
no way of rekindling it, returned to Turin the following summer.
4. CHALLONGES
Several times, while conversing with Commendatore [John
Baptist] Dupraz-whom we have mentioned in connection with our
house at Trinita near Mondovi13-Don Bosco had expressed a
desire to start work in the diocese named after the Congregation's
titular saint. In tum, this gentleman mentioned it to Bishop Magnin
of Annecy, telling him of the good work of the Salesians, especially
among poor, homeless boys. The bishop assured him that Don
Bosco would have his full support whenever he might be ready to
open a school in Savoy. The favorable moment came in 1877 when
Commendatore Dupraz and his unmarried sister decided to buy
and remodel a building at Challonges, their native town in Haute
Savoie, for Don Bosco to open a festive oratory and a school for
resident and day students. In giving his permission, the bishop
wrote to Father Durando as follows: "For some time I have been
acquainted with the good work Don Bosco's Congregation is doing,
and I therefore heartily endorse what this man of God has in mind
for Challonges in my diocese. Having long been a distant admirer
of his zeal on behalf of Italian youth, I shall now be very fortunate
12Bulletin Salesien, November 1879, p. 4. (Author]
13See Vol. XII, pp. 357f. (Editor]
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Salesian Houses Opened in 1879
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indeed to bless and admire at close range the achievements of his
Congregation which I am sure I shall see among my beloved
people." 14 Bishop Magnin diedjust before the lengthy negotiations
were concluded, and· his successor, Bishop Isoard, promptly
declared his own joyful willingness to give his support to the worthy
undertaking and to welcome the Salesians, for he too had great
spiritual expectations for his diocese. 15
The building's remodeling took longer than anticipated, and the
total outlay came to some sixty thousand francs including the sale
price. Commendatore Dupraz paid the whole sum and also
volunteered an annual subsidy of fifteen hundred francs for the
Salesians. Don Bosco sent Father Durando to check on the work's
progress and to determine how soon the school could be opened.
The date was finally set for November 1879.
Meanwhile, shortly before the inauguration, one of Challonges'
council members circulated a leaflet, "The Oratory of St. John the
Baptist," which announced that, with the bishop of Annecy's
authorization and the local parish priest's consent, a Catholic
oratory was to be opened as a day school and a religious instruction
center for boys of Challonges and its environs at the residence of
Commendatore Dupraz. The project was detailed as including a
tuition-free day school meeting the requirements of the canton's
office of primary education and, eventually, a private elementary
school.
However, schools of this nature required a headmaster who was
properly qualified and was a French citizen. Originally Don Bosco..___
had planned to appoint Count Cays, an Italian, to the position;
now, however, he had no choice but to send for Father [James]
Vincent16 from Saint-Cyr since he met all the requirements.
Father Durando accompanied the Salesians to Challonges,
where they immediately opened the festive oratory and started a
choir. It was a daily oratory because Savoy's diocesan regulations
mandated an hour a day from November 1 to March 14 of
catechetical instruction for all children. It was truly a long day for
the Salesians: morning catechism classes ran from seven-thirty to
14Annecy, November 5, 1877. [Author]
15Letter from the bishop's secretary to Commendatore Dupraz, Annecy, August 27,
1879. [Author]
1ssee Vol. XIII, pp. 412, 418. [Editor]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
eight-thirty, followed by Mass and regular instruction in reading,
writing and arithmetic-the only subjects permitted. The boys
returned for games in the afternoon, while many pupils who came
from three neighboring villages brought their lunch with them and
stayed till evening. The building was ideal, with spacious, airy
classrooms.
Everything is fine-Count Cays wrote17-except for me because I feel
that I am far from qualified for this top position. True, I keep remembering
what you so often told me, "I can do all things in Him who strengthens
me," but they would certainly go better if my feeble trust [in God] were
not matched by my ineptness. I candidly tell you ofmy unrest not because
I am unwilling to do my very best, but rather because I need your prayers
very much.
Meanwhile something that happened everywhere else began to
take place at Challonges: public school pupils started to transfer to
the free, or charity, school, as it was known, though it had a limited
curriculum and no legal approval. This steady flow of new students
forced the Salesians to expand the curriculum and to add new
subjects. Then, at the insistence of priests and laity, they petitioned
the competent authority to get their school approved on a par with
other private institutions. Unfortunately, they moved ahead without
due consideration to the legal requirement that a petition was to
hold in abeyance for a month.
Immediately the Masonic press-particularly Le Patriote
Savoisien of Chambery, the radicals' mouthpiece, kicked up a fury
which was fed mainly by the town schoolmaster who was left with
only two pupils. The school inspector reported the matter to the
prefect of the province who, in tum, hung two violations upon
Father Vincent: operating a private school illegally and hiring two
foreigners as teachers and supervisors. The first charge drew a
summons to Father Vincent to appear in court at Saint-Julien, the
provincial capital. The second prompted the immediate closing of
the school by order of the prefect of Annecy. Legally, such a
drastic penalty was reserved for offenses against public morals.
However, it was inflicted under the specious reason that the school
was staffed by foreigners, as though they were by that very fact
17Letter to Don Bosco, November 13, 1879. [Author]
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Salesian Houses Opened in 1879
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suspect persons. The situation forced Count Cays to dismiss the
pupils on December 8, suspending all classes until further notice.
Father Vincent was fined twenty-five francs and disqualified from
operating a private school. Meanwhile Commendatore Dupraz
kept clamoring for some qualified French Salesian to reopen the
school immediately.
Learning of this impasse and of the school's financial straits,
Father Rua felt that Count Cays should return to Turin to meet
with Don Bosco. On December 4, 1879 he had written to Count
Cays: "Fearing that this controversy may force you to postpone
your return [to Turin], I asked Don Bosco what was to be done
about Challonges, and he feels that it would be best for us, if we
can, to withdraw, so to speak, with military honors."
Don Bosco's decision was influenced by two factors. First, there
was the impossibility of assigning a Salesian priest as headmaster.
True, he could satisfy the authorities by appointing someone as the
nominal headmaster and have Salesians be staff members, but his
fear was that such a person might possibly not be satisfied with
merely being a figurehead but would want to be headmaster in fact.
Then too, after all the tirades in court, the school authorities would
closely watch the teachers and Salesians and easily find out if they
were foreigners. The harassment would only continue. "Therefore,"
Father Rua concluded in his letter, "if Commendatore Dupraz is
really determined to keep the school open, it might be better for him
to run it with a non-Salesian French staff. Later, once things settle
down, we may be able to return, especially if a boarding school is to
be opened."
Don Bosco had quick insight into the heart of the problem: they
had moved too fast to open a private school. Experience had taught
him that any lasting foundation was to start with a festive oratory,
and expansions would subsequently respond to time and circum-
stance. He suggested that Father Cays try once again along these
lines, as follows:
Dearest Count:
Turin, December 12, 1879
I have received all your welcome letters which have both pleased and
deeply grieved me. We should have known that the devil would try to gore
us. Had we stuck to Commendatore Dupraz' original plan, we might have
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
been spared this upset. His idea called for opening just an oratory and an
evening school this year, as we cast about for future developments. One
always runs into trouble when ruffling the municipality's feelings. We are
pretty much in the same predicament at Trinita near Mondovi. There the
public school teachers are trying their best to take our pupils from us, and
the municipal authorities are behind them. At any rate, we are now
awaiting a court decision and will necessarily abide by it.
I think it best to restrict ourselves to the festive oratory and the charity
school strictly for elementary grades. Father Rua will write to you about
the rest.
We expect no trouble elsewhere, since at Nice, La Navarre and
Marseille we teach only young artisans who live with us. At Marseille we
also teach the choirboys, but the pastor is the responsible person.
Please pay my respects to Commendatore and Mrs. Dupraz, and assure
them both that I pray for their good health and the success of our mutual
concerns.
God bless you, dear Count, and may He bless your efforts and those of
our dear confreres. Pray for me.
Yours affectionately in Jesus Christ,
Fr. John Bosco
P. S. Please do not worry about money in caring for your health and that
of the confreres. Make sure they all have sufficient warm clothing.
The count could not return to Turin until January 1880. Then
Don Bosco put the whole intricate situation to the superior
chapter's study. We say "intricate" because on learning that the
Salesians intended to withdraw, Commendatore Dupraz felt that it
was a bad mistake and sent Father Rua a heated tirade against a
plan which he indignantly interpreted as an act of disloyalty to him.
In consequence of this, the chapter decided simply to curtail the
Salesians' activities in Challonges lest they give the authorities any
further excuse to intervene, and in the meantime to look for a new
headmaster. Furthermore, it was decided to continue the renewed
endeavor ad experimentum for one more year only, during which
the superior chapter would subsidize the project. Count Cays was
instructed to tell the commendatore of these decisions.
No sooner had Count Cays returned to Challonges than new
obstacles arose to hinder the oratory's operation. He had written to
the bishop of Annecy about the exercise of faculties granted to the
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Salesian Congregation, informing him at the same time that the
blessing of the oratory chapel was near at hand in accordance with
his previous authorization. The bishop replied that because of the
hostility toward all religious congregations, it might be wiser to
avoid any pretext for new allegations, all the more so since the law
required the government to approve the opening of such a chapel.
In practice it was a law frequently ignored, but after the recent
events, it was quite certain that the prefecture would invoke it and
order the chapel closed. There was no way out but to put off the
blessing to a happier occasion. In the meantime Commendatore
Dupraz-the very soul of this undertaking-died. The Salesians,
who had gone to Turin for their annual retreat with little if any
likelihood to return to Challenges, withdrew altogether despite the
insistence of the widow. Furthermore, the all-out war against
religious congregations in France made it advisable not to focus
attention -on our Congregation, such as might happen were the
Salesians to stay on at Challenges after the recent notoriety.18
Nor was Challenges the only instance when prudence prompted
Don Bosco to keep a low profile and await a more propitious
moment to expand his activities in France. A lengthy correspon-
dence between Count Cays and both Father Comoy and Father
Bologna running from January to June 1880, concerning the
prospect of opening another house at F ourchambault in the district
ofNievre, was abruptly ended at Don Bosco's word as soon as the
first decree clamping down on unapproved religious congregations
was issued.
5. THE EPISODE AT ANNECY
Before leaving Savoy, we must not omit an episode in which
Count Cays, acting as Don Bosco's French correspondence
secretary, took part. 19 When Saint Francis de Sales was
proclaimed a "Doctor of the Church" in 1877, the Visitation nuns
of Annecy set about to build a handsome shrine so that the sacred
18This had been Don Bosco's idea all along from the beginning of the year, as we can
clearly see in his letter to Count Cays dated Marseille, February 4, 1880. [Author]
190ur information is drawn from a packet of relevant correspondence found among Count
Cays' papers. [Author]
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11IE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
remains of their founder, enshrined until then in their convent,
would find a resting place more honorable and more easily
accessible to the public. Work on the shrine began in 1878. A year
later, when the shrine's interior decorations still waited to be done,
the funds had dwindled down to almost nothing. In May 1879 Don
Bosco received a letter from Mother Mary Louise Bartolezzi, the
prioress, who wished to have his name memorialized in the new
church. Turin had sent her a good number of donations in marble,
granite, statues and other art works, and it seemed natural for the
shrine to contain also a tribute from the priest who had chosen
Geneva's bishop as his Congregation's patron saint. She closed her
letter by advising him that the convent's confessor would soon be
calling on him.
Quite probably this visit never took place because no mention is
made of it in Count Cays' draft of a reply written a month later and
signed by Don Bosco. Among other things Don Bosco wrote:
It is truly my heartfelt wish that our Congregation, placed under the
protection of this amiable saint, may erect an altar in your shrine as a
token of our devotion, but I fear that we may not be up to the task. I must
first know if a memorial altar is still available and how much it would cost.
Should it be within our means, I would very gladly accept responsibility
for it, but I cannot bind myself in advance or assume obligations before
knowing how weighty a burden I am shouldering.
Delighted by his generous offer, the prioress immediately
informed him that the altar of the Sacred Heart of Jesus and that of
Our Lady were still available as memorials.
"Either of these two marble altars," she added, "costs between
three thousand and thirty-five hundred francs. Were you graciously
to share in our shrine through a memorial altar, we would not ask
for the entire sum. Whatever you can contribute will be accepted
most gratefully and will enhance the beauty of a shrine built
through the charity of our glorious saint's beloved sons."
Don Bosco waited for an estimate to come from Annecy based
on the architect's drawing and so did not write any further, but he
did not forget his promise to contribute according to his means.
Indeed, while Count Cays was at Challonges, he had occasion to go
to Annecy, and Don Bosco instructed him to deliver five hundred
francs to the shrine's administrator. In the meantime, however, the
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shrine at Annecy had gone ahead with the Sacred Heart altar now
in place in a magnificently decorated chapel. The whole memorial
was being charged to Don Bosco's account to the sum of five
thousand francs, his donation of five hundred francs being accepted
as a token payment. Annecy may have taken his silence to mean
consent, but in Don Bosco's interpretation silence was nothing
more than that, since he had clearly stated that he would suspend
decision until he had all the facts. Had the cost been kept below
three thousand francs, he would have managed to pay partly in cash
and mostly in materials and stonework which friendly stonecutters
in Turin would have supplied. But to come up with five thousand
francs at the moment, when he was burdened with building several
churches of his own, was an impossible task.
Again Divine Providence came to his aid. When Count Cays
visited Turin from Challonges during the summer, he spoke about
the situation to a zealous Salesian cooperator and old confidant of
his, Baron Feliciano Ricci des Ferres. The baron gladly seized the
opportunity to rid his conscience of an old scruple. He had bought a
house in Turin which had once belonged to the Visitation nuns and
had later been expropriated under the French regime.20 It was true
that the concordat between Pius VII and Napoleon I exonerated
any buyer of expropriated religious property, but the baron had a
very delicate conscience and sought peace ofmind. So he called on
Don Bosco with this proposal: he would pay the Visitation nuns of
Annecy four thousand francs at the current rate of exchange in two
equal installments; in tum, they would either buy back the property
at the price he had paid, plus reimbursement for repairs, or they
would obtain for him from the Visitation nuns of Turin a written
statement that they had no objection to his retaining the property.
The confessor of the Visitation convent at Annecy was to be asked
to be a mediator. The happy conclusion is obvious. Never before
were two birds so easily killed with the proverbial one stone.21
20The Visitation convent in Piedmont's capital was founded by St. Jane Frances de
Chantal in Via della Consolata in 1638. The house to which we refer was in front ofit, at No.
5. [Author]
21 The chapel of the Sacred Heart in Annecy contained the following inscription:
Salesianorum ordo-Feliciano Ricci des Ferres-Dinaste pedemontano-Adiuvante-
Sacellum decoravit-Anno MDCCCLXXX [The Salesian Congregation adorned this
chapel with the help of the Piedmontese nobleman Feliciano Ricci des Ferres in 1880]. We
said "contained" because the chapel no longer exists, having been demolished in 1910 after
being legally expropriated to make room for a post office. [Author]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
6. RANDAZZO
St. Basil's School at Randazzo is certainly a Salesian house
which was and still is a shining credit to Don Bosco. In its fifty-
three years of existence it has generated such a harvest of good that
we can readily overlook whatever obstacles and setbacks at times
threatened its very being. Its robust vitality has withstood every
test, allaying the fears which many felt that memorable evening of
October 24 [1879] when a long-expected handful of youthful
clerics arrived, headed by a frail-looking priest, and dispelling the
misgivings of others who never believed it possible for religious to
open a private school at a time of rampant anticlericalism.
Randazzo, a small town of Sicily graced for centuries with the
title of city, rests upon the lava of Etna and is built up with its black
lava blocks. It practically nestles on the lap of the smoking, snow-
capped giant which looms eight thousand feet above it. In 1879
there was no railroad to Randazzo, the nearest trunk line going
from Messina to Catania. The nineteen remaining miles had to be
made by stagecoach.22 It was in this remote area that Don Bosco
sank his first roots into Sicilian soil.
Several ancestral families, renowned for both wealth and
achievements, were living at Randazzo. They naturally realized the
need for a modem school. Back in 1862 the municipality had
planned to open a boarding school, but several serious difficulties
had stood in the way. In 1867 the town resolutely took a step
forward and got the government's permission to take over a former
Basilian monastery, but for lack of funds and qualified personnel to
run the school nothing was done until eleven years later, when
some prominent citizens united and, overriding prejudice, proposed
that they ask a religious congregation to help them.
The suggestion was accepted and implemented. One day the
parish priest, Father Francis Fisauli, called upon his bishop at
Acireale to explain their plans for a school and their search for a
religious congregation to run it.
"Why not ask Don Bosco?" the bishop suggested.
"Who is he?"
"You mean you've never heard of Don Bosco?"
22This sentence is a condensation. [Editor]
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And he went on to give him a brief account of Don Bosco's work.
When Father Fisauli returned to Randazzo, he aroused his friends'
enthusiasm, and they immediately got to work.23
While Father Fisauli, son of a prominent local family, managed
the project, the real heart and soul of the whole undertaking was a
local layman, the noble, highly meriting Chevalier Joseph
Vagliasindi. As a province council member, he submitted the
project to the civil authorities and obtained their approval in a
situation where Church authorities would never have won even a
hearing. To the end of his life he was loyal to the Salesians,
protecting and defending their school from everyone and everything.
Although city officials were only worried about providing an
education within a balanced budget, Chevalier Vagliasindi more
nobly aimed at providing a Christian education for the new
generation. A relatively young man, he was a strong politician
endowed with a Christian conscience and, though Freemasons
dominated politics, he succeeded in convincing the responsible civil
officials to grant the needed authorization for this manifestly
religious undertaking. Not only did prudence rule his every action
during those troublesome times, but to prudence he coupled a
humble reserve which, while concealing the full range of his activity
until it was revealed at his death, allowed others to enjoy the
limelight. Don Bosco, well aware of Vagliasindi's service,
repeatedly expressed his cordial gratitude in writing for all he had
done and would still do for St. Basil's School.24
Formal negotiations with Don Bosco began after Father
Fisauli's conversation with his bishop. A letter was drafted by
Vagliasindi25 and signed by Father Fisauli, and it was sent to Don
Bosco with a fervent recommendation from the bishop himself.26
However, it seems that, as early as April, Vagliasindi had already
23Letter from Chevalier Joseph Vagliasindi to Don Bosco, Randazzo, October 16, 1884.
[Author]
24Letter from Father [Peter] Guidazio to Vagliasindi, Turin, September 1882, and to
Father [Celestine] Durando, Turin, October 24, 1884. On one festive occasion-in the
presence of Bishop [John] Cagliero and Randazzo's leading citizens-Father Guidazio's
fertile imagination led him to liken Vagliasindi and the Salesian school to the best man in a
wedding.
25His son Francis found the draft in his father's handwriting among the family papers.
[Author]
26Letter from Father Fisauli to his bishop from Randazzo, August 1, 1878, and from the
bishop to Don Bosco from Acireale, August 2, 1878. [Author]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
broached the subject to Don Bosco in a personal letter to let him
know about the school's site, the building, and other details of
finances and moral conditions.27
Don Bosco's reply was prompt and favorable. He was ready to
open a technical and secondary school with facilities for boarders
and at the same time assume control of the town's elementary
school. As for salaries, he would send a copy of his contract with
the municipality of Alassio to serve as a basis for negotiations, and
he would also send someone to represent him. This last phrase
referred to Father Cagliero's and Father Durando's planned trip to
investigate the matter.28 Formal mention of Don Bosco's name to
the town's councilmen was first made at their meeting of January
28, 1879 by Joseph Vagliasindi,29 who briefed his associates on the
state of negotiations and got their unanimous approval. Father
Cagliero and Father Durando arrived on March 3 and stayed there
for six days. On March 9 Father Cagliero wrote to Don Bosco from
Acireale: "The municipal authorities welcomed us officially. Their
motivation is Christian, not just material; they seek a thorough,
sound Christian education." In view of this promising environment
and realizing that the Salesians "were the first religious Congrega-
tion being asked to build anew upon the ruins of religious orders
which had been recently disbanded and suppressed in Sicily," Don
Bosco's two representatives felt that they should act with wider
latitude than they had been given by his instructions to them. On
March 7, taking the less demanding contract of Alassio as a basis
for discussion rather than the more stringent one of Varazze, which
Don Bosco preferred and which they had brought with them, they
worked out a five-year agreement with the municipality. It became
effective immediately upon the provincial school board's approval
on April 29. Don Bosco wrote to the mayor "a very courteous
letter," which, states Father Ftsauli,30 "highly gratified the
municipal councillors, and greatly pleased all who were fortunate
enough to read or learn about it." Lastly, Don Bosco sent Father
27This seems to transpire from a perusal of family papers, which the aforenamed Francis
Vagliasindi, son of Joseph, allowed us to examine. [Author]
28Letter to Father Fisauli, September 8 and 26, 1878. [Author]
29Minutes of the municipal council, January 28, 1879. [Author]
30Letter to Father Durando, Randazzo, May 31, 1879. Don Bosco's letter has not yet
been found. [Author]
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[Anthony] Sala, councillor of the superior chapter, to Randazzo to
supervise the school's remodeling ordered by the municipality.
The contract stipulated that both day school and boarding school
were to open at the start of the school year 1879-80. Father Peter
Guidazio, called in from Montefiascone, was appointed director of
the new house; he and his staff left for Randazzo on October 19.
Their trip gave him an opportunity to realize how well known and
deeply respected Don Bosco was in southern Italy. When he had a
problem in Naples to get permission to celebrate Mass because he
did not have a celebret,31 he no sooner said that he was one of Don
Bosco's priests than he was not only allowed to say Mass but was
given the finest vestments and was treated most courteously.
Archbishop [Joseph] Guarino of Messina was also most amiable
with all ten of them, personally serving them coffee and providing
them with comfortable lodgings and meals at the seminary.
Moreover, many priests and prominent laymen, eager to hear about
the Salesians and their activities, called on Father Guidazio. The
group left the following day, deeply impressed by the graciousness
of their eminent host, who wished to be considered a Salesian. Not
content with what he had done, the archbishop wrote a very
heartwarming letter to Don Bosco, expressing the hope that he
would have the pleasure of welcoming him personally to Messina, a
possibility Don Bosco's two representatives had mentioned to him.
At Randazzo a large crowd and local clergy welcomed the
Salesians, escorting them to the school. They were somewhat
astonished at their youthful looks, but still deeply respectful. The
civil authorities too paid them a courtesy call.
In his first letter to Don Bosco, dated October 28, 1879, Father
Guidazio tells him how touched he had been by the townspeople's
reception.
"For the moment everything is wonderful," he wrote. "The sky
is beautiful, the town is pretty, and the school will look grandiose
upon completion. The people are very good." He concluded, "We
are bursting with good will, and, if we have to, we will, with God's
help, work miracles. But we need the Oratory's prayers. Dear Don
Bosco, commend us to Mary, Help of Christians and pray our
31 A document stating that the owner is a priest in good standing and requesting that he be
permitted to say Mass. It must be signed by his bishop or religious superior. (Modem
Catholic Dictionary by John A. Hardon, S.J.] [Editor]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
patron, St. Francis de Sales, to grant us some of that kindly zeal for
souls which enabled him to work wonders for God's greater glory.
Beloved Don Bosco, please send us your blessing. Be assured that
we shall make every effort to become your ever worthier sons and
Salesians."
Applications to the school already amounted to fifty. Father
Sala, who had been there since early November, had transformed
the old monastery and adjacent buildings into a bright and cheerful
home for the lively youngsters due to arrive on November 12. A
month later, writing of the boys' conduct to Don Bosco, Father
Guidazio unintentionally revealed how helpful Don Bosco's system
of education proved to be also in Sicily.32
You would not believe how willingly these lads listen to and reverently
accept the exhortations you send them. Were I even to talk to them about
you for an hour, they would not relax their attention. They are so docile
and obedient that even we are astonished. On Sundays and holy days they
do not fail to receive the sacraments.... The parents are delighted to see
their children so cheerful and happy that they would rather be in school
than at home. Many families wished their boys home for Christmas, but I
told them that our regulations would not allow it. Because they insisted, I
called the boys themselves and asked them in front of their parents if they
wished to go home for Christmas. Every one ofthem chose to stay with us.
This satisfied the parents, who stopped pestering us and rather sent us
donkey-loads of cookies for the boys and their superiors. We have found a
very simple means to keep all these youngsters contented and happy-the
Altar Boys' Society. Each day of the Christmas novena eight or ten served
at the altar.... You should see how all of them-the older ones
especially-are wild about serving in cassock and surplice.... We have
already staged two plays exclusively for the boys.
No boarding school of Don Bosco's could do without a festive
oratory. The sight of so many poor youngsters-uneducated,
crammed in wretched hovels, abandoned to their own street ways-
moved Father Stephen Trione to assume care of them by gathering
them together on Sundays and keeping them pleasantly busy in a
wholesome environment. He brought his plan to the bishop, who
not only welcomed it, but urged him to act immediately. He
32Letter to Father Rua, shortly after Christmas 1879. [Author]
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commended it to the local clergy and gave him for his use an
abandoned church and pews that had been stored away in a
warehouse. Without delay Father Trione opened the oratory to
some two hundred poor boys. The gradual moral change coming
about in these foul-mouthed street lads who used to curse,
blaspheme and call the devil a saint-a deplorable local habit-
brought joy to Father Trione. Of course he tried various
enticements to hold them, such as mini-lotteries, Punch and Judy
shows, and outings. He was aided by a young cleric and some
secondary school pupils who also acted as his interpreters of the
Sicilian dialect and helped keep order in the church and on the
playground. With the kindliness he had learned from Don Bosco,
Father Trione won the hearts of those poor youngsters, instructed
them in their faith, and bettered the abject condition in which they
were languishing.
During the spring of the first school year, St. Basil's School was
honored by two very appreciated visits. Archbishop [Joseph]
Guarino of Messina took a side trip to Randazzo from a
neighboring town in his archdiocese to see for himself Don Bosco's
highly-praised sons in action. He stayed a week with them,
mingling with the pupils like one of them, talking to them and even
joining in their games like the Salesians. He thoroughly enjoyed an
assembly they gave him in his honor and left with the firm
conviction that Don Bosco's work was truly a godsend to his era. A
month later, Bishop Gerlando Genuardi, diocesan ordinary,
graciously accepted the hospitality of the Salesians. He was given a
fitting welcome and honored with the presentation of a Latin
comedy-a feat that dazzled highly educated guests. Briefly, the
school's excellent reputation was growing both locally and
throughout the island.
Of course, every coin has its reverse side. Father Rua had
cautioned Father Guidazio not to set too much store by first
impressions, and in time events justified the advice. The director's
stamina was often tried seriously by the anticlericalism of school
supervisors and inspectors, the coldness of local civil authorities
and problems within the school, but, thanks to his own ability and
the capable assistance of the loyal Joseph Vagliasindi, he always
managed to come out on top. When bidding Father Guidazio good-
bye, Don Bosco had given him two explicit assurances: "Have no
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
fears! You will work wonders at Randazzo. I bless you and will
pray for you." Shortly before, the January 1880 issue ofBollettino
Salesiano, taking a cue from Don Bosco, had expressed "the
strongest confidence" that this first Salesian house of Sicily would
thrive and become "the seed of many others." Both predictions
were most brilliantly confirmed by subsequent events.
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CHAPTER 14
Gleanings from the Year 1879
THIS chapter is designed as a catch-all for certain
matters which, though not insignificant in themselves, are unrelated
to other areas of our narrative. We do not want anything of our
founder's life pertaining to the year 1879 to escape us. For the most
part we will cover a wide range of material dealing with the
[Salesian] houses of Italy and France.
1. LANzo
We start with our school at Lanzo and its fulfillment of a vow
which it had made back in 1873 when, just upon completion, the
new building, which rises majestically against the background of
the Alps, was threatened by the imminent collapse of the right wing
when the sixth column of the longer portico began to give way.
Emergency repairs began promptly, but Father Lemoyne, the
director, was so alarmed that he immediately notified Don Bosco.
Undismayed, Don Bosco recommended that he entrust the sagging
column to St. Joseph, vowing to erect in the playground a pillar
similar to the endangered one as a pedestal for a statue of the holy
patriarch. The danger was soon past but, as usually happens with
changes of personnel, the fulfillment of the vow was deferred until a
near-disaster jogged people's memories. In 1877 a young boarder,
a Turin lad named Victor Emanuel Salvini, while playing on the
second landing of the main stairway, leaned so far over the railing
that he lost his balance and fell to the ground. By strange
coincidence, he landed squarely in the arms of the director, Father
[Joseph) Scappini. Both he and the boy called out to St. Joseph at
the split second of the fall, and both were unhurt. When Don Bosco
was told about it, he earnestly reminded the community to carry out
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1HE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
its obligation, but the little shrine was not ready until March 19,
1879. Don Bosco, who attached great importance to religious
celebrations, chose to attend the dedication, to which many visitors
were invited. For the occasion, the cleric [John Baptist] Grosso,1
who was later to merit high honors in sacred music, composed a
hymn which the Oratory band accompanied under the direction of
Maestro [Joseph] Dogliani.2 In perpetual remembrance of the favor
and the vow, Don Bosco prescribed that in honor of St. Joseph the
school at Lanzo hold Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament every
Wednesday-a custom prevailing to the present day [1933].
Don Bosco kept making fairly frequent visits to Lanzo. He went
one day at the height of the balmy spring weather. It was nesting
time, and he took advantage of a little incident to teach a lesson. On
one of their [weekly] walks, some of the boarders had found a
blackbirds' nest and, taking it back to the school, hidden it inside a
little box in the dormitory. It was not long before the poor little
birds, under the inexperienced care of their masters, died one by
one. With the death of the last fledgling the boys agreed to hold a
solemn burial service. During recreation they formed a funeral
cortege and escorted the bird to its last resting place with liturgical
chant, holy water and even a eulogy. Don Bosco watched the entire
scene from his window and later, while the boys were in the study
hall, sent for the leader of the little demonstration. Gravely he
pointed out what a deplorable thing the boy had done, saying that it
was a serious profanation which was never again to be repeated.
As soon as he saw that the young fellow was really sorry, he
changed his tone, assuring him that he forgave him and his friends
and dismissing him with a bag of candy to share with them. The
lesson had to be taught, and he taught it, but in a way which
revealed his loving heart and educational system.3
In September of that year his contract with the municipality of
Lanzo ran out. In view of what we explained in Volume XIIl,4 Don
Bosco thought it advisable to feel out the real intentions of the
municipal council and therefore wrote as follows to the mayor:
1See Appendix 1. [Editor]
2/bid. [Editor]
3This young lad later became Professor John Giannetti of the teachers' college at Vercelli.
[Author]
4See Vol. XIII, pp. 352f. [Editor]
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Gleanings from the Year 1879
273
Dear Sir:
Turin, August 23, 1879
When on a visit to Lanzo last month I spotted some major,
indispensable repairs which must be attended to for the regular use and
maintenance of the school building. To prevent further deterioration, I
request that you issue necessary orders to have these repairs done during
the good weather. At the same time, I wish to remind you that my contract
with the municipality expires with the school year 1880-81. Please make
known your intentions in this matter so that needed contract discussions
can be held in ample time. Awaiting your courteous response and
expressing my best wishes to you and the honorable town councillors of
Lanzo, I am honored to remain
Yours sincerely,
Fr. John Bosco
The reply was far from satisfactory, and so he arranged for the
Salesians to leave the old monastery and take up residence in the
new building, transferring the elementary school there also. The
mayor obviously did not take this amiss, as he showed on the eve of
the school's reopening. The superintendent of education, who was
then battling the Oratory's secondary school, turned his attention
also to Lanzo, asking the mayor for a report on its operation and a
list of the teachers in both the elementary and the secondary
schools. When informed, Don Bosco drafted a reply reflecting his
determination, and the mayor simply endorsed it.
MEMORANDUM
On rece1vmg the memo of the superintendent of schools dated
September 14, concerning the operation of the Lanzo school, the
undersigned mayor summoned its director for questioning and found him
cooperative in every way. Although in former years the director regularly
submitted a teachers' list to the superintendent's office, this municipality
intends, from the opening of the new school year, to send in the full name
of each of the three elementary school teachers who have proper
certification. As for the secondary school teachers, the superintendent is
requested to solicit the list from the director of the school, this in view of
the merely nominal funds this municipality supplies for the secondary
school. For this reason the municipality is satisfied with capable teachers
without insisting on certification. In this connection, responding to the
superintendent's request, we take it not amiss if we give him ample
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
assurance that this school has always been completely satisfactory in all
details of moral behavior, discipline, student progress, and so forth, for
which we have only words of commendation. True, recently there were
teachers ...
Don Bosco submitted the requested information. As for the
school's operation, we have a deposition which is very probably
linked to a study then being carried out by the Department of
Public Education in conjunction with a reorganization of reforma-
tories.5 In 1879 Dr. Julius Benelli, director of Turin's prison
facilities, visited the Salesian boarding schools, beginning with that
of Lanzo, perhaps in his efforts to compile data which would help
him formulate new regulations for the government's correctional
institutions. An article he published nine years later in the Rivista
di Discipline Carcerarie6 records his impressions. Most noteworthy is
the following passage:
My findings in Don Bosco's schools have shown excellent discipline,
genuine affection for superiors, remarkable progress in learning, and an
unquestioning, limitless trust in their teachers. My first visit was to the
Lanzo school in 1879. The entire running of the school was in the hands of
very few priests. A mere hint, given with a smile, much like a request of a
courteous friend, was obeyed in a flash.... The whole environment was
one of peace and inexpressible joy. Imagine how impressed I was, having
just a few hours before been at La Generala with its strident gates, iron
bars and squads of prison guards and soldiers! I could then understand
Count Connestabile's narrative of Don Bosco's taking three hundred
inmates from La Generala7 on an excursion on foot to Stupinigi,
unattended by officers, after wresting permission from Minister [Urban]
Rattazzi, who wanted to have the youths escorted at least by
plainclothesmen. From that moment I date the unswerving conviction I
now have that, if there is at least a slim hope to reform and successfully
rehabilitate misled or abandoned youngsters, it must be done by bringing
them up in an environment of uncompromising discipline, accompanied by
that gentle concern which one finds in a well-run, law-abiding family. The
discipline in Don Bosco's institutions is not based on fear. One young
5/bid., pp. 429f. [Editor]
svear XVIII, pp. 87-88, Rome, 1888. [Author]
1A boys' reformatory on the south side of Turin. See Vol. II, pp. 143, 272; Vol. V,
pp. 140ff. (Editor]
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Gleanings from the Year 1879
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cleric can handle h large group of boys by himself. The first priority, even
before classroom instruction, is the solicitous education ofthe heart. Some
of the teacher-clerics are far from being geniuses, but they are all young
men of attractive manner and sound moral training. Their constant
presence amng the boys exerts a great influence for good. Youngsters
always model themselves on others, and in Don Bosco's schools the boys
have excellent models to follow. This explains the excellent results.
In September Don Bosco presided over two spiritual retreats at
Lanzo. The first one, from September 3 to 10, was attended by two
hundred and fifty members, including the clerical novices. The
latter had hiked from San Benigno to Cirie and then continued by
train to Mathi, where they visited the [Salesian] paper mill and
joined up with those coming from Turin. Then all boarded a train
for Lanzo where they were welcomed by Don Bosco who, the
chronicle states, was "fairly well."8
In his "Good Night" on September 5, Don Bosco gave a
definitive answer to a question which had been coming up for
several years.9 On several occasions, as we have noted before, he
had manifested his desire that triennial vows should be phased out,
but he had reached1no decision because several superiors felt that
temporary profession offered an excellent opportunity to study a
candidate more closely. This time Don Bosco laid all hesitation
aside and put an end to the controversy. He spoke as follows:
Before you tell those who wish to join our Congregation to give their
names, I must inform you that this is the last time that vows will be taken
for three years. From now on, anyone taking vows must take them in
perpetuity. Experience has shown that triennial vows are too serious a
temptation for some to cope with. After living one year in the
Congregation [as a novice] everyone should know whether God is calling
him to it and whether he has enough strength to persevere. He can well
say, "I shall take my final vows," or "I shall take another road." Triennial
vows will still be taken this year since no advance notice was given. In
fact, those who have applied for final vows are perfectly free to take them
for three years only; so also those who have applied for triennial vows are
free to take them in perpetuity.
BFrom Father Barberis' chronicle, next to the last notebook, with only twelve pages on
various matters. [Author]
esee Vol. XI, pp. 322f. See also pp. 29f of this volume. [Editor]
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TIIE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
He made the same announcement at each of the three other
retreats which took place that year. However, his own practice
made it clear that he was reluctant to impose a burden too heavy for
some to carry or to extinguish the flickering flame in others. All we
have to do is check out the membership lists and count the number
of triennnial professions which still continued to be made.
Don Bosco gave a sermon after the solemn rite of religious
profession, but only his opening words remain.
Day by day-he said-the number of those who consecrate themselves
body and soul to God in order to save their own souls and those of others
swell our ranks. How deeply consoled this makes me-to see so many
getting ready to go forth and do good, while the world knows nothing of it!
It is truly the Lord who wishes and blesses this. The world knows nothing
of it-no one save ourselves and those close to us. Many years ago we
held our first spiritual retreat, and there were fourteen of us in all. At that
time the Congregation was not yet born. Of the fourteen, twelve were day
boys, because Don Bosco had only two boarders in those days. At our
second retreat we were thirty-two. Later, when the Congregation began to
take shape, we decided to hold our spiritual retreat at Trofarello, and I
recall that the second retreat that year counted only sixteen. But it did not
take very long for Trofarello to prove inadequate, and we had to leave it
and come to Lanzo for our retreats. Here too our numbers increased so
much that as of last year the usual two retreats a year were not enough and
we had to add a third at Sampierdarena. This year we must hold a fourth at
Alassio. We are two hundred and fifty on this retreat, and I am told that
the next will not be any smaller. Is not God's hand manifest in this?
Somewhere in the Holy Scriptures the Lord says: "You have multiplied
the nation, and you have not increased the joy." 10 Must He say this ofus
too? I hope not. Let us all be one in heart and resolve never to let that
happen. Do you know what we need? It's just one word. I don't want to tell
you many things to keep us moving forward as we should. One word alone:
"Observance." Observance of the rules. Religious orders have always
thrived as long as they abided by their rules. When did they decline?
When observance slackened or completely broke down ...
More and more this comparison between the Congregation's
humble origin and its subsequent development became a favorite
101s. 9, 3-new translation by the Confraternity of Christian Doctrine. [Editor]
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Gleanings from the Year 1879
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topic of his, especially when he wished his young Salesians to
enliven their love for their calling.
Also at the second retreat Don Bosco spoke after the religious
profession. The chronicle has salvaged only a passage on
temperance, commenting that it served to reveal his mind on the
practice of this virtue. Referring to the moral harm done young
people by intemperance, especially drinking, he urged his listeners:
Let each ofyou strive for moderation, eating and drinking only what you
need, no more. When you are invited out to dinner, for example, and you
must accept because of circumstances, you will find food and drink in
abundance. Be pleasant and don't be stand-offish because there will be
more than usual on such occasions. Just control yourself, and gauge what
you need. No excess, no intemperance! On this point we must be strict
with ourselves. At other times, however, you may find that there is hardly
enough food. In that case welcome this opportunity to practice a little
mortification. Say to yourself: I must sometimes fast to overcome
temptation, and since I have this chance today, I will do it now. Ifyou are
hungrier than usual or have a lot of work to do, say: This fast, this work of
mine, done on an empty stomach, will gain me more merit since I have
not chosen it and it has been given me by the Lord.
2. VALLECROSIA
The Protestants of Vallecrosia who saw all their evil plans
thwarted could not resign themselves to events. Both the
evangelical minister and the director of the Waldensian hostel spat
out their malice in a pamphlet entitled A Few Words for the People
of Vallecrosia and Adjacent Villages. It was a travesty of history,
truth and common decency. Its purpose was to incite the populace
against the community of Mary, Help of Christians. The July issue
of Bollettino Salesiano issued a stout reply, but more than words
was needed.
The heretics were dying to see Salesians and the sisters pushed
out of Vallecrosia. Don Bosco, on the other hand, had already been
planning to replace the little chapel with a spacious church to serve
the spiritual needs of the area's Catholics and to set up better
facilities for the boys' and the girls' schools. The new bishop,
Thomas Reggio of the noble Reggio family, following in the
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TIIE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
footsteps of his predecessor, took to the project wholeheartedly. On
June 12 he issued a pastoral letter to the "generous and pious
souls" of his people, vividly portraying the perils of the Protestant
inroads and appealing to the charity of both great and small, rich
and poor, to contribute money, labor, objects of value, and
materials of all kinds. He also appointed an ad hoc committee of
five priests and four laymen to organize a public relations campaign
for the project throughout the diocese. However, it was Don Bosco
who had to shoulder the weightiest burden, and the bishop's letter
mentioned him twice in words of lofty praise.
Despite the conflicts in which he was then involved and the
outlay of funds needed to build the Church of St. John the
Evangelist, Don Bosco-ever calm and ready to help out-set
himself to the task with all possible speed. First he had to get past
some obstacles, neither minor nor few, to purchase the needed land.
In August he wrote to the director, Father Cibrario:
My dear Father Cibrario:
Turin, August 24, 1879
So far I have not had the time to give serious thought to our project at
Vallecrosia, but now I am ready to give it my full attention. Confer with
Canon Cassini and others and let me know:
1. Has anyone written to the Holy Father, or is it agreed that I should
write a letter with or without Bishop Reggio's circular or pastoral?
2. Have you already received the brochure printed here at the Oratory?
If so, is it satisfactory or are there changes to be made?
3. Has a covering letter been composed or am I to write one?
Answer my questions and tell me whatever else I need to know, and I
shall do my best to take care of everything promptly. Regards to all our
friends.
Yours ever in Jesus Christ, Our Lord,
Fr. John Bosco
P.S. Are the sketches ready? Has work begun yet? It is useless to try to
contact Duchess di Galliera, because she is not receiving anybody.
He then wrote a personal letter11 to the Pope, hoping to obtain
Leo XIII's blessing and some funds as an enticement for the
faithful to offer their generous support. The Holy Father sent his
11omitted in this edition. [Editor]
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Gleanings from the Year 1879
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reply with his apostolic blessing and five hundred lire. 12
In a petition addressed to the royal steward's office for vacant
benefices, Don Bosco went into lengthy details regarding his
Vallecrosia project:
Dear Sir:
[No date]
Father John Bosco respectfully calls your attention to the fact that in
1876, at the invitation of the late lamented Bishop Lawrence Biale, he
opened two public elementary schools in the plains of Vallecrosia near
Ventimiglia, one for boys, where forty pupils are in attendance, and one
for girls, with sixty pupils. The provincial superintendent's attendance and
report ledgers will show this. These are free schools, conforming to all
prevailing rules concerning instruction. There is also a small church where
services are held, the sacraments are administered and the word of God is
preached.
Both the schools and the church-a counterbalance to the evangelical
schools and chapel established some time before by the Protestants-were
urgently demanded by the very nature of the area, which keeps attracting
lower middle-class residents and vacationers. Without the church and
schools these people would be an hour's walk from the existing parish and
the local school in the rather unhealthy north. It would thus be very hard
for them to fulfill their duties as Christians and citizens; all the more
difficult would it be for the children to receive moral guidance and
schooling. Up to now I have supported this most timely endeavor, though
it has proven very costly in terms of rental fees and personnel salaries. I
have drawn on the small, precarious offerings of the people and on the
generous annual donation of one distinguished benefactor. The munici-
pality itself, strapped with school expenses and salaries for the town
doctor and municipal staff, has contributed nothing. Well over a year ago,
this distinguished benefactor died, and now, what with the hard times we
are living in and the sharp drop in good will offerings from the faithful, this
badly needed work is in sore straits just to keep alive.
I find it too painful to walk out on these people who wholeheartedly
respond to the loving care ofthose who patiently teach them and help them
to live as Christians and good citizens. In dire need, I trustingly appeal to
His Majesty's government-always known for its generous annual
subsidies to more important religious and social ministries-to extend a
helping hand to this work. A verifying report from the Royal Treasurer's
12We are also omitting an appeal for funds drafted by Don Bosco and sent to Father
Cibrario for local distribution. [Editor]
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'IlIE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
office at Ventimiglia will be supplied on request.
Meanwhile, I humbly tum with respectful trust to your own noble heart
and ask that you graciously grant from the funds of the General Steward's
Office whatever subsidy may suit so critical and necessary a work. In
lasting gratitude for your aid, I will not cease to invoke heaven's choicest
blessings upon His Royal Majesty and upon his eminent councillors.
Despite the hardships brought on by the year's meager harvest,
donations kept coming in, so that by the end of December the walls
of the new building began to rise above ground.
3. BoRoo SAN MARTINO
Even after Father Bonetti left as director, the boarding school of
St. Charles at Borgo San Martino maintained its excellent
standards and was deeply appreciated by the people. This became
manifest when a shortage of personnel led the superiors to decide to
serve notice that all Salesian teachers in the local municipal
schools would be withdrawn. When word leaked out, the people
immediately rose up in arms. Parents collected signatures and sent
a petition to Don Bosco; the parish priest even threatened to resign.
Don Bosco, unwilling to seem untouched by this public vote of
confidence, had a letter sent to the school's director, Father
[Dominic] Belmonte,13 instructing him not to serve notice and
promising to go there himself to discuss further action. His
masterful letter to the upperclassmen on the choice of one's
vocation-which we have reported elsewhere-dates from this time
of the year.14
4. VARAZZE
In the reshuffle of personnel for the school year 1879-80,
Varazze's director, Father [John Baptist] Francesia, was transferred
to Valsalice and was succeeded by Father [Joseph] Monateri,1s
who was free for an assignment after the Salesian house at Albano
was closed. Not feeling up to it, however, he balked a little at the
13See Appendix 1. [Editor]
14See pp. 90f. [Editor]
1ssee Appendix 1. [Editor]
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responsibility, wishing that the position of director be entrusted to
someone else. Don Bosco quickly eased his fears with his fatherly
advice.
My dear Father Monateri:
Turin, November 27, 1879
If I felt I were ordering you to do anything contrary to God's will, I
would certainly withdraw you from Varazze, but neither you nor I would
want to do such a thing. So, be patient. Come to my help and do not
aggravate the many troubles I already have; they are very heavy indeed.
Father Francesia will talk to you. Come to an understanding, both of
you. I shall soon come and spend a few days with you.
God bless you and keep you always a good soldier of Christ!
In Jesus Christ,
Yours affectionately,
Fr. John Bosco
5. MAGLIANO SABINO
The seminary-boarding school at Magliano Sabino experienced
constant improvement. In October Don Bosco assured the
superiors there of the heartwarming comfort he had received from a
letter written to him by Cardinal [Louis] Bilio, who had spent a
month's vacation there, at the very heart of his suburban diocese,
and had seen at close range the school's orderly routine. Seeing the
progress it was making in both piety and learning, he felt he had to
express his pleasure to Don Bosco.
I am tnily happy-he wrote on October 14-and most grateful to you
for all the good you have brought to my diocese in these trying, lamentable
times. Your teachers, both priests and clerics, are men of zeal and
exemplary conduct and, God willing, I am sure that our boys will receive a
thorough, sound education under their guidance. All this while, my
seminary has enjoyed an excellent reputation throughout the area, even as
far as Rome. The enrollment has risen to some sixty students and is still
growing. This is a token of the high regard in which the people rightly keep
Don Bosco and the Salesians. Praised be God! On my own part I shall
unfailingly do all I can do for your Institute and shall tell its praises to the
Holy Father himself.
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TIIE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
Before going back to Rome, the cardinal presided over the
solemn awards ceremony, thus publicly manifesting his satisfaction
and personal interest.
6. NICE
Three brief letters written by Don Bosco to Nice give us an idea
of his relations with that house. All three, addressed to the director,
were written in July. In the first one, after thanking him for the
greetings sent him on his name day, he tells the director that a copy
of the report on the state of the Congregation will soon reach him,
and he voices his sincere gratitude to one family of benefactors,
touching upon a little lottery which, he says, has also been extended
to France.
Dearest Father Ronchail:
Turin, July 14, 1879
I shall get to replying to Father Bianchi's strange letter, hoping, with
God's help, to calm him down. At the beginning of next week Canon
Guiol will stop off at Nice. 16 He will probably need at least ten thousand
francs for Father Bologna. Try to approach Father Cauvin17 and others
about a loan. Do what you can to help me relieve the embarrassment of
our contractor in Marseille.
Let me know if Father Pirro and Father Macherau have been ordained,
or are there any problems? What is the name of the other priest who wrote
me from Annecy for my name day? Does he wish to become a Salesian?
Has the cleric Pantore straightened out yet?
Please assure all that I was delighted at all the letters I received from St.
Pierre's Hospice.18 Tell them I pray that God may reward them and keep
them in His holy grace.
Let me have some good news soon because I am having a lot of
problems.
God bless you all. Pray for me.
Always yours in Jesus Christ,
Fr. John Bosco
16He was on his way back from Turin as we shall describe later on. July 14 was a Monday;
July 20 was a Sunday. The canon was returning to Marseille and stopping over at
Sampierdarena. [Author]
17See Vol. XIII, p. 548. [Editor]
18Greetings in French by the young Damascus boys we mentioned previously. [Author]
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Although pressed by "a lot of problems," Don Bosco was
somewhat comforted by the love his sons showed him, by the
solidarity of his schools' directors who shirked no sacrifices to help
him in his wide-ranging projects, and by the good reports he was
receiving from the houses. All this we gather from his second letter:
My dear Father Ronchail:
Turin, July 4, 1879
I thank you and all my dear sons at Nice for your prayers and your best
wishes. God bless each of you and keep you in His holy grace.
You will be getting two copies of my report [to the Holy See]19 by mail.
Your news of the Tibaut20 brothers was most welcome. Ifyou chance to
see them, please give them my best regards; tell them that I thank them
from my heart for the charity and good will they show our orphanage.
Assure them of my daily prayers for them at Holy Mass.
How is our lottery coming along. Did you sell all the tickets? Do you
have any to return? Can you use more?
Keep praying for me. Always in Jesus Christ,
Yours affectionately,
Fr. John Bosco
Just as Don Bosco kept his little room at the Oratory always
open to anyone in the house who might want to see him, so also his
distant sons were always free to write to him with trust; even if they
sought but momentary relief from depression, they could be sure he
would never let a letter of theirs go unanswered. When the young
catechist at Nice, Father Lawrence Bianchi, yielded to spiritual
discouragement, he poured out his anxious feelings in what Don
Bosco styled a "strange" letter and found his father unfailingly
sensitive.
Dearest Father Ronchail:
Turin, July 23, 1879
I wrote Father Bianchi a long letter which he has not received. Please
check if it is still at the post office or somewhere in the house. If it is lost,
1esee Chapter 8. [Editor]
20JnEpistolario di San Giovanni Bosco this name is spelled "Tibaut" in Vol. III, p. 335,
Letter 1752, and "Tibau" in the same volume, p. 485, Letter 1941. [Editor]
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1HE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
let me know and I shall write another. Let Father Bianchi know and assure
him that I have not forgotten him, and ask him not to forget me.
More some other time. God bless us all! Always in heartfelt love in
Jesus Christ,
Always yours in Jesus Christ,
Fr. John Bosco
P.S. I enjoyed reading the letters from the Damascus boys. Give them
my regards.
In 1881 the five Damascus young men who had been sent to
Nice from the Oratory were recalled to Turin by Don Bosco, who
wished to train them as clerics. On learning that they would receive
Latin rite orders, however, the Melchite patriarch of Antioch,
Gregory Jussef, reacted. "They were sent to Nice," he wrote on
October 20, 1881, "so that they might pursue priestly studies, and
then they were to come back here and dedicate themselves to the
care of souls.'' He asked Don Bosco to put them into the care of a
priest at Marseille who would represent him and follow his
instructions. The patriarch concluded his letter with the words: "I
will not hide my dire need of apostolic workers throughout my
dioceses, and I find it indispensable to have young men here at the
service of my patriarchal see. I am most grateful to you for the care
you have given these boys while they were in your houses." The
patriarch's wish was promptly obeyed.
7. MARSEILLE
After the laying of the new building's cornerstone on May 24,
construction at Marseille progressed rapidly. However, funds soon
ran low, and Don Bosco needed a loan, as he mentioned in his first
letter to Father Ronchail, which is a partner letter to that sent to the
parish priest of St. Joseph's Church [Canon Guiel]. From it we
learn how Don Bosco found means to keep up his undertaking by
selling some farmland he had inherited from Baron Bianco di
Barbania. Canon Guiel visited Don Bosco and the Oratory about
mid-July and stayed only a few days because his pastoral duties
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called him back to Marseille. Don Bosco then wrote to him as
follows:
Dear Father:
Turin, July 20, 1879
Just a few lines to keep you abreast of our affairs. The photographs of
St. Leo's Festive Oratory are ready, but I shall probably not be able to
mail them to you before Wednesday, in which case I shall address them to
Marseille, as we had agreed.
I have signed a contract for one of the Caselle farms, and by the end of
this week it will be notarized. I hope this will put Father Bologna at ease.
But if Father Ronchail has managed by now to contact the person I
personally wrote to, he will probably have on hand the necessary sum.
At all events, I shall do my best to keep things moving and not stop
halfway. The Salesian Congregation is but a child, and so its sons are
younger still. But with God's help they will grow up and in due time reap a
fruitful harvest from bothersome incidents. Let's be patient, persevering
and prayerful.
We were all delighted to have you here with us. Too bad your stay was
so short. Come again, please! I ask you to overlook our shortcomings in
not giving you the hospitality you deserve and we wished to extend.21
God keep you in good health! In Jesus Christ,
Yours affectionately,
Fr. John Bosco
Don Bosco had requested and obtained a papal decoration for
Monsieur Rostand in acknowledgement of his work in directing the
Beaujour Society, and he planned a solemn presentation. He wrote
to Father Guiol:
Dear Father:
Turin, July 29, 1879
His Eminence Cardinal Nina has informed me that His Holiness has
bestowed the knighthood of St. Gregory the Great on Monsieur Rostand. I
am asking Father Bologna to see you and arrange for a fitting celebration.
The wording of the papal brief is not conventional but, as you will see
from the copy I enclose, very pointed.
21A reference to a courteous invitation Don Bosco had made with a short note on July 3,
1879. [Editor]
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The cardinal also hints at other favors to be granted by the Holy Father;
I shall notify you as soon as they are final.
I'd like to settle everything22 at every cost, but I would need time-not
much, but some.
Enclosed please find an unsealed letter for Monsieur Rostand. Read it
for your own information and then please seal it and deliver it to him. Do
what you think best. I am pressed for time but shall write again soon.
May God bless us all.
Yours affectionately,
Fr. John Bosco
P.S. Write a good article for the Bollettino Salesiano.
Overwhelmed with gratitude, Monsieur Rostand thanked Don
Bosco and sent his thanks to the Pope directly. He also finalized the
process to give legal recognition to both the house in Marseille and
the orphanage at Saint-Cyr. What Don Bosco was most anxious to
settle "at every cost" was the situation of the choir school. It was a
problem about which Father Guiol was still agitating and writing
heated letters. Don Bosco had referred to it in his previous letter in
the cryptic phrase "bothersome incidents," meaning "unpleasant"
incidents. The good cure was a generous, zealous man, but an easy
prey to impulsive outbursts. Once he got an idea, he could not face
any obstacles realistically, but ran head-on against them, without
heeding either circumstances or consequences. For the time being,
thanks to Don Bosco's acquiescence, a settlement had been made,
as we have already related.23
On the eve of the Christmas novena, Don Bosco sent his very
best wishes to three ladies of Marseille who had shown the
Salesians particular kindness. Two of them we already know; the
third was Monsieur Rostand's wife.
Dear Madame Rostand:
Turin, December 15, 1879
Father Bologna has often spoken to me of the acts of kindness you and
your daughter have performed to help the poor boys of St. Leo's Festive
22A reference to Canon Guiol's demands for help from the Salesians as regards the choir
school and other needs. [Editor]
23See pp. 9ff. [Editor]
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Oratory. I feel that I must express my heartfelt and humble thanks.
Please let me offer you a very special gift you will surely appreciate.
Next Thursday, God willing, I shall celebrate Holy Mass at the altar of
Mary, Help of Christians, and our boys will receive Holy Communion and
offer special prayers for your intentions. It is our desire that God's
blessings come upon you and your family. Good health, peace and
prosperity be heaven's legacy to the Rostand family and their descendants
to the last generation.
God bless all of you! I hope to see you next January. Pray for me. I am
in Jesus Christ,
Your humble servant,
Fr. John Bosco
P.S. My respects and best wishes to your worthy husband.
Turin, December 15, 1879
Good and dear Mother, Madame Jacques:
Not only your sons at the Beaujour Society, but all those in Turin
remember their kind mother and her many kindnesses. Knowing we will
please you, we shall pray very, very much for you during these few days.
Furthermore, next Friday I shall celebrate Holy Mass and our boys will
receive Holy Communion and pray particularly for your intentions.
God protect you, our dearest mother. May He bless and comfort you
with those spiritual flowers which will one day form your crown in heaven.
God willing, I hope to see you again next January. Meanwhile,
remember me in the charity of your prayers. I am honored to be filially
Your obedient son in Christ,
Fr. John Bosco
Dear Madame Noilly-Prat,
Turin, December 15, 1879
Your generous kindness has prompted you to extend your concern to the
poor lads of St. Leo's Festive Oratory. I would like in a very special way
to show my gratitude to you before God.
Next Saturday, the fifth day of the Christmas novena, I shall celebrate
Mass, at which our boys will receive Holy Communion and pray
particularly to the Child Jesus for your intentions. Our prayer will be that
God may keep you in good health and in His holy grace, and that He may
grant you to see with your own eyes the harvest which your charity has
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
reaped on earth. The reward which awaits you one day from Our
Heavenly Father will exceed it more abundantly.
God bless you, my dear Madame Prat. I trust you will willingly accept
this small token of my gratitude. Hopefully I shall see you personally some
time this coming January.
Please be so kind as to pray for me. Always in Our Lord Jesus Christ,
Yours most gratefully,
Fr. John Bosco
Canon Guiol could not be forgotten in this instance, all the more
so because Don Bosco had not written to him since July and was
anxious to pave the way for his next visit to Marseille.
My dear Father:
Turin, December 22, 1879
Although some time has passed since my last letter, I have never
forgotten to offer a memento for you in my daily Mass.
At this season it is only right that I extend my sincerest best wishes to
you for a merry Christmas and a happy New Year, while I assure you of
our continued remembrance throughout 1880 at the altar of the Blessed
Virgin, Mary, Help of Christians. I trust that God will hear our prayers
and make your coming year a happy one.
Meanwhile I'd like to inform you that about the middle of next January,
God willing, I expect to be in Marseille to improve the financial
organization of St. Leo's Festive Oratory and make sure that outstanding
debts are paid and future obligations met. I would think a conference of
Salesian cooperators and of other charitable, esteemed persons would be
very apropos. I have no idea whether St. Leo's would have a hall for us or
ifwe should use the chapel or maybe find a suitable place at the home of a
benefactor. My purpose would be to let people know what we have already
done and what our plans are and to discuss with the cooperators some
easy ways they can come to our aid. Any comment you might care to
make will be very helpful.
Should you meet any members of the Beaujour Society, please give
them my regards.
I commend myself to the charity of your prayers. In Our Lord Jesus
Christ,
Your most affectionate friend,
Fr. John Bosco
P.S. Thank God, my eyesight has improved considerably.
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289
Precisely on Christmas Eve Bishop Jean Louis Robert, who had
succeeded Bishop Place at Marseille, publicly gave Don Bosco's
sons a testimony of his good will. A building fund drive [for St.
Leo's Festive Oratory] was in progress. The bishop not only gave it
his blessing, but in a letter to his people warmly recommended it in
terms of lofty praise. In this he was following the example of his
predecessor, who, on being promoted to the archepiscopal see of
Rennes, was in the habit of saying: "Even had I done nothing else
as bishop of Marseille but bring the Salesians there, this alone
would make me feel satisfied about my accomplishments." He
wanted the Salesians at Rennes also, insisting that if they came he
would die a happy man.
8. VALDOCCO [ORATORY OF ST. FRANCIS DE SALES]
At Valdocco too the superiors relied on the estate of Baron
Bianco to balance the budget. Most of the money was being poured
into the Church of St. John the Evangelist [in Turin] and that at
Vallecrosia. Furthermore, an increase in the cost of living-which
rose that year by one-third-strained the finances even more.
What-Don Bosco asked his Salesian cooperators in his circular of
January 1880-can be done? Should we panic? Not at all! The good of
souls and our civil society is at stake. In the past we met our weighty and
pressing commitments with good will offerings and particularly with our
recent lottery, a true godsend. I put all my trust for future projects in God's
providence, for in similar urgent needs He has never failed me. Once again
I rely upon your charity.
A decisive step had already been taken. When the financial
crunch was brought to the table on May 29 and the heavy debts
burdening each department of the administration were listed, the
superiors ageed, with Don Bosco's consent, to draw a loan of one
hundred thousand lire to be repaid by the sale of St. Ann's Villa24
at Caselle. We find a reference to the Oratory's financial straits in a
letter written somewhat later to Chevalier Charles Fava.
24Qne of the properties of Baron Bianco. See Vol. XIII, p. 632. [Editor]
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1HE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
Dear Chevalier:
Turin, December 4, 1879
When you and your wife gave us a generous offering yesterday, you
stated that you wished it for the Church of St. John the Evangelist.
Although the church really needs it, I would prefer to use the money, if I
may, for my many boys who are still wearing summer clothing. It would
really be a case of clothing the naked.
With renewed thanks for your charity to me and to my poor children, I
pray that God may shower His abundant blessings upon you, your wife
and your daughter.
Most gratefully yours,
Fr. John Bosco
In a postscript Don Bosco pointed out a drawback not so rare in
boarding schools. The chevalier had asked him to revoke the threat
of expulsion made to a young artisan. Don Bosco sent the following
clarifications:
P.S. I spoke with Father Branda about young Peano, and he assures me
that no expulsion is contemplated. He merely remarked that one of the
boy's aunts kept breaking the rules by visiting him too frequently, making
the lad promises and bringing him gifts.
Father Branda made it clear to her that all these gifts of food made the
lad indifferent to admonition or threats of punishment, and that, were she
to keep it up, the superiors would have to dismiss the boy at Christmas.
The good lady's reply was that Christmas was too soon, and would they
wait until spring? I would therefore suggest that if you happen to know this
lady, you would ask her to let the school staff do its job, all the more so
since he certainly is not in any kind of need. Do what you think best in
your own right judgment.
We now come to another very different matter concerning the
Oratory. In the course of these Memoirs we have often made
mention of Don Bosco's solicitous efforts to aid wayward priests on
their way back to a life of virtue. Sometimes he offered to house
them at the Oratory, surrounding them with gentle care and sparing
no effort to assist them in rehabilitating themselves. In this summer
of 1879 he strove to aid a certain Father Machet, formerly a parish
priest of Gravere in the diocese of Susa, who had gone over to the
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Gleanings from the Year 1879
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Old Catholics25 sect. Don Bosco personally appealed to Leo XIII
to reinstate hint.26
A reply came in at the beginning of December from Monsignor
Angelo Jacobini, assessor of the Holy Office, to which the
secretariat of state had referred the petition. All we learn from the
reply is that, having investigated the matter, the Sacred Congregation
had sent instructions to the bishop of Susa, and Don Bosco was
asked to get in touch with hint.
It gave Don Bosco great comfort to know that every day his
Oratory boys offered prayers to Mary, Help of Christians and
received Holy Communion. They were for hint a lasting spiritual
treasure through which he could obtain God's help both to carry
out his expanding arduous mission and to repay the generosity of
his benefactors. How strong this trust of his was we find eloquently
expressed in the following letter to Alphonse Fortis.27
My dearest Alphonse:
Turin, November 29, 1879
I received your two letters, each giving me distressing news about your
health. I am truly sorry but firmly believe that God will hear our prayers
and you will recover. Do not worry about your teaching. We are mainly
concerned that you be well. Health is our greatest asset after God's grace.
Also our dear Richard is not well. I am truly sorry. How worried his
father and mother must be!
At any rate, I intend to storm the tower of David-Mary's power-to
force her-so to speak-to make both of you recover, so that you may
both consecrate your strength to the welfare of souls. Here is my plan.
Every day during the coming month of December Holy Mass will be
offered at the altar of Mary, Help of Christians and our boys will receive
Communion and say special prayers throughout the month.
You and your family will say an Our Father to Jesus in the Blessed
Sacrament and a Hail, Holy Queen to Mary Immaculate. I am fully
confident that these joint feeble efforts of ours will compel Our Lord to
heed and grant our prayers.
25Qld Catholics is a general name for various national churches that at different times
separated from the Roman Catholic Church. [Editor]
2ewe are omitting his letter in this edition. [Editor]
21see Vol. XIII, p.175. [Editor]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
God bless you and my dear Richard, and Papa and Mamma. May He
keep you in His holy grace.
I hope to see you again fully recovered. Till then, pray for me. Always
in Jesus Christ,
Your most affectionate friend,
Fr. John Bosco
9. THE YEAR'S END
On December 13 [1879], as the Christmas novena was
approaching and the year was drawing to an end, Don Bosco
mailed an appropriate message to all the Salesian houses and to
their pupils.
Christmas Novena
The solemnity of Christmas should arouse within us the following
desires and resolves to show our love to the Infant Jesus:
1. Observance of His holy Commandments.
2. Bearing with the faults of others.
3. Hope in God's infinite mercy and a steadfast resolve to avoid sin.
4. Making amends for· scandal by good example.
5. Keeping modesty in even the smallest matters.
6. Checking one's conscience as to having had real sorrow in past
confessions.
7. Reviewing the good resolutions made in past confessions to see
they were carried out.
8. Reviewing the confessions of our past life as Jesus will do on
Judgment Day.
9. Resolving to love Jesus and Mary unto death.
10. On Christmas Day: Holy Communion with the resolve to receive
frequently in the future.
Best wishes for heavenly blessings from your friend,
Fr. John Bosco
When the Christmas celebration was over, he sent all the
houses his usual strenna28 worded as follows:
28A New Year's gift customary in Italy. From the very beginning of the Oratory (see Vol.
III, p. 433) Don Bosco had started the custom of giving a "spiritual" strenna or gift to his
boys and co-workers on the last day of the year. It took the form of a motto or slogan to be
practiced throughout the year then about to dawn. This custom is still kept by Don Bosco's
successors. [Editor]
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Turin, December 26, 1879
DON BOSCO'S STRENNA
TO THE SALESIANS AND THEIR PUPILS
and
Greetings for 1880
1. To All Without Distinction: Give good example in word and deed.
Be on guard against forming habits in unnecessary things even when they
are neither good nor bad.
2. To the Directors: The patience of Job.
3. To the Superiors: The kindness of St. Francis de Sales in dealing
with others.
4. To All Pupils: Use your time well; time is priceless.
5. To All Salesians: Strict observance of our rules.
Superiors are asked to read and explain the above repeatedly if needed.
God bless you all! My special thanks to those who sent me greetings.
Fr. John Bosco
10. PREDICTIONS
All we must do now is record a few predictions made by Don
Bosco in 1879 which we could not suitably place elsewhere in this
volume. One prediction was made to Sister Clementine of St.
Joseph, who joined the Sisters of St. Joseph in Turin in 1875.
Though she felt ever more drawn to the foreign missions, she could
not make up her mind to tell her superiors; they in tum, a few years
after her novitiate, appointed her mistress of novices. She would
have liked to confer with Don Bosco but was held back by the
thought of speaking to a saint. Finally, one day in 1879, having to
take one of her students to visit a patient at the Cottolengo
Hospital, she said to her, "While you are here visiting, I will call on
Don Bosco at the Oratory.'' She plucked up her courage and asked
to see our saintly founder, who listened to her and told her she
should go to the missions.
"But my superiors will not be inclined to grant permission," she
objected.
"All right, then, ask for a leave of absence from your
congregation and join our own nuns on their next expedition to
South America. When you get to Buenos Aires you can enter the
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
local convent opened by the Sisters of St. Joseph of Pinerolo."
Delighted at this suggestion, Sister Clementine asked her
superior for permission to go to the missions. She was turned down
because she was a valuable asset to her own community and
because the Sisters of St. Joseph of Turin had no foreign missions.
Some months later she again went to see Don Bosco, meeting
him in the Oratory playground as he was on his way to church. She
immediately told him that her request had been denied and asked
for his advice. Don Bosco, raising his eyes to heaven, merely
answered: "Be patient!" And, without another word, he went into
the sacristy.
A few days later, the good sister fell sick of a strange ailment
which brought her intense pain and kept her from attending her
manifold duties. She repeated her request to go to the missions, but
was again denied. Her ailment ran on for ten years more until
finally in 1889 she asked to leave the Sisters of St. Joseph of Turin
and switch to those of Chambery. Their love for her prompted her
superiors to refuse her request, but finally they yielded, and she was
lovingly received in her new home. However, her illness now
became an obstacle to her ardent desire, and so it never occurred to
her to mention it. Hopeful that a change of climate might help her,
her superior sent her to their convent in Rome, but her illness only
worsened and she was recalled to Chambery.
Meanwhile the superior of a flourishing Catholic hospital in
Christiania, modem Oslo, run by the Sisters of St. Joseph of
Chambery, had died. Arrangements were made for a French nun to
replace her, but the apostolic delegate would not hear of it.
Distressed by his stand, the superior of Chambery thought of Sister
Clementine, and one day asked her abruptly, "Would you like to go
to the missions?" In total surprise she replied that, were her ailment
to relent a bit, she would gladly agree.
The superior said no more. Upset by both this reawakening of an
old yearning and her natural hesitancy on finding herself on the
verge of reaching a long-cherished and frustrated goal, the sister
went to the chapel to ask Don Bosco in prayer to aid her at that
moment of decision. She had been praying some thirty minutes
when the superior approached her with a telegram from the
apostolic delegate agreeing to having an Italian sister replace the
deceased superior.
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Sister Clementine was overjoyed. It took her but two weeks to
regain her strength, make preparations and then leave. She did not
return to see her family in Turin until 1891 and then immediately
went back to her work in Oslo. While in Turin, she told Father
Belmonte about Don Bosco's prediction, concluding: "Now I am
truly happy. My health is strong enough for me to do my work. I
have forty nuns and fifty patients. Protestant doctors gladly work in
our hospital."
Don Bosco made another prediction in 1879, not to one sister
but to the entire Turin community of the Sisters of St. Anne
[founded by Marchioness Barolo].29 The nuns had been invited to
open a house in Rome, but they could not make up their minds,
fearing rejection and perhaps lack of local support. On being asked,
Don Bosco very decisively stated that they ought to go. To their
objection that they could not afford a new foundation, he replied:
"Go and don't worry. Soon you will have a fme convent.'' Relying
on his word, they went to Rome and settled in a very poor house,
where they stayed several years in utter poverty until two noble
Roman ladies, who had set their hearts on the sisters and had even
taken the veil, brought the congregation a handsome dowry and a
magnificent residence which they ceded to their community in
1884. On moving into their new home, the sisters hesitated to
remain, feeling such splendor to be ill-attuned to their evangelical
poverty.
Two other predictions of Don Bosco concerned Salesians.
Father Secundus Marchisio publicly recalled one at the twenty-
fifth anniversary of his first Mass which he had celebrated in 1879.
On that occasion, Don Bosco, placing his hand on his shoulder, had
told him, "For twenty years you will be a prefect, and then ... well,
then we shall see!" It was precisely twenty years to the day that he
had been prefect at Valdocco and at Borgo San Martino when his
superiors told him he was appointed catechist at the Oratory.
The second prophecy concerned Father Francis Dalmazzo. In
1879 a farewell dinner was being tendered in his honor at Valsalice
on the feast of the Immaculate Conception, and his successor,
Father Francesia, was being welcomed. Father Dalmazzo was
leaving Valsalice to be the Congregation's procurator general at
29See Vol. II, p. 249. See also the Index of the same volume under "Barolo." [Editor]
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lHE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
Rome. Among the guests was the Oratory's physician, Dr. Vincent
Gribaudi. Being on intimate terms with Don Bosco, the doctor
begged him to leave Father Dalmazzo as director of the Valsalice
College to please his mother, who was very upset at his departure.
Turning to Father Dalmazzo, Don Bosco said, "You will return to
Turin when the general chapter meets for the election of Don
Bosco's successor." He did in fact return to Turin in January 1888,
a few weeks before Don Bosco's death, and resided at the rectory of
the Church of St. John the Evangelist.
To these predictions of Don Bosco we must add another which
took place at Lu in October 1879. Don Bosco was being hosted as
usual by his generous friends, Joseph and Mary Rota, parents of
Father Peter Rota, then a cleric at the Oratory and later provincial
in Brazil.30 Don Bosco was returning from a visit to a sick woman,
Mrs. Isabelle Grossetti, and he was surrounded and followed by a
crowd of people anxious to see him. At the comer of Via Montaldo
and Via Circonvallazione Don Bosco noticed that in the crowd a
barefoot boy in shirt sleeves kept staring at him. Don Bosco
stopped to return his gaze and asked him, "What's your name?"
"Quartero."
"Do you want to come to Turin with me?"
"Sure! That's why I'm here!"
"Come, then. I have hobnails for your shoes there!"
The crowd was amused by his witty remark. After conferring
with the boy's parents, Don Bosco accepted him into the Oratory,
keeping him there until he finished his secondary schooling. If
today Father Quartero is an excellent parish priest, he owes it to
that providential encounter.3 1
Another and farther reaching prediction also dates from 1879.
At that time rumors of an imminent persecution against religious
congregations in France were rife. Don Bosco predicted, ''The day
will come when the Salesians will be dispersed and given shelter by
the Salesian cooperators. But this will not last long, and the
30See Appendix 1. [Editor]
311n some memoirs which Sister Josephine Rinaldi, niece of Father Philip Rinaldi, gave to
Father [Peter] Ricaldone, Father Quartero wrote: "This anecdote is published in the life
written by Father Lemoyne [Biographical Memoirs, Vol. VI, p. 613], though there is a
serious error in the time sequence. The author ascribes it to the year 1861, when I had not yet
been born. It actually occurred in 1879." [Author]
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297
Congregation will then flourish more than before." This dispersion
of the Salesians in France ·took place when a law regarding
associations was promulgated in 1901 and enforced in following
years. Many confreres were able to stay at their posts only because
then and there the cooperators generously offered them a home and
protection. Later, wresting the law to suit their own needs, they
helped the Salesians and enabled them to continue their apostolate.
As we all know, events then took a favorable tum, and Salesian
works gained new life, making flourishing progress year by year.32
32Father Cartier (letter to Father Lemoyne, Nice, October 12, 1907) wrote: "Such words
made a deep impression upon me and stuck in my mind; they were my comfort in all my
adversities in my last few years in Nice." [Author]
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CHAPTER 15
At the Beginning of a New Year
a GLANCE at the state of the Congregation at the
dawn of 1880 is quite proper for gauging its progress. The superior
chapter consisted of these members: Don Bosco, Rector Major,
Father Michael Rua, Prefect; Father John Cagliero, Spiritual
Director, Father Charles Ghivarello, Economer, Father Celestine
Durando, Prefect of Studies; Father Joseph Lazzero, Councillor,
Father Anthony Sala, Councillor, Father John Bonetti, Coordinator
of Religious Services; Father Julius Barberis, Novice Master.
The directory lists Father Ghivarello as also director of the
Saint-Cyr Orphanage. Don Bosco had indeed decided to send him
there for a while in Febi:uary 1879 since he was knowledgeable in
agriculture and could easily absent himself from Turin, but he was
not yet fluent in French and someone else took his place till about
the end of the year.
Strictly speaking, neither Father Bonetti nor Father Barberis was
a member of the superior chapter, but Don Bosco allowed them to
take part in its meetings, and so the directory double-spaced their
names from the rest. Doubtless, Don Bosco intended to enhance
their standing before the confreres. From 1878 to 1880 the office of
Coordinator of Religious Services actually meant "Rector of the
Shrine of Mary, Help of Christians."
The Congregation numbered seven hundred and thirty members,
as follows:
Perpetually Professed
325
Triennially Professed
80
Novices
146
Postulants
181
Priests
127
It had four provinces named after their location: Piedmontese,
Ligurian, [South] American, Roman. Father Francesia, Father
Cerruti and Father Bodrato were respectively in charge of the first
298
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At the Beginning of a New Year
299
three; from Turin Father Durando supervised the Roman province,
which comprised four houses: Magliano Sabino, Randazzo,
Brindisi and Rome (Tor de' Specchi). 1
Following a practice begun in 1875, the directory ran brief
biographies of the confreres whom God had called to eternal life
the previous year: a coadjutor brother, Charles Tonelli, and five
clerics-Peter Scappini, Louis Bianchi, Clement Benna, Charles
Trivero, and James Delmastro. The four brief pages dedicated to
Benna, who came from a very prominent Turin family, sufficiently
show us the many talents and charisms of this most promising
young cleric who was "a delight to his companions and a solace to
his superiors."
Don Bosco attached great importance to the biographies of
deceased Salesians but, foreseeing that the Congregation's spread
would make it increasingly difficult to compile necessary data, he
added a printed form to the 1880 directory with instructions that
biographical notes [of the deceased] were to be jotted down
immediately and promptly mailed to Turin to be used by appointed
writers. The form bore ten headings: 1. Incidents or events of
early years at liome and native village. 2. Conduct as student or
artisan in boarding school or hospice. 3. Deportment during
novitiate or after religious profession. 4. Offices held. 5. Exer-
cise of priestly and missionary ministry. 6. Outstanding virtues
in word and deed. 7. Devotion and practices of piety. 8. Rapport
with confreres and people. 9. Writings: books, papers, letters;
maxims quoted from same. 10. Circumstances of final illness
and death.
This survey shows the mentality of a man born not only to make
history, but also to write it, had his undertakings not taken up all his
time.
Father Francis Dalmazzo, once appointed procurator general2 of
the Salesian Congregation with the Holy See, set up his residence
in Rome in an apartment which the Oblates of St. Frances of Rome
had assigned to Don Bosco's use at Tor de' Specchi. The office of
1See Vol. XIII, pp. 105, 360f. [Editor]
2In the Vatican directories, La Gerarchia Cattolica of 1877, 1878, and 1879, Father
Michael Rua is listed as procurator general; not so in 1880, when Father Francis
Dalmazzo's name appears for the first time. In the Salesian directory, however, he is listed as
holding that office only in 1884. Don Bosco, as was his custom, wanted to see him in action
before officially presenting him to the Congregation as its procurator general. [Author]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
procurator general is very important for any religious order or
congregation because the incumbent is the official liaison between
his order or congregation and the Pope, the cardinals and the
Sacred Roman Congregations; as such he safeguards its reputation
and looks after its needs. For several years Father Rua was listed in
La Gerarchia Cattolica as procurator of the Salesian Congregation.
Don Bosco sent Father Dalmazzo to Rome on January 12 with a
letter of introduction to Cardinal [Lawrence] Nina, secretary of
state:
Your Eminence:
Turin, January 12, 1880
I have the honor of introducing the procurator [of the Salesian
Congregation] Father Francis Dalmazzo, doctor of literature and former
director of our college at Valsalice near Turin. He will keep Your
Eminence informed about our Congregation, will carry out your wise
directives, and, when asked, will pass on to you news of our motherhouse
or of the Congregation's other houses.
Toward the end of February I also hope I will have the privilege of
personally paying my respects to you and of thanking you particularly for
the letter which you recently addressed to all Salesians. It is my honor to
do homage to your sacred purple.
Most dutifully yours,
Fr. John Bosco
The cardinal's letter, dated January 6, 1880 and "addressed to
all Salesians," was his reply to their New Year's greetings. The
cardinal also informed Don Bosco that he had delivered his two
letters of congratulations to the Holy Father, adding that His
Holiness had been "greatly pleased" and that with all his heart he
thanked and blessed the missionaries [in South America] and the
Salesians in Italy.a
Compared to the spacious college at Valsalice, the new
procurator's lodgings were drab indeed. They were nothing more
than a cramped, unfurnished bedroom; in fact, when Don Bosco
went to Rome in April, Father Dalmazzo had to make do with a
sofa. Looking upon the rough wooden table covered by a moth-
3This paragraph is a condensation. [Editor]
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At the Beginning of a New Year
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eaten cloth, Don Bosco exclaimed with hearty laughter, "I really
like this! It's a genuine Salesian house."
On January 30, L'Unita Cattolica carried this dispatch from
Rome about the newly appointed procurator:
Our commendable Don Bosco has sent us the Reverend Father Francis
Dalmazzo as procurator general of his Congregation. He received a
welcome not only worthy of the Salesian Congregation which he
represents, but also well suited to his personal merits. It is known that the
most eminent cardinal vicar intends to avail himself of this scholarly and
virtuous priest as a professor [of Latin literature] here in Rome.
Father Dalmazzo also referred to this last news item in a letter to
Father Rua written shortly after mid-February:
I have not yet begun teaching because I am waiting for an elderly
professor of Latin literature at the Roman Seminary to retire. The date
should not be far off, since he is also in very poor health. In the meantime I
am taking courses in canon law at the Apollinare University.
He was not spared his heartaches in those early days, as he
himself admitted in that same letter: "I have finally been received
or, I should rather say, lectured by Cardinal Ferrieri." The
audience showed how ill-informed the cardinal was about "our
revered Don Bosco," to quote the warm-hearted words of Father
Dalmazzo, who closed his letter with these grief-laden words:
Nesciunt quid faciunt. [They do not know what they are doing-
Lk. 23, 34.]
At the beginning of January Don Bosco was busying himself
particularly with boosting subscriptions to Letture Cattoliche and
recruiting good coadjutors.
To say that Don Bosco loved Letture Cattoliche would merely
restate the obvious, but today too many, perhaps, are unaware of
all he did right up to his death to sustain, popularize and spread this
publication throughout Italy. This year [1880] he again sent a
circular, warmly appealing to religious-minded people to help him
keep boosting the number of subscribers and readers and thus stem
the flood of unwholesome literature harmful to so many people. His
twenty-seven years' experience compelled him to affmn the
beneficial influence of these inexpensive pamphlets.
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
He also had another circular printed and mailed particularly to
parish priests, asking them to refer young men between the ages of
twenty and thirty-five who wished to leave the world and become
lay religious. Besides good morals and physical and mental health,
the other requirements were: to be willing to engage in farming or
work in the kitchen, bakery or dining room; to do housework or
secretarial tasks, if qualified, or to continue to ply their trade if they
were craftmasters. The circular aimed at making it known that the
Salesian Congregation had also lay members whose status was not
to be equated with that of the traditional monastic lay brothers. The
expansion of Don Bosco's undertakings made it indeed necessary
to recruit an adequate number of coadjutors.
As his reputation for holiness spread further, so did the number
of people who daily sought his prayers, thus making it impossible
for him to answer requests personally. To remedy this situation he
had a form letter printed to assure his writers of his prayers and
those of his boys. He also invited those who needed favors to join
him and the Oratory community in a novena by saying three times
daily the Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory Be and Hail, Holy Queen,
along with the invocations "Most Sacred Heart of Jesus, have
mercy on us" and "Mary, Help of Christians, pray for us."
Furthermore, he exhorted them to frequent Holy Communion, "the
source of every grace," and to do works of mercy, especially in
favor of his poor boys. Today [1933] this has become the official
novena of Don Bosco in honor of Mary, Help of Christians, but
already long before he had been recommending it by word,
specifying that the Our Father should be said to Jesus in the
Blessed Sacrament.4
Even though, at the time of which we are now writing, people
already held Don Bosco in a high concept of sanctity, we shall see
his reputation grow ever stronger as time went by, but we shall also
see it matched with Don Bosco's ever humbler opinion of himself.
A revealing incident narrated by his secretary, Father Gioachino
Berto, happened at this time. For a correct grasp ofthis priest's way
of thinking and speaking, it helps to know that he was not worldly-
wise; rather, he was naturally incapable of thinking up or using
expressions which even remotely might smack of flattery. One day
4See Vol. VIII, pp. 225, 379. [Editor]
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At the Beginning of a New Year
303
Don Bosco said to him, "Look, Father Berto, I'd like you to take
note of any shortcoming you may see in me and tell me of it."
"I'd rather you did it for me," was the reply.
"No, no," Don Bosco insisted. "I really would like you to do me
this favor."
Seeing that Don Bosco meant what he said, Father Berto
answered, "Well, if you really want me to do it, you must promise
to do as much for me."
"Agreed! Start right now and tell me what you think I should
correct."
"Well, I noticed a few things, but they are trifles."
"Such as?"
"When you converse informally you keep starting nearly every
sentence with, 'But' or 'I say that' when they are not called for. It
pains me when others are present."
"What else?"
"Occasionally at Mass after the Confiteor, you say Indulgentiam,
absolutionem et remissionem peccatorum vestrorum instead of
nostrorum. Likewise, you sometimes say tribuat vobis instead of
tribuat nobis."
Don Bosco listened with bowed head; then, smilingly, he asked,
"What else?"
"After purifying the chalice, you swallow the water, but you
swish it about your mouth. Anyone near you can hear it, and it
sounds unpleasant. Since I care so much for you, I wish you would
correct these things. Please pardon me ifl have spoken too freely."
''Is that all?'' Don Bosco answered. ''I wish you would point out
some serious shortcomings."
"Just now I have nothing else to call to your attention. In the
future, if you wish, I shall not fail to point out other things I notice
because I hold your honor far more important than my own. You
are quite aware that Sallust says that even the smallest flaws of a
very prominent person look enormous in the eyes of the masses."
At these words a serious look clouded Don Bosco's face and he
changed the subject.
Since he had to absent himself from Turin on the feast of St.
Francis de Sales, Don Bosco hastened to invite Mr. and Mrs.
Charles Fava to preside at the festivities.
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
Dear Chevalier Fava:
Turin, January 11, 1880
Several times you and your wife Annette have been very generous to me
and to this house. We all most heartily desire that both of you preside at
the feast of St. Francis de Sales, our patron.
We shall provide vocal and instrumental music, the preacher, and
whatever is needed for the church services.
If you are free, you and Annette will be welcome to attend some of the
church services and possibly be our guests at dinner and at a stage
performance in the evening. I also invite both of you to act as godparents
when some of our pupils will receive the sacrament of confirmation.
Please note that all the prayers and Communions as well as the
Community Mass will be offered up for your intentions.
My other self, Father Rua, will give you any needed information. I do
hope your reply will be affirmative.
God bless you and your entire family.
Most gratefully yours,
Fr. John Bosco
Chevalier Fava was not only thrilled by the invitation but
generously sent a donation of three hundred lire.
We do not know the exact date of Don Bosco's departure for
France, but it certainly fell between January 12 and 14. Before
reaching the French border, he stayed for a while in our school at
Alassio. We know this because of a prediction he made there after
dinner which has still [1933] to be fulfilled.5
A pleasant scene took place at Ventimiglia. While awaiting the
train for France, Don Bosco noticed a very lively seven- or eight-
year-old lad, the son of the owner of the station's cafe. He was
dashing about endlessly, talking with customers and waiters, and
running from father to mother, as though he had quicksilver in his
veins. From time to time he uttered the word "Chisto." Don Bosco
kept eyeing the lad, until he came by with his mother.
"Come here, little boy," he said. Then, turning to the mother, he
asked: "May I say something to your boy?"
"Surely," she replied.
soon Bosco made this prediction during a conversation with Father Louis Rocca, who
reported it to Father Lemoyne. Other priests were present, including Father Clement Bretto,
who confirmed it in writing to the author of this volume. [Author]
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305
"Listen," Don Bosco said to the boy, "would you like me to
teach you how to pronounce words correctly?"
The lad did not dare to reply. "Speak up!" his mother told him,
somewhat embarrassed.
"Yes," the little fellow replied rather brusquely.
"Then pay close attention," Don Bosco went on, "but first take
off your cap."
The youngster stood still. "Come, take your cap off," the mother
sternly ordered. He obeyed.
"Now pay attention. You should say 'Cristo,' not 'Chisto,' and
do this. Look." He made the sign of the cross, pronouncing the
words and continuing: "Praised be Jesus Christ. Remember:
'Cristo,' not 'Chisto.' "
In the meantime people, including the boy's father, had gathered
about them. "You are right, Father," he exclaimed. "Grown-ups
thoughtlessly pick up bad habits and the youngsters imitate them. I
have this bad habit too and must rid myself of it one of these days."
"Soon, I hope," Don Bosco remarked.
The cafe owner then left to serve other customers, his son
following him, while the others scattered. Some minutes later the
boy's mother went up to Don Bosco.
"Would you kindly say a Mass for me?"
"Surely."
"Please accept this offering."
"No," Don Bosco replied. "I shall say Mass for you just the
same."
"No, please, take it. I want you to."
"In that case, thank you."
The lady handed him ten lire in an envelope and then withdrew,
visibly moved. Ever after, any time Don Bosco passed that way,
the woman, who had come to know who he was, always gave him
the same offering for a Mass. During the National Fair in Turin [in
1884] a woman greeted Don Bosco as he was passing before a food
stand. She introduced herself as the co-owner of the Ventimiglia
station cafe and asked if she could call on him at the Oratory. ''Of
course," Don Bosco told her, "but at this time of the year I am
always out and it will not be easy to find me."
The woman did in fact call at the Oratory several times, but was
never able to meet him. She wanted to enroll her son at the Salesian
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
school in Alassio, and was anxious to obtain Don Bosco's personal
consent.
His loving ways were truly enchanting. Father J runes Cavalli, a
priest of Canton Ticino,6 when writing to Father Rua on January 5
from Rasa, closed his letter with these heartwarming words: ''Ask
our beloved Don Bosco to say three Hail Marys for my intention
and, if he can, to send me a memento with at least one line in his
own handwriting for me to keep as a relic. He is personified
goodness, and I trust he will do me this favor, not for any merit of
mine, but for love of Jesus and Mary."
60ne of the states of the Swiss confederation. [Editor]
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CHAPTER 16
Don Bosco's Second Journey to France
THE need for a second trip to France stemmed mainly
from problems at Marseille: a building program stalled for lack of
funds; unresolved matters concerning parochial services; business
negotiations with the Beaujour Society, not easily handled from a
distance. Don Bosco, firmly determined to set Salesian works in
France on a swift and sound course, put aside all other con-
siderations and, paying no heed to physical discomfort, again set
out for France. His achievements are a true proof that his journey
was in accordance with God's mysterious designs.
He got to Nice safely on the evening of Wednesday, January 14
[1880], but very few Salesians were at the station to meet him, not
so much because of the late hour, as for the fact that they had given
up waiting for him. For the two previous days, morning and
evening, the director, Father [Joseph] Ronchail, had vainly gone to
the station. That night, after the arrival of the last train, he retired at
about ten. Half an hour later, hearing footsteps and voices beneath
his window, he leaned out and quite distinctly heard "the voice of
our dear Papa," as he put it. He dashed downstairs to greet him and
asked whether he had already paid for the coach. "What?" asked Don
Bosco. "Do you think that a young man like me needs a coach to
get here from the station?" But Brother [Joseph] Rossi, 1 who had
come with him from Turin, and one or two confreres who, hoping
against hope, had again gone to the station, assured Father
Ronchail that, despite their insistence, Don Bosco had wanted to
show them that he could still walk three quarters of an hour at ten
o'clock at night.
Nor did he show any fatigue; in fact, he did not retire until past
midnight. Although no one had been told that he would certainly
1See Appendix 1. [Editor]
307
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
arrive on that day, the next morning saw such a constant flow of
visitors to the Salesian house that he had to stay in his room until
noon. Only when he came downstairs for dinner was he able to
meet the boys in their dining room and talk with the Salesians at
table. Toward the end of the meal some band music added to the
general rejoicing. The brass band's repertoire was limited to
eighteen numbers, but Don Bosco immediately remarked with
pleasure that it had made considerable progress since his last visit.
On leaving the small dining room, he found the coach of Count
Celebrini waiting to take him to bless the countess, who had been
ailing for the past six months. Afterward, escorted by Father
Ronchail, he made his round of visits, starting with a courtesy call
on the bishop. At dusk, as they were on their way up the Carabacel
hill to call on Count de Villeneuve,2 they met Father Cagliero, who
had just come in by train. He had traveled with Don Bosco but had
stayed one extra day at Vallecrosia with Father Cibrario.
A brief incident, which in itself is of little historical value, took
place, revealing the family spirit that united Don Bosco to his sons.
Visibility was poor at dusk, but Father Ronchail, seeing a priest
coming toward them, recognized Father Cagliero and greeted him
in French with Bon soir, mon reverend Pere. A vez-vous fait hon
voyage? [Good evening, reverend Father. Did you have a pleasant
trip?] Tres hon [very nice], Father Cagliero answered. At this Don
Bosco inquired of Father Ronchail in Italian who this priest was.
Believing that Don Bosco was joking, Father Ronchail went along
with him and said that he was a good friend of the Salesians and
visited them from time to time. "Then he will spend the night with
us," Don Bosco added. "Certainly," Father Ronchail answered.
Father Cagliero, who had taken in the situation, immediately was
about to go on his way without giving any hint that he was on to the
a game, when Don Bosco amiably remarked, Alors nous revoir
dans quelques instants. [Then we'll see each other again in a few
minutes.] With these words, they parted. After a few steps further
on, Don Bosco again asked Father Ronchail, "Who was that
priest?''
"Father Cagliero!"
"What? Father Cagliero! I did not even recognize his voice!"
2see p. 19. [Editor]
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309
He had not recognized him because Father Cagliero had a sore
throat and had furthermore spoken in French. Father Ronchail had
a hearty laugh, and both he and Don Bosco were still laughing
when they got to the count's residence for dinner. They had more of
a laugh that evening when they returned home, for Father Cagliero
had kept up his game, fooling several of the confreres by speaking
French and putting on a Spanish clerical hat which he would wear
on his way to Seville.
Don Bosco departed for Frejus with Father Ronchail on the
morning of January 16; there Bishop [Ferdinand] Terris tendered
him a dinner,3 to which he also invited his vicar general and other
prominent people to honor Don Bosco. The after-dinner conversa-
tion lasted well past four-thirty, when it was time for Don Bosco to
leave. On the train they were joined by Father Cagliero and Brother
Rossi, who were going to Marseille; they traveled together just part
of the way, until Don Bosco and his secretary changed trains for
Hyeres. This time there was no mix-up as the yearbefore,4 because
they were met at the station by Father [Peter] Perrot, director of St.
Joseph's Hospice at La Navarre. He was waiting for them with a
coach belonging to Monsieur De Bouting, who was delighted to
host them during the three days they spent in the charming little
town. On his arrival Don Bosco found a sizable group of Salesian
cooperators awaiting them in the magnificent drawing room of the
count's palace. As he made his appearance, they shouted joyfully
and came forward to welcome him. After supper the conversation
went on to eleven o'clock, so great was the desire ofthese noblemen
to listen to Don Bosco.
As at Nice, so also at Hyeres Don Bosco had hardly a moment
to himself, receiving endless visits. There was not a devout person
among the aristocracy and the upper middle class, both in Hyeres
and its surroundings, who was not anxious to meet him, seek his
advice, confide troubles, and ask for his prayers. He also had to
visit a good number of sick people who anxiously awaited his
blessing.
On Sunday, January 18, he said Mass in the parish church at the
magnificent altar of Our Lady of Lourdes. Two deacons served the
31n several European countries the main meal was and still is around noon. [Editor]
4 See pp. 18f. [Editor]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
Mass, which was attended by a throng of people, including many
Salesian cooperators. So many in the congregation desired to
receive Communion from his hand that an exception had to be
made to the local rule of giving Holy Communion only at the main
altar.
Meanwhile, a cheerful group of boys from La Navarre had
arrived at Count De Bouting's palace. After breakfast, they
escorted Don Bosco back to the church for the solemn High Mass
at which they were going to sing. The score, known as the Mass in
honor of St. Aloysius, was Father Cagliero's composition. In the
afternoon, after solemn Vespers, during which the boys sang the
Dixit Dominus and the Magnijicat-also compositions of Father
Cagliero-the assistant pastor of Sollies-Point, Father Isnard, a
zealous Salesian cooperator, spoke to the exceptionally vast
congregation about the Salesian school and foreign missions. After
the sermon a collection was taken up for St. Joseph's Hospice
which somewhat eased Father Perrot's financial straits.
After services Don Bosco was asked to step into the sacristy,
where all the local priests and some from the area crowded about
him, considering themselves really fortunate to hear his inspiring
words-a piece of advice, a memento, or a blessing. It was a
moving sight of humility and faith.
On Monday morning he said Mass for the Salesian cooperators
and then he spoke to them. "Wasn't I bold to address such well-
educated people in French for fifteen minutes?" he later laughingly
remarked to Father Perrot. His poor French notwithstanding, his
listeners enjoyed his talk, avidly absorbing his every word. Toward
eleven o'clock he left for Toulon with Father Ronchail, while
Father Perrot returned to La Navarre from where he wrote to
Father Rua on January 21: "How much our good father goes out of
his way for our sake! How grateful we should be to Our Lord for
having given him to us! How gladly we work when we see our father
work so unyieldingly, and how rewarding are our efforts for the
exact and genuine observance of our holy rules in order to show
ourselves worthy sons of his!"
They had to change trains at the station of La Pauline. They no
sooner alighted than a young gentleman, about twenty, approached
them and asked the secretary: C'est bien le reverendissime Pere
Don Bosco quej'ai l'honneur de voir ici? [Is it the Very Reverend
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Don Bosco's Second Journey to France
311
Don Bosco I have the honor of meeting?] Receiving an affirmative
answer, he courteously picked up their modest luggage and took
them to an emblazoned coach, sent by Monsieur De Vallavieille,
who, with the help of the bishop of Frejus, had obtained his wish
that Don Bosco come to see and bless him. Having been ill for over
a year, he had received word by letter that Don Bosco and a
companion would be getting off further on at the Garde station, but
he had informed them by telegram [before their departure] that for
their better convenience he would have someone meet them at La
Pauline. In his telegram addressed to Monsieur De Bouting, Don
Bosco's name had been misspelled Bomb-Asco.
Monsieur De Vallavieille, former prefect of Lyons under
[President Maurice] MacMahon, was an excellent Catholic from a
deeply pious family. They all came with several friends to meet
Don Bosco. They enjoyed his conversation at table and in the living
room until four that afternoon when he had to leave for Marseille.
At half past seven that evening Don Bosco arrived at St. Leo's
Festive Oratory, welcomed by hundreds of shouts: Vive Don
Bosco! [Long live Don Bosco!]
Don Bosco's first impression was that St. Leo's was growing in
importance and that he would have to stay on longer than he had
anticipated so as to plan its growth properly. This impression-
which at first was only that and no more-later became a true
necessity, as we shall see. Meanwhile his mind was on those
problems which, to some extent, kept overshadowing the friendly
relations between the parish church and the festive oratory. They
seemed to vanish quickly "thanks to our warmhearted Papa Don
Bosco," as Father Ronchail remarked in a letter.5 In another6 he
wrote, "The parish priest of St. Joseph's has regained his serenity,
like the clearing after a storm."
So there had been a storm-and what a storm! Don Bosco had
received word ofit before he set out for France. In fact, on January
12 he had written to Canon Guiol from Sampierdarena to inform
him of his imminent arrival and especially to tell him, "I thought
you were on more friendly terms with St. Leo's Oratory. I hope that
these obstacles can be overcome when we shall meet and together
51.etter to Father Rua, Marseille, January 30, 1880. [Author]
61.etter to Father Rua, Marseille, February 17, 1880. [Author]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
with Father Bologna try to straighten out our difficulties for the
good of souls. This was our original purpose and God will help us
accomplish it, if we make every sacrifice on our own part. I have
always had complete trust in you and am convinced that we can
count on your goodness."7
The "problems" had peaked in September when Canon Guiol,
the parish priest, had demanded services that the Salesians could
not render; this stirred his animosity toward them and Don Bosco
himself,8 who, he believed, was scheming to thwart him in accord
with Father Bologna [St. Leo's director]. But the grudge he
bore them was older than that. It must be remembered that,
occasionally, as many as three Salesian priests would be absent
from the house at one time for religious services. This happened
particularly at funerals which were very frequent and long-drawn-
out due to certain local customs; then the ride to the cemetery and
back took over an hour. In addition, the Salesians were expected to
run the choir school, conduct the parish choir, train the altar boys
and go with a group of them whenever Holy Viaticum was brought
to the dying or whenever there was a burial. Furthermore, a
Salesian had to say two Masses on Sunday in the parish church
and, after the second Mass, which was always the last, bless
mothers who had just had a baby or on foot escort the dead to the
cemetery. Since the parish was very large, this would often call for
three trips a day. Priests used to be paid one hundred and fifty
francs a month for these services, but Canon Guiol had agreed on
only one hundred with Don Bosco. It must also be borne in mind
that, as people saw it, escorting the dead to the cemetery was
somewhat of an embarrassing duty usually given to priests who had
come from Italy to make money. Their conduct was not always the
best, and they neither preached nor heard confessions. One day
some Dominican Fathers asked Father Bologna, "What is this?
Have the Salesians come to Marseille to be the parish under-
takers?" It must be noted too that these unpleasant duties
were to be permanent. When he signed the agreement, Don Bosco,
who knew nothing of local customs, had no idea of the relentless
7The letter was dictated to Father Albera, as we can see from the handwriting, but was
signed by Don Bosco. [Author]
BLetter from Father Anacletus Ghione to Father Lemoyne, Ivrea, August 30, 1912.
[Author]
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burden involved. He thought that Marseille would be no different
than anywhere in Italy, where parochial services of Salesians
simply meant cooperating for the spiritual welfare of the faithful
without disrupting their routine duties toward their boys and
without any appearance of servitude. We can readily understand
why the Salesians incessantly complained to Turin, and why Don
Bosco continued to exhort them to be patient a little longer.
Tension reached its height when Don Bosco arrived in Marseille.
When Canon Guiol called on him, Don Bosco calmly broached the
subject in the presence of Father Bologna, director, Father Ghione,
prefect, and perhaps Father Ronchail, director at Nice. Canon
Guiol, losing self-control, flew into a rage, charging Don Bosco
with being a swindler, a trickster, and not a man of his word, and
stepped out. Don Bosco had let him rant, keeping his cool and his
patience, and making no attempt at a rebuttal as the canon
inveighed against him.
That evening Canon Guiol wanted to come back to St. Leo's to
resume discussing the duties which irritated the Salesians, but Don
Bosco sent word to him kindly to defer negotiations to a more
acceptable moment. In the meantime, he had invited a few
benefactors to dinner the following day. Canon Guiol's impul-
siveness made it seem wiser not to invite him, yet he might easily
take it amiss and become more furious than he was, and so Don
Bosco said to Father Bologna, "Come, let's pay a visit to the
canon."
"What? To get more punishment?"
"No, just to calm him down and win him over. He is impulsive
but good-hearted, and we shall settle everything satisfactorily. You
will see."
And so it happened. "You were quite right in what you said,
Father," Don Bosco assured him. "The Salesians will never forget
all you have done for them and will always be grateful.'' He then
added that he did not venture to invite him to dinner because he
could not treat him as worthily as the canon deserved. Rather, he
himself would come to the canon's rectory the day after tomorrow
for dinner and enjoy the day, since his home was far more
comfortable than St. Leo's. As they took their leave, the parish
priest was still somewhat standoffish, but he omitted supper that
evening and spent a sleepless night. Early the next morning he
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called at St. Leo's Oratory, asked Don Bosco to call a house
chapter, and in their presence apologized, saying that he was
retracting all he had said as well as his demands. He pointed out
that his only reason for inviting the Salesians to Marseille had been
to have them conduct the choir school; as for Masses and parochial
funeral services, he would be content with whatever they could do.
In short, an agreement was reached, and peace was restored.·
Canon Guiol was so taken aback by Don Bosco's humility and
so impressed that from then on he loyally stood by him and his
undertakings. After Don Bosco's death, when a new building was
needed at St. Leo's but funds were not available, he came to Turin
with Father Bologna for a triduum of prayer at Don Bosco's tomb
to obtain the needed funds through his intercession. His prayers
were answered. 9
Since the feast of St. Francis de Sales was near at hand, Don
Bosco wanted to hold a conference for the Salesian cooperators of
Marseille, but he had to give up the idea because the city was then
undergoing an epidemic and any meeting was unthinkable.
Nevertheless, there was a festive celebration of sorts on January
29-the saint's feast day-including a stage performance, which
became the occasion for a singular incident. The play's youthful
hero had caught a severe cold and had totally lost his voice. Upset,
the director spoke to Don Bosco of the predicament and ofthe sorry
figure he would cut if he canceled the show. After a moment's
thought, Don Bosco asked to see the young actor. When the boy
came, he knelt for Don Bosco's blessing, but, before giving it, Don
Bosco amiably told him, "Leave it to me. I will lend you my voice,
and you will be able to play your part well." The boy regained his
voice instantly, while Don Bosco immediately lost his. The
performance went off very well, but as soon as it was over, Don
Bosco too regained his voice.
The local press had till then left him in peace, but the stream of
visitors lasted from morning until night. It would be no
exaggeration at all to say that this incessant flow gave him no
respite. Ten days had passed since his arrival, and he had still not
had a chance to go through the house and inspect the work in
9This was mentioned several times during the apostolic process [for Don Bosco's
beatification]. Cardinal Cagliero testified to it with new details (Summarium, Vol. 16, p.
744, No. 62). [Author]
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progress. However, despite that, he did not forget his far-away
sons. On January 22 he wrote to Father Rua:
My dear Father Rua:
Marseille, January 22, 1880
I received your newsy letter. Blessed be the Lord in all things. Tell
Madame Legrand that I immediately sent her the blessing of Mary, Help
of Christians and have said special prayers for her. Nor shall I forget to
pray for the late Miss Occelletti and for our good Pauline, who continues
to help us.
I am saddened by the loss of Della Torre, but I thank God that he was
well prepared to die. I shall pray for his soul.
I am afraid that the other person is not preparing himself properly. I
think you should give a general caution which may hopefully have a
salutary effect on those who may feel ill at ease in their conscience.
I received Father Bonetti's letter about the house at Penango. If you
think it wise, I have no objection. We could start at twenty thousand lire,
since we sold a princely castle .at Strambino with adjacent lands for
twenty-five thousand.10
So far I have been rushing things and will review them on my return. I
shall remain in Marseille the whole month to attend to business and fund
raising.
I badly need prayers and urge our dear boys to offer a Holy Communion
for these urgent needs of mine.
Father Cagliero left for Seville last Sunday evening and has already
written from Barcelona that his journey has been pleasant. Others will give
you more news. May God keep you in good health, dear Father Rua, and
preserve all the Oratory boys in His holy grace, including Father Lago and
Father Riccardi.
Believe me always in Jesus Christ,
Yours affectionately,
Fr. John Bosco
The reference to someone who had died and one about to die
needs to be explained. Before leaving the Oratory, Don Bosco had
had no time to address the boys and so he had instructed Father
Lazzero to tell them that two of them would leave this world for
101n 1880 Don Bosco was negotiating the purchase of a building at Penango, where that
year he opened a boarding grammar school to relieve crowding at the neighboring junior
seminary in Borgo San Martino. [Editor]
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1HE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
eternity during his absence. One boy-Louis Della Torre of
Mezzana Bigli, an artisan of eighteen-had died on January 14; the
other-Anthony Borello of Grugliasco, also an artisan, fifteen-
prepared himself well when his condition suddenly turned critical.
He died on March 9, 1880.
Before the end of the month Don Bosco also wrote a brief note to
Father Barberis, giving him words of encouragement and
suggestions for the novices.
My dear Father Barberis:
Marseille, January 30, 1880
... omnes quidem currunt, sed non omnes accipiunt bravium. [...all
indeed run, but one receives the prize-I Cor. 9, 24]. As you see, Father
Molini11 wishes to return home. Handle that as best you can. I hope that
all our dear novices are in good health. Tell them I expect great things of
their goodness, studies and health.
Every day our harvest of souls is growing, so take heart, my dear
novices. God has graces, work and paradise in store for you. May He
bless you all. Pray for me.
Yours affectionately in Jesus Christ,
Fr. John Bosco
It does not seem that he wrote to anyone else while at Marseille.
It was a near miracle that he did not collapse under the relentless
and intense strain of receiving all who thronged his door. We must
now recount a few incidents which explain the presence of such an
exceptional crowd. Our sources are the diocesan and apostolic
processes, private correspondence, and oral depositions gathered
by Father Lemoyne.
On January 30 Don Bosco went to say Mass for the Sisters of
the Visitation. In that convent lived a certain Mademoiselle Perler,
former pupil of the institute and niece of one of the superiors.
Stricken with terminal cancer, she was awaiting her end. Receiving
permission to enter the cloister, Don Bosco went to the infirmary,
where he found several sick sisters, to each of whom he addressed
words of comfort. Coming to the young lady's bedside, he asked
her, "Why don't you ask for permission to get up? Come, rise."
11A postulant priest. [Editor]
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"She cannot," the superior softly whispered. "She has terminal
cancer."
"Get up at noon," Don Bosco continued, "and have dinner with
the others.''
He blessed her and left. No sooner had he left the room than the
sick girl began to say, "I no longer feel any pain. I am cured and I
want to get up. Please, give me my clothes." In fact, her malignant
tumor had vanished.
A curious event then took place. Don Bosco had told the mother
superior to ask the doctor to confirm the miraculous recovery in
writing. A practicing Catholic, the doctor took offense at the
request and insisted on asking Don Bosco for an explanation.
While he waited to be introduced, he remarked to Father Bologna,
the director, "Isn't humility one of Don Bosco's virtues? Doesn't
this request smack of vainglory? Is he trying to take advantage of
this recovery for his own purpose?" Father Bologna tried to put the
situation in the proper light, but he might as well have been talking
to a stone wall. Then came the doctor's tum to see Don Bosco. No
one knows what went on between them, but when an hour later
Father Bologna pushed the door ajar to tell Don Bosco that the
people waiting outside were growing impatient, he saw that the
doctor was on his knees in tears, his hands clasped as in prayer, and
Don Bosco was in the act of blessing him. When the doctor
emerged from the room, he told Father Bologna, "No, it is not for
himself. Not at all! It's for the sake of others and for Our Lady's
glory!"
Later, Mademoiselle Perler became a Daughter of Mary, Help of
Christians, and lived until 1886 when she died in the motherhouse
at Nizza Monferrato.12
Other extraordinary events taking place before and after this
miraculous healing helped to spread the fame Don Bosco already
enjoyed as a wonder-worker. We will now recount those that are
best documented.
Mademoiselle Barbarin, paralyzed for nearly four years, had
long been bedridden. At times a lump in her throat forced her
tongue to protrude through her teeth and caused her eyes to roll.
12Letter from the superior of the Sisters of the Visitation, Mother Mary Gabrielle
Guiscard, to Father Rua, Marseille, January 25, 1888. The letter mistakenly states that the
nur. died at Saint-Cyr. [Author]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
Invited by her family to dinner, Don Bosco took Father Bologna
with him. After the usual greetings, he was taken to see the
sick woman. He exhorted her to put her faith in the Madonna,
said a few prayers with those present in the room, and
blessed her.
"Now," he ordered, "get up and have dinner with us."
"Impossible!" cried her mother, almost in a frenzy. "She has not
been able to move for the last four years."
"What does that matter?" Don Bosco replied. "The past is past.
I will leave the room. Get her out of bed. Let her dress and come
down to dine with us." Some thirty people, between relatives and
guests, were waiting in the dining room, and Don Bosco, wholly at
ease, joined them. Fifteen minutes later at the most, the door was
flung wide open, and the young lady briskly strode in, followed by
her mother and others. Dismayed beyond all telling, the bystanders
stared at her as in a trance, afraid even to speak. The young lady
broke the silence herself and asked them all to take their places at
table.
She sat beside Don Bosco and helped herself to everything with
relish. Soon the astonishment gave way to overwhelming joy. Only
the girl's mother seemed untouched, taking no part in the
conversation. Rather gullible, she had been taken in by a sorceress
who had persuaded her to give her daughter some water over which
the sorceress had cast a spell. This supposedly would cure her.
Even now the mother had that water brought to the table.
"Why this brackish water?" Don Bosco asked. "A little wine
would be much better. If she wants water, give her that water," and
he pointed to a pitcher of tap water on the table, while he poured
good wine into her glass.
"At least bless this tap water," the mother begged. Don Bosco
did so but had the other water removed. The girl who had been sick
felt so well that the next day she returned Don Bosco's visit and
called on him with her mother.
Another remarkable case was that of Monsieur Bonnet of
Marseille, who had gone to a mineral spring at Allevard, Grenoble,
to treat a stomach ailment. He felt so well that, before returning
home, he called on Dr. Emile Chatain to thank him for his care.
However, just as he was about to take leave of him, he felt a sharp
pain in the lower back and mentioned it to the doctor. The diagnosis
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Don Bosco's Second Journey to France
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was that he was suffering from tuberculosis of the bone, and he was
advised to return to Marseille for surgery.
Monsieur Bonnet obeyed without delay. In Marseille he
consulted specialists and underwent several operations which
racked him with pain for six or seven months without any sign of
improvement. In deep depression he came to know that Don Bosco
was in town and immediately dragged himself to him, fully trusting
in a cure. Don Bosco received him graciously, blessed him and
encouraged him to stop worrying because he would fully recover
and enjoy a successful career. Those words restored him to life, so
to speak, but, better still, he no sooner got home than a sudden
discharge of pus eased him of his illness.
Dr. Chatain, a fervent Catholic, while speaking of this occur-
rence, added that not only had the first part of the prediction
come true, but the second as well, since Monsieur Bonnet lived to
fill a very important office and became the proud father of two
lovely boys, as healthy and beautiful as cherubs.
No less interesting is the account given by a Genoese priest13 to
his friend, Father Lemoyne. While Don Bosco was in Marseille a
lady called on him, sadly lamenting that her husband was a
stubborn atheist and their five-year-old child was mute. Don Bosco
comforted her, promising to pray for the conversion of her husband
and for the recovery of her child, but he also urged her to pray and
make a novena to Mary, Help of Christians.
On returning home, the lady informed her husband that she had
been to see Don Bosco. He ranted and raved that Don Bosco was a
priest and that he had no use for priests. Worse, he puncutated his
anger with blasphemies and curses directed to his wife. After he
calmed down, they had dinner during which his wife mentioned that
she had asked Don Bosco to cure their child. At this he merely
shrugged his shoulders. Just then the little boy suddenly cried out,
"Papa! Papa!" It was the first time they had ever heard him speak.
Moved but still stubborn in his views, the father felt deeply shaken
and withdrew to his room. The next morning he called on Don
Bosco and told him quite frankly that he was loath to put any faith
in priests. "Well, if you don't like me as a priest, think of me as a
13Letter of Father Charles Moro, chaplain to the Sisters of the Annunciation at
Castelletto, dated Genoa, January 5, 1902. At the time of the incident he was residing at
Nice, but he heard about it shortly after it had happened from a trustworthy source. [Author]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
friend," Don Bosco replied. Then, little by little, he dispelled the
man's misconceptions so that the atheist, whose heart was already
deeply troubled by the miracle of the previous day, gave way,
charmed also by Don Bosco's kindness. Their discussion ended
with the confession of the erstwhile atheist, who slipped a generous
donation into Don Bosco's hand before leaving.
We have documentation too of a singular mind-reading and of
genuine predictions. In one case, a widowed mother, named Mrs.
Ponge, brought her two sons to Don Bosco for his blessing. She was
about to explain that one of them was causing her great distress, but
he would not give her a chance to say a word. Rather, placing his
hand on the young culprit's shoulder, he told him, "Now, Charles,
try to be the pride and joy of your good mamma." No one had
mentioned the boy's name or his behavior to Don Bosco. The lad
was so impressed that, as the document in our archives states, he
never again gave his mother any reason for complaint.
Don Bosco also predicted the end of an illness to a sick nun, but
he did so in such a way that his words were not immediately
understood. He called one day at the convent of the Sisters of the
Sacred Heart and was asked to visit one of the nuns who was
having much trouble with her eyes. The sister begged for a healing.
"Yes, yes," he replied smilingly. "The day after tomorrow you will
be seeing some wonderful things!" That day the sister died and
passed on to her reward.
The wonders keep coming in greater numbers. Astonishing
things took place in a girls' convent school of the Sisters of the
Immaculate Conception. 14 The boarders were all gathered in a hall
to welcome Don Bosco. He came in, saying very amiably, "You
are waiting for Don Bosco, aren't you? Well, here I am!" Directly
behind him came a poor woman who was carrying a little girl who
had no strength in her legs. The woman had gone to find Don Bosco
at the convent of the Sisters of St. Joseph of Cluny, where he had
been visiting moments before, and so had followed him to his next
appointment. Boldly pushing her way into the hall, she placed her
daughter before Don Bosco and implored him to give the girl his
blessing. Don Bosco did so and told her to have trust in Mary, Help
14Today [1933] it is known as the Joan of Arc Boarding School run by the same nuns
wearing civilian clothes. [Author]
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of Christians. Then he ordered her to walk. At first she hesitated for
fear of falling, and her mother darted forward to help her, but Don
Bosco stopped her, saying, "She needs no help." Then he told the
girl, "Get up and go to the chapel and thank Our Lady!" The child
stood up and walked to the chapel, tearfully followed by several
people. Father Cagliero, who was present, saw her leave the
convent, walking all by herself and merely leaning on her mother's
arm.1s
Now let us return to the boarders. When the excitement was
over, two girls who had been waiting for the right moment
welcomed Don Bosco officially. The younger one gave him a
bouquet of flowers with many tiny envelopes holding half francs-a
donation for his work. The older girl read a speech welcoming him
in the name of the superiors and her schoolmates. He listened to the
formal address and then spoke to the whole community. Afterward,
those who wished had time to receive some brief advice from him.
After the reception, each of the pupils preparing for certification
as teachers was presented to him individually. Don Bosco assured
them all that they would pass the exam with top grades. When one
girl who was taking a test for a higher degree came to him, he
opened the book she was holding and, without saying a word,
pointed out something to her. The girl who had formally welcomed
him moments before, whose name was Aiguier, wished to become a
sister of the Immaculate Conception, but as a cloistered nun, so as
to give herself to the contemplative life. The mother general,
however, was against the idea, insisting that she take her degree and
be a teaching sister. Holding to her resolve, the young lady refused
to take the exams and confided her hope to Don Bosco. He gave
her a glance she could never forget, and at random opened
Meneket's Litterature for her, saying, "You will never become a
nun and you will need a job. Take the exams. You'll do extremely
well. Your teacher certification will come in handy some day."
Mademoiselle Aiguier, still residing at Marseille [in 1933],16
recounted this event, saying that Don Bosco's glance seemed to tell
15Cardinal Cagliero ascribed this incident to the year 1881 in the Summarium of the
apostolic processes which dealt with the miracles performed by Don Bosco during his
lifetime. If the date is not a typographical error, it is certainly a lapse of memory. [Author]
16Her address is Rue Escat No. 39 (formerly Sainte Philomene), and she has her writings
printed at St. Leo's printshop. [Author]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
her that while she would never become a nun, she would nevertheless
always live like one. She also added that then and there his remark
"You will never become a nun" had vexed her considerably.
Everything happened as he had foretold. At the exams the page
which Don Bosco had pointed out was the one chosen. Among the
candidates, Mademoiselle Aiguier received the highest grades and
all her classmates did better than everyone else. The girl who took
the test for a higher degree was interrogated precisely on the page
which Don Bosco had pointed· out and received excellent marks.
Mademoiselle Aiguier did not become a nun, though her confessor
was somewhat skeptical about Don Bosco's prediction. Being the
daughter of a wealthy merchant family, she looked forward to a
comfortable life, with no need to teach, but suddenly the family's
fortunes unexpectedly plunged. An ill-fated business transaction
ended in bankruptcy, and she began her painful career as a
schoolteacher. Thanks to the certification she had providentially
obtained, she was able to help her family in their need. She had
received some excellent marriage proposals when life had been
easier, but she had declined all offers. At this date [1933] she lives
alone like a cloistered nun.
The report of these and similar wonders-not all of them are
known to us-spread rapidly and drew a stream of visitors, causing
lively excitement in the house for days on end. On returning from
Seville, Father Cagliero wrote to Father Rua: 17
Marseille is topsy-turvy. People come and go, and their bursting
enthusiasm for Don Bosco reminds me of Rome in 1864, when he
performed there the marvels he is doing now. There seems to be a magic
communications line which tells the whole city all that Don Bosco has said
and done and is about to do to meet the town's spiritual or temporal needs.
This unprecedented flow of people, great and small, rich and poor,
religious and lay, keeps swelling every day. Since all these needs do not go
unheeded, we must delay our departure to Sunday. Marseille is a city of
fat wallets, deep faith and grievous needs. I do not exaggerate when I say
that, were time to permit, Don Bosco could accomplish here what Jonah
achieved at Nineveh. Men with frightening moustaches, hardened sinners,
silly women and lukewarm religious drop at his feet in tears. What arouses
the highest wonder and astonishment is that purses once kept tightly
HLetter, February 17, 1880. [Author]
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closed, insensitive to the needs of the poor, are now opening up to
Christian deeds of kindness and charity.
However, during the first few weeks this was not true of the
wallets. "Lots of enthusiasm, but no money," wrote Father
Ronchail to Father Rua on January 30, 1880. But we should add
that Don Bosco did not regularly ask for alms directly, but rather, if
asked, would personally make known some pressing needs, leaving
it to each individual to follow the promptings of the heart. This
preference caused misunderstandings, but he did nothing to clear
them up. One day, in the company of Canon Guiol, he paid a first
visit to Madame Prat-Noilly who was eager to help Salesian work
and was only waiting for Don Bosco to ask. Purposely she steered
their talk to his works, asking questions and receiving information,
but she never heard Don Bosco mention that he needed financial
assistance. She went on to remark that the Church's many charitable
undertakings needed generous supporters. Don Bosco agreed.
Finally she told him of her generous subsidies to the Daughters of
Charity and to the Little Sisters of the Poor. Don Bosco praised her
and urged her to continue. Astounded that he asked for nothing for
himself, she told him that her vast wealth was enough to assist other
charitable works. Don Bosco warmly agreed, adding that Marseille
truly had enough needs to absorb all kinds of charity. In short, no
matter how the good lady tried to get him to admit his own needs,
she was unsuccessful. Don Bosco finally said goodbye, leaving her
shocked and quite unable to understand his attitude. She could not
hide her surprise and confidentially told Canon Guiol that she was
anxious to help, but Don Bosco would not ask for a thing. The
parish priest solved the puzzle for her and suggested that she herself
broach the subject since Don Bosco was not in the habit of asking
for himself. Once knowing this, she immediately arranged for
another meeting with Don Bosco on the following day.
The next morning Don Bosco and Canon Guiol returned to the
lady's home. She again spoke of charity, but again there was no
way to make Don Bosco manifest his needs. Just as he was about to
leave as he had done the day before, she broke the ice.
"But Don Bosco, don't you need anything?"
"I need everything," Don Bosco answered with a smile.
"Why didn't you say so?"
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"Divine Providence knows my needs."
"What if Divine Providence has chosen me to come to your
aid?"
"I would be most thankful to you."
"What do you need?"
"Many important things. We owe for buildings we have put up
and for others we are now planning . . ."
"How much do you owe for the buildings already completed?"
"At the moment I am not sure."
"Would you please find out?"
"I will ask the architect."
"And I will gladly assist you."
They parted with this understanding. Don Bosco lost no time in
sending her a detailed list of debts amounting to sixty thousand
francs. Madame Prat-Noilly agreed to pay the entire sum in several
installments by the end of the year.
Whether it was the fruit of his experience or merely a natural
intuition, Don Bosco had his own point of view in these matters. He
described it as follows: "When you ask for alms outright, people
may give you ten, twenty, or fifty lire, and that ends it.
Furthermore, if they have given once, they will be unlikely to give
again, feeling they have done their duty. On the contrary, when a
potential benefactor is left to ask in what way he may assist, you
may cite even a large sum without being embarrassed, and the
benefactor, though he may not offer the entire sum, will give
hundreds or thousands of lire. In that case he is the one
embarrassed if he withdraws his own offer of help."
The money came, enough to pay off old debts, draw up a contract
to purchase the land adjoining the Beaujour residence, and make
Saint-Cyr and La Navarre financially solvent. Furthermore, it made it
possible for Father Savio to start construction on a second wing of
the building and to add a floor to the main house, without fear of
finding himself without funds halfway through the project. It was all
so astounding, just as it was astounding to hear Don Bosco speak
French boldly and give the people a display of heroic courage.
His health seemed fairly good, despite the heavy strain caused by
his audiences, but he was not fully free ofphysical pain. He liked to
talk, occasionally at great length, after night prayers because that
was his only free time. One night, for instance, he confided to
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Father Anacletus Ghione that he suffered severe pains on rising in
the morning, most likely when he tried to put on the elastic
stockings he needed for his varicose veins. The Salesian
community, noticing that they were badly worn, bought him a new
pair. Ordinarily Father Berto helped him put them on and take
them off, and having to do so by himself undoubtedly increased his
pain. One night Father Berto was so moved on seeing the condition
of Don Bosco's legs that he kissed his feet. "You have kissed the
feet of a Judas!" Don Bosco stated in deep humility. 18
Father Belmonte once caught a glimpse of the sad state of Don
Bosco's legs during his first year as director of the hospice at
Sampierdarena and mentioned it to the priest who was preaching
the Lenten mission at the parish church.19 It happened one day when
Don Bosco stopped at the hospice on his way home from a visit to
the Salesian houses on the western Riviera. Father Belmonte took
the occasion to tell Don Bosco that he was so exhausted he could
no longer carry on. "I cannot go on like this," he lamented. "I never
have a free moment." Without saying a word, Don Bosco bent
down and, lifting his cassock, showed him his legs. They were so
swollen that they looked like two small columns. "Take heart, dear
son," he said. "We shall rest in paradise."
The Father Ghione we just mentioned was prefect of the house at
Marseille. One evening he met Don Bosco alone in a hallway, and,
seeing that he looked somewhat apprehensive, so different from his
usual self, he asked if he were feeling ill. Don Bosco answered no,
but admitted that he was upset because a lady who had an eye
ailment had demanded that he place his hands over her eyes. "I will
never do that for any woman, not for all the money in the world!"
he protested. Something else also deeply hurt him. "People are
very ignorant in matters of religion," he went on sadly. "They
believe that it is Don Bosco who works the wonders that have taken
place during these days. It's not Don Bosco, but Mary, Help of
Christians who wins these favors through Her intercession." At this
point, Father Ghione, anxious to satisfy a nagging curiosity of his
own, asked very confidently, "Don Bosco, when people request
18This was what Father Berto wrote in a note kept in our archives. [Author]
19Letter from Canon James Gesnino to Father Lemoyne, Genoa, March 23, 1891.
[Author]
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your blessing for some spiritual or physical favor, do you already
know whether or not they will receive it?" "No, I do not," Don
Bosco replied. "When I bless them, I feel inspired to say, 'Stand up
and go to thank the Madonna.' And at that moment the person
really becomes healed." 20
During the first week of February Don Bosco visited our houses
at Saint-Cyr and at La Navarre and then returned to Marseille.21
He was accompanied by Father Ronchail, who was later replaced
by Father Cagliero on his return from Spain. Father Cagliero found
that Don Bosco's legs felt better, but that he had trouble seeing, his
left eye being painfully inflamed.22
We have no information on his visit to Saint-Cyr and very little
about his visit to La Navarre, but the Salesian, Father Michael
Blain, still living [1933]-the little "Mickey" whom Don Bosco
had mentioned in describing his dream in 1877 about the
agricultural school at La Navarre23-still recalls it vaguely. A
fatherless child, he lost his mother on July 8, 1881, the very day St.
Joseph's Hospice was officially opened. An aunt, a Carmelite nun,
sent him to the Salesians, who accepted him on October 16. Since
he had a fine voice and a good musical ear, he was immediately
given singing lessons. We have already recounted how Don Bosco
recognized him by his singing as the boy he had seen in his dream.
As the day of his departure from Marseille drew closer, Don
Bosco called a conference of Salesian cooperators which he had
been unable to hold on the feast day of St. Francis de Sales. He was
very eager to open the newly completed wing [of St. Leo's Festive
Oratory] with an official, solemn ceremony, so as to give his
benefactors a concrete proof of his determination to develop it
20Letter from Father Ghione to Father Lemoyne, lvrea, August 30, 1912. [Author]
21 The chronicle kept by the Daughters of Mary, Help of Christians at Saint-Cyr states that
Don Bosco visited them in January, but this is in error, because Father Cagliero wrote to
Father Rua from Marseille on February 5: "We arrived in Marseille this morning on our
return home from Spain. While we were stepping off our train, Don Bosco and Father
Ronchail were boarding theirs for Toulon, without our having a chance to see each other.
Tomorrow we set out for Saint-Cyr and the next day for La Navarre in the hope of seeing
Papa, who must be back in Marseille by the middle of the month. I will find out what he
wants me to do." Then, on his return to Marseille on February 12, he writes, "We found
Don Bosco at Saint-Cyr. He sent Father Ronchail off and kept me as his ... coach driver.
Brother Rossi is on his way, and you will soon see him. We visited the house at La Navarre
and then returned to Marseille, where we are now, as I write this letter to you." [Author]
22Letter of February 12 previously quoted. [Author]
23See Vol. XIII, p. 417. [Editor]
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further. The conference was set for Friday, February 20, the
anniversary of Leo XIII's election as Pope. Bishop [Jean Louis]
Robert agreed to preside. Don Bosco, Canon Guiol and members
of the Beaujour Society formed a semicircle with the bishop in the
center, and a large number of priests, prominent lay persons and the
general public attended. A boy read an address to Don Bosco,
greeting him as "our good father and beloved benefactor," and
going on to say that, having just discovered a treasure, he was
hastening to lay it at Don Bosco's feet, realizing how urgently he
needed money for his many projects. Unfortunately, he said, this
had all taken place only in a dream, which he hoped the generosity
of the Salesian cooperators of Marseille would tum into a reality.
Then a young cleric offered a word of homage to the bishop, voicing
devout sentiments and placing St. Leo's Festive Oratory under his
kindly, fatherly protection. Don Bosco gave the closing talk. In a
lengthy account of the conference which La Gazette du Midi
published on February 23 and 24, we read:
It does not come as news to our readers to say that Don Bosco is a
miracle of charity and zeal, so it is no surprise that he enthralled his huge
audience in spite of his poor French. His heart did the speaking. Apostles
are given the gift of tongues, and souls can understand and communicate in
a language which is heaven's echo.
Don Bosco explained to his audience that the Salesian
Congregation's aim was to aid endangered youth. He told them
how the idea had first come to him and how he had reacted to it
since 1841. He sketched the results he had already obtained and
then spoke of the houses at Saint-Cyr and La Navarre, acquainting
his listeners with their accomplishments and future plans. He
narrated a recent episode to illustrate the love his former pupils had
for him. One of them living in Barcelona had heard that Don Bosco
was in Marseille, and he could not restrain his longing, his need, to
see his beloved benefactor again. So he took a ship [for Marseille]
and, to Don Bosco's astonishment, stood before him in utter delight
that he could spend some time with Don Bosco and talk about
himself after such a long separation. "I have faithfully followed
your advice and teaching," he told Don Bosco, "and I consider
myself very fortunate. I am married, I am doing quite well in
business, and I am satisfied with the Lord's gifts. I wanted to see
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
you once more, my dear Father, to receive your blessing for my
wife, my children and myself, and to make my confession to you
again as I joyfully used to do thirty-five years ago."
Don Bosco then went on to tell the story of the Salesian
foundation in Marseille: how he had gone there in 1876 and, noting
the large number of boys walking the streets, had spoken about it to
Canon Guiol, pastor of St. Joseph's Church, and how both agreed
that they would care for these disadvantaged lads materially and
spiritually. But how were they to go about it? They sought the
bishop's advice, and it was not long before St. Leo's Festive
Oratory on Beaujour Street was born with God's help. It could
honestly be said that Divine Providence had held out an
inexhaustible helping hand. He pointed out how the Beaujour
Society deserved that help because its activities reached out to all.
It was also fair therefore that everyone should help it.
He concluded with a story. One evening that same winter, on
leaving St. Leo's to go into town, Don Bosco had chanced upon a
young man on a deserted street whose appearance aroused both
fear and compassion in the beholder. Don Bosco got into a
conversation with him and, as he usually did, he reconstructed the
dialogue for his audience.
"What are you doing here, my friend?"
"I am cold," the youth answered with a shiver.
"Have you no home?"
"I am hungry ..." he said and, raising his arms, he fell helplessly
at Don Bosco's feet. Exerting himself, Don Bosco raised him up as
best he could and half-carried him to St. Leo's, where he was
immediately given care. Having partially regained his strength, he
exclaimed, "Father, you have done a very good deed. You have
saved my life and stopped me from committing a crime to which I
would have been led by my desperate need. Will you keep me here
with you?" The house was full, but somehow room was made for
him. The youth was still there, praying, working and giving good
example. "This is what we must do for everybody, for our ailing
society,'' Don Bosco concluded, ''and we must do it for the love of
God, who told us, 'Love one another.'"
Speaking for the audience, Monsieur Henri Bergasse, president
of the local chapter of the St. Vincent de Paul Society, glowingly
referred to him as another Vincent de Paul who sheltered vagrant
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youngsters and freed their souls from the loathsome slavery of
corruption and vice. The speaker took the occasion to extol the
ceaseless fruitfulness of the Church in providing remedies for all
evils, and to exalt God's goodness in constantly raising providential
men according to the needs of the times. To this ailing world God
was still sending healers like Don Bosco, quickly acknowledged
and hailed as such by the people. "We have an example ofthis right
here at St. Leo's on Beaujour Street," he said. "Hidden and
unknown until yesterday, it has become today the meeting point of
every charitable soul in the city, a pilgrims' center for people who
continuously throng about this man of God. Thus does the Lord
choose to initiate His servants' works and give them strength. From
humble beginnings, from the microscopic mustard seed grows a tree
which quickly spreads its friendly branches over a land blessed by
its presence."
When the bishop stood up to speak he found a friendly audience.
He stressed the providential nature of Don Bosco's work as bearing
all the hallmarks of a true Catholic enterprise dear to God. Then he
went on to say that saints are God's instruments, led by His hand to
unknown missions, as was the case of St. Francis de Sales, whom
Don Bosco had chosen as his Society's patron and who had also
accomplished memorable missions whose significance and influence
he had not foreseen. The bishop closed by expressing his strong
support of St. Leo's Oratory.
After the bishop's blessing, Don Bosco stood at the doorway, as
was customary, and held out a basket for donations. Many kissed
his hand. Monsieur Emile Sumien, who furnished the above details,
remarked:
We stood about for some time, enjoying the touching sight at our ease.
Many persons, on passing Don Bosco, whispered a few words into his ear,
and with incomparable patience he replied to each, blessing the children
with a smile. Gold as well as lowly copper coins were dropped into the
basket by hands that quickly were withdrawn lest their contribution be
detected; the greater the offering, the more discreet were the donors, who
were truly inspired by charity. Don Bosco thanked each with a kindly
word, and we saw that often, when the gift was but a few pennies, he gave
the donors a look of thanks. Men like Don Bosco know the value of the
poor widow's mite.
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
Several people stayed on to talk to Don Bosco, seek his blessing
or prayer, or perhaps to confide some secret sorrow. He satisfied
all, without betraying the least annoyance or fatigue, until those
concerned for his health forced him to sit and rest. People kept
staying around.
This is a daily scene-the reporter continued-though we read of such
happenings only in the lives of the saints. Such heart-touching incidents,
willed by God as comforts for the Church in its present sorrows, fill the
hearts of the faithful with boundless hope. 24
To keep the enthusiasm which his presence aroused from dying
quickly like a flash in the pan, Don Bosco set up two committees,
as he intended to do also in Nice, one of men, the other of women,
who would regularly meet and in accord with each other would then
keep up the city's concern and cooperation to expand the Salesians'
work. As we shall see later, he never lost sight of his hard-working
cooperators even when far away.
We managed to get very detailed minutes of the women's
meetings held from March 1880 to February 1895 under the chair-
manship of Canon Guiol. Quoting from them here and elsewhere
will add interest to our account. From March 4 to December 30,
1880, twenty-one meetings were held, of which the first four may
be considered organizational. Several practical means of raising
funds were suggested, such as annual pledges of contributions of
twenty-five, fifty, or a hundred francs, scholarships, forming groups
of ten people with each promising two francs a year, and business
firms adopting a pupil for three hundred francs a year. The groups
of ten contained for the most part the six hundred Salesian
cooperators. 25
On February 22, the eve of Don Bosco's departure from Marseille,
the playground and halls of the house were jammed with friends
who were hoping for a last chance to speak with Don Bosco. A
stately lady, hoping to see him, went so far as to hide behind the
24L 'Osservatore Cattolico of Milan published a slightly edited translation of both articles
of La Gazette du Midi in its March 17 and 18 issues. Le Citoyen of Marseille also carried a
brief report on the events on February 21, and the article, reprinted in the March number of
the Bulletin Salesien, was translated into Italian for the same issue of the Bollettino
Salesiano. [Author]
25We are omitting a few more details concerning the internal government of the ladies'
committee. [Editor]
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door to the boys' dormitory, so determined indeed that she stayed
there from six in the morning to six in the evening, emerging for a
moment only at midday for lunch. "Had I not spotted her and asked
what she wanted," Father Ghione wrote, "the good lady would
never have gotten a glimpse of Don Bosco. I managed to get her a
three-minute audience with Don Bosco, just as he was on the verge
of leaving."
More touching is the story of a poorer woman who came in the
morning and settled herself in a comer of the waiting room, leaning
against the wall and holding a pallid, motionless blind child in her
arms. Full of faith and resignation to God's will, the woman waited
her tum to see Don Bosco, as visitors kept coming and going. Her
personal shyness kept her from asserting herself before more
important people. The few paltry attempts she made were useless,
because the flow of visitors repeatedly forced her back into her
comer. At eleven Canon Guiol came to take Don Bosco to lunch at
Madame Prat-Noilly's. As he walked through the room, everybody
crowded about him and the poor woman knew she could never push
her way through them, and so she stayed in her comer. For two
more hours she did not leave her place, unyielding and silent.
On Don Bosco's return, she again pushed forward but was
blocked by the rush of people. Don Bosco entered his room, and
she retreated to her comer. Shortly afterward he returned in his
traveling garb. An unyielding crowd of some three hundred people
thronged the waiting room. With Don Bosco's departure the poor
woman's hopes would be crushed. She was the very picture of
suffering. Father Cagliero again spotted her.
"Don Bosco," he said, "that woman wishes your blessing."
"I have no time. I'm late and I'll miss the train."
''She has been here all day,'' Father Cagliero insisted. He turned
to her and called out loudly and firmly. A path was forced open for
her to reach Don Bosco. The child lay motionless in her arms. Don
Bosco raised his right hand and blessed it. Instantly the child
clapped its tiny hands and aroused itself, rubbing its eyes in the
sudden glare of light. It all happened so very fast, without Don
Bosco's stopping as the crowd moved to make way for him, and
anxious hands reached out to him on all sides. In the confusion the
woman squeezed through the crowd, beside herself with joy, while
the rest of the people hardly noticed anything. Father Cagliero was
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
probably the only one who really knew what had taken place.26
Until Don Bosco got into his coach, the crowd pressed about him
to kiss his hand or to try to touch his garments at least, holding out
rosaries and handkerchiefs for him to touch. From Father Ghione's
account of that day we gather the following details:
I walked beside him and did my best to open a path for him. Midway
down the stairs Don Bosco gave me a passing glance which I could not
understand. Loudly he told me, "Can't you see?" I saw that in the crowd
which was almost sweeping him off his feet, two women stood blocking his
way. Without waiting for my help he pushed past them with surprising
strength. Once inside the coach, I noticed that his cassock had been so
badly cut up all over that we had to get him another for his journey.
Everything that he came into contact with in his room was stolen, with the
connivance of family members, to please some Salesian cooperators. Not
even the bed sheets were spared.
Instead of going directly to Nice, he stopped overnight at
Aubagne, less than an hour away from Marseille. Once he was
alone with Father Cagliero in their compartment, he remarked in
astonishment and embarrassment, "How wonderful is the Lord,
and how immense His mercy! He chose a peasant boy of Becchi to
be His instrument in performing His wonders before such a host of
people." 27 They arrived in Nice late on February 24. Don Bosco
probably stayed a couple of days with the count of Villeneuve,
whose chateau was in the neighborhood. Deeply attached to Don
Bosco, the count was certainly thrilled to offer him hospitality and
afford him the rest he so badly needed.
Nice was no different from Marseille: a daily host of visitors, the
same heroic patience on Don Bosco's part, the same marvels, even
though any reliable information is really scarce. Between February
24 and March 6, furthermore, a flood of mail reached him, well
over eight hundred letters from all over France. The financial
picture of St. Pierre's Hospice was no better than that of St. Leo's
in Marseille had been before his visit. They owed money for real
estate they had had to purchase; they had run up the cost of feeding
26In the two-volume biography [by Father Lemoyne, Vol. II, p. 518] this episode is quoted
as having taken place in 1881. But from mid-January to Easter 1881, Father Cagliero was in
Spain. Don Bosco left Marseille at the end of February. [Author]
27Summarium super virtutes, Vol. XVI, No. 90, p. 966. [Author]
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Don Bosco 's Second Journey to France
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over a hundred boys and they had debts for workshop equipment.
More distressing was the need for larger premises to accommodate
the crowds of needy youngsters who kept asking for admission. In
addition, they needed a larger and more dignified chapel, as well as
a new study hall to replace the low-ceilinged one they had, which
was sadly inadequate and badly placed. Substantial funds were
needed, while their daily income could not even cover the growing
heap of outstanding expenses.
Fortunately, Divine Providence again visibly came to Don
Bosco's aid in stirring up public sympathy, with notable results,
although, as we have already remarked, we are not sure how it all
happened. We are positive of one instance. A certain Monsieur G.,
fifty-six, a government employee, made his confession to Don
Bosco, who listened and then asked him, "Have you forgotten to
confess such and such a sin ...?" He reminded him of all the
circumstances, including his age, eighteen at the time. After
receiving absolution the man, totally astonished, rushed to Father
Ronchail, the director. Telling him all that had happened, he
declared he had really forgotten that sin and that he had enough
proof that Don Bosco was a saint.
The people's generosity was manifest both privately and
publicly. Sixteen guests were present at a dinner given in his honor;
what they enjoyed most was his presence and his edifying, pleasant
conversation. Toward the end of the meal, as conversation picked
up, a wealthy, kind-hearted gentleman stood up and addressed his
fellow guests. "Gentlemen," he exclaimed, "it is all well and good
that we admire Don Bosco's work, but we will do better to share his
merit by coming to his aid. How do we expect him to enlarge his
house and take in more helpless youngsters if he has no money?"
He then passed a plate around; four guests put in a thousand francs
each and the rest contributed an additional seven hundred.
Ernest Harmel, brother of Leon, known as "the [workers'] good
father," 28 gave a lavish banquet for his friends to honor Don Bosco.
The previous year at a convention in Angers29 he had read a paper
on the scope and growth of the Salesian Congregation. This time,
2asee Vol. IV, p. 56. [Editor]
2esee p. 213. [Editor]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
like his fellow guests, Ernest Harmel would normally have been
wintering at La Cote d'Azur [on the French Riviera] for his
health. While the guests were chatting at their ease before dinner,
Don Bosco talked to them about the school chapel, stating that it
was too small for the pupils and hardly a suitable home for the
Lord. "I have seen a plan of our architect, Monsieur Levrot," he
said, "but that would run into thirty thousand francs."
"Thirty thousand!" echoed Attorney Michel. "I really fear we
shall never raise that much money just now here in Nice. This
winter we have had so many lotteries and fund drives that our
purses are empty."
"Still that's the amount I need this very day," Don Bosco replied.
The guests took their places at table. As dessert was being
served, Saietto, a notary public, stood up and said to Don Bosco, "I
want you to know that a generous person has asked me to give you
thirty thousand francs. You may collect it at your convenience at
my office." Don Bosco joined his hands and, raising his eyes to
heaven, thanked Mary, Help of Christians for the singular.favor.
Two appeals were also made to the general public. The first was
made in the parish church of Notre-Dame by Father Lacouture,
S.J., the Lenten preacher. Don Bosco was present and the col-
lection surpassed all expectations. Don Bosco himself set up the
second appeal through a conference to the Salesian cooperators. In
a news report from Nice30 we read:
The pious and generous people listened attentively to all Don Bosco
told them of Salesian work in general, and of the work on the local level.
He spoke in French, of which he has a better reading than speaking
knowledge. His plain, simple way of speaking, expressed in an Italian
literary style, seemed to delight his listeners, but they were most
captivated by his apostolic message.
The collection proved the assertion, for when Don Bosco made
his rounds with the basket, everyone, from the bishop to the least of
the congregation, gave generously. One man put in a gold coin.
"God reward you," Don Bosco said. "Let it be doubled," the man
countered and dropped in a second gold coin. Several families, not
30Bulletin Salesien, March 1880 p. 12. [Author]
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Don Bosco's Second Journey to France
335
satisfied with their offerings in the two appeals, sent larger
donations by mail.
Our account of Marseille sufficiently explains why Don Bosco
could not give his attention to certain courtesies, particularly saying
goodbye to the bishop and other important people. He rushed a
letter to Canon Guiol. His handwriting, more illegible than usual,
tells us what he meant by saying he was tired, but that did not keep
him from adding a remark about his deep personal concern for the
wonders God performed through him.
Dear Father:
Nice, March 4, 1880
I am in Nice, and [regret that I] had to leave without seeing you again or
thanking you for the generous charity and kindness you have shown me
and my humble Salesians. I speak also on behalf of Father Cagliero. May
God reward you. You have our sincerest thanks.
I would appreciate your doing me a great favor by calling on your
bishop, to whom I cannot write, and to apologize in my name for my
having left without first receiving his instructions for Rome, and without
thanking him for his fatherly goodness, his donation and the excellent
recommendation he voiced for our St. Leo's Oratory. If I can ever be of
service to him in Rome, I shall be delighted to do so.
I planned to take some rest in the first few days after my arrival in this
city, but instantly the usual line of callers began, and I am so exhausted
that I can take no more. The day after tomorrow I shall leave for Rome
without having had a chance to do anything for our hospice. How easily
people fool themselves! They attribute to men the wonders which God
performs through His infinite mercy.
I have not yet been able to write to Father Bologna. Should you have
the chance, please pass this news on to him. I promise that somewhere I
shall find time to write to some of the people in Marseille who insist on
receiving an answer.
God bless them all, my good Father, and may He keep you in good
health. Pray for me.
Yours affectionately in Jesus Christ,
Fr. John Bosco
We have two remaining small incidents which we feel are not
insignificant for those who seek a fuller understanding of Don
Bosco's spirit.
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
While in Nice he took a public coach one day, and when he got
to his stop he realized that he had taken no money. He told the
coachman that he had left his wallet at home and asked him kindly
to drive to St. Pierre's Hospice, and there he would be paid his fare.
"Whom should I ask for?" the man inquired.
"Ask for me."
"What's your name?"
"Abbe Bonhomme."
The coachman drove there toward evening. Don Bosco had
forgotten to notify anyone, so that when the man was asked whom
he wished to see, he replied as he had been told. "We have no Abbe
Bonhomme here," the secretary said, rather annoyed, and showed
him the door. The coachman raised his voice, so that Don Bosco
heard the commotion and, understanding what it was all about,
rushed over. "There is 1'Abbe Bonhomme!" exclaimed the
coachman in triumph. With a hearty laugh Don Bosco paid him
and added a generous tip.
The second incident is altogether different. One evening, as he and
Father Ronchail were returning home after having dined with a
benefactor, they took a short-cut through back alleyways and badly
soiled their shoes. Back in his room at St. Pierre's Hospice, Don
Bosco found the stench unbearable, but, unwilling to ask anyone to
do so demeaning and repugnant a task, he began to clean the shoes
himself. As he was almost finished, Father Ronchail, noticing the
light in his room, walked in, surprising Don Bosco at his task. He
snatched the shoes and finished the job himself, moved by Don
Bosco's humility.
In his last week at Nice, Don Bosco found himself in a bind
because his two best assistants, Father Ronchail and Father
Bonetti, who had come to replace Father Cagliero, were sick in
bed. The Piedmontese saying which he quotes in this little note to
the director of the house at Vallecrosia to tell him of his
forthcoming visit alludes to his lack of secretaries.
Dear Father Cibrario:
Nice, March 4, 1880
If Father Bonetti can manage to leave his bed, I shall arrive at
Ventimiglia next Saturday at about four in the afternoon. If you cannot
provide accommodations for the two of us, speak to Canon Cassini.
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I had to write this myself because "in the absence of horses, a donkey
has to do the trotting."
God bless us.
Yours affectionately in Jesus Christ,
Fr. John Bosco
A brief memo sketched by Father Bonetti for Don Bosco tells us
that at his request the Italian Southern Railways had granted all the
members of the Salesian Society the fifty percent discount which
they were already enjoying in northern Italy. Thanking the man-
agement, Don Bosco assured them that he would henceforth "give
every preference and consideration" to orphans of the railway
employees in his schools. At the same time, he pointed out that the
"nuns known as Daughters of Mary, Help of Christians" and "the
young girls they cared for" were also dependent on him, since they
resided at the nuns' convents under his own direction. Pointing out
that the Northern Italian Railway had granted them the same
discount fares, he expressed the hope that the same concession
would be extended to them. His request was approved.31
As he was about to return to Italy, he could already see the storm
clouds gathering over his Salesians in France-the threat of per-
secution against religious congregations. In January the two assem-
blies had already been debating the problem of public education
with a barely concealed goal of striking a mortal blow against the
flourishing private schools run by religious communities. Meeting
with Canon Guiol and Messieurs Rostand and Bergasse in Mar-
seille, Don Bosco had discussed what they could do to ward off any
unpleasant measures. He developed his own opinion on the matter,
one he would clarify in due time, but he stressed that they should
not take too dim a view of the future. "Suppressing religious con-
gregations," he said, "is like clapping your hands to frighten birds
who plunge from the air to peck at the wheat on the threshing floor.
They will fly off immediately, only to return as soon as the hand.-
clapping stops. So, too, once the wave of suppression is over, the
religious communities will quietly come back and resume their work.
31 Confirmation of this was given by Sister Caroline Sorbone, who together with other nuns
traveled from Turin to Bronte in Sicily in 1880. [Author]
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CHAPTER 17
To Rome and Naples from Liguria
DESPITE his anxious desire to see the Oratory after
being away two months, Don Bosco felt that he had to continue his
journey to Rome without a stopover, for he had pressing business
there which brooked no delay. For one thing, he had to come to a
firm proposal on organizing the Rio Negro missions, and this
entailed negotiations involving the Holy See and the Argentine
government. Then he also had to face the Orato~ school
controversy, the unpleasant events of Chieri, and other matters.
However, he first stopped for a few days for a necessary visit to
Liguria.
Vallecrosia was his first stop on Italian soil. There he was to
bless and lay the cornerstone of the Church of Mary, Help of
Christians since construction was nearing completion. The
ceremony, held on the evening of March 7, was given extraordinary
solemnity by the presence of three prelates: Bishop [Thomas]
Reggio, ordinary of the diocese, Bishop Allegro of Albenga, and
Bishop Boraggini of Savona. The latter two, who had come to
Ventimiglia for the consecration of the restored cathedral, gladly
accepted the Salesians' invitation to attend the evening ceremony.
It was an area event: thousands thronged into the Vallecrosia plain
from all over the province. As usual, Don Bosco did not overlook
anything that might enhance the ceremony, and so our pupils of
Alassio and Sampierdarena came to brighten the festivity with their
singing. The elderly Chevalier Joseph Moreno of Bordighera, a
very religious man, chairman of the celebration, was the first to
cement the stone after its blessing. The official document usually
sealed within the stone, besides listing the customary data,
contained Don Bosco's opening talk to the people:
I joyfully express my thanks to you today, gentlemen, for attending this
religious ceremony and, most importantly, to those who shared in the
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To Rome and Naples from Liguria
339
construction of this church by their donations, work and prayers. There
await us still rather burdensome sacrifices to make, but your generosity
will not lessen, nor will heaven's aid and the protection of the great Mother
of God fail us. You will merit the thanks and prayers of people now and
forever. Generations to come will praise your faith and zeal for God's
glory and the welfare of souls, and the all-merciful Lord will generously
reward you even in this life and grant you the eternal glory reserved for
you in heaven. He himself has assured us: "But My mercy I will not take
away from him who shall build a house to My name, and I will establish
the throne of his kingdom forever'' [2 Kgs. 7, 15 and 13].
After sealing the cornerstone the bishop addressed the audience,
calling the new church a bulwark of defense for the faith.
It seems clear that Don Bosco stopped off at Alassio and from
there proceeded to Sampierdarena,1 where he had asked Father
Rua to meet him to discuss several matters. "I met with Don
Bosco," Father Rua wrote,2 "and he looked fairly well, though
very, very tired." While he was staying at St. Vincent de Paul
Hospice, Don Bosco, in one simple deed, greatly edified all and
showed his inner goodness. At eight o'clock one morning, on his
way to the church, he met a janitor who was sweeping the porticoes,
and he noticed that, because he either could not do better or was
very careless, the janitor was doing a poor job. "Would you like me
to show you how to sweep properly?" he asked. He took the broom
and quietly swept almost a third of the passageway, while the
janitor stared at him with open mouth. "See, this is the way to
sweep," Don Bosco told him and gave him back the broom. Then,
bidding him good-day, he went into the church.
Toward midnight on March 11 he entrained for Rome,
accompanied by his secretary, Father Berto, whom he had
summoned from Turin. They were met by Father Dalmazzo, who
had been notified beforehand by a cable from Father Rua, and
escorted by him to Tor de' Specchi. On the evening of their arrival
Don Bosco called on Cardinal [Raphael] Monaco La Valletta,
vicar of Rome, and the next morning on Cardinal [Lawrence] Nina,
secretary of state and protector of the Congregation, who told him
11.etter from Father Cagliero to Father Rua, Marseille, February 12, 1880: "We shall go
to Ventimiglia, then to Alassio and immediately after to Sampierdarena." [Author]
21.etter to Count Cays, March 15, 1880. [Author]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
that he had heard of what Don Bosco had accomplished in
Marseille. The cardinal was probably not referring to financial
success, but, interpreting the remark literally, Don Bosco replied:
"Yes, Your Eminence, and I have done equally well for the Holy
Father too." Indeed, he was bringing a generous donation for
Peter's Pence given to him by a French gentleman.
Father Berto's diary for March 14-22 supplies the following
factual details:
On Sunday evening we went to greet Mrs. Matilda Sigismondi for her
name day, March 14, the feast of St. Matilda. Monday, March 15: Don
Bosco and Father Daghero tried to cash a French money order but could
not. We had lunch with Mr. Matthew Pesce, secretary general of the Post
Office. That evening we visited Cardinal [Cajetan] Alimonda, who agreed
to speak at the Salesian cooperators' meeting in Rome. March 17,
Wednesday: We were at Archbishop [Ludwig] Jacobini's to discuss our
missions; then at the Stigmatine Sisters for Benediction, where Father
Dalmazzo was giving a spiritual retreat; then back home. March 18: We
visited Monsignor [Gabriel] Boccali, where we met Monsignor Paul
Fortini, editor of Fiacco/a of Rome. Then to Monsignor [Vincent] Salh.ia
[assessor of the Holy Office], to see him about Father Machet,3 former
pastor who had joined the "Old Catholics."4 Then to Cardinal [Louis]
Oreglia and later to Cardinal [Dominic] Bartolini. March 19: Feast of St.
Joseph. Don Bosco dined with Marquis [Angelo] Vitelleschi and his
family. March 20: Visited Princess [Mary] Odescalchi; that evening at
Cardinal [Dominic] Consolini's. March 21: In the evening Don Bosco and
Father Dalmazzo called on Deputy Sanguinetti; also on Chevalier
Moreno and Vignola to discuss purchase of a house. March 22, Monday:
Don Bosco and Father Dalmazzo visited Princess Odescalchi; that
evening, Don Bosco visited Cardinal Consolini.
In his first few days in Rome, Don Bosco cleared up a situation
that had long been very hazy. Matthew Grochowski, the first Polish
applicant to join the Congregation, had spent four years at the
Oratory. After his ordination he apparently obtained permission to
return to Poland in the fall of 1879 to gather funds for the Church of
St. John Evangelist. However, no word was ever heard from him
again. Since Father Cagliero, as catechist of the Congregation, had
3See pp. 290f. [Editor]
4See p. 291, [Editor]
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charge of these situations, he wrote for information to the superior
of the Pious Schools of Cracow, who, despite a careful search,
could not trace his whereabouts. Meanwhile, the parish priest of
Beuthem wrote [to Turin] inquiring about him, and almost at the
same time a very serious anonymous charge was brought against
him from Cracow, where it seems he was living with the local
Franciscan community. Without further ado, Father Cagliero
notified him that he had been ipso facto suspended as a "vagrant"
and ordered him to return the letters of recommendation he had
been given before leaving Turin. The priest first excused himself as
best he could, but then he obviously hired a professional to draft for
him a concise tirade in Latin, justifying his actions and requesting
secularization so as to care for his elderly mother, who was alone.
Don Bosco waited until he got to Rome, where he could seek
competent advice and take legal steps to settle the issue without
leaving loopholes for quibbles or unjustified criticism. With Father
Dalmazzo's help he drew up a statement releasing the priest from
vows; he also informed Church authoritie~ that the priest was
suspended from ministry until such time as he could find a
benevolent bishop to accept him into his diocese, stating too that
Father Grochowski had not yet completed his courses in dogmatic
theology and had not taken examinations for hearing confessions.
However, with his genuine goodness he affirmed the priest's good
conduct during his stay in the Salesian Congregation and
respectfully recommended him to the good graces of his bishop,
calling heaven's blessings on those who would assist him. In the
end, inexplicably, this same Grochowski suddenly showed up at
Tor de' Specchi in Rome, apparently on his way to Turin.5 After
this, we lose all track of him.
Between visits, while waiting for a papal audience, Don Bosco
wrote letters to Turin, France, and elsewhere, of which only six
have come down to us. Having to reply to Father Durando
concerning negotiations to take over a farm being offered him by a
certain Mrs. [Elizabeth Bellavite] Astori of Mogliano Veneto, he
hastily wrote a few words because the thought of the Oratory
immediately brought to his mind the boys and Salesians at
Valdocco.
51..etter from Father Berto to Father Rua, April 14, 1880. [Author]
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THE BIOGRAPIDCAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
My dear Father Durando:
Rome, March 16, 1880
I have promptly replied to Mrs. Astori that Father Sala will be going
there. Enclosed is a letter with instructions for him.
I am delighted that God keeps all our boys in good health and that they
are devoutly making St. Joseph's novena. Tell them all that on the feast I
shall celebrate Holy Mass for th.em, and I urge them all to receive Holy
Communion.
I can't wait to be back with them. I shall speed up my return to Turin.
Assure them that all my efforts are for them.
Tell Father Lazzero that I shall ask the Holy Father to grant him a
special blessing for the sake of his dear patron, St. Joseph.
My best to Father Leveratto, Father Bertella, Buzzetti, and all my
dearest confreres. Never forget that God has called you to sanctify
yourself and others.
May the grace of Our Lord Jesus Christ be with us always. Pray for me.
Yours affectionately,
Fr. John Bosco
That day, too, his concern turned to Marseille, and he wrote to
the cleric [Louis] Cartier who, though not yet in orders, was a
member of the house council.
My dear Cartier,
Rome, March 16, 1&80
I shall gladly pray for our well-deserving and beloved Albrieux, who has
been ailing for so long, and will ask others to pray also. I enclose a holy
card of Mary, Help of Christians, asking Our Heavenly Mother to give
him Her blessing. Let him continue to help our poor boys and we shall
redouble prayers to God for him.
You say little about our confreres at St. Leo's, and so I assume
everything is going well. Please greet them in my name, especially Father
Director and Odaglia,6 in whose hands the whole festive oratory rests.
Are Antoine, Brogly and Bardon well? Is Father Savio speeding the
new building along?
God bless you all. Pray for me. Always in Jesus Christ,
Yours affectionately,
Fr. John Bosco
SBrother John Odaglia, a lay Salesian. (Editor]
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Five days later he wrote to the director for an exchange of news,
urging him to help Father Rua and touching upon relations with
Canon Guiol of St. Joseph's Church. More importantly, his letter
sparkles with that golden word of advice which was a secret
ingredient of his educational system: "At this present time we must
be ready to make some sacrifice in order to maintain friendly
relations with the parish priest and his vicar, Father Louis
Mendre."7
On Holy Thursday he sent Father Rua a brief note8 to tell him of
a visit he had received from a French gentleman who had stopped
off at the Oratory on his trip to Rome.
A painful loss which had afflicted a family very dear to him
prompted Don Bosco to write a letter of Christian condolence. It is
dated Good Friday. The father of the Fortis family had died,9 and
as soon as he could find time and his eyes felt better, Don Bosco
wrote a few words of comfort to the eldest son.
My dear Richard:
Good Friday, Rome, March 26, 1880
Our dear Papa is no longer with us. Let us bow to God's will. We all
knew this blow was coming and feared it, though we did not expect it so
soon. I can understand your own surprise and Alphonse's and mostly your
mother's. In this hour of tragedy we Catholics feel a deep comfort which is
our only consolation: prayer and good works during our lifetime in
supplication for the soul of the deceased, as we comfort one another with
the firm hope that we shall see our dear one again, soon, perhaps, in a
happier life than this. For our mutual consolation, I assure you that I have
prayed much for the soul of your dear father, and all the communities of
our Congregation have offered their prayers and Holy Communions.
As best you and Alphonse can, try not to make any decisions now.
Comfort your mother by your thoughtfulness, your resignation and your
prayers.
I expect to be back in Turin about April 20. Could you spend a day or
two with me? I would be delighted and we might talk things over. God
bless you all. Pray for me. Always in Jesus Christ,
Yours affectionately,
Fr. John Bosco
7This sentence is an excerpt from Don Bosco's letter to Father Bologna. [Editor]
8Qmitted in this edition. [Editor]
9See Vol. XIII, p. 175. [Editor]
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1HE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
We have a very brief note, dated Easter Sunday, which tells us
much between the lines. It is impossible to identify the person he is
referring to, since prudence and charity would not let him be more
explicit in writing, but we can readily hazard a guess. He was
replying to a request for advice from Father John Piccini, pastor at
Rive d'Arcano in Friuli.10
My friend in Jesus Christ:
Rome, Easter, 1880
The cedars of Lebanon have fallen and continue to fall. They are painful
losses, and we must pray for the fallen and for ourselves, that God will
save us.
Let it remain a secret. Should repercussions follow, only then let them
quickly and secretly send away the woman so that nobody may discover
her whereabouts.
Should he also seek to move elsewhere, let him go in the opposite
direction.
I have received the seven lire you sent; your intention will be respected.
God bless you. Pray for me. Always in Jesus Christ,
Yours gratefully,
Fr. John Bosco
A group of French pilgrims was in Rome during Holy Week. On
the morning of March 24, while calling on Cardinal Nina with
Father Dalmazzo, Don Bosco found the cardinal's waiting room
crowded with pilgrims, among them a group of ladies and
gentlemen from Marseille who instantly recognized him and in one
voice greeted him with, "It's Don Bosco!" All rushed forward to
meet him, falling to their knees and asking for his blessing.
Astounded by this sudden welcome, Don Bosco stepped back and
excused himself, saying that no priest was allowed to give his
blessing in that place, since this was the Pope's prerogative.
However, they kept insisting on his blessing. We have to remark
that in rushing toward Don Bosco and dropping to their knees the
pilgrims had so shaken the floor that people above and in the
adjoining rooms felt the quiver. Several monsignors came
downstairs to investigate. Even the cardinal looked in and, touched
10The original is kept by the family of Mr. Ermenegildo Piccini at Pozzo di Codroipo
(Udine). [Author]
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by this singular display, told Don Bosco, "Please bless them, or
they will never rise to their feet." Don Bosco complied.
Two days before, he has asked this distinguished cardinal for a
long-delayed private audience with the Holy Father. In fact, he had
filled out an application as soon as he had arrived in Rome, and he
had orally renewed his request several days later. Since he had
received no answer, he wrote as follows:
Your Eminence:
Rome, March 22, 1880
Tor de' Specchi, 36
Those who need an exceptional favor have to appeal to some saint who
in heaven is very close to God. I, likewise, have to appeal to you. I have
been in Rome ten days now, having come, as you well know, on urgent
business of our Congregation, particularly concerning our missions in
Patagonia, for which important decisions have to be made requiring the
Holy Father's prior approval. For nine days I have sought a private
audience. Yesterday I asked the papal chamberlain for his personal help,
stating that I had brought a sizable contribution to the Peter's Pence fund.
I was told that an audience was impossible this week and hardly possible
for the next. Several times I have called on His Eminence Cardinal
[Innocent] Ferrieri and have renewed my written request, but still I see no
hope of an audience.
Since I must reply to the Argentinian government's proposal for the
evangelization of the Rio Negro area (Pampas and Patagonia), I presume
to appeal to Your Eminence, as our cherished patron and benefactor, and
ask that you personally recommend us to the Holy Father.
Should this, however, inconvenience him, or should he not see fit to
receive me in audience for any reason, I accept and defer to his decision. I
shall call momentarily upon you for your answer.
Deeply grateful, I am honored to be,
Yours devotedly,
Fr. John Bosco
Don Bosco tried unsuccessfully at least seven times during his
stay in Rome to obtain an audience with Cardinal Ferrieri, prefect
of the Sacred Congregation of Bishops and Regulars. On his last
attempt, as he was talking with the cardinal's chamberlain and
asking when he might see him, the chamberlain kept giving evasive
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
replies, citing His Eminence's multiple commitments. Just then the
cardinal's secretary came out of the room. Don Bosco turned to
him and, with a slight break in his unalterable calm, asked, "Are
not the heads of congregations appointed to expedite Church
matters? Where and when do they do so?" The secretary shrugged
his shoulders.
Don Bosco always had a number of things to discuss with the
prefect of Bishops and Regulars, but Cardinal Ferrieri's mind had
been poisoned against him by the sinister prejudices which were
ever more deeply being rooted in him by the endless barrage of
accusations hurled against Don Bosco from Turin. The persistent
portrayal of Don Bosco as some kind of headstrong rebel set
against diocesan authority and as a systematic violator of Church
laws would have antagonized even a prefect of a Roman Con-
gregation who did not have, as Cardinal F errieri did, a close rapport
with Turin's archbishop, and it would have put him on guard to
safeguard the bishop's jurisdictional rights and the Church's
laws. To a mind thus predisposed, Don Bosco's steadfast defense
of his Congregation's honor and its interests against charges and
prejudicial actions could easily give a false impression of his real
attitude. Nothing can better help us to understand the painfulness of
Don Bosco's situation in this regard or to better appreciate the
hurts he was later forced to endure on this account than the first
audience between Cardinal Ferrieri and Father Dalmazzo, the
Congregation's procurator general, who recorded it in a letter to
Father Rua. 11 We quote it in full, just as Father Dalmazzo himself
reported it to Father Lemoyne. Lest we misjudge the cardinal we
must first sketch the profile of the man in the words of Soderini: 12
"His Eminence was a man of sharp acumen and learning; his
manner was both raw and severe, perhaps quite too caustic."
On his very first visit to the cardinal Father Dalmazzo was told
he was not in. He returned a second and a third time, again to be
told that His Eminence could not receive him. He then asked the
secretary to inform the cardinal that he, Father Dalmazzo, urgently
needed to confer with him, and would he graciously set a date and
time for an audience sometime within the month? He was told to
11see p. 301. [Editor]
12Eduardo Soderini, II Pontijicato di Leone XIII [The Pontificate of Leo XIII], Vol. I,
p. 225, Mondadori, Milan, 1951. [Author]
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return at nine on the following Saturday morning.
Father Dalmazzo kept the appointment punctually. After some
delay-the cardinal was just rising at that hour-he was shown into
the study. His Eminence, simply dressed in a priest's cassock,
almost cowered Father Dalmazzo by his look, even though the
latter was by no means timid, being a man of imposing stature and
appearance.
"What do you want from me?" the cardinal brusquely asked.
"Don Bosco has sent me from Turin in his name," Father
Dalmazzo replied, "to offer Your Eminence his respects and to
request that you kindly inform him of the observations that have
been made on the Salesian Society and things it must correct. Don
Bosco's only desire is to be in all things and in every way obedient
to his superiors' wishes."
"Don Bosco!" retorted the cardinal. "Don Bosco is a liar! Don
Bosco is an impostor! Don Bosco is an overbearing man who is
trying to force himself upon the Sacred Congregation [of Bishops
and Regulars]!"
"With all due respect, Your Eminence, Don Bosco has never
meant to force himself upon your Sacred Congregation. If he must
repeatedly appeal to it, it is only because the archbishop of Turin
leaves him no other choice."
"That one too is a fine specimen, heaping trouble upon trouble
for us! Anyway, what can Don Bosco expect? He is a man neither
of learning nor of holiness. He would have done far better if he had
restricted himself to directing a festive oratory rather than insisted
upon founding a Congregation."
"You must forgive me, Your Eminence, but we who know him
have quite a different opinion of him. And we are two hundred
priests!"
"You would all do better if you were to leave him, return to your
different dioceses, and ask your bishops for an assignment. Don
Bosco is not the kind of man to found a Congregation."
"With all respect, do you believe we are all so foolish as to place
ourselves under Don Bosco's guidance without really knowing the
man? Be assured, Your Eminence, that we respect and love him
and are offended to hear him abused and see his work held in
contempt."
"I meant no offense," replied the cardinal in a more courteous
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
manner. "I merely say that Don Bosco should not have dared to try
to found a Congregation. But, apart from that, what are you here
for?"
"I am staying at Tor de' Specchi and am at your service should
Your Eminence have any directives for me."
"Very well."
"I am prepared to provide any explanation whenever you wish."
"We shall see."
"In all things Don Bosco is anxious to obey the instructions of
the Sacred Congregation [of Bishops and Regulars]."
"That remains to be seen," said the cardinal as he dismissed his
visitor, courteously accompanying him to the door.
His severity toward Don Bosco never slackened. Certainly,
being one who cherished peace so dearly that he would have
undergone any sacrifice consonant with his conscience to be at
peace with all, Don Bosco must have felt it the most painful of
experiences to find himself rejected by such a high authority.
However, as history teaches us, these are the crosses visited in
varying degrees upon all great religious founders in God's
inscrutable designs. Their humble, kindly, and dauntless response
under such painful and trying circumstances is the most eloquent
witness of their holiness.
Father Berte's diary continues:
March 23: This evening Don Bosco calls on Cardinal [Bartholomew]
D'Avanzo. March 24: This morning Don Bosco visits the cardinal
secretary of state. March 25, Maundy Thursday: Lunch with Bishop
Kirby, director of the Irish seminary. Visit to the Church of the Sacred
Heart of Jesus, which is to be built in Rome's new Macao district. March
27, Holy Saturday: Visit to the Church of Sant' Andrea delle Pratte; later
to Cardinal [John] Simeoni at the Propaganda Fide. Easter Sunday,
March 28: Fathers Gatti and Menghini called on Don Bosco. Then Don
Bosco and Father Dalmazzo called on the cardinal vicar, who definitively
entrusted the Salesians with the commission to build the new Church of
the Sacred Heart of Jesus with an adjoining hospice as a memorial to the
revered memory of Pius IX.
The diary omits Good Friday, March 26. The parish files of St.
Joseph's Church in Marseille contain a letter addressed to Canon
Guiol and dictated by Don Bosco on that day, which bears only his
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signature. It shows Don Bosco's anxious concern that the harmony
existing between the Salesian house and the parish be not
disrupted. The fear which he voices about the government's
repressive measures we will explain later when speaking of the law
promulgated in March against religious congregations.
Rome, March 26, 1880
Tor de' Specchi, 36
My dear Father:
Your gracious letters are ample proof of the kindly solicitude which you
show to St. Leo's Festive Oratory. I can only thank you and pray God to
continue, in His holy grace, to help us complete what we have begun
solely for His glory and for the welfare of souls.
Please thank Monsieur Jules Rostand for the most recent act of charity
of which he told me. As soon as his friend from Paris gets to Rome, I shall
not fail to show him all the regard he deserves and do all I can to promote
his excellent plan for the agricultural school, as he desires.
I have not yet managed to obtain an audience with the Holy Father,
both because of the flood of requests being made and because of His
Holiness' illness. But I trust that I shall soon get to see him. Therefore,
please send me the full names and positions of the chairpersons of our
charity committees, because I hope I can obtain spiritual favors for them
and for all the committee members.
Father Bologna writes that he is very happy with St. Leo's Festive
Oratory and the excellent relations it enjoys with the city and particularly
with St. Joseph's Parish. I trust that the Lord will keep us one in that spirit
of charity which is indispensable ifwe are to continue our holy ministry for
the benefit of the people. Father Bologna has also told me of the successes
achieved by the committee which you zealously set up. Blessed be the
Lord.
We are apprehensive that when a survey is taken-or, better, when a
directory of religious institutes in France is compiled-a questionnaire
may also be sent to the Beaujour Society. Should that happen, please
advise Father Bologna to list as its director Taulaigo, who is French, and
Father Brogly, also French, as its administrator. As for the school, ask
him to list only the choir school, which is run under your direction, and
you will submit the teachers' qualifications, as required. This is a
precaution, because, as you know, "anticipated blows hurt less."
At your earliest convenience .please reassure the committees of my
heartfelt thanks. Tell them I shall not fail to remember them to God at my
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
daily Mass. May the Lord preserve you in good health. Pray for me.
Always with sincere love in Jesus Christ,
Yours affectionately,
Fr. John Bosco
P.S. I am using the services ofmy secretary only because it is late and I
have trouble writing at night.
Since there was not the slightest hope of an early audience with
the Pope, Don Bosco left Rome for Naples on Easter Monday. He
certainly did not take the trip to relax or to enjoy the beauty of the
countryside and the Neapolitan shore. Once, when Father Barberis
was Don Bosco's companion in Marseille-so the apostolic
process records-he tried to get Don Bosco to relax by taking him
to see some religious monuments, but Don Bosco replied, "We are
here for another much more important reason." Don Bosco never
lost time or spent money on pleasure trips that are occasionally
passed off as "educational trips." We think he went to Naples to
discuss opening a house there. In fact, L 'Osservatore Romano on
April 9 [1880] referred to the fact that "Don Bosco had had to go to
Naples in connection with the foundation of an agricultural school
as well as a hospice for homeless boys to be trained in some art or
craft." This article was certainly authorized, and perhaps even
provided by the Salesian procurator. Then too, in a letter to Father
Rua, dated April 8, the secretary wrote: "I ought to tell you about
the trip to Naples, too; Don Bosco has arranged something with the
person you know." These remarks entitle us to believe that the
person with whom he had conferred may have been Marchioness
[Carmela] Gargallo, and that the planned foundation concerned
Syracuse, as we shall narrate in Volume XV.
The details of the journey are described in Father Berto's diary at
greater length than usual:
March 29: Don Bosco and I entrained for Naples at 8:30 this morning
and arrived there about 3:40 in the afternoon. We took a coach directly to
our lodgings at the home of Father Fortunato Neri, chaplain of the small
hospital near St. Joseph's Church. After dinner we called on Marchioness
Carmela Gargallo, Via Santa Lucia 64, third floor. From there we saw the
magnificence and splendor of Naples' harbor and bay. On the morning of
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March 30, toward 10:30, Canon Pacilio came to escort Don Bosco to
several schools, then to the Church of Our Lady of the Annunciation, and
finally to the convent of the Sisters of Charity, where the archbishop of
Naples was serving dinner to four hundred of the poorest in town. As Don
Bosco arrived, he was greeted by Father Ludovico13 of Casoria [near
Naples]. Then we were led into a quadrilateral courtyard enclosing a
garden and lined with porticoes, where two rows of tables were set up.
Here Don Bosco spoke on and off with Father Ludovico. Shortly
afterward the archbishop arrived, and Don Bosco paid his respects. He
was then introduced to Commendatore Giusso, a good Catholic and
mayor of Naples. It was edifying to see the archbishop don an apron, pour
the wine, and serve the food. Bishop Anthony Izzo of Isernia and Venafro
was also there serving the poor. Toward 2: 30 in the afternoon Father
Ludovico called on Don Bosco. Then we went again to Marchioness
Gargallo and from there to the railway station. Since the train had already
left, Don Bosco took a coach and called on the Salesian Sisters, also
known as the Visitation Nuns,14 at the Convent of Peace, where we stayed
from about 3:30 to 6:30. They served us supper, after which the
doorkeeper accompanied us to the train. We rode through the night from
9:05 and reached Rome at 6:30 the following morning. We celebrated
Holy Mass in the convent of the Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament in Via
Viminale and then walked to Trajan's Forum and home.
A letter to Father Rua from Rome on April 8 by Father Berto
contains more details. While serving dinner to the poor of Naples,
Archbishop Sanfelice kept Don Bosco at his right and Father
Ludovico of Casoria, named "the Don Bosco of Naples," on his
left. Don Bosco also had the opportunity to converse "with some of
Naples' leading citizens, generous-hearted men, who expressed
their delight at seeing him in Naples that day, regretting only that
his stay was so short.'' Father Lemoyne writes that Don Bosco also
met with the Church historian, Bishop Salzano, a Dominican,
titular bishop of Edessa, who never forgot that meeting. Another
young priest was present who kept watching him with vivid interest;
he too treasured the memory of that day with fondness. He was
Monsignor Salvatore Meo, later vicar general of Naples and titular
13Ludovico is the religious name taken by Father Arcangelo Parmentiere (1814-1885),
founder of the "Frati della Carita (Fathers of Charity) or "Frati Bigi." [Editor]
14Founded in 1610 in France by St. Francis de Sales and St. Jane Frances
de Chantal. [Editor]
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bishop of Metone.15 To this prelate, who stated that he was happy
at having obtained for Don Bosco an audience with the archbishop,
we owe a tidbit of information which shows us how highly the
future cardinal [of Naples] thought of Don Bosco even then: he kept
Don Bosco's portrait hanging over the armchair in which Don
Bosco sat, and it stayed there until his death. 16 From Rome Don
Bosco sent him a Salesian cooperator diploma, for which the
worthy prelate was thankful, assuring him of his gratitude and
asking to be informed "if I can in any way help out your
undertakings."17 The number of cooperators in Naples, although
already considerable, increased remarkably with Don Bosco's
visit.
The reference to the Convent of the Visitation recalls a remark-
able episode mentioned by Salesian Father Thomas Chiappello in
the above-cited pamphlet. The present mother superior has a
perfect recollection of Don Bosco's visit and remembers how he
enjoyed the modest repast they served him in the parlor. But there
was much more to it than that. Two nuns, professed there in 1876,
were ill, one suffering from headaches, the other from internal
trouble. Both went to Don Bosco in the hope that his blessing might
heal them. As he blessed the first he told her, "Jesus wants you to
share His crown ofthorns. Nevertheless, you will do much good for
your convent." Indeed, she lived until 1920, holding important
posts, but always plagued with headaches. He blessed the second
and encouraged her in her suffering; then, speaking privately with
the superior, who died in 1881, he stated, "This sister is ready for
heaven." She died but a few months later.
Don Bosco's return to Tor de' Specchi was marred by an
unpleasant happening of the day before. On the morning of
March 31 Father Dalmazzo was awakened by an acrid smell of
smoke. Stepping out into the hall, he saw smoke issuing from
Father Berta's bedroom. As he pushed the door open, he observed
15Tommaso Chiappello, II Beato Don Giovanni Bosco nella Visione e nelle Previsioni di
Quarant' anni Fa [Blessed John Bosco in the Reality and Expectations of Forty Years Ago],
Federico and Ardia Publishers, Naples, 1929, p. 86. [Author]
16Letter from Monsignor Meo to the new rector major, Father Peter Ricaldone, Naples,
June 19, 1932. [Author]
17Letter to Don Bosco, Naples, April 16, 1880. [Author]
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live embers glittering through a thick swirl of smoke just over a
large suitcase lying on the floor by the bed, while a tongue of fire
darted at the foot of the bed. He immediately snatched up the
suitcase, stamping out the flames, and gave the alarm. The
neighbors hastened over and the firemen rushed to the scene,
extinguishing the fire before it could spread. When all was over,
Father Dalmazzo checked the suitcase and found that the lock had
been tom out. An inner pocket still held a small box which he knew
to have contained a sum of money; it was undamaged, but empty.
Obviously the thief had set fire to the suitcase, hoping that it would
be reduced to ashes and leave no traces, but the fire had spread
slowly, without flames, and reached the blanket and straw mattress
of the bed, which burst into flame when the door was opened. Six
thousand francs in six French bank notes were gone, five thousand
the gift of Madame Noilly-Prat; the remaining one thousand had
been given by the baron ofMonremy, who had asked Don Bosco to
present it as Peter's Pence to the Pope. The thief must have
suspected that the money was there, since days before Father
Dalmazzo had tried unsuccessfully to cash the bank notes; the
burglar must also have known where it had been hidden. That
meant he could not be far off. When the theft was reported, the
police carried out a search twice, checking the premises minutely,
questioning a cleric, the cook, and Father Dalmazzo himself. The
police report, reconstructing the crime, concluded that the thief had
started the fire as a cover-up and that the theft was an inside job or
made to look like one. Fortunately the matter ended there, for who
knows what the investigation might have dug up? On April 3, La
Capitale published a news item, inflating it with lies and quips
worthy only of the party it spoke for. L 'Osservatore Romano gave
an objective report on April 9. On April 8, Father Berto wrote to
Father Rua, "I was furious, but Don Bosco listened very calmly to
the shocking news without batting an eyelash, without change of
expression, with truly wonderful aplomb-not a word of blame or
impatience came from his lips. I observed in him a man who
docilely accepts both happy and distressing events, and I felt
greater admiration for him on this occasion than I might have felt in
witnessing his glory at Marseille."
There is no doubt that this unfortunate occurrence grieved Don
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
Bosco,18 but his habitual submission to God's will, even in
unexpected and bitter reversals, would not let anything upset his
calm. Rather, as though nothing had happened, he kept going about
his work. He wrote two petitions to the Holy See for favors. The
first was quite original:
Humbly prostrate at the feet of Your Holiness, Father John Bosco begs
to inform you that Countess [Charlotte] Callori, a wealthy, devout
Catholic lady, would like to donate a generous sum for the construction of
the Church of St. John the Evangelist, now being built in Turin close to the
Protestant church and school. However, for her own and her family's
spiritual gratification she asks that the sum to be donated be filled in by the
venerable hand of Your Holiness. Prostrate at the feet of Your Holiness,
the Reverend John Bosco humbly implores this favor.
The countess, who was subject to scruples of conscience, might
have been tom between her desire to make a generous offer and her
fear that by offering too great a sum she might be hurting her own
family. This seemed to be a reassuring way out. The Pope agreed to
her request, but we do not know the sum specified.
Don Bosco's second petition requested a plenary indulgence to
be gained on a number of feasts by all the faithful, and by the boys
boarding in Salesian houses on the occasion of the Exercise for a
Happy Death. He also asked that these favors, already granted in
part and for a time by Leo XIII, be extended in perpetuity. His aim
was to encourage and spread the practice of frequent Communion.
We do not have the wording of the reply.
Two further diary entries: "April 3: Today Senator [John]
Agnelli19 and another gentleman came to comfort Don Bosco, who
was exorcising a possessed woman. April 4, Sunday in Albis: Don
Bosco had lunch with the Sigismondis. Marquis August of Bavaria
called on Don Bosco again. He is a colonel in the Noble Guards of
His Holiness and brought a note stating that he had spoken with the
1sFather Berto writes: "After returning from Naples and hearing again about the theft of
six thousand lire, Don Bosco and the rest of us went to bed much distressed. At about three
or four in the morning of April 2, I woke up in a great fright at hearing Don Bosco screaming.
I made some noise, in the belief that there were thieves. Don Bosco was dreaming." [Author]
19Founder of the giant Fiat Company in Turin (Fabbrica ltaliana Automobili Torino).
[Editor]
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prelate handling the audiences, and he hoped that he could obtain
one for Don Bosco very shortly. Moments later he came back and
showed me a note from Monsignor [Gabriel] Boccali, informing
him that the Pope was not ·predisposed against Don Bosco, and
would issue instructions for an audience." From this we infer that
Don Bosco, fearing that he had fallen out of the Pope's favor, had
sounded out the Pope's private chamberlain, a friend of his.
The possessed woman had been brought to Don Bosco from
somewhere outside Rome; the exorcism was done in private. When
he blessed her and invoked upon her the names of Jesus and of
Mary, Help of Christians, the devil all but choked his victim. Don
Bosco ordered the evil spirit in Latin to disclose his name. The
answer was Petrus. Although that poor woman was an ordinary
peasant, she spoke even English in her diabolic seizures. The spirit
was abjured in God's name to say how long he had possessed that
woman. "Two to three years!" he answered.
"Why are you here?"
"I am Santa's guardian." (Santa was the woman's name.)
"Where were you before that?"
"Floating around. You won't have an easy time in chasing me
out of her."
"Why won't you leave her? Don't you realize that you are adding
to your own sufferings and sinking deeper into evil?"
"I love evil."
The demon then made it known that only a solemn exorcism
would drive it out. Since the cardinal vicar's express permission
was necessary and he was away until April 21, the petition was
sent to Archbishop [Julius] Lenti, his vicar, and nothing more was
heard about it. Nevertheless, some good did come of it, for when
the man who accompanied Senator Agnelli heard the replies and
saw the antics of the possessed woman, he admitted, "I had never
believed in the devil, but now I do."
April 5 was a most comforting day. Once he had been assured
that the Pope had no ill feeling toward him, Don Bosco had sent
him a personal letter. This put an end to any delay, for early that
day a messenger.brought Don Bosco a note informing him that the
Holy Father would graciously receive him in private audience that
very evening at 6:45. He immediately drew up his usual memo of
matters to discuss.
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
Audience with the Holy Father
April 5, 1880
1. Money stolen.
2. Affairs in France.
3. Patagonia, apostolic prefecture, apostolic vicariate, government
proposal, seminary for the foreign missions.
4. Business with the [Congregation of] Bishops and Regulars,
suspended faculties, inaccessibility of the cardinal prefect, papal blessing
for cooperators, benefactors, boys.
5. Monthly audience of one minute only when called for by business,
procurator and secretary.
The monthly audience he was requesting was meant for the
procurator general, whom he was introducing to the Holy Father
that evening with his secretary. In a later chapter we shall recount
what he and the Pope discussed concerning the missions. What he
told the Holy Father about France we find in a letter from Don
Bosco to Canon Guiol in this chapter. As for the matters pending
before the Sacred Congregation of Bishops and Regulars, he
needed to find out what his standing was, but when he went to the
secretariat that very morning, he was told that Cardinal F errieri
had reserved everything to himself.
Don Bosco had scheduled his third conference to the Salesian
cooperators at four that afternoon, and he held it in the chapel of
the Oblates at Tor de' Specchi, honored by the presence of three
cardinals: Nina, Sbarretti, and Alimonda. Father Dalmazzo first
read a chapter from a biography of St. Francis de Sales; then a few
nuns sang a motet which prepared the audience for Don Bosco's
message. In a thirty-minute talk he told them of the achievements
accomplished by the cooperators' charity, stressing particularly
measures taken to counteract Protestant propaganda. He then
passed on to the development of Salesian work in South America,
dwelling in particular on Patagonia and the futile efforts made over
the past three centuries to convert that land. He told them of his
well-founded hopes that his sons would soon find a way to reach the
savages and have them reborn in Jesus Christ.20
Don Bosco was followed by Cardinal Alimonda, who thrilled his
20we are omitting the outline of his talk. [Editor]
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audience with his unique eloquence, a blend of deep thought,
historic anecdotes, and learned allusions, all enlivened by vivid
imagery and current language. His text was taken from St. Paul:
"We are God's helpers." He opened by expressing his joy at being
among so many who had never trod the path of Cain nor bent the
knee to Baal-an allusion to the aberrations among Roman
followers of the new regime. He was proud, he said, of being a
Salesian cooperator. Then he went on to speak of everyone's duty
to cooperate with God for the good of souls and their salvation,
pointing out where they could focus their energy: themselves,
abandoned children, priestly vocations, missions. He cited the
means available to them, such as the sacraments, good reading,
Christian instruction, almsgiving and prayer. The meeting was
closed with another motet and Benediction of the Blessed
Sacrament imparted by the cardinal secretary of state. When all
was over, the cooperators went up to Don Bosco to greet him
personally before leaving.
Time was now running short. He rushed home, took his
ecclesiastical cloak, and with his procurator general and secretary
hurried to the Vatican. They got there at exactly 6:45, only to be
kept waiting until 7:30, when Monsignor Boccali, then on duty,
ushered Don Bosco into the Pope's presence. The audience had
been going on for about half an hour when Cardinal [Henry
Edward] Manning, who had arrived that day from England, was
introduced into the antechamber where Don Bosco's procurator
general and secretary were waiting. Since cardinals are not kept
waiting, Monsignor Boccali immediately announced his presence
to the Pope and ushered him in. Promptly Don Bosco tried to
withdraw, but the Pope took hold of his hand and said, "Stay."
Monsignor Boccali, instead, kept tugging at his cassock and
whispering, "Don Bosco, wait outside," but the Pope kept a firm
grip on his hand. It was a strange scene. The Holy Father then
scheduled the cardinal for another day and resumed his conversation
with Don Bosco. When we stop to think that Leo XIII was a
stickler for protocol, we can infer that he was uniquely honoring
Don Bosco at that moment. The conversation must indeed have
been quite interesting too. At this time we shall only report
whatever Don Bosco's two companions heard from him and
mentioned in their letters-which is not much-rounding it out
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
from Father Lemoyne's recollections. However, we will never
know everything of the interview because in certain matters Don
Bosco kept an impenetrable reserve.
He told the Pope about the theft of the six thousand lire.
"Why did you not deliver the money to me at once?" the Pope
asked.
"Your Holiness, twenty days ago I applied for an audience and
renewed my request three or four times before my trip to Naples.
Monsignor Macchi just told me it was impossible and kept
postponing it from week to week."
"I am very sorry to hear that," the Pope remarked. "Monsignor
Macchi never said a word of it to me. You could at least have told
one of my chamberlains."
"I did," Don Bosco replied.
"I surely would have received you," the Pope went on. "Every
day I give audiences to people who have nothing particular to say,
who come only to ask how I am, pay their respects, and take up my
time. You may be sure I would certainly receive the founder and
superior of a Congregation who had come from a distance to see
me. Trust me, I hold nothing against you or your Congregation.
Rather, I am grateful for what you are doing for the Church. But
why did you not tell Monsignor Macchi that you had money for
me?"
''I did."
"You might have told Cardinal Nina."
"I told him, too."
"And what did he say?"
"He said all he could do for me was to put in a good word with
Monsignor Macchi.''
''As soon as I received your letter, I asked Monsignor Macchi
why he had not granted you an audience," the Holy Father
explained. "He replied that you had told him you were going to
Naples."
''Just because of that, I promptly requested an audience several
times. I was anxious to deliver the money because it was worrying
me."
"I am truly displeased and disappointed that they kept me in the
dark. In the future do this: come to a public audience, and when I
see you there, I will set up a private audience for you myself."
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Then they spoke of privileges, the Pope saying that as a rule he
was opposed to privileges for religious. Don Bosco quipped
facetiously, "But then religious could not exist! Besides, privileges
are a token of good will which the Church is free to grant and
withdraw as it sees fit."
"What is your request?"
"I am asking for two or three privileges which all other religious
orders enjoy, and these only for a renewal or a confirmation."
"Fine!" the Pope replied. "If that is all you wish, see Cardinal
Alimonda about it and it will be taken care of. So too for the
missions; see Cardinal Alimonda and Archbishop Jacobini."
"I would also ask you to confer the title of Monsignor on Father
[Peter] Ceccarelli, parish priest of San Nicolas de los Arroyos in
Argentina.''
"Yes, of course," the Pope replied.
"And I also ask you the same favor for Father [Mario] Migone,
who gave us the land for the Church of Mary, Help of Christians at
Vallecrosia." The Pope agreed.
"I have a procurator general here in Rome," Don Bosco went on.
"I beg Your Holiness to let him see you once or twice a month to
keep you informed or to at least pay his respects in the company of
Cardinal Alimonda."
"Yes, tell him he may come," the Pope replied.
The audience lasted forty minutes. Father Dalmazzo and Father
Berto were then introduced to the Pope, who greeted them very
graciously. Besides objects to be blessed, they brought a set of
Father Durando's Latin dictionaries, which Don Bosco presented
to the Pope, telling him that they were the work of a Salesian
teacher who had carefully expurgated them of words improper for
youngsters. The Pope bade him put them on his desk. He finally
dismissed them with a blessing, saying:
I bless you, your relatives, your Congregation, your sick confreres, and,
above all, your pupils and your missionaries. May your numbers increase!
May you all work for the goals of your Congregation, which was inspired
by God to your founder and which has already experienced a marvelous
growth. May you work constantly for God's glory and the welfare of the
Church. May you be ready to sacrifice anything, even your life, for the
Church, and may you always uphold God's glory and interests, as well as
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
the welfare of souls, with fortitude, strength, and perseverance in God's
service and in the vocation to which you have been called.
"As you see," Father Berto told Father Rua in the letter we have
mentioned,21 "the Pope's blessing was a truly magnificent encour-
agement and comfort. His voice was so gentle, cordial and warm,
that we, at seeing so much love and benevolence for our dear
father and our Congregation, felt truly ecstatic. In those precious,
priceless moments we felt that we were once more beholding our
beloved Pius IX living again in the person of Leo XIII."
Under the Pope's instructions Don Bosco drafted two formal
petitions to the secretary of state requesting honorific papal titles
for Father Ceccarelli and Father Migone.22 He also renewed his
request for a similar title for Canon Guiol, to whom most
solicitously he wrote the following letter, which contains further
details about the audience.
Dearest Father:
Rome, April 6, 1880
I have just returned from an audience with the Holy Father and have
many things to tell you. Just now let me say that the Holy Father listened
with great interest to what I told him of the generosity and zeal of
Marseille's people and of the committees set up to provide for the needs of
our boys. He was touched and sends his particular blessing to all the
committee members, promising to send them a word in writing soon.
Had you been present, my dear father, to hear the Holy Father's warm
praise of the Salesians and their pupils, and the lofty terms in which he
spoke of the cooperators, you would have been most wonderfully
consoled. However, it was when he spoke of St. Leo's Festive Oratory, of
what it has done and hopes to do, of the zeal and generosity of its
benefactors, of the kindness of the bishop and the Beaujour Society, that
both the Holy Father and I were deeply moved. After a lengthy talk he
concluded, "This is the real way to assist the Church and to improve the
well-being of the common people afflicted by so many evils."
I will tell you the rest in a later letter or publish it in the Bulletin
Salesien.
Take heart, my ever beloved father. True, we have work to do and the
devil tries to block us by his lies, but we are unafraid, for God is with us
21see p. 350. [Editor]
22omitted in this edition. [Editor]
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and His help shall never fail us.
Sincerest greetings to our most cherished benefactors, the members of
the Beaujour Society, Father Mendre and the ladies of our committees.
Now, here is a thought of mine: might we not form a third committee
with Mademoiselle Gabrielle Arman and other young ladies who have
shown such interest in our work?
When you can, speak to Father Bologna and tell him in confidence that
the Holy Father does not wish us to submit a copy of our Salesian rules to
the government, should it request them. In case it does, he should
promptly write me a full account.
Perhaps I shall shortly have something to tell you about an idea of the
Holy Father which will astonish both of us. Let us pray! God will guide us.
May the grace of Our Lord Jesus Christ be with us always. Pray for me.
Always, with all my heart,
Yours most affectionately,
Fr. John Bosco
"An idea of the Holy Father" alluded to a plan about which he
was shortly to write again from Turin. "A word in writing,"
mentioned at the beginning of this letter, dealt with a spiritual favor.
As Don Bosco took leave of the Pope's private chamberlain,
Monsignor Boccali, he gave the monsignor four papal blessings
with a plenary indulgence for each of the chairmen of the four
committees who were collecting funds for St. Leo's Oratory and St.
Pierre's Hospice [in Nice]. He also asked the chamberlain to have
the Holy Father sign them and then to pass them on to Cardinal
Alimonda. It took some time for the papers to go through, but the
papal blessings finally arrived. In fact, after repeated inquiries,
Monsignor [Seraphim] Cretoni, acting deputy of the secretary of
state, wrote him in Cardinal Nina's name on August 30:
The Holy Father has received your requests of April 20, and is deeply
pleased to learn of the support being given to the Salesians in Marseille.
His Holiness wishes to encourage the members of the various committees
with a spiritual favor over and above the blessing which he imparts to them
from his heart. He therefore grants to all members of the aforesaid
committees a plenary indulgence to be gained at the hour of death under
the customary conditions. I am happy to inform you of this and trust that
you will forward this reply to the parish priest of St. Joseph's Church in
Marseille for the information of those concerned.
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
We have another document which tells us more about the little
treasure of news regarding the audience of April 5. It is a draft
written personally by Don Bosco for Father Dalmazzo, probably
for his information and guidance. It contains several ideas which he
intended to submit to the Holy Father.
URGENT MATTERS IN WHICH ONLY
THE VICAR OF JESUS CHRIST CAN TAKE ACTION
For the Young
Catechism classes for children at least on Sundays and holy days.
Generally, few villages and very few cities offer catechetical instruction
for all; still less is offered to poor, homeless children. Very little is done to
attract them and to hear their confessions.
For the Clergy
Greater zeal is needed in giving adult education to the faithful according
to the norms set by the Catechism for Parish Priests, published by order
of the Sacred Council of Trent. Apart from the towns of northern Italy, it
is rare to find a parish where this instruction is given.
More care and greater charity in hearing confessions. Most priests
never administer this sacrament, and the rest, if ever, hear confessions
only at the Easter season.
For Priestly Vocations
Priestly vocations are dropping at an alarming rate. The few vocations
we have are dangerously exposed to being lost during the mandatory
military service.
A highly effective way to encourage and develop vocations to the
priesthood is the Sons of Mary Program under the auspices of Mary, Help
of Christians, commended and enriched with indulgences by Pope Pius
IX. Its purpose is to bring together willing young men who have the
necessary qualifications.
It must be noted that of every hundred boys who begin their studies for
the priesthood, no more than six or seven reach the goal. On the other
hand, it has been observed that of one hundred adults approximately
ninety-three persevere to ordination.
Religious Orders
Religious orders are passing through a frightening crisis. Two things
must be done: provide housing for disbanded religious and insist that they
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live in community and resume their respective novitiates.
Let contemplative religious zealously reach out to teach catechism to
children and adults and to hear confessions.
The Holy See should generously aid, counsel, support, and guide the
new religious congregations so that they may fulfill their purpose and
contribute this help to the growing needs of Holy Church assaulted and
embattled in such diverse ways.
In his lengthy audience with the Holy Father, Don Bosco did not
forget his most distinguished benefactors, his schools, and those
who most befriended them. In the next few days his secretary was
burdened with work. He wrote in Don Bosco's name to all the most
important benefactors to tell them of the plenary indulgence the
Holy Father was granting them. He also sent letters to all the
Salesian directors, informing them of the Pope's special blessing to
them and their pupils and asking them to notify all their benefactors
by means of a form letter, a copy of which he was enclosing for
their use. Though we do not have the original of this letter, we have
a copy sent to Father [Charles] Cays, director of the house at
Challonges. The style is typically Don Bosco's.
Dear Sir (or Madam):
Name of City
I hasten to inform you that our superior, Father John Bosco, had the
signal honor of a private audience with His Holiness Leo XIII the evening
of April 5.
On that memorable occasion, the Holy Father graciously deigned to
grant his apostolic blessing on all of our benefactors and on the Salesian
cooperators, most particularly you and your whole family, for whom he
implores God's abundant spiritual and temporal graces.
It is my pleasure to inform you of the Holy Father's benevolence. Our
boys join me in praying that God will preserve your good health, while I
am personally happy to be,
Yours devotedly,
Fr._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __
(Name of Director)
Here it is only proper that we give some space to Father
[Joachim] Berto who, as Don Bosco's secretary, untiringly day and
night waited upon him. It is not surprising to find an entry in Father
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
Berta's diary of 1880 stating how our gentle father, always so
thankful for every tiny service and favor, asked him, "Father Berto,
how can I thank you for all you do for me, for your kind attentions
to poor Don Bosco?"
"I am more than repaid," Father Berto replied, "by my pleasure
in serving you as best I can. I am only sorry that I cannot do as
much as you deserve and as I would like to do."
"Well, then, I want you to know that Don Bosco looks upon you
as the apple of his eye. When I, hopefully, get to paradise, if the
Lord allows me a little free space at my side, I shall keep it reserved
for you."
We now take another glance at the diary:
April 6: Don Bosco has dinner with Cardinal Alimonda. April 7: He
goes to Archbishop Jacobini's office to discuss our missions. The cleric
Zoia, an alumnus of ours, and a French seminarian who also is a
Bamabite, paid a visit to Don Bosco; so did Canon Colombi, Father
Leonori [a Vatican attorney], and a certain Eliseus Ambrosi, an official
of the postal service, who sought news of his brother, Natalino Ambrosi.
During the night ofApril 6 Don Bosco again cried out in his sleep.23 Upon
being asked about it the following morning, he told me that he had had a
horrible dream. April 8, Thursday: Don Bosco went to the secretariat of
state on mission business. April 9, Friday: Don Bosco had dinner with
Mr. [Joseph] Colonna24 and with Father Omodei Zorini who lodges there.
April 10: Today Don Bosco and Father Dalmazzo went to Archbishop
Jacobini's to discuss our missions. April 11, Sunday: Don Bosco stayed
indoors practically the whole day; Mr. [John Baptist] Conti was his only
visitor. April 12: Archbishop [Peter] Rota came to see Don Bosco and
invite him to dinner on Wednesday. April 13: Today Don Bosco dined
with Mr. Conti and in the evening went to visit Cardinal Alimonda. April
14: Don Bosco called on Archbishop Rota and in the evening again went
to see Cardinal Alimonda. Toward 5 o'clock, Cardinal [Anthony] De
Luca came to Tor de' Specchi to inquire if Don Bosco were at home;
regretfully we had to tell him he was out. April 15: Don Bosco called on
Cardinal De Luca and Archbishop Agnozzi. Later the four of us-Don
Bosco, Father Dalmazzo, Zucchini and I-lunched with Bishop Kirby at
the Irish seminary. At midday I took the papers about a vicariate in
Patagonia to Cardinal Alimonda, who said to me, "You are really blessed
2asee footnote 18 on p. 354. [Editor]
24He was the son of Stephen, deceased, of whom mention has been made in previous
volumes. He too was a Vatican expediter. [Author]
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to live with a man who is indeed a saint." April 16: Don Bosco walked to
the post office. April 17: Don Bosco went to the chancery. Father
Gregory Francis Palmieri came to dine with us. April 18, Sunday: In the
evening Don Bosco went to the cardinal vicar to give him a memorandum
for the Holy Father concerning the construction of the Church of the
Sacred Heart in Rome.
The cleric Zoia, an alumnus of our Valsalice College, spent
almost an hour with Don Bosco discussing various systems of
education, especially the one followed by the Barnabite Fathers.
Today [1933], as an outstanding member of his congregation, he
recalls that when their talk turned to administrative matters
particularly in technical and trade schools, he facetiously
remarked, ''I'll nominate you for secretary of the treasury the next
time the government runs into trouble. I'm sure it wouldn't take you
long to pay off the national debt."
"One should not contract debts," Don Bosco replied with a
smile. "Don Bosco is afraid of debts. Debts won't let you
sleep. . . . "
"Still, you built the Church of Mary, Help of Christians by
running up debts."
"Not really," he explained. "I began building with the few
pennies I had in my pocket, and I kept it up to the end, never
spending more than what Divine Providence kept sending me."
In fact, once the church was built, Don Bosco did not proceed to
decorate the interior; this was done after his death. This means that
he did not believe that Divine Providence was then sending him the
needed funds. It wasn't so with the Church of St. John Evangelist
[in Turin] which was magnificently decorated without delay.
We are now at about the eve of his departure [from Rome].
Before closing the chapter, we might do well to glance through the
rest of his correspondence from Rome which we have in our
possession. We will merely quote a few lines here and there from
the first two letters in chronological order, omitting business
matters. He wrote to Father Ronchail, director at Nice, on April 9
and considered six points, the last dealing with the theft and
repeating a suggestion he had already given to him: "Try to call on
Baron de Monremy and tell him that the Holy Father was quite
downhearted over [the theft], that he thanks him with all his
heart and sends a special blessing to him and to Madame Menier,
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
praying God to keep them both in good health. Should he in the
future have another offering for the Holy Father, ask him please to
use my services, so that I may make up for the embarrassment the
theft cost us. I hope very soon to write to this loyal friend and
benefactor of ours.
"Make sure that duties are properly parceled out and that our
rules are observed from sunrise to sunset. 'The same rest, the same
work for all,' says Virgil in his fourth book of the Georgics."
The second letter, dated April 12, was addressed to Father Rua:
"I hope to be with you for our dear boys' spiritual retreat," it began.
"So, postpone it to any day after April 26.'' Then, after suggesting
various ways to rid oneself of the "nightmare" of debts, he went on
to say, "I am speeding up my return to Turin to help you look for
funds. Regretfully, wherever I go, my pockets are emptied out, and
so I can bring very little back to Turin." Nevertheless, we know
that just two days later, with fatherly concern, he sent Father Rua
three money orders of a thousand lire each, ''the fruits of his
labors," "a few donations collected here and there."25 He closes
thus: "Remember me very warmly to all our dear boys. Tell them
that on Sunday, feast of the Patronage of St. Joseph, I shall say
Holy Mass for them and I ask that they offer Communion for my
intention. I have many serious matters on hand. I am also hatching
a plot against Father Cagliero." This was probably an allusion to
his negotiations in setting up a vicariate in Patagonia with Father
Cagliero the presumed bishop.
He sent the third letter to Father Barberis and his novices at San
Benigno. The examinations for which he commends them were
end-of-term tests.
Dear Father Barberis:
Rome, April 16. 1880
I have sent the Holy Father's blessings to everyone, but most especially
to our dear novices. He spoke of them with evident pleasure, and I shall
tell you in person what he said when I come to San Benigno. You may
assure them that the Holy Father is very fond of us and is deeply
interested in all our work.
Tell them too that I am quite pleased with their exams, pleased with
25Letter from Father Berto to Father Rua, Rome, April 14, 1880. [Author]
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those who got good marks and with those who are determined to do better
next time.
Meanwhile, my dear children, my delight and my crown, take up, all of
you, the shield offaith, that you may be able to fight against the snares of
the devil. For Our Lord Jesus became obedient for our sake even unto
death, so that we too, through the practice of obedience and mortification,
might enter with Him and through Him into the glory of Our Heavenly
Father. Fight manfully, then, that you may all be crowned with glory.
Receive Holy Communion for my intention, and every day I shall
remember you in the Sacrifice of the Mass. May the grace of Our Lord
Jesus Christ be ever with you. Greetings!
Your friend,
Fr. John Bosco
P.S. Just so that you may know, I have written to Father Verolfo to help
us. Do not mention this to him unless he first broaches the subject.
When he felt that the widow of Mr. Fortis had gotten over her
grief sufficiently, he wrote her a personal letter, as he had written to
her son.26 Having experienced her generosity, he added to his
words of sympathy an appeal for aid in his financial need. Time and
work usually assuage even overwhelming grief, but for those who
have faith sorrow is sanctified by works of mercy.
Dear Mrs. Josephine Fortis,
Rome, April 16, 1880
I have received your letter informing me of the tragic loss of your
husband and I deeply share your grief. We have already offered prayers
for the eternal repose of his soul, and we are still praying, though we firmly
believe that Our Merciful God has already welcomed him into heaven.
I have just come from an audience with the Holy Father from whom I
asked a special blessing for you and for our dear Alphonse and Richard
that you may all enjoy good health and the grace of a happy life and a holy
death. He graciously sends his blessings.
As for our work in Turin, Father Rua has written to tell me that he is in
tight financial straits, particularly to meet expenses for our South
American missions and for feeding our poor boys. I appeal to your charity
if you possibly can help us. We have many projects on hand, and this year
we are feeling the pinch of the rise in the cost of living.
2ssee p. 343. [Editor]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
I hope to be in Turin by the end of the month and may get to see you and
your sons.
I enclose a miraculous picture of the Blessed Virgin, hoping that it may
bring blessings to your family.
Pray for me. Ever in Our Lord Jesus Christ,
Yours devotedly,
Fr. John Bosco
Since the audience with the Pope had taken place on April 5, the
"I have just come" is to be taken in a broad sense, as a timely
touch.
There is also a most charming fifth letter to an Oratory alumnus
who later became a distinguished Salesian priest, brother of the
unforgettable Father Dominic Ruffino. On graduating from the
Oratory, he ran into a series of problems, working as a tutor and
teacher in several places, until nostalgia for the days he had spent in
the shadow of the Church of Mary, Help of Christians led him back
to Don Bosco in September 1880.
My dearest James Ruffino,
Rome, April 17, 1880
Tor de' Specchi, 36
Your letter was truly a comfort to me. My love for you is always great,
and now that you tell me you wish to come back to the nest, I reminisce
about the past return, recalling the things you told me in confidence, and
other fond recollections. Should you decide to become a Salesian, all you
have to do is to return to the Oratory and say, "Here's a blackbird
returning to the nest." The rest will be the same as it was and as you have
always known it.
I do not want you to embarrass your present employers, and so if you
have to defer your journey to Turin for some time, feel free to do so,
provided that you are not being spiritually hurt.
I shall be at the Oratory at the end of this month and wait for you there,
like a father eager to welcome his son. We shall talk about everything
then.
God bless you, dearest Ruffino. Pray for me, who has always been, in
Jesus Christ,
Your affectionate friend,
Fr. John Bosco
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A sixth letter, written to the director of the house in Marseille,
shows us that Don Bosco's fatherly heart never dissociated his
concern for major community interests from detailed attention to
the needs of the individual.
Dear Father Bologna,
Rome, April 18, 1880
Since I am leaving Rome the day after tomorrow, I am enclosing a few
letters for you to put into envelopes and hand-deliver to the addressees.
As you already know, the Holy Father sends a special blessing to you,
our dear boys, all our benefactors and our confreres, including Borghi and
Bemard,27 who are doing little if they don't strive to become saints.
It is necessary for you to speak often and at ease with Father Ghione
and Father Pirro. They are both excellent individuals. You will get
whatever you wish from them if you handle them properly.
Father Rua writes to me that he is in dire need of money. I sent what I
could-less than a mere pittance! Please send him what you can. You
could have given the contractor only twenty-five thousand francs,
considering that you had already paid him six thousand. But it's all done
and over now.
It seems that the parish priest [Canon Guiol] has gotten some funds
together by now, but proceed with great patience and prudence. Offer as a
reason that Father Rua has run up a debt of fifteen thousand francs for St.
Leo's Festive Oratory. I have been writing to people, and they all promise
to send a donation.
If you write to me, address your letters to Lucca until April 25;
thereafter, write to Sampierdarena, and in May to Turin.
May God keep all of you in His holy grace! Give my special regards to
the boys and the confreres. Ask them all to pray for me. In Jesus Christ,
Yours affectionately,
Fr. John Bosco
He also wrote a heartening letter to Baron Heraud of Nice,
whose lasting cheerfulness he loved. Whenever the good baron
would meet Don Bosco, especially if they were away from Nice
and the baron was unknown, he would come up with some highly
original and zany antics which brought many a chuckle to Don
27Two lay Salesians. See Vol. XIII, p. 558. [Editor]
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THE BIOGRAPIIlCAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
Bosco and his friends. 28 As papal chamberlain he had recently
been on duty at the Vatican.
My dear Baron:
Rome, April 18, 1880
Before leaving Rome, I feel that I must drop you a line. I've been on the
run, what with business and with both devout and curious visitors, and I've
had little time to myself. However, I did manage to call on Cardinals
Bartolini, Bilio, Oreglia, and Nina, and on Monsignors Boccali, Ciccolini,
and others. They all recall your enthusiasm and cheerful wit and send you
their regards and best wishes, hoping that you will soon return to Rome.
I felt perfectly at ease during my audience with the Holy Father, and he
readily recalled your stay at the Vatican, remarking, "What a charming
man-always so cheerful! I am sure his good example of devotion and his
wQrks of charity accomplish much good. I know too that he has helped
your Congregation a great deal. Hold him very dear!"
He asked about your family. When I told him that there are just you and
your wife, and that her health is not strong, he replied, "May God grant
him peace of mind and restore his wife's health. Give him my blessing."
I thought it only fair to tell him of your work for Peter's Pence. "I
know," His Holiness said. "That is why I remember him as a very special
person."
As for myself, I had a visitor while staying in Naples who, I'm sure, felt
he was doing me a big favor by relieving me of some clothing, breaking
open trunks and suitcases, and pocketing some six thousand lire from the
Peter's Pence fund which I was taking to the Holy Father. I don't know
why, but as these "confiscators"29 were leaving, they set fire to my
secretary's room, alarming the entire neighborhood. Such is life in this sad
world of ours.
I have asked Our Blessed Lady, Mary, Help of Christians, to visit your
home with an abundance of blessings and to be the watchful protector and
guardian of your whole family and your dear ones-not of your money,
280nce, for example, at La Navarre he visited Don Bosco as the latter was having dinner
with several important guests. He managed to fool the doorkeeper and convinced him that he
was a beggar, asking him to get him a plate of soup from Don Bosco. Don Bosco of course
gladly acceded, and the baron very simply sat outside on a bench and ate. When he finished,
he walked into the dining room, went straight to Don Bosco, and said, "Thank you for the
soup. It was delicious." The formality of the moment was shattered, the guests burst into
laughter, and the baron's humorous antics endeared him even more to Don Bosco. [Author]
29"Confiscators" were government officials who either usurped or stole Church property.
This word was then very much in use among Catholic journalists. Especially in Rome, Don
Bosco's turn of the phrase was particularly apt. [Author]
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however, for that She must bring to me to build a chapel in St. Pierre's
Hospice. When you see Engineer Levrot and the Bonin brothers, please
give them my regards.
I leave Rome the day after tomorrow and will be back in Turin, God
willing, by the end of the month.
Please remember me in the kindness of your prayers. Be assured that I
am always in Our Lord Jesus Christ,
Yours most devotedly,
Fr. John Bosco
P.S. I had no time to acknowledge your letter asking me to pray for a
gentleman whose young nephew is very ill. I immediately gave word for
special prayers, Masses, and Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament in the
Church of Mary, Help of Christians in Turin. I also have prayed very
fervently for him at my daily Mass. Perhaps God has granted our request.
If His holy will has been done in some other way, I would really like to
know, for he promised a substantial donation for the chapel at the hospice.
The diary cites some last visits and records the departure:
April 19: Don Bosco called on Cardinal [Bartholomew] D'Avanzo,
who told him he would like to become a Salesian cooperator. That evening
Don Bosco again went to see Archbishop [Ludwig] J acobini and then
Cardinal [Lawrence] Nina. Father Dalmazzo and I are to dine with the
Vitelleschis. April 20: In the morning Don Bosco called on Baron Thomas
Celesia, Via S. Eustachio, and then on Cardinals [Teodolfo] Mertel and
[Thomas] Martinelli, Marchioness Cavalletti and the Vitelleschi family. I
went to say farewell to Alexander and Matilda Sigismondi and Adelaide.
Then we left for Magliano by the 6:30 train; the ticket agent, an alumnus
named Miglietta, greeted Don Bosco in Piedmontese.
Don Bosco's departure, however, did not mean that everything
had been done. Father Dalmazzo was to follow up according to
Don Bosco's instructions. Hence the following memo which Don
Bosco left for him:
Two papal decorations have been definitively approved for Baron de
Monremy of Verdun and for Mr. Joseph Bruschi of La Spezia.
Decoration for Engineer Levrot, promised by the cardinal secretary.
The request has been filed by the ordinary, who has highly recommended
him.
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
I could not see the Holy Father again, nor was I allowed to attend the
audience to which he had invited me.
The business of our missions and the vicariate in Patagonia have been
left hanging.
Heartfelt thanks to Cardinal Alimonda. Ask him about the faculties
which were taken away from us. He has a copy, as does the Holy Father.
Tell Monsignor [Mariano] Rampolla30 that all documents relating to
the vicariate are to be found in the secretariat for extraordinary
ecclesiastical affairs.
While Don Bosco was in Rome, Father Dalmazzo witnessed a
very specific prediction of his and its fulfillment. Don Bosco
received a letter in which a French lady requested a blessing for her
only daughter who was very ill. "Here is a lady who wants me to
pray especially for the recovery of her daughter, barely two years
old," he said to Father Dalmazzo. "But what can I answer? The
child will most certainly die."
"It's a harsh reply to make," commented Father Dalmazzo.
"You answer the letter, please."
"What shall I tell her?"
"Tell her that I shall pray for her to be resigned to God's holy
will."
Father Dalmazzo softened the blow by urging the lady to leave
everything to God, assuring her that prayers were being offered for
the child. She read Don Bosco's meaning between the lines and
immediately telegraphed him to renew her plea for his prayers,
saying that a letter would follow. Father Dalmazzo handed Don
Bosco the telegram and asked what response he should make.
"None," Don Bosco replied. Then the letter arrived. Distraught by
the fear of losing her child, the grieving mother expressed her
conviction that the girl would recover through Don Bosco's
prayers. Again Father Dalmazzo asked what answer he should
send. "None," Don Bosco repeated. "She would not be able to
bring up her daughter properly, and so it would be better if the girl
passed away for her own soul's good." Five days later a telegram
announced the girl's death.
It is always the biographer's pleasure to collect testimonials of
30He was then with the Congregation for the Propagation of the Faith as secretary for
matters concerning the Eastern rites. [Author]
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the powerful impact made by Don Bosco's kindly ways on all who
approached him or even merely laid eyes on him. These
statements, issued at different times in widely scattered places, are
all reiterated proofs of his unchallenged greatness as a man and of
his spiritual stature as a saint. That year, a cleric-Peri-Morosini,
who later became a bishop and apostolic administrator of Canton
Ticino-was studying philosophy in Rome. One day he and his
fellow students were taking a walk as a group. As they crossed
Piazza San Luigi dei Francesi, they spotted a priest, whom a few
recognized as Don Bosco, pointing him out to others. The young
cleric broke ranks, contrary to rules, and, dashing over to him,
greeted him. "I could never tell you the impression he made on
me," the bishop once stated at a formal commemorative service
being held for Don Bosco at Ascona.31 "Don Bosco," I thought,
"is the living image of Jesus of Nazareth: amiable, meek, kind,
humble, modest. So must Jesus have impressed others!"
31Bollettino Salesiano, July 1908. [Author]
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CHAPTER 18
Roundabout Return to Turin from Rome
,SHORTLY after Don Bosco left Rome, he was honored
at an impressive gathering. The National Organization of Catholic
Conventions, whose aim was to unify Italian Catholics in defense
of the Church and of the Roman Pontiff, had formed regional
committees which were to meet as often as they felt necessary to
discuss Church affairs. The Roman committee held its first regional
meeting on April 21 and 22 [1880] in the magnificent Altemps
Palace under the honorary chairmanship of Rome's cardinal vicar.
At his right among others sat Duke [Scipione] Salviati, chairman,
and Prince Camillus Rospigliosi, spiritual moderator, while several
bishops sat at his left. At the morning session of April 22, Attorney
Frascari proposed that one of the existing Catholic societies should
draw up a plan to take throngs of roaming youngsters off the streets
and give them a Christian education. He suggested that, to achieve
this end, the society should enlist the aid of Don Bosco's Salesians.
Put to a vote, the proposal was unanimously approved. Don Bosco
read of this in the Catholic press just as he was about to leave
Magliano. The publicity stirred by such an authoritative endorse-
ment of so august a body certainly gave all his work a great moral
boost.
Don Bosco stayed at the seminary in Magliano from the evening
of April 20 to the morning of April 23. The usual annual outing,
held regularly just after Easter, was set in his honor to coincide with
his visit. He had already agreed, to everyone's joy, since he meant
to take part in it. Their goal was the seminary summer home on the
hills of Calvi in Umbria. Such a pleasant excursion disposed the
young seminarians to be all the more responsive to their superiors'
suggestions that they take advantage of Don Bosco's presence for
their spiritual benefit. Don Bosco heard their confessions and then
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375
placed himself at the disposal of the staff so that all might be
able to talk with him. How they were affected may be gleaned from
a random remark jotted down by his secretary, "Papa is really
exhausted. At Magliano they nearly tired him to death." 1
And yet there were some who did not respond. One-a certain
Mari-is particularly singled out. No angel to begin with, he
harbored a long-standing hatred for priests and monks because his
parents had forced him to attend a boarding school. Meeting him
by chance, Don Bosco placed his hand on the boy's head and
remarked, "One day you will be a priest in a religious congre-
gation." The boy's response was a sarcastic grunt of contempt, but
it was short-lived, for ten years later, in 1890, he passed through
Turin as a Franciscan priest on his way to the South American
missions. On the occasion of his visit to the Oratory, Father Rua
asked him to dinner, and there he told the superiors of that incident.
On the morning of April 23, the whole community walked with
Don Bosco to the railway station where he was to board a train for
Florence. They were a joyous, noisy and loving escort marked by
an intimacy between pupils and superiors which was quite
unknown in that locality, and which Don Bosco felt to be a
powerful means of education. Father [Joseph] Daghero accom-
panied him as far as Orte where Don Bosco changed trains for
Florence, where he arrived at one in the morning. Good mother to
all the Salesians as she was, Marchioness [Gerolama] Uguccioni
hosted him in her residence. Marchioness [Henrietta] Nerli was
also her usual gracious self. Don Bosco's secretary tells us that he
stayed there two days, making and receiving calls, but we learn
little of biographical interest.
We have abundant documentation in our archives, to which we
shall refer in due course, telling us that a committee had been set up
two years before in Florence to establish a Salesian house and that
its more influential members had repeatedly been in touch with
Don Bosco to speed up its realization. In all truth he needed no
prodding because his knowledge of the area's needs and his zeal
for the salvation of youth were ample inducement. During this
stopover in Florence he had an experience which touched his heart
11.etter to Father Rua from Father Berto, Florence, April 24, 1880. [Author]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
and caused him deep pain because he could not give immediate aid.
While walking through town he came across large groups of boys
and, upon asking who they were, was told that they were Catholic
youngsters on their way to the Protestant school and church; other
groups were already there and more were about to follow. Stunned
and hurt by the sight of these simple souls being wrested from the
arms of the Church, he tearfully begged the committee not to waste
more time, to redouble their efforts and to put a stop to such harm.
When writing to Cardinal Nina from Lucca, he told him what he
had seen. On May 5 the cardinal replied:
Thank you for the information you sent me in your letter of April 29.
While your experience in Florence brought you much grief, both the Holy
Father and I felt comforted by the thought ofthe truly exceptional zeal you
show in striving to stem the tide of corruption and heresy at its strongest.
Grateful for your outstanding efforts in this regard, His Holiness gladly
imparts his apostolic blessing upon you and prays that God will grant you
strength and courage to continue in your holy undertaking with increasing
success.
The news that Don Bosco was again visiting Lucca reawakened
the previous year's enthusiasm among the Salesian cooperators,2
whom Father [John] Marenco, the director, had summoned to the
Holy Cross Church. Every day, from April 26 to May 1, Don
Bosco spent his time hearing confessions, receiving visitors, and
making calls. He met with cooperators on the evening of April 29.
Lucca's most prominent citizens flocked to the little Salesian
church. After the usual formal introductions, Don Bosco addressed
his audience in a gentle, humble tone. He first warmly thanked
them for their help during the past year and also urged them to
thank God for benefits received. He then spoke of cooperating with
the Salesians locally and at large, urging them to support the South
American missions, the houses being opened in Italy and France,
and the Holy Cross Festive Oratory. After citing the more recent
foundations, he stressed the value of the missionary action recently
undertaken in Patagonia, where all heroic attempts of the last three
2See pp. 39-45. [Editor]
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centuries had failed to overcome the Indians' savagery. Now, he
said, the Salesians had well-founded hopes of success. He then
continued:
The danger is over, and we feel that Our Merciful God now wishes to
reach out to those who still live in the darkness of idolatry. We have
already set up our mission headquarters at Carmen de Patagones at the
mouth of the Rio Negro. This river rises in the remote Andes, which
themselves range the entire length of South America and separate the
Pampas and Patagonia from Chile, and, after coursing some six hundred
and thirty miles, flows into the Atlantic Ocean. Both banks of this huge
river open up an endless field for the zeal of Salesian missionaries.
Presently they are too few for so gigantic a task, and we must reinforce
their ranks as soon as we can with another missionary expedition. But
how? We must rely on the charity of our cooperators. We appeal to each
of you to contribute what funds you can. If your own means are in-
adequate, enlist the help of relatives, friends, and acquaintances. The
missionaries gladly give their lives to spread the faith; we can at least give
some of our money.
Now let me say something about what you have done on a local level. I
owe all of you my heartfelt thanks. Let this be said first to God's glory and
then to the honor of your city of Lucca. Here, too, thanks to your
generosity, we have opened a festive oratory, a day and evening school,
and even a hospice where some forty boys are already housed, learning a
trade or following a course of studies to prepare them for a profession.
They all receive a Catholic education, growing up as good Christians and
upright citizens. We purchased this building at a good price but still owe
forty thousand lire. Since we must also feed the boys and staff, we have
decided, after conferring with our most reverend archbishop, to write to all
our cooperators and ask them to pledge whatever amount they can afford
and to ask others to do the same. In this way every cooperator will become
a campaigner as well and at the end of every month will be able to send to
the director whatever he or she may have been able to collect; otherwise
the director himself will make the collection rounds. Thus, toil and
expenses will be parceled out, making things lighter for all.
But there are also other ways of helping. For instance, I know that last
year the kind Benedictine nuns provided the Salesians with homemade
soup three times a week; other people donated linen, kitchen utensils,
chairs and classroom desks.
"What will we gain from all this?" you may ask. This question is quite
proper. Anyone planning to do something good asks the question. Your
reward will be to know that you have contributed to the rescue of a great
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
many boys from spiritual and, possibly, also temporal ruin. Perhaps these
youngsters could have taken the wrong path and become the scourge of
society, ending their days injail. Believe me, if you do not now contribute
to their Christian formation, the day will come when they will rob you of
your money. But if you help them now, they will pose no such danger.
Rather, they will bless you, look upon you as benefactors, and, if neces-
sary, readily come to your defense and lay down their lives for you.
Furthermore, they will always pray for their benefactors. The prayers of
the poor reach the throne of the Most High. All Salesian houses and
churches offer special prayers for Salesian cooperators every day.
However, since we are Christians we must act for a nobler motive-
faith. The Lord already promises us a hundredfold in this world and
eternal happiness in the next for every act of mercy done for His sake. But
the Gospel goes further and makes almsgiving a duty: "Give your surplus
to the poor." [Cf. Lk. 11, 41.] But where can this surplus be found? We
can bring it about by economizing on pleasure trips, clothes, meals, rugs,
and so on, and in avoiding dance halls and theaters. Of course these two
items are no problem to you, but to the worldly-minded.
Now, going back to the reward which Our Lord promised would be a
hundredfold, who of you would not be eager to give, if at this moment
someone were to come and say, "Would anyone like to invest money at
a hundred percent interest?" Certainly no one would reject such an
opportunity. Well, it is just as certain that the Lord gives us this hun-
dredfold on earth in many ways-a plentiful harvest, family peace, and
good health, thus saving you a lot of money. At other times he may shield
you from ruinous lawsuits, bless you and your children with mutual love
and respect, and safeguard you from physical dangers. In short, the Lord
has countless ways of blessing us and repaying us a hundredfold for the
works of mercy we perform on behalf of poor boys besides promising us
life everlasting.
But the most comforting reward is what the Lord will say to each of us at
His judgment seat. The Gospel tells us that He will consider as done to
Himself whatever we do for the least of His brethren, the poor children. "I
was naked," He will say to us, "and you clothed Me; I was hungry and
you fed Me; I was homeless and you gave Me shelter. I was forsaken and
you took Me in and looked after Me. Come now and receive your
everlasting reward which has been waiting for you from all eternity.'' On
the contrary, He will say to those who failed to do these things, "I was
naked and you did not clothe Me; I was hungry and you gave Me no food;
I was homeless and you did not take Me in."
Lastly, we shall experience the deepest consolation at the moment of
death because then the boys whom we helped will tum to God and say,
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"They saved our souls, so please save theirs." As St. Augustine said, "By
saving a soul you assured your own salvation."
The convents of Lucca considered themselves fortunate if they
could host Don Bosco for even a few minutes. The Benedictine
nuns asked him to visit them and bless one of their sick sisters.
Since it was evening, they probably had supper ready for him. The
present abbess [1933] is always glad to point out to visitors the
table at which Don Bosco sat with several Salesians. Later, when
he received the news that the ailing sister had passed on to a
happier life, he dropped them a note, recalling their warm courtesy.
Turin, June 11, 1880
May Our Merciful God bless Mother Nazzarena, Benedictine abbess at
Lucca, and her entire religious family. May He grant heaven's reward to
the nun whom He called to her eternal rest, and good health to all who
survive her. Through His mercy, may they without exception enjoy a long
life and then receive their reward for the homemade soup they served to
the Salesians and for their many other works of mercy. Amen.
Pray for me.
Yours gratefully in Jesus Christ,
Fr. John Bosco
As for Don Bosco's assurance that he would pray for the "long
life" of her fellow religious, the present [1933] superior is fond of
saying that they all lived to be over eighty and that one of them was
well past ninety when she went to her reward.
The foremost families of Lucca also vied with each other for the
honor of having him at dinner, because they regarded him as a
saint. The day before he spoke to the Salesian cooperators, he
accepted an invitation from Mr. Bertocchini who had sold him a
home at a reasonable price on an installment plan. It was turned
into a boarding school. The family welcomed Don Bosco at their
villa, a short distance from town. Don Bosco was accompanied by
the director and the catechist, Father Maggiorino Borgatello.3 The
latter testified in writing that at dinner, as the conversation turned
to Salesian works and the Valdocco Oratory in particular, Don
3 See Appendix 1. [Editor]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
Bosco thrilled the guests by telling them, with utmost simplicity,
two surprising incidents which he had personally witnessed in the
Church of Mary, Help of Christians. We quote Don Bosco as
Father Borgatello did, since he maintained that they were his
"exact" words. "Many people," Don Bosco said, "ascribe to me
the little good the Salesian Congregation has accomplished, but
they are mistaken. IfDon Bosco has done and still does some good,
he owes it to his sons. The Lord has given Don Bosco such virtuous
sons that they perform genuine miracles; thanks to them Don Bosco
is borne, as it were, in triumph. People credit all to Don Bosco's
doing, whereas it is all due to his sons. I could offer ample proof of
what I am saying, but let the following suffice. One day I entered
the main door of the Church of Mary, Help of Christians. It was
nearly dusk. When I got to the middle of the church I looked up at
the painting and noticed that [something like] a dark drape covered
the Madonna.4 I instantly wondered, Why on earth would the
sacristan cover Our Lady's picture? I stepped closer to the
sanctuary and saw that the drape was moving. Shortly afterward, it
slowly dropped until it touched the floor, genuflected to the Blessed
Sacrament, made the sign of the cross and walked out of the church
through the sacristy. What I thought was a drape was rather one of
my sons who, in an ecstasy of love, had been raised the better to see
the picture of the Virgin Mary and lovingly contemplate Her and
kiss Her immaculate feet. On another occasion I walked into the
church from the sacristy and saw a boy kneeling, high in the air, on
a level with the tabernacle door facing the apse,5 as he was adoring
the Blessed Sacrament, his head bowed, resting against the
tabernacle door in a tender ecstasy of love like a seraphim. I called
him by name. He aroused himself and came down, abashed,
begging me not to tell anyone. I repeat, I can cite many such
instances in proof that all the good Don Bosco has accomplished is
due in most part to his sons."6
4Don Bosco's sight, especially in his right eye, had begun to deteriorate in 1864. See
Vol. VII, p. 390 and Vol. XIII, pp. 588f. [Editor]
5The tabernacle was in the center of the main altar, extending through its depth. There was
a second door in the back facing the apse because Holy Communion was often given before,
during and after Mass or outside of Mass by other priests than the celebrant of the Mass. A
suitable footstool enabled the priest to reach the tabernacle door. [Editor]
61.etter to Father Lemoyne from Father Maggiorino Borgatello, Punta Arenas
(Magallanes), September 22, 1905. Father Borgatello goes on: "Father Marenco must
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We will also mention another incident which happened the day
after the conference. That morning Don Bosco celebrated Mass at
eight o'clock at Holy Cross Church, crowded with all kinds of
people. During Mass a sixteen-year-old boy allegedly suffering
from diabolic vexations was brought to the Salesian house. In all
truth, certain fairly plausible signs of evil possession were present.
He lived in a neighboring village and was brought to the church by
his parents and another man in the hope that Don Bosco would
bless him. The youth walked quietly up to the door of the school,
but, on seeing a priest, he went berserk and both men struggled as
hard as they could to drag him inside, so violent was his opposition.
Once he was in, he hurled himself to the ground where, unable to
speak, he tried to crawl away, striking out with fists and feet at
anyone who tried to approach him, especially a priest. Firmly
gripped and immoblized hand and foot by those around, he snapped
out at them and threw himself upon them. At the end of the Mass,
despite his struggle and resistance, they exerted enormous effort
and carried him bodily through the church and into the sacristy.
The bystanders were horrified to see the poor lad frighteningly
grind his teeth while emitting a ghastly, drawn-out shriek as if in
fiery torment when he was taken past the tabernacle of the Blessed
Sacrament. He was finally brought to Don Bosco, who was then
saying his thanksgiving prayers. He rose from the kneeler, looked
with deep compassion upon the youth, blessed him, and said a
prayer over him. After asking the young man's parents to say
special prayers throughout the month of May, he asked the boy
several questions, but the answers were the groans of a mute. When
Don Bosco held out a medal to him to kiss, he spat on it, struggling
to free himself and snatch it to fling it away, trying to bite and crush
it. Father Marenco kept an alleged relic of Our Lady, a hair, in a
tiny reliquary and, hoping to test its authenticity, drew close to the
youth, keeping the miniature case tightly in his closed hand lest the
young man see it. The demoniac immediately began to rave so
fiercely that he cast terror on all. The parents said that the boy was
certainly recall what I have just written.... Although several years have gone by, I still
remember perfectly well, as if it were only yesterday, how I heard Don Bosco tell these
things, so deep an impression did it make on me. Do what you think best with this for the
honor of our good father, Don Bosco. You may be perfectly sure that what I have told you is
authentic." [Author]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
named Francis, that they had found it impossible to get him to pray,
and that neither would he let any member of his family pray. They
also said that his condition dated from the feast of St. Joseph and
that twice he had hurled himself from a window some eighteen feet
above the ground without being hurt.
Once he was forcibly taken out of the sight of priests and sacred
things, he began to walk along without restraint, chatting quite
normally, saying, among other things, that he would accept the
medal only when he had crossed the city limits, never within them,
because if he did he would be killed. Though we know nothing more
of him, we sincerely hope that his obsession ceased at the end of
Mary's month, thanks to the prayers requested by Don Bosco.
Two long-time friends of Don Bosco, Marquis Massoni and Mr.
Burlamacchi, had bought a small house at Viareggio, intending to
tum it over to the Salesians for the care of local youngsters, who
were very much neglected. They were waiting for him to inspect it
and decide what was to be done with it. Don Bosco obliged. We do
not know what arrangements were made. We only know of an
incident which reveals how anyone who came in touch with him
esteemed him. After greeting him, Mrs. Burlamacchi took him to an
upper floor apartment, tactfully dismissing all visitors and then
sending each member of the family up to Don Bosco for a word of
good advice and a blessing.
That same evening Don Bosco [and his secretary] left for La
Spezia, where they lodged with Chevalier [Joseph] Bruschi,7 since
there were no spare rooms in the Salesians' small rented apartment.
Seeing at first hand how badly larger premises were needed if his
work was to expand, Don Bosco left no doubt in the mind of Father
[Louis] Rocca that he was to come up with some plan to raise funds
for a building that would allow for future expansion. Undeniably
the first efforts were disheartening; Father Rocca's letters, visits
and meetings called forth a meager response. But Don Bosco did
not lose heart, for he had his own reasons against living in a rented
apartment. Satisfied at the moment with the little money received,
he started laying the foundations of a small house on August 16,
1880, asserting that the rest would come later on, as indeed it did.
Rather than having to return to the beginnings of this expansion
1 See p. 38. [Editor]
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program, we will add one detail now. At the start of the work Don
Bosco had to send a routine report to the cardinal protector on the
whole Congregation's progress and the temporal and spiritual
benefits it brought to the people. He took this opportunity to
acquaint Cardinal Nina with the situation at La Spezia and the
pressing need of adequate living quarters. He therefore asked the
cardinal to propose that the Holy Father grant him, Don Bosco, a
substantial advance on the monthly subsidy of five hundred lire,
which had been set in November 1877, to speed up on the planned
expansion. The cardinal answered on August 16. After citing
current exceptional demands made on the Holy See and its many
urgent needs in that critical period of strife and conflict, he
informed Don Bosco that, despite the financial crunch, the Holy
Father was willing to help him as best he could. He ordered six
thousand lire to be loaned to Don Bosco, with repayment to be
made by deducting one hundred lire per month from his subsidy. In
addition, two thousand more lire were to be sent to him for the
celebration of Masses. On receiving this twofold donation, Don
Bosco, who had planned for a temporary structure of one story,
asked Father Rua to instruct the contractor to add a second story,
thus making room for a thirty-bed dormitory once a hospice was
opened.8
Step by step Don Bosco was now slowly getting closer to Turin.
On May 3 he was at Sampierdarena. All that we know of his stay
there is contained in these brief notes of Father Berto:
Monday, May 3: we set out for Genoa at two o'clock, arriving there at
six-thirty. The following day, May 4, Don Bosco and Father Albera had
dinner with the archbishop. Father Ronchail was also at the hospice [in
Sampierdarena]. On Wednesday, May 5, Don Bosco dined at home with
Baron Heraud. At four-thirty some one hundred and eighty cooperators
gathered in the chapel. After the reading of Chapter 14 of the life of St.
Francis de Sales, dealing with his love of neighbor, Don Bosco took the
pulpit and spoke to the congregation for nearly an hour and a half.9 People
listened to him with rapt attention. The motet Tota pulchra es Maria was
sung after the reading, and Sit nomen Domini benedictum after the
8 ln October Don Bosco issued an appeal to public charity, particularly for construction of
the church. [Author]
9Thanks to Father Berto's notes, the June issue of the Bollettino Salesiano reported this
first conference of the Salesian cooperators in Sampierdarena. [Author]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
sermon. The Tantum ergo followed, and then Don Bosco gave
Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament. Afterward priests and laity
crowded about him in the sacristy, eager for a word with him, to kiss his
hand, commend themselves to his prayers, and receive a blessing and holy
medal from him. He satisfied them all. The collection netted close to six
hundred lire. Because it was the vigil of the Lord's Ascension, neither the
archbishop nor several priests could attend. The archbishop, however,
sent a blessing to all present at the conference. Before leaving the pulpit,
Don Bosco informed the audience that an entertainment would follow in
the inner playground of the hospice. There the guests enjoyed choice
selections from famous classical music excellently rendered by the band.
Don Bosco had no time for himself until practically suppertime. The next
day, Ascension Thursday, May 6, he stayed at Sampierdarena. On May
7, at seven-fifteen, we walked to the railway station in the company of
Father Cerruti and Father Francesia. We arrived at the Oratory in Turin
at twelve-thirty. Boys, priests and clerics lined both sides of the walk from
the main entrance to the dining room. The band was also there to welcome
Don Bosco. The boys sang for him during dinner. The whole house was
bursting with joy at his return after an absence of almost four months.
Before leaving Sampierdarena, Don Bosco would gladly have
pleased his sons at Varazze by a visit, and the Sisters of Mercy at
Savona also begged him to visit them and bless their superior, who
was gravely ill. But he had to forego both visits and wrote to tell this
to the newly appointed director, Father Monateri:
My dear Father Monateri,
Sampierdarena, May 7, 1880
It is most urgent that I return to Turin, and I must forego the pleasure of
visiting Varazze and Savona.
I shall expect you in Turin when you can manage to come. Meanwhile,
assure the Sisters of Mercy that I will pray for them and for their mother
superior. Also, once I get to Turin I will ask God at the altar of Mary,
Help of Christians to spare the life of the sister who is the very foundation
of that wonderful institute.
God bless you, dear Father Monateri. Remember me to all my dear
confreres and boys and ask them to pray for me.
Yours affectionately in Jesus Christ,
Fr. John Bosco
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Hardly recovered from the fatigue of his long, wearying journey,
he had to reply to two letters of Canon Guiol concerning the
[Salesian] construction work at Marseille. They had been for-
warded to him during his travels. Both the tone and the length of
the letter tell us how much Don Bosco appreciated the cooperation
of the zealous pastor of St. Joseph's Church and how anxious he
was not to hurt him in any way. We also gather some interesting
details about his audience with the Holy Father.
My dear Father,
Turin, May 9, 1880
Your letters of April 25 and May 5 reached me respectively at Lucca
and at Sampierdarena. I an now back in Turin to stay. Your letters are a
great comfort and convince me even more that my comment to the Holy
Father on your zeal for works of mercy was no exaggeration. Father
Bologna has often written to me of your tireless solicitude for St. Leo's
Festive Oratory and has urged me to thank you, as I now do, in this letter.
When you told me in your letter that a parcel of land, some two
thousand square meters, was for sale in the immediate neighborhood of
our workshops, I started praying. I had our boys offer special prayers
morning and evening before the altar of Mary, Help of Christians that She
would help us find the necessary funds. If our plans will redound to God's
greater glory-as I hope-I am sure that God will send us the means. I
shall write to Madame Prat-Noilly about it, without, however, making any
explicit request.
I have already informed her by mail, as I inform you now, dear Father,
that the Pope is establishing an apostolic vicariate for the Salesian
missions in Patagonia. Of course, this calls for well-studied plans and for
missionaries specially trained for those endless savage lands. Besides, the
Holy Father himself suggested that possibly a boarding school, to be
called Seminary for the Patagonian Missions, might be attached to the
festive oratory which already bears his name. "Marseille is an eminently
Catholic community," he said, "also a generous city, a central location for
both Europe and South America. Write on my behalf to the benevolent
[Beaujour] Society which, with genuine Christian zeal, supports your
hostels in that city, and tell them that I recommend a very important
undertaking to their charity. Let me know their reply."
Meanwhile, dear Father, speak with Monsieur Rostand about it and, if
he is of the same opinion, take it to the councillors ofthe Beaujour Society
and to our own committee. Then let me know so that I can carry out the
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
Holy Father's wish. As you see, the Beaujour Society and our own
committees have certainly been chosen for extraordinary tasks. We can do
all things in Him who strengthens us.
The paper which I left in the Holy Father's hands concerning a few
spiritual favors for our committee members is in your wording, but it will
take time. Cardinal Alimonda will pick it up with another paper as soon as
they have been signed. 1o
I arrived in Turin very tired. In every Salesian house crowds of people
would promptly lay siege to me without a break. Yet, despite that, the
oneness, the love, and the observance of the rules which reign among all
the Salesians have given me greatjoy. The Holy Father, who was already
informed of this, told me that what we have accomplished with God's help
is truly amazing. Our pupils truly love God, and possibly the number of
vocations to our Congregation will be doubled this year.
In conclusion, dear Father, please inform our worthy committee
members that on May 16, the solemnity of Pentecost and the second day
of our novena to Mary, Help of Christians, I intend to celebrate a special
Mass invoking God's blessings upon them and their families, with all our
boys offering particular prayers and their Holy Communions.
Father Cagliero was delighted with the handsome offer Madame
Jacques generously made to our sisters. I shall write her personally.
Step by step, let us climb the ladder to heaven. All at the Oratory-
Father Rua, Father Cagliero, Father Durando, all the rest and I-extend
a formal invitation to you to visit us on the feast of Mary, Help of
Christians. Will you do us this great favor? Please feel free to bring anyone
you wish with you.
May the Lord keep you and reward you. If you can, please inform
Father Bologna of the contents of this letter because I have little time to
write to him. Pray for me.
Ever gratefully yours in Jesus Christ,
Fr. John Bosco
Two days later, France again offered Don Bosco a welcome
opportunity to express his feelings toward its Catholics. On May
11 Father [Francis] Picard and the viscount of Damas, who were
leading a French pilgrimage to Rome, visited the Oratory. Don
Bosco invited both gentlemen to dinner, while the pilgrims were
10The "other paper" probably concerns a papal title he had requested for Canon Guiol. A
letter from Monsignor Cantoni (August 26, 1880) of the secretariat of state informed Don
Bosco on behalf of the Holy Father that it was not desirable. [Author]
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hosted at the headquarters of the Catholic Youth Association.
Shortly after their lunch, about a hundred pilgrims, most anxious to
meet Don Bosco, were allowed into the Oratory's dining room
where he was lunching with both guests and several other priests.
They were later given a tour of the premises. After Benediction of
the Blessed Sacrament, they joined the other pilgrims and were
welcomed by the Oratory band in the students' porticoes.
Speeches followed the singing of a suitable anthem. Marquis
Garassini, president of the Catholic Youth Association, welcomed
the pilgrims [to Turin] and then Don Bosco addressed them in
French. After first asking them to heed his sentiments rather than
his French, he thanked them for honoring the Oratory with their
visit, regretting only his inability to host them, as he would have
wished, in more pleasurable surroundings. He praised their in-
spiring example of faith and devotion to the Holy See and the
Supreme Pontiff. He commended their willingness to bear the
discomforts of such a long journey precisely to offer their homage
to the Holy Father in Rome. He pointed out, too, the fine example
they were giving the Italian people by their open manifestation of
faith. Next he spoke of the Salesian houses in France, and, after a
brief explanation of the Association of Salesian Cooperators, he
invited them all to become members. He concluded by asking them,
on their return home, to remember the Salesians and the Oratory,
where they had many friends praying for them and sharing their
sentiments of piety and faith. 11 Father Picard eloquently thanked
Don Bosco, the Salesians and the Catholic Youth Association, and
offered a toast to Don Bosco, his sons and the people of Turin. The
last speaker was that staunch Catholic, engineer [Albert] Buffa,
secretary of the Catholic Youth Association and close friend of
Don Bosco. Our present generation of Italian Catholics would do
him great wrong should they forget his memory.
When he finished speaking, the members of the Catholic Youth
Association gave the pilgrims a photograph of the Church of Mary,
Help of Christians and one of Don Bosco as souvenirs of their visit~
In turn, Father Picard gave Don Bosco a thousand or so medals
blessed by Leo XIII for him to give out to the Oratory boys. Before
11Excerpts of Don Bosco's speech can be seen in the Bulletin Salesien, June 1880.
[Author]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
departing, the pilgrims clustered about Don Bosco for a last word
and his blessing. Several ladies who managed to exchanged a few
words with him wept with joy.
Don Bosco's invitation to the pilgrims to become Salesian
cooperators was not an empty gesture, for as the choir and the band
were performing their final presentation~ the pilgrims were vying
with each other to give in their names and addresses. Later, when
Don Bosco had leisure to scan the list of names, he sent the
cooperators' diploma to those whom he deemed suitable.
Meanwhile the people of Marseille, remembering the miracles
they had seen with their own eyes, kept writing to Don Bosco, who
could never catch up with his mail. When he answered their letters
he always recommended St. Leo's Oratory and its needs to their
charity. Writing to its director, he hinted at something which
troubled him considerably.
My dear Father Bologna,
Turin, May 13, 1880
Enclosed is a letter for you to deliver and another to be forwarded by
mail to Madame Jacques.
I keep answering letters which I receive every day from Marseille; I am
praying for them but, please, tell them to come to the aid of the poor
youngsters in St. Leo's Hospice. I don't know if my plea brings any
results; some donations also reach me in Turin.
Brogly has expressed the wish to come to Turin. If you come for the
feast of Mary, Help of Christians, take him along if he is deserving.
I have invited our good Canon Guiol in writing to attend our
celebration. Try to persuade him to come; we all want to see him, and we
have a lot of things to talk over.
Give my heartiest best wishes to all our dear confreres and pupils. God
bless them all! Tell them to pray for me. Always in Our Lord Jesus Christ,
Yours affectionately,
Fr. John Bosco
P.S. I am writing a letter to Father Pirro,12 to reprimand him for going
back on his word, the Congregation and the Church. I am exhorting him to
open his eyes and look at the abyss. He will see you about it.
12He had decided to leave the Congregation. [Editor]
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The sad comments on the cleric Brogly and Father Pirro will
become clearer in Chapter 20. We must now return to Don Bosco
amid the boys and confreres of his beloved Valdocco Oratory.
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CHAPTER 19
At the Oratory with Don Bosco
from May to December 1880
THIS chapter will bring together celebrations, confer-
ences, noteworthy events, memorable sayings, dreams, letters, and
other scattered items which would not really fit elsewhere. They
will make for varied and pleasant reading.
1. THE FEAST OF MARY, HELP OF CHRISTIANS
Year by year three outstanding features of the novena and feast
kept becoming more and more impressive: the crowds flocking to
the shrine, the increase of spiritual and temporal favors granted
through the intercession of Don Bosco's Madonna, and the throngs
swarming about Don Bosco himself asking him for the blessing of
Mary, Help of Christians. Citing the extraordinary number of
pilgrims, the Bollettino Salesiano stated in its June issue: "The
Church of Mary, Help of Christians has never seen such a vast
multitude beneath its majestic dome from the day of its con-
secration." Hundreds of spiritual favors were properly recorded
in the church registers. The same periodical briefly wrote up a "few
samples" of eleven favors received or reported during those days in
various localities of Italy and France. Such manifest graciousness
on the part of Our Blessed Mother naturally drew the pilgrims'
attention to Her faithful servant, obliging him to spend long hours in
a sacristy room to satisfy the countless people who begged for his
blessing.
During the novena Don Bosco gave two conferences to the
Salesian cooperators of Turin in the Church of St. Francis de
Sales. The first conference, for men, took place on the afternoon of
May 20. Don Bosco began by pointing out the difference between
"operator" and "cooperator," between one who runs an enterprise
and one who works for it under his direction.
390
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At the Oratory with Don Bosco from May to December 1880 391
However talented and active a leader may be-he said-he will achieve
but little without helpers. For instance, anyone directing a festive oratory
for several hundred boys could not run it alone, regardless of intelligence
and zeal. He would destroy his health in vainly striving to keep order in
church and outside. Things would be different if he were helped by others
who might be talented to teach catechism, prepare and supervise church
services, direct the choir, handle sport activities, dramatics, gymnastics,
and so on. This would enable an undertaking which from its start could
easily deteriorate to make headway, become stronger and end up as a
great success. This is true of any machine; it is very productive when all its
working parts function properly. Alone, Don Bosco would have accom-
plished nothing, but his cooperators have multiplied his undertakings
and insured their progress. This is the reason why Pius IX and Leo XIII
have blessed the Association of Salesian Cooperators.
After these opening comments, Don Bosco summed up the
Salesians' activities of the past year: schools and churches to
counteract Protestant proselytizing, missions in Patagonia, and the
expansion of existing works.
The women's conference was held on the evening of May 22.
After expressing his delight in their large number and briefly
mentioning God's blessings upon the endeavors of the Salesians
and the Daughters of Mary, Help of Christians during the past
year, he went on to enlarge upon the good work for girls being done
by the [Salesian] sisters, vividly detailing the history of their
Institute from its birth to its latest recent foundations in Italy,
France, colonial South America and the wilds of Patagonia.
Don Bosco had already chosen chairpersons for the festivities, as
we realize from a note dated May 19, in which, employing
roundabout rhetoric, he wrote, "Father John Bosco invites the
Count of Pamparato and his gracious wife to offer the Blessed
Virgin Mary their protection by accepting the joint chairmanship of
the solemn feast of Mary, Help of Christians, May 24.'' The noble
couple obliged not by making a personal appearance-that was not
necessary-but by offering gifts, as we gather from the following
letter of Don Bosco.
Dear Countess:
Turin, May 30, 1880
I had hoped to thank you in person, but since it is so hard for me to leave
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
the house, let me take this occasion to begin thanking you at least in
writing.
I received the two baskets of cheer which you and your kind husband
have graciously donated with an offering of two hundred lire. Thank you
most heartily. I pray God to grant you a long and happy life, good health,
and the attainment of every holy wish. Our boys too will offer special
prayers for this intention.
Hoping that I may be honored by a visit from you both, I am,
Most gratefully yours,
Fr. John Bosco
As we know, he had invited Canon Guiol to the feast of Mary,
Help of Christians. The canon came, as the minutes of the
Marseille committee state. Don Bosco was very delighted to see
him and many other distinguished cooperators of his who became
his personal guests. He also was very concerned that his absent
friends and benefactors fully realize that he had not forgotten and
would not forget them on this solemn occasion. Accordingly, he
wrote to Count Eugene De Maistre, who could not attend the
festivities in Turin that year.
Dear Count Eugene:
Turin, May 18, 1880
This year we will miss the pleasure of having you with us, but you are
not forgotten. We daily remember you in our community prayers, and this
Sunday, the vigil of the feast of Mary, Help of Christians, we shall pray for
you particularly. I shall celebrate Holy Mass for you, while our boys will
receive Communion and ask God's blessings upon you and your entire
family. I understand that your aunt, the duchess, will soon pay you a visit.
Many have tried to dissuade her, but she is determined to do so. I hope to
drop in at Borgo [San Martino] on the 26th of this month for a visit, and
then I shall get the latest news of her entire family. I believe they are all in
good health.
I have just received word from Countess Carla De Maistre about
Mama. She says that Mama has improved a bit over the last few days, but
that she is still quite ill. We are praying for her every morning and evening.
May heavenly blessings come abundantly upon you and your family.
Please pray for me.
Yours gratefully,
Fr. John Bosco
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Every evening during the novena, local Church dignitaries and
pastors imparted Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament. On the eve
of the ·feast itself, however, the honor was reserved to Monsignor
Louis Anglesio, Blessed Cottolengo's1 successor. At this time, just
a few hours before May 24, there was still no assurance that a
bishop would be available for pontifical Mass, but God's Prov-
idence so arranged matters that not one but three bishops
would enhance the solemnity of this cherished day. For quite some
time Don Bosco had fondly thought of inviting the eloquent Domin-
ican friar, Lawrence Pampirio, to speak at the triduum and on the
solemn feast itself, but the renowned preacher had recently been
named bishop of Alba and was just about to be installe_d in his
diocese. Though preparations took up all his time, his warm love
for Don Bosco prompted him to satisfy the latter's desire. Then
there was Bishop James Coma-Pellegrini, titular of Samaria and
auxiliary bishop of Brescia, who had come to Turin for his personal
devotion. He was invited to celebrate the community Mass.
Finally, Bishop Daniel Comboni,2 titular of Claudiopoli and
apostolic vicar of Central Africa, unexpectedly arrived and was
asked to celebrate the solemn high Mass. His majestic figure, his
full flowing beard, his resonant voice which filled the entire church
and was heard in the square outside, and the rich devotion manifest
in his tone and gesture riveted the congregation's attention upon
him and convinced everyone that he was a great apostle.
In fact he was a most illustrious missionary. After his seminary
studies at a missionary college in Verona, he undertook many very
dangerous apostolic journeys through Nubia from 1859 onward.
Appointed apostolic pro-vicar for Central Africa in 1872 and vicar
in 1877, he built churches, opened schools in Cairo and Khartoum,
and set up mission outposts in his vicariate; his plan was to
evangelize the people through a native clergy. He forcefully
opposed the slave trade. On his periodic visits to Italy to raise
needed funds for the advancement of Africa, he invariably went
1Joseph Benedict Cottolengo (1786-1842) was canonized in 1934. In 1832 he founded La
Pi.ccola Casa della Divina Provvidenza [The Little House of Divine Providence] which is
now a vast hospital and medical center, housing more than six thousand patients. Doctors
and surgeons freely donate their services. [Editor]
2Daniel Comboni (1831-1881) founded the missionary order of Sons of the Sacred Heart
of Verona in 1867. [Editor]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
also to Paris, and whenever he stopped in Turin he called on Don
Bosco. In 1864 he stopped at the Oratory, arousing very lively
enthusiasm among the boys with his tales of Nigritia.3 He died at
Khartoum on October 10, 1881, hailed as "the bishop of the
blacks."
After dining with Don Bosco on the evening of the feast of Mary,
Help of Christians, the bishop volunteered to speak to the boys
after night prayers. He referred to the feast as heavenly and to the
shrine as one of Italy's most renowned, voicing the fervent hope
that Don Bosco would send Salesians to help him. Either before or
soon after the feast, he visited the Valsalice College, where he gave
First Holy Communion to some ofthe students. As he was about to
take leave of Don Bosco, seeing himself surrounded by the students
and noticing their eagerness to hear something more from him, he
gladly obliged and entertained them for almost an hour, which
flashed by like an instant.
Commenting on the celebration of the feast of Mary, Help of
Christians, Father Lazzero noted: "It was a lovely feast, and the
crowds were extraordinary." The valiant Catholic journal of Turin,
Unita Cattolica, which was under orders to keep low-keyed when
mentioning anything about Don Bosco, reported on May 30 as
follows:
It was a sight truly worthy of Turin's devotion. Not an irreverent remark
or snicker of any kind-just devotion and fervor that brought tears to the
eyes of the impressive pilgrim crowds which flocked to the vast church
from dawn to dusk. Very many were the people receiving Holy
Communion throughout the novena, but their numbers soared to the
thousands on the feast itself.
The same article referred to the exceptionally grand sacred
choral music:
Above all else, we fondly recall the Mass composed by Benedict
Marcello.4 We are at a loss to decide which we admired most, the sublime
harmony, truly in keeping with the majesty of sacred mystery, or the
3 Now known as Sudan. [Editor]
4Benedict Marcello (1686-1739) was an outstanding writer and composer of both secular
and sacred music. [Editor]
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At the Oratory with Don Bosco from May to December 1880 395
artistry with which the choir boys interpreted and gave voice to the great
composer's genius.
The article closed as follows:
Praised be God, who in these tragic times allows us to witness such
pageantry of piety and faith. We need not fear that Satan's power will
prevail in our country as long as Mary, Help of Christians benevolently
reaches out to protect us and we lovingly devote ourselves to Her.
This enables us to understand the impromptu remark made by
Bishop Comboni during the pontifical Mass. Gazing about at the
devout multitude as he presided at the Mass, he exclaimed with
profound emotion, "Digitus Dei est hie-the finger of God is
here!"
We have at random quoted some of Father Lazzero's comments
which he jotted down in several notebooks. Though they are not
many to speak of and quite brief, they prompt the following
observation. Some nine-tenths of these notes refer to the Church of
Mary, Help of Christians. Now when we consider that Father
Lazzero was the director of the whole Oratory, we must conclude
that under Don Bosco's leadership the entire house was solidly
united in the functioning ofthe Church of Mary, Help of Christians.
One further detail. On the feast of Mary, Help of Christians, the
Oratory family became practically doubled because, besides the
many guests, the Oratory hosted the pupils of the neighboring
Salesian schools and of the Daughters of Mary, Help of Christians,
along with many women who lived with the sisters. They too were
Don Bosco's concern. How were so many to be fed? Don Bosco's
Madonna took care of that by inspiring Her charitable devotees. As
though someone had issued an order, a few days before the feast
groceries of all kinds and fresh fruit and pastries began to heap up in
such quantities that there was plenty for all. It was certainly no
stretch of imagination to see in this the fulfillment of the Lord's
words: "Seek first the Kingdom of God and His justice, and all
these things shall be given you besides."5 [Mt. 6, 33]
We will not disrupt our chain of thought if we linger a bit further
5Bollettino Salesiano, June 1880, p. 6. [Author]
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TIIE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
on this topic and seek out a few news items scattered randomly in
our archives which touch on the 1880 feast of Mary, Help of
Christians.6 Anxiously eager to participate in all the solemn
festivities personally, Father Anthony Agnolutto, a zealous
Salesian cooperator, arrived at the Oratory on the evening of
May 18, most cordially welcomed by Father Rua and the other
superiors. He met Don Bosco the following morning but only
toward seven that evening of May 20 did Don Bosco find time to
chat with him as they both desired. They conversed until eight
o'clock. The good priest, who brought him several donations,
described his feelings as follows:
He made me feel so much at ease that I kept chatting on and on without
restraint, much as one does with a very intimate friend. I must admit that I
talked far more than he. I noticed that whereas I carelessly interrupted
him, he never did so to me. Rather, he seemed ready to break off what he
was saying as soon as I opened my mouth. He patiently heard me out as I
told him about the various requests of the donors and then silently waited
for me to total the donations, something I should have done before. I
observed too that, lest he embarrass me, he handed me a pencil and then
withdrew a bit from me as though to attend to some other matter.
Father Agnolutto also gave him a letter jointly written by four of
his seminarians at Portogruaro [Venice]. Their conversation lasted
until suppertime. After supper, Don Bosco kindly said to him, "Ifl
did not fear to wrong your bishop, I would lock the doors and keep
you always here."
"I would not mind that," Father Agnolutto replied, "but I think I
would only be a hindrance here."
"How would you like a parish containing ten thousand souls in
South America?" Don Bosco went on.
"I would accept it, if God so wished; but you would have to make
me all over again and give me a lot more gifts."
"How about a parish of fifteen thousand souls?"
"All the more would I be unequal to the task."
Wishing each other good night they ended their conversation.
Don Bosco's words made such an impression on the good priest
61..etter to Father Lemoyne from Father Antonio Agnolutto, Bagnarola (Udine), March
10, 1891. [Author]
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At the Oratory with Don Bosco from May to December 1880 397
that he began to wonder if they were an expression of God's will.
The next morning, May 25, determined not to leave without a
second interview with Don Bosco, he waited quietly in his room,
knowing that Don Bosco had to pass that way to go downstairs.
Hearing footsteps, he stepped out and, kneeling on the landing,
asked for his blessing and then walked with him to the sacristy,
where he finally plucked up his courage and asked Don Bosco's
advice. Ater a moment's thought, Don Bosco told him to return to
his diocese and continue always to be a good Salesian cooperator.
He also promised him a letter as soon as possible. He kept his
promise on June 17 and enclosed a note for the four seminarians we
mentioned above.
My dear Father Agnolutto,
Turin, June 17, 1880
I am somewhat late, but I want to keep my promise. Please forward the
enclosed note at your convenience; separately you will receive some holy
pictures of Mary, Help of Christians for each of the four good clerics.
Please tell them that I love them dearly in Jesus Christ.
Dear Father, I am grateful for all you are doing as a cooperator. God
reward, bless and protect you! Anytime cooperator friends of yours come
through Turin, please tell them that our home is theirs. I pray for them
every day, and beg them to remember me also, so that we may mutually
help each other in gaining souls for God while on earth, and one day be
joined together in the Kingdom of glory.
God bless you and all our beloved cooperators. Pray for me.
Yours affectionately in Jesus Christ,
Fr. John Bosco
P.S. I beg you and the four seminarians to bear with my poor
handwriting.
Don Bosco had had a very important visitor on the eve of the
feast of Mary, Help of Christians. He was Anton Lonkay, valiant
editor of the Catholic journal ldok Tannuja of Budapest, passing
through Turin on his way from Rome, where he had headed a group
of Hungarian pilgrims, because he wished to meet Don Bosco,
whom he only knew by reputation. He called at the Oratory toward
evening, and Don Bosco welcomed him with his usual friendliness,
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
talking in Latin, which the journalist spoke fluently. He also left a
donation and asked Don Bosco to enroll him as a Salesian
cooperator; his piety edified all who had the good fortune to meet
him.
2. DoN Bosco·s NAME DAY1
The yearly demonstrations of love and esteem customarily held
on June 24 [feast of St. John the Baptist] were becoming ever more
solemn, thanks to the attendance of men in high positions and of
alumni, the broad range of gifts, the testimonial community
gathering and the general enthusiasm. On the evening of June 23
Don Bosco expressed his thanks, deeply moved by the handsome
tributes paid him at the opening of his name day celebration. He
ended up by comparing himself to a cricket. "I am naught but a
cricket which chirps and dies," he said. The next evening, during
the second testimonial in his honor, the cricket simile prompted a
genial speech given by one of the priests and a delightful dialogue
given by three boys who spoke for their companions, saying, "Don
Bosco is the mother cricket chirping to tell us we are to help him
save our souls, while we baby crickets eagerly respond to his
invitation." One huge transparency in a flood of colors flashed out
the names of thirty-eight places where major Salesian houses were
situated.
We have found inside a large envelope twenty-nine letters of
good wishes written that year by Oratory boys on Don Bosco's
name day. Most of them became Salesians; a few are still alive
[1933]. We shall pick from each letter-in the same order we took
them from the envelope-the most personally significant phrases.
This will give us a better understanding of the intimate life of the
Oratory in Don Bosco's time.
Joseph Zaio asks Don Bosco to pray for his vocation.
7In Italy, as in many other countries, the name day is observed with greater festivity than
the birthday. It is a reminder that the child at baptism-his spiritual birthday-is placed
under the protection of a saint whose virtues he should imitate. At his baptism Don Bosco
had been named after the apostle John, but in 1846 the Oratory boys, believing his name to
be John the Baptist-a very popular saint in Turin-began to celebrate his name day on
June 24, the feast day of this saint. [Editor]
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At the Oratory with Don Bosco from May to December 1880 399
Maggiorino Olivazzo wants Don Bosco to call him "my son."
Joseph Rossi, a third-year Latin student, would like to attend the
spiritual retreat at Lanzo but is afraid that his parents may not
allow it, and so he seeks Don Bosco's advice on the matter. The
two Fracchia brothers tell their spiritual father that they sincerely
love him. Ramiro Lombardi desires to become a missionary.
Emanuel Baudo is eager to grow ever more worthy of Don Bosco's
kindness. Alvin Carmagnola asks for Don Bosco's prayers that the
good Lord may keep him humble and pure and may obtain for him
exemption from military service. John Aceto, a bricklayer,
asks to become a missionary at any cost; in fact he did become a
priest and a most zealous missionary. Albert Coatto states that in
his heart he will always be grateful to Don Bosco for his loving
care. Francis Guazzotti feels moved to tears at the thought of all
the benefits he receives from Don Bosco. John Baptist Fauda, a
senior at Lanzo's secondary school, confides his steadfast resolve
to become a Salesian missionary. Horace Carlando expresses
truly moving words of humble gratitude. Celestine Pirola expresses
himself as a poor lad anxious to repay Don Bosco for all he is doing
but can repay him only with prayer. Attilio Renzoni asks him to
intercede with God that he may improve his behavior. James
Agosta offers his beloved father filial good wishes. Linus Bon-
giovanni desires Don Bosco's friendship and asks for an appoint-
ment to make his general confession. Dominic M agistrini requests
Don Bosco's prayers for two people who have long neglected their
religious duties. Louis Trezzi ask Don Bosco to pray that Mary,
Help of Christians help him with his vocation. Evasio Garrone,
recently discharged from military service, pleads with Don Bosco
to admit him very soon as a cleric. Thomas Dell'Antonio regrets
not having fully confided in Don Bosco and mentions the resulting
spiritual suffering he underwent. Francis Ansaldi asks if he may
attend the spiritual retreat at Lanzo. Louis Crosazzo, who worked
in the Oratory bookstore, begs Don Bosco to obtain a spiritual
grace for him from God. Edward Rosatto reminds him of a
spiritual favor he had asked for a short time before. Paul Graziano
seeks Don Bosco's continued help. Edward Melandri hopes to be
one of Don Bosco's sons one day. Camillo Rappa, a typesetter in
the Oratory printshop, promises to mend his ways. Victor Mazzoni
asks Don Bosco to pray that the Lord will keep strengthening his
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1HE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
vocation. Angelo Rossi, a third-year Latin student, promises to
mend his ways and asks Don Bosco's help. Joseph Cazzaniga, a
bookstore worker, tells Don Bosco that he wants to stay with him
always.8
Speaking to the alumni delegation, Don Bosco informed them
that this time there would be two separate receptions for them: one
on Sunday, July 25, for the laity, and one on the following
Thursday for priests.
At the first assembly on the eve of Don Bosco's name day, there
was an Italian Capuchin from Smyrna [now Izmir]. This good
religious had never before witnessed such a manifestation of
gratitude and voiced his feeling at table. "If the tree is known by its
fruit," he said among other things, "then I must say that your
demeanor, your gratitude, your avowals of love and your promises
of loyalty prove to me that the Oratory is a healthy tree, one which
should extend its roots through all the earth." Don Bosco spoke
last, expressing his delight at seeing so many of his former pupils
around him. He then reminisced about the early days of the
Oratory: a poor little dwelling, a tiny chapel, an inadequate
playground. Yet such humble beginnings gave rise to all that they
could then see as well as what they could not see beyond Turin, in
Italy and in all Europe. He then went on:9
I am delighted to know that you always conduct yourselves as good
Christians and upright citizens. One of you made a comment in his speech
on some ungrateful individual who has turned against his alma mater,
causing us grief, but on this point we should remember two things. To start
with, there were no ingrates among the first Oratory boys. Secondly, the
ingrates were those who did not complete their studies because their bad
conduct caused their dismissal. Anyway, we should not be surprised at
finding some ingrates; there was one even among the twelve apostles,
notwithstanding the fact that he had been educated for three years by the
teacher par excellence, the Son of God Himself made man. We must pity
BFive days later, on the feast of St. Peter the Apostle, Don Bosco sent this telegram of
good wishes to the Pope: "Most Holy Father, Rome. On this day sacred to the Prince of the
Apostles, the Salesians humbly pay homage to his successor in the person of Your Holiness,
invoking your apostolic benediction." Cardinal Nina, secretary of state, replied: "Holy
Father graciously accepts pious Salesian homage; with paternal affection imparts the
implored apostolic benediction." [Author]
9 This speech of Don Bosco and one that followed were jotted down by Father Bonetti and
published in the September issue of the Bollettino Salesiano. [Author]
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At the Oratory with Don Bosco from May to December 1880 401
them, because they are unhappy; let our revenge be in praying that they
may see the light before they die. We are Salesians, and, as such, we
forgive and forget and will continue to do all the good we can without ever
hurting anyone. But though we must show charity to all, we should not
become intimate with those who do not share our spirit. We must conduct
ourselves with the simplicity of the dove and the cunning of the serpent,
and guard ourselves from traitors. 10
But, my dear sons, one thing alone I recommend to you above all else:
wherever you may be, always conduct yourselves as good Christians and
upright citizens. Love, respect and practice our holy faith, in which I have
brought you up and shielded you from the dangers and corruption of the
world; the faith which aids us in our earthly afflictions comforts us at the
point of death and opens to us the gates of everlasting happiness.
Many of you already have a family. Give your children the same
education you received from Don Bosco here at the Oratory. In this way,
while many of your schoolmates traveled as far as South America to save
souls and strove to spread the light of truth and true wisdom in the
kingdom of darkness, error and vice, you can do the same within your
possibilities here. Thus all ofus together will promote God's greater glory
throughout the world, share in saving souls, and lessen the evil let loose
upon society. By so doing you will prove yourselves to be good Salesians
and true sons of Don Bosco, whose only aim has been to populate heaven
and depopulate hell. Our joyous banquet is at an end, but I invite you all to
another which shall know no end. In the name of God and of Mary, Help
of Christians I invite you to the banquet of heaven and ardently pray that
none of you will be missing.
At the gathering of alumni priests, Father Felix Reviglio, pastor
of St. Augustine's, was the one who best interpreted everyone's
feelings. A huge poster on the front wall of the dining room bore the
inscription: GRATEFUL AND DEVOTED SONS GATHER
HERE FROM DIFFERENT CITIES AND TOWNS TO JOIN
THE BEST OF FATHERS AT A JOYFUL BANQUET.
Taking his cue from it, Father Reviglio commented:
Yes, grateful indeed we are, and it's a pleasure for us to proclaim it.
How can we ever forget the loving care Don Bosco lavished upon us when
we were inexperienced and immature young men? Who of us does not feel
10Probably the former pupils were alluding to IE. A. Giustina) the wretched editor of La
Cronaca dei Tribunali. [Author]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
a surge of gratitude to him as we recall his ineffable goodness, his loving
exhortations to advance in virtue, his inexhaustible patience, his endless
efforts to make us better? No, there are no ingrates among us, nor shall
there ever be. We shall manifest our gratitude by conducting ourselves at
all times and in all places as zealous, exemplary priests,just as Don Bosco
would have us do, by publicizing his works, by supporting and boosting
them, and by rising to his defense whenever ignorance or malice prompts
anyone to question his intentions or distort facts, even ifhe be a person of
high station. 11
The priests understood this final allusion. No speech could have
met with heartier applause. In his calm way, as always, Don Bosco
then addressed the gathering and all listened to him in reverent
silence.
My dear sons, you cannot imagine the joy I feel at seeing you around me
once again; I myself can never put it into words. (His voice broke and
everyone was deeply moved.) I have always known that I care for you, but
today my heart incontestably proves it. I am and always will be your most
affectionate and loving father. I would dearly love to see you and talk more
frequently with you, but most of you rarely get to Turin, and more often
than not I am away, and so we miss each other. I hope that from now on
we shall be able to get together at least once a year. I mean to continue
holding this celebration for as long as God gives us life.
I have many things to tell you. Mainly I ask you to do all the good you
can for the youth of your parish, your town, your village, and your own
family. Don Bosco and his Salesians cannot be everywhere, nor can they
open schools and festive oratories wherever there is need. My dearly
beloved, you received your early education in this very house. You are
imbued with the spirit of St. Francis de Sales and have learned how to help
youngsters improve themselves. Fill in for us according to your ability.
Come to Don Bosco's aid to attain all the more readily and on a larger
scale our noble goals-the welfare of the Church and of civil society-
by caring for destitute youngsters. I am not saying that you are to neglect
adults, but these, with few exceptions, you well know are hardly re-
sponsive to our efforts. Let us therefore concentrate on young ones,
shielding them from danger, drawing them to catechetical instruction,
exhorting them to receive the sacraments, safeguarding them from evil,
and leading them back to virtue. By so doing you will see the fruits of your
11See p. 207 and the Index under "Cronaca dei Tribunali." [Editor]
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At the Oratory with Don Bosco from May to December 1880 403
efforts, you will cooperate in the upbringing of good Christians, good
families, good people, and you will stem the present and future flood of
irreligion and corruption.
In order to succeed with youngsters, take great pains to be kind to them;
win their love, not their fear. Show them convincingly that you are working
for their spiritual well-being; be patient and gentle in correcting them, and,
above all, do not strike them. In a word, act in such a way that once they
spot you, they will run over to you rather than dash off, as so often
happens, and justifiably so because they fear a beating. Perhaps in some
cases your sacrifices may seem wasted. Perhaps then and there, yes, but
not for long, not even with the most unruly. Your good advice, welcome or
unwelcome at the moment, and your kindness will leave an impression on
their minds and hearts. The time will come when the good seed will sprout,
bloom, and bear fruit.
Let me tell you what happened to me just a few weeks ago. Early this
month an army captain was seen walking around the Church of Mary,
Help of Christians and the Oratory wall. He seemed to be looking for
something which was no longer there. After a futile search, he asked one of
us who was walking into the grounds, "Would you please tell me where
Don Bosco's Oratory is?"
"Right here, sir."
"Really? There used to be a meadow here once, and a shabby little
house over there which threatened to fall at any moment. Then there was
also a shabby looking shed which served as a chapel and could not be seen
from the outside."
"I have often heard how things were at the beginning, just as you
described them," came the answer, "but I did not have the chance to see
them. Definitely this is the Oratory of St. Francis de Sales or, as you call
it, Don Bosco's Oratory. If you would like to come inside, you are most
welcome."
The captain came in, thoroughly looked at everything, and then asked
with astonishment, "And where is Don Bosco's room?"
"Up there."
"Could I talk to him?"
"I believe so."
He was introduced to me. As soon as he saw me, he exclaimed, "Oh,
Don Bosco, do you still recognize me?"
"I don't recall having ever seen you before."
"Yet you did see me, and you talked to me and were concerned about
me several times. Don't you remember a certain V ... who caused you so
much trouble and worry in 1847, 1848 and 1849? Don't you recall the
many times you told me to keep quiet in church and kept me close to you
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
during catechism class lest I cause trouble? And how seldom I went to
confession?"
"Oh, I surely remember that. Yes, I even recall how, when the bell rang,
you used to duck into the church by one door and dash out the other,
forcing me to chase you."
Then, after telling me the main events of his past thirty years, the
captain added, "I never forgot you or the Oratory. I got to Turin just a
short while ago and came right over to see you. Now I want you to hear my
confession." I gladly agreed. Before letting him go, I asked him, "What
prompted you to make your confession?" Do you know his answer?
"Seeing you again," he said, "reminded me of all the tricks you used to
keep me on the right path: the words you used to whisper in my ear, and
your exhortations to go to confession. These things prompted me to do it."
My dear sons, if a soldier can still remember the religious doctrines
taught to him in his youth, notwithstanding the moral perils of military life
and, when given the opportunity, asks to make his confession, why should
we lose heart and become depressed if we do not get immediate results
from our youngsters? Let us sow the seed and then, as all farmers do,
patiently wait for the harvest. However, I stress again, never forget loving
kindness: win over the boys' hearts through love. Always bear in mind the
maxim of St. Francis de Sales, "More flies are caught with a cup of honey
than with a barrel of vinegar."
Don Bosco continued his talk, but we do not have the rest of it.
We should not pass over in silence the humorous way in which he
scheduled the celebration of the fiftieth anniversary of his first
Mass on the Feast of the Most Holy Trinity in 1891.
It's quite true that eleven years is plenty of time for advance notice and
invitations. Nevertheless, as of now I invite all of you here present to dine
with me on that occasion, and I hope that nobody will be missing. In fact, I
am already appointing my assistants at Mass. Father [Felix] Reviglio, the
pastor of St. Augustine's, will be deacon; Father [Charles] Vaschetti,
vicar forane of Volpiano, subdeacon; Father [Hyacinth] Ballesio, pastor
and vicar forane of Moncalieri, assisting priest; Father Ascanio Savio,
rector of the Rifugio,12 master of ceremonies. We'll plan the rest in due
course. Should the Most High dispose otherwise for us, then let us strive,
my dear children, to meet unfailingly in heaven for a celebration that will
have no end.
12An institution for wayward girls where Don Bosco had served as chaplain. See Vol. II,
pp. 184f. [Editor]
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At the Oratory with Don Bosco from May to December 1880 405
3. Two ATTEMPTS ON Dc)N Bosco·s llFE
Don Bosco's many successes so deprived the enemies of God
and the Church of their sleep that they settled on extreme measures
to get rid of him. Our readers already know of many other attempts
made against his life,13 but one would think that once his works
won public admiration, resort would not be had to such savage and
brutal designs. Yet in 1880, two possibly related attempts, plotted
by anticlericals, were made on his life within a short time.
The first had been set for the latter weeks of June by one
Alexander Dasso, a former Oratory pupil who worked at his trade
in Turin. The young man came to the Oratory gate and asked to
speak with Don Bosco. Since he knew his way about the house, he
went straight to the room and was taken to Don Bosco.
Distraught in appearance, he seemed to be totally lost in anxious
cares of his own, far distant from the priest facing him. Don Bosco's
greeting was as usual cordial, but the youth kept silent and seemed
to grow ever more nervous, so that Don Bosco asked him, "What
do you want? Speak. You know Don Bosco cares for you." At that
the visitor fell on his knees, burst into tears, and sobbingly told him
that he had joined the Freemasons and they had decreed Don
Bosco's death. Twelve members had been chosen by lot to
assassinate him and he was first in line. "I had to be the first, me of
all persons!" he cried. "That's why I'm here, but I shall never do
such a thing! I know they will get back at me and kill me for telling
you, but I could never murder Don Bosco. Never!" With these
words he took out his concealed weapon and threw it to the floor.
Don Bosco helped him to his feet and tried to soothe and support
him, but he could not. The poor fellow dashed out of the room as
though driven into an abyss by a mysterious force. Don Bosco
immediately sent a note to the boy's father, a level-headed person,
to come immediately to the Oratory. He obliged, and Don Bosco
told him the whole story. The young man, however, tom by
remorse, plunged into the Po River on June 23. Fortunately two
customs officers,14 who happened to be nearby, managed to rescue
him. They turned him over to two policemen to escort him home.
13See Vol. III, pp. 21 lf; Vol. IV, pp. 54f, 118, 486-496. [Editor]
14At this time people entering the city from the outside had to pay duty on certain goods.
[Editor]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
Two days later his father informed Don Bosco about the boy's
attempt and asked for help. "Dear Don Bosco," he wrote, "you are
the father of wayward boys. I entrust my son to your endless
charity." Don Bosco repeatedly spoke with this heartbroken father
on how best to bring his son back to the right path and protect him
from the Freemasons' wrath. In addition to giving him generous
assistance, Don Bosco quietly got him out of Italy to a safe refuge
where he lived incognito until the end of his days.
The second attempt on Don Bosco's life was made in December
and was even more startling. A young gentleman in his mid-
twenties called on Don Bosco, who courteously asked him to sit
beside him on the sofa. A quick look at the visitor's appearance was
quite discouraging. His eyes had a sinister flash, and an ill-
concealed nervousness immediately warned Don Bosco to be on
his guard. The young man sat and talked and rambled from topic to
topic, sometimes becoming excited and gesticulating madly. In one
of his frantic flailings, a small six-chambered handgun slid out of
his pocket onto the sofa. Unnoticed, Don Bosco put his hand over it
and deftly pocketed it. Meanwhile, his visitor began provoking him
into a quarrel. At a certain point he suddenly looked swiftly about
him and thrust his hand into his pocket. Rummaging with increasing
surprise and anger, he sprang to his feet, looking about him, unable
to regain his composure. Don Bosco also stood up and, as the
young man kept searching anxiously, asked with great calm, "What
are you looking for?"
"I had something here, in my pocket, and I can't find it. Where
did it go?"
"Maybe you only thought you had it with you," Don Bosco
suggested.
"Nonsense!" the young man replied, and fidgeted about the
room, straying also into the next room.
Don Bosco quickly stepped to the outer door of that room.
Grasping the doorknob with 'his left hand so as to be able to open it
quickly, he leveled the revolver against the man and calmly stated,
"This is what you were looking for, isn't it?"
At first the scoundrel stood dumbfounded, but as he moved to get
his hands on the gun, Don Bosco firmly told him, ''Get out fast and
may God have mercy on you!" He flung the door open and bade
several people waiting in the anteroom to escort the man out of the
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At the Oratory with Don Bosco from May to December 1880 407
Oratory. The would-be murderer hesitated, but Don Bosco firmly
stated, "Get out and never return." He finally complied, and two
members of the Oratory took him as far as the street, where a group
of hoodlums clustered in conversation beside a waiting coach. As
soon as they realized that the attempt had failed, some leaped into
the coach and dashed off, while the others took to their heels. The
young man was left alone and walked off, crestfallen, along Via
Cottolengo.
On escaping unscathed from this second attempt on his life, Don
Bosco called for Father Margotti and asked him ifthe police should
be notifed. After mature deliberation they decided to take no ac-
tion. Father Cagliero was present at their discussion.
4. THE NELVA ESTATE
Don Bosco took steps to acquire more land to extend the
Oratory's property. The building, which today [1933] parallels the
auditorium and whose lobby displays a marble bust of Father
[Joseph] Pavia,15 was free-standing in those days and, with a strip
of land measuring 2,015 square meters and stretching as far as Via
Cottolengo,16 belonged to Mr. John Baptist Nelva. On learning
that both house and land were on the market, Don Bosco moved to
buy them. Difficulties arose on both sides, but Father Rua, who
was free to act in Don Bosco's name, signed the contract on August
17, 1880, a few days before going to Marseille to preside over the
annual spiritual retreat. The sale was made for 13,500 lire and
bound Don Bosco to sell Mr. Nelva a building lot at the comer of
Via Cottolengo and Via Allione, known today as Via Salemo, for
the sum of twelve thousand lire. For many years the N elva house
and land served respectively as residence and playground for the
Valdocco festive oratory.
5. THE SECOND GENERAL CHAPTER
We have much less to record about the second general chapter,
convoked in 1880, than we did about the first17 because we as yet
15See Appendix 1. [Editor]
1ssee Giraudi, L'Oratorio di Don Bosco, Plate VIII-C. [Author]
17See Vol. XIII, pp. 177-219. [Editor]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
have to see any records of it. The minutes were either never
formally drawn up or were lost. Only one of the participants
survives, Father Angelo Rocca,18 who was then director of our
hospice at La Spezia. From his few and fading recollections of this
distant event, it would seem that the chapter was conducted with a
minimum of formalities.
As before, the chapter was held at Lanzo in September, but,
unlike the first time, Don Bosco did not feel that any special
preparations for this general chapter had to be made. Then too, as
Father Rocca wrote, quite a few of the directors and delegates
were very young, not sufficiently mature to make substantial
contributions to the discussions. The older members, Father Rocca
remarked, looked quite haggard and in need of rest. Topics them-
selves were not such as to generate interest or call for serious
study. The most important decision came at the close of the
chapter, when it was unanimously agreed to entrust all deliberations to
the superior chapter which would continue working to finalize
them.
Only three documents of this general chapter remain. The first is
the letter of convocation which notifies the participants that since
the terms of office of all the members of the superior chapter,
except the rector major, were expiring, new elections would be
held.19 The second document, a circular written by Don Bosco in
Latin to the directors and other superiors of the various houses, is
dated the first day of the novena of the Immaculate Conception and
was mailed from Turin. Since time was needed to concretize,
organize and publish the chapter's deliberations, Don Bosco felt
that he should call attention to the following items:
1. Study the deliberations of the first general chapter, especially items
on morality and thrift. 2. Make the monthly manifestation and Exercise
for a Happy Death. 3. No sea bathing, unless prescribed by a doctor.
4. Sincere obedience to superiors. Do not leave the house without proper
permission and just reason. Do not keep money or spend it without need or
1ssee Appendix 1. [Editor]
19The letter was written by Father Rua and signed by Don Bosco who added in his own
hand: "P.S. Our present directory lists all members ofthe superior chapter and points out the
professed members who qualify as candidates for election." This circular had been mailed to
all directors. [Author]
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At the Oratory with Don Bosco from May to December 1880 409
beyond limits allowed by the superior. 5. Eradicate that one source of all
evil: summer vacations at home or in friends' homes. 6. Lead an
exemplary life; avoid all that might have even the appearance of scandal.
7. Be patient, loving and kind in deed and word. 8. All should write to the
rector major in February or March to tell him of their health and vocation.
The directors were asked to give conferences to the confreres on
these topics, so essential to practicing the Salesian lifestyle.
The third and most important document is the booklet entitled
Deliberations published two years later.20 Reading it and com-
paring it with the decisions of the former chapter make it clear
that the second general chapter was only a revision and supplement
of the first. A few things were slightly amended in the light of
experience; some points, hitherto undecided, were added. The few
provisional statements of 1877 which had formed the brief chapter,
entitled Studies in the Salesian Society, were replaced by two long
paragraphs under the heading Ecclesiastical Studies and Philo-
sophic and Literary Studies. Moreover, previous regulations con-
cerning provincials, directors, general chapters, and the govern-
ment of the Daughters of Mary, Help of Christians which had
already been amended or expanded were further expanded by the
addition of two more regulations which had been under study
since 1877; they dealt with the election of members of the superior
chapter and the duties of each confrere. From this we realize that
the second general chapter was not considered as important as the
first by the chapter members themselves and by the confreres.
In presenting the new handbook of Deliberations to the
Salesians, Don Bosco wrote: "The growth of our Pious Society in
Europe and South America is a sure sign that God is blessing it
most particularly. Therefore let every Salesian resolve to become
ever more worthy of God's grace by his spirit of prayer, obedience
and sacrifice. We can attain this spirit by the exact observance of
our constitutions and of these deliberations." Previously he had
also stated that, to a very great extent, the growth of our Society
and the spiritual progress of its members hinged on the observance
of its rules and of the deliberations of the general chapter.
20Deliberazioni def secondo Capitolo Generate della Pia Societa Salesiana tenuto in
Lanzo Torinese nel Settembre 1880, Torino, Tipografia Salesiana, 1881. [Author]
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CHAPTER 20
Accusations, a Misunderstanding
and a Revealing Dream
UJe now resume the painful account of new ordeals
which Don Bosco had to endure as, with single heart, he sought the
glory of God and the Church and labored for the spiritual ad-
vantage of souls. We begin with the closing phase of the conflict
which was sparked by the publicizing of graces that the faithful
attributed to the intercession of Mary, Help of Christians .1 It was
soon after the beautiful celebration of [this feast on] May 24, 1880
that Archbishop [Lawrence] Gastaldi brought charges against Don
Bosco to the Holy See for having published without his consent
accounts of miracles performed by the Blessed Virgin. It is
advisable to read the entire document.2
Most Holy Father:
[No date]
In 1868 the newly founded Salesian Congregation erected a church in
Turin and dedicated it to Mary, Help of Christians; a few years later they
came out with a book full of wondrous favors and miracles said to have
taken place in that church and elsewhere through the intercession of Mary,
Help of Christians. The book was submitted to my chancery and passed
on to a censor, a priest who gave it his nihil obstat. Thereupon the book
was published, though it bore neither the signature of my vicar general nor
1See Vol. XI, pp. 420-425. [Editor]
2This is a copy of the draft written in the archbishop's hand and kept by Father [Dominic]
Franchetti3 of Turin, whom we have already mentioned on several occasions. From this
original the chancery secretary made the copy that was forwarded to Rome. The italicized
words were emphasized in the original. [Author]
3At the death of Canon Thomas Chiuso, private secretary of Archbishop Gastaldi, Father
Franchetti bought the canon's library and found among the books a bundle of letters and
manuscripts concerning the conflicts between the archbishop and Don Bosco. He generously
made them available to the Salesians. [Editor]
410
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Accusations, a Misunderstanding and a Revealing Dream
411
that of any official ofmy chancery. After publication it was announced in
the press that the archbishop had approved the book. I was thus forced to
declare through the diocesan paper that the nihil obstat of one of my
revisors in no way implied the archbishop's approval.
Soon after, the Salesians put out a second edition of the book, tacking
on further miracles. This time the book was sent for approval to the
chancery of Genoa, which gave its nihil obstat, and this second edition
was distributed throughout the archdiocese of Turin under the imprint of
the Salesian Press of Sampierdarena.
This year, 1880, a book entitled ... ,4 most certainly printed in Turin
but purported to have been issued by the Sampierdarena Press, has been
published by the Salesians with the imprimatur of the chancery of Genoa.
It is full of accounts of wondrous favors obtained in the past few years
through the invocation of Mary, Help of Christians, venerated in her
church in Turin.
The Council of Trent in the decree issued in its twenty-fifth session on
the invocation and veneration [of saints] stated: "This holy Synod
orders . .. nowhere, not even in an exempt church, are any new miracles
to be proclaimed unless the bishop has examined and approved them."
And the canonist Ferraris, under the word "miracles," proves conclusively
that the bishop has the right to veil all images and to shut down a church,
even one owned by religious, until an investigation has been conducted
into the so-called miracles reported to have been wrought by those images
or in that particular church.
I therefore wrote to the superior general of the Salesians, asking him to
send the chancery all evidence and testimonies to show that these
wondrous graces are authentic, but, apart from an inconclusive reply, I
have received nothing.
In the meantime this book is circulating by the thousands all over the
city and diocese of Turin and all over Italy as well, proclaiming that these
wondrous events have been taking place over the past eight years. They
are so presented that, if real, they would have taken place under my very
eyes. They are publicized far and wide without my investigation, without
my approval, without my slightest consent, indeed-it would appear-in
defiance of my orders published in the archdiocesan liturgical calendar of
1878.
True, these books carry a disclaimer, in conformity with the decrees of
Urban VIII, stating that the accounts of these miracles carry no more than
4No title is cited in the original. It probably alludes to La Citta di rifugio [The City of
Refuge] edited by Father Lemoyne and published in May 1880's Letture Cattoliche, Issue
No. 330. [Author]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
purely human authority. But does this meet the requirements of the
Council of Trent? I do not think so, for these are not events that took place
in the ancientpast or infar-offplaces; they are said to be happening in our
time, in this archdiocesan see, and as if under the very gaze of the
archbishop of Turin, whom the Council of Trent charges to investigate and
authenticate those so-called miracles before they are publicly proclaimed.
It is obvious, therefore, that, if we abide by the decree of Trent, such
wondrous events are in no way to be publicized, most especially in the
diocese where they are said to have occurred, without previous investi-
gation and authentication by the local bishop.
Furthermore, what kind of human authority are we talking about here?
Does it not mean that the competent authority is to study and approve the
testimony of witnesses? And who is the authority competent to interrogate
witnesses, judge their credibility, and determine whether or not the events
they have witnessed are miraculous? The Council of Trent has decreed
that it must be the bishop of that diocese. Therefore there is no such thing
as a human authority in regard to miracles prior to the bishop's
investigation and determination.
Let me also say that Turin has a population of 240,000, with a good
number of learned people, university professors and students, and nu-
merous highly respected magistrates. If these events are heedlessly
publicized as miracles to the belief of thousands-not without a semblance
of prospective and substantial profit-making-the Church authorities
cannot help but conclude that the educated world of today, already
inclined either to incredulity or to obstinate rejection of any and every
supernatural principle, will react by scoffing at the miracles recorded in
Sacred Scripture or in Church history. Let us not forget that in 1877 a
young woman hospitalized in The Little House of Divine Providence
carried on a grand deception in Turin for nine months by fraudently
claiming to be hypnotized.
It is therefore my considered opinion that the Salesians are to be strictly
enjoined from publishing further reports of any kind of miracle wrought
in Turin's Church of Mary, Help of Christians without the previous
authorization of the Church authorities, and that they should be ordered to
withdraw from circulation and destroy all literature hitherto published
concerning these so-called miracles.
I feel that it is very gravely incumbent upon me to inform Your Holiness
of these matters, so that, in your wisdom, you may take such measures as
you deem advisable.
Imploring your apostolic blessing upon myself and my diocese, I
remain, etc.
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Accusations, a Misunderstanding and a Revealing Dream
413
The Pope passed the letter on to Cardinal Bartolini, prefect of the
Congregation of Rites, who asked the archbishop for copies of the
books in question, assuring him of a thorough investigation. The
archbishop sent the books with a fiery covering letter.5 The inves-
tigation was entrusted officially to Monsignor Lawrence Salvati,
promoter of the faith. His report on the veracity of events
was issued on July 16. In substance he made the following points:
there is no doubt that any canonical investigation and decision on
miracles attributed to God's power or to the intercession of the
Blessed Virgin Mary or the saints is the exclusive concern of the
bishop; nevertheless, it is not always easy or advisable to conduct
such a canonical investigation and approval, one reason being that
some miraculous events "such as those of Turin are often more
apparently favors rather than miracles." In such cases-Monsignor
Salvati continued-he was of the opinion that, according to a
decree of the Holy Inquisition, dated May 23, 1668, it was the
bishops' duty to examine and approve books beforehand lest they
contain doctrinal errors or statements which sound odd, ridicu-
lous or contrary to sound critique. At the same time they were not
to express an opinion or positively assert the truthfulness of
miraculous events; rather, they were only to allow their publication
as simple accounts resting solely on grounds of human probability,
sufficient to give some degree of certainty. Hence, an explicit
statement of the author to this effect, conforming to the standard
decree of Urban VIII, is sufficient. These were the norms-as the
promoter of the faith explained in detail-which were recently
applied by the Sacred Congregation of Rites in two recent decrees
concerning two cases presented respectively by the bishop of
Santiago, Chile, and the bishop of Capua.6 He stated further:
5 We have the letter sent to the cardinal. It was written by the archbishop's secretary, only
the date and the signature being in the archbishop's hand. It was notarized by B. Natale
under No. 2993. (Editor's note: This letter is filed as Document 59 in the Appendix of this
volume in the Italian original.) [Author]
6The former asked about the authenticity of Our Lady's apparition to St. Peter Nolasco in
Barcelona and about publishing this apparition as miraculous. The reply stated that the
Sacred Congregation neither approved nor rejected the apparition, but allowed its publi-
cation as something worthy of simple human credence; it might therefore be published or
publicized by word of mouth if the usual norms were followed. The bishop of Capua, who
had made a similar request concerning the miracles at Lourdes and La Salette, received an
identical reply. [Author]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
These are the norms commonly followed nowadays everywhere,
including Rome. Properly run shrines keep a record of favors received,
which occasionally bear marks of the supernatural and which the faithful
report they have personally witnessed. Being convinced that they obtained
these favors from the Queen of Heaven, they fulfill the vows they made.
When advisable, an edifying collection of these accounts, well docu-
mented, is published in booklet form with the approval of the competent
Church reviewers, who follow the norms set for biographies and accounts
of miracles attributed to the saints, the blessed, and the servants of God.
Monsignor Salvati did not brush off the very serious insinuation
of sordid gain. Rather, he superbly rebutted Archbishop Gastaldi's
charge as follows:
Donations of money and precious objects generously given to the
Church of Mary, Help of Christians do not constitute sordid gain because
they are all free-will offerings prompted by a simple religious feeling of
gratitude and are in themselves eloquent affirmations of favors having
been granted. They are signs and acknowledgments which God in every
age and time has always welcomed for His greater glory and the
edification of His people. Every shrine of the Blessed Virgin Mary boasts
of similar precious ex-voto gifts and donations as well as many votive
plaques which over the years witness to miraculous cures and marvelous
favors. Newer shrines-such as that at Lourdes-owe their origin to a
long succession of miracles and generous votive offerings made by persons
who have been the recipients of favors.
Monsignor Salvati then offered a personal word of advice,
counseling a more dignified presentation and more careful regard to
detail. He planned to suggest to the "good Salesian Fathers" to
better achieve their pious intents by publishing as soon as they
could a new, thoroughly revised edition of at least their main
publications endorsed with the nihil obstat of the local bishop. That
the ordinary of another diocese was requested to approve a pub-
lication narrating miraculous events which took place in Turin, in
the Church of Mary, Help of Christians, he felt was an unin-
tentional oversight.
Don Bosco received a copy of this report. In tum, he submitted
the matter to the learned Jesuit canonist, Father [John Baptist]
Rostagno, who drew up a report proving four points: 1. Miracles
attributed to canonized saints do not require the ordinary's rigorous
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Accusations, a Misunderstanding and a Revealing Dream
415
investigation before being published, but only a simple reading to
guarantee that the publication contains nothing smacking of
superstition or offensive to doctrine and devotion. 2. As Avanzini7
wrote in the Acta Sanctae Sedis-with the approval of the Master
of Sacred Palaces-ecclesiastical review was not required either in
Italy or in Belgium and France; in fact, the requirement of the
bishop's review was not observed by the clergy even in Turin.8
3. The Salesians had obtained the approval of the ordinary of the
diocese where the book was printed, and that was sufficient. The
objection that the pamphlets had actually been printed in Turin
could be rebutted by the fact that Archbishop Gastaldi had himself
approved books published in other dioceses by authors not under
his own juridiction. 4. The archbishop's demand to investigate the
miracles because they were related to an image venerated in a
church of his archdiocese was inadmissible, since the rigorous
investigation ordered by the Council of Trent concerned cases very
different from this.
To clarify matters Don Bosco sent Father Rostagno's report to
Cardinal Bartolini and at the same time got in touch with
Monsignor Salvati, inviting him to the Oratory. We regret that we
have no copy of this letter, for, as we gather from the monsignor's
reply, it states his readiness to do everything he could to eliminate
all causes of disagreement. We quote from Monsignor Salvati's
answer of August 26:
Let me dutifully assure you of my deep esteem for your most worthy
person and ofmy thanks for the noble, courteous tenor of your letter; I did
nothing more than carry out my office. As for the controversy, I draw your
attention to the remarks I made for the future after I checked out the facts
as they appear in the documents. I think that the most important point is
the practical suggestion of how we might work out some solution to this
regrettable difference of opinion. I am delighted to learn from you that the
7Father Peter Avanzini (1832-1874) was the founder of the Acta Sanctae Sedis (1865)
which in 1871 became officially the Acta Apostolicae Sedis. [Editor]
8Among other cases, Father Rostagno cited that of Father Corte, a Rosminian who
published a series of vicious articles defending his philosophy course against the attacks of a
Jesuit and against the entire Society of Jesus. He drew heavily from Pascal's9 Provincial
Letters and from his annotator, and then collected his own articles in one volume which he
published [in Turin] without ecclesiastical approval. The chancery office said not a word
about it. [Author]
9Blaise Pascal (1623-1662), philosopher, mathematician and apologist. [Editor]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
whole matter is without foundation. This is not the first time the devil has
built up on nothing a mountain of obstacles against God's finest works.
Once we are aware of the deceit, we can easily guard against it and, using
the prudence which is your hallmark, come up with a victory. As for
coming to Turin, I gratefully accept your cordial offer and shall avail
myself of it at my first suitable opportunity. I will be happy and honored to
meet you personally.
We have narrated the sequel of the clarification given above in
Volume XI. 10 One weak point of the archbishop's charges was that
he labeled as "miracles" what were presented simply as "favors."
The whole controversy proves our assertion, and an incident on
November 6 confirms it. The owner of Binelli Press, which was
publishing Agreda's 11 Mystical City of God, personally presented
a complimentary copy of the first volume to Archbishop Gastaldi.
After glancing through the book, the archbishop was not pleased
with the offer and stated that at best he would not forbid its
publication. 12
"How do you hope to market the book?" he asked.
"Hopefully some friendly readers will help me. Besides, I shall
give a sizable number of copies on consignment to the Oratory of
St. Francis de Sales."
"The Oratory of St. Francis de Sales?" echoed the archbishop in
wonderment.
"Yes, at Don Bosco's bookstore."
"Quite proper! The miracles related in the Mystical City ofGod
are very similar to Don Bosco's 'miraculous wonders.' If Our Lady
really works them, fine! If not, he makes them up and sells them."
The May issue of Catholic Readings kept carrying accounts of
these favors year after year, with the ready approval of the bishop
of Genoa, as if they were printed at Sampierdarena. However,
great caution was taken not to mislead readers into judging as
10Pages 424f. [Editor]
11 Maria de Agreda (1602-1665), a discalced Franciscan nun, was a Spanish mystic
writer. [Editor]
12The original work Mistica ciudad de Dios, a detailed biography of the Blessed Virgin
Mary purportedly revealed by angels to Maria de Agreda, aroused both great acclaim and
harsh condemnation when it was published in 1670. In 1683 it was placed on the Index of
Forbidden Books, but eventually it was removed from it since it did not contain doctrinal
errors. It did, however, affect adversely Maria de Agreda's process of beatification. [Editor]
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Accusations, a Misunderstanding and a Revealing Dream
41 7
"miracles" events which were only simple favors in response to
prayer.
To this year also belongs a despicable house search of the
Oratory. On the morning of August 28 a city official and a squad of
police descended on the Oratory printshop and ordered all hands to
remain at their posts, while guards took up strategic positions. Then
a careful search began, though no one knew what the police were
looking for. Only when the galley proofs of the Bollettino Sale-
siano were confiscated was the secret let out, but nobody knew
why. Officially the periodical carried the imprint of Sampierdarena,
but frequently circumstances made it necessary to have it printed at
the Oratory. This was an expedient to avoid endless conflicts with
the Turin chancery and consequent delays caused by submitting it
for ecclesiastical approval. The official pulled the police out,
announced that the search was over, and, when asked for an
explanation, sarcastically replied, "Conflict of rights!" Before
leaving, however, he was made to draw up a report stating that de
facto the printshops of Turin and Sampierdarena were really one.
Don Bosco was not at the Oratory at the time. He was preaching
a spiritual retreat to some women and subsequently to the
Daughters of Mary, Help of Christians at Nizza Monferrato. When
informed of what had happened, he wrote Father Rua this note:
Dear Father Rua,
Nizza Monferrato, August 21, 1880
I have no idea why the police conducted a house search. We have
always considered the printshop at Sampierdarena a branch of the one in
Turin and sent jobs there only to give our boys work to do. Both shops are
approved by the government. Ifwe have to go through more formalities, let
them tell us and we shall comply.
Come to me here so we can talk. You can leave Turin on Sunday at nine
in the morning via the Turin-Bra-Nizza line. You'd get here by two in the
afternoon and you can leave for Genoa at six-thirty in the evening. 13
If you intend to spend the night here, come on any train you like. The
Asti-Castagnole train leaves Turin at one in the afternoon, arriving at
13Father Rua was to leave for Marseille to conduct the spiritual retreat for the Salesians.
[Author]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
Nizza at six. Check the timetable.
Until we meet, may God bless us all. Amen.
Yours affectionately,
Fr. John Bosco
Anxious as always to protect his Oratory from harmful
suspicions, he wrote directly to the king's procurator on his return
to Turin to find out the real reason for the unexpected house search.
Dear Sir:
Turin, August 31, 1880
The police came to this home on the eighteenth of this month and
conducted a search to ascertain where-it was said-the Bollettino
Salesiano is being printed, at Valdocco or at Sampierdarena.
Since I was away at the time and the person interrogated probably could
not give the police satisfactory answers, I feel that I should sum up the
situation briefly and exactly.
The Bollettino was originally known as the Bibliofilo [Booklover].
While it was being printed in Turin we followed all laws and dutifully sent
sample copies to the proper officials, as may be verified from receipts
signed by your office.
In September 1877 the poor boys at our hospice in Sampierdarena
needed work to do, and so from Turin we sent the necessary equipment
along with a group of instructions for the printing of the Bibliofilo or
Bollettino Salesiano.
Please note that all the time the magazine was being printed here in
Turin, the city did not demand that a manager be named, since it was
merely a catalogue of books we printed and sold. It was only in September
1877 that the king's procurator in Genoa required that it have a manager,
and Mr. Joseph Ferrari was immediately named and is still in office.
From September 1877 to August 13 of this year all government
regulations on publishing have been complied with, as you may ascertain
from the public reports issued by the king's procurator. But the binding
and the mailing of the Bollettino continued to be done in Turin, where we
have more young apprentices for that work.
Printing instead continued to be done, totally or in part, at
Sampierdarena; it is done here in Turin only when the printshop at
Sampierdarena cannot fit it into its other jobs, since the Bollettino must
meet deadlines.
It is quite obvious from all this that our printshop here in Turin forms
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Accusations, a Misunderstanding and a Revealing Dream
419
one entity with that at Sampierdarena, since both have a single owner
responsible for all the work and the presses, and also because all my poor
boys work on a temporary basis in either shop, depending on demand, so
that both shops are really two branches of a single publishing house. In
this and in all matters I have made it my sacred duty to comply with the
law. I never felt that the present set-up violated the law in any way. Should
there be any other formalities I must conform with-I do not know of
any-please notify me, so that I may continue educating these poor
working lads to whose moral and social betterment I have dedicated my
life, without all the upset and worry that this house searched caused us.
If the search was prompted by some other violation of law or for
political reasons, I respectfully and earnestly ask you to tell me of it for my
own guidance and for that of my other hostels, unless it is a confidential
matter reserved to your office.
I am sure you will understand my frankness in writing. I am honored to
remain,
Your most humble servant,
Fr. John Bosco
In time it came to be known through a young man named Vallero,
an Oratory alumnus employed at the civil court at Borgo Dora, that
the house search had been prompted by two anonymous letters
alleging that secret publications were being run off by the Oratory
presses. One copy of the above letter carries a note of Father Berto
stating that the whole thing seems to have been masterminded by
Canon [Emanuel] Colomiatti, fiscal attorney for the archdiocesan
chancery. Whatever the magistrate replied to Don Bosco's letter,
the charges apparently never reached the courts.
While all this was going on, two other complaints were filed
[against Don Bosco], one with the Salesians' cardinal protector, the
other with the Sacred Congregation of the Council. We do not
know the contents of Archbishop Gastaldi's letter to Cardinal
Nina, but we do have the actual text of the second. 14 Among other
charges we read:
This past year, as a public sign of my esteem and trust in Don Bosco, I
offered him ownership of a private house and garden of mine in Turin,
14Letter from Archbishop Gastaldi to the cardinals of the Congregation of the Council,
Turin, December 5, 1880. [Author]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
with the sole condition that two of his religious run free classes and a
festive oratory for the poor boys of the neighborhood. However, I have not
received even the courtesy of an answer.
The facts are as follows. Archbishop Gastaldi, anxious to annex
to the new Church of the Sacred Heart a free school and a festive
oratory for boys, addressed a letter to Father Cagliero on March
22, 1880 in which he stated that he was offering him and, through
him, to the Salesian Congregation a home and property of his own,
along with six thousand lire, on condition that the Salesians agree
to run in perpetuity two elementary grades for poor boys through
ten months of the year, as well as a festive oratory. Two contracts
were to be drawn up: a notarized deed of sale to three members of
the Congregation, and a contract between the archbishop, Father
Rua, Father Cagliero and the three property recipients who would
accept the aforesaid obligations in the name of the Congregation. If
the conditions were not met, the property would temporarily revert
to the archbishop of Turin. This agreement would be submitted to
the approval of the Sacred Congregation of Bishops and Regulars.
He enclosed a plan of the building in the letter and expected an
affirmative reply.
Since Archbishop Gastaldi addressed the letter to Father
Cagliero, he knew that Don Bosco was away in Rome at the time.
Father Cagliero did not reply immediately, because he wanted to
wait until Don Bosco's return. The archbishop wrote to him again
on April 8: "Please come to see me as soon as possible to discuss
the matter I wrote to you about, since I am most anxious to settle it
as quickly as possible." Father Cagliero then called on the arch-
bishop.
He and other superiors knew that the same offer had been made
to other religious communities and been turned down. After
carefully checking the matter out, Father Cagliero told the
archbishop that, for lack of personnel and funds, the Salesian
Congregation could not accept a new undertaking and its obli-
gations on only three hundred lire a year, which is what the six
thousand lire came down to. He therefore concluded that for the
time being it would be impossible to take on a burden of such size.
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Accusations, a Misunderstanding and a Revealing Dream
421
The archbishop concurred with Father Cagliero that an annual
stipend of only three hundred lire a year would be inadequate to run
the project, and so they agreed to suspend negotiations until the
opening of the new church and house of St. John the Evangelist, not
very far from the locality. Then it would not be a strain to send two
teachers from there to run the projected classes every morning and
afternoon.
Everything seemed now to be running smoothly, but then Don
Bosco received this letter from Cardinal Nina:
My dear Father,
Rome, June 23, 1880
I understand from reliable sources that several months ago the
archbishop of Turin offered to donate to the Salesian Congregation a
handsome home and spacious grounds, his personal property, in the area
of the new parish church of the Sacred Heart of Jesus. It was his wish that
the Salesians open two free elementary grades for poor boys of the
neighborhood, since such facilities are badly needed in that new
development. Besides the property he also offered six thousand lire, a sum
he would readily increase should he have to do so to enhance his offer.
As I was told, the offering was coldly received on the part of your
Congregation, so much so that the archbishop finally had to write and ask
you to call on him to discuss the matter.
Rather than see him personally, it seems that you sent a member of your
Congregation to ascertain his wishes, and he was told to wait for your
decision and has yet to receive a definite reply.
I will not hide my disappointment on learning of this. After all the
differences that have come between you and the archbishop, I should think
you would have done all you could to go along with his kind offer and give
him a token of your anxious care to keep friendly relations with him. Since
I do not doubt this concern of yours, I must conclude that some serious
reasons are keeping you from making a decision to accept or refuse the
offer; nevertheless, I feel that your attitude in this matter is not conducive
to ease the tension which you yourself have often deplored.
Since I do not intend to base my opinion only on hearsay, please send
me your clarifications on this matter. With great esteem,
Affectionately yours,
Lawrence Cardinal Nina
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
Don Bosco replied as follows:
Your Eminence,
Turin, July 10, 1880
Since the request of the archbishop of Turin which your letter of June
23 treats of was handled by others in my absence, I thought it best to ask
the person who dealt with it to give you an honest account of what
happened. I cannot help but feel deeply distressed by such a distortion of
facts.
This is the manner also in which Father Joseph Lazzero, director of our
motherhouse, was abruptly suspended from hearing confessions,15 with no
canonical procedure of any ~ind. So also has Father John Bonetti been
kept out of Chieri for more than eighteen months,16 and, despite reiterated
requests of the Sacred Congregation of the Council for an explanation of
that censure, no answer has been received and the punishment still holds. I
too incurred a [threat of] suspension, and at the moment I am under the
cloud of two warnings issued to me on November 25 and on December 1,
1887, which threaten automatic suspension. 17
If personally or through others I write or publish anything which in any
way touches upon the archbishop of Turin, I send it to no one except the
Supreme Pontiff, while His Excellency the archbishop writes whatever he
pleases, maligning the Salesians even to the Sacred Roman Congregations,
without my being able to respond as I have the right to.
Notwithstanding this situation, there are more than three hundred
Salesians working zealously in the archdiocese of Turin, and they seek
neither honors nor compensation of any kind. So far no one has uttered a
single word of reproach against them.
I have never asked the archbishop of Turin for anything except to tell
me any complaint he may have against me and not to send the Holy See
distorted reports. So far all has been in vain. This is the source ofthe grave
difficulties we keep running into when we ask the Sacred Congregation of
Bishops and Regulars to normalize our humble Salesian Society and give
it the same status which other religious institutions definitively approved
by the Holy See enjoy.
I do not say this to lodge a complaint; the times are too risky. We must
strengthen our good will to work for God's glory and nothing else.
The Salesians join me in thanking Your Eminence for your kind
1ssee Vol. XIII, pp. 254, 260. [Editor]
1ssee pp. 46, 172. [Editor]
11See Vol. XIII, p. 285. [Editor]
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Accusations, a Misunderstanding and a Revealing Dream
423
concern. We ask God to keep you in good health as we request your holy
blessing in profound thanks. On behalf of all, I am honored to be,
Yours devotedly,
Fr. John Bosco
With his own, Don Bosco enclosed a letter from Father Cagliero,
relating how the discussion with the archbishop had ended in
agreeing to a temporary suspension of negotiations. He concluded
as follows:
Don Bosco, Father Rua and I, as well as all those who were told of the
archbishop's project, had not the slightest idea of the serious import of this
proposal, nor could we foresee the regrettable consequences which would
fall upon our heads. After all, other religious communities had given a
definitely negative answer, whereas we had only asked for an extension of
time.
This case had more surprises in store. At this stage Don Bosco
was giving the matter no further thought, confident that the
explanations had been quite sufficient, but on August 16 he
received a letter from Cardinal Nina which opened as follows: "I
have been awaiting an answer to my letter of last June 23 with an
anxiety warranted by the gravity of the matter and my desire to end
the hostility which is deplorable under every aspect."
This meant that both letters of July 10 had not reached the
cardinal. They were rewritten on September 3. After that, we find
no further official reference to the matter in Rome, although, as we
stated in the beginning, the archbishop of Turin thought that he
could bring up the case again in December.
Another misunderstanding occurred that year, hardly significant
in itself, but not so insignificant that we can ignore it, for, after all,
the hues of a painting may vary in brightness, but all are essential to
the overall effect.
On October 12, while making a pastoral visit to Volpiano on the
outskirts of his archdiocese, Archbishop Gastaldi unexpectedly
dropped in at the neighboring Salesian house of San Benigno.
Arriving without notice, he walked into the workshops, where he
could not have expected the poor young lads, hands smeared with
cobbler's wax or printer's ink, to dash over and kiss his ring.
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
Nevertheless, some ten days later he wrote to Don Bosco to praise
the courtesy of the superiors who happened to be present, but
censuring the conduct of the boys in three of the workshops and
blaming a few clerics who had hastily scooted out of the playground
on seeing him.
Father Barberis, the director, answered the letter, explaining the
situation as we have described it and saying that the clerics had
scurried out of the playground because they had been doing manual
labor and were in no condition to greet an archbishop.
How endless were misunderstandings that occurred within a
span of ten years! The worst of them all was always the arch-
bishop's obsession that Don Bosco and his Salesians were delib-
erately and obstinately waging war against their ordinary's
authority. He said as much once more on October 18 in a letter to
Monsignor [Anthony] Belasio18 who, trusting in their long-standing
friendship, tried to use his influence to soften his adamant stand
toward Don Bosco. God allowed all this to happen in the secret
designs of His infinite wisdom, but He did not leave His servant
without comfort, endowing him with insights and heavenly graces.
In the summer of 1880 Don Bosco had a dream in which he
foresaw, under the guise of symbols, future events. On the night of
July 9 he saw a mysterious rainfall, whose meaning we may detect
from the following notes of Father Lemoyne: "The conflict with
Archbishop Gastaldi had reached its climax. The matter of Father
Bonetti's suspension was at the peak of tension; Rome seemed to
favor the archbishop against us; all human hopes seemed to have
vanished. Under these circumstances an unfavorable verdict would
have been disastrous."
This was Don Bosco's dream. He found himself conferring with
his chapter in the room adjoining his own, known as the bishop's
room. While he was talking of the Congregation's affairs, the sky
darkened and a storm broke out with frightful lightning and
thunderbolts. One thunderclap louder than all the rest shook the
entire house. Father Bonetti stood up and dashed into the corridor,
crying aloud after a moment, "It's raining thorns!" In fact thorns
were falling like thick drops of water in a torrential downpour. Then
18See Vol. XII, pp. 230, 240f; Vol. XIII, p. 577. [Editor]
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Accusations, a Misunderstanding and a Revealing Dream
425
crune a second mighty clap of thunder as powerful as the first, and
immediately the sky brightened somewhat. Father Bonetti was
heard to shout in the corridor, ''How wonderful! It is raining flower
buds!" The air was full of blossoms which covered the ground in a
thick layer.
Then catne a third deafening roar of thunder, and patches of clear
blue sky appeared with glimpses of the sun. Father Bonetti cried
out, "Now it's raining flowers!" Flowers of every kind and size and
color filled the air, blanketing the ground and roofs of houses in a
splendor of colors in the twinkling of an eye.
A fourth burst of thunder resounded across the heavens. The sky
turned sparkling blue, and the sun shone brightly. Father Bonetti
shouted, "Come, look! It's raining roses." Indeed fragrant roses
were falling through the sky. "At last!" Father Bonetti exclaimed.
The next morning Don Bosco called the superior chapter
together to tell them of his dream. Taking a quick look at the flow of
events we can probably detect the successive phases of this lengthy
conflict in the distinct parts of this extraordinary dream. Till then
all had been thorns. Later, however slowly, matters began to take a
tum for the better. Two verdicts issued by Rome were favorable to
Don Bosco; then Leo XIII took the whole affair into his own hands
and personally laid down the terms of an amicable settlement of
Archbishop Gastaldi's conflict with Don Bosco, who impressed the
Roman prelates by his humility. However, the war was not ended.
In 1883, when Archbishop Gastaldi learned that Don Bosco was
going to France, he wrote to the ordinaries of Lyons and Marseille
not to allow Don Bosco to preach. The letters arrived after
Archbishop Gastaldi's sudden death [midmorning on March 25].
Still, Don Bosco was not allowed to speak in public in Lyons. The
archbishop of Paris, instead, invited him to preach in one of the
city's principal churches, assuring him that, even were the arch-
bishop of Turin still alive, he would have paid no heed to his
request. Soon after, the arrival of Cardinal [Cajetan] Alimonda to
the archdiocese of Turin proved a cherished blessing for Don
Bosco. Then, on March 24, 1884, the eve of the feast of the
Annunciation, Cardinal [Innocent] Ferrieri, who had fallen victim
to a severe nervous condition, removed his objections to granting
Don Bosco the privileges he had for years been requesting. The
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
decree reached the Oratory at long last on July 9, 1884 amid
singular circumstances, as we shall see. From then on, a period of
peace opened for Don Bosco, lasting to the not too distant day of
his death.
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CHAPTER 21
Cooperators at San Benigno
and Borgo San Martino
DESPITE all the work and harassment, Don Bosco still
found not only the time but, more surprisingly, the peace of mind to
keep in touch with his cooperators, discuss his projects with them
and solicit their help. And so it was that in the summer of 1880 he
went to San Benigno Canavese and to Borgo San Martino to con-
duct the first conference of Salesian cooperators in each of those
towns. 1
The conference at San Benigno was held on June 4. Following is
the main tenor of his talk. He was pleased, he said, to meet for the
first time the local cooperators, and he went on to acquaint them
with the spiritual benefits they were entitled to as members of the
pious association and showed them how as cooperators they might,
by observing the rules, live like religious in the world. In fact, this
association might well be considered a kind of third order of older
times but updated to meet current needs. Today, he said, the hue
and cry goes up, Work, Education, Humaneness. Well, thanks to
these cooperators, Salesians were accomplishing three things:
setting up workshops in the cities and agricultural schools in
farming areas; opening boarding schools for boys and girls, as well
as day schools, night schools and Sunday classes; establishing
hospices for orphaned and abandoned children by the thousands.
They were reaching out even to the heathens with the blessings of
civilization. The cooperators, he observed, by prayer, moral sup-
port, and material assistance, are so many arms of Don Bosco
and of the Salesians in maintaining this threefold benefit. Time was
when society was imbued by faith, and all one had to do was to join
religious in their practices of piety, but now-besides praying,
1See Bollettino Salesiano, July and August 1880. [Author]
427
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
which is never to be neglected-one must be engaged, actively
engaged in work, if we are not to court diaster.
More positively, he cited the religious instruction of youth as the
special task of the cooperators. Men and women cooperators both
can do much good by giving alms and good advice, he said, but they
~an do even more by offering their services to their pastors and
teaching catechism to children. The Catholic catechism class in the
festive oratories is the only hope of salvation for so many poor
young people adrift in a perverted society. Despite all their zeal,
pastors and parish priests cannot reach everywhere; they need
helpers in their ministry of catechizing who can get the children into
church, urge parents to send them, supervise the classes and teach
catechism. He cited a fine example. In a village of six thousand
people, only some forty children were attending catechism classes.
Well, under the pastor's leadership, the cooperators soon rounded
up as many as four hundred youngsters and, during the Easter
season, managed to convince nearly seven hundred to go to
confession and Communion; of them, some four hundred boys and
girls made their First Communion.
He then listed other works of mercy which cooperators could
easily do, such as being peacemakers in families, redirecting the
wayward to the right path, and providing funds for the poor. All
this, however, was to be done with gentleness, charity and
discretion, the three characteristic virtues of the true Salesian
cooperator. He especially recommended to his hearers-as we
might well understand-the new hospice being then opened at San
Benigno.
As for the cooperators' conference at Borgo San Martino on
July 1, we can fortunately give our readers various highlights in
Don Bosco's own words:
I happened to be in Rome when the unforgettable Pius IX of saintly
memory received the representatives of the Catholic press in public
audience, and I can still recall the magnificent speech he delivered that
day. To animate Catholic writers to wage a winning battle against the
enemy of God and the Church, he urged unity among themselves and
used, as an example, a Spanish bullfight. Without in the least endorsing
this form of sport, which recalls Moorish supremacy in Spain, the Holy
Father described how the toreadors go about subduing and killing the fiery
animal. The huge beast is let loose into a vast arena that has been fenced in
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Cooperators at San Benigno and Borgo San Martino
429
to protect the immense crowd of spectators. Goaded on by shouting,
pursued by picadors, and driven wild by fury, the bull roars tremendously
and charges at random with lowered head, seeking to impale his attackers,
but as the combatant sees it approach, he leaps to one side and jabs the
bull's nostrils or neck with his sword. The wounded beast swerves to
charge another, and he too thrusts his weapon into it. Thoroughly enraged,
the bull then roars in panic, dashing about the arena and trying to run
down those who block its way, but it faces enemies at every step and,
waiting for an opening, they stab its flanks, head and neck. Finally the
matador thrusts his sword into the back of its neck and, after a futile
struggle, the beast at last sinks to the ground and dies. It is the combatants'
unified front which tires, overcomes and wears down the ferocity of the
bull, commented Pius IX. Holy Scripture calls the enemies of God and the
Church, with whom we contend in battle, bulls. Tauri pingues ... obse-
derunt me [Ps. 21, 13], the royal prophet laments-fierce men like bulls
have besieged me. We can voice the same lament in these sorry times of
ours. Do we want to overthrow these enemies and be victorious? Then we
must stand united against them, a solid front, alert to all assaults, careful
not to wield either pen or spoken word against one another. These are not
Pius Xi's precise words, but they pretty much tell his message.
I have brought this incident and these words to your attention, my dear
friends, so that you may better understand the necessity we good Chris-
tians have today to stand united in furthering good projects and halting the
bad, for uniting creates strength.
Back in 1841 when I first began to gather boys together on Sundays to
save them from the streets, give them a chance for clean fun, and teach
them their holy religion, I realized my need for people to give me a helping
hand. Even then many of the city's priests and laymen, and later several
wonderful women, responded to my plea and came to help me, some by
gathering the youngsters for me, others by staying with them and teaching
them catechism. The ladies and, later, women religious helped me by
washing and mending the lads' clothing and providing linen for the poorest
and neediest. God's help and the kindness of these good people enabled
me and all my Salesians to accomplish the works you read of in the
Bollettino Salesiano, which I need not recount now.
Once it became apparent how much people united together could do to
help out poor youngsters, we decided to found a formal association under
the name of the Association of Salesian Cooperators and sought to have it
approved by the Vicar of Jesus Christ. Many bishops gave it official
recognition in their own dioceses and commended it to the Holy See;
among the heartiest sponsors, I am proud to say, was His Excellency,
Bishop Peter Ferre, our beloved shepherd. Pope Pius IX, of saintly
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THE BIOGRAPIIlCAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
memory, examined and approved the project; indeed, concerned that the
Association should grow, he opened to it the Church's treasury of
indulgences. From the year of its approval, 1876, to the present day the
cooperators, men and women, have grown to thirty thousand and continue
to grow every day as more faithful come to learn about it.
He then briefly summarized Salesian projects which the
generosity of the cooperators had made possible, all of which we
already know. He then explained what they had to do to become
true Salesian cooperators and to benefit by the special favors
granted the Association by the Church.
First, let me say that to gain the indulgences that the Vicar of Jesus
Christ has granted us, we must carry out certain requirements. We must
visit a stated church or receive confession and Communion when such
requirements have been attached to the indulgence; the Salesian cooper-
ators are held to this as are the Franciscan tertiaries. Then, too, to
gain the indulgences, one must be a member ofthe Association of Salesian
Cooperators and carry out its aims.
How does one belong? One must be enrolled by the superior of the
Salesian Congregation or his delegate and be a member in good standing.
At one's induction he or she receives a diploma and a copy of the
regulations and then is expected to practice works of mercy in the spirit of
the Association and according to its aims.
Is it really necessary, you may ask, to carry out each single act of mercy
listed in the rules? No, of course not, nor do you have to do so within a
prescribed period of time, as long as you practice charity when the
occasion presents itself. But, I say, some deeds of charity must be done.
The aim of the Association is to give the Salesian Congregation helpers
who will take special care of young people. Obviously, then, all cooper-
ators, men and women, must engage in some works of mercy consonant
with this noble aim so that the Church's intention in granting
the indulgences may be honored. Years ago all one had to do was to share
in practices of piety. Today, however, faced with multiple means of
corruption which threaten boys and girls, we must join forces and work
together. I have stated that a good cooperator is one who practices a deed
of charity as the occasion arises. This is not too difficult a task for any
good Christian. See how many great opportunities come up-a word of
good advice to youngsters to guide them in virtue and save them from evil
ways, a suggestion to parents on how they can give their children a
Christian upbringing, a reminder to send them to church, to choose a
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school or a job where they will have upright teachers and honest
employers. You can see to it that schools hire only reputable teachers. You
can help out in teaching catechism in your parish. You can give or lend
good books, spread good literature, and offer a Catholic paper to replace a
bad one. You can help one complete his work, donate clothing, seek jobs
for the unemployed, or support a homeless and abandoned boy or girl by
paying for that child's tuition. You can cut down on your own expenses
and put money aside for alms. You can promote undertakings which will
glorify God, honor the Church, and benefit souls. At the very least, you
can exhort others to do these things. There is never any lack of opportunity
to do good or prevent evil. Let us not be wanting in good will or courage, in
love for God and neighbor. Without becoming aware of it, as father or
mother, teacher, priest, layman, rich man or pauper, we shall be true
cooperators, thwarting evil and accomplishing much good.
You might remark, "As long as it's a matter of helping others by
speaking, I can do that, but I am poor and my material means are limited."
Let the poor do just what they can, but, regardless of one's poverty, any
cooperator who so wishes will always be able to contribute also
financially. The widow in the Gospel was also very poor, owning no more
than a single mite, yet she too wished to help in beautifying the temple
along with wealthy donors, and this elicited Jesus' praise. Let me say too
that there are many, many people who forever keep bemoaning their
poverty when they are asked to do a good deed, to clothe a poor orphan,
help a destitute family, or adorn a church. But when it comes to buying
clothes or a luxury garment, arranging a dinner party or a lavish enter-
tainment, a pleasure trip, a dance, making a good impression on people-
then they no longer plead poverty. Then the money which they did not
have suddenly appears and they find the means of putting up a good show
and of displaying a lavishness beyond their means.
Then there are those who forever fear that the ground will sink beneath
them, and both present and future loom in sinister colors before their
imagination. They are those, I think, who, in the words of the Savior, are
always asking in fear and trembling: "What shall we eat tomorrow? What
shall we drink? How shall we clothe ourselves?" And so they forever pile
up and hoard, storing everything until death overtakes them before they
have done any good to others, and they leave their possessions to the greed
and contention of their relatives, who will either quickly use them up or let
lawyers and executors consume them in litigation. Do not imitate them,
my dear cooperators. To keep you from that, let me offer you two
reflections.
Many people today deposit their money into a bank to earn interest, but,
regardless of rating, all banks run the risk of bankruptcy and many do fail.
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
How many families have been thus ruined! Again, no matter how sound a
bank may be, the interest it pays is no better than five or six percent.
However, I know of a bank with endless assets which can never possibly
go bankrupt and which pays not a mere five, ten, thirty, or fifty percent,
but one hundred! Who is this all-powerful banker? God, the Lord of the
heavens and the earth, who promises to pay now, in this life, one hundred
percent to those who give of their substance for His greater glory to benefit
His poor! Those who leave what they own for His sake shall receive "a
hundredfold in this age," Jesus Christ assures us in the Gospel, "and in
the age to come life eternal." [Mk. 10, 301 That hundredfold they shall
receive is the blessings which God will shower upon them, upon their
possessions, upon their business dealings: a hundredfold in peace of mind,
in family harmony, in spiritual graces in life and in death. Nor is this all,
for in the life to come Our Lord has stored an everlasting reward: "and in
the age to come life everlasting." Let us rekindle our faith, my worthy
friends, and let us strive to earn such a bounty for ourselves.
My second reflection is this. Some people consider almsgiving a
counsel, not a command, and so they believe that they are doing enough
for their salvation if they do not tum their wealth to evil. This is a fatal
blunder, one which blocks many a good deed in the world and which drags
countless souls to eternal damnation, much as it did Dives. Our Lord
Jesus Christ declared that it is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of
a needle than for a rich man to be saved, if he puts his heart where his
riches are and pays no heed to the poor. He may not be sinning against
justice, but he will be sinning against charity. And what difference does it
make to go to hell for a crime against justice or for a sin against charity?
Holy Scripture makes it clear enough that when we are asked to help the
poor, it is not a counsel but a command. The poor shall not be wanting in
the land of your dwelling, God says in the old law, "and therefore I
command you to open your hand to your poor and needy kinsman."
[Deut. 15, 11] When speaking of alms, Our Divine Savior used the
imperative, saying: "What is left over, give as alms." [Lk. 11, 41] To
leave no doubt in this regard, He declared that at judgment day He shall
welcome into His eternal Kingdom those who were charitable in deed here
on earth and shall cast into hell those who were not. [Mt. 25, 34-46] On
another occasion He said: "Not the one who says Domine, Domine,
Lord, Lord, shall enter the Kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the
will of My Father" [Mt. 7, 21 ], who is not satisfied with words, but desires
good deeds. [Mt. 7, 21] Then the apostle St. James wrote that even faith
itself is of no avail to salvation unless accompanied by good works. Faith
without works, he said, is useless. [Jas. 2, 20]
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I have spoken more at length on this topic, not because I believe you
have been lax in this regard, but that you may know what to say when you
have to dispel prejudice from the minds of others. I am daily aware of how
much the Salesian cooperators are doing and how they not only practice
charity but also urge others to do so. I trust that they will continue showing
that they are true disciples of St. Francis de Sales, who became all things
to all people in order to win all to God. "Give me souls and take all the
rest," he often used to say. You have heard and every month you can read
[in the Bollettino Salesiano] how your alms are used. The hope, indeed
the certainty, that you are helping so many poor boys, safeguarding them
from worldly dangers and bringing them up for God, the Church, and
heaven, should be a great comfort to you and lighten every sacrifice you
make. Let's take heart, then, and follow the advice Our Divine Savior has
left us: "Make friends for yourselves through your use of this world's
goods, so that when they fail you, a lasting reception will be yours." [Lk.
16, 9] These friends of ours will be all the souls whom our efforts have
saved, and also the guardian angels of those souls along with the saints to
whom we have brought companions in heaven. Above all, our friend will
be Jesus Christ who assures us that He considers as done to Himself any
good deed we do to benefit the humblest of His disciples: "Amen I say to
you, as long as you did it for one of these, the least of My brethren, you did
it for Me." [Mt. 24, 40]
Before leaving the stand, Don Bosco, who professed and instilled
that reverence to bishops which is today traditional in our houses,
humbly requested Bishop Ferre to address a few words to the
gathering. A master speaker, the bishop warmly dwelt on society's
needs and on the works which Divine Providence had entrusted to
Don Bosco's sons, recommending the Salesian Congregation to the
industrious love of his listeners. That evening the boarders staged a
Latin play Phasmatonices,2 mentioned in Volume XII. It was the
same drama which had recently been performed at the Valsalice
College and in 1882 would be staged at Randazzo, the first Sale-
sian boarding school in Sicily. The tradition of Latin plays lived on
in Salesian houses until a few years after Don Bosco's death.
2See Vol. XII, p. 230. [Editor]
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CHAPTER 22
Precious Documents about
the Spiritual Life
c.HASTITY, poverty and good confessions were three
favorite topics which Don Bosco frequently stressed in speaking to
his boys personally or through their superiors. In 1880 we en-
counter these topics in two incidents, three practical norms, a
warning and a dream.
A former Salesian pupil gave Bishop [James] Costamagna
blanket permission to tell Don Bosco's first biographer the incident
we are about to narrate on condition that he remain anonymous. 1
An Oratory boy habitually sinned grievously against purity, par-
ticularly during the summer vacations. On returning to the
Oratory in the fall of 1880-his soul laden down with sin-he
hurried to go to confession to Don Bosco who did something that,
as far as we know, he never did to anyone else. He listened to the
confession and then, pressing the boy's face strongly to his own,
told him, "I don't want you to commit sins of this kind ever again
for the rest of your life!" We might say that at that moment all his
love for purity was profusely poured into the young sinner's soul. In
1899, the latter-then a religious-stated that he was ready to
reveal under oath the marvelous change wrought in him by what the
bishop calls "that extraordinary, most exceptional embrace of Don
Bosco." At that instant the boy felt his sinful attachment being
uprooted from his heart, so that when again home on vacation and,
later in the military service, he never slipped into his old habit,
regardless of the number of temptations.
Acutely sensitive to Salesian poverty, Don Bosco reacted
forcefully not only against infractions but also against anything else
which he saw even as a remote threat to its perfect observance.
1Letter to Father Lemoyne, Santiago, Chile, February 22, 1899. [Author]
434
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During the second winter at San Benigno, one of the superiors
insisted that every cleric be given a new overcoat and that curtains
be purchased for the windows of private rooms. Caught between
this confrere's relentlessness and the house's tight finances, the
prefect, Father [Louis] N ai,2 not knowing where to tum, took
advantage of Don Bosco's visit to the house to seek his advice.
Saddened greatly by the request, Don Bosco replied, "This evening
I'll talk to the confreres." When all gathered in the library, he spoke
very strongly and pointedly on poverty in clothing and room
furnishings. The superior felt that Don Bosco was being too strict,
and so, when Don Bosco asked the confreres to speak up at the end
of his talk, the superior stated that he felt decorum was compatible
with poverty. With firm kindness Don Bosco replied, "The
decorum of a religious lies in his poverty.''
Philip Rinaldi-then a young cleric-was present. In December
1930, speaking to the Oratory confreres at the monthly Exercise
for a Happy Death, he recalled the episode, remarking that, as he
listened to Don Bosco, the thought came to him that not even the
Capuchins and the Franciscans were as severe in their poverty as
Don Bosco demanded that his Salesians be. Father Rinaldi also
commented that Don Bosco thus expressed his views on poverty
just when he was equipping his printshops with machinery as up to
date as in the best of Turin's shops and was also building an
imposing boarding school adjoining the Church of St. John the
Evangelist. The coincidence prompted Father Rinaldi to make a
critical distinction: "We are not to lump together the interior,
personal poverty of the Salesians with the requirements of the
Salesian mission which calls for Don Bosco to be always in the
forefront of progress," as he himself had said when speaking with
the future Pope Pius XI.3
In a meeting of the superior chapter, Don Bosco presented and
solved three important cases of admission to the novitiate and
vows. The first concerned a young man's application for the
novitiate. He had had a sad, long history of moral falls up to the
2 See Appendix 1. [Editor]
3Memorie Biografiche di San Giovanni Bosco, Vol. XVI, p. 323: "In queste cose Don
Bosco vuole essere sempre all'avanguardia del progresso." (In these matters Don Bosco
wants to be always in the forefront of progress.) [Editor]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
time of his spiritual retreat, but was then firmly determined to tum
over a new leaf. "He should be given a chance," Don Bosco
declared. The second case was that of another young man
requesting admission to vows. His conduct had been good, but
before his religious profession he visited his family and, while at
home, abyssus abysseum invocat [deep calls unto deep], fell
miserably into immorality. On hearing the chapter's opinion
(unknown to us), Don Bosco said: "I see no chance whatever! I
always say to the young men who mess up their lives morally to
the very end, 'Do not become a cleric!' They manage to keep
themselves under control during the novitiate, but soon their
suppressed desires flare up anew. We must all agree on greater
strictness because incentives to evil daily keep increasing and we
learn of moral lapses that are truly frightening."
This remark of Don Bosco obviously applied also to admission
to the novitiate, but he was not really contradicting himself. The
words "mess up their lives morally" must be understood in the
same sense as the biblical phrase "Deep calls unto deep" [Ps. 41, 8],
which alludes not just to personal frailty, but to rejection of
morality. In fact, when speaking of the second case, he had also
said, "How can such a person return later to his home town to
preach?" It was his opinion that anyone who had given moral
scandal "to the very end" was to be barred not only from religious
profession, but also from donning the clerical habit.
The third case dealt with a man who, after a licentious youth, had
turned over a new leaf and, having gone through a year of good
moral conduct, asked to enter the novitiate and become a priest.
Don Bosco would not even advise a man of this kind to undergo a
trial period at all, especially if homosexuality had played a part in
his past. "Let all of you help me to keep such people always out of
our Congregation."
He also issued a warning on November 14 during a session ofthe
superior chapter concerning the regulations drafted by the second
general chapter. "I now see that we must safeguard the Con-
gregation from spiritual coldness and decay by promoting the spirit
of piety and religious community life. I want to wipe out this craze
for sea bathing when not prescribed by a doctor. There are some
who contravene their superiors' orders in this. The moral danger is
even greater for our young clerics. It will be extremely difficult to
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prevent boys who live on the coast from bathing, but as regards our
pupils it is well worth stressing our rules on morals. Let this matter
be carefully examined. We know of boarding schools being closed
down and of faculty members being jailed. People here in Italy are
not so evil-minded as to entertain doubts about us. We blindly took
over La Navarre and Saint-Cyr, but, before our coming, some
terrible things had occurred there. At the beginning of the year I
will send all the directors a letter dealing with the chief safeguards
of morality. Let us very conscientiously see to it that priests, clerics
and coadjutors make the Exercise for a Happy Death. Keep an eye
on everyone, and let all rise promptly each morning and be present
at meditation. Good morals are at all times, but most particularly
now, a matter of life and death for us. God help us if the public were
ever to hear of scandals among us. Even at the cost of sacrificing
our lives, let us always victoriously uphold morality."
During the night between August 8 and 9 Don Bosco had a
dream concerning the young men who were the hopes of the
Congregation; he narrated it on the evening of August 10 at the
novices' spiritual retreat. We have two versions of this dream: one
hurriedly recorded by Father Barberis and a second which is
clearly a clumsy translation from the French. That year there were
several French novices at San Benigno. We shall combine the
second with the first. The dream might well be entitled "A
Mysterious Banquet." Don Bosco spoke more or less as follows:
First remember that dreams come in sleep. I dreamt that I was here at
San Benigno (which is strange, because we usually dream of being
elsewhere in different circumstances). I was in a large hall, somewhat
bigger than our dining room.
It was brightly lighted and I thought, Can this be Father Barberis'
doing? Where could he have dug up all the money?
Many boys were sitting at the several tables, but nobody was eating.
When I walked in with another man they all picked up their bread as
though about to eat.
The hall was very beautifully lit up, but no one could tell where the light
came from. The silverware, tablecloths and napkins were so dazzlingly
white that by comparison even our cleanest linen would seem dirty.
Everything shone so brightly and beautifully that I was sure I must be
dreaming, and I thought, This is certainly a dream! Never could we afford
such luxury at San Benigno! Yet here I am and I am not asleep.
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
Meanwhile I looked up and noted that the boys were not eating.
"What's wrong? Why aren't they eating?" I asked. At this they all began
to eat.
Among the boys I could identify many from our schools and some who
are now here on retreat. Puzzled, I asked my companion what it all meant.
"Give me your attention," he replied, "and you will know."
As I was speaking, the light became ever more intense. I was trying to
understand this when a throng of very handsome looking boys, bright as
angels, suddenly appeared from nowhere holding lilies and borne along
above the tables. At this sight, the other lads immediately rose to their feet
and stood watching with joy. The angelic-featured youngsters were now
handing out lilies, and those who received them were likewise borne aloft.
I recognized the boys who had lilies; they were so comely and resplendent
that I could not imagine anything lovelier in heaven. I asked what the lilies
symbolized and was told: "Haven't you many times extolled the beautiful
virtue of purity?"
"Yes," I said. "I have, and I also earnestly tried to instill it into my
boys' hearts."
"Well, then, the lads holding a lily are those who were able to preserve
it," my companion explained.
I was truly bewildered. While I stood speechless another throng of boys
appeared, this time holding roses; they too were being borne along above
the tables and were handing out roses. When a boy received one, his face
immediately beamed with splendor.
I again asked my companion the meaning of this. "They are the boys
who are aflame with God's love," he answered. I then noticed that their
foreheads all bore their names in gold letters. No sooner did I move
forward to see and record their names than they all instantly disappeared.
The light too went out and I was left in semi-darkness.
I then noticed that the lads who had received neither lily nor rose had
features as scarlet as fire. I also saw others who were trying to pull
themselves up a slimy rope hooked to the ceiling, but all in vain, for the
rope always sagged and they kept sliding down to the floor in a heap of
mud.
Dumbfounded to see anything like this in the dining hall, I insisted that I
be told what it meant. "The rope is a symbol of confession. Those who can
grip it firmly will certainly reach heaven. These boys still keep going to
confession and use this rope to lift themselves up, but they receive the
sacrament without the necessary dispositions; their sorrow and resolve are
feeble. Consequently they cannot pull themselves up; the rope keeps
sagging as they try to lift themselves up; they keep sliding down and are
always at ground level."
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I wanted to take down the names of these boys also, but hardly had I
written two or three names when all vanished. Even the dim light
disappeared, and I was left in total darkness.
In the midst of that darkness, however, I could make out an even more
heart-rending sight. Some dejected-looking boys had hideous serpents
coiled about their necks, the snake's tail resting on the boy's heart, the
head facing each wretched lad's mouth as though ready to sting his tongue
should he ever open his lips. These boys' features were terrifyingly
hideous, their eyes wild, their mouths contorted, and their stance
menacing.
All atremble, I again asked what this meant. "Can't you see?" I was
told. "The ancient serpent is doubly coiled around these wretches' throats
to keep them from confessing their sins, and poisoned fangs are ready to
sting them should they open their lips. Poor boys! Could they only speak,
they would make a good confession and the devil would no longer have
sway over them. But they clam up with shame. They repeatedly go to
confession and never dare to rid their hearts of poison."
Then I said to my companion, "Tell me their names so that I can
remember them."
"Yes, write them down," he answered.
"But there is no time," I objected.
"Go on, write."
I managed to jot down only a few names because all the boys vanished.
My companion then said, "Go tell your boys to be on guard. Explain what
you have seen."
"Give me a sign," I asked, "to make me know clearly whether this is a
dream or an actual warning that the Lord is giving my boys."
"All right," he answered. "Just watch."
A brilliant light again flooded the hall, and once more I saw the boys
with lilies and roses. The light kept increasing in its intensity and I could
see the happiness of those boys, as a heavenly joy irradiated their faces.
I looked with indescribable surprise as the light kept intensifying until it
burst into an awesome roar of sound. It jolted me out of my sleep, and I
became so exhausted that even now I still feel I have no strength.
Make what you wish of this dream. As for me, I find something
believable in it. Yesterday evening and today I did some testing which
confirmed that my dream was not merely a dream. Only God's
extraordinary mercy can save some miserable wretches.
At this point we would like to add two wholesome admonitions
which Don Bosco gave to priests to win them away from empty
worldly vanity and from a certain unpleasant obstinacy in doing
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
things their own way. His cautions were unusually effective,
couched as they skillfully were in witticisms.
One day in 1880 he and others were dinner guests at the villa of a
certain gentleman at Moncalieri. To honor their host, most of the
guests-including several priests-were wearing their knightly
decorations. As the conversation warmed up, Don Bosco re-
marked, "How fine a figure I am cutting without decorations! I am
neither commendatore, knight nor professor. I am not even certified
to teach the first grade. When I show up at St. Peter's pearly gates
he will ask me, 'What is this? Was it worth your while to live so
long and never earn a single diploma or decoration? Out with
you!'"
They all laughed. When the guests were again quiet, the lady of
the house remarked, "You have nothing because you never wanted
to accept anything."
"Did you say I never wanted to accept anything?" he retaliated.
"Just try to give me a few thousand lire for my poor boys and you
will soon see whether or not I accept things!"
Embarrassed by this unexpected rejoinder, the woman tried to
talk herself out of her predicament, but to no avail. Adroitly Don
Bosco went to her rescue and gracefully steered the conversation to
other topics.
His words were that time directed to the priests' vanity. A second
admonition, also given at a dinner, occurred elsewhere. In
November Don Bosco went to San Martino Tanaro to preach on
All Souls Day. The parish priest had the reputation of being very
stubborn and opinionated. He had invested twelve thousand lire
in founding a small religious congregation of women and was
demanding a one thousand lire dowry from every postulant. He
made sure that such a sum would come to him through insurance, if
it was not paid immediately upon admission. One day he invited
several priests to dinner, and a fine turkey was being served. Don
Bosco selected the head for himself and, striking it with his knife,
repeatedly remarked, ''What a hard head! What a hard head!" The
parish priest again handed him the platter to help himself
to something more appetizing. "No," he replied, "let me deal with
this thing here." Again and again he knocked on the turkey's head
with the knife, repeating, "What a hard head!" At last he managed
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to crack it. "Who would have thought that such a hard head had
such a tiny brain?" he exclaimed. Those closer to him heard and
understood his reference. But the pastor apparently paid no heed.
In 1890, when the priest died, it became evident that indeed he had
stood in need of the lesson, for his last will and testament was so
injudicious that the municipal authorities, though acknowledging
his merits, could not find the courage to set up a suggested
commemorative tablet to his memory.
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CHAPTER 23
Looking Through Don Bosco 's Letters
THE published letters of Don Bosco are far fewer than
those which either were destroyed or just were lost.1 Generally the
handwriting shows that they were scribbled hurriedly, but their
genuine spontaneity is delightful. They breathe forth that same self-
control and unshakable calm which were so evident in his daily life.
Merely running through a few of them puts the reader in a peaceful
frame of mind. The spirit of God which lives in His saints guides
their pens as much as their thoughts.
We open our little series in this chapter with three fatherly
letters.
1. THREE FATHERLY LETTERS
The first, addressed to Father Monateri, director at Varazze,
shows that Father Monateri was anxiously awaiting an answer.
The style betrays Don Bosco's haste.
Dear Father Monateri:
Turin, June 8, 1880
One can answer only as soon as he can, and so be patient. To start off:
1. As of now I cannot give our dear friend, the designated parish priest
at Varazze, another priest. The only help he can expect must come from
the priests at our school, and they will certainly do all they can.
2. Ask the upperclassman Fassio kindly to send me another letter
because, though I received his first, I just can't find it anywhere in my pile
of mail.
3. I gladly bless and pray for young Cyril Corazzale and for his ailing
three-year-old brother.
4. God grant you health, knowledge and holiness, so that you may
1The four-volume Epistolario di San Giovanni Bosco compiled by Fr. Eugenio Ceria and
published between 1955 and 1959 by the Societa Editrice Intemazionale, Turin, contains
2,845 letters dating from 1835 to 1888. [Editor]
442
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direct your young charges in such a way as to tum each of them into a St.
Aloysius and a dauntless Salesian.
God bless you, ever dear Father Monateri, and all our beloved
confreres and pupils. Pray for me too.
Yours affectionately in Christ,
Fr. John Bosco
Two other letters were addressed to [Father Tamietti], the
director of the Manfredini School at Este. The first was a reply to
the good wishes he received on his name day. The letter includes a
list of things to be done in the Church of St. John the Evangelist, in
the hope that the director would find somebody willing to shoulder
the expense.
Dear Father Tamietti:
Turin, July 9, 1880
I received your good wishes and the greetings of all the confreres and
boys. I was very pleased and heartily thank all of you. I am enclosing a list
[of things to be done]. Try to find people willing to foot at least part of the
expense.
Remember me particularly to our friends, confreres and pupils. God
bless you all. Pray for me.
Always yours in Jesus Christ,
Fr. John Bosco
P.S. If Father Gallo is still alive,2 give him my warm regards.
Don Bosco was looking forward to the summer spiritual retreats
when he could see his Salesians again; they, in tum, were just as
eagerly waiting for the pleasure of going to confession to him and
conferring with him.
Dear Father Tamietti:
Turin, August 25, 1880
See that Berra3 does not make a mistake. Tell him to come,to the retreat
where we can discuss the situation and do what is best for him.
2A joking allusion to the fact that he had not written for quite a time. [Editor]
3 Eligio Berra, a cleric. [Editor]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
I am enclosing a letter for Chevalier Pela.4 Goodbye and God bless you
all.
Yours affectionately in Jesus Christ,
Fr. John Bosco
P.S. Your sister, the nun at Nizza Monferrato, sends her regards and
asks about you. She is well and is doing much good.
Another batch of six letters tells us about some of Don Bosco's
activities.
2. THE CHURCH OF ST. JOHN THE EvANGELIST
Turin's Church of St. John the Evangelist was now a landmark in
Corso Vittorio Emanuele II, but it needed much interior work. To
show how Don Bosco left no stone unturned to raise the needed
funds, we managed to put together this small batch of documents.
They reveal the frank simplicity of the saints in soliciting financial
support for their undertakings from the wealthy. For instance, he
wrote5 to Baron [Joseph] Ceriana, who had laid the cornerstone,6
reminding him of a half-promise made in 1878. The baron did not
tum a deaf ear to the invitation.
My dear Baron Ceriana,
[No date]
Last year I presumed to invite you to dedicate a memorial to your
family, as you had officially laid the cornerstone of the Church of St. John
the Evangelist. You gave me some hope then that your choice would be
the magnificent main altar, which is actually a double altar, and the altar
rail enclosing the sanctuary. The cost has now appreciably come down
because those competing for prestige in this kind of work have lowered
their fees from fourteen thousand to eight thousand lire-five thousand for
the double altar and three thousand for the altar rail.
Should your generosity prompt you to sponsor one or both of these
4A benefactor of the school at Este. See p. 74. [Editor]
soon Bosco's letter is undated, but it certainly belongs to 1880 since it is connected with
the work yet to be done in the interior of the church. [Author]
ssee Vol. XIII, p. 463. [Editor]
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memorials, I would be most grateful to you and will pray with all my heart
that God will bless you and your family.
A decision on this matter is needed now, though its implementation and
payment would not come due until early 1881.
God bless you and keep you in good health.
Most gratefully yours,
Fr. John Bosco
A printed list of memorials and their relative cost had been
drawn up by Don Bosco and prefaced with the following
presentation:
The work to be done in the Church of St. John the Evangelist and its
cost are humbly brought to the attention of charitable Catholics, especially
Salesian cooperators, as a tribute to the late great Pontiff, Pope Pius IX.
Don Bosco personally included this list with a covering letter to a
few persons, such as Attorney Charles Comaschi7 in Milan, whose
veneration for Don Bosco our readers well know.
Dear Mr. Comaschi,
Turin, June 27, 1880
The apostle of love and beloved disciple of Our Divine Savior is looking
for someone to help build the church being constructed to promote God's
glory. In his name I commend to your charity one or more of the
memorials on the enclosed list. From heaven St. John the Evangelist will
not fail to protect you and your family, while I and my dear boys will offer
up special prayers every day to the Giver of all good, that you, your wife
and your son Alphonsus may enjoy good health and His holy grace.
As always, with great pleasure,
Yours affectionately in Jesus Christ,
Fr. John Bosco
This kindly gentleman obliged and Don Bosco warmly thanked
him in the following note.
7The Comaschi house always stood open, not only to Don Bosco but to every Salesian
who happened to be passing through the Lombard capital. [AuthorJ
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
Dear Chevalier,
Turin, July 17, 1880
Everything is going well. Thank you for your generous donation to the
Church of St. John the Evangelist.
When you come to Turin, please be our guest. Just send us a simple
note in advance lest I again have to regret being away on that day. I shall
also be delighted to see Alphonsus.
My dear Attorney, God bless you and your whole family.
Yours affectionately,
Fr. John Bosco
Our readers may recall Alphonsus Fortis, who was on the verge
of decisively following the example of Count Cays8 and whose
father had died in the month of April. Don Bosco asked him also to
share the expense of these memorials.
My dear Alphonsus,
Turin, June 29, 1880
I trust that your complete rest at Carbia has considerably improved
your health, and that Richard and Mamma are well, as I continually pray.
Please let me know how you are doing.
The Church of St. John the Evangelist has run into a few snags because
of lack of funds, and I would wish that your family might particularly help
us by sponsoring one of the memorials on the enclosed list. If you wish, I
would gladly have "The Fortis Family" or any other words inscribed on
it. Talk it over with Mamma and Richard, and if you like my suggestion,
please let me know. If not, please overlook this inconvenience.
God bless you, my ever beloved Alphonsus, and your entire family.
May He grant to all of you a long and healthy life. Pray for me.
Yours affectionately in Jesus Christ,
Fr. John Bosco
While Don Bosco was at San Benigno in August, he sent the
memorial list with a personal note to two persons in the area. One
was a certain Mr. Cena, probably a Salesian cooperator in
Montanaro, a town near San Benigno.
8 See Vol. XIII, p. 175. [Editor]
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447
Dear Mr. Cena,
San Benigno, August 13, 1880
I have no time to visit and pay my respects to you personally, but I
would not wish to leave without telling you how deeply saddened I was
over your recent accident. I assure you that I have prayed and will con-
tinue to pray that God will restore you to your former full health.
I take this opportunity to suggest a deed of charity which God will most
certainly reward. Please consider the possibility of sponsoring one or more
ofthe interior projects which still have to be done in the Church of St. John
the Evangelist, as they are listed in the enclosed brochure.
You are a generous Salesian cooperator, deserving of our thanks. God
bless you and grant you the precious gift of health and His holy grace.
Pardon my boldness and please pray for me.
Most gratefully yours,
Fr. John Bosco
P.S. My humble respects to your devout wife and best wishes for her
good health and for God's blessings.
For the same purpose he wrote that day to Mrs. Merlini of
Volpiano, another nearby town.
Dear Mrs. Merlini,
San Benigno, August 13, 1880
Yesterday evening you came to see me while I was hearing confessions.
I am sorry I missed you because I wanted to speak to you about a plan
which will further God's glory.
I know how involved you are in many deeds of charity, and therefore I
ask you to help us complete work still to be done in the Church of St. John
the Evangelist. The enclosed list tells you what it is. Should you be unable
to help out, please be assured that you shall always be in my prayers.
God bless you and keep you in His holy grace. Pray for me.
Always yours in Jesus Christ,
Fr. John Bosco
Following are a few newsy letters which have no appropriate
place elsewhere.
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
3. VARIOUS LETTERS
The first is addressed to Father Eugene Bianchi, who had
decided to join the Salesians four years after ordination while he
was assistant pastor at Verucchio, historic stronghold of the
Malatesta family, in the Rimini diocese. He must not have
considered this letter the final word on his vocation, for he himself
told us that in September of that year he took advantage of reduced
train fares to tour several important cities in Italy. The decisive
factor was actually the talk he had with Don Bosco when he passed
through Turin. He had no sooner spoken with him than he broke off
his planned trip and went directly to Lanzo for the spiritual retreat,
at the end of which he decisively resolved to remain with Don
Bosco. After a brief return to his family, he entered the novitiate at
San Benigno in October.
Beloved in Our Lord Jesus Christ,
[No date]9
It is always my joy to add another brave warrior to the lowly ranks of
the Salesians. Please come-but, as you say, at least for a few weeks. You
might this time make a spiritual retreat at Lanzo from September 9 to 16.
If the dates are inconvenient, let me know and I shall arrange for a retreat
at some other time during which we can discuss what will redound to
God's greater glory.
I look forward with great pleasure to seeing you. Please pray for me.
Yours affectionately,
Fr. John Bosco
P.S. Settle all your affairs before leaving Rimini so that you may be free
to absent yourself for whatever time you need.
After being Father Barberis' right-hand man in the care and
formation of the novices, Father Bianchi was appointed director
and novice master by Don Bosco himself when the clerical
novitiate was relocated in F oglizzo. Eleven years later his health
required that he be assigned to less strenuous work. In 1912 he
went to our agricultural school at Beit Gemal in Israel, where he
9 According to the Epistolario di San Giovanni Bosco, Vol. III, p. 622, Letter 2089, Don
Bosco most probably wrote this letter in August 1880. [Editor]
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449
worked intensely for nineteen years, first as director and then as
confessor until his death in 1931. A Salesian at heart before joining
the Congregation, he put himself unreservedly into the hands of
Don Bosco and of his worthy representative, Father Barberis.
Athletic in build, he was a warm friend and a saintly loving father,
one of those who, on joining Don Bosco as older men, proved by
their actions that Don Bosco's spirit can be in its simplicity a guide
to holiness for all who docilely accept it in trust.
The next letter is to the cleric Louis Cartier, who was home at
Saint-Jean de Maurienne (Savoy) in September 1880. Knowing
that he had received only minor orders, Bishop Rosset, the local
ordinary, was surprised that he had not been asked to give
dimissorial letters for the cleric's ordination, but he did not know
that all canonical prescriptions had been duly followed. Once Don
Bosco sent him an explanation, he had no objection.
My dear Cartier,
Turin, September 17, 1880
Be at ease with your ordination and your ordinary bishop. Our
Congregation has definitive approval [of the Holy See] and we may
present candidates for holy orders without dimissorials of the bishop of
their birthplace or of those who had any other canonical jurisdiction.
Enjoy your vacation, but don't forget that you must be a Salesian
wherever you are, that is to say, you are to be "salt of the earth" in your
words and "light of the world" in your deeds. Give my regards to your
parents and to your parish priest. Pray for me.
Yours affectionately in Jesus Christ,
Fr. John Bosco
P.S. Remember to get back in time after your vacation.
Marquis [Alphonse] Landi of Piacenza, to whom the third letter
is addressed, was keeping a considerable amount of money for Don
Bosco, meaning to deliver it to him personally as soon as he went to
Turin. He had gone there in September, but Don Bosco had been
away, either at Lanzo for the general chapter or, possibly, at
Sampierdarena for the Salesians' spiritual retreat. The letter,
undated, was most likely written in October.10
10Toe original is kept by the noble Nasalli-Rocca family of Piacenza. [Author]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
Dearest Marquis,
[No date]
You were so kind as to come all the way to Valdocco to bring me
money, and yet no one said a word to me. Had I known, I would have
dropped everything and hurried to pay you my respects indeed so well
deserved.
I could wait for a second visit late in the fall, but since the money is
ready and we badly need it, I accept your suggestion. You may send the
money by registered mail to this address, and it will be promptly
forwarded to me at Lanzo, where I shall be staying until October 16.
You ask me to pray for you and your family. I shall do so most willingly,
my dear marquis, and I assure you that over the years I have made a
special memento every morning for you and your whole family. I am
confident that you too will pray for me and my whole army of some sixty
thousand fearless warriors, who can demolish tons of bread.
God bless us all! May He strengthen us in His holy service with a
saintly life and a holy death.
Yours most gratefully,
Fr. John Bosco
We have room here for a letter which Don Bosco had his
secretary write to Chevalier Charles Fava, although he signed it.
Along with the letter he sent a gracious gift for the chevalier's name
day.
Turin, November 3, 1880
To the generous-hearted Chevalier Charles Fava on his name day:
Long live St. Charles and all who bear his name!
Tomorrow morning I shall duly celebrate Holy Mass for you and your
whole family, and our boys will offer prayers and receive Holy
Communion at the Altar of Mary, Help of Christians, praying that health,
peace and harmony will reign forever in your household.
You are probably receiving a host of letters which you cannot promptly
acknowledge. Hence, please accept the letter file as a fitting place to keep
them.
Again, hurrah for St. Charles and those who bear his name!
Gratefully yours in Jesus Christ,
Fr. John Bosco
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The generous gentleman re-echoed the letter in reply:
Long live Don Bosco and his host of friends! I hope that I can rightfully
boast of being one, considering your most gracious gesture in sending me
such a cherished gift for my name day. I shall treasure this lovely letter file
as a cherished token ofyour kindness to me and feel great joy at expressing
my cordial thanks. My wife joins me in these sentiments and in thanking
you for your efficacious prayers for our family. Please continue to
remember us in your Holy Masses, and accept our respectful regards.
Remarkably, Don Bosco's most distinguished benefactors to
whom he incessantly appealed directly or indirectly did not feel
annoyed; on the contrary, they gave him ever more frequent proofs
of their devotedness to him. It most certainly stemmed from their
firm belief that they were dealing with a great servant of God.
The Oratory's financial situation was grave indeed. We are
touched by Don Bosco's circular to the Salesian directors,
appealing for solidarity with the motherhouse in its serious straits.
The means he suggested could not have been simpler or easier, and
the season was most opportune-Christmas.
My dear Father Director,
Oratory, Turin, December 21, 1880
When a mother is in sore need, she turns trustingly to her children for
help.
Our poor motherhouse is in just such a situation. Our expenses in Turin
and at Bordighera, La Spezia, Rome and elsewhere, the forthcoming
missionary expedition which is now being readied, and the need to
subsidize new houses (among others, the novitiate at San Benigno) have
all reduced this poor motherhouse of ours to a very sad state of affairs, and
we are forced to call upon the enterprising generosity of all our directors to
rush to our aid in any of the following ways:
(1) by delaying for several months all outlays of money and
undertakings not strictly essential;
(2) by diligently collecting all accounts receivable and minor debts
owed us;
(3) by humbly and warmly asking our cooperators and benefactors to
help us, either with personal donations or by doing some fund-raising.
Please send all available money as soon as possible.
Meanwhile let us ask Our Lord, who is so generous with all, to be
generous with us too. I ask that all priests make a special memento at
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
Mass and that all confreres and pupils frequently offer Holy Communion
to this end.
God bless us and keep us in His holy grace.
Yours affectionately in Jesus Christ,
Fr. John Bosco
Don Bosco had recently sent Father Emmanuel Casari as prefect
to Father Bologna, director in Marseille, in answer to his request
for more personnel, and had promised to consider other needs in a
forthcoming visit. Meanwhile, wishing to be ready for a meeting of
the Marseille cooperators, he asked the director to send him varied
information.
Dear Father Bologna,
Turin, December 23, 1880
I received your letters and those of Lassepas11 and the other dear boys
of St. Leo's Festive Oratory. Thank them for me and give them my
regards. I shall have a personal answer for each of them when I come.
I would guess that Casari is at his post by now. Be patient till I come,
and then we shall straighten things out.
Our missionaries for South America will sail from Genoa on January
22. After that I shall leave for Marseille, but I'll let you know when to
expect me: probably sometime in the first few days of February.
I need a report on the state of St. Pierre's Hospice. Let me know:
(1) what work has been completed and the use to which it has been put;
(2) the number of resident and day students and their school records;
(3) the work that must be done in the right wing of the house and its
approximate cost;
(4) the number of accounts due and accounts receivable, the
committee's accomplishments, the funds received, their activities-in
short, anything which I can use for a thorough briefing of our cooperators
in a conference which I plan to give several days after my arrival. Make
out your report in French, as this will be all the easier for me.
When you have the opportunity, give my regards to Madame Jacques,
Madame Prat, Madame Broquier, etc.
God bless you, dear Father Bologna, and may He also bless our dear
Salesians and boys, for whom I pray that God will grant good health and
perseverance in His love.
11Louis Lassepas, a young cleric. [Editor]
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Ask everyone to receive Holy Communion for my intention.
Always yours in Jesus Christ,
Fr. John Bosco
P.S. Is Taulaigo feeling well? Has he begun to work miracles?
This laconic postscript is meaningful when we realize that this
confrere was causing considerable trouble in the house, and Don
Bosco was well aware of it.
The following note offers Father Dominic Griglia, provost at
Bagnasco in the diocese of Mondovi, some good advice.
Dear Father,
Turin, December 30, 1880
I understand your position perfectly. Ifyou want to be at peace now and
always, abide fully by the directives of your ecclesiastical superior.
Should he advise you to continue in your present ministry, do so.
I shall not fail to pray for you to God. Please pray for me.
Always yours in Jesus Christ,
Fr. John Bosco
P.S. I will remember to pray for your mother.
Being a model of discretion in his writing, for there was the ever-
present risk of his letters falling into strangers' hands, Don Bosco
never committed to paper anything which, if known to others not
concerned, might jeopardize the reputation of the persons of whom
or to whom he was writing. This cautious reticence is evident in this
and in other letters even though he does not openly state it, but,
occasionally, he mentions it as, for instance, in the following letter
addressed to [a young man at] Varzo not far from Domodossola: 12
My dear George Borello,
Lanzo, September 7, 1880
I cannot entrust my truthful answer to paper. However, recall to mind
12A center of international highway and railway transit in northwest Italy near the end of
the Simpton Tunnel. [Editor]
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1HE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
what I told you verbally and you will fmd some norms to guide your
deliberations.
I advise you to open your heart to your confessor and do whatever he
may tell you.
God bless you, my dear Borello. Pray for me.
Always yours in Jesus Christ,
Fr. John Bosco
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CHAPTER 24
The Church of the Sacred Heart
of Jesus in Rome
a LL founders of religious orders, both of men and of
women, always sought to set up their residence in Rome. A divine
urge was driving them by varied paths to the very heart of unity,
authority and teaching, so as to enable them, as it were, to draw
from the spring of those limpid life-giving waters which they
themselves would spread around the world through many diverse
channels. Years before the Church approved his rule, Don Bosco
also cherished the prospect of opening a house in the papal city, but
up to 1880 all his attempts were in vain until, most astonishingly,
his nurtured dream seemed suddenly to break forth into reality.
Undeniably it cost him seven years of almost constant spiritual and
physical suffering, but in the long run it won him blessings from
God and admiration from men. This chapter will recount the
circumstances which led to and accompanied the beginnings of the
church and hospice of the Sacred Heart of Jesus in the Castro
Pretorio neighborhood. 1
The urban plan designed by Bishop Francis de Merode, minister
of Pius IX, aimed at developing the city's outlying hills,
particularly the Castro Pretorio district. That his plan was well
thought out with foresight is borne out by the fact that, after
September 20, 1870,2 Rome's expansion not only did not stop but
it accelerated, so that a whole new city seemed to grow up in the
area. However at that time the expansion provided for everything
but the spiritual needs of the ever growing population that poured
into the district. The hard-pressed Pope Pius IX, whose source of
revenues was drained with the loss ofthe Papal States, was the only
1This quarter of the city belonged to the ancient Esquiline district lying east of the Termini
Station. It was named after the fortified camp set up there by Emperor Tiberius for his
Praetorian guard, Castrum Praetorium. [Author]
2Date of the seizure of Rome by Italy. [Editor]
455
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
one who kept coping with the spiritual needs of his city.
On December 8, 1870 he had proclaimed St. Joseph patron of
the universal Church and shortly afterward had purchased at his
own expense a piece of land on the Esquiline Hill, intending to
erect there a church dedicated to the beloved patriarch. But he soon
changed his mind when in 1871 the Italian bishops vied with one
another in solemnly consecrating their respective dioceses to the
adorable Heart of Jesus. In Rome this generated the idea that in the
city of Christ's Vicar a grand shrine be dedicated to His Divine
Heart, from which, as from an eternal hearth, a new fire of piety
might spread from Rome to the world. Father [Anthony] Maresca,
a Bamabite, editor of the M essaggero de! Sacro Cuore [Messenger
of the Sacred Heart of Jesus], publicized the project. And so the
saintly Pius IX decided that the land should be used not for a
church to St. Joseph but for a temple to the Sacred Heart of Jesus,
rejoicing in the thought that from that highest point of the Eternal
City the adorable heart of the Redeemer would bless the whole
world as from a lofty throne.
Unfortunately, the project kept dragging on endlessly, so that
while the new district spread out in every direction, the neighboring
parishes of St. Mary of the Angels, St. Bernard, St. Mary Major
and St. Lawrence Outside the Walls proved inadequate for the
pastoral care of so many people. That saintly Franciscan, Father
Ludovico da Casoria [Naples], helped by young members of
Catholic Action-outstanding among them Attorney Pericoli-did
his best to provide spiritual assistance in a small chapel not far from
the site of the planned church. Meantime death claimed the great
Pius IX, and nothing had yet been done to realize his project.
Leo XIII's ascent to the papal throne signaled the actual
beginning of the enterprise. As bishop of Perugia he had been one
of the first to consecrate his diocese to the Sacred Heart, and so he
immediately endorsed Pius IX's plans and energetically moved to
implement them. As early as August 1, 1878, through his vicar,
Cardinal Monaco La Valletta, he sent a letter to all the bishops of
the Catholic world (except those of France, who were already
committed to building the Basilica of the Sacred Heart on
Montmartre), asking them to contribute to this grandiose undertaking
through fund-raising drives in their dioceses. The Piana Federation
of Catholic Associations in Rome was charged with the task of
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The Church of the Sacred Heart of Jesus in Rome
457
collecting the funds, and a committee of Roman patricians under
the chairmanship of Marquis Julius Merighi was to supervise the
construction of the shrine.
The project moved rapidly once it got started. Work was begun
to level a hilly area which rose several yards above the street and
blocked construction. Then excavating for foundations was started.
But here the workmen ran into a big obstacle not uncommon in
Rome's subsoil. They struck tall bricked passageways and
corridors, once part of ancient structures that had been built for
mining a sort of clay, then commonly used in Rome to replace sand
in mixing mortar. They were forced to go down some fifty feet to
find solid ground on which to rest the foundations. The cardinal
blessed the first stone which was lowered in place on August 17,
1879, feast of St. Joachim and name day of the reigning Pontiff.
The plans of the church, in Bramante's style, had been drawn up
by Count Francis Vespignani, Vatican architect, but word from
Belgium3 intervened to cause a curious incident. The cardinal
vicar's circular of 1878 to the bishops had caught the attention of
Baroness De Monier, who offered a hundred thousand francs for
the church, but on condition that the design of a Belgian architect,
Baron De Bethune, be followed. Furthermore, the good lady
clearly stated that she would not contribute a single cent to build
any church in Renaissance style: she wanted either a Gothic or a
Romanesque church in Rome. Cardinal [Victor] Dechamps,
archbishop of Malines, agreed to contact the cardinal vicar.
This condition, of course, created serious problems, especially
since the foundations, already under construction, followed Count
Vespignani's design. Nevertheless, the cardinal vicar asked
Cardinal Dechamps to send him the design he favored, informing
him, however, that neither Gothic nor Romanesque was acceptable
in Rome. To this the archbishop of Malines replied, on sending the
drawing, "Rome, the heart of Catholicism, should possess
monuments of every important epoch in her history, and it is
certainly regrettable that alongside her Constantinian and classical
Renaissance basilicas there be nothing to remind us of the style of
3 We draw the details from a copy of a letter from the cardinal of Malines to the cardinal
vicar of Rome. Don Bosco was forwarded this copy by Father [Anthony] Maresca in 1880.
[Author]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
the cathedrals of Cologne, Amiens, York, Rheims, and Westminster,
and so many other marvelous churches of the Catholic world, not to
speak of the cathedral of Milan. I realize that this exclusiveness is a
result of historical events, but this is an opportunity to dispel it."
At any rate, the plans submitted by De Bethune were given
careful consideration.
Certainly-the cardinal vicar replied-if we had to put up a church in
pure Gothic style, the design you submitted would be excellent, but
Roman taste in churches runs to the classic structure. Furthermore,
assuming that the design's dimensions and style were to be carried out, the
sum of one hundred thousand lire, though handsome in itself, would not be
adequate, according to our calculations.
In tum, Count Vespignani, distinguished exponent of Roman
classical architecture, added his own comment to the report sent to
the cardinal vicar: "In Rome, seat of the fine arts, the pure Gothic
construction which traces its origin to barbaric styles never won
approval and is in fact being adopted now only in erecting
Protestant churches."
Father Maresca begged to differ, and so he advised the baroness
to get Cardinal Dechamps to bring the matter up to the Pope, but
the cardinal declined, feeling that he had nothing to add to what he
had already written to Rome. Hence, because of these specious
reasons, the generous offer was withdrawn. We are convinced that
Don Bosco, to use a popular maxim, with his ingeniousness would
have found a way to have his cake and eat it, but at this time he had
as yet nothing to do with this project.
Certainly very few people were as gifted as Don Bosco in raising
funds to finance so many and such grand beneficial projects. Take
this Roman venture, for example. It foundered and ground to a
standstill after the initial thrust, even though it had been launched
by the highest authority and was under the sponsorship of powerful,
aristocratic families. Lack of funds forced the suspension of all
work no sooner than construction had reached ground level. The
Pope, already overburdened with the monumental task of building
the apse of the Church of St. John Lateran and the grand hospital of
St. Martha in the Vatican, felt keenly disappointed and could not
endure that kind of failure. Soon, however, Divine Providence
came to his rescue. The information we pass on here was supplied a
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The Church of the Sacred Heart of Jesus in Rome
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few years later by Cardinal [Cajetan] Alimonda.4 One day,
speaking in consultation with the cardinals, Leo XIII voiced his
deep grief over the enforced suspension of this work. It hindered
God's glory, he said, it hurt the Holy See's honor, and it imperiled
the spiritual welfare of a huge multitude.
"Holy Father, I have a suggestion that will guarantee the success
of this project," Cardinal Alimonda said.
"What is it?" asked the Pope with some surprise.
"Entrust it to Don Bosco."
"Would Don Bosco accept?"
"Your Holiness, I know Don Bosco and his total, boundless
devotion to the Pope. Let Your Holiness suggest it, and I am
convinced he will accept.''
Since this conversation took place in March 1880, at the very
time that Don Bosco was in Rome, Leo XIII asked his cardinal
vicar to take the matter up with him. The cardinal approached Don
Bosco about it on the evening of March 24, without, however,
mentioning that it was the Pope's wish. On March 28 he brought it
up again with greater insistence, still speaking as though it were his
own idea. Don Bosco, visualizing the many grave problems he
would have to face, did not commit himself either way, as we know
from the testimony given in the canonization process.
First, as regards finances, he had little to hope for from the
Romans. He knew this from past experience, and the cardinal vicar
had written to say as much;5 the Romans were not generous. Nor
could he expect much from the French people, who were
concentrating all their efforts on their own great national shrine of
the Sacred Heart and their private schools. He also had reason to
believe that, generous as they had always been in helping to support
his boys, they would take no interest in a new church for Rome.
4 Summarium super virtutibus, Part Ill, De operibus et fundationibus. No. 65-66, as
reported by Fr. Francis Cerruti. [Author]
5 See Vol. XIII, p. 504. The facts confirmed this. At dinner on the day of the church's
consecration, May 14, 1887, Fr. Dalmazzo, our procurator at the Vatican and the church's
pastor, rose to propose a toast to the benefactors. When he singled out the Romans for first
place, Don Bosco tapped his glass several times with a knife, breaking into his speech and
amid general silence serenely remarked, "That is not true. Now you may continue." At that
moment Don Bosco must have been thinking back to his exceptionally exhausting journeys
to raise funds for the church. One ofthe guests who was struck by Don Bosco's frankness and
often recounted this episode was Bishop [Raymond] Jara, former bishop of Ancud in Chile.
[Author]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
Not even Italy, he feared, could be relied upon because of the
country's ruinous economy, its overburdening taxation, and the
crying need of maintaining the promised essential welfare services.
He realized too the high cost of building in Rome, far higher than in
any other Italian city. And did he not already have a good number
of building projects weighing him down, such as the Church of St.
John the Evangelist in Turin and that of Mary, Help of Christians
in Vallecrosia, and other projects at Marseille, Nice, and La
Spezia? Was it wise to put more irons into the fire?
Another reason too for not getting into this venture was the cool
response he detected to the planned church at Castro Pretorio. The
whole world had been told that the shrine was being planned as a
monument in honor of Pius IX, and every bishop in the Catholic
world had been asked to collect donations for it, but hardly had one
hundred thousand lire been raised when the whole campaign died
out, and all resources seemed to dry up.
There was also another problem. In accepting the commitment,
Don Bosco would have bound himself to ratify the contracts drawn
up by the previous administration, which still had a voice in the enter-
prise; furthermore, those contracts ran into substantial sums, as was
customary for any work being contracted with the Holy See.6
However, beyond these worldly considerations, Don Bosco
never lost sight of two loftier concerns: the honor of the Church and
of the Holy See. What a disgrace that Catholic Rome should cut so
sorry a figure before Protestants, who with impressive funds had
already erected several churches while the Catholics had not
6 Here it bears repeating what we have already written elsewhere about the mistrust with
which the Romans looked upon the so-called aliens, the Piedmontese [who had come in after
Rome's annexation in 1870]. Choosing a Piedmontese [Don Bosco] in so important a project
could not but arouse jealousy, a natural reaction given the prevailing mood. No sooner did
word get around than a committee of priests asked a prelate to get them an audience with the
cardinal vicar to protest the humiliation being planned against the Roman clergy. The
cardinal received them graciously and made no attempt to counter their arguments. He
merely asked them in a friendly way if they felt they could accept the burden, adding that it
was not too late. "Yes," they replied. The cardinal promised to satisfy their wishes. "There
will be no problem with Don Bosco," he went on. "I'll confer with the Holy Father. Don
Bosco will have no difficulty in giving up this project." Elated, the priests told him that they
would form a committee. "How much," they asked, "had the Holy See allotted to Don
Bosco for the construction?" "Nothing," the cardinal replied, and he briefly acquainted them
with major expenses they would be faced with, assuring them he was convinced that they
would find meager funds in Rome. This was like a cold shower instantly quenching their
enthusiasm. [Author]
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succeeded in building even one! It was a shame that it could
actually be said that the Pope's call had elicited such a feeble echo
throughout the world. Hence, while weighing the pros and cons for
quite some time, Don Bosco found it hard to excuse himself from
this heavy burden.
In the end it was the Pope's own word which dispelled all Don
Bosco's doubts. In his long-awaited audience with Leo XIII on
April 5, the Pope manifested his wish to him, assuring him that by
accepting he would be doing something holy and most pleasing to
the Vicar of Christ who was exceedingly disappointed at finding
himself unable to continue the project.
"For me the wish of the Pope is a command," Don Bosco
replied. "I accept the trust that Your Holiness has graciously given
me."
"But I shall not be able to give you any money," the Pope said.
"I do not ask Your Holiness for money. All I ask is your blessing
and all those spiritual favors you may see fit to grant to me and to
those who will contribute to build this temple to the Sacred Heart of
Jesus in the capital of the Catholic world. Indeed, if Your Holiness
will allow me, I shall also build next to the church a festive oratory,
and a large hospice where very many poor boys, abounding in that
district, can be sheltered and be taught some skill or trade."
"Willingly I bless you and all those who shall work with you in
so holy an undertaking," the Pope answered, "and I call down
God's blessing upon it now. Work out the details with the cardinal
vicar."
Once word got about in Rome that the Holy Father had
commissioned Don Bosco to build a boarding school at Castro
Pretorio in addition to a shrine to the Sacred Heart, several new
and unseasoned members of the city council called on the minister
of justice, [Thomas] Villa, to ask how they were to look upon the
new institute which probably would vastly expand. Ten years had
not yet elapsed since Italian troops had stormed through Porta Pia,
and so the anticlericals sounded the alarm at every breeze that
wafted from the Vatican. The minister, though true to his kind,
knew Don Bosco fairly well and, as deputy, represented the
constituency of Castelnuovo. Having silently heard them out, he
stated forthrightly, "Don Bosco is doing a lot of good to many boys
by rescuing them from evil ways and giving them an education. He
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
does not meddle in politics. Leave him alone."
When Don Bosco told Marquis Scati about this at the end of
1880,1 the latter could not help but voice his apprehension that the
Freemasons in both the city and state governments might wage war
against him. "That's why we must move cautiously-guileless as
doves, but cunning as serpents. I have always scrupulously abided
by the law, giving to Caesar what is Caesar's, nothing more and
nothing less. God help me ifl acted imprudently. That would throw
too many boys back into the streets!"
After the papal audience, Don Bosco drafted a memorandum
and personally handed it to the cardinal vicar on the evening of
April 18, two days before leaving Rome.8 The brief document
summarized the chief points which were later drafted into the
definitive contract.
Rome, April 10, 1880
To His Eminence Cardinal Raphael Monaco La Valletta, Vicar of
His Holiness in Rome.
I. Church of the Sacred Heart of Jesus,
Monument to His Holiness Pius IX of Beloved Memory
With the sole aim of promoting God's greater glory and the honor of our
holy religion, joined by all my religious, I gladly cooperate with Your
Eminence in the construction already in progress of the church to be
dedicated to the Sacred Heart of Jesus as a tribute to the glorious and ever
beloved memory of the Supreme Pontiff, Pius IX.
As for the conditions of a contract, it is my wish that Your Eminence
represent both. parties: the ecclesiastical authorities and the Salesian
Congregation, upon which Your Eminence has always looked with
fatherly concern. However, since you have asked me to express my own
thoughts on this matter, I do so willingly, leaving it entirely to your own
experience and prudence to modify any and all articles, as Your Eminence
deems best.
II. The Congregation of St. Francis de Sales
1. In the person of its rector, the Pious Society of St. Francis de Sales
7During a visit to Don Bosco on December 22, 1880, the marquis had a long conversation
with him, as he reported in a memo of his now in our archives. [Author]
8Chronicle of Fr. Berto: "Sunday, April 18. This evening Don Bosco went to the cardinal
vicar and gave him a memorandum to be handed to the Holy Father concerning the building
of the Church of the Sacred Heart of Jesus in Rome." [Author]
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commits itself to cooperate with every means available to further the work
in progress, raise funds and procure construction materials needed to
complete this holy enterprise hopefully within two and a half or, at the
latest, three years.
2. Once the construction is completed, the Salesian Congregation will
take the responsibility of providing all church furnishings, sacred vessels
and vestments, and assume payment of fees, maintenance, repairs and so
on.
3. We shall provide personnel for pastoral care-i.e., priests to offer
Mass for the people, hear confessions, preach, and teach the children
catechism.
4. Either while the church is being constructed or after, the hospice will
have a festive oratory for neighborhood youngsters to teach them their
catechism, conduct evening classes and, if necessary, also run a day
school, as is the tradition of the Congregation's houses founded for this
purpose.
5. After the church's construction, the Salesian staff will be subject to
the authority of the ordinary in the same way as all churches belonging to
religious congregations. If the ordinary decides to establish the Church of
the Sacred Heart as a parish, the rector shall choose the pastor from the
Salesians, and the rector major of the Congregation will present the
candidates to His Eminence, the cardinal vicar of Rome, who will select ·
the priest he judges best qualified for that position to further God's glory
and the good of souls.
III. The Church Authority
1. His Eminence the cardinal vicar shall continue his material and
moral support to this undertaking which he himself began and promoted
with such dedication; he shall hand over the grounds and building in their
present state to the disposal of the Reverend John Bosco. All moneys
collected for this purpose by His Eminence or others shall be wholly and
exclusively used for the construction of this memorial church.
2. He shall allow fund-raising to continue in those places and with
appeals to those people whom it shall be deemed wise to approach.
3. The cardinal vicar shall have no responsibility for either the material
construction or for purchasing further property needed for the aforesaid
construction.
4. I respectfully request the cardinal vicar to submit these articles to the
Holy Father, asking him to modify them as he wishes. They shall not be
binding until they bear the approval and blessing of His Holiness.
Fr. John Bosco
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
As required by the [Salesian] constitutions Don Bosco could not
fully commit himself to a project of such magnitude without first
consulting his chapter. Hence, on arriving in Turin, he summoned
his councilors and presented the Holy Father's proposal to them.
The ensuing discussion was a long one. All agreed that the Pope's
proposal was a distinguished honor, but also a most weighty
burden, since they already were laden with debts amounting to
three hundred thousand lire. Under the circumstances it seemed
neither wise nor conscionable to take up an enterprise that would
swallow up millions more. The vote that followed was six negative
and only one positive-the last most certainly Don Bosco's own.
Seeing that the Holy Father's proposal had been rejected, he said
with a smile, "You have all given me a resounding no for an
answer, and that is fine, because you acted with all the prudence
needed to make serious, major decisions such as this. However,
were you to give me a yes answer, I can promise you that the
Sacred Heart of Jesus will supply the funds to build the Church, He
will pay off our debts, and He will even give us a handsome bonus
as well." His words, vibrant with such trust in Divine Providence,
instantly overturned their decision and, on a second ballot, they all
voted affirmatively. Moreover, on studying the blueprints of the
church, the chapter members thought it too small and immediately,
at that same session, agreed to submit to the Holy Father a vaster
project which would be more worthy of the Sacred Heart and of
Rome. It was done. The "bonus" was the hospice itself, which did
not figure in the Pope's intentions, but was an extra, almost a kind
of reward offered by the Sacred Heart. The Congregation's debts,
as Cardinal Cagliero testified at the apostolic process,9 were paid
with no strain, as Don Bosco had promised.
No time was lost in opening negotiations, and during the
discussions a new idea came up. The Superior Council of the
Italian Catholic Youth Association, situated in Bologna with Count
Acquademi as its president, had decided to erect a monument to
the saintly memory of Pius IX, but had not as yet agreed on the
form it should take. In view of this, in May 1880 the cardinal vicar
told the president that he hoped they would merge their project with
9 Summarium super virtutibus, No. VI, De heroica spe, Paragraph 149. [Author]
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The Church of the Sacred Heart of Jesus in Rome
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that of the new church. Several proposals were sent in, the most
acceptable being that a building be added to the Church of the
Sacred Heart and named after the deceased Pontiff for training
good and wise educators. The idea of honoring the memory of Pius
IX was already contained in the project to build the church, but this
later plan gave it more explicit expression. Count Acquademi
therefore asked Don Bosco if he would be willing to go along with
this plan. 10 According to a note jotted on the count's letter, Don
Bosco replied that he agreed to the project in the terms outlined by
the cardinal vicar. All our research in Bologna to find out what
happened to this plan turned up nothing, but from the tenor of Don
Bosco's reply so vaguely expressed in that note, it would appear
that Don Bosco probably let the matter drop so as to forestall
inevitable complications and interference.
While a final agreement was still being drafted in Turin, Don
Bosco quickly purchased a property adjoining the original piece of
land; it had a small house on it at its extreme end where the hospice
today lies along the comer of Via Marsala and Via Marghera. The
sale was for forty-nine thousand, five hundred lire. This little two-
storied house served as the first Salesian residence during the
period of construction. Don Bosco's intent in enlarging the building
site was to allow room for extending the length of the church and
putting up the hospice. He had no idea that he had just blasted the
Protestant plans to erect a church of their own there. However, the
cardinal vicar knew it and stated that he was delighted with the
purchase.11 But when it came to the question of enlarging the
church, His Eminence was not so delighted. Maybe he still felt
responsible for the enterprise and feared a second failure. It
certainly took a great deal to convince him, but at long last the
10Letter from the count to Don Bosco, Bologna, June 1, 1880. [Author]
11Letter from Father Dalmazzo to Don Bosco, Rome, June 14, 1880: "I heard from
Father Louis of Casoria this morning; he asks me to give you his regards and says that he
would buy the land rather than let the Protestants pitch camp alongside the Sacred Heart
Church." Father Dalmazzo might well have added that Father Louis, accompanied by
Father Bonaventure, his first successor, had come posthaste from Naples to Rome the
evening before in order to buy the property, and that he had met them on the steps of the
Tiberina Bank, just as he was leaving the building after signing the deed. They recognized
each other, stopped to exchange greetings and talk about Don Bosco, and together went
home part of the way. Pleased that the danger had been averted, this saintly son of St.
Francis took the train back to Naples the following day.
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
determined intervention of the architect overcame his opposition.12
Just how Don Bosco felt in that initial period and what ingenious
expedients he used from the very beginning to fmance the overwhelm-
ing expenses we learn from three letters which he wrote to his pro-
curator general. The reader should bear in mind that the property
then belonged to the Tiberina Bank, the president of which was
Commendatore Caranti, whose name frequently comes up in the
correspondence. The first of these three letters needs no comment.
My dear Father Dalmazzo,
Turin, July 7, 1880
As soon as I arrived from Casale, I read over the project of the Church
ofthe Sacred Heart in Rome. I have seen to it that it incorporates our own
proposal as well as the observations made by the cardinal vicar. I am
giving you full powers to amend and make decisions according to the mind
of and within the limits set by His Eminence. We enthusiastically support
him with every possible effort.
I would only beg him to side with us in ensuring that the church is large
enough. As the present plans stand, its public space is barely four hundred
meters long whereas it should be twice that length. I foresee that before the
church is even completed the new parish will have no less than six
thousand souls. To accommodate one-third of this population, the church
should be nine hundred meters long.
As for money, I have someone who is offering to lend us one hundred
thousand lire at five and a half percent, including revenues from personal
property. But if the Tiberina Bank is ready to give us a checking account,
we would be doing better because, if we can sell the property we talked
about, as it seems we can, we shall be running on our own steam.
Talk it over with our good friend Mr. Sigismondi, and if he can get us
better terms, we shall take them gratefully. Tell this truly good Papa of
ours that we are head over heels in a grand project, but that God is with us
and so we have nothing to fear.
Give my humble respects to the cardinal vicar. Assure him again that
the Salesians will always be his loyal, obedient sons and that he can
admonish us any time we mess things up!
God bless us all and keep us in His holy grace! Give my regards to my dear
sons Zucchini and Giaretto.13 Please pray for me. Always in Jesus Christ,
Yours affectionately,
Fr. John Bosco
12The church's width remaining as stated in the plans, its length was increased from thirty-
five to forty-six meters for two new naves, and another eighteen meters for the apse. [Author]
13A cleric and a lay Salesian assisting the procurator. [Editor]
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To inspire wealthy, generous and pious people to contribute,
Don Bosco drew them closer to the Church and to the papacy by
obtaining for them from the Holy See suitable honorific titles and
spiritual favors. As they felt they were being held especially closer
and dearer to the Vicar of Jesus Christ, they strove to become
worthy of this honor by doing their best to cooperate in those
projects which they thought would please the Holy Father.
Don Bosco's second letter begins with reference to a double
petition, whose favorable outcome he was sure would bring about
considerable advantages also for the Church of the Sacred Heart.
He asked for the privilege of a private chapel for the widowed
Madame Prat, whom we have already met,14 and her mother. To
make his gift to them complete he took care of the usual fees. He
was granted the favor with a promptness he did not expect. The
letter also mentions a preliminary contract on the purchase of a new
piece of land, and speaks of the legal transfer of the property
adjacent to the old site and the initial construction. Mr. Sigismondi
had advanced Don Bosco twenty thousand lire. Even in the midst
of such dry business talk, his touch of humor makes his utter
serenity rub off on the reader.
My dear Father Dalmazzo,
Turin, July 9, 1880
I am enclosing two petitions for you to submit to Cardinal Giannelli, or
perhaps you might do better to give them to Cardinal [Theodolph] Mertel.
They are for two distinguished benefactors of ours, both fervent Catholics.
Madame Prat has already contributed sixty-five thousand lire for Peter's
Pence, and she will be sending further sums soon.
I realize that there may be fees to be paid, but I will pay them myself, so
that I can say this is a gift. It will bear much fruit.
Mr. Caranti has been notified by Commendatore Fontana that we were
also purchasing the little house at a reasonable price, and he said yes. It
would be good to talk to him. The agreement gives us time to raise the
money, and that is fine. I'll take care of everything, especially the loan. I
have high hopes.
Notify me immediately as soon as the notary's deed of transfer [of the
land for the Sacred Heart Church] has been made out to us.
The final draft we read in our chapter meeting has been totally
approved.
14See pp. 323f. [Editor]
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Be at ease. If we go bankrupt we can always sneak off to Patagonia. So
go on tranquilly.
Should Mr. Sigismondi have need of the sum he advanced, draw it from
the money we have already deposited, or write and I shall provide.
God bless us all. Always in Jesus Christ,
Yours affectionately,
Fr. John Bosco
The "clause" about which Don Bosco says in his third letter he
has reflected on at length refers to Article 3 of the agreement, which
was then modified to meet his suggestion.
We quote only the first half of the letter here, since the rest refers
to a topic to be discussed in Chapter 26.
My dear Father Dalmazzo,
Turin, July 14, 1880
I have reflected at great length on the clause concerning the possibility
that our Congregation may cease to exist. In the eyes of the law we are
neither a moral nor a legal body. At any rate, in the event of default, a
parish church belonging to the ecclesiastical authority will always be
respected more than property which we can possess only as individuals.
I believe that we can still make an arrangement if it is not too late:
church and rectory belong to the ordinary of Rome in perpetuity, while
their use shall likewise belong to the Society of St. Francis de Sales in
perpetuity. Let's leave the rest in the hands of Divine Providence. Unless
the matter has already been settled and sealed, you might mention the
above idea to the cardinal vicar. Otherwise, let everything stand as
written.
Yours affectionately,
Fr. John Bosco
While discussing this with Father Dalmazzo, the good cardinal
vicar let slip a remark: "Everyone says that Don Bosco is the
Salesian Congregation. As long as he lives, fine, but once he dies,
everything will vanish like a mist before the sun." However, he
willingly listened to all Father Dalmazzo had to say in defense of
the stability of the Congregation. Father Dalmazzo closed his ar-
gument by remarking that Don Bosco would not have set such
stress on the question of ownership if he and the Congregation
would always be fortunate enough to have as cardinal vicar
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someone like His Eminence, who was truly a father to the
Salesians. He would then leave everything in his hands. However,
since times change, prudence counseled him not to yield on this
point. The cardinal was pleased, and he said that he would speak of
the matter as Don Bosco understood it to the Holy Father.15
On July 14 Father Dalrnazzo wrote to Don Bosco: "The
cardinal vicar spoke at length about this question to the Holy
Father, who replied, 'Get in touch with Father Dalmazzo and have
him write to Don Bosco to ask him in my name not to raise any
obstacles to this project because the salvation of souls is at stake.'"
Don Bosco reiterated his instructions to his procurator by return
mail, as follows: ''Ownership of the church must remain forever in
the hands of the ecclesiastical authority; its use forever belongs to
our Congregation. But let the cardinal vicar know that I have put
myself entirely into his hands. He is good to us, and we all have full
trust in him. Therefore, as I have written to him before, let him act
as agent for both parties of the contract as he judges best for God's
greater glory. Since the Holy Father has asked us to clear all
obstacles, let them all the more be removed by the charity and
prudence of the cardinal vicar."
For a long time questions and answers kept being tossed back
and forth between the vicariate of Rome and the superior chapter as
they tried to settle on the language of the contract. It was still being
discussed when Don Bosco officially presented his candidate for
the pastor of the parish, which had already been given official state
recognition at the end ofMarch; it had been canonically established
on February 2 of the previous year.
Your Eminence,
Turin, July 31, 1880
From various sources I understand that it is your intention to entrust the
administration of the new parish of the Sacred Heart of Jesus to the
Salesians. In this case I would suggest that your choice fall on our general
procurator, Father Francis Dalmazzo, doctor of letters. As soon as the
appointment becomes effective, I shall assign an adequate number of
priests to assist him, with the assurance that they have the qualifications
proper to those who dedicate their lives to the sacred care of souls.
Our humble Congregation has already many reasons to be deeply
15Letter from Father Dalmazzo to Don Bosco, Rome, July 10, 1880. [Author]
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thankful to Your Eminence, and on behalf of all of us I assure you that we
shall endeavor to repay the benefits you lavishly bestow on us daily. I am
greatly honored to pay you my respects.
Your most devoted servant,
Fr. John Bosco
The decree of appointment was not issued until July 12, 1881,
and Father Dalmazzo, the appointee, was not informed until the
following August 3.
Despite the good will of both contracting parties, disagreements
on certain points kept emerging until the fall, while Don Bosco kept
striving to eliminate any and all future causes of friction. In the first
half of October, discussions were still being held concerning parish
salaries. The superiors in Turin were undecided about asking for a
stipend and, if so, to whom they should apply: to the municipal
authorities, the state government, or the Holy See. At last on
October 18 Don Bosco wrote to the procurator, "As for a parish
stipend, we will abide by whatever the Holy Father decides or
whatever His Eminence the cardinal vicar advises." In the end the
tenth article of the agreement settled the matter. In the meantime,
the construction crews very slowly resuming, Father [Anthony]
Sala [the economer general] began shopping for the granite
columns specified by the architect. In the above letter Don Bosco
wrote, "Father Sala is getting estimates on the columns for the
Sacred Heart Church. I shall keep in touch with you, and if you
have any question, let me know immediately.... Faith, prayer, and
let's go forward.
In November payment fell due to the Tiberina Bank for a
considerable portion of the loan obtained to purchase the land,
house and construction materials, and no one knew where the
money was to come from. A public appeal could not yet be made
through the press because final formalities were still incomplete.
Don Bosco's concern is quite apparent in this letter.
My dear Father Dalmazzo,
Turin, November 24, 1880
I have received a letter stating that we have an outstanding debt of
thirty-nine thousand five hundred lire with Caranti. I had not adverted to
this proviso. In this financial crisis everyone is yelling and drawing their
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The Church of the Sacred Heart of Jesus in Rome
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purse strings tighter! Is there anyone we can rely on in Rome? Look about
far and near and get back to me.
It is absolutely essential that we start a campaign for raising funds for
the Sacred Heart Church, but until negotiations are closed, we cannot go
public. Still, we haven't a penny to our name. So get things over with! God
be with you and stay well.
Yours affectionately in Jesus Christ,
Fr. John Bosco
However the situation kept dragging because Don Bosco had his
doubts about two articles. Article 8 imposed a deadline for
terminating construction, and Article 13 concerned the eventuality
that, if ever no qualified Salesian would be available, the
ecclesiastical authority might appoint a pastor and administrator
even/or life. "The article obliging us [to complete the construction
of the church] within six years from now [and the construction of
the rectory within nine years] and the article on a lifelong
appointment of an administrator must be amended," Don Bosco
wrote on December 9. To emphasize this, he enclosed a note
written by Father Rua on behalf of the superior chapter and signed
by himself. Its enlightened prudence and holy simplicity reflect the
spirit of our beloved founder very clearly.
Your Eminence,
Turin, December 11, 1880
The superior chapter of the Society of St. Francis de Sales, through its
rector major, asks that you approve two minor amendments in the articles
of agreement concerning the Church of the Sacred Heart. If we were
assured that we would always be dealing with Your Eminence, we would
accept these and all other conditions. But we are trying to forestall
disagreements which may all too easily arise when you and I have passed
on and the administration falls into the hands of others.
Article 8. We have made the following addition: "Provided circumstances
do not arise beyond our control, all needed work on the parish house must
be completed in the ninth year."
Article 13. We have eliminated the phrase "even for life" after the
words "vicar or administrator" to give the ecclesiastical authority
complete freedom of action and to make it possible for the Salesian
Congregation to resume normal administration of the parish and forestall
eventual problems certain to arise if the boys of the hospice and those of
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
the festive oratory or day school ever had to use the parish church facilities
and the church were being administered by a non-Salesian priest.
For myself, however, I believe I would wrong Divine Providence were I
to so much as harbor any doubt that either of the possibilities cited in
Articles 8 and 13 might come to pass, or that the unlimited confidence
which has led us into this vast, costly undertaking might not win for us the
continued benevolence of Your Eminence.
I am not sure if I have made myself clear, but your enlightened wisdom
will supply for my lack of clarity or our procurator general will explain to
you. I have given him full powers in this and in all affairs of the
Congregation.
In deepest gratitude, I am honored to remain,
Yours devotedly,
Fr. John Bosco
The cardinal vicar was agreeable to the two amendments Don
Bosco requested, i.e., the added reservation in the event of
circumstances beyond control and the substitution of "temporary"
in place of "even for life." This ended the dispute on the terms of
the agreement, which was signed by Don Bosco on December 11
and by the cardinal vicar, with the Pope's approval, on December
18, 1880. In the intervening week, when Father Dalmazzo called
on the Pope to offer him the best wishes and respects of Don Bosco
and the Salesians, the Holy Father asked him if the signing had
taken place. When he was told that the cardinal vicar would be
signing very shortly, he said, "Act quickly. Do all the good you
can!"
Meanwhile the overdue note amounting to forty-two thousand
lire had to be paid to the Tiberina Bank before the end of
December. "We have no hope of finding any money here," wrote
Father Dalmazzo to Don Bosco on December 1. "We'd have a
good chance if you were here!" And he kept insisting on the need
for some money. 1s
Don Bosco's thinking on this point is clear in the following
advice he gave his despairing procurator in a letter dated December
9: "To settle our debt with the Tiberina Bank, let them understand
that since we have not been able to sell the property we have put on
16Letters from Father Dalmazzo to Don Bosco, Rome, December 1, 4, 17, and 21, 1880.
[Author]
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The Church of the Sacred Heart of Jesus in Rome
473
the market, we do not have the cash available. So, if they can wait,
we will now pay the interest as we are doing for the other loan.
Otherwise ask them to grant us an extension and allow us to pay it
off in installments. We will endeavor to pay off the whole sum in a
short period of time. On your part, do your utmost to get more
donations. If you can't succeed, rob some bank or, better still, help
yourself to some banker's coffers! You'll get more mail on other
matters from the others.''
Once the bank realized the power of Don Bosco's influence, it
agreed to an extended period of installments. In fact, Father
Dalmazzo, who had power of attorney from Don Bosco, was
allowed substantial loans over a period of seven years, with no
collateral beyond a receipt slip. On one occasion the bank president
even gave him a loan of eighty thousand lire, saying, "It is for Don
Bosco. He has Divine Providence at his disposal, so we can't
lose." 17
Indeed, only unlimited trust in Divine Providence convinced
Don Bosco to shoulder this weighty burden. Those who were
looking at this project with merely human wisdom were shaking
their head at such unheard-of boldness. An important personage
once asked him where he hoped to raise that kind of money in those
exceptionally critical times. "From Divine Providence!" he
replied. When the other asked him if he was being given special
treatment by Divine Providence, he answered, "Thank God, He
has never failed us." 18 Indeed, we shall see that he spent two
million lire on the church and one and a half million on the
hospice-in those days astronomical sums!
However, we must rightly add that he never tempted Divine
Providence and did all he could to help himself. We can hardly
believe how much he toiled and suffered in carrying out the Pope's
desire-agonies and pains which, says Father Cerruti who
witnessed them, shortened his life.19 When all was done, Leo XIII,
considering everything, told Don Bosco's successor some time after
the farmer's death: "It was truly a happy thought to entrust Don
17Summarium super virtutibus, No. X. De heroica iustitia. Paragraph 110. (Witness
Father Dalmazzo.) [Author]
18/bid., No. VI, De heroica spe. Paragraph 135. (Witness Father Dalmazzo.) [Author]
19/bid, No. III, De operibus ac fundationibus, Paragraph 67. [Author]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
Bosco with the construction of the Church of the Sacred Heart at
Castro Pretorio!"20
But Don Bosco looked further into the future. Our own Bishop
John Marenco recalled a mysterious remark he made which we
should not let time obliterate. On the very day he accepted that
burdensome assignment, Don Bosco asked him, "Do you know
why we accepted that house in Rome?"
"No," he answered.
"Listen, then. We agreed because one day, when there will be
another Pope and he shall be the right one, we shall set up our
headquarters there to evangelize the Roman countryside. It will be
no less important a task than that of evangelizing Patagonia. Then
will the Salesians be acknowledged and their glory shine forth!"
A prophecy? True, the Pope of today [Pius XI] is not the Pope of
those days, but he is just as he should be. As for the rest, time alone
will give the answer. However, prophecy or not, we see at least the
flash of the zeal which constantly burned in the heart of our saintly
father who, while working on some project, was also contemplating
future ones.
20Ibid., No. VI, De heroica spe, Paragraph 13. (Witness Father Rua.) [Author]
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CHAPTER 25
The Salesians in France
during the Religious Persecution
THE storm which had been brewing for months when
Don Bosco left France1 finally burst at the end of March [1880].
This forms a very important chapter of Church history.
A bill drafted by Jules Ferry and presented to the French
Assembly by Premier [Charles] Freycinet for the purpose of
dealing a deathblow to five recently opened Catholic universities
contained an article, the seventh, which barred religious who had
not received government recognition from teaching in public
schools. The house of representatives approved the entire bill, but
the senate twice rejected that particular article and sent the
amended bill to the other legislative assembly. Vexed, the
government decided to pursue its goal by resorting to its executive
power. Exhuming long-abrogated laws and grossly misinterpreting
those still in force, it issued two decrees on March 29, 1880. The
first mandated the expulsion of the Jesuits from all their houses and
the shutdown of all their educational facilities; the second ordered
all unauthorized religious congregations to apply for government
recognition within three months under penalty of expulsion. A
subsequent bill extended both decrees to the French colonies.
There was no longer reason to doubt that this was an attempt to bar
the youth of France from a Christian education.
A census conducted in 1877 had turned up five hundred religious
congregations, with a total membership of twenty thousand men
and women, which had no government recognition. Most of the
bigger congregations promptly decided to throw in their lot with the
Jesuits and to refuse to seek state recognition. They had every good
reason to do so because of the government's demands that their
superiors general reside in France and that the congregations
submit their rules and statues to its examination. Very soon the
1See Chapter 16. [Editor]
475
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
French bishops organized a letter-writing campaign to President
Frarn;ois Grevy, the senate, the foreign secretary, and the premier,
making it very clear that the March 29 decrees were an outrage
against the Church, a calculated erosion of the most sacred
religious values and an insult to freedom of conscience. Lawyers
did their share in the legal domain. But they all proved to be voices
crying in the wind. The tyranny of Leon Gambetta and fellow
radicals choked the cries of outraged justice.
The abominable decrees against the Jesuits began to be enforced
on June 30. At four in the morning of that day, all through France
police and military forced their way into the Jesuit houses, breaking
down doors and physically evicting the religious. Then the houses
were shut with the government seal. We need not describe the
indignation of honest citizens who reacted against the expulsion
order, but we must state that Catholics all over the world welcomed
the exiles with generous hearts.
Don Bosco too followed the impulse of his love. In fact, even
before violence broke out he yielded to his heart's promptings.
Knowing that the Jesuits would inevitably be the first to suffer
eviction, as soon as the decrees were promulgated he wrote to
Father [Peter] Beckx, the Jesuit superior general, to say that "in
this common upheaval our houses were at his service in whatever
way needed."2 Father Beckx expressed his thanks for the
"generous, spontaneous and unconditional offer," as he called it in
the letter that follows :3
How gracious is Our Lord's love! How well was our beloved St. Francis
de Sales imbued by it! How worthily do they bear his name who have so
thoroughly inherited his spirit of charity! This is one of the most consoling
benefits which God, in His infinite wisdom, draws from the bitter
persecutions which He permits His servants to endure. He inspires good-
hearted people to share the sorrows of others and help them at the price of
any sacrifice. I do not know if we shall have occasion to accept your
generous offer, but I assure you that we shall never forget your generosity,
and we shall heartily pray that God will begin to reward you even in this
life by blessing, expanding and prospering the zealous works which you
and your holy Congregation have undertaken for God's greater glory. In
21.etter from Don Bosco to Father Ronchail, Rome, April 9, 1880. [Author]
31.etter from Fiesole, April 5, 1880. [Author]
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The Salesians in France during Religious Persecution
477
your charity pray for me too, and for our embattled Society of Jesus.
Respectfully and gratefully yours, etc.
Our three Salesian directors in France were not caught by
surprise because even before March 29 they were ready with
preventive measures. Father [Joseph] Ronchail, senior member
and interpreter of Don Bosco's directives for his confreres, had
already sought Don Bosco's advice on what to do in any
eventuality. From Rome Don Bosco sent instructions for himself,
Father Bologna and Father Perrot.
Dear Father Ronchail,
Torre de' Specchi 36
Rome, March 23, 1880
1. Start from the position that we are not a religious congregation, but a
society whose members enjoy full civil status. We came to France to care
for poor, homeless boys, and our services are given completely free. We
responded to the call of individual bishops to help them shelter civil
society's most destitute and abandoned boys.
If they ask for our constitutions, give them the Latin text. Insist on
Chapter 1, which describes the scope of our Society. Point out the chapter
dealing with the individual houses, and show that income and expenses
must remain in those houses to which charitable donations have been
given.
2. You may state that our headquarters are at Nice but that everywhere
else [in France] we are merely tenants and employees of the Beaujour
Society.
3. Don't worry about the principality of Monaco. Things won't get that
bad, but if they do, write me immediately and I shall give you needed
instructions. Spain, Uruguay, Argentina and Patagonia are waiting for us.
4. As for applying for government recognition, I think it best to let
things simmer for the time being. "Day pours out the word to day, and
night to night imparts knowledge" [Ps. 18, 2].
5. Rush me any news you may have in this matter.
6. As to our other houses in France, stand firm on the principle that we
stand for farming, trades and work skills. If we ever teach academic
subjects, like Latin, to any of our pupils, we do so only to train
supervisors, teachers and master craftsmen, particularly in the printing
trades.
7. Once I get a copy of our good Mamma's will, I shall study it.
8. As to the work that has to be done, see Monsieur Levrot and no one
else, but the church must be foremost in your mind, the focal point to
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
which every other part of the building must have access. Everything
passes; every day has its share of good and evil. Keep me briefed on
matters touching our other houses in France. Let us pray a great deal that
God may avert the tempest now threatening the bark of Peter.
God bless us all. Give my regards to all our confreres, and strengthen
them.
Yours affectionately in Jesus Christ,
Fr. John Bosco
Don Bosco also wrote twice to Canon Guiol on behalf of Father
Bologna. The first letter, dated March 26, read as follows:
We have reason to fear that in questioning or, rather, in actually
compiling a directory of religious institutes in France, the Beaujour
Society will be contacted. In that event, please instruct Father Bologna to
state that Taulaigo, who is French, is the head of the house, and that a
Frenchman, Father Brogly, for example, is the administrator. As for the
school curriculum, mention only the choir school, which is under your
control and for which you have required legal qualifications. This is only
in view of what may happen; forewarned is forearmed.
The second letter, dated April 6, added: "Tell [Father Bologna]
privately that the Holy Father does not want our rules to be shown
to the government should it request them. Ifit does, take the time to
notify me." He also wrote twice to Father Ronchail. The first time
was from Rome, on April 9: "When asked, remember to state that
we are a charitable, not a religious, society, and that every member
is perfectly free to exercise all his civil rights and does so." On
April 26 he wrote again from Florence: "Do what the other
religious congregations are doing, but I think it wise first to check
with the local bishops, who, I know, are well informed on what the
religious congregations are doing." [Presently, 1933] Father
[Louis] Cartier4 tells us that, while other congregations were
debating whether or not to apply for government recognition, Don
Bosco wrote to Father Ronchail that he was not to compromise
himself by submitting an application. "Let things simmer for the
time being," we recall that he told him.
To some of our readers it may seem quibbling to state that the
Salesians were a "charitable, not a religious society." Yet that is
4See Appendix 1. [Editor]
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The Salesians in France during Religious Persecution
479
what they were before the government, to which they were
answerable only in matters within its competence. As far as it was
concerned, the Salesians were simply free citizens who banded
together for a worthy purpose according to common law. This was
the sense in which they had sought authorization from local
governments to open houses for poor, destitute youth. Ifthe Church
saw them in an additional light, it was not the government's
concern, since the latter had no right to demand from its citizens a
public profession of religious belief before allowing them to reside
in the country or take up a lawful occupation of their choice.5
Thanks to all of Don Bosco's instructions, the directors had a very
good idea of what they were to do-and actually did-when ques-
tioned by government officials about their organization and assets.
As we skim over the minutes of the ladies' committee of
Marseille, we have to admire the calmness with which they
continued to hold their regular meetings under the chairmanship of
Canon Guiol to deal with the many needs of St. Leo's Festive
Oratory, as though nothing untoward were happening all around
them. They even organized a successful, well advertised celebration
for the bishop's blessing of the new chapel on June 17. However,
the day was not far off when what was happening generally
throughout the country would touch their tranquil meetings, but we
have no indication of anything like that in the minutes.
The first hint of any problem crops up in the minutes of July 1,
the day following the Jesuits' stormy eviction from their houses.
Don Bosco had stated that he might visit Marseille in August.
Canon Guiol duly informed the ladies and asked that they keep the
news to themselves, for two reasons, as follows:
Don Bosco, the saintly founder, will be in Marseille for a very short
time and will be very busy, as he will preside over the Salesians' spiritual
retreat. We must spare him the crush of visitors which overwhelmed him
last winter. Besides this principal reason, we must also keep a certain
measure of prudence, for we are living in critical times and we dare not
arouse attention. People attribute many predictions to Don Bosco, but
when you mention this to him, he laughs it off, and this in no way detracts
from his indisputable holiness. The trait which most strikingly impresses
5No mention is made of the Salesians in a Paris publication of that year (Memoire pour la
defense des Congregations religieuses) listing the congregations tagged for expulsion.
[Author]
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TIIE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
us is his unyielding, unshakable calm, which shows his great self-mastery.
Now he tells us to trust in God and push forward, for no one will hurt us,
but it is his faith in Divine Providence which makes him talk like that, and
we are not to attribute any prophetic significance to his words.
Later Don Bosco did voice some doubts about the advisability of
assembling a number of priests for a spiritual retreat, but the
confreres in Marseille kept insisting that he come to deal personally
with house matters of the highest importance. They knew, however,
that he was not feeling well. In fact, his eye problem, fever attacks
and skin rashes were good reasons to cancel his trip. In all truth, he
would personally have gone all the same, disregarding his ailments,
but his doctors took a firm stand, and he sent Father Rua in his
stead. His faithful alter ego remained the Jast ten days of August in
Marseille. taking a close look at both the local and the overall situa-
tion. Later he gave Don Bosco a full report at the second general
chapter, which opened at Lanzo immediate]y upon his return.6
Sometime during September or October Canon Guiol went to
Rome and there heard Pope Leo XIII personally praise Don Bosco
most highly, calling him an extraordinary man. On that trip he met
with Don Bosco, but we do not know when or where-perhaps at
Sampierdarena, where Don Bosco happened to be at the end of
September for the spiritual retreat. He would have liked Don Bosco
to return to France with him, but he had to admit that it was not a
good idea. Recent events counseled that nothing be done to arouse
susp1c1on, and so, after discussing how to save the house of
Marseille, they separated, agreeing to meet again as soon as
possible.7
Everyone was led to believe that after the Jesuits' expulsion the
same fate would befall unauthorized religious congregations, as
ordered by the second decree, but it soon became apparent that it
was an empty threat to get them to seek recognition. The
government felt sorely embarrassed both by the pressure of the
solemn threat of expulsion it had issued and by the unfavorable
aftermath of its first experiment. Besides, legal proceedings against
it were being rigorously pursued by France's most renowned
lawyers. Furthermore, within days, one hundred and sixty-seven
6Minutes of August 5 and September 2. [Author]
7Minutes of October 21, 1880. [Author]
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The Salesians in France during Religious Persecution
481
magistrates handed in their resignations.8 This was to their credit,
but Don Bosco deplored their decision, preferring that these upright
men find it in themselves to remain at their posts and so prevent
anticlericals from replacing them. Hoping to get out of this predic-
ament without appearing to capitulate, Premier Freycinet initiated
secret negotiations with ecclesiastical authorities. A compromise
had just been worked out when the radical press got wind of it and
fiercely attacked the premier, branding him a coward and a traitor,
and rousing the rabble against the government. The uproar became
so menacing that it caused the downfall of the cabinet. As soon as a
new cabinet was formed under Premier Jules Ferry, it unleashed
the law enforcement agencies in an assault against the religious
institutes. This full-scale attack began October 16 with the
expulsion of the Carmelite friars and then proceeded against all the
men's religious congregations until November 8, the eve of the
reopening of parliament.
It was most crucial to protect our house in Marseille, for as it
went so would the other houses of France go. Its legal status before
the government was based on a statement made three years before
by the parish priest of St. Joseph's Church that St. Leo's Festive
Oratory was actually the parish choir school which he himself had
founded with all personal required legal qualifications. By mutual
agreement, Father Mendre, assistant parish priest, who was
equally certified, was to register as director with eight or ten French
teachers forming his staff. Father Bologna and the other Salesians,
who were not allowed to reside in the house because they were
aliens, though they did live there to do their share of the work,
would have to play a cat-and-mouse game until the storm blew
itself out. To ease the blow and apparently abide by the law, Don
Bosco drafted for Canon Guiol the outline of a declaration which
he was to send to the school superintendent.
Dear Sir:
I received your letter of ... and, wishing to show you the respect and
esteem which every citizen owes to civil authority, I think it opportune to
give you some explanations which you may need for a proper
8 See Unita Cattolica, July 18, 1880. Another one hundred and sixty-five magistrates
resigned during the second phase ofthe law enforcement, as stated in the November 13 issue
of the same paper. [Author]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
understanding of St. Leo's Festive Oratory, Rue Beaujour 9, attended by
the choirboys of St. Joseph's Church whose parish priest I am.
The purpose of this institution is to shelter poor, destitute boys, feed
them, give them an education, and so save them from moral dangers, so
that in due time they may earn their livelihood with the crafts they were
taught Presently they are learning to become tailors, shoemakers, carpenters,
blacksmiths, bricklayers agricultural laborers, gardeners, and so on.
Every year a considerable number of these youngsters are literally
snatched from juvenile delinquency and restored as honest citizens to civil
society. Some of these and other day boys make up the parish choir
school, regularly serving in the choir and on the altar at private and public
church functions in this my parish church. They receive elementary
schooling and some are also taking a classical course.
I am the founder of this school. A copy of my legal certification is herein
enclosed. Father N. Benard and [the cleric] Louis Cartier teach the
classical courses; Father Ricard and Lassepas teach the elementary
grades. The local superior is Father Taulaigo; Father Vincent and Father
Cavagnac have supervisory duties. All the above named are French and
lend their services free of charge.
Whatever additional information is needed, I shall gladly provide. I
recommend this home for poor children to your kindly care and remain
respectfully, etc.
Unfortunately, however, the worst enemies were those of the
household. A French cleric and another Frenchman who lived at
St. Leo's Festive Oratory, whose name we have not been able to
ascertain,9 were the chief villains, the cleric the more ruthless of the
two. He had come from another congregation, been welcomed like
a brother, and been assigned his duties, but secretly he kept plotting
against St. Leo's with others. He got hold of a copy of the rules and
sent it secretly to the minister of religious affairs along with other
documents, including a report of his own on all that he had seen in
our houses in Italy and France. The Salesians, who until then had
passed as free citizens, were now portrayed as members of an
unauthorized religious congregation. This Judas, whom Don Bosco
had invited to Turin for the feast of Mary, Help of Christians as a
token of his affection, continued his spying until he was unmasked
9Minutes, October 21, 1880. St. Leo's Festive Oratory had suffered a great deal because
of the most detestable ingratitude of these two young men whom it had welcomed [as staff
members]. They shamelessly published outrageous articles which caused grave embarrassment
and painful worry to the saintly founder and superior. [Author]
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The Salesians in France during Religious Persecution
483
and charitably told to remove his clerical garb and leave. He
wasted no time in falsely informing the press of cruel punishment
inflicted upon the boys by the Salesians, even accusing them of
trying to rouse the resident students to hatred against France. He
went so far as to bring formal charges in a court of law against
Father Bologna, the director, for violating the privacy of the mail.
His hostility led him to portray the Salesians as a foreign gang bent
on abusing French children-always a very explosive issue in
France, but more deadly than ever at this time because of the
unending national antagonism and bloody riots between Italian and
French workmen.
To conclude this account, we add that this wretch was rewarded
by the government with a teaching post in a public school, but it
was not long before he paid the price of his villainy. Hardly a year
later, while he was watching an outdoor public entertainment, the
bleachers collapsed. He was pulled from under the debris more
dead than alive with four broken ribs and other injuries. It is said
that, on recovering somewhat, he went knocking at St. Leo's
Oratory to seek readmission. Though the director could not grant
his request, he still gave him financial assistance from time to time.
His anonymous accomplice and a few empty-headed residents of
St. Leo's kept wagging their tongues freely, tattling outside the
house, so much so that they nearly succeeded in causing a severe
rift between the Salesians and Canon Guiol. The latter, however,
soon becoming aware of their shameless intrigues, had this to say
about the betrayal of St. Leo's Oratory to the ladies' committee at
their meeting of October 21, 1880: "These trials, far from
discouraging, practically set a seal on the goodness of this work and
make us trust in its future. As this work comes from God, God will
protect it. Nevertheless we must move prudently."
Under the above-described circumstances when religious institu-
tions were methodically being closed, how could the Salesians find
a way out? Could they hope for better treatment? Government
agents had already taken initial steps, inspecting our houses and
concluding that indeed they belonged to an unauthorized religious
congregation. Finally, on November 2, All Soul's Day, the Sale-
sians were ordered to vacate the premises within twenty-four hours
or be forcibly evicted. As if to dispel any possible illusion, they
could hear at St. Leo's the din of the attack on the nearby
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Dominican monastery. As previously arranged, the Italian Sale-
sians left the residence and took shelter with Canon Guiol, while the
others did what all the other communities had already done on
disbanding. The same was done at Nice and at La Navarre. Each
house drew up a written protest to be handed to the law enforce-
ment officers, and barricaded its doors, obliging the police to resort
to force to execute their mandate. The last defense of their civil
rights would be to yield finally to an overwhelming force.
Here we shall narrate only what happened at [St. Leo's] our
main house, both because we know more about it and because
substantially the same pattern was followed in all the others. Canon
Guiol, parish priest of St. Joseph's, the entire board of trustees of
the Beaujour Society, and a number of noble benefactors who
belonged to the city's foremost families went to St. Leo's during the
early hours of the morning to support the Salesians and protest by
their presence all abuse of power and most especially the violation
of a citizen's most sacred rights. The main door leading to the street
was bolted and barred, with a barricade of tables and furniture piled
against it. All persons present gathered in the hall to await events.
As dawn broke, curious sightseers began to roam about the
premises-not a new spectacle, to be sure, but one that always had
a flavor of its own. Milling about the crowd were the professional
demonstrators, shouting out their usual slogans and giving the
impression that this was an expression of the so-called will of the
sovereign people.
At eight, the fatal hour struck. Everyone in the house was on the
alert, yet there were no knocks at the door, no shouts in the street,
no blare of trumpets. Nine o'clock struck, then ten and eleven, and
still nothing happened. Since no official sporting a tri-colored sash
of office appeared, the onlookers disappointedly began to drift
away. Toward noon a few sharp raps on the door echoed through
the hall. The doorkeeper, a staunch Italian who had orders to notify
the others of the arrival of the police, walked up to the peephole in
the door and called "Who is it?" An unknown voice said something
in French which the doorkeeper did not understand. After a
moment of silence, the voice again spoke, "I am not the police
commissioner. Hurry! I am drenched to the skin." The rain was
falling heavily. Grasping only the words "chief of police," the
doorkeeper dashed upstairs in two bounds and burst into the room
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where all were gathered, announcing breathlessly, "The chief of
police is here." All instantly stood up, put on their gloves,
straightened their clothing, and, clustering about the one who was
to be their director for the occasion, went down to the main door.
Someone was still furiously knocking. "Who is it?" they asked. this
time there was no reply. The dreaded caller had in the meantime
borrowed a stepladder and entered the house through a window. No
one can describe how heartily all laughed when they heard the
booming voice of Father Mendre behind them. He had been
detained in the church of a late Mass and then had dashed over to
his post like a good soldier under a heavy downpour. His
appearance was just what was needed to break the tedious
monotony of their long vigil.
But now what were they to do? When they went back upstairs,
Canon Guiol told the bystanders of a letter in which Don Bosco
had substantially said: "They will pester and bait you, but you'll
only be harassed. If they want to expel you, ask for time to send the
boys back to their parents, and meanwhile God will do the rest." 10
On hearing this, Rostand [president ofthe Beaujour Society] said to
his colleagues: "Let's not waste time here. If Don Bosco wrote that,
we can leave because nothing will happen." They all left. Still, for
several days the Salesians kept watch behind their barricade until
all their fears were dispelled, and then they opened the door and
resumed their regular routine. Two rabid papers, the Radical and
the Petit Provenqal, kept up their outcry and would not desist until
they were silenced by the prefect of the province. 11
How did the boys at St. Leo's behave during this stormy period?
10Minutes, November 11, 1880. [Author]
11Throughout that time Don Bosco's friends shared the Salesians' anxiety and made it
their own, calling frequently at Valdocco. On November 12, 1880, Count Edward Mella,
while talking about the events taking place in France, told an interesting story about King
Charles Albert. When the Jesuits were expelled in disgrace from Piedmont in 1848, four of
them took refuge in the home of a former student, the architect [Anthony] Spezia, whom Don
Bosco asked to design the Church of Mary, Help of Christians in 1863. One evening an
official of the carabinieri [Italian national police] called at his home and asked to speak with
him.
"Are you Mr. Spezia, the architect?" he asked.
"Yes. May I help you?"
"How can I be sure that you are Mr. Spezia?"
"Because I'm not lying. If you wish, come in and ask anyone you like."
The officer walked in with a few carabinieri: then, opening his wallet, he said to Mr.
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
We have no indication that they did anything but take the side of
their superiors. In fact, an important letter from Father Mendre to
Don Bosco briefing him on those November days must have
delighted the good father in what is said about them. 12 Furthermore
a pocket notebook belonging to the cleric Louis Cartier, who
witnessed it all, notes under the date November 3: "At 9 o'clock,
class as usual. " 13
We can see how sure Don Bosco was of his position from a very
significant episode. Father Bologna, learning of the imminent expul-
sion, had sent a telegram to Father Cerruti, director at Alassio,
requesting forty beds for the Salesians and their homeless boys.
"We will all join you this evening," the telegram read. Father
Cerruti also wrote to Father Rua to inform Don Bosco. So con-
vinced was he that by the time his letter got to Turin the refugees
would already be in the house at Alassio that he stated flatly that
the Salesians expelled from Marseille had indeed arrived. Father
Rua hastened to give Don Bosco the fateful news. "What are you
saying?" Don Bosco replied. "That's impossible. They are not
supposed to be expelled. I wrote as much to Father Bologna."
"Yet Father Cerruti says they are already at Alassio."
"Impossible."
"I'm sorry, Father, but the letter is very clear."
"Still I tell you they could not have been expelled. Give me the
letter."
He read it and remarked, "There must be some misunderstanding,
some mistake.... Leave me the letter.... I will write to Father
Bologna. You will see that I am right." He then went to his room
Spezia, "His Majesty thanks you for your hospitality to the Jesuit fathers and sends you
these four thousand lire to defray expenses."
Let it be remembered that King Charles Albert would never have signed an order of
Eugene of Carignano, his lieutenant general. On September I0, 1848, the king wrote to Pius
IX from Alessandria, "Your Holiness certainly knows what was done here against our faith
and religious orders during my absence from Turin. I am sick at heart because of it."
[Author]
120mitted in this edition. [Editor]
13The same pocket diary, giving us but a few jotting in pencil, contains the following
beautiful notation under November 2: "The remainder of the day went by very tranquilly.
Both pupils and teachers kept busy. Like gentle lambs we were all resigned, taking our meals
in passive expectancy of what would befall us on the morrow to separate us from our beloved
superior and from our boys. What upset us most was the thought that these many young
boys, once out of the house, would be exposed to the worst dangers oflosing their souls for all
eternity." [Author]
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The Salesians in France during Religious Persecution
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and wrote to Father Bologna, asking for news. Notwithstanding
Father Rua's insistence that Father Bologna was at Alassio, Don
Bosco addressed the letter to Marseille and mailed it without a
moment's delay.
He showed the same self-assurance when Father Lemoyne, who
had come to Turin from Nizza Monferrato, asked him why he had
written to Father Bologna, "Don't fear. You will be bothered and
pestered, but they will not expel you." So too he could not
understand why Don Bosco refused to believe Father Rua's
statement. With that fatherly trust, so lavishly bestowed on his
sons, Don Bosco did not hide the cause of his self-assurance. His
explanation to Father Lemoyne was very brief, but he spoke at
length about it on the evening of December 1 at San Benigno while
he was there a few days with the superior chapter, putting some
final touches on the deliberations of the general chapter. The
chronicle tells us that they held long meetings both morning and
evening. In the evening session he informed the chapter with a
smile that he wanted to narrate a dream.
Back in 1858-he said-when I first went to Rome, as well as on other
occasions, Pius IX told me to narrate or to record anything that might
have a semblance of the supernatural. That's why I write or tell you
certain things. I do so gladly because they always redound to God's
greater glory and the welfare of souls.
I had this dream about the time of the feast of Our Lady's Nativity. 14 I
did not mention it before because I gave it little importance and bided my
time. Well, like it or not, it has now taken on significance that warrants my
recounting it.
It was the time when we were beginning to fear for religious
congregations. Indeed, since the Jesuits had already been expelled, it was
certain that the others would have the same fate. I feared for our own
houses in France, praying and asking others to pray, and then one night, as
I slept, I saw the Blessed Virgin Mary standing aloft before me very much
like the statue of Mary, Help of Christians atop the dome. She wore a huge
mantle spreading wide about Her, beneath which were sheltered all our
houses in France. Our Lady was looking upon them with a smiling
countenance, when suddenly a terrible storm arose, or perhaps it was an
140n September 21 [1880] the superior chapter held its meeting at Sampierdarena. When,
during that session, the discussion centered on the explusion of religious from France, one of
the members asked Don Bosco if the Salesians would also be driven out. Certainly under the
influence of this dream Don Bosco firmly answered: "No, no, no!" [Author]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
earthquake, with lightning, hail, horrible monsters of every shape and
form, and gunshots and artillery fire that paralyzed everyone with terror.
The monsters, lightning bolts and shelling were aimed at our Salesians
who huddled beneath Mary's mantle, but of all those who were under the
protection of such a powerful defender, not one was hurt. The missiles
kept hitting the mantle and falling to the ground. Bathed in a sea of light,
Her face radiant with a heavenly smile, the Blessed Virgin Mary kept
saying, Ego diligentes Me diligo [I love those who love Me]. Little by
little the storm abated, and none of our confreres fell victim to that storm
or earthquake or hurricane, or whatever else you want to call it.
I did not intend to give much importance to this dream, but still I did
write to all our confreres in France to remain calm. They asked me, "How
come everyone is alarmed and you alone are serene in the midst of all this
uproar and threat?" I answered only that they should trust in the
protection of the Blessed Virgin. But no one took that seriously. I wrote to
Father Guiol, parish priest of St. Joseph's, and told him not to be afraid
because all would tum out well, but his answer showed me that he had not
understood. And indeed, now that we reflect on it, as the storm dwindles
away, we can recognize that something really extraordinary has taken
place. All the French religious congregations which had been doing so
much good in France over so many years were disbanded, while our own,
a foreign congregation living on the generous charity of the French people,
and harassed by a furious press constantly screaming to the government to
throw us out, continues calmly. Isn't it amazing? This must be a constant
encouragement to entrust ourselves to the Virgin Mary. But let us beware
of bragging, because one single boastful gesture may well cause us to lose
Our Lady's benevolence toward us and let the enemy claim the field.
At this point, Father Rua remarked, "But other congregations
have also been devoted to Our Lady. How come ..."
"The Madonna acts as She pleases," Don Bosco replied.
"Besides, it has always happened in this most extraordinary way
ever since I was nine or ten years old. I seemed then to be seeing
vast crowds of boys there on my farm. And someone said to me,
'Why don't you teach them?'
"'Because I do not know how.'
"'Never mind, I am sending you.'
"I was so happy after that," Don Bosco concluded, "that
everyone could see it."
In all reality, the reason why everything went so well was quite
simple. The police official who was charged with evicting the
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The Salesians in France during Religious Persecution
489
Salesians from St. Leo's first had to do the same to the nearby
Dominicans. But it took him until ten o'clock that night before he
could break down the doors and force his way through the
barricades, and then it was too late to attack St. Leo's, the last
religious house on his list. In addition, during the night, the prefect
of the province received orders from the government to hold up on
any further action; political considerations counseled moderation.
It would be wrong, however, to suppose that Don Bosco had
disregarded taking prudent steps to avert danger from St. Leo's.
The fact was that he had strongly appealed to the Italian consul in
Marseille, Hannibal Strambio, a former schoolmate of his at
Chieri.15 On this gentleman's advice and with Don Bosco's
approval, Father Mendre compiled a dossier for the government
defending St. Leo's, and so effectively rebutting the accusations of
the press that the slanderous articles were stopped by order of the
prefect of the province. 16
Not only did Don Bosco rely on human prudence; he positively
would not have his sons yield to a euphoric security because of his
encouraging remarks. In a letter not in our possession, dated
November 16,17 as Don Bosco expressed his personal relief for the
temporary respite and reiterated his usual optimism, he still urged
that, even after singing the Te Deum, they should continue to pray
because the storm, though receding, was not yet over. Indeed, only
a few weeks later a new bill was brought to the French Assembly,
aimed at choking the life out of any surviving religious con-
gregations and charitable institutions by relentless taxation. 18 In
that same letter, after saying that he had written to the Holy
Father to brief him on the events, Don Bosco added that if things
did not get worse, he would be visiting them in January. He then
took up the request made to him that the Daughters of Mary, Help
of Christians who had been assigned to Marseille should go in
secular clothing. He had no objection and thought it the thing to do
under the circumstances, leaving it to Canon Guiol to determine
the right time for them to go. 19
1ssee p. 83. See also Vol. I, pp. 262, 265ff. [Editor]
16Minutes, December 16, 1880. [Author]
11Minutes, November 18, 1880. We do not know the addressee. [Author]
1BMinutes, December 16, 1880. [Author]
19Minutes, November 18, 1880. Regarding the Daughters of Mary, Help of Christians, we
read in the minutes of December 2: "The date of the sisters' arrival has not yet been set.
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
Don Bosco's foresight also prompted him to contact the Italian
government. In October [1880] he appealed to Benedict Cairoli,
Italy's premier and foreign minister, for a subsidy in acknowledge-
ment of the charitable work of his houses in France to benefit the
sons of Italian immigrants. "I enclose a letter for Premier Cairoli,
and for Commendatore Malvano, who, though a Jew, has always
been a good benefactor of ours," he wrote to Father Dalmazzo.20
"Put them in clean envelopes and, in view of the present situation
in France, deliver them personally without delay." The letter to the
premier reads as follows:
Your Excellency,
Turin, October 18, 1880
Some years ago I had the honor of calling on the foreign minister then in
office to discuss the deplorable condition of many boys of Italian families
in southern France. In many instances, having been abandoned, they ran
afoul of the law and were deported back to Italy.
At that time I suggested suitable remedies which the foreign minister
praised and supported. Relying solely on the help of Divine Providence, I
then opened two hospices for young apprentices at Nice and Marseille,
respectively, as well as two agricultural schools in the area of Frejus and
Toulon.
Quite a few boys were taken in by these institutions, which soon proved
inadequate to handle the growing number of applicants. The work of
rebuilding and expanding soon began. However, since I lacked funds to
maintain and operate these institutions, I respectfully appealed in April
1879, with the encouragement of the Italian consul at Marseille, to Your
Excellency for assistance on behalf of these unfortunate young people,
who have to combat vice and poverty and who keep increasing to many
more than a hundred.
Since I have not yet received a reply to my previous petition and the
need is pressing, I venture to renew my appeal. I fully trust that you will
help me better the lot of this most endangered and dangerous segment of
society. May God grant you good health.
Yours respectfully,
Fr. John Bosco
Meantime, a convent is being prepared for their convenience next to St. Leo's. Formed at
Don Bosco's school, they will make a positive, intelligent and dedicated contribution to Don
Bosco's work. Without fail, their coming to Marseille will greatly and in a very special way
contribute to the good will and the anxious cares of the ladies of the committee." [Author]
20Turin, October 18, 1880. [Author]
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The appeal touched the heart of the foreign minister, who
arranged for a yearly subsidy of a thousand lire to be included in the
1881 budget and disbursed annually to our house in Marseille and
to each of the other houses. To sidestep parliamentary debate, he
lumped the amount in with other moneys budgeted for the Italian
consul in Marseille on behalf of Italian immigrants.21 This was also
one way for Don Bosco to call the government's kindly attention to
his activities in France during these trying times.
Finally, on Christmas Eve, Consul Hannibal Strambio sent him
a very warm letter from Marseille, addressing him as "Dearest
Father John," and assuring him that all danger seemed to have
been averted, and that people were beginning to appreciate St.
Leo's Festive Oratory as a hospice of high moral standards
immensely helpful to the underprivileged. Don Bosco strongly
urged his sons in Marseille to thank God for the blessings showered
upon them throughout the past year, and to renew their trust in
heaven's protection for the coming year, repeating the slogan,
"Forward, without fear."22
Seemingly troubles never came singly to Don Bosco. In May
1880 the French situation caused him a very painful letdown which
did not make news, but cut deeply within him. Readers may recall
the "observations" noted by the Holy See to his first triennial
report, which we considered in Chapter 8 of this volume.23 One of
the points in controversy concerned the novitiate in Marseille.24
After sending his second reply on January 12,25 he received no
further communication in writing from the Sacred Congregation of
Bishops and Regulars. Four months later, however, Father
Dalmazzo, procurator general, came to learn that Don Bosco's
clarifications on that question had been regarded as no better than
specious ruses, if not downright deceptions. Wounded to the heart
by this information, Don Bosco wrote to Father Dalmazzo, pouring
out all the bitter grief within him in the following letter:26
21 Letter from Father Dalmazzo to Don Bosco, Rome, November 27, 1880. [Author]
22Minutes, December 30, 1880. This slogan is quoted in Italian as "Andiamo avanti
senza timore" in the minutes of January 13, 1881. We do not have the letter from which it
was taken. It is the letter cited at the meeting of December 30, 1880. [Author]
2asee pp. 156-169. [Editor]
24See p. 165. [Editor]
2ssee pp. 163f. [Editor]
26He also made a report to Cardinal Nina, cardinal protector, as we gather from a
reference of His Eminence in a note to Don Bosco dated May 13, 1880. [Author]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
My dear Father Dalmazzo,
Sampierdarena, May 7, 1880
The novitiate at Marseille is merely under construction, with much
work still to be done. No novices have been or are living there. As things
stand [in France], it seems foolish to try to open it now as we tried to do
back in 1879. Hence, our French novices continue to come to Turin until
we can clearly see what we can do to benefit our holy Catholic faith.
I have already submitted three petitions for this novitiate, and if and
when the time comes to open it, a fourth will be sent to the Sacred
Congregation of Bishops and Regulars, if the other three have been
misplaced.
Had I been able to obtain an audience with Cardinal F errieri three years
ago or even this year, I could have given him clarifications which would
have saved us a mess of trouble and offset considerable harm to our
Congregation, but my efforts were all in vain.
I cannot conceal my bitter sorrow at not being able to make myself
understood. I work for the Church and intend all my Salesians to work for
it until their dying breath. I seek no financial assistance, but only that
understanding and that charity which are compatible with Holy Church's
authority.
I am waiting for further requests for clarifications, and I shall do my
utmost to express myself lest what I intend to say be totally
misinterpreted.
Yours affectionately in Jesus Christ,
Fr. John Bosco
Three facts cannot be denied. First, in January 1879, Don
Bosco, urged by the new bishop of Marseille, renewed his petition
to the Sacred Congregation of Bishops and Regulars for au-
thorization to establish a canonically approved novitiate in that
city. Second, on February 5, the same Sacred Congregation
forwarded Don Bosco's petition to the bishop of Marseille for
additional information and received from Bishop [Jean Louis]
Robert a lengthy letter of commendation dated February 23, stating
the assured feasibility of immediately opening a novitiate in the
Salesian house at Marseille. Third, despite the bishop's statement
that the novitiate could be opened at once, Don Bosco took no
action because the house did not have convenient quarters for the
novices' residence, and so he waited until 1882.
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During those years most French novices went to Italy, though a
few made their novitiate singly in our French houses. Once again
we are obliged to repeat ourselves ad nauseam, but we must do so
because now we have documents to back us up. In the archdiocesan
process conducted by the chancery of Turin with the Holy See's
authorization in 1917-18, Cardinal Cagliero deposed in a sworn
statement:27 "Until 1884 when the customary privileges were
granted [to the Salesian Congregation], Don Bosco availed himself
of every indult granted him orally by Pope Pius IX and, later, by
Leo XIII. He did so very prudently, but more often when he
deemed it necessary for God's glory and the welfare of souls, as I
was personally told by Don Bosco himself and by his [second]
successor, Father Albera."
Esteem, love and reverence for Don Bosco in France were the
theme of eloquent testimonials which continually increased and
spread to the day of his death. In Nice, Dr. [Charles] D'Espiney
wrote a short biography of Don Bosco to meet the desires
expressed by many people in France who eagerly sought to know
more of his life and work. We shall consider it in the next volume.
The minutes of meetings of the Marseille ladies' committee
regularly refer to Don Bosco's words and blessings as those of a
saint. In Paris the famous Father [Fran9ois] Moigno, S.J., learned
physicist and mathematician, founder of the scientific journal
Cosmos and author of the monumental work Les splendeurs de la
Joie [The Splendors of the Faith], wrote to the director at Marseille,
who had consulted him on a heating system: "Heart and soul I am
devoted to Don Bosco and his wondrous works." Such expressions
of forthright outspoken admiration are all the more worthy of note
when we realize that they were uttered by Frenchmen in reference
to an Italian-a clear sign that they were seriously convinced of his
holiness, not alien to any segment of the Church.
27Summarium, p. 84. [Author]
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CHAPTER 26
The Beginning of the
Real Missions of Patagonia
'PATAGONIA today [1933] is not the Patagonia of sixty
years ago. So radically have conditions changed throughout the
territory that when young Patagonians hear talk of savages, even of
Patagonian Indians, they immediately react with almost fiery
indignation against such an affront to their native land. Yet their
own Argentine ancestors, who lived on the outskirts of Buenos
Aires before General [Julio] Roca's military expedition [against the
Indians] and who witnessed first-hand the poverty and the deeds of
these wilderness and jungle tribes, would certainly view the whole
matter quite differently. All we need do is quickly glance at one of
the maps of De Moussy's admirable volume on Argentina,1 written
sixty years ago, to form an idea of the conditions then prevailing
throughout that boundless territory. Sprawled across those vast
expanses are written the words Wasteland, Pampas, Unexplored
Territory, Unknown Territory, Indians, Southern Desen Traversed
Only by Savages. It was suicide for white men to venture into that
territory, where they were summarily taken captive and treated as
overbearing invaders. Not even those who lived on the fringes of
the wilderness were safe, since they were at all times exposed to the
indiadas, the Indian raids, as roving savages fell in hordes upon the
well-cleared ranch lands of the Argentine herders and rustled their
cattle to supply beef for the neighboring Chileans who had no herds
of their own. We need not dwell on the savage forays made upon
small, isolated outposts scattered over vast distances across the
plains, as the Indians plundered, massacred and burned all to the
ground.
Terrorized by the army's firepower, the natives withdrew into the
recesses of the Cordilleras and a few hideouts along the banks of
1Martin De Moussy, Description geographique et statistique de la Confederation
d'Argentine, Paris 1862, Plate X. [Author]
494
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The Beginning of the Real Missions of Patagonia
495
the great southern rivers, freeing boundless tracts of land for
colonization; settlements rapidly shot up and grew. Salesians
played a major role in this process of civilization, for, once the
troops left, they set up mission posts at strategic points, from which
they could offer the settlers an effective program of religion and
education, reaching out all the while to the surviving Indians. Ever
loyal to their tribal chieftains, the natives slowly came to look upon
Don Bosco's missionaries as their best friends who brought them
the light of the Gospel and strove to reconcile both victors and
vanquished into a new relationship of mutual benefit.
The numbers of these Indians did not loom as large as they had
claimed to be when, armed and organized into a federation, they
threatened the Argentine government as if they could even face up
to its troops. All told, the Indians were no more than eighty
thousand, and if they rejected the white man and his civilized ways,
it was not only because they could not forget the ill treatment they
had suffered, but also because they greatly feared that they would
be robbed of their independence. Unchallenged masters of their
own mysterious wastelands, they saw even religion as posing a
danger of servitude; hence no missionary had ever safely managed
to draw near to their clustered tents. Consequently, the utter
futility of such a sacrifice of life kept both diocesan and religious
missioners from venturing into that treacherous territory.
As a result, Indian pride swelled to the point of a madness which
so inebriated them that they felt they were the unchallenged lords of
their own wilderness, imagining that no one would dare cross it
without first submitting to Indian supremacy. The daring expedition of
18792 was undertaken to disillusion them and wipe out for all time
their threatening stance.
These were the natives of Patagonia. Now let us look at the
territory itself which was to be the first apostolic field of Don
Bosco's missionaries. The Patagonia region geographically included
the Pampas, Rio Negro, Chubut, Santa Cruz, and Tierra del
Fuego, but strictly speaking it was limited to Rio Negro, Chubut
and Santa Cruz. For the time being, we shall consider only the far
northern portion of the territory named after the Rio Negro River,
which is formed by the confluence of the Neuquen and the Limay
2See p. 217. [Editor]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
and flows over six hundred and thirty miles to the Atlantic Ocean.
It is an area about twice the size of Italy.
Once the Indian threat had been quelled, it became obvious that
the territory itself posed almost insurmountable obstacles. Today,
with even better reason, we may say with Dr. Gabriel Carrasco
that "from the Atlantic shores to the peaks of the Andes one meets
scattered towns and colonies of varying wealth and development
which open themselves to civilization. Steamships chum their way
up the deep waters of the once feared Rio Negro, bringing vibrant
new life into old Indian strongholds. The strident shrieks of
locomotives awaken sleepy echoes in the valleys. The remote
Andean mountain lakes look down with awe upon the Argentine
flag flying at the masts of ships plying their way through their
waters."3 But what did the missionary find fifty years ago? A
shoreline skirted by a desert where fierce winds whipped up
mountains of sand known as medanos; further inland, a chain of
rising hills and plateaus covered with very scant vegetation, dotted
here and there with brackish pools trailing off into endless sandy
waterless wastes called traversias, and rudimentary vegetation. In
summer the heat is oppressive, the dust is blinding and choking, and
man and beast languish from thirst. The Andes region, encased
between the Argentine Pre-Cordillera and the Royal Cordillera of
Chile, is a beautiful land indeed, of meadows and forests, mountain
streams and lakes: a panorama of indescribable majesty, but
inaccessible to human travel. This was the varied environment in
which the Salesians witnessed the development of a new
Patagonian federation, to which they contributed a giant share by
their churches in whose kindly shade settlers met and rested. by
their trade schools and agricultural colonies for white and Indian
children alike, by their first attempts at agriculture, by their first
hospitals, and even by their first newspapers.
A bird's-eye view such as this introduces us to the unfolding of
these missions' history which our narrative will have to cover in bits
and pieces. This summary presentation will serve as a basis of our
historical reconstruction.
The true history of the Patagonian missions begins with the twin
settlements of Patag6nes and Viedma on the banks of the Rio
3A/manaque de la familia Catolica, July 1, 1902, Buenos Aires. [Author]
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Negro, some ten miles from the mouth of the river.4 For nine years
these were the only two mission stations; it took that much time to
develop a well-worked-out plan of mission apostolate. From those
tw~ strategic positions the Salesian missionaries set out on their
journeys along the course of the river and made their way, at the
price of heroic sacrifice, into the valleys, the back hills and the
mountains to visit the poor Indians in their huts (to/dos), the
settlers in their ranches, and the outposts which were sprouting
everywhere. First they explored the territory; then they chose the
spots best suited for mission stations, thus working their way into
all of northern and central Patagonia and into the Pampas, to bring
the regeneration of baptism to the natives.
The Patag6nes mission came first. The archbishop of Buenos
Aires, after entrusting the entire mission of Patagonia-particularly
the two parishes of Patag6nes and Viedma-to Don Bosco in
August 1879, opened negotiations with the provincial, Father
[Francis] Bodrato, on how to systematize them, while at the same
time soliciting the necessary funds from the government. To say
two parishes is just a manner of speaking, much as if we were to
divide Italy into two halves, north and south of the Po River, and
assign the pastoral care of each half to one parish priest.
Negotiations were concluded by November, and preparations were
made for the missionaries to leave for their mission stations; but
they finally left on January 15 of the following year. On that day
the impressive departure ceremony which had been held in Turin
was copied, though on a smaller scale. It was held in the Church of
St. Charles, and the archbishop, assisted by his canons and other
priests, delivered a moving sermon to a full congregation of the
Salesians' friends and benefactors. Then, after the ritual prayers for
a safe journey, the departing missionaries were escorted to the
steamship "Santa Rosa," which weighed anchor the next morning.
Father Joseph Fagnano, director of the mission, was accompanied
by two priests, two coadjutors, and four Daughters of Mary, Help of
4These two settlements, facing each other on either bank of the Rio Negro, formed a single
town known as Carmen de Patagones until 1879. From that year on, the right bank
settlement took the name of its founder, Francis Viedma, while the other was named simply
Patagones. Today Viedma is the capital of the state of Rio Negro and is within the
archdiocese of Buenos Aires. (Politically and administratively, territories which are not
provinces or federal states are controlled by the federal government.) Patagones is now a city
of the province of Buenos Aires, which is within the diocese of La Plata. [Author]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
Christians; the latter were to open their first convent in that
territory. One newpaper5 in the capital wrote ofthe sisters: ''This is
the first time since the dawn of creation that nuns will be seen in
those far-off southern lands."
As pastor of Patag6nes, including all the villages and Indian
tribes between the Rio Negro and Rio Colorado, Father Fagnano
lost no time in starting his apostolate. By September he had two
schools fully operating in Patag6nes; the boys' school had forty-
eight pupils, while the girls' school had forty. Special attention was
given to the Indian children whose parents came to town for trading
or other business. God only knows what sacrifices those first five
years cost the missionaries: insufficient personnel, scant funds, and
opposition from civil authorities worked against Father F agnano's
efforts. Had not God's mighty hand upheld him, he would have
been forced to give up, despite his undaunted spirit. In 1884,
handing over his thriving mission to others, this gallant son of Don
Bosco was appointed prefect apostolic of southern Patagonia and
Tierra del Fuego, where he worked wonders of zeal.
One of his fellow Salesians served alone for some time in the
parish of Viedma, until the newly appointed pastor-Father
Dominic Milanesio,6 whom we have mentioned several times in
these Memoirs-arrived in December. Whether or not he
previously had any general notion of the vastness of his mission
territory, he zealously set about tracking down the Indians and
manifested such leadership qualities that a year later his superiors
sent that great-hearted missionary, Father Joseph Beauvoir,7 to
take his place at Viedma and left Father Milanesio free to devote
himself full-time to his cherished apostolic explorations. He was
truly God's gift to all the settlers along the Rio Negro, but most of
all a father to the Indians, whose language he spoke fluently. His
name carried so much power that the Indians would invoke it
whenever they found themselves defenseless against the ill-
treatment of the whites. In his thirty-three years of apostolic work
he repeatedly crisscrossed all of Patagonia on horseback and
traversed the Cordilleras no less than twenty-seven times. He
suffered much, but his sacrifices were abundantly compensated by
5America de/ Sur, January 13, 1880. [Author]
6 See Appendix 1. [Editor]
7See Appendix 1. [Editor]
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The Beginning of the Real Missions of Patagonia
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the good he did. It was due to him that the remaining armed Indian
tribes made their peace with the commanding officers of the army
posts. He initiated contacts with the fiery Manuel N amuncura,
later baptized with his whole family by Bishop John Cagliero who
was the embodiment of all the efforts exerted to Christianize
Patagonia.
Just as the Indians hailed Father F agnano as the "Great
Father," they called Father Milanesio the "Good Father." Don
Bosco had fostered the belated vocations of both these mission
heroes, and it was he who welcomed and formed them even before
he initiated the Sons of Mary Program.
They and other early missionaries failed only in one important
thing: they sacrificed and worked themselves to death on the field of
their apostolic labors but never troubled to record in writing for the
sake of those who followed them the history of their struggles and
victories. Hence, with the passing of years, doubts have recently
been voiced as to the reality of their genuine missionary accom-
plishments. But one day an impartial history will refute these
odious insinuations, as one well-informed speaker solemnly dubbed
them. 8
At the proper time and place we will continue our account of the
Salesian missionaries' achievements in Patagonia during the last
years of Don Bosco's life. To the very end of his days he followed
them with encouragement, counsel and prayer, while they made
their way into those remote lands to bring faith and civilization to
their inhabitants. But more than any more support he could
possibly give, Don Bosco mostly contributed to his missionaries'
progress by obtaining for them, not without considerable effort, a
solid, ecclesiastical structure which we shall now begin to discuss.
For some time Don Bosco had realized the advantages of having
an apostolic vicariate in Patagonia, and the reader is already
acquainted with his first presentations of this matter to the Holy
See,9 but the more the mission developed, the more this plan
became not just a wise move but a downright necessity, if
missionary activity there was to have any kind of regularity and
permanence. Setting up an ecclesiastical jurisdiction subject not to
BMonsignor Duprat in the funeral oration for Cardinal Cagliero, which he delivered in the
cathedral at Buenos Aires on February 26, 1926. [Author]
esee Vol. XIII, p. 595. [Editor]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
the local ordinary but only to the Sacred Congregation for the
Propagation of the Faith would guarantee a homogeneous, well-
organized personnel not subject to local Church authorities,
freedom of action in the exercise of priestly ministry, and the
possibility of direct, unbroken contact with the government, whose
favorable attitude offered much promise. For these reasons, this
was one of Don Bosco's main concerns during his stay in Rome at
the beginning of 1880. Accustomed to set his mind on the business
at hand as fully as it warranted, he first confidentially sought the
advice of several prelates. Then he brought it up to the Holy Father
in his audience of April 5. In tum the Holy Father kindly asked
Archbishop J acobini, secretary of the Sacred Congregation for
Extraordinary Ecclesiastical Affairs, to discuss the matter
unofficially with Don Bosco and with Cardinal Alimonda of the
Sacred Congregation for the Propagation of the Faith. Assisted by
Father Dalmazzo, Don Bosco held several meetings with both
prelates and drew up a memorandum which he handed to the
cardinal, together with several corroborative documents, on
April 15. That evening the cardinal presented them to the Pope.
Don Bosco accompanied the packet with a covering letter:
Most Holy Father,
Rome, April 13, 1880
It is my privilege to present to Your Holiness a brief report on the
current situation of the Salesian missions in [South] America, and on
several measures deemed necessary to consolidate the work among the
Indians of the Pampas and of Patagonia. At your kind request, I conferred
at length with His Eminence Cardinal [Cajetan] Alimonda and with His
Excellency Archbishop Dominic Jacobini. Prizing the mature reflections
and suggestions of these two learned dignitaries, we came to the
conclusion that an apostolic vicariate should be established for the
existing settlements along the Rio Negro and that a seminary for the
training of missionaries should be set up in Europe.
Any directive Your Holiness may wish to issue on this matter will serve
as our norm in negotiating with the Argentine government and with
Archbishop Aneyros of Buenos Aires.
In humble reverence, I invoke your apostolic blessing on all the
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The Beginning of the Real Missions of Patagonia
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members of our lowly Congregation, especially on those who labor in our
American missions and implore your blessing.
Your most humble and devoted servant,
Fr. John Bosco
The memorandum itself was a clear, well-written report on the
plan of action which had been adopted, on what had already been
done and what remained to be done, and its obvious conclusion: the
necessity of a vicariate apostolic in Patagonia and of a seminary for
the training of future missionaries in Marseille.
Rome, April 13, 1880
Report to His Holiness, Pope Leo XIII, on the Salesian missions in
South America with a view to establishing a vicariate apostolic in
Patagonia.
THE SALESIAN MISSIONS
AND THEIR RELATIONS WITH THE HOLY SEE
The foreign missions have always been a cherished concern of the
Salesian Congregation. The need of strengthening the faith in the baptized,
of spreading that faith in uncivilized territories, and thus of assisting their
people to shed the darkness of error in which they live has always been the
object of our study, reading, and admiration. For a long time our former
pupils went to mission lands by joining other religious institutes or at the
request of local bishops in America, Australia, India, China and Japan.
Our initial approach to sending a missionary expedition was made in 1872
to His Eminence Cardinal Barnaba, prefect of the Congregation for the
Propagation of the Faith. Later, His Holiness, Pope Pius IX, advised us to
gather those Salesians who volunteered for the missions and send them in
groups to open houses and hospices where the need was greatest. Among
other regions, the Supreme Pontiff kindly suggested South America and
the Argentine Republic in particular. Having himself spent some time
there, he knew the crying need for missionaries to care for Italian
immigrants and also make some attempts to reach out to the Indians of the
Pampas and Patagonia. With great generosity, Pius IX effectively
supported our first missionary expedition financially. On November 1,
1875, ten Salesians called on the Holy Father to seek his blessing and to
receive their apostolic mandate personally from him. The Vicar of Christ
welcomed them very graciously, encouraged them fervently, and gave
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
them a letter of introduction to the archbishop of Buenos Aires dated that
very day and issued by the cardinal secretary of state.
They were granted required faculties by the Sacred Congregation for
the Propagation of the Faith in a decree dated November 14, 1875.
Some time later the Supreme Pontiff voiced his deep satisfaction in a
brief dated November 17, which praised and approved the new
expedition.
To further stabilize that mission, the Congregation for the Propagation
of the Faith, once informed of the growth of the spiritual harvest and of the
beginning of native vocations, authorized the erection of a novitiate by a
decree of July 6, 1876.
The present Pontiff-may God preserve him in good health for many
years-graciously issued a second brief on September 18, 1878, voicing
his fatherly love and warm approval of the Salesian mission in [South]
America.
The same Leo XIII-though himself in financial straits-made a
generous contribution to our fourth missionary expedition when he learned
of our monetary difficulties and encouraged us to persevere in our
endeavors in a letter dated November 23, 1878.
AIM OF THE SALESIAN MISSIONS IN [SOUTH] AMERICA
Pope Pius IX suggested three objectives to the Salesian missionaries:
1. To care for Italian immigrants, especially the young, scattered in
great numbers across South America.
2. To open hospices near Indian territories and make them serve as
junior seminaries as well as homes for the poorest and most destitute
youths.
3. By these means to pave the way for bringing the Gospel to the
Indians of the Pampas and Patagonia. The first missionary expedition of
Salesians, as previously stated, left on November 14, 1875,10 and arrived
in Buenos Aires, the capital of Argentina, one month later.
THE SALESIAN MISSIONS IN [SOUTH] AMERICA TODAY
At present one hundred and twenty Salesians work in [South] America,
as follows:
1. In the diocese and city of Buenos Aires, the provincial house is the
center of direction and administration. The provincial resides in the
recently established parish of San Carlos in the Almagro neighborhood
where it cares for some six thousand souls. The Pius IX Hospice shelters
10See Vol. XI, pp. 366ff. [Editor]
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The Beginning of the Real Missions of Patagonia
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one hundred and fifty poor boys who are taught trades; non-resident boys
and adults are instructed and entertained on Sundays.
We also have a novitiate and a house of studies for Salesians.
Furthermore, in a neighborhood called "La Boca,"11 a parish dedicated
to St. John the Evangelist cares for some twenty-seven thousand people,
mostly Italian immigrants. We also run a school for poor boys.
Lastly, we service the Church of Mater Misericordiae which offers
pastoral care mainly to Italians, young and old, who come in large
numbers from scattered areas in the city and surrounding countryside.
2. In the town of San Nicolas de los Arroyos, situated on the fringe of
the Indian territory, we have a boarding school or junior seminary for the
missions; some vocations have already matured.
The Salesians also conduct a public church and a parish in Ramallo, a
village of four thousand souls. The people live on widely scattered farms,
assembling on Sundays for Mass, confession, Communion and baptism.
3. With God's help we have already established several houses in the
Republic of Uruguay.
The Pius IX Boarding School at Villa Colon is rated as a diocesan
seminary for missionaries and has been affiliated with the state university;
moreover a parish church serves the suburbs of Villa Colon.
In Montevideo, the capital of Uruguay, we run a day and Sunday
oratory with a school for poor and imperiled boys.
In Las Piedras, a parish of six thousand souls, we conduct a day school
and a festive oratory.
DAUGHTERS OF MARY, HELP OF CHRISTIANS
Three years ago the Daughters of Mary, Help of Christians went to
[South] America to assist the Salesians and to work among the countless
poor girls who live in situations that daily imperil their faith and morals.
In the parish of Las Piedras, in the diocese of Montevideo, the sisters
aid the missionaries in teaching religion and other subjects, supervising
and preparing Indian girls for confession, Holy Communion, and
confirmation.
In Villa Colon they teach courses in home economics on weekdays and
run a Sunday school for older girls.
In Montevideo they have a hospice and school for girls who might be in
danger of falling under Protestant influence.
In Buenos Aires, the sisters have started a number of classes,
workshops and Sunday schools for abandoned girls.
11See Vol. XII, pp. 190ff. [Editor]
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1HE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
SETTLEMENTS ALONG THE RIO NEGRO
After this rapid survey of Salesian missions in [South] America, I
should like to consider briefly the most necessary steps we must take to
improve the lot of the Pampas and Patagonian Indians who live along the
banks of the Rio Negro.
The Rio Negro, rising in the Cordillera de los Andes, follows a long,
torturous course of well over six hundred and thirty miles and empties into
the Atlantic Ocean at 40° latitude south. The north bank of the river
borders the vast wilderness of the Pampas, while the limitless range of
eastern Patagonia starts on the south bank.
For four centuries Catholic missionaries worked very hard to penetrate
this wild hinterland, enduring indescribable hardships, but all in vain as
far as we know, for none of those who headed into the interior of Patagonia
ever came back.
In 1878 the Salesians too, eager to make an attempt, sailed in
a government ship to the Rio Negro, but a raging storm threatened to
destroy them, driving them off course several times and finally forcing
them to put into harbor at Buenos Aires. 12 In 1879 they tried a second
time, taking a different route with better success.13 They crossed the
Pampas and met with the caciques or chiefs of the savages; they received a
warm welcome and baptized more than four hundred Indian children. On
reaching the Rio Negro, they went to the settlements which the archbishop
of Buenos Aires had entrusted to the Salesians in a letter dated August 15,
1879, in which he described this mission as follows:
"At long last the moment has come when I can offer you the Patagonian
mission in which you are so interested, as well as the parish of Patag6nes
which may serve as headquarters for the mission. As you will have already
seen in letters from Father Costamagna, the parish of Patag6nes takes in:
"1. Carmen de Patag6nes, with some thirty-five hundred souls, and a
rectory for the parish priest.
"2. Guardia-Mitre, about fifty miles from Patag6nes, with a population
of roughly one thousand.
"3. The Conesa settlement, a hundred and two miles from Patag6nes,
with about eight hundred Indians of the Catriel tribe.
"4. The new settlement at Choele-Choel, two hundred and ten miles
from Patag6nes, with a population of about two thousand, including
Christians and Indians.
"All of these centers are located on the north bank of the Rio Negro,
12see Vol. XIII, pp. 612f. [Editor]
1asee pp. 216ff. [Editor]
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The Beginning of the Real Missions of Patagonia
505
which is easily fordable since its width does not exceed nine hundred feet.
Opposite Carmen de Patagones, on the south shore of the Rio Negro in
Patagonia, lies Mercedes de Patagones, residence of the governor of these
territories. It has a church adequate to the needs of fifteen hundred people.
"About twenty-four miles from Mercedes de Patagones is the
settlement of Francis Xavier, also on the south bank of the Rio Negro in
Patagonia, with four hundred Indians of the Linares tribe.
"There is but one priest for all these centers. On Sundays, after
celebrating Mass in his place of residence, he crosses the river to say
another Mass at Mercedes. It is obvious that one priest cannot possibly
serve all these parishes regularly, even with another priest to help him. I
regret to say that a shortage of priests has made it impossible for me to
remedy the situation.
"Some years ago the Lazarist Fathers took charge of this mission, but
little was done besides some repairs on the missionaries' residence; lack of
personnel forced their withdrawal.
"Besides these problems we must also contend with the consequences
of Protestant infiltration."
To stem the rising tide of such evils, to give the Patagonian missions
some degree of stability, and to shield the people from the snares set by the
enemies of our faith, we accepted the zealous archbishop's offer and the
generous proposals he made us in the Argentine government's name to
send Salesians to Patagonia. Last December 15, twelve Salesians left by
ship for Carmen de Patag6nes and after a fairly smooth voyage arrived
there on January 2. Other confreres left later to join them. With the
continued support of Divine Providence, we hope to send out another
expedition shortly. 14
To promote both the civil and the religious well-being of these
settlements, the Argentine government established them into a province; it
favors the work of the missions and presently offers to cooperate with the
Salesians in evangelizing the Indians on both sides of the Rio Negro. To
this end we have been promised material and moral support. Lately, the
president of the republic formally asked us for a report outlining the
conditions we feel are needed to regularize the relations between the
missionaries, the government, and the Indians.
On arriving in Patagonia the Salesians were advised by the archbishop
of Buenos Aires to select Carmen de Patagones for their headquarters.
14The expedition was to leave in December 1879, but as we have said, it was postponed.
[See Vol. XIII, p. 610-Editor.] Don Bosco thought they had departed on schedule and so
calculated that they should have arrived on January 2. He also assumed that all the Salesians
and sisters assigned to that territory had been sent there. [Author]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
Their first efforts were directed to building churches, hospices and schools
for boys and girls. Thus, while some Salesians are engaged in teaching
skills, trades and agriculture in the established settlements, others
continue to advance into Indian territory to catechize and, where possible,
establish new settlements in the hinterland.
The Daughters of Mary, Help of Christians are already working in these
Indian villages, setting up schools and hospices for homeless girls.
FUTURE PLANS
To establish our faith firmly in Patagonia and effectively to foster the
mission's development and expansion, we believe that three important
steps must be taken:
1. To set up a prefecture or vicariate apostolic as a center for existing
settlements and those which, God willing, we hope to set up.
2. To found a seminary for students to learn the culture, language and
customs of the Indians, as well as the history and geography of the
territory.
3. To come up with a proposal which, while accepting the Argentine
government's favorable offers, would guarantee the religious and civic
status of the Indians embracing our faith.
Since negotiations with the government demand time and further
refinement, the presentation of this proposal may be deferred.
However, the setting up of a vicariate apostolic and the founding of a
seminary for the Patagonian missions should be considered immediately.
VICARIATE APOSTOLIC IN PATAGONIA
Since the Argentine government recently united the above settlements
into a province named "Province of Patagonia," the vicariate or
prefecture apostolic might be given the same name. It would comprise the
settlements on both the north and the south banks of the Rio Negro and the
territories to the east of Patagonia, until a second vicariate can be erected
at Santa Cruz, a small settlement founded toward the Strait of Magellan,
where the Rio Magellan empties into the Atlantic. The new vicariate
would thus extend from 36° to 30° latitude south.
It should be borne in mind that the Cordillera de los Andes cuts through
Patagonia from 40° to 50° latitude south and down to the Strait of
Magellan; the eastern half faces the Atlantic, the western the Pacific. This
second half belongs to Chile and hence should not form part of the
projected vicariate. Below the Strait of Magellan lie Tierra del Fuego and
surrounding islands extending as far south as Cape Hom, from 50° to 63 °
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The Beginning of the Real Missions of Patagonia
507
latitude south. It would be wise to omit mentioning these lands in our
proposed plan for a vicariate, since they are presently under contention by
both the Argentine and Chilean governments.
Once the Holy See has set up a vicariate apostolic at Carmen de
Patagones and a permanent mission center, we will be entitled to funds
from the Society for the Propagation of the Faith and the Holy Childhood
Association. We can also receive aid from charitable organizations
founded in Buenos Aires to favor the spread of the Gospel into the
Pampas and into Patagonia.
We also have well-founded hopes that the Argentine government will
allot an annual subsidy to the vicariate which is considered indispensable
to the political and religious needs of the territory.
SEMINARY FOR THE PATAGONIAN MISSIONS
Three boarding schools or junior seminaries have already been founded
in South America, as noted previously, to foster vocations to the
priesthood. One of these is at Villa Colon; another at Buenos Aires; the
third at San Nicolas de los Arroyos, the last outpost of the Argentine
Republic on the Pampas border. A few vocations have already matured,
but for the time being they are exceedingly rare and far between,
absolutely nowhere enough to meet the overriding needs of these dioceses,
all of which suffer from a severe shortage of priests. It is therefore
indispensable to set up a seminary in Europe to train evangelical workers
for Patagonia.
Mature reflection on the feasibility of opening such a seminary in Italy,
France or Spain shows that the city of Marseille is the best place for the
seminary itself because it offers greater opportunity for material assistance
and moral support, but later on a seminary residence could be opened in
Spain to facilitate the study and practice of Spanish, the official language
of the government and of the public schools and the first language to be
taught to the Indians.
Once the vicariate apostolic has been established, both the seminary
and the mission center could confidently hope to receive some financial
assistance from the Society for the Propagation of the Faith and the Holy
Childhood Association; further, at the Holy Father's discretion, some
simple way of getting donations for this purpose could be worked out.
So as not to offend the sensitivities of the dioceses, all of which are
hurting from a painful scarcity of priestly vocations, it might be wiser to
run the seminary courses only up to philosophy, leaving the students free
to return to their own dioceses, enter a religious order, or choose to serve
the Patagonian missions. Only these last should definitively be accepted
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
for courses which are clearly geared to the Indian missions of the Pampas,
Patagonia and, God willing, Tierra del Fuego.
Everything set forth here has already been discussed with His
Excellency, Archbishop Dominic Jacobini, secretary of the Congregation
of Extraordinary Ecclesiastic Affairs, and with His Eminence, Cardinal
Cajetan Alimonda, of the Sacred Congregation for the Propagation of the
Faith, both of whom were expressly charged by His Holiness, Leo XIII,
to deal with this matter and report to him. May the Holy Father graciously
bless and approve all deliberations that he judges will redound to God's
greater glory and the welfare of souls.
Two days later, certainly in accord with the above-mentioned
discussions, Don Bosco sent a formal notice to Archbishop
Frederick Aneyros of Buenos Aires that this matter was now under
negotiation; he also so informed Father Bodrato, the Salesian
provincial. We cannot help but be touched by the exquisite
delicacy and evangelical simplicity with which, in the first letter,
Don Bosco handles a topic bound by its very nature to touch upon
sensitive matters of jurisdiction.
Your Excellency,
Rome, April 15, 1880
I have duly received your letter as well as that sent me by your vicar
general, Monsignor [Anthony] Espinosa, in which you personally and in
the name of the Argentine government offered the missions of Patagones
and of the other settlements along the Rio Negro to the Salesians. I
gratefully accepted that proposal and sent several missionaries to get first-
hand information about the area and its needs, and to prepare the way for
more missionaries who are ready to go. However, duly weighing your
proposal, I thought it best to bring everything to the attention of the Holy
Father and to ask for his enlightened counsel and guidance in so important
a step. Wishing to be kept fully informed on this matter, His Holiness
appointed a committee of high-ranking dignitaries who offered the
following suggestions for the great glory of God and the welfare of souls.
1. They commend the pastoral concern of the archbishop of Buenos
Aires, his zeal to develop his vast diocese, and especially his care to
spread the Gospel to the Indians of the Pampas and Patagonia.
2. Because of the vast distance between the Rio Negro settlements and
the archdiocesan seat (a journey of fifteen days), the committee proposed
that a vicariate apostolic be established to comprise present and future
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settlements along the shores of the Rio Negro. The new vicariate would
extend from 36° to 50° latitude south. It would be called the "Vicariate
Apostolic of Patagonia," keeping the official name ofthe province. Its seat
would be Carmen de Patagones, which Your Excellency chose as the
center of Salesian missionary action among the Indians.
3. Your Excellency is requested to use your good offices with the
Argentine government to obtain an annual financial subsidy to set up and
maintain the vicariate, which is judged indispensable for the civil and
spiritual well-being of the area. In this connection I am writing to the
superior of the Salesian missions to ask that, in full agreement with Your
Excellency, he take all necessary steps to ensure the growth and stability
of that mission work.
4. Would Your Excellency please send your reflections and suggestions
to His Eminence Cardinal Nina, Secretary of State to His Holiness?
For my part, I shall not cease to do all I can to keep sending more
missionaries to boost the ranks of those now in Patagonia and to solicit all
the material help I can here in Europe.
Your Excellency zealously summoned the Salesians to South America,
and in your goodness you have always supported and encouraged us. I
fully trust that you will continue your fatherliness to us, while we
respectfully promise to obey and serve you in every way we can.
With highest esteem and deep respect,
Your most obedient servant,
Fr. John Bosco
Superior General of the Salesian Congregation
The second letter was also couched in every careful terms, as is
proper in a document which will eventually be subject to the critical
scrutiny of competent authorities.
My dear Father Bodrato,
Rome, April 15, 1880
The good will shown by His Excellency, the archbishop of Buenos
Aires, and by the Argentine government in their desire to bring civilization
and religion to the Indians and settlers along the Rio Negro has persuaded
me to accept willingly their offer of missions whose aim is to civilize and
evangelize the inhabitants of that vast wilderness. As you well know, this
prompted us to send Father F agnano and others to prepare the grounds
and accommodations for other Salesians who will soon leave to reinforce
the ranks of their confreres in Patagonia.
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
But, anxious to lend firmer stability to our civilizing task among these
people and to foster the teaching of trades, skills and agriculture among the
Indians, I went to Rome and informed the Holy Father of the Argentine
government's willingness to aid the Salesians with their travel expenses
and their living needs in those wild lands. The Holy Father was quite
pleased with this offer which gives him well-founded hopes of extending
the Kingdom of Jesus Christ here on earth. In order that this pious
undertaking be well thought out, he appointed a committee of high-ranking
dignitaries to study what had been done in the past and what could be done
now to aid the government's efforts to civilize and convert these natives,
who also are children of Our Heavenly Father and have been called to
enter the haven of the Catholic faith, the official religion of the Argentine
Republic. After a careful study of the historic, geographic, civil and
religious features of the Pampas and Patagonia, in view of the vast
distances between those settlements and the archdiocesan seat of Buenos
Aires, and of the population already exceeding ten thousand with con-
stant growth, the Pope's committee concluded that a vicariate apostolic
would serve as a moral and religious bond to hold the people and
at the same time as a secure center about which the converted Indians
could settle. Relying upon the Argentine government's generosity in an
enterprise which aims at civilizing a large and very needy portion of that
territory and considering the above-stated factors, the committee reached
the following conclusions:
1. To thank the Argentine government for its support of religion,
especially for bringing it to the Indians.
2. To consolidate the civil and religious standing of the Rio Negro
settlements by establishing a vicariate apostolic. It would adopt the
official name of the province and would comprise the present settlements
and those which may later be founded in the areas bordering Indian
territory. The new vicariate would extend from 36° latitude south to 50°
latitude south.
3. To request of the government an annual financial subsidy to help
erect and maintain this vicariate apostolic which is so far distant from any
civilized center.
4. The government's intent may be communicated to His Eminence
Cardinal Lawrence Nina, secretary of state of His Holiness. For a smooth
procedure and the faithful execution of the government's plans, a written
reply must be sent to it.
When you have duly informed the government authorities and provided
all the information it requests, please send me a report so that we may do
what we must to get this holy undertaking underway.
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I take this occasion to express my thanks to the government of
Argentina for the protection, good will and aid it has given the Salesians
and the Daughters of Mary, Help of Christians.
Yours affectionately,
Fr. John Bosco
This formal letter, meant for the eyes of government officials,
was accompanied by a more intimate note which expressed Don
Bosco's fatherly love for his Salesians and for the Daughters of
Mary, Help of Christians.
My dear Father Bodrato,
Rome, April 17, 1880
Enclosed please find a letter to be forwarded to the government; it might
be wise to make a copy in case you have to hand in the original. An almost
identical letter: has been sent to the archbishop; confer with him and please
keep me informed on any decisions that might be taken. This has been a
very lengthy negotiation, but the Holy Father, who now has it in hand, has
given and continues to give it his personal attention.
Father Dalmazzo and I held preliminary discussions with Archbishop
Jacobini of the Sacred Congregation of Extraordinary Ecclesiastical
Affairs, and with Cardinal Alimonda of the Sacred Congregation for the
Propagation of the Faith.
If we can get a vicariate established, our missions will be subsidized by
the Society for the Propagation of the Faith, which will also help set up a
seminary in Europe for the training of missionaries for the Pampas and
Patagonia.
I have had news from the Salesians and the Daughters of Mary, Help of
Christians from time to time, and I bless the Lord for helping us in such
manifest ways.
Tell everyone of my deepest satisfaction. The Holy Father is very
enthusiastic about our missions. He sends you all his special blessing. He
often speaks of you and he too intends to give us material assistance.
Urge our dear confreres:
1. To work just as much as their health will allow while being on guard
against idleness.
2. To observe our rules. How tragic if we were to know them and not
practice them!
3. Let me also know whether at least one of you can attend the general
chapter in September. I would like this, ifit is at all feasible. We have very
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
little news of Father Fagnano and his companions. We are busily training
others to come to your assistance.
God bless you, my ever beloved Father Bodrato, and with you may He
also bless all our dear Salesians and Daughters of Mary, Help of
Christians. Give my respects to Dr. Carranza and Monsignor Espinosa.
May the grace of Our Lord Jesus Christ be with us always. Yours always
in the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary,
Fr. John Bosco
While all these protracted negotiations were going on, the time of
the spiritual retreat during which Don Bosco would have to present
some twenty Salesians as candidates for holy orders was fast
approaching, but all the problems caused by his lack of privileges
were still persisting. 15 Therefore for graver reasons than in the past,
wishing to obtain the ordination of two priests for the missions
which Leo XIII had so benevolently approved and encouraged, he
submitted this petition to the Holy Father:
Most Blessed Father:
Turin, July 14, 1880
The missions of Uruguay and Patagonia, which Your Holiness so
graciously blessed and entrusted to the Congregation of St. Francis de
Sales, are experiencing wonderful growth and bear hopes of a rich spiritual
harvest. A considerable number of priests, master craftsmen and sisters
have already, with God's help, founded churches, houses, schools and
hospices for Indian boys and girls, thousands of whom have been
converted to the faith within a short period of time. But the present number
of laborers is inadequate to meet the growing needs of that population, and
1sHe had gotten a taste of this in April, while in Rome. On April 8 Archbishop Gastaldi
had written to Father Cagliero who, as catechist general of the Congregation, was in charge
of those to be ordained: "I wish to caution you that when a diocesan ordinary allows a
religious to receive holy orders outside the diocese, the ordinary is under obligation to
submit him to an examination as prescribed by the Council of Trent and by the Pontifical. It
was an oversight on my part to authorize you verbally to have the chancery's required
permission to send a few Salesians to be ordained outside the prescribed time without being
required to take the above examination." Then, as now (Codex Juris Canonici, 997, # 1),
the ordinary of the diocese in which the ordinand lived could quite easily leave this
examination to the ordaining bishop, and it was an exaggeration to speak of an obligation in
this case. It is improbable that Archbishop Gastaldi, well versed in canon law, could have
erred in so obvious a matter. However, it is quite likely that someone ill disposed [to the
Salesians] might have suggested that they be required to take the examinations in Turin, as
the archbishop was entitled, but not obliged, to demand. [Author]
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therefore, with Your Holiness' consent, another missionary band is now
being readied and should be leaving in the early part of next November.
However, that we may carry out this holy enterprise, as demanded by
these grave circumstances, we request that Your Holiness, in your
sovereign clemency, allow the superior of the Congregation of St. Francis
de Sales to avail himself twice, within the months of August, September
and October, of the extra tempus privilege, so as to present for holy orders
those priests he has in Italy and in France who have reached canonical
age, have completed their studies and are blessed with all other qualities
required by Holy Church.
Humbly prostrate before you, I implore this distinct favor which will, I
pray, be to God's greater glory and the welfare of the Indians, who most
anxiously await those who will bring them the light of the Gospel and
guide their steps on the path of eternal salvation.
Humbly,
John Bosco, Petitioner
Father Dalmazzo, whom Don Bosco instructed to present this
petition, was also given the following counsel: 16 "Please read the
enclosed petition which is addressed to the Holy Father, and the
letter, which is for Archbishop Agnozzi. Then, putting both into
one envelope, deliver it to the curia and ask to see him. 17 For your
information, I requested the same faculty two years ago, but it was
not granted until two months after the missionaries had departed. 18
If you foresee any problems, ask Archbishop Agnozzi not to take it
amiss if you appeal to our cardinal protector or have recourse to
any other channel he may suggest. Remember too that Archbishop
Agnozzi has always been kindly disposed to us: faculties granted to
our missionaries and permission to open a novitiate in South
America were all his doing."
Don Bosco was still putting his trust in the good offices of
Archbishop Agnozzi, but circumstances had changed. From
secretary of the Sacred Congregation for the Propagation of the
Faith, the archbishop had become secretary of the Sacred
Congregation of Bishops and Regulars, and in this office he had to
follow the policies of the cardinal prefect with regard to Don
16Letter to Father Dalmazzo, Turin, July 14, 1880. [Author]
17He means Archbishop Agnozzi, who was then secretary of the Congregation of Bishops
and Regulars. [Author]
18See Vol. XIII, pp. 599f. [Editor]
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nm BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
Bosco's affairs. Father Dalmazzo received ample proof of this
when, obeying Don Bosco's instructions, he appealed to Cardinal
Nina for the extra tempus. 19 When Don Bosco learned of this he
was very much grieved, but, when expressing his feelings to his
procurator after the news that his request was being opposed, he
wrote like a saint, opening and closing his letter with a joking
reference to the effects of the heat, and expressing in a single
sentence all his magnanimity.
My dear Father Dalmazzo,
Turin, July 21, 1880
Here we are, half frozen by the heat! We are penny-pinching in putting
wood in the furnace. We are surely saving on that.
I can't understand how Father Bonetti's case,21 which had been
entrusted to the Sacred Congregation of the Council, you tell me is now at
the Congregation for Bishops and Regulars. We are losing ninety percent
of our effectiveness. Please tell me what happened, if you can.22
I think it would be wise for you, either alone or with Attorney Leonori,
to call on Cardinal Nina, our protector. Also, make sure he sees the
application for the extra tempus faculty. If the Holy Father expects us to
run the missions he has entrusted to us, then he, the Holy Father himself,
must support us especially in the matter of those privileges which all other
congregations possess without any expiring date. Could he not allow us,
for this one time at least, to apply directly to the Congregation of the
Council whose competence it is? A simple request for the extra tempus for
a few ordinands does not meet our needs. I have requested this before on
other occasions, and then all they did was to appoint ordaining bishops
whose services I could not use. Furthermore, for every ordination we had
to pay a stole fee. Speak of this to Cardinal Nina when you give him my
petition to read. Ifwe have to initiate a suit against our archbishop, we had
better get all our grievances together, and we have plenty of them. For
19Letter from Father Dalmazzo to Don Bosco, undated, but in reply to Don Bosco's letter
dated July 21, which will immediately follow: "I heard from Cardinal Nina that Agnozzi and
Ferrieri have become two bodies with one soul. This explains why Archbishop Agnozzi
displayed such indignation with Attorney Leonori at these 'yokels'20 who are so obstinate
and pig-headed as to think that they can reform Rome's ways." [Author]
20A disparaging epithet given to the Piedmontese after the seizure of Rome in 1870.
[Editor]
21see Chapter 9. [Editor]
22The explanation was the following: "Father Bonetti's case is still with the [Congregation
of the] Council. I must have explained myself badly, because the tongue ever turns to the
aching tooth." Letter, July 15. [Author]
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your information, the archbishop recently lodged a complaint which the
cardinal secretary of state passed on to us. According to him, we are
impossible to deal with, because we rejected a proposal of his.23 Father
Berto will send you the details or, better, a copy of the reply he sent to
your cardinal protector.
Every time they throw up obstacles before us, I react by opening
another house. Let's wait and see which house it will be this time.
Should you notice that your table friends are in danger of turing cold
because of the heat, send them to Piedmont and do likewise, unless you
can make other provisions. If it's only for a few weeks, I am sure that our
good Sigismondi will gladly feed you. What's your financial situation?
My perspiration is dropping onto this paper and I cannot write any
further.
God bless us all! May He keep us in His holy grace! Pray for me!
Yours affectionately in Jesus Christ,
Fr. John Bosco
Thanks to the intervention of Cardinal Nina the dispensation for
two extra tempus ordinations was granted.24
Don Bosco's letters reached Argentina at too critical a time for
the archbishop and government to do anything about them. The
threatening clouds of civil war were gathering on the horizon.
Presidential elections had been set between September and
October, since Avallaneda's term was running out. Two candidates
were contending for the presidency: Argentina-born General Roca,
son ofltalian immigrants, and counsellor-at-law Tejedor. Roca had
the government, the army and eleven provinces on his side; the
latter had the province of Buenos Aires of which he was governor,
two other provinces, and all the aristocracy. The national army
ranged itself on the general's side, but Tejedor, determined to
maintain his hold by force, hastily rigged up an army of his own and
equipped it as well as he could under the circumstances. The
followers of both candidates engaged in a bloody conflict which
reached its climax in June.25
23Erecting an additional building with the Sacred Heart parish. [Author]
24Letter from Father Dalmazzo to Don Bosco, Rome, August 11, 1880. (This letter
serves as the postscript to his letter of August 5, written from Teano). [Author]
25To visualize the nature ofthis struggle, it suffices to know that two combat teams fighting
each other were under the command of two brothers, while two contending frigates in Rio de
la Plata were under the respective command of father and son. [Author]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
The national army laid siege to the capital, so that the boarding
school of San Carlos found itself caught between two fires.
Foreseeing such a crisis, Father Bodrato had early stocked a fair
supply of biscuits, flour, dried fruit, dried fish and other essential
foods. Boys who had parents he sent home, but some forty others,
artisans and students, were still with him. Our priests wanted to
minister to the wounded as soon as the fighting would break out, but
their provincial read a letter from Don Bosco stating that no one
was to expose himself to danger unless it was necessary, as, for
example, if other religious institutes could not handle the work
alone, or if the fighting was near our houses or parish churches. In
these cases the Salesians were to be the first to help out.
On June 21 a fierce battle left several thousand dead along the
border of our parishes of San Carlos and "La Boca." Just on that
day, Father Bodrato, who was seriously ill, had obtained
permission, at his confreres' relentless insistence, to enter the
embattled city to see a doctor. What carnage he witnessed-
cartloads of dead and wounded dripping blood along the roads, as
women and children ran after them, screaming and anxiously
searching for their loved ones. He did not have the heart to go any
further amidst such horrors and soon turned back, the terror of what
he had seen showing itself on his face when he rejoined his
confreres.
The whole gamut of horror hit them in those dark days: hunger,26
26Receiving in October a donation of a hundred lire for the mission, Don Bosco informed
the donor, a Father Valacchi, of these horrors, as follows:
Beloved in Our Lord Jesus Christ,
Turin, October 24, 1880
You shall receive a hundredfold and eternal life.
I thank you in my own name and in that of my sons in Patagonia who are in desperate
straits. The government is no longer able to grant a subsidy because of the civil war; for one
week they had to subsist on raw donkey meat, no salt, no bread. It was a veritable miracle
how assistance reached them on the ninth day, as they were on the verge of collapse from
hunger.
Bless you, Father! Come to see us. Pray for me and for the Gospel laborers among the
Indians! May the grace of Our Lord Jesus Christ be ever with us! Amen.
Yours affectionately,
Fr. John Bosco
The rare asado con cuero (roasted with the hide) as done in Argentina was just plain raw
meat to Italians. We do not know where he got the information about "donkey meat."
[Author]
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arrest under suspicion of espionage, forceful recruiting of older
boys, robbery attempts, threatening shots. However, more than all
the evils befalling them, the Salesians were distressed by their
superior's physical deterioration and by the realization that the
prevailing tragedy made it impossible for him to obtain medical
assistance. When the civil war finally ended, he was beyond all
hope of recovery.
Though he had been ill for quite some time, this virtuous priest
had concealed it with his habitually serene countenance and
unceasing activity, but pain and recent privations brought all to a
head. Once peace was re-established, the doctors found that he had
cancer of the stomach. From that dark day of June 21 to August 4,
when he left this world for a better one, his life was one unceasing
agony. Added to his acute pains was pneumonia, whose cure only
doubled his agony. He never complained, never mentioned his
physical condition. When the archbishop visited him, he spoke of
the public calamity and recommended the trade school to him. He
continued to direct the house until the beginning of July, when he
told Father Costamagna, "There is nothing more I can do. I offer
my life to God for our work. I shall now get ready for death." After
that he no longer spoke of business matters, replying only to those
who asked him questions. One morning, as he was about to receive
Holy Communion, he reproached himself and asked pardon of all
present and absent, urging them all to brotherly unity, diligent piety
and love of chastity. Some time later, to Father [Joseph]
Vespignani,27 Father [Stephen] Bourlot28 and Brother [Felix]
Caprioglio,29 then a coadjutor, he said, "Do you know, I now see
before my eyes all the years of my life. Some cause me sorrow
because I did not think of God and my soul as I should. Of so
many years, however, sixteen fill me with joy, and they are the
years I have lived in tht Congregation." He had come to Don
Bosco at the age of forty-one from Momese, where he was teaching
elementary school, and was ordained a priest at the age of forty-six.
As he received Viaticum in the presence of his confreres kneeling
tearfully about his bed, he told them, "Oneness in charity, oneness
21 See Appendix I. [Editor]
28See Appendix I. [Editor]
29See Appendix 1. [Editor]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
in chastity. That is all I recommend to you, oneness in charity,
oneness in chastity!" When he breathed his last, the sound of
sobbing filled the house, while outdoors a chorus of praise for the
virtue and work of this excellent disciple of Don Bosco filled the
air. Father Vespignani testified that the power of his intercession in
heaven became at once apparent.30
Informed by cable of the tragic loss he had suffered, Don Bosco
telegraphed the archbishop and through him the Salesians on
August 7, appointing Father [James] Costamagna as acting
provincial. On this mournful occasion, the archbishop, who had
been unable to carry out any of Don Bosco's wishes or even
communicate with him because of the national crisis, sent the
following letter:
Very Reverend Don Bosco,
Buenos Aires, August 10, 1880
With apostolic resignation you will have by now received the tragic
news of the death of our very dear friend, Father Bodrato, your beloved
son in Jesus Christ.
His death is a grave loss for us and is felt now more than ever since he
was the superior of the Salesian houses in America.
Certainly his was a heavy burden which he bore with true apostolic
courage. The Lord wished to reward him for his great hardships and for
the sufferings which he sustained so heroically for the Congregation. We
trust that from his glory in heaven he will now obtain graces and favors for
his confreres and the poor orphans whom he took from the streets into the
Salesian houses with such tender concern.
The last few months have been a nightmare for Buenos Aires because of
a fierce civil war, and the trade school of San Carlos at Almagro, caught
between the fire of both the national and the provincial troops, has suffered
extensively. We had to dismiss almost all the boys, keeping only those
who have no home of their own. We had our hardships, but Father
Bodrato suffered more than any of us. God has now rewarded him for his
pains and his kindness. Despite the nation's critical conditions, the trade
school and the other Salesian houses are doing quite well.
You will be very happy with the news I sent you about the Patagonian
mission. I am sorry that so far I have not been able to obtain the subsidy
which the government promised the missions. I shall renew my request
3°Father Vespignani recorded all this in the school chronicle, singling out eight reasons
why the house of San Carlos was so blessed by God. [Author]
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and hope to get it soon, since it is already earmarked in the national
budget. I shall not rest until I have this money and use it to aid the
missions which are in such dire need. God thus wishes to purify and
increase our merit.
I received your cable informing me of Father Costamagna's
appointment as [acting] provincial of the South American missions. You
could not have made a better choice.
Dear Don Bosco, please give my regards to all your beloved Salesians.
Always at your service,
Yours affectionately,
~ Frederick, Archbishop
Don Bosco sent his condolences to his bereaved sons from Nizza
Monferrato, where he was conducting a women's retreat, but only
after receiving Father Costamagna's report on the death of Father
Bodrato.31 Father Bodrato was to have come to Turin in May to
attend the second general chapter, but in view of his pleading poor
health, Father Rua had excused him from this obligation in Don
Bosco's name and his own, authorizing Father Costamagna to take
his place. But with Father Bodrato's death, Father Costamagna
was no longer free to leave his post. Don Bosco wrote him the
following letter, with two others addressed respectively to Father
Vespignani and Father F assio:32
Nizza Monferrato, August 22, 1880
My dear Father Costamagna,
You cannot attend the general chapter and take part in the election of
the Congregation's new councillors. It's a disappointment for you and
bitter grief for me.
Now let us take heart. Pick up the rules and do all you can to see to their
observances. Our prayers and God's help will not fail you. Call your
council together often, urge Father Vespignani to talk, and consult with
the archbishop. Once I thoroughly know our present state of affairs, I shall
proceed definitively to appoint a new provincial. Till then, the authority is
in your hands.
Make sure that no one loses any papers belonging to Father Bodrato.
Among them you will find documents concerning the establishment of a
vicariate in Patagonia. The Holy Father is very concerned about this.
31Cf. Bollettino Salesiano, October 1880. [Author]
32See Appendix 1. [Editor]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF. SAINT JOHN BOSCO
As soon as the government has settled down, resume negotiations with
it, but be sure that everything is done in agreement with the archbishop.
Both he and the government are responsible to the Holy See.
Painstakingly gather together whatever concerns our late lamented
Father Bodrato, no matter how trifling. You will not have to edit or
compile anything. Just send everything here and we will tie it in with the
letters and other material we already have.33
God bless you, my ever beloved Father Costamagna, and with you may
He bless all our dear confreres and boys. Pray for me.
Always your affectionately in Jesus Christ,
Fr. John Bosco
P.S. Please give my best to everyone individually: the archbishop,
Carranza and Monsignor Ceccarelli. Please tell him that the Holy Father
has approved the title of prelate for him. I shall be writing to you very soon
about it.
Now, for the first time in four years Don Bosco addressed Father
Joseph Vespignani with the familiar "tu" [you, in the singular]. He
had received undeniable signs of the latter's worth and virtues. The
polite form of address which he had always used showed a certain
reserve which he purposely kept while he was studying him. The
moment in which Don Bosco showed him all his fatherly
confidence could not have been better chosen. To thoroughly
understand this letter, we must explain that in the above-mentioned
account [of Father Bodrato's confidential words shortly before his
death] Father Vespignani mentioned some unpleasant incidents
that took place in the San Carlos School. Don Bosco must have
been told about it, for here he briefly outlines the norm to be
followed:
Nizza Monferrato, August 22, 1880
My dear Father Vespignani,
I was very happy to receive your letter. All is well. Now be brave.
Patience, prayer, courage: this must be our program for the moment. Do
all you can to strengthen the others and remove cause for discontent.
33Unfortunately Father Bodrato's biography either was never written or was not
published. We find a few things scattered in the early editions of Father Barberis' handbook
[of spiritual life]. Born at Mornese in 1823, he came to the Oratory in 1864, took final vows
in 1865 and was ordained a priest in 1869. (See Vol. VII, pp. 451, 464). [Author]
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Tell the students and our novices that I expect great things from them.
Morality, humility, diligence in study: that is to be their ideal.
God bless you all! In Our Lord Jesus Christ,
Your most affectionate friend,
Fr. John Bosco
The letter to Father Michael Fassio also apparently refers to the
same situation.
My dear Father Fassio,
Nizza Monferrato, August 22, 1880
What you wrote is fine. Under the circumstances show yourself to be an
example of good works.
No one must lose heart at this time, nor is anyone to complain or pull
back a single step. Courage! God is with us! In my Mass I remember you
and your work. Tell Father Rabagliati,34 Father Remotti, Father
Milesanio, and Bettinetti to whom I hope I shall soon write, what I have
told you.
God bless us all! May He keep us in His holy grace! Amen.
Yours affectionately,
Fr. John Bosco
The Argentine postal service held out as well as it could during
the upheaval of the civil war, but heaven knows what happened to
Don Bosco's and Father Fagnano's letters. Only in October did
Don Bosco receive one letter which he immediately acknowledged.
We have the original of this reply, found among the few remaining
papers of Father F agnano after his death.
My dear Father F agnano,
Turin, October 21, 1880
I have finally received your letter of September 6, the first I have had
from you since you went to Patagonia. I was terribly worried because,
despite three letters I sent you, I have had no replies at all. My letters
dwelt at length on norms for your guidance. Patience! I hope this letter will
reach you.
34 See Appendix 1. [Editor]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
You already have the answer to your first question: I did write to you
and you did not get the letters; likewise I did not get your letters.
My answer to your second question is that your assignment to
Patagonia was all my doing. The Holy Father wished you to go to
Paraguay, but, since we had to send someone absolutely trustworthy and
able to cope with situations, a man also of sound morality, the superior
chapter had no other choice than your own revered and always beloved
self. Neither doubt nor mistrust nor anything else had any part in the
change of assignment.
You may ask: why not Father Costamagna? For reasons it is useless to
spell out, Father Costamagna could not be sent.
Just now Father Cagliero and I are all involved getting together another
expedition of Daughters of Mary, Help of Christians and Salesians to
come to your help. But what can we do? The future looks pretty rough,
even though our Society is making giant strides forward.
I was really delighted with your letter and that of Sister Vallese. If you
receive this letter, let me know and I shall write again immediately.
Give my regards to all the sisters and confreres. Tell the girls and boys
that I bless them and love them all in Jesus Christ.
Shall we see each other again in this world? Yes.
Forget your home and your parents and invoke the Lord's care upon
them.
God bless you, my ever beloved Father Fagnano. Pray and have the
others pray for me too! Always in Jesus Christ,
Your most affectionate friend,
Fr. John Bosco
It was now up to Father Costamagna, who was temporarily
taking Father Bodrato's place as provincial, to push negotiations
for the vicariate apostolic. The ex-president of Argentina, who had
drafted the law authorizing the military expedition of 1879, had
allowed the Salesians to accompany the troops and had shown
them his favor; hence there was every reason to believe that he
would throw no obstacle in their way. But the political unrest had
not given Father Bodrato a chance to open negotiations with him.
Initial steps therefore had to be taken with the new president,
General Julius Roca, who had always been favorable to the
Salesians. In November Don Bosco pressed Father Costamagna to
get some action in the matter. The letter he wrote on this subject
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cites Mr. Anthony Oneto, who had asked for a Salesian or two for
Chubut in 1876.35
My dear Father Costamagna,
Turin, November 12, 1880
I received all your news. Fine! For your guidance I enclose a copy of
the letter written to General Roca. Go to see him and take with you the
dossier on our project for a vicariate in Patagonia.
The Holy Father is most anxious to establish it. Without it, the Society
for the Propagation of the Faith will not give us any help, and our mission,
even the government of the Patagonian province, will not be secure.
We are busily working to get ready a new expedition of Salesians for
South America. Father Cagliero is in Sicily. We shall finalize everything
on his return.
I also wrote in a general way to Mr. Oneto, who has great projects in
mind. I will examine them and pass them on to you and others. I
repeatedly plead our debts in America to all who visit us from there. Ifyou
think that a letter from me may help, let me know, and I will write
immediately.
The others will send you more news. Give my heartfelt regards to my
dear sons in America. Tell them I love them with all my heart and
remember them every day at Holy Mass.
God bless you all! Pray for me!
Always yours affectionately in Jesus Christ,
Fr. John Bosco
The Constitution of Argentina, Article 67, stated that the
Indians' conversion to Catholicism was within the competence of
the legislature. These long-delayed pious desires of the lawmakers
were finally becoming a reality, to the priceless benefit of God's
Kingdom and of the Argentine Republic. What Don Bosco had said
from the pulpit of the Church of Mary, Help of Christians at the
first missionary departure ceremony of 1875 had a far greater
significance than imagined and was now beginning to come true:
"We are starting a great enterprise!"
35See Vol. XII, pp. 186f. [Editor]
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CHAPTER 27
The Daughters of Mary, Help of Christians
L 1880 the six-year term set by the constitutions of the
Daughters of Mary, Help of Christians for the mother general and
the superior chapter expired, and so the second general chapter1
was summoned to elect a new slate of superiors. Eighteen sisters
had the right to vote, the members of the superior chapter and the
superior of each community. With Don Bosco's consent they met
at the convent of Nizza Monferrato on August 20, and, after
making their spiritual retreat, held elections [on August 29). Father
Cagliero, director of the Institute, presided as Don Bosco's
personal representative. With him was Father Lemoyne, director of
the local community. Sister Mary Mazzarello was unanimously re-
elected as mother general, and the following received the required
majority of votes: Sister Catherine Daghero, Vicar; Sister Joan
Ferettino, Economer; Sister Emily Mosca, First Assistant; Sister
Henrietta Sorbone, Second Assistant.
As the election had to be ratified by the superior general before
the superiors-elect could assume office, Don Bosco gave his written
approval by signing the minutes of the meeting held on September
1.3 He asked God to instill His spirit of fervor and charity into the
newly elected superiors so that the lowly Institute of the Daughters
of Mary, Help of Christians might grow in number and reach out to
many other countries where the sisters, while saving their own
souls, might win other souls to God. Mother Mazzarello, hoping
1The first was held June 14, 1874,2 when the first superior chapter was elected. All the
professed nuns then voted, and Don Bosco presided. [Author]
2The Cronistoria (Chronicles of the Institute of the Daughters of Mary, Help of
Christians), Vol. 1, p. v, states: "The idea of publishing the Cronistoria of the Institute dates
from 1884 when the first General Chapter was held." The same is reasserted in Vol. 4, pp.
298ff. [Editor]
3Cf. Memorie Biografiche de[ Beato Giovanni Bosco, Vol. XIV, Document 74, pp. 814f.
[Author]
524
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The Daughters of Mary, Help of Christians
525
anxiously to be relieved of office, explained her reasons to Don
Bosco, who listened quietly. Only when she mentioned a worsening
deafness in the left ear did he remark, "All the better. That way you
won't have to listen to idle talk."
During that year the sisters' numbers increased to one hundred
and sixty-seven. They had opened eight new houses after closing
the house at Momese and putting it up for sale; among them, in
January, as related above, was the convent at Patagones in
Argentina.
In February the first three sisters left Nizza Monferrato for
Sicily, summoned to Catania by Duchess Carcaci, who entrusted
to their ~are an orphanage she had founded. 4 Father Dalmazzo,
who had been residing at Tor de' Specchi over the past month since
being appointed procurator general of the Salesians, accompanied
them. Their stay at Catania lasted seven years, after which they
withdrew only because of outside interference with their work.
However, a much more important mission awaited them in the city.
In April three other sisters, headed by Sister Catherine Daghero,
set off in just the opposite direction to assume direction of the
orphanage at Saint-Cyr. They walked into a messy complication.
Father Vincent, whom Don Bosco had allowed to stay on as
director, merged the Daughters of Mary, Help of Christians with
six nuns of the congregation he had founded. Immediately national
bias threatened to shatter for good any harmony existing between
them; furthermore, the elderly priest, irascible by nature, often
berated the newcomers. That is why Don Bosco's choice of Sister
Daghero had not been unthinking. She was a woman of exquisite
tact, rare prudence and much charity, qualities soon to stand her
well as mother general.
Chronologically, in September the sisters' next work was a
kindergarten at Borgomasino in the diocese of Ivrea, with an
annexed festive oratory and later a public school.
October saw four other houses founded, three on the feast of St.
Teresa: at Este and Penango, where, besides taking care of the
4See p. 242. The orphanage registers would have us conclude that the sisters went there in
1878, but that is an error. In 1878 the request was made to the sisters, and in 1879 Father
Cagliero and Father Durando went to see the place, as we have already narrated. Otherwise,
in his letter to the Salesian cooperators in January 1880, Don Bosco could not have said, "In
these very days a little group of these sisters will leave to take charge of an orphanage in
Catania." [Author]
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1HE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
cooking and laundry of the nearby Salesian boarding schools, the
sisters also conducted a festive oratory for girls, and the convent at
Melazzo in the diocese of Acqui. Here the Daughters of Mary,
Help of Christians were entrusted with a kindergarten, a
homemaking class and an orphanage by the wealthy and generous
pastor, Father Chiabrera, whose charitable work received consider-
able aid from Marquis [Victor] Scati. The marquis called on Don
Bosco at Christmas time to thank him for having sent his nuns to
Melazzo, assuring him oftheir excellent success and praising to the
skies their good work in the festive oratory.
"Those Sunday gatherings do a vast amount of good, as I told you
before," Don Bosco remarked.5 "The homemaking class and kindergarten
are also very beneficial, but in a limited way. The festive oratory has a far
broader scope and serves as a strong deterrent to evil, drawing the older
girls from sinful occasions and the deceits of dissolute young men who,
especially on Sundays and holy days, have every opportunity to court and
corrupt them. Not many years ago, right here, you could see ugly things
happening on Sundays: boys and girls clustering about street comers,
acting and talking indecently. We started drawing the boys away, getting
them to attend the festive oratory and entertaining them there. Then came
the girls' opportunity, and now they overflow the church, crowding on the
steps, and, occasionally, standing for hours even in the rain hoping to
catch some words of the sermon."
"This is clearly due to God's grace and assistance," the marquis
interrupted. "It would not seem possible otherwise."
"Yes, to God's assistance, true," Don Bosco replied, "and that will
never be wanting as long as we really work trusting in God's help." He
then went on to narrate the episode of a British minister coming to visit the
Valdocco Oratory.e
Finally, in the latter part of October, the sisters opened St.
Mary's boarding school at Bronte, a large town on the slopes of
5 Handwritten report by the marquis, April 24, 1891. [Author]
6Document 10 in the Appendix of Volume XIII of the Memorie Biografiche de/ Beato
Giovanni Bosco has this footnote by Father Ceria on p. 921: "Tradition always identified
this cabinet minister as Lord Palmerston. On December 20, 1880, Don Bosco, narrating this
incident to Marquis Victor Scati, stated: 'Years ago Lord Palmerston paid me a visit. He
arrived at ten in the morning and stayed until six in the evening, thoroughly inspecting the
whole place and seeking relevant information about everything with characteristic British
interest.'" (Handwritten report, Turin, April 24, 1891. Cf. Bollettino Salesiano, October
1922, p. 259.) rEditorl
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527
Mount Etna, not far from Randazzo. They had charge of the girls'
elementary schools and of the local hospital. With considerable
wonder we admire the Daughters of Mary, Help of Christians, born
and reared in closed environments and used to homey life, who
took off for distant lands and different tongues, particularly in those
days when lengthy journeys were not as frequently or as easily
made as now. So prevailing was Don Bosco's influence over them
that he could push them to any sacrifice to help others. However,
he never sent them forth into the world alone; now he had Father
Cagliero accompany them to Bronte by way of Rome, Messina and
Catania.
They reached their destination on October 22, after a journey of
eight days. The townspeople turned out in crowds to welcome
them, and the religious and civic authorities gave them a tasteful
reception. The following morning in the town's mother-church,
packed with people, Father Cagliero obligingly delivered a short
sermon to point out the outstanding traits of nuns and to speak of
the Institute of the Daughters of Mary, Help of Christians and their
religious educational program for girls. In the next two days he met
with the municipality and with the local Congregation of Charity7
to discuss the smooth running and stability of the new girls'
residence to be opened as soon as possible.
On his return [to Turin] Father Cagliero visited the Salesian
house at Randazzo, where he found that boarding school making
rapid progress, and the house at Catania. Later he journeyed to
Caltanissetta, Siracusa, Noto, Acireale and Messina, and was
welcomed everywhere with genuine enthusiasm by those zealous
bishops who were so anxious to bring Don Bosco's sons to their
dioceses.8
Sister Caroline Sorbone, blood-sister of Sister Henrietta,9 was
one of the teaching nuns sent to Bronte; to her Don Bosco made
two predictions just two months before her departure for Sicily.
Twin concerns weighed heavily upon her: her desire to go to South
America rather than Sicily and the fear that her brother, who had
become a Salesian, might not persevere. Fortunately she enjoyed
7A moral body legally established in every municipality of Italy to oversee the
administration of local charitable organizations. [Editor]
81.etter from Father Cagliero to Don Bosco, Randazzo, October 27, 1880. [Author]
9See Vol. XIII, pp. 142ff. [Editor]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
nearly an hour's private talk "with that sweet, dear father" as she
expressed it. 10 After bidding her to be at peace, for he could read
her heart like an open book, Don Bosco continued, "For the
moment, offer South America as your sacrifice to God and prepare
yourself for Sicily. There you will have much to suffer, and you will
run up against many spiritual and material setbacks, but the
blessing I now give you will strengthen you against them." Indeed,
it all came true. Sister Caroline claims that only the strength she
received from that blessing supported her and kept her from losing
her mind in her frightful spiritual battles. As regards her brother
Charles, she worried that after nine years of army life, he would not
persevere in the Salesian Congregation which he had recently
entered. She asked Don Bosco whether Charles would persevere.
"Yes," he told her. "Rest assured he will remain in the Salesian
Congregation to the end of his days." Her brother, having been
transferred from our school at Randazzo, was then at Magliano, but
it seemed quite likely that he would soon leave religious life.
Shortly after his arrival, however, he was stricken with a fatal
illness which brought him to the grave. As the moment of death
drew near, he renewed his former good resolutions and, like a true
son of the Congregation, died in an edifying manner.
The archives of the motherhouse of the Daughters of Mary, Help
of Christians safeguard a fine collection of news tidbits gleaned
from the sisters who knew Don Bosco and were fortunate to speak
to him. From these miscellaneous anecdotes we will choose a few
dating from 1880. They are sayings, incidents, and a prediction or
two, all recalling typical traits of Don Bosco.
Mother Petronilla Mazzarello happened to be present when he
met a rather non-observant nun in a corridor of the convent at
Nizza Conferrato. With customary fatherliness he asked her how
she was doing. "I am well enough in health," the sister answered,
"but as for my soul. ..."
"Look," Don Bosco rejoined. "Our physical health is in God's
hands, but the health of our soul is in ours."
When Sister Vincenza Bessone had been admitted by Don Bosco
as a postulant, he had lightly placed his hand on her hand, saying,
"Hair of gold. Is your heart of gold too?" Then he had added,
10Report written by Sister Henrietta at the request of Father Michael Rua, Borgomasino,
April 8, 1888. [Author]
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The Daughters of Mary, Help of Christians
529
"Wait one more year and come.'' She faithfully followed his word.
Sister Angiolina Demartini recalls having a glimpse of Don
Bosco at Lu in 1880, at the age of nine, when she was attending the
sisters' school. He had come into the classroom, and, placing a
gentle hand on the pupils' heads, had asked each her name. Most of
them, on growing up, became nuns, nor could they be dissuaded
from believing that his visit and blessing that day had influenced
their choice of life.
Sister Sofia Miotti recalls that she and some other sisters who
had not seen or heard Don Bosco begged Father Cagliero to take
them to Turin and that Don Bosco had sent word, "Tell the sisters
that we are not meant either to see or to speak to one another in this
world, but rather to be always together in heaven."
Sisters Teresina Germano and Giacinta Morzoni recount two
episodes which reveal Don Bosco's charity. Sister Teresina's
account concerns Nizza in August 1880. As a postulant, she had
by chance found herself near a group of superiors in the portico
leading to the old community dining room. The blessing of the meal
was to be given that day by Don Bosco, who came in with Father
Cagliero. The sisters, novices, and postulants were already in the
dining room. Don Bosco pronounced the blessing. Then he glanced
about him and remarked with a smile to Father Cagliero, "See how
many they are already! In time the superiors will no longer reside
here in Nizza with the sisters, but will live in Turin nearer to the
Salesian superiors." The postulant kept these words in mind, often
wondering if they would ever come true, for, like everyone else, she
saw that as a remote, if not impossible, reality. Of course, that
change of residence is today [1933] a fact. After that remark Don
Bosco asked Mother Assistant, "May I see the portions of soup
and main course you are serving?" Sister tried to bring him some
better filled plate, but he remarked, "Mother, what are you doing?
These sisters have much work to do. Feed them well. Do what we
do. We have two separate courses." Backed by her associates,
Mother Assistant tried to explain that the sisters were satisfied with
less and did not need as much food as men, adding that as regards
dishwashing they weren't short of work. "Never mind that,'' Don
Bosco interposed. "Put it all on one dish if you like, but pile it up
with much more food. You have so much work to do!"
Sister Giacinta relates the following. As a postulant she often
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
heard that candidates in frail health would be advised to return
home. Being of delicate constitution herself, she feared that a
similar fate would befall her and hoped that she could confide her
apprehension to Don Bosco and ask his advice. Convinced that he
was a saint, as everyone kept saying, she was sure that whatever he
said could not be wrong, and so in August 1880 she sought some
way of approaching him. Her natural shyness however always kept
her from going up to him, until, realizing that he was about to leave,
she summoned all her courage and walked to the Salesians'
residence. Having never been there before, she unknowingly found
herself in front of the room where he usually gave his audience.
Some sisters waiting there told her to go away, because Don Bosco
was hurrying to leave. Just then he appeared, hat on his head and
traveling bag in his hand. He had but a few moments left before
catching a train back to Turin. As soon as the postulant saw him,
she stood on tiptoe behind the sisters and cried out, ''Father, I have
something to tell you." Don Bosco asked the others to let her
through and then, quite calmly, turned about, re-entered the room,
greeted her, sat down, bade her be seated, and slowly and quietly
asked what she wanted. "Father, will the Lord give me the health I
need to stay in the Congregation? Will He?" "The Lord will grant
you health and holiness," he replied. Since she had nothing else to
say, Don Bosco stood up, said good-bye, and, unperturbed, set out
for the station. In 1919 Sister Giacinta wrote: "Thirty-nine years
have passed since that blessed encounter, and, though my health is
very frail, I have always managed to carry out my teaching duties,
even though I was told that I had but a year or two to live. As for
the second part of his prediction, well, that is something else."
Sister Orsolina Rinaldi had not been able to make up her mind
about joining the Daughters of Mary, Help of Christians because of
a seemingly incurable disease of her right foot. In that condition
how could she plan on a life of busy activity which she saw sisters
living? Advised to see Don Bosco, she went one morning to the
Church of Mary, Help of Christians, and on entering the sacristy
and seeing that he was hearing the boys' confessions, she waited
until he had finished. Then she approached him and told him of her
hopes and fears. He looked at her and told her that she had to be
more assertive and more resolute in will, for her disease was of no
account. He was looking for good sisters ready to go far away, he
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The Daughters of Mary, Help of Christians
531
said. Then he bade her kneel, recited a Hail Mary with her, and
gave her the blessing of Mary, Help of Christians. He told her to
see Mother Mazzarello and tell her in his name that she was to
accept her as a postulant. Orsolina entered the Congregation in
November 1880 and never had reason to complain of her foot,
despite long walks and strenuous work.
Sister Giacinta Laureri too, stricken with an eye disease while a
novice, quite suddenly found, almost on the eve of her profession,
that she was practically blind. When Don Bosco came to Nizza in
June 1880, Mother Mazzarello suggested that she go and ask for a
blessing and a healing from him so that she might take her vows.
The novice obeyed. Acting surprised, as though he had misunder-
stood her, Don Bosco asked, "Oh! When the Madonna calls you to
heaven, you won't want to go?"
"Oh, yes, Father, I do want to go to heaven," she answered, "but
just now I am afraid they will dismiss me from the Congregation
because of my eyes. I would be unhappy for the rest of my life!"
"No, no," Don Bosco replied. "You can rest assured that it was
Our Lady who sent you here. She wants you to be here. Our Lady
asked you to do what is right and wants you to become a
saint. ... Now let me give you the blessing of Mary, Help of
Christians, and tomorrow I shall pray for you at Holy Mass. Wear
this medal of Mary, Help of Christians, make a novena to Our
Lady and be quite serene. Go now and apply for religious
profession. Pray to Her now and always."
She prayed intensely and finally one day she was healed, her
sight as clear and sharp as if never touched by disease. During her
retreat she was admitted to religious profession without any
question.
Sister Louise Boccalatte recalls two foreboding predictions made
by Don Bosco when he went to Nizza to preach the ladies' retreat.
He had been greeted by a brief musical, at the end of which the
singers came up to kiss his hand. He looked at them kindly and
said, "Prepare yourselves to sing even better in paradise. Four of
you will go there this year." Indeed, that year, four of them did pass
away: Sisters Luigina Arecco, Mary Mazzarello, Clotilde Turco
and Tersilla Ginepro, all of whom were in the group and, according
to the superiors' report, were given a special glance by Don Bosco
when they bowed to kiss his hand. He later made the same
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
prediction to the retreatants. "Four of you too," he said, "will
appear before God's judgment seat." Distressed by these words,
the women were too frightened to go to bed, and Mother Assistant
approached Don Bosco, saying, "Please, Father, for heaven's sake,
don't say such things again, because we can't calm them!" "I must
do God's will," Don Bosco answered. "If the Lord sends me such
inspirations, it is my duty to express them."
To this year also belongs the aftermath of a similar incident,
though it comes to us from another source. Sister Celestine
Torretta had requested Don Bosco's blessing before going to Nizza
as a postulant. Don Bosco had told her, "Go, for from this day on,
your family will be blessed in a remarkable way. Do you still have
any sisters living?"
"Yes, two."
"The younger will join you."
The younger sister was named Felicina. Celestine said nothing to
her because she wanted to see if the prediction would come true.
In time their mother became ill. She had been an invalid for two
years when her daughter F elicina persuaded her to go to Turin with
her and receive Don Bosco's blessing. The poor woman could not
rest day or night, nor could she stand the noise of people talking,
and she tolerated no one in her room. A few moments outdoors
upset her. She was subject to fainting spells and could bear no one
near her but her daughter F elicina.
On May 24, 1878, Felicina, then sixteen, accompanied her
mother to the Oratory. They had gone from Buttigliera d'Asti to
Chieri, where they spent the night, since the invalid could not have
made the entire trip without a break. On reaching the Oratory,
Felicina left her mother in the doorkeeper's lodge and went up to
Don Bosco's waiting room, which she found crowded. When she
asked the others ifthey would do her the favor of letting her mother
go before them, they all consented. Her mother went up and was
ushered inside. Don Bosco asked her name and where she came
from, inquiring about her family and her daughter who was a nun.
Then the woman told her of her grief when her oldest daughter had
left home, saying how upset she still was because her daughter was
a sister in the world, whereas she had wanted to see her in a
cloister, for she had always jealously sheltered her from any
danger. Don Bosco smiled but said nothing.
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533
Then the mother asked if she had any hope of recovery. Three
times Don Bosco silently glanced from mother to daughter and
back. Felicina, who knew of Don Bosco's holiness, feared he saw
something amiss in her soul, as she put it when later recounting the
episode, and so she hid behind her mother. Don Bosco said to the
mother, "You will recover when you let this other daughter of yours
become a sister." On hearing these words, the mother made no
answer, but tears trickled down her face.
At that moment Don Bosco turned to F elicina and asked, "Isn't
this true? Are you glad?" The girl had cherished this desire from
childhood but had never told anyone, least of all her mother, for she
knew how painfully her mother had felt her other daughter's
departure. On hearing Don Bosco's words, however, she was
convinced that he had read her inmost heart. Still standing behind
her mother, she clasped her hands silently and raised her eyes to
heaven. Don Bosco saw and understood. Moments later he gave
the mother a blessing and repeated, "You will recover when you let
this other daughter of yours become a sister."
Two more years passed. The poor woman's condition went from
bad to worse. However, not even at home did she ever mention her
visit to Don Bosco. Finally, one evening, trusting fully in Don
Bosco's words, Felicina made a supreme effort and told her
mother, "Do you remember what Don Bosco said-that you would
recover if I became a sister? Well, tomorrow I am leaving you, and
Mary, Help of Christians will heal you!" She had already been in
touch with the mother general.
She kept her word. Three days later her mother began to get
better, steadily improving until she recovered fully. Father
Lemoyne, who heard the account from Sister Felicina herself and
made a written report, wrote, "She is still living today, 1907, and is
seventy-eight years old." Only when she met her sister at Nizza did
Celestine tell her of Don Bosco's prediction made four years
before.
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CHAPTER 28
Foundations in 1880:
Refused, Delayed or Hardly Begun
a.PART from the foundations initiated at Patagones and
Viedma, Argentina, twin cities of the Rio Negro, no new [Salesian]
houses were opened in 1880. All other proposals which came in
that year, excluding verbal offers or requests not found in our
archives, were either summarily turned down or delayed or hardly
initiated.
Two proposals were never pursued. The first came from Rome.
Princess Mary Odescalchi wanted to open a school at Bracciano,
her feudal estate in Lazio, where a defrocked friar was then at home
and elsewhere teaching classes which hardly reflected moral
standards. The princess asked for three Salesian priests: an
elementary school teacher and two secondary school instructors
who would be given lodging, linen, furniture and six hundred lire
each. Were it not possible to have the three priests that year, she
would settle for the coming year and would also be willing to set
other terms to suit Don Bosco. 1 Don Bosco replied that he could
not possibly oblige;2 as a result, all talk of it died out. By this time,
unless the possibility of further development loomed, Don Bosco
was refusing to scatter his Salesians in minor undertakings.
The second proposal, promptly discarded for a contrary reason,
was to send the Salesians to Spalato3 in Dalmatia.4 The Dalmatian
bishops had jointly agreed to set up in the seminary at Spalato a
11.etter from Father Dalmazzo to Don Bosco, Rome, May 28, 1880. [Author]
21.etter from Don Bosco to Father Dalmazzo, Turin, June 8, 1880. [Author]
3A seaport on the Adriatic, now part of Yugoslavia and known as "Split" or "Spljet."
[Editor]
4Former Austrian crownland on the Adriatic coast extending from near the Albanian
border on the south to Zadar on the north and including many islands. This name was later
applied to most of the Yugoslav coast. [Editor]
534
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Foundations in 1880: Refused, Delayed or Hardly Begun
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regional private secondary school for their dioceses, with the
exception of Zadar which already had a school of its own.
Preliminaries, needed funds and other requirements had been ready
for over a year, but negotiations were stalled for lack of a teaching
staff, especially in philosophy, Latin, Greek, Italian and the natural
sciences. In view of this, the bishop of Spalato appealed to the Holy
Father in the name of his brother bishops, asking for his
intervention that classes might begin in the forthcoming school year
of 1880-81. The Pope informed Don Bosco of this plan through his
secretary of state, stating that he would be deeply gratified if Don
Bosco could supply teachers for the secondary school.5 A
Dalmatian priest who had been given the task of finding suitable
personnel, and discussing eventual financial outlays, came to the
Oratory to meet with Don Bosco. Since the Pope had left it up to
him to accede if possible, Don Bosco found it easier to decline the
request. Undoubtedly, had the Holy See expressed an uncon-
ditional wish, he would have sought a way to oblige, but in this case
there was no reason why he could not state unhesitatingly that he
could not put together such a large, qualified staff.
Meanwhile at Lugo (Ravenna) the Salesians were awaited with
growing impatience.6 The pressure was building up, but there was
nothing concrete in sight that could prompt Don Bosco to take
action. The visits made by Father Lazzero, Father Barberis and,
later, Father Bretto7 had only heightened the townsfolk's
expectations, and their hopes had soared higher when Father
Cagliero and Father Durando made a brief stopover there. Father
Bretto wrote after his investigation:8 "I can assure you of two
things: one, Romagna9 is in dire need of teachers for poor boys who
almost inevitably are exposed to corrupting influences; two,
everywhere in the region, especially at Lugo, the crowds favor us."
In fact, Monsignor Joseph Emaldi of Lugo was offering the
Salesians two houses to be converted into a boarding school.
51.etter from Monsignor [Seraphim] Cretoni to Don Bosco, Rome, August 27, 1880.
Cardinal Nina had not written to him now for some time because he was ill at Grottoferrata.
In September Cardinal [Ludwig] Jacobini was appointed secretary of state. [Author]
6 See Vol. XIII, p. 498 [Editor]
1 See Appendix 1. [Editor]
81.etter to Father Rua, Alassio, October 20, 1878. [Author]
9An historic region in central Italy forming the provinces of Bologna, Ferrara, Ravenna
and Forli. [Editor]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
However, on the monsignor's death in 1879 no mention of this was
found in his will, which appointed the Salesians trustees of the
modest sum of twenty thousand lire for such a time as the school
could be opened. The Count Emaldi family seemed willing to help,
but nothing ever materialized. In Lugo the Vespignani family had
persistently pressed for action since 1877, particularly the elder
brother of Father Joseph Vespignani, Charles, who had met Don
Bosco in Turin. 10 Don Bosco however moved very cautiously when
it came to new foundations, taking no action until everything was
quite clear. He had confirmed his good intentions to Lugo in a very
convincing letter he had written to Charles Vespignani and which
but recently came to light. Noteworthy is his reference to the
excluding of any political action in his houses. In Romagna,
especially at Lugo, a fierce struggle was raging against the
republicans, who were a catch-all for the region's anticlericals.
Naturally, of course, Charles Vespignani's letters reflected the
local political climate.
My dear Charles,
Turin, April 11, 1877
I do not hesitate to take a risk in projects which may benefit endangered
youth or help lead souls to God. Your plan to start something to help
morally endangered youngsters by rescuing them from juvenile delinquency
and helping them become good citizens and good Christians is also our
aim.
Prepare the ground and get the harvest ready, and I shall gladly come to
personally meet and thank so many co-workers, who are already so kindly
disposed to me before they have even met me.
Fallowing the suggestion given me, I asked Father Charles Cavina11 to
agree to act as the Salesian delegate and form a chapter. Get in touch with
him as regards our plans.
Father Joseph is sending you twenty-five cooperators' diplomas; more
are available when needed. 12
10G. Vespignani, Un anno alla scuola di Don Bosco, pp. 98-100, San Benigno Canavese,
1930. [Author]
11Parish priest of Lugo who died in September 1880. In a letter to Don Bosco, dated May
11, 1877, signed by nine other residents of Lugo and handwritten by Charles Vespignani,
Father Cavina undersigned himself "delegate." [Author]
12After his tour of central Italy in October 1878, Father Bretto sent twenty-four diplomas
only to Fermo. Don Bosco and the Salesians availed themselves of every opportunity to
acquaint people with the [Association of Salesian] Cooperators and enlist new ones.
[Author]
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Foundations in 1880: Refused, Delayed or Hardly Begun
531
You have asked me to go along with you in your endeavor. I accept, but
we must exert every effort and make all sacrifices to see this through to its
conclusion.
Bear in mind that if we want to move forward, we must never get
involved in politics either for or against, let our program be solely to help
poor boys.
I shall not forget the other matters you mentioned and will discuss them
in another letter.
May God bless your family, both the little one and the big one. 13
Please give my regards to our co-workers. Tell them I willingly commend
them to God every day at Holy Mass, while I ask for their prayers.
May the grace of Our Lord Jesus Christ be with us always.
Yours affectionately,
Fr. John Bosco
Teano, a small town in Campania, was also clamoring for Don
Bosco's attention; unable to send them any Salesians, he settled on
a temporary arrangement. The municipality ran a secondary
boarding school which was not doing well scholastically and
morally. Determined on reform, the authorities fired the director
and staff and agreed to give it over entirely to Don Bosco.
Bearing a letter of recommendation from Cardinal [Bartholomew]
D'Avanzo, bishop of Calvi and Teano, Marquis Dal Pezzo,
provincial councillor and president of all local Catholic societies,
went expressly from Naples to plead the cause with Father
[Francis] Dalmazzo, who, he hoped, would persuade Don Bosco to
accept the offer since the terms seemed good. Don Bosco replied as
follows to Father Dalmazzo:14 "We can't do anything about a
house in Teano because we lack personnel. Nevertheless, tomorrow
and the day after we shall scrutinize the roster and at our chapter
meeting on Sunday evening will do whatever we can to please those
who have placed such great trust in the Salesians."
The matter came up at the chapter meeting, but all good intents
were blocked by the reality of lack of personnel. It was decided to
suggest that the municipality entrust the direction of the school to
Father Joseph Manfredi, a canon of St. Ambrose in Milan, for a
13This is a frequent expression used in Don Bosco's letters. By "little family" he meant his
reader's actual family; by "big family" he meant the Salesian Congregation, of which the
addressee was considered a member in a wide sense of the word. [Author]
14Letter, Turin, July 15, 1880. [Author]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
period not longer than three years, during which time the canon was
to recruit a full staff. The proposal was accepted and a twelve-year
agreement running from October 15, 1880 to October 15, 1892
was drawn up. During those years the municipality was to assign
the premises which were then being used for the secondary school,
renovating and properly maintaining them. Once the enrollment
should go beyond fifty, it agreed to enlarge the facilities.
Furthermore, it would allot an annual subsidy of twelve thousand
lire, plus an additional fifteen hundred at the school's opening to
indemnify the teachers who had been transferred. Father Dalmazzo
visited Teano twice and was received most cordially. After hiring
his staff, Father Manfredi took over the school's direction until
such time as Don Bosco would be able to send his Salesians there.
However, due to changed circumstances, that day never came.
We will now look at Penango, which, though opened in 1880, did
not fully function until a year later, and at Mogliano Veneto, whose
construction began in 1881 after lengthy negotiations.
Penango is a small community on the outskirts of the diocese of
Casale Monferrato. Perched atop a delightful hill stood a fine
public building which was for sale. Father Joseph Garavelli, a
parish priest, spoke so convincingly to Don Bosco that the latter
decided to purchase it and the surrounding property for sixty
thousand lire from Messrs. Ghiron and Fiz, Casale Jews, agents of
Baron Leonine Sabino, the owner. One reason Don Bosco was
moved to buy it was his wish to reclaim a church adjoining the
property. It has been dedicated to Our Lady of Sorrows but later,
like the church in Nizza Monferrato, had been turned into a wine
cellar, so that, amid filters, huge glass jars, wine kegs and vats, Our
Lady was doubly sorrowful.
Don Bosco took possession immediately after the purchase. On
June 6, 1880 the church was most solemnly reopened with the
participation of our two hundred and twenty-five pupils of Borgo
San Martino. Bishop [Emilian] Manacorda, a native of Penango
and then bishop of F ossano, blessed the church, celebrated Mass,
and preached. The devout people of Moncalvo, Cagliano, Casorzo,
Vignale and other neighboring villages flocked into Penango on
learning of the forthcoming celebration. Never before had the town
seen such a vast multitude, such hustle and bustle! Don Bosco's
name was fondly reverenced and blessed throughout the countryside,
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Foundations in 1880: Refused, Delayed or Hardly Begun
539
and the opening of a school of his became a source of joy
throughout the whole district. The elementary boarding school was
to act as a branch of the school at Borgo San Martino, where yearly
large numbers of applicants had to be turned away for want of
space. Don Bosco was scheduled to make his first visit to the new
school in October 1881.
The origins of the house at Mogliano Veneto date from 1879,
though the actual opening came in 1882. Two zealous laymen stand
out in its early history: Attorney Paganuzzi, dauntless champion of
the Italian Catholic Action League15 in the [early years of the]
"Opera dei Congressi e dei Comitati Cattolici" [Confederation of
Catholic Congresses and Delegations],16 and Peter Saccardo,
another militant Catholic of Venice. These two devoted laymen
were pained by the sight of swarms of boys endlessly roaming the
streets and squares of Venice, growing up unprincipled and foul-
mouthed, most of them utterly ignorant of God and religion,
indolent, shattered physically and morally by all sorts of adversities
and hardships. Those two gentlemen strove to find a remedy for
such evils. True, charitable institutions did exist, but they were few
and quite inadequate to the need; there were also night schools, but,
being small and strapped for funds, their effectiveness was minimal.
How was one to rescue so many young people?
Temporarily relinquishing their plan to boost the efficiency of the
local charitable organizations, these two laymen adopted the
project of the late patriarch of Venice, [Angelo] Ramazzotti,17
namely to found an agricultural school as a haven of salvation for
so many poor, practically destitute boys. To their way of thinking
there was no lack of work in the countryside, as just then vast
marshlands and swamps were being reclaimed with mechanized
equipment. Farming was physically and morally healthier and
better attuned to human nature than working in a plant like just
another piece of machinery. Furthermore, school, lodging and food
15Defined by Pius XI in his encyclical Ubi arcano as "the participation of the laity in the
apostolate of the hierarchy." [Editor]
16Founded in 1876 to unite all Catholic associations or leagues in a single force in defense
of the rights of the Church and of the religious and social concerns of Italian Catholics.
[Editor]
17Born in Milan in 1800 Ramazzotti was ordained a priest in 1830 after joining the
Oblates Missionaries of Rho. Consecrated bishop of Pavia in 1850, he founded the
Pontificio Istituto Missioni Estere di Milano and in 1858 was appointed patriarch of
Venice. He died in 1861. [Editor]
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1HE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
would cost far less in the countryside than in a city institution.
Then, no matter how modest the amount of work done by still
inexperienced hands, it would still profit not only the boys
themselves, but the whole of society, since subversive notions,
class hatred, and other baneful principles which fired up the masses
could not find any incentive there. On the contrary, they became
more peaceful and reflective in contemplating nature, which brings
about wholesome effects under the benign influence of Divine
Providence.1a Both Attorney Paganuzzi and Peter Saccardo
pleaded with Don Bosco to weigh this grave situation and, even
more, the remedy they suggested. When Patriarch [Dominic]
Agostino of Venice heard of it, he cordially gave his blessing.
It seems that instantly Divine Providence came to the support of
the charitable initiative. A pious, fairly recently widowed lady,
Elisabeth Bellavite Astori, was planning to found an agricultural
school in the neighboring village of Magliano where her estate was
located, and to do so immediately, not after her death. She
consulted Senator Rossi of Schio whose estimate of the cost was so
high that she was ready to abandon her plan and limit herself to a
home for a dozen or so elderly men. Peter Saccardo, however, who
had been asked to sketch a preliminary drawing of the school,
persuaded her to stick to her original plan and get in touch with Don
Bosco. The mere mention of Don Bosco's name, so well known,
delighted her and, after going over Saccardo's plan, she decided to
give Don Bosco whatever land he needed for a school at Magliano
Veneto as well as one hundred and fifty thousand lire to put up the
school building. Shortly before the feast of Mary, Help of
Christians, the lady came to Turin at Don Bosco's invitation,
discussed the matter with him and left with the best of impressions,
as we may see from her correspondence.
She now saw the founding of the agricultural school as her life's
supreme aim, much like a mission to be fulfilled before she could
peacefully close her eyes to this mortal life. She consequently knew
no peace until Don Bosco formally accepted responsibility for this
undertaking, so intense was her faith in his holiness and in the
Lord's protection over all his works.19 After considering the matter
18Letter from Peter Saccardo to Don Bosco, Venice, June 12, 1879. [Author]
19Letter from Saccardo to Father Durando, Venice, October 1, 1880. [Author]
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Foundations in 1880: Refused, Delayed or Hardly Begun
541
with the superior chapter, Don Bosco sent her his formal
acceptance,20 whereupon the lady put the agreed sum of money at
his disposal. She would greatly have welcomed a visit from Don
Bosco but resignedly gave up hoping. "I am truly sorry that once
again I am denied the honor of welcoming the venerable person of
Don Bosco within my walls," she wrote,21 "but I trust that I will
have the opportunity on a more propitious occasion. Yes, I know
that the Lord usually makes us yearn for a special favor before
granting it, but I am sure He will grant me this one." Father
[Anthony] Sala called on her instead, since he was in charge of all
construction projects, and brought her a contract signed by Don
Bosco for her own signature. Work began in the spring of 1881 and
was soon completed despite the problems attendant on undertakings
of this nature. Church authorization had of course already been
obtained. Mogliano Veneto is within the diocese of Treviso which
was then vacant because of the death of Bishop Zinelli. Canon
Joseph Sarto,22 vicar capitular, not only granted the request but
chose to write out the entire decree in his own hand, using
exceptionally benevolent words for Don Bosco whom he had
personally met at the Oratory in 1875.23 The school was
inaugurated November 8, 1882 by Father Moses Veronesi,24
director. Later on, the impossibility of setting up an agricultural
school in that area made it necessary to change the purpose of the
school which today [1933] is still flourishing.25
In 1880 a lengthy correspondence was opened regarding a new
foundation for Oporto, the second largest city in Portugal, where its
devout priests were deeply grieved by the people's wretched
religious condition. Taking advantage of their ignorance of religion,
the Protestants were doing incalculable damage. To check this
surging evil, several priests had opened a Catholic school with
funds raised by the faithful, and good results were soon apparent
though short-lived. Once the students graduated and went on to
learn a trade in environments steeped in irreligion and immorality,
20Letter from Father Rua signed by Don Bosco, Lanzo, October 8, 1880. [Author]
21Letter, Venice, October 28, 1880. [Author]
22The future Pius X. [Editor]
23See Vol. XI, p. 301. [Editor]
24See Appendix 1 [Editor]
2spresently it is a junior and senior high school,junior college, and technical and industrial
institute. [Editor]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
they soon forgot the little good they had learned. One of these
priests, remarkable for both noble lineage and priestly zeal, Father
Sebastian Leite de Vasconcellos, future bishop of Beja, thought of
founding an institution where boys, on leaving Catholic school,
could learn a craft or trade enabling them to become honest
Christian workmen. While striving to realize his plan by setting up
a workshop under St. Joseph's patronage, he heard of Don Bosco
and his trade schools. He immediately wrote, imploring him in the
name of the Sacred Heart of Jesus to send him at least three
Salesians to run shops to train tailors, shoemakers and carpenters.
Many more letters followed. Father Durando answered them all,
but the reply, though couched in various terms, was invariably the
same: lack of personnel made it impossible at that time; hopefully it
might come about later on. Very moving are the ardent pages
written by Father Sebastian Leite any time a phrase in Father
Durando's replies seemed to hold out some glimmer of hope.
Believing that he would more easily obtain a favorable response
from Don Bosco, Father Leite secured an influential recommenda-
tion from Father Ficarelli, Jesuit superior in Portugal. In 1881,
since Father Cagliero had to go to Seville to see about a new
foundation about which we shall report later, Don Bosco asked him
to go to Oporto and survey the situation. His visit gave Father Leite
new courage, and he shortly afterward went to Turin to see Don
Bosco, study the Oratory at close range, negotiate with him and
receive his blessing. Don Bosco listened very sympathetically and
gave him some precious advice, concluding with, "As God hears
me, I believe that you should open your boys' workshops right now.
Later I will send you Salesians." When the priest returned home,
he followed Don Bosco's instructions. Putting to good use what he
had seen at the Oratory, at Sampierdarena and Marseille, he
formed a committee of eminent local citizens and officially opened
St. Joseph's Workshop with the specific stipulation that it was to be
turned over to the Salesians as soon as they arrived, but he
patiently had to wait until Don Bosco's successor fulfilled his
promise.
Though no houses were opened in Europe in 1880, much was
done to expand those already in existence. Don Bosco gave an
account of this in his annual conference to the Salesian cooperators
in January 1881. At La Navarre in France the premises were
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Foundations in 1880: Refused, Delayed or Hardly Begun
543
enlarged, as also were those at St. Pierre's Hospice in Nice; a new
building made it possible to triple the number of pupils at St. Leo's
Oratory in Marseille. In Italy, at Vallecrosia, both the boys' and
the girls' schools as well as the residence for the Salesians and the
Daughters of Mary, Help of Christians were completed, and work
on the adjoining church also progressed. It was the same in Turin in
the Church of St. John the Evangelist and adjacent hospice; at La
Spezia the school building and the church which were under
construction suffered serious damage during a hurricane, but
repairs were quickly made; in Rome work started on the
monumental Church of the Sacred Heart.
Lest the deceits of the enemy of all good deprive him of the
Pope's support-because without it so much effort would prove
unavailing-Don Bosco sent an accurate report of the Salesian
houses in South America and Europe to his cardinal protector in
August 1880. By reason of his office and his marked benevolence
toward the Congregation, Cardinal Lawrence Nina could help Don
Bosco in his relations with the Holy See better than anyone else.
Most Reverend Eminence:
Nizza Monferrato, August 20, 1880
I believe that as the protector and friend of our humble Congregation,
you will be pleased to receive a report on some of our larger houses in
South America and Europe.
Our missions in Uruguay and in Patagonia are progressing very
satisfactorily, but, due to national unrest, the government, which had
promised substantial subsidies for new settlements, churches, schools,
hospices and increasing contacts with the savages, is unable to honor its
commitments and has left us to our own resources for the payment of
heavy debts. I have already given necessary instructions to have at least
the larger ones paid.
The situation in Buenos Aires, capital of Argentina, is more
complicated. Schools and hospices for boys and girls had to be closed in
order to save the honor and the very lives of pupils, priests and nuns.
Unfortunately these institutions were located in battle zones. The material
damage runs high, but far more lamentable is the death of the superior of
our missions, Father Francis Bodrato. Worn down by relentless work, he
was forced to take to his bed as the civil war broke out. His sorrow at being
unable to cope with increasing difficulties aggravated his sickness. Day
and night, firearms and cannons blasted his neighborhood and hastened
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
his death, of which we were informed by cable on August 4. By return
cable I notified the archbishop of Buenos Aires of the appointment of
Father James Costamagna as temporary superior. Highly esteemed for his
preaching, he was the first Salesian priest to cross the Pampas and
penetrate as far as the Rio Negro and beyond to found our missions in
Patagonia. Once I receive his awaited letter I shall immediately brief Your
Eminence on the situation and officially appoint a regular superior. Also,
for this and other reasons, one of our priests is now visiting [our houses] in
Europe to draw up an exact report on their conditions.
As for these houses, I am pleased to tell you that, so far, we have had no
inkling of forthcoming trouble in France. In Marseille we are moving
along swiftly on the novitiate and the seminary for Patagonia. I trust that
by the end of October, both will be practically completed and ready for
occupancy. The old building now houses eight students who are pursuing
regular classical studies. We have received many more applications.
The church adjoining our hospice in Nice is almost finished and will be
opened to worship in November.
We are moving as fast as we can on the construction of our school and
church at Vallecrosia near Ventimiglia. We hope that these new buildings
will be ready for occupancy by next February. The Protestant school and
church are still vacant, their former pupils attending only our school and
church, even though, to be honest, they are no more than an empty
warehouse adapted for our use.
In Turin, work is progressing with equal enthusiasm on the church and
school of St. John the Evangelist in the neighborhood of the Protestant
temple and school. The boys' festive oratory will be occupied in
November while the church should be ready for worship by June 1881.
Our hospice at La Spezia is doing well, but we had a hard time
overcoming the obstacles which crop up every day. Yet, despite that, we
evaded the snares which only Protestant meanness and godlessness can
set up. We signed the purchase contract of the property where we plan to
build the school and the church and the residence for our teachers on the
feast of St. Lawrence. We really hoped we could move this long-awaited
step up a bit sooner and make it our gift of flowers to Your Eminence on
the occasion of your name day, but new obstacles kept arising and
threatening the whole project. Yet that evening we signed the legal deed
and paid cash for five acres on which to build. The architect's plans have
been finalized, and since the 17th our economer has been on the spot to get
the work going, so that we can get settled there by next March. I doubt we
can get all that work done so soon, but necessity knows no laws and we
hope to make it with God's help.
I trust we can meet all current expenses in Marseille, Nice, Vallecrosia
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Foundations in 1880: Refused, Delayed or Hardly Begun
545
and Turin without any problem. I cannot say the same about La Spezia,
for which there is no chance of financial help. So far its only subsidy has
come from the boundless generosity of our Holy Father. Under separate
cover, I am expressing an idea of mine and ask that you consider it and
then pass it on to His Holiness if you prudently think it wise to do so.
Please 1et the Holy Pontiff know of the humble efforts of the Salesians
on behalf of Holy Church, and ask him to give his apostolic benediction to
all of us, most particularly to our missionaries in South America.
While commending all of us to your prayers, I am highly honored to
remain in reverence and gratitude,
Your most obedient servant,
Fr. John Bosco
In the face of such gigantic commitments undertaken by a single
person, it was only natural for Don Bosco to say to himself, "The
first block one usually encounters in carrying out great enterprises
for God's glory and for the relief of suffering humanity is lack of
funds. How are we to provide for all the boys we take in, and how
are we to support all the works we begin? Where am I to find food
and clothing for so many Salesians and pupils?" To these grave
questions he had one answer: "The wealth of Divine Providence is
inexhaustible. It has never failed us in the past; are we to worry
about the future? Certainly not. Let us do our little bit, and God will
supply the rest. But, as we put unlimited confidence in God's
goodness, let us not hold back our cooperation. Let each of us
reflect momentarily on the Lord's words: 'Give and it shall be given
to you in abundant measure.' [Cf. Lk. 6, 38] Elsewhere, He said:
'Give that which remains as alms.' [Cf. Lk. 11, 41] All have a
surplus of goods, some indeed more than they need."26
His cooperators responded charitably, promptly, and generously
to the appeals which Don Bosco kept increasing more frequently
and more insistently as he multiplied his enterprises.
26Letter to Salesian cooperators, Bolletino Salesiano, January 1881. [Author]
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CHAPTER 29
Predictions, Reading of the Heart,
Cures and Bilocation
FEW beatified founders of congregations have been
endowed with as many charisms as was Don Bosco, especially in
the later years of his life, when his supernatural gifts became ever
more evident. This final chapter will add a few more instances to
what we have already narrated in this matter.
Time and again Don Bosco revealed the future, predicting either
death, longevity or events which could not humanly be foreseen.
Three death predictions were made probably in 1880. Thomas
Buffa, a railway inspector, a fme family man, one of whose sons
became a Salesian and died as a young cleric in the repute of
sanctity, was discussing with Don Bosco one day about how long
they would live. Buffa remarked, "I shall die before you." "No,"
Don Bosco rejoined. "You shall die eight years after me." Buffa,
who indeed lived until 1896, left an account of this conversation
and prediction to his children. 1
Father John Gazza, twenty-four, an Oratorian priest living in
Turin, was very seriously ill and his family asked Don Bosco to go
to bless him. Gladly obliging, Don Bosco gently comforted him,
but, on leaving the young priest's family, frankly told them that
their dear one would die on November 27. His sister, who was
present and heard him speak, informed Father Philip Rinaldi of
both the prediction and its actual fulfillment.2
Don Bosco made another sad prediction to Baroness Jocteau but
in rather cryptic terms. Some years before, she ha<l enrolled a son
of hers at the Salesian college in Valsalice while Father Francesia
was director. She now [circa 1880] brought a younger son, sickly
and pitifully crippled to Don Bosco and begged for his blessing.
1Apostolic Process, summary of Positio supervirtutibus, No. XVII (witness Father Rua).
[Author]
2statement by Father Philip Rinaldi, Turin, February 26, 1918. [Author]
546
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Don Bosco responded in a way unusual for him. He picked the
child up and sat him on his knee, fondly saying, "Yes, by all means
I will very gladly bless him." Turning to the boy, he said a word or
two about living forever in heaven, adding gently, "You will feel
better on this day," mentioning the year, day and hour. He then
blessed the child. The mother left with tears of comfort. The boy
however died on the very day and at the very hour that Don Bosco
had predicted. The baroness, feeling that she had been disillusioned,
took it very hard and did not call on Don Bosco again for some
time. Canon [John Baptist] Anfossi, who often narrated this
incident, on one occasion, when she unburdened herself to him,
gently explained how Don Bosco's "You will feel better" really
meant heaven. He comforted her by helping her to see that her child
was most certainly with God, thanks to Don Bosco's prayers.
Almost as though a veil had been lifted from her eyes, the baroness
understood and thanked the Lord.
There was also an instance of predicting a long life. A nun named
Mary Auxiliatrix of St. Joseph died on June 20, 1931 in the
Sacramentine convent at Bassano del Grappa. Though of frail
health, she had been admitted in 1880 to their sisters' novitiate in
Turin only on the word of Don Bosco, who, advising the young
woman, had assured her that she would have strength to carry out
her monastic commitment. He had also given her a medal with an
image of Mary, Help of Christians on one side, and that of St.
Joseph on the other. It is a strange coincidence that her superiors,
who did not know of this, should have given her that very same
name in religion. Don Bosco had also predicted to her: "Many
years from now, an abbess and several nuns from Veneto3 will join
the Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament. In due time you will be sent to
Veneto and be elected superior. There you will strive for perfection
and prepare yourself to leave this earth for heaven at the same age
that I shall die." In fact, the nun was sent to Veneto in 1901 to
found the convent of Bassano del Grappa, but she never told
anybody about Don Bosco's prediction. In 1916 she was elected
superior and later re-elected to a second term. After inspiring that
same community for many years, she fell seriously ill but recovered
3A region in northern Italy between the Po River and the Alps, including the Istrian
peninsula. [Editor]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
sufficiently to arouse hopes that she would be able to celebrate her
golden jubilee of profession. However, when she asked about Don
Bosco's age at his death and was told, she became very pensive. To
that day all had happened as Don Bosco had predicted; the last part
of his prediction could not prove untrue. She went to her reward in
her seventy-second year, as had also Don Bosco.4
For another nun Don Bosco had a reading of heart and a
prediction as well. Sister Brambilla received the habit of the Sisters
of Charity in Turin on September 4, 1880 and was assigned to a
girls' orphanage at Sassari, Sardinia. She left for her assignment
with two elderly sisters. Her departure is described in the following
letter which she dictated and which was given to us:
We left on September 11, 1880. When we took our places in our coach
compartment, I did not put my baggage (which had my name on it) on the
upper rack as my companions had done, but tucked it under my seat.
Some moments later a gentleman and a priest boarded the train and sat
directly opposite us. For a long time we sat in silence, but at our first stop,
Asti, a group of people approached our compartment and, shaking the
priest's hand, joyfully greeted him, "How are you, Don Bosco?"
Emboldened, I stared at the saintly priest, realizing that this was the Don
Bosco who was doing so much for boys. These young men, I thought, were
certainly former pupils of his. I was very glad to see him because I was
quite convinced already that he was a saint. Considering the influence he
had over boys, I had envisioned him as tall, heavy-set and impressive in
appearance. Instead I saw an ordinary priest and noted that the only
extraordinary thing about him was his rather large ears. This detail, of
course, I kept to myself.
When the train started again, Don Bosco abruptly turned to his
friend and said, ''I once thought of having my picture taken, but
when the photographer showed me six proofs, I looked at one and
exclaimed in great surprise, 'I thought I looked....' And he
spoke aloud the nun's precise thoughts, including the size of his
ears. The poor sister blushed. Wishing perhaps to relieve her
embarrassment, he smilingly asked, "Where are you going,
Sister?"
4From the chronicles of the Convent of the Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament in Turin, June
20, 1931. rAuthor]
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"To Sardinia."
"What will you do there?"
"I am going to care for orphan girls."
"What if you had to look after little boys instead?"
"Oh?"
"Wouldn't you like that?"
"No."
"Yet one can do a lot of good for little street boys."
One of the other nuns interrupted: "Don Bosco, why don't you
send your priests there? They can do plenty of good."
''For the moment Sardinia does not seem to be our field of work,
he said, gently shaking his head. "We shall see...."
Meanwhile they arrived at Sampierdarena, where Don Bosco got
off, bidding a hearty farewell to his traveling companions. Then,
turning to the young sister, he said, "Sister Brambilla, do all you
can for those little boys."
On reaching Leghorn, the nuns found a letter waiting for them at
their convent. The nun to whom it was addressed was asked to
inform Sister Brambilla that she was not to go to the girls'
orphanage but rather to a boys' hospice. When she got there, she
understood the purpose of Don Bosco's parting exhortation. The
run-down hospice housed fifty orphan boys; two of the five nuns
who had cared for them had gone to their heavenly reward within
six months. Sister Brambilla shared the work with the three
remaining sisters and, fifty years later, in word and writing, told us
this precious anecdote, to the glory of our recently beatified Don
Bosco.
In 1932 our confreres in Marseille recalled a prediction Don
Bosco had made back in 1880. St. Leo's Oratory had at one time
been closed in on all sides by private homes and fields, and no one
could possibly have foreseen if and when this would all become the
property of the Salesians, or, rather, of the Beaujour Society-no
one, that is, except Don Bosco. Just diagonally across, on the
northeast comer of a home located on Rue des Princes 60, some
distance from the original Salesian festive oratory, stood a pretty
fountain, gently spouting into the air. One day, as Don Bosco was
passing by it with Father Bologna, the director, and Brother Nasi,
he stopped a moment to look at the fountain and remarked, ''In due
time our festive oratory will come as far as this fountain.'' Both his
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
companions told others repeatedly of this prediction, but the years
went by and no one ever thought of it again. Still, through a series of
purchases between 1891 and 1923, all the aforesaid buildings and
land did eventually become the property of St. Leo's Oratory,
though not as far as the fountain. This last step was reached on
May 24, 1932. Father Bologna and Brother Nasi had been dead for
some time, but there were others living who had heard them repeat
the prediction, particularly Brother Charles Fleuret, who distinctly
recalled Brother N asi stating the very words uttered by Don Bosco
on that memorable occasion.
As regards the reading of hearts, we shall describe just one
instance more striking than several others. One day in 1880 a boy
who had been transferred from an irreligious boarding school
named after Garibaldi, and who had been enrolled against his will
at the Oratory, went to Don Bosco for confession, stubbornly
determined not to reveal several very important matters. Before the
lad could even open his mouth, Don Bosco listed all his sins. The
boy was so shaken up that he left without waiting for absolution and
returned later only after he had calmed down and had decided to
make an honest confession. He soon mended his ways and a few
years later made his novitiate at San Benigno, where he told this in
detail to the well-known moral theologian, Father Louis Piscetta.5
When he was asked if he had ever spoken of his sins to anyone else,
the young man replied that he had been alone when he committed
them, far from the Oratory, and had never revealed them to anyone.
Two really extraordinary cures also took place during this
period. John Bisio, a Turinese storekeeper well known at the
Oratory, where he had lived seven years, after completing his
military service in 1864, testified under oath during the apostolic
process [for Don Bosco's beatification] in 1895. He stated that
fifteen years before his wife had been suffering from a serious heart
ailment which her physicians declared incurable. Knowing this, he
told his wife that he wished her to receive Don Bosco's blessing.
She welcomed the idea. Don Bosco visited and comforted her,
assuring her that she would not die at that time. As a matter of fact,
she lived for fifteen more years to the astonishment of her
physicians.
5See Appendix 1. [Editor]
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Another blessing of Don Bosco halted a partial atrophy in
Brother Louis Tabasso while still a young artisan. He had been a
sickly lad ever since he had first come to the Oratory. His problem
was that his body developed only on the right side, leaving the left
side atrophied. This abnormality put added pressure on his heart,
making breathing difficult and bringing on spasms of the facial
muscles. Several outstanding physicians in Turin studied the
ailment. In June 1880 Doctor Concato, a university professor, sent
him to the hospital for closer examination and also allowed his
students to study the case. There was no problem in diagnosing the
boy's trouble, but medical science could offer no remedy. Then
faith took over. One Sunday [after returning home] the boy called
on Don Bosco, told him of his hopeless condition and asked for a
blessing. Don Bosco asked him to kneel, prayed with him and then
blessed him. Instantly, as the boy stood up, he felt that a great
weight had been lifted from his heart, and the pain in his left cheek
disappeared. Some days later he regained his strength, and his left
arm grew to the size of the right! Only a slight hollow remained on
his face, as though a piece of bone had been removed, and his
tongue softened, slightly turned to the left. His ailment was gone.
As soon as Don Bosco realized the effect of his blessing, he forbade
the boy to mention what had happened but urged him to thank the
Blessed Virgin Mary. Two years later, the lad injured his leg and
again asked for Don Bosco's blessing, hoping for a similar cure.
Don Bosco agreed only on condition that recovery would prove
beneficial to the salvation of his soul, and that if it were not he
would not be healed. He kept this impairment to the end of his
days.6
Augustine Calcagno of Arenzano was one of the very first
Salesian cooperators, and he was a fine cooperator indeed! He
attended every meeting called by Don Bosco in Turin or anywhere
in his native Liguria, bringing substantial donations he had
collected. He also brought sick persons. In 1881, while attending a
meeting within the novena of Mary, Help of Christians, he offered
Don Bosco five donations. Don Bosco lined them up in a row on
the table; then, without asking who the donors were, he pointed to
them and said, "These three will obtain the grace they are asking
sReport by Brother Tabasso to Father Lemoyne, Nice, February 14, 1888. [Editor]
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
for, the other two will not." Before the novena ended the three
donors recovered from their ailments. One is still living today
[1933], a respectable nonagenarian,7 but the other two have died.
An instance of bilocation should have been narrated in the
preceding volume, but we set it aside as it was apparently poorly
documented. In 1891 a lady wrote to Father Rua about a matter
she had brought to his attention before. Her letter very sketchily
presented this instance of bilocation such as people usually do
when merely recalling events already known to them. This year
[1933] the oldest daughter of the woman has given us several more
particulars of which she is well informed. After quite an extensive
search we managed to locate her and obtained from her a detailed
report which satisfactorily complements her mother's letter. Now
that Don Bosco's sanctity has been formally acknowledged, we
believe it our duty to publicize a phenomenon which is not unusual
in the lives of the saints and which, as a series of indisputable
documents shall show us, happened repeatedly throughout our
founder's life.
Don Bosco was most certainly in Turin on October 14, 1878.
Yet that very day an unknown French-speaking priest who refused
to give his name was the guest of Adele Clement at Saint-Rambert
d'Albon, in the department of Drome. Giving in to the lady's
insistent questions as to his identity, he replied, "A few years from
now my name will be printed in books, and these books will come
into your hands. Then you will know who I am."
The lady's husband, an oil and coal merchant, had brought the
priest home with him while returning from Chanas, a hamlet less
than half a mile from Saint-Rambert, where he had taken on a load
of material. He noticed a priest who apparently was plodding along
with difficulty. Sympathetically he remarked as he caught up with
him, "Father, you look very tired."
"Yes, my good man, I am," the priest answered. "I have walked
a long way."
''Ifl had a better cart, Father, I would gladly give you a lift, but I
am ashamed to invite you to sit here."
7Written report by his niece, Mrs. Anselmo, a midwife, and by his nephew, Father
Dominic Anselmo, a Salesian missionary, Arenzano, 1933. [Author]
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"You would do me a great favor if you did. I really can walk no
further.''
So saying, he climbed into the cart with the man's help. He
seemed to be somewhere between thirty and forty years of age and
had a handsome appearance. One detail which the man paid little
attention to then and there but clearly recalled later was that,
although the priest was sitting at the rear of the cart and his head
with its three-cornered hat was quite visible, no passers-by gave the
slightest sign of noticing him.
When he arrived home, Monsieur Clement helped the priest to
alight, and then hastened to tell his wife that they had a priest guest
who was exhausted and hungry. His wife, a kindly and devout
woman, instantly asked him to stay for dinner. He accepted and
during the meal listened sympathetically as the woman recited her
woes, the worst of them being that as a consequence of a sudden
illness, her infant son had become blind, deaf and dumb. The poor
mother was quite beside herself, having prayed to every saint, but
all in vain. The priest then told her, "Keep praying, madame, and
your prayer will be answered."
"Do you really mean that, Father? Come and see him!"
During the meal the husband had poured wine into the priest's
glass. Next to the wine bottle on the table, as was then the custom,
stood a white china jug with a silver circle on it, containing water.
"Keep this jug to remember me," the priest said. They did so, as
their daughter, who was then a child, has told us. Later, she made
this statement: "The year before my father died he said to me,
'That jug must not go to your brothers. I leave it to you, and you
must keep it. It is a souvenir of that holy priest.'"
Toward the end of the meal, Monsieur Clement went out to
water the horses and get ready to leave again. Just then the priest
rose and told the woman, "A voice is calling me, my dear lady, and
I must leave."
"Wait a moment, Father," the woman said. "My husband will
be back immediately, and he will take you in the cart to see my
son."
"A voice is calling me," he said again. "I must go." And he left.
The woman ran out to her husband. Quickly they harnessed the
horses and raced after him, certain that they would soon catch up
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
with him, but they could not find him and believed that he must
have missed his way. Imagine their surprise when, on going to the
wet nurse who was then caring for the infant, she told them that a
priest had called and had cured their child. The nurse was living at
Coinaud, a village about two miles from Saint-Rambert. The
parents realized from their calculation that the very moment the
priest had left their house he had entered the nurse's home.
For seven years those good people helplessly cudgeled their
brains to find out who the mysterious priest might have been. Then
one person who had seen the priest healing the infant, and clearly
remembered his features, showed them a book on Don Bosco
containing his picture, saying, "This is the priest who healed your
child!" Undeniably it was Don Bosco, and the parents recognized
him immediately.
On April 10, 1888 the woman, who in the meantime had
miraculously been healed of some illness, as she believed, through
Don Bosco's intercession, sent an account of it to Father Rua, but
her letter has been lost. Nor did the woman herself know what had
happened to her letter, for she again wrote to him on April 13, 1891,
perhaps urged by remorse that she had not done all she could to
make this miracle known to Don Bosco's successor. Among other
things she wrote,
There are still living witnesses who can testify to this. Some can give
detailed information. But do not question the parish priest at Saint-
Rambert, because he does not believe in Don Bosco's holiness. I am doing
all I can to help Don Bosco's works, but he has bidden us not to introduce
extraordinary occurrences, for, he says, they are all sheer fantasy, noting
that here in France we already have enough charitable enterprises.... I
could write a book about all the headaches this priest at Saint-Rambert
has caused me and all the tokens of miraculous protection which God and
Mary, Help of Christians have given me through Don Bosco's
intercession. Please ask some good priest to investigate this account and
question the witnesses. You might for instance contact the parish priest at
Breuil at Bois-d'Oingt near Lyons or the parish priest of Diemaze near
Vienne.
Was this letter ever answered? Our archives do not tell us. The
daughter of the Clements, from whom we received a long letter
dated April 18, 1932, lives at Lyons (Avenue de Saxe, 136) and is
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555
married to a Monsieur Durand. Her mother died in 1914, her father
in 1925; the infant who was instantly cured lived until 1928, when
he developed a brain tumor. The doctors expected a very painful
death, but, on the contrary, he died very peacefully. It appears that
this too was another grace granted by Don Bosco.8
"God is wonderful in His saints." [Ps. 67, 36] But from such
divine wonders the saints drew stronger incentives for humility.
Don Bosco was convinced that, had God found a weaker and more
unsuitable instrument than himself, He would have called that
person to do His work. Whenever he voiced this conviction of his,
as he did very frequently, those who heard him were convinced of
his sincerity from his expression and the tone of his voice. No less
sincere was the touching grief with which, toward the end of his
days, he remarked, "How many are the wonders God has
performed among us! But how many more would He have
performed, had Don Bosco only had greater faith!" He then begged
his sons never to be so ungrateful as to attribute to themselves
rather than to God, even in the smallest measure, any good which
Providence might deign to work through them.
8Just as this was going to press (June 1, 1933), we learned that Madame Durand died last
January 23. Her daughter told our confrere, Father John Simeon (Letter from La Mulatiere,
May 30, 1933), that her mother "in her last moment" had an almost painless death, which
she attributed to Blessed Don Bosco." [Author]
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Appendix 1
SALESIAN BIOGRAPHICAL DICTIONARY
ALBERA, PAUL (1845-1921), Fr., Rector Major
Paul Albera was born at None (Turin) on June 6, 1845 and entered the
Oratory in the fall of 1858. He made his profession on May 14, 1862.
After his ordination to the priesthood on August 2, 1868, he was
appointed prefect of the Oratory, a post he held until 1871, when he was
sent to Marassi (Genoa) as director of the Salesian Hospice, and later
transferred to Sampierdarena. There he had the responsibility of the Sons
of Mary and helped Don Bosco in preparing for the first missionary
expedition. The printshop which he initiated in 1877 printed the
Bollettino Salesiano. In 1881 Fr. Albera was appointed provincial of the
Salesian houses in France, with headquarters at Marseille. He remained
in that position ten years, and, despite the harassment of the times, the
houses in France grew from three to thirteen.
Fr. Albera was called "the little Don Bosco." A man of action-above
all, interior action-his main concern was spiritual formation. He became
spiritual director of the Salesian Society and a member of the superior
council.
In 1896 Don Rua asked him to compile the "Director's Manual." In
1898 he visited France, Spain, and Belgium. In 1900 he traveled through
the South American Salesian missions-a journey of three years. He
returned to Turin on April 11, 1903, in time to head preparations for the
crowning of the picture of Mary, Help of Christians in the basilica.
In fulfillment of a prophecy of Don Bosco, known only to Fr. Philip
Rinaldi, Fr. Albera was elected superior general on August 16, 1910, Don
Bosco's birthday. He headed the Congregation during the trying years of
World War I.
The depth of his personal piety and asceticism imbued the numerous
circulars which he wrote to the Salesians, as well as the Director's
Manual, published in 1915.
In 1918 Fr. Albera celebrated his golden jubilee of ordination. He
inaugurated the monument of Don Bosco which dominates the square of
Mary, Help of Christians and presided over the Congress of Alumni and
Cooperators in 1920.
Exhausted by his many journeys as rector major in visiting the houses
and strengthening the confreres and Salesian cooperators, Fr. Albera
passed the last years of his life in precarious health. He died on October
559
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1HE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
29, 1921. He was interred at Valsalice, alongside Don Bosco and Fr. Rua,
whose sterling virtues he so faithfully reflected.
AMADEI, ANGELO (1868-1945), Fr.
Fr. Angelo Amadei succeeded Fr. Lemoyne in 1908 as the editor of the
Bollettino Salesiano and at the same time became his invaluable assistant
in the work of research and compilation for The Biographical Memoirs.
At Fr. Lemoyne's death in 1916, Fr. Amadei interrupted other literary
activities and undertook the continuation of the work on The Biographical
Memoirs. After supervising the publication of Volume IX, he wrote and
published Volume X covering the years 1871-1874, a period charac-
terized as perhaps the most active and the most interesting in the life of
St. John Bosco.
He was relieved offurther responsibility for The Biographical Memoirs
so that he could resume his earlier studies and research, and devote his full
attention to work on the life of Fr. Michael Rua, the first successor of St.
John Bosco.
II Servo di Dio Michele Rua, a three-volume work of patient and
dedicated scholarship, was his major achievement. His last important
work was a new edition of Fr. Lemoyne's two-volume life of Don Bosco.
He died in Turin on January 16, 1945 at the age of 76.
BARBERIS, JULIUS (1847-1927), Fr.
Fr. Barberis had the distinction of being the first novice master of the
Salesian Congregation, a post assigned to him by Don Bosco himself.
"We will always be friends," the saint told fourteen-year-old Julius on his
entrance into the Oratory in 1861. "One day you will be my helper," he
added. Fr. Barberis was a quiet, gentle person, very much attuned to Don
Bosco's spirit, prudent and kind with his young charges, demanding yet
patient and understanding.
He was born at Mathi (Turin) on June 7, 1847. He made his first vows
in 1865. Ordained in 1870, he attended the University of Turin and
earned his doctoral degree in theology in 1873. The following year Don
Bosco personally appointed him novice master, a position he held for
twenty-five years. As master he formed a veritable host of young men into
zealous, hard-working Salesians who looked up to him for inspiration and
guidance, among them the servants of God Andrew Beltrami and August
Czartoryski. Don Bosco utilized his experience in setting up novitiates
throughout Europe. From 1892 to 1900 he was a member of the superior
chapter. From 1902 to 1911 he was provincial of the central province and
in 1910 was named spiritual director of the Congregation, a position he
held to his death on November 24, 1927. Truly a man of God, gifted with
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561
enviable simplicity and extraordinary goodness, he mirrored the
fatherliness of Don Bosco to all his novices. His Vade Mecum, the first
textbook on Salesian spirituality, is still a valuable introduction to
religious life.
BEAUVOIR, JOSEPH (1850-1930), Fr.
Joseph Beauvoir was born in Turin on June 1, 1850, made his vows in
1870 and was ordained a priest in 1875. Three years later, when Don
Bosco asked him if he would volunteer for the South American missions,
he accepted and left that same year. After a short stay in Uruguay and at
Buenos Aires, he headed for the mission fields of Patagonia and Tierra del
Fuego. He was perhaps the missionary who worked the hardest and the
longest to keep in touch with the Indians.
As military chaplain he took part in General Villegas' expedition to the
Andes in 1882-1883 and was awarded a silver medal for his priestly zeal.
He then spent twenty-five years evangelizing the Indians of southern and
western Patagonia. His love for them prompted him to compile a small
dictionary of the Onas Indians which was later amplified and merged with
the highly praised work entitled Los Shelknam Indigenos de la Tierra de!
Fuego, dealing with the traditions, customs and languages of the local
natives. In 1892 Fa~er Beauvoir accompanied a group of Indians who
represented Tierra del Fuego to the Colombian Fair then held in Genoa.
He died in Buenos Aires on April 28, 1930.
BELMONTE, DOMINIC (1843-1901), Fr.
Dominic Belmonte, born in Genoa on September 18, 1843, went to the
Oratory in 1860 and, although seventeen, was advised by Don Bosco to
begin high school. He studied music and became a proficient choir
director and composer. Professed in 1864, he was ordained in Turin in
1870. After being prefect at Bargo San Martino, he was sent to Alassio
as catechist in 1873. Four years later he returned to Bargo San Martino as
director, succeeding Fr. Rua and Fr. Bonetti. In 1881 he was ap-
pointed director of the school at Sampierdarena, where he also taught
theology, headed musical activities, and became first pastor at the Church
of St. Cajetan. In 1886 Fr. Belmonte was chosen prefect general of the
Salesian Society. In 1891, on the death of Fr. Bonetti, he was named
postulator of Don Bosco's cause. Though he gave up his active musical
career, he sponsored the musical training of the Congregation's most
noted musician, Fr. John Pagella.
Don Bosco had told Fr. Belmonte that, if he took care of himself, he
would live beyond sixty. However, he felt that he could not spare himself
any work. He died in Turin on February 17, 1901 at the age of fifty-eight.
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BERTO, JOACHIM (1847-1914), Fr.
Joachim Berto entered the Oratory in 1862. He was one of the
privileged few who witnessed many of Don Bosco's wonderful deeds. He
joined the Salesian Congregation in 1865. Even before his ordination in
1871, he was chosen by Don Bosco to be his secretary-a post he retained
for the next twenty years until ill health forced him to retire. During these
years he accompanied Don Bosco on his most important trips to Rome on
the Congregation's affairs and to Rome and Florence in delicate
negotiations between the Italian government and the Holy See. He was a
great help to Don Bosco in carrying out his voluminous correspondence
and in safeguarding confidential documents concerning the above
negotiations. His accounts of these journeys constitute some of the most
precious archives of the Salesian Society. While carrying out his
secretarial duties, Fr. Berto also carefully kept a diary and authored
several devotional and ascetical booklets. As catechist for the Oratory
students, he cultivated the sodalities of the Blessed Sacrament and the
Altar Boys. To his last days he was a skilled and well-loved confessor. He
died at the Oratory on February 21, 1914.
BODRATO, FRANCIS (1823-1880), Fr.
Francis Bodrato was born at Mornese on October 18, 1823. He first
met Don Bosco in 1864 on one of the latter's fall picnics to Fr. Pestarino's
parish at Mornese. Francis, a teacher, was anxious to learn Don Bosco's
secret of winning the hearts of boys. His own heart was won and, though a
widower with two children, he came to Don Bosco, who, wise judge of
character, immediately accepted him. He received the casock and was
sent to teach at Lanzo. He made his perpetual profession in 1865.
Ordained a priest in 1869, he held various offices at Alassio, Borgo San
Martino and the Oratory. In 1875 Don Bosco recalled him to the Oratory
to be economer of the Congregation. In November of the following year he
was appointed to head the second missionary expedition of twenty-two
Salesians to Argentina. He was named pastor of Our Lady of Mercy
Parish in Buenos Aires for immigrant Italians; within its limits was the
infamous "Boca del Diablo" quarter, where even the police trod warily.
Under Fr. Bodrato's leadership the neighborhood changed marvelously.
In 1877 Don Bosco appointed him provincial of the Salesians in South
America. In 1880 civil war broke out in Argentina. After an extended
period of an unknown and painful illness, Fr. Bodrato died in Buenos
Aires on August 4, 1880, mourned by the entire city.
BOLOGNA, JOSEPH (1847-1907), Fr.
Joseph Bologna was born at Garessio (Cuneo) on May 15, 1847, and
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entered the Oratory in 1863. He was a companion of the saintly lad,
Francis Besucco, whose virtues he made his own. He joined the Salesian
Congregation in 1868 and was ordained a priest in 1872. In 1878 Don
Bosco sent him to Marseille to open the St. Leo's Festive Oratory, which
he directed until 1892, when he was appointed provincial of the houses in
southern France with headquarters at Marseille. Six years later he was
sent to Paris and named provincial of northern France and Belgium. His
last days were saddened by the government's anti-religious legislation
closing even Salesian houses. He died in Turin on January 4, 1907 while
on a visit to the Oratory.
BONETTI, JOHN (1838-1891), Fr.
John Bonetti was born at Caramagna (Cuneo) on November 5, 1838.
He came to the Oratory in 1855 at the age of seventeen. Fr. Matthew
Pico, who taught him in his senior year, called him "a priceless youth."
John was one of the young men who in December 1859 banded with Don
Bosco to found the Salesian Congregation. He was elected a member of
the first superior council. (See Volume VI, pp. 18lf) He won high honors in
philosophy and theology and soon became a well-known writer. His book,
Cinque lustri di storia del/'Oratorio di San Francesco di Sales [The
First Twenty-Five Years of the Oratory of St. Francis de Sales], merits
special mention. Its wealth of detail constitutes a small library of Salesiana.
Fr. Bonetti was a capable public relations man. Gifted with a fine
intellect and a brilliant imagination, he was also a great story teller. Like
Don Bosco, he defended the Catholic Church against attacks of vociferous
Protestant leaders. A man of balanced zeal, warm piety, and deep
spirituality, he was elected spiritual director of the Salesian Congregation
in 1886.
He died at the Oratory at the age offifty-three on June 5, 1891, fulfilling
Don Bosco's prophecy that he would be the first member of the superior
chapter to follow him in death. Blessed Michael Rua hailed Fr. Bonetti as
"a tireless apostolic laborer, a valiant champion in promoting God's glory
and the salvation of souls, an amiable counselor in comfort and advice."
BORGATELLO, MAGGIORINO (1857-1929), Fr.
Born at Varengo (Alessandria) on February 8, 1857, Maggiorino
Borgatello first met Don Bosco at the age of sixteen when he entered the
Oratory. He liked Don Bosco so much that he decided to bind himself to
him for life. He took his vows as a Salesian in 1877 and was ordained a
priest in 1880. In late 1888, after recovering from a severe illness through
Don Bosco's intercession, he volunteered for the missions of Patagonia
and Tierra del Fuego, where he labored twenty-five years. In 1893 he
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
inaugurated a museum of Indian artifacts and natural history in Punta
Arenas, Chile. Its collection is priceless, and the museum has now been
named in his honor. In 1925, on the occasion of the golden jubilee of the
Salesian missions, Fr. Borgatello published a history of the apostolic
endeavors of the Salesian missionaries in those far-off lands. In 1928 he
also authored a grammar and glossary of the Alakaluf Indians, and in
1930 his biography of Msgr. Joseph Fagnano, another intrepid Salesian
missionary, was published. He spent his last years as assistant pastor of
the Basilica of Mary, Help of Christians in Turin, where he died on
December 20, 1929.
BOURLOT, STEPHEN (1849-1910), Fr.
Stephen Bourlot first met Don Bosco in 1866. After spending some time
with him at the Oratory, he enrolled at the archdiocesan seminary in Turin
and was ordained a priest in 1871. A few years later, he decided to
become a Salesian; in 1876 he made his vows and volunteered for the
South American missions.
Assigned to the newly erected parish of La Boca del Riachuelo in
Buenos Aires (see Vol. XIII, p. 129) he zealously dedicated himself to the
well-being of all his parishioners, particularly during a cholera epidemic
which flared in 1886.
The most outstanding of his many achievements were the construction
of the grandiose church of La Boca and the spiritual formation of his
parishioners. He died in Buenos Aires on November 28, 1910.
BRETTO, CLEMENT (1855-1919), Fr.
Born at Montanaro, Turin, in 1855, Clement Bretto received his
elementary and secondary education at the Cottolengo school. After
studying theology at the Turin diocesan seminary for two years, he
transferred to the Oratory in 1874 and became a Salesian. He made his
perpetual vows in March 1877 and was ordained in December ofthe same
year. He was then appointed spiritual director of the Daughters of Mary,
Help of Christians at Nizza Monferrato. He did so well that, eleven years
later, Fr. Rua did not hesitate to name him director general of the Institute.
After a few years as provincial in Piedmont and Lombardy, the new rector
major, Fr. Paul Albera, appointed him economer general, an office he held
to his death in 1919. He was distinguished for his efficiency, prudence,
common sense and Christian wisdom.
CAGLIERO, JOHN (1838-1926), Bishop and Cardinal
John Cagliero was born in Castelnuovo d'Asti on January 11, 1838. He
was received by Don Bosco in the Oratory in 1851. (See Vol. IV, pp.
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200ft) He became a Salesian on May 14, 1862. A month later he was
ordained a priest in Turin and appointed spiritual director of the Oratory.
He soon showed an exceptional talent for music, and from that talent
came a steady flow of sacred and recreational music which was the delight
of the Oratory. Even such composers as Giuseppe Verdi and Lorenzo
Perosi praised his art.
Cagliero obtained his doctorate in theology at the University of Turin in
1873; the following year Don Bosco appointed him spiritual director of
the Daughters of Mary, Help of Christians. Cagliero is best remembered
as an intrepid missioner. In 1875 he led the first group of Salesian
missionaries to Argentina, where they carried out their ministry to the
Italian immigrants of Buenos Aires. Soon, however, Fr. Cagliero
penetrated the interior of Patagonia and Tierra del Fuego. Then he opened
a trade school at Almagro and another at Villa Colon, Uruguay. He was
recalled to Turin in 1877 to become spiritual director of the Congregation,
an office he fulfilled until 1884, when Pope Leo XIII nominated him vicar
apostolic of northern and central Patagonia. He was the first Salesian
bishop and was consecrated in the Basilica of Mary, Help of Christians in
Turin on December 7, 1884, in the presence of Don Bosco. Immediately
afterward he returned to South America and was welcomed by Fr. Joseph
F agnano, with whom he explored Tierra del Fuego, meeting up with the
various Indian tribes. In 1887 he crossed the Andes to inaugurate the first
Salesian house in Chile, at Concepcion. In December of that year he
returned to Turin to assist Don Bosco on his deathbed.
After Don Bosco's death Bishop Cagliero returned to Argentina. Years
later, in 1908, he founded Patagonia's first hospital at Viedma. Pope St.
Pius X appointed him minister plenipotentiary of Costa Rica and
apostolic delegate to the countries of Central America. In 1915 Pope
Benedict XV nominated him cardinal and assigned him to the Sacred
Congregations of Religious, Propagation of the Faith and Sacred Rites. In
1920 he was named bishop of Frascati.
He died in Rome in 1926. In June 1964 his remains were brought back
to Argentina and solemnly laid to rest in the cathedral of Viedma, his first
episcopal residence. For further details see the Indexes of Volumes II
through XIII.
CAPRIOGLIO, FELIX (1851-1940), Fr.
Born at Rosignano, Italy in 1851, Felix entered the newly opened
Salesian school at Mirabella in 1863, where Fr. Michael Rua was
director. He then went on to the Oratory, where he joined the Salesian
Society and made his vows at Lanzo in 1870. Six years later he left for
Argentina with the second missionary expedition. He was ordained a
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1HE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
priest in 1886. The following year he was named director at La Plata, then
at Buenos Aires, Vignaud, Victoria and General Costex. His directorship
lasted thirty-four years. His long, fruitful life ended at Cordoba on May
19, 1940.
CARTIER, LOUIS (1860-1945), Fr.
Born in Colomban, France, on February 7, 1860, Louis was studying at
the seminary of St. Jean de Maurienne when, attracted by Don Bosco's
fame, he went to Turin and made his novitiate at San Benigno Canavese.
After his ordination in 1883 he was sent to Marseille as the first master of
novices and director of the novitiate. From 1886 to 1923 he was director
of the Salesian house at Nice. By prudence and fortitude he withstood the
anti-clerical persecution and confiscation of religious property by the
French government. He was a staunch promoter of religious and priestly
vocations. His crowning work was building the Church of Mary, Help of
Christians in Nice. In his later years he was a familiar figure in the city as,
white cane striking the pavement, for he was practically blind, he made his
way to wealthy friends to beg funds for the Salesian works. He died in
Nice on December 29, 1945.
CAYS, CHARLES (1813-1882), Fr.
Count Charles Cays was born in Turin on November 24, 1813, of an
ancient, noble family. He did his secondary and college studies with the
Jesuits and earned a law degree from the University of Turin. He married
Countess Agnes Provana, by whom he had a son and a daughter. The
daughter died in infancy. At the age of thirty-two he was widowed and,
being generous-hearted, he became very active in the Society of St.
Vincent de Paul. With Don Bosco he was instrumental in setting up the
Turin chapter and was chosen its president. He lavishly gave of his wealth
and time at the festive oratories of Valdocco, the Guardian Angel, and St.
Aloysius. A staunch Catholic, he served as deputy in the Subalpine
Parliament from 1857 to 1860.
After retiring from politics, he confined himself to works of charity.
After long consultation with Don Bosco he left his comfortable home and
entered the Oratory. From then on he lived a life of utter simplicity and
fervent piety, putting his talents at the service of Don Bosco and poor
youth. He became a Salesian in 1877 and was ordained a priest on
September 20, 1878. After serving as director in one of the Salesian
schools in France, he was recalled to the Oratory to manage Letture
Cattoliche. He was of invaluable assistance to Don Bosco for many years
and died on October 4, 1882, as he himself had predicted.
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CERIA, EUGENE (1870-1957), Fr.
Fr. Eugene Ceria already enjoyed the reputation of a distinguished
scholar, author, and editor when in 1929 Fr. Philip Rinaldi, Superior
General, asked him to continue the publication of The Biographical
Memoirs, the monumental work begun by Fr. John Baptist Lemoyne. Fr.
Ceria's qualifications had been enhanced by his personal contact with
Don Bosco during his formative years as a novice and a student of
philosophy at San Benigno Canavese and Valsalice. Don Bosco con Dio,
published in 1930 and now considered his masterpiece, is a penetrating
and inspiring study of his spiritual father.
By systematic and persevering effort Fr. Ceria brought The Biograph-
ical Memoirs to completion in 1939, he contribution being Volumes XI-
XIX. Other works followed. While compiling the Annali della Societa
Salesiana in four large volumes (1941-51), he published biographies of
St. Mary Mazzarella, the Blessed Fr. Michael Rua, the Servants of God
Fr. Andrew Beltrami and Fr. Philip Rinaldi, and many other outstanding
Salesians. Though advanced in age, he undertook the collection and
editing of the Epistolario di S. Giovanni Bosco, in four volumes, two of
which were published before his death, which occurred on January 21,
1957 at the age of 86.
CERRUTI, FRANCIS (1844-1917), Fr.
Francis Cerruti, born in Vercelli on April 28, 1844, entered the Oratory
in November 1856 and immediately fell under the influence of Dominic
Savio. He completed the five-year secondary school course in three years
and was chosen by Don Bosco for teacher certification studies. He was
among the first seventeen young men who joined Don Bosco and his
fledgling Salesian Congregation in 1859. (See Vol. VI, pp. 181f) In 1865
his life was threatened by a severe bout with pneumonia, but, as Don
Bosco predicted, he miraculously recovered. In 1866 he made his
perpetual profession, received a Ph.D in literature, and was ordained a
priest. A scholar by talent and training, he compiled an Italian dictionary
for school use at Don Bosco's request. In 1870 he became the first
director of the Salesian school in Alassio and in 1879 he became the first
provincial of the Liguria province. In 1885 Don Bosco personally chose
him to be prefect general of studies, a position which enabled him to put
his educational and administrative expertise to good use for the schools of
both the Salesians and the Daughters of Mary, Help of Christians. He was
also a prolific writer. He died at Alassio on March 25, 191 7, just shy of
his seventy-third birthday.
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
COSTAMAGNA, JAMES (1846-1921), Bishop
James Costamagna was born at Caramagna (Cuneo) on March 23,
1846. At the age of twelve he began his studies at the Oratory. On
September 27, 1867 he made his first profession and less than a year later
was ordained a priest. In 1874 Don Bosco sent him to Momese as
spiritual director of the Daughters of Mary, Help of Christians, a post he
held for three years. In 1877 he headed the third missionary expedition. In
Argentina he accompanied General Julio Roca as chaplain on a military
expedition calculated to subdue the uprising tribes of the Pampas. He
saved many Indians from the vengeful attacks of the soldiers and brought
them to the faith.
In 1880, on the death of Fr. Bodrato, he was named director of San
Carlos School in Buenos Aires and provincial of South America. He was
a stem person. "I want sterling Salesians" was his motto. He himself set
the example in promoting the genuine spirit of Don Bosco, correcting all
deviations and weaknesses. He brought in the Daughters of Mary, Help of
Christians for the care of the girls of Almagro. In 1882 he began
publishing the Argentine edition of the Bollettino Salesiano and, two
years later, that of Letture Cattoliche. To counteract the anticlerical spirit
ofthe public schools of Buenos Aires, he opened more festive oratories for
the teaching of catechism. He was also in demand as spiritual director of
religious communities. In 1887 he began the Salesian work in Chile with a
school at Talca, and the following year he toured neighboring countries for
future Salesian foundations.
Appointed apostolic vicar of Mendez and Gualaquiza, Ecuador, he was
consecrated bishop in the Basilica of Mary, Help of Christians on May 23,
1895. Since his return to Ecuador was blocked by its government, he went
to Buenos Aires, where he was appointed by Fr. Rua to be visitator to
the Salesian houses of South America, with residence in Santiago, Chile.
In 1902 he was granted permission to visit his vicariate for three months, a
visit he repeated the following year. Eventually he obtained permission to
enter Ecuador and set up his residence among the Jivaros.
In 1918, suffering from a heart condition, he ceded his post to Salesian
Bishop Dominic Comin and retired to the novitiate house at Bernal,
Argentina, where he died on September 9, 1921.
DALMAZZO, FRANCIS (1845-1895), Fr.
Francis Dalmazzo entered the Oratory in 1860. After a few days,
unable to adjust to the frugal meals, he wanted to return home. On the
morning of his departure, after going to confession to Don Bosco, he saw
him perform a miracle by multiplying a few buns into hundreds for the
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boys' breakfast. (See Vol. VI, pp. 453ft)
Astounded, he decided to remain at the Oratory, became a Salesian and
was ordained a priest in 1868. From 1872 to 1880 he was director of the
Valsalice College; subsequently he was appointed director and pastor of
the school and Church of the Sacred Heart of Jesus in Rome and
procurator general of the Salesian Society at the Vatican. Toward the end
of 1887 he was sent to London to open a Salesian house; afterward, from
1888 to 1894, he was rector of the Church of St. John the Evangelist in
Turin. In all these undertakings he won the admiration and good will of all
who came in contact with him. Finally, in 1894, in deference to the
wishes of the bishop of Catanzaro, he assumed the direction of that
diocesan seminary staffed by Salesians and within a short time opened
also a small secondary school. A tragic death, however, awaited him at the
hand of a murderer; a victim of duty, he died on March 10, 1895, forgiving
his assailant.
DOGLIANI, JOSEPH (1849-1934), Br.
Joseph Dogliani was born in Castigliole di Saluzzo on May 13, 1849.
He was admitted to the Oratory in 1864 at the age of fourteen as an
apprentice cabinet maker, but soon his musical talents were discovered
and Don Bosco assigned him to study music under Maestro John De
Vecchi. He made such rapid progress that as a young Salesian he became
the chief collaborator of Father Cagliero, and when in 1875 the latter led
the first Salesian missionary expedition to South America, Don Bosco
appointed Dogliani choirmaster of the Oratory. In 1889 he also directed
the brass band. Under his direction the Oratory choir numbered four
hundred and achieved fame by its impeccable execution of classical
sacred music of the most renowned composers: Cherubini, Haydn,
Gounod, and Palestrina, to mention a few. Various cities in Italy and
abroad invited the Oratory choir on solemn occasions, such as the
inauguration of Marseille's new cathedral and the centennial of Joan of
Arc. Dogliani himself was quite a prolific composer, music teacher, and
author. Among his pupils he numbered the famous tenor Francis
Tamagno. Worth noting is the fact that through his teaching and example
he anticipated by thirty years Pius X's reform of sacred music. He died at
the Oratory on October 22, 1934.
DURANDO, CELESTINE (1840-1907), Fr.
Celestine Durando, born at Farigliano di Mondovi on April 29, 1840,
entered the Oratory in 1856, and on his very first day met Dominic Savio,
with whom he later founded the Immaculate Conception Sodality. On
December 18, 1859, with other young clerics, he joined Don Bosco in
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
forming the Salesian Congregation. (See Vol. VI, pp. 181f) He was
ordained a priest in Mondovi in 1864. The following year he became a
member of the superior chapter and held that office for nearly forty years.
Fr. Durando was well known for his several, greatly praised school
publications. In 1869 Don Bosco directed him to compile La Biblioteca
de/la gioventu italiana [Italian Classics for the Young]. (See Vol. IX,
pp. 51, 196f, 391) From 1869 to 1885 two hundred and four volumes
were published, nineteen ofthem edited by Fr. Durando. He also authored
an excellent Latin grammar and dictionary.
From 1886 to 1903 he served as provincial to a wide range of Salesian
houses in Europe, Africa and Asia, loosely linked into one unit. A zealous
priest, he distinguished himself in the ministry of the confessional. He died
at the Oratory on March 27, 1907. "A silent man," wrote Fr. Rua, "Fr.
Durando lived a career of good works, rich in merit. Wherever he passed
he left the image of a truly priestly Salesian spirit."
FAGNANO, JOSEPH (1844-1916), Fr., Prefect Apostolic
Joseph Fagnano was born in Rocchetta Tanaro (Asti) on March 9,
1844. At twelve he enrolled in the diocesan seminary of Asti. When the
seminary closed in 1859, due to a shortage of students, the seminarians
were encouraged to transfer to the Oratory in Turin, but Joseph returned
home. After serving as an orderly in the army hospital at Asti, he decided
to resume his priestly studies under Don Bosco's care. He was soon won
over by the happy family life he found at the Oratory and by Don Bosco's
serene fatherliness. What most impressed him, however, was Don Bosco's
telling him his sins, circumstances and all, during his general confession.
That convinced him that he was talking to a saint, and he decided to stay
with him.
Joseph made his first vows in 1864 and was ordained on September 19,
1868. On November 14, 1875, since one of the ten Salesian missionaries
who were assigned to the first missionary expedition was unable to go,
Don Bosco asked Fr. Fagnano to replace him, and he gladly did.
From Buenos Aires he went to San Nicolas de los Arroyos and
converted an old home to a boarding school. The following March it was
ready for occupancy by a hundred and forty-four boarders and as many
day students. In April 1979, while director at the school, Fr. Fagnano
contracted typhoid. After his recovery six months later, he was made
pastor at Patagones, in northern Patagonia, where he built a church and
two schools, one for boys, one for girls. He formed a school band and set
up a meteorological station, soon given official status by Argentina. When
a military expedition was sent out against the Indians, Fr. Fagnano
zealously volunteered his services as a chaplain so as to extend his
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pastoral care to the hunted natives, of whom he baptized thirty.
Appointed prefect apostolic of southern Patagonia and Tierra del
Fuego, he sailed to Punta Arenas in 1877 and then to Dawson Island,
where he established St. Raphael Mission, which the Daughters of Mary,
Help of Christians staffed in 1890. At Punta Arenas he set up a weather
station and a church. In Tierra del Fuego, where a lake has been named
after him, he founded a mission which became an Indian settlement. It
burned down three years later, and Fr. Fagnano rebuilt it, but, when the
government withdrew funds, he had to abandon the project.
Fr. Fagnano died in Santiago, Chile on September 18, 1916.
FASCIE, BARTHOLOMEW (1861-1937), Fr.
Born at Verezzi (Savona) on October 20, 1861, Bartholomew Fascie
enrolled at the age of fifteen as a student in the Salesian lyceum at nearby
Alassio and after graduation moved to the Oratory to continue his studies
at the University of Turin. It was during this period that he felt attracted to
Don Bosco's saintliness and the Salesian life. In 1883, after obtaining his
university degrees in letters and philosophy, he delayed joining the
Salesian Congregation for family reasons and returned to Alassio as a
teacher of literature in the Salesian lyceum. In 1890 he finally decided to
become a Salesian and received the clerical habit from Fr. Michael Rua.
A year later he made his perpetual vows. His sound intellectual formation,
spiritual maturity and love of work hastened his ordination to the
priesthood in 1891.
He exercised his Salesian apostolate first at Alassio and then at Este
and Ascona (Switzerland). From 1897 to 1910 he was director at Bronte
(Sicily) and provincial from 1907 to 1913. He filled the same office in
Tuscany and Emilia from 1913 to 1920. While he was still provincial, Fr.
Paul Albera appointed him prefect general of studies in 1919 when this
office became vacant. Subsequent general chapters reappointed him to the
same post. Having completely absorbed Don Bosco's spirit in his frequent
contacts with him, he became its jealous guardian and faithful interpreter.
Among his writings, outstanding is his booklet on Don Bosco's preventive
system which was adopted as a textbook in all teachers' training colleges
in Italy. He died of a stroke on January 31, 1937, shortly after delivering a
panegyric in honor of St. John Bosco on his feast day in the Basilica of
Mary, Help of Christians in Turin.
FASSIO, MICHAEL (1853-1936), Fr.
Michael Fassio was born in Revigliano d'Asti, Italy in 1853 and
entered the Oratory in 1866. He donned the cassock in 1872 and made his
religious profession at Lanzo the following year. Soon after his priestly
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
ordination in 1876, he joined the second missionary expedition to South
America, where he carried out a very fruitful apostolate in Uruguay,
Argentina, and Chile. When he retired from the missionary field, his piety,
love of work, and priestly zeal were put to good use at the motherhouse in
Turin as long as his health permitted, as one of the secretaries of the rector
major and as spiritual director in various houses ofthe Daughters of Mary,
Help of Christians. He went to his eternal reward on January 1, 1936.
FRANCESIA, JOHN BAPTIST (1838-1930), Fr.
John Baptist Francesia, who was born in San Giorgio Canavese (Turin)
on October 3, 1838, began attending the Valdocco Festive Oratory when
about twelve; two years later he became a resident student at the Oratory.
In 1859 he was one of the sixteen young men who joined Don Bosco in
forming the Salesian Society. (See Vol. VI, pp. 181 f) He was also the first
Salesian to earn academic degrees at the University of Turin. Ordained a
priest in 1862, he soon filled critical administrative positions, distinguish-
ing himself by his fatherly kindliness. In 1865 Don Bosco named him
spiritual director of the Congregation. From 1878 to 1902 he was
provincial of the Piedmont-Lombard province. Characterized by a gentle
fatherliness which he had acquired from Don Bosco and by a
heartwarming smile, Fr. Francesia was a prolific writer and a
distinguished Latin and Italian scholar. A man of letters he also wrote
plays and poems which Don Bosco had the boys perform on the Oratory
stage. His last forty years were spent at the Oratory, and over those years
hardly a feast or commemoration was observed without a celebration of
Salesian annals in fluent Latin or Italian by Fr. Francesia. The long list of
his writings is a very impressive one, ranging from Latin and Italian
literature to biography and devotional works.
Besides being a witness of the first years ofDon Bosco's work for youth,
which he recorded in a biography of our founder, Fr. Francesia was an
historian and a poet, writing fluently in Latin and Italian. He also wrote
brief accounts of the lives of deceased Salesians. Fr. Francesia was very
much the oral historian of the Salesian Congregation's beginnings,
recalling events in detail and holding his audience spellbound in the many
"Good Nights" he gave to the Oratory's large communities over the years.
He died at the Oratory on January 17, 1930. For further details see also
the Indexes of Volumes IV through XIII.
GHIVARELLO, CHARLES (1835-1913), Fr.
Charles Ghivarello, born at Pino Torinese (Turin) on September 16,
1835, entered the Oratory at the age of twenty and received the clerical
habit from Don Bosco the following year. He was a schoolmate of
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Dominic Savio. On December 18, 1859 he was one of the young clerics
who cast his lot with Don Bosco and became a co-founder of the Salesian
Congregation and a consultor of the superior chapter. (See Vol. VI, pp.
18lt) He made his first vows in 1862 and was ordained a priest in 1864.
In 1876 he was elected economer general and filled that office until 1880
when Don Bosco sent him to Saint-Cyr as director of the Salesian
orphanage. Two years later he was appointed director at Mathi and filled
that office until 1888.
At his ordination Don Bosco had predicted that he would be an
excellent confessor, and it was in that ministry that he best revealed his
fatherly goodness.
A talented architect, engineer, and agriculturist, Fr. Ghivarello
rendered valuable service to Don Bosco and to the Salesian Congregation.
At San Benigno Canavese, where he spent twenty-five years of his life and
where he died on February 28, 1913, he built the school chapel and a
machine shop.
GROSSO, JOHN BAPTIST (1858-1944), Fr.
Born in San Pietro in Val Lemina (Turin) on February 8, 1858, John
was ten when he was received into the Oratory by Don Bosco himself. He
was gifted with an exceptional talent for music and, as a cleric, he was sent
to Marseille to study music. He made his first profession in 1876 and was
ordained in 1881. He began a brilliant musical career by founding the
famed "St. Joseph Choir School" in Nice. When religious were banned
from France in 1900 he was first sent to Lombriasco, and then to F oglizzo
as director of the theology students, and finally to the Oratory.
In 1923 he became director of music at the Salesian International
Theologate in Turin, where he trained numberless confreres in sacred
polyphony and Gregorian chant. A man of unquestioning fidelity to his
vocation as a Salesian, musician and liturgist, Fr. Grosso was truly the
founder of the liturgical music movement in the Salesian Congregation.
He had the gift of uniting prayer with song. He died at Bagnolo (Cuneo) on
November 21, 1944.
GUIDAZIO, PETER (1841-1902), Fr.
Born in Turin on April 23, 1841, Peter Guidazio entered the Oratory at
the age of twenty-two. In 1864 Don Bosco sent him to the newly opened
school at Lanzo, where he remained six years and proved his ability as a
good teacher. In the meantime, in 1867 he took his vows and seven years
later was ordained a priest and appointed director of studies at the
Oratory. In 1878 Don Bosco sent him to direct the high school department
of the diocesan seminary at Montefiascone (Viterbo). A year later he
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
opened the first Salesian school in Sicily at Randazzo and was its director
from 1879 to 1885. He was also director at Lanzo from 1885 to 1901. His
expertise, prudence, and determination gave the Salesian schools in Sicily
particular eminence. He died at Randazzo on July 12, 1902.
LAGO, ANGELO (1834-1914), Fr.
Angelo Lago was born in Peveragno (Cuneo) in 1834. At the age of
twenty-one he graduated as a pharmacist from the University of Turin and
promptly opened a pharmacy in his native town with the firm intent of
scrupulously fulfilling his duties and turning over his profits to the poor.
For this reason, in 1872 he went to Lanzo where Don Bosco was
conducting a spiritual retreat in order to hand over to him a few thousand
lire. Don Bosco thanked him for his generosity and gave him a receipt,
telling him that he accepted his donation simply as a loan. Hearing that
Don Bosco was about to go to the chapel to give a sermon, Lago asked
permission to be present. In his talk Don Bosco most eloquently described
to his Salesians the great reward that Our Lord would give to those who
made themselves poor for His sake. Lago was so impressed that
afterward, escorting Don Bosco to his room, he said to him, "After such a
sermon I can no longer keep your receipt. With your permission I would
like to become as poor as you."
He went home, sold his pharmacy, and in September of that same year
he returned to the Oratory to place himself at Don Bosco's disposal.
Seeing him well qualified for the priesthood, Don Bosco invited him to
take the necessary courses in theology. In 1877 he was ordained a priest
and given as an assistant to Fr. Rua, then prefect general. Fr. Lago was
outstandingly laborious, humble, prudent, and zealous. At his death in
1914 those who knew him exclaimed, "A saint has passed away."
LAZZERO, JOSEPH (1837-1910), Fr.
Joseph Lazzero was born in Turin on May 10, 1837 and entered the
Oratory at the age of twenty. In 185 9 he was one of the first young clerics
to join Don Bosco in forming the Salesian Congregation. (See Vol. VI, pp.
18lf) He made his first vows in 1862 and was ordained to the priesthood
in 1865. In 1870 he made his perpetual profession. In 1874 Don Bosco
appointed him to the superior chapter and put him in charge of technical
schools, a post he held until 1898. In 1877 Don Bosco chose him and Fr.
Barberis to represent the Salesian Congregation at Pius IX's golden
jubilee as bishop. Stricken in 1897, he retired and died after a long illness
at Mathi (Turin) on March 7, 1910.
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LEMOYNE, JOHN BAPTIST (1839-1916), Fr.
Fr. John Baptist Lemoyne was the first great chronicler of the life of St.
John Bosco and of the first decades of the Salesian Congregation.
From their first providential meeting in 1864, Fr. Lemoyne esteemed
Don Bosco as a person of outstanding character and holiness. He not only
strove to understand and acquire his spirit, but also took upon himself the
task of committing to writing anything of significance that Don Bosco did
or said. Information concerning earlier events he painstakingly gathered
from eye-witneses and other sources.
In 1883 he came to the motherhouse as editor of the Bollettino
Salesiano and secretary of the superior chapter. The five years that
followed he spent in cordial intimacy with Don Bosco and heard from the
saint himself the story of the arduous road he had to climb in his youth to
arrive at the priesthood, and of the wonderful manner in which Providence
guided the Salesian work.
After Don Bosco's death in 1888, he was formally charged with the
compilation of available materials for the life of the saint. Forty-five large
volumes of galley proofs bear witness to his dedicated research and
provide the material for the nineteen volumes of The Biographical
Memoirs of St. John Bosco, the first nine of which he authored.
Noteworthy among his other works are the Life of Don Bosco in two
volumes and the Life ofMamma Margaret, Don Bosco's mother. He died
in Turin on September 14, 1916 at the age of 77.
MARENCO, JOHN (1853-1921), Bishop
John Marenco was born in Ovada (Turin) on April 27, 1853. He
applied to Don Bosco to become a Salesian in 1873, while he was a third
year theology student. Discerning his fine personal qualities, Don Bosco
accepted him without further discussion as a novice and admitted him to
his religious vows the following year. He was ordained a priest in 1875.
Five years later Don Bosco sent him to Lucca to open a new house. The
talents he showed as a director induced Don Bosco to recall him to Turin
and entrust to him the construction of the Church of St. John the
Evangelist. In 1888 Fr. Rua sent him to Sampierdarena as director; in
1890 he appointed him provincial of the Salesian houses in Liguria and
Toscana, in 1892 he made him vicar general of the Daughters of Mary,
Help of Christians, and finally in 1899 he sent him to Rome as procurator
of the Salesian Society with the Holy See. He filled that office until 1909,
when Pope Benedict XV named him bishop of Massa Carrara and eight
years later titular bishop of Edessa and apostolic internuncio to the
republics of Central America. Within four years he established an
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
archdiocese, a diocese and a vicariate apostolic in Costa Rica, reopened
diplomatic relations between El Salvador and Honduras, founded two
interdiocesan seminaries in Nicaragua and San Salvador, and strengthened
ecclesiastical discipline. In 1921 Bishop Marenco returned to Turin
because of failing health, and there he died a few months later on
October 22.
MILANESIO, DOMINIC (1843-1922), Fr.
Dominic Milanesio was born at Settimo Torinese on August 18, 1843.
In 1866 he called on Don Bosco for advice about his vocation and, as a
result, promptly decided to become a Salesian. Three years later he made
his first vows, and in 1873 he was ordained a priest. In 1877 he took part
in the third missionary expedition to Argentina. He first worked at "La
Boca" in Buenos Aires, but in 1880 he became a full-fledged missionary
at Viedma in Patagonia, which he criss-crossed at incredible sacrifice,
winning the love of all.
When in 1883 the leading cacique Manuel Namuncura decided to
surrender to the Argentinian government, he asked Fr. Milanesio to act as
an intermediary. It was he again who, on December 24, 1888, baptized
the cacique's son, Zephyrin, whose cause of beatification has been
introduced. Fr. Milanesio was rightfully called the "Father of the
Indians." He died in Bernal, Argentina, on November 19, 1922.
MONATERI, JOSEPH (1847-1914), Fr.
Joseph Monateri was born in Crescentino (Vercelli) on March 3, 1847.
Don Bosco personally accepted him into the Oratory in 1860. Seven years
later he made his first profession at Trofarello. After teaching at Mirabella
and Bargo San Martino, he was ordained a priest in 1869. Don Bosco then
sent him as director to the new house of Albano (Rome) in 1877. He was
among the twenty-three confreres who formed the first general chapter at
Lanzo in 1877. In 1898 he was appointed provincial of the Salesians in
Sicily and director of the house at Catania. For reasons of health he left
Sicily in 1903 and became director of Lanzo. He died at Colle Salvetti
(Leghorn) on September 22, 1914, at the age of sixty-seven.
NAI, LOUIS (1855-1932), Fr.
Born at Nicoma (Pavia) in 1855, Louis Nai completed his secondary
schooling at the Oratory under Don Bosco's guidance. In 1872 he took his
first vows as a Salesian at Lanzo and was ordained a priest in 1877. Two
years later Don Bosco appointed him prefect at San Benigno Canavese,
where eventually he was director from 1887 to the expiration of his term
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577
of office in 1892. He was then appointed provincial of the Salesian houses
of Palestine until 1906, when he was named provincial in Chile. He held
that office until 1925, when he officially visited the· Salesian houses of
some republics of South America on behalf of the superior general. That
mission completed, he returned to headquarters in Turin and from 1926 he
filled the office of director until his death in 1932. His courtesy and
amiability, his genuine Salesian spirit and his love of Don Bosco endeared
him to all.
PAVIA, JOSEPH (1852-1915), Fr.
Joseph Pavia was born at Asti on March 6, 1852. At the age oftwenty-
four he took his vows, and two years later, in 1878, he was ordained a
priest. After obtaining his teacher certification, he was appointed by Don
Bosco to our school at Albano (Rome). Subsequently, in 1884, Don
Bosco called him to Turin to head the flourishing day and Sunday oratory
at Valdocco. He organized catechetical contests, splendid church
services, sport activities, gymnastic performance and sightseeing trips. He
earned the gratitude of many people by his generous help to needy boys
and families. He died in Turin on July 14, 1915.
PERROT, PETER (1853-1928), Fr.
Peter Perrot, born at Laux-Usseaux (Turin) on October 23, 1853,
made his first vows as a Salesian on September 27, 1872, and was
ordained a priest in Turin on June 10, 1876. Two years later Don Bosco
sent him as director to La Navarre in the township of Hyeres in southeast
France, where the young priest overcame serious difficulties and earned
everybody's esteem and confidence. With the help of generous
benefactors he built a chapel and part of a new school building, which he
completed in 1884. He wrote a manual on farming for the agricultural
department of the school. In 1898 he was appointed provincial of the
Salesian houses in southern France with headquarters in Marseille.
During the government's persecution of religious he sought refuge in Italy,
but eventually returned to La Navarre where he died on February 24,
1928.
PICCOLLO, FRANCIS (1861-1930), Fr.
Born in Turin on April 8, 1861, Francis Piccollo was so exemplary a
pupil at the Oratory that Don Bosco spoke of him as another Dominic
Savio. He took his vows as a Salesian at Lanzo on September 26, 1877, at
the age of sixteen, and was ordained a priest at lvrea on September 23,
1883.
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1HE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
He was first assigned to Ariccia (Rome) and to Sicily where he
remained for thirty years as an able and saintly teacher, director at
Catania and at nearby San Gregorio (1891-1901), and finally provincial
(1901-1907). In 1909 he was afllicted by a very painful tumor and, even
after surgery, he suffered from the open wound until the end of his life on
December 8, 1930. On his deathbed he left this memento to his
confreres-a reflection of his saintliness. "The most beautiful moment of
our life is the moment of our death.''
PISCETTA, LOUIS (1858-1925), Fr.
Fr. Piscetta became a Salesian at the age of sixteen in 1874.
Ordained a priest in 1880, he earned his doctorate in theology and taught
successively for nearly forty years Church history, canon law and moral
theology in the Turin diocesan seminary. His work Theologiae Moralis
Elementa ran through several reprints and editions. From 1892 to 1907
he directed the Salesian Studentate of Philosophy at Valsalice (Turin),
and in 1907 he became a member of the superior chapter of the Salesian
Society. He died in 1925.
RABAGLIATI, EVASIUS (1855-1920), Fr.
Born at Occimiano, Italy in 1855, Evasius first met Don Bosco at the
age of twelve during one of Don Bosco's outings with his boys in the
countryside. In 1869 he entered our school at Mirabella and from there
transferred to Bargo San Martino and the Oratory at Valdocco. In 1874
he made his novitiate and crowned it with his religious profession in
September 1875. The following year he joined the second missionary
expedition to Argentina and began his apostolate among the Italian
immigrants in Buenos Aires. Ordained a priest in 1877, he first
accompanied Bishop James Costamagna to Patagonia, and then from
1880 to 1886 he directed the Salesian school of San Nicolas de los
Arroyos. In 1886 he crossed the Alps to his new assignment at
Concepcion, Chile, where he remained until 1890, when Fr. Rua sent
him to open a trade school at Bogota, Colombia. After completing this
task he interested himself in the local leper colonies and greatly improved
their services. In 1896 he became provincial of the newly established
Colombian province and governed it until 1910, when for reasons of
health he had to retire.
Sent back to Chile for a well-deserved rest, he continued to work
tirelessly in the priestly ministry and in raising funds for the Colombian
lepers. He died in Santiago, Chile on May 2, 1920. At his death the
Colombian government declared a day of national mourning in his honor.
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RINALDI, PHILIP (1856-1931), Fr., Rector Major and Servant ofGod
Philip Rinaldi, born at Lu (Alessandria) on May 28, 1856, entered the
Salesian school at Mirabello at the age of ten. On July 9, 1867, while
making his confession to Don Bosco, he saw the priest's face transfigured
by a mysterious light. He again witnessed the same phenomenon on
November 22, 1877 at Borgo San Martino. This experience totally
confirmed his belief in his vocation. A few days later, on November 26, he
went to Sampierdarena, where Don Bosco had set up a program for late
vocations. In two years he completed his secondary schooling with top
grades and in October 1879 entered the novitiate at San Benigno
Canavese, where he made his first vows on August 13, 1880. In 1882 he
was ordained a priest. The following year Don Bosco appointed him
director of Mathi Torinese, the new house for late vocations which, later,
was relocated in Turin near the Church of St. John the Evangelist, where
he remained five more years as director.
In 1889 Don Bosco sent him to Spain as director of the house of Sarria
(Barcelona), and in 1892 he appointed him provincial of the houses of
Spain and Portugal, where, within nine years, he opened sixteen more
houses. In 1901 he was recalled to Turin as prefect general and worked
hand in hand, first with Fr. Michael Rua and then with Fr. Paul Albera,
the first two successors of St. John Bosco. During Fr. Albera's rectorship
he gave new impetus to the growth and improvement of festive oratories,
established an international federation of Salesian alumni and alumnae,
built Don Bosco's monument, and gave a new thrust to the association of
Salesian cooperators.
At the death of Fr. Paul Albera in 1922, Fr. Rinaldi was elected rector
major on the first ballot. During his nine years in office 1,868 Salesian
priests and brothers and 613 Daughters of Mary, Help of Christians left
for the foreign missions and Salesian houses were opened in various parts
of the world. At his death the Salesian Congregation had 43 provinces,
646 houses, and 8,954 Salesians.
In 1929 he had the joy of witnessing the beatification of his teacher,
Don Bosco. Heavenly favors obtained through his intercession prompted
the introduction of his cause of beatification in 1947.
ROCCA, ANGELO (1853-1943), Fr.
Born in Rivara (Turin) in 1853, Angelo Rocca joined the Salesian
Congregation in 1875 at the age of twenty-two. Ordained a priest the
following year, he was immediately asked by Don Bosco to direct our new
house at La Spezia (Genoa), where he remained until 1882. He was next
assigned to teach theology at the diocesan seminary of Trecata (Novara)
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
until 1899. He was a distinguished orator and writer of ascetical books.
Poor in health, in 1901 he retired to our school at Cuorgne (Turin) where
he died in 1943 at the age of ninety.
ROCCA, LOUIS (1853-1909), Fr.
Louis Rocca was born in Milan on July 6, 1853. He entered the
Oratory in 1868 at the age of fifteen. The following year he decided to
become a Salesian. Good-hearted, forbearing and level-headed, he took
his vows in 1874 and was ordained a priest the following year. Assigned to
the Salesian lyceum in Alassio, he remained there twenty years, first as a
teacher and then as a financial administrator and director. In 1893 he
volunteered to go to Colombia to work in the leper colony of Agua de
Dios, but his superiors decided otherwise. In 1895 he was appointed
economer general and remained in office for the next thirteen years, during
which he supervised the construction of Salesian churches and schools in
Italy, Austria, Poland, Belgium, France, Spain, Portugal, and Malta. An
endering trait of his was his love for the sick. A stroke ended his fruitful life
in Turin on June 21, 1909.
RONCHAIL, JOSEPH (1850-1898), Fr.
Joseph Ronchail, born in Laux-Usseaux (Turin) on May 21, 1850, first
met Don Bosco in 1868. (See Vol. IX, pp. 148fl) Convinced that Don
Bosco was inspired by God, he entered the Oratory and joined the
Salesian Congregation in 1869. Ordained in 1872, he distinguished
himself as a hard worker and zealous priest. He was director of the
Salesian school at Nice from 1876 to 1887 and at Paris in 1888. He was
also acting provincial of northern France and Belgium until his death in
Paris in 1898.
ROSSI, JOSEPH (1835-1908), Br.
Joseph Rossi was born in Mezzanabigli (Pavia) in 1835. His reading of
Don Bosco's prayer book, II Giovane Provveduto [The Companion of
Youth], led him to Don Bosco himself at the age of twenty-four.
He was among the first to seek admission into the Salesian
Congregation and made his profession as a lay religious on September 29,
1864. Noting that the young man had the qualities of a good adminis-
trator, Don Bosco carefully cultivated him and entrusted more and
more of the Congregation's business matters to him. He also called him to
attend the first and fourth general chapters as consultor. Even after Don
Bosco's death Br. Rossi had the full trust of Fr. Rua. He died in Turin on
October 28, 1908.
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ROTA, PETER (1861-1931), Fr.
Born at Lu Monferrato (Alessandria) on June 7, 1861, Peter Rota was
drawn to join the Salesian Congregation by the example of Fr. John
Bonetti. He made his first profession at Lanzo in 1877 and was a member
ofthe third missionary expedition sent by Don Bosco in 1877. Completing
his studies in Uruguay, he was ordained a priest in Montevideo in 1884.
Skilled in school administration, he became the first director of the
Salesian school in Niteroi, Brazil. He also directed schools in Villa Colon,
Uruguay, and at Bage in southern Brazil. In 1925 he was recalled to Turin
and appointed provincial of the central province. He died in Lisbon,
Portugal on August 8, 1931, while visiting the Salesian houses. His
natural kindness, serenity, cheerfulness, and prudence endeared him to all.
RUA, MICHAEL (1837-1910), Fr., Rector Major, Blessed
Michael Rua was born in Turin on June 9, 1837. As a pupil of the
Christian Brothers' school he first met Don Bosco at the age of seven, and
an unbreakable bond was forged between the two. In 1852 he donned the
cassock, and from then on his life was so closely intertwined with that of
the founder that he has often been dubbed "Don Bosco's double." On
January 26, 1854 he and three other boys of the Oratory gathered in Don
Bosco's room to band themselves into what was to become the Salesian
Congregation. (See Vol. V, p. 8) The following year he took his first vows.
While studying theology he took charge of the St. Aloysius Festive
Oratory in Turin. In 1859 he accompanied Don Bosco on his first visit to
Rome, and that year, when the Congregation was approved by Pius IX,
Michael Rua, though a subdeacon, was elected by his peers to be spiritual
director of the new-born Society of St. Francis de Sales. (See Vol. VI, pp.
181f)
He was ordained a priest on July 29, 1860 and three years later became
the first Salesian director, assuming charge of the junior seminary at
Mirabella. On the death of Fr. Victor Alasonatti in 1865, Don Bosco
recalled Fr. Rua to the Oratory in Turin to assume financial responsibility
for the Salesian Society. He was Don Bcsco's right-hand man. As Fr.
Eugene Ceria states: "Don Bosco could not have asked for a more
devoted son, a more loyal interpreter of his every wish, a more
tireless and intelligent worker, a more enlightened mind and a superior of
more unchallenged authority ... fully dedicated to his mission, totally
imbued with his ideas and amply qualified ... to be the founder's worthy
spokesman at all levels." (See Vol. XIV, p. 1)
In 1884, at Don Bosco's request, he was appointed his vicar by Pope
Leo XIII, and four years later, at the founder's death, he became rector
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THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
major, a position he held for twenty-two years. During that time the
Congregation grew from sixty-four houses to three hundred and forty-one,
reaching out to Europe, North, South and Central America, Africa and
Asia.
Fr. Rua was often defined as "the living rule" because of his fidelity
to Don Bosco's concept of Salesian life and mission. Though he may have
externally given an impression of strictness, he was a gentle, warm, and
thoughtful superior, so much so that he seems to have rivaled Don Bosco
in gentleness and fatherliness.
Fr. Rua died on April 6, 1910 at the Oratory. In 1922 the diocesan
process for his beatification and canonization was begun, and in 1926 the
cause was taken up in Rome. He was declared Venerable in 1953 and was
beatified on October 29, 1972 by Pope Paul VI. His feast day is observed
on October 29.
SALA, ANTHONY (1836-1895), Fr.
Anthony Sala, born near Como on January 28, 1836, entered the
Oratory in 1863 at the age of twenty-seven after giving up the
management of his family's silk mill. He was God's gift to Don Bosco.
Entrusting himself to Don Bosco's guidance, he made his profession on
December 29, 1865 and in little more than six years became a priest.
Showing special administrative talent, he was assigned to help Fr.
Alasonatti, who was then in poor health.
In 1875, Fr. Sala was appointed counselor of the superior chapter,
replacing Fr. Ghivarello. Recognizing his particular ability, Don Bosco
put Fr. Sala in charge of remodeling the motherhouse of the Daughters of
Mary, Help of Christians in Nizza Monferrato and in constructing the new
houses at Este, Cremona, Chieri, and Randazzo. In 1880 Don Bosco
appointed him economer general, a post to which he was re-elected almost
unanimously in both 1886 and 1892. He supervised the construction of
St. John the Evangelist Church and school and directed the planning ofthe
Salesian exhibit in the National Exposition of 1884 in Turin. He also
lightened Don Bosco's burden in building the Church of the Sacred Heart
in Rome. During Don Bosco's final illness he offered the lowliest of
services in the sick room.
Fr. Sala worked tirelessly to his dying day. He went to his eternal
reward on May 21, 1895 after a brief illness.
SAVIO, ANGELO (1835-1893), Fr.
Angelo Savio was born at Castelnuovo d'Asti on November 20, 1835
and entered the Oratory in 1850. He was already a deacon when in 1859
he joined the first group of young men who banded with Don Bosco to
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form the Salesian Society. (See Vol. VI, pp. 181f) At their first historic
meeting he was elected economer general, a post to which he was re-
elected in 1869 and in 1873. He was ordained in Turin in 1860. As
economer he was entrusted with all construction. In 1885, at the age of
fifty, he went to the South American missions, opening houses in Chile,
Peru, Paraguay and Brazil. A tireless and fearless worker, he was always a
man of deep prayer and great trust. He died while on a missionary journey
in Ecuador, after eight years of fruitful mission activity, on January 17,
1893.
TRIONE, STEPHEN (1856-1935), Fr.
Born in Cuorgne (Turin) on December 8, 1856, Stephen entered the
Oratory in 1869 and soon distinguished himself for his good-
heartedness, serenity, joviality and, especially, his fervent piety. He
made his first vows as a Salesian in 1872 and was ordained a priest in
Rome on July 12, 1879. At his first Mass in St. Peter's he prayed for
"efficacy of speech."
He first exercised his priestly ministry in Randazzo (Sicily) and Lanzo.
In 1884 Don Bosco, already declining in health and feeling the need for a
faithful interpreter of his spirit in the spiritual formation of the Oratory's
students, chose Fr. Trione for that task. Following Don Bosco's
footsteps he became the ideal Salesian spiritual director.
The gift of "efficacy of speech" for which he had prayed was very
noticeable in his ministry of the word. He was a fervent apostle of devotion
to the Blessed Sacrament and to Mary, Help of Christians and a matchless
organizer of Eucharistic and Marian congresses in various dioceses. The
outstanding field of his Salesian activity was the Association of Salesian
Cooperators. All the dioceses of Italy and the main centers in Europe and
South America witnessed his ardent zeal for the spreading of Don Bosco's
spirit and undertakings.
As assistant postulator of the causes of beatification and canonization
of Don Bosco, Dominic Savio, Fr. Andrew Beltrami and Prince
Czartoryski, he had the privilege to be present at Don Bosco's
canonization and at the conferring of the title "Venerable" on Dominic
Savio. He went from the Oratory to his reward on April 1, 1935 at the age
of seventy-nine.
UNIA, MICHAEL (1849-1895), Fr.
Born on December 18, 1849 at Roccaforte (Cuneo), Michael Unia took
his first vows at San Benigno Canavese on August 13, 1880 and was
ordained a priest at Ivrea on December 23, 1882 at the age of thirty-three.
In 1890 he joined the first group of missionaries going to Colombia at
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584
1HE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
the government's request to open a trade school in Bogota, the capital.
A year and a half later, learning that many lepers lacked material and
spiritual assistance, Father Unia felt inspired to dedicate himself to this
specific and dangerous apostolate and sought permission from Fr. Rua.
Don Bosco's first successor, and from the archbishop of Bogota. When it
was finally granted, Fr. Unia promptly walked all the way to Agua de
Dias, a forsaken place three days away from the capital. There he found
seven hundred and thirty adult lepers and a hundred and twenty children
under ten, to whom he immediately offered spiritual and material
assistance. The following year two other Salesians joined him, and he was
thus able to organize the civil and religious life of the village. Totally
selfless, he lavished his care on all, even in giving to the lepers the usual
signs of affection given to healthy people, such as shaking hands with them
and caressing the children.
Having obtained the help of a few Sisters of the Presentation, he opened
a kindergarten and then started a fund-raising drive to erect a large
hospital and beautify the poor village chapel. He also succeeded in having
an aqueduct built to bring drinking water to the leper colony and
introduced vocal and instrumental music to lift up the lepers' spirits. The
beautiful church services and the frequent reception of the sacraments
were also a great source of comfort and hope for all his charges.
In 1893 a severe case of dropsy and other ailments forced him to return
to Italy for treatment. He went back to Agua de Dias the following year,
but a recurrence ofthe disease required his removal to Bogota. Toward the
end of July 1895 the disease took a turn for the worse and he was recalled
to Italy. He passed away at the Oratory in Turin on December 9 of the
same year.
VERONESI, MOSES (1851-1930), Fr.
Born at Bovisio, Milan, in 1851, Moses Veronesi first met Don Bosco
in 1868 when he was a resident student at our Salesian school in Lanzo.
"You will live to an old age if you will be good," Don Bosco told him.
After donning the clerical habit at the Oratory at Don Bosco's hands, he
began his philosophy and theology studies. In 1873 he fell critically ill, but
Don Bosco, informed of this, sent this telegram to Fr. Rua: "I bless
Veronesi, but I am not sending him his passport."
Veronesi made his religious profession in January 1876 and, after being
ordained a priest in June of that same year, he was promptly appointed
catechist at the Oratory, where he worked so zealously that Don Bosco
called him "his heart and his arm." In 1882 he was appointed director at
Magliano Veneta until 1895, when he was named provincial of the
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Appendices
585
Salesian houses in Veneta and later, from 1908 to 1910, in Lombardy. He
then became director of the Oratory until 1917, when he was reassigned to
Magliano Veneta as director until 1926. Fidelity to Don Bosco, ardent
love for the Blessed Virgin and great fatherliness for his confreres were his
outstanding traits. He died in Verona on February 3, 1930.
VESPIGNANI, JOSEPH (1854-1932), Fr.
Born at Lugo, Italy in 1854, Joseph started his secondary schooling
with the Benedictines at Cesena and then entered the seminary of F aenza
for his philosophy courses. While there, a virulent pneumonia nearly took
his life. After an uncertain recovery, he continued his theological studies
and, though still sickly, was ordained a priest in 1876. He barely hoped to
live long enough to say at least three Masses, and yet, three months later,
he felt strong enough to go to Turin to see Don Bosco. So impressed was
he by the fact that Don Bosco could read his conscience that he stayed
with him for a whole year. He made his religious profession on Christmas
Day 1876, and the following year Don Bosco sent him to Argentina with
the third missionary expedition to be novice master. After spending
seventeen years with Bishop James Costamagna, he succeeded him in
1894 as director of Pius IX School in Buenos Aires and, later, as
provincial.
In 1922 he was recalled to Turin as a member of the superior chapter
and remained in office until his saintly death on January 15, 1932. In
1948 his remains were brought to Buenos Aires and entombed in San
Carlos Church. As novice master, confessor, writer, and founder of
nineteen Salesian houses, he earned the admiration of all. Outstanding is
his book Un Anno alla Scuola del Beato Don Bosco.
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Appendix 2*
ADVICE GIVEN BY DON BOSCO IN CONFESSION
(See page 86, footnote 1)
Turin, June 4, 1879, Third Day ofRetreat: Remember to fulfill all your
duties as assistant, student and teacher. As for keeping money, I am not sure
whether one might be allowed to receive Holy Communion when guilty of
one act of disobedience. When disappointments come your way, accept
them as penance for your sins and bear them patiently for Jesus' sake. For
your penance, recite the Seven Joys of the Blessed Virgin.
June 12, Feast ofCorpus Christi: Pray to Mary. Ask Her to obtain from
Her Son the grace of always praying with due fervor. In addition, think often
of Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament, whose feast we celebrate today. Be at
ease. For your penance, recite the Pange Lingua.
June 21, 1879, Vigil ofOur Celebration ofSt. Aloysius: Confess again
your past sins and make an act of contrition. Your penance is one Our
Father, Hail Mary, and Glory Be. Pray for me.
July 17, 1879, Last Day ofthe Forty Hours' Devotions: Iften or twelve
days after your last confession you are still without serious sin, go to
Communion tranquilly. Today· ask Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament to keep
you constantly in good health and promise that you will always use it for
God's greater glory, doing His will in all things. Say the Hail, Holy Queen
three times as your penance. Go in peace.
August 9, 1879: We are in the novena of the Virgin Mary's assumption
into heaven. Think of Her during these next few days and entrust yourself
to Her protection. Reflect that you are under the protection of not only a
merciful Mother, but also a most powerful and merciful Queen. At Her
assumption Mary was crowned Queen of heaven and earth by Her Divine
Son and made superior to all the saints. Think of all She can do for us.
Trust Her and you will see yourself growing in fervor and devotion. For
your penance say the Hail, Holy Queen three times with the invocation,
"Queen of Angels, pray for us." Go in peace and keep cheerful.
September 1879: At the retreat in Lanzo Don Bosco gave me the
following advice: "Reflect on your past; listen attentively to God's word;
make good resolutions to guide you throughout your future."
*For the original Italian see Memorie BiogroJiche de[ Beato Giovanni Bosco, Vol. 14, pp.
712ff. [Editor]
586
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Appendices
587
November 8, 1879: Today begins the month which prepares us for the
feast of the Immaculate Conception. The school year is not far advanced,
and so earnestly resolve to do your very best by entrusting everything you
do to Mary Immaculate. She will certainly help you in all your needs. For
your penance say once the De Profundis for the souls in purgatory. Go in
peace and God bless you.
November 30, 1879: We are in the novena of the Immaculate
Conception. Keep it as devoutly as you possibly can. Go to Communion
every day if you wish. Pray to Mary Immaculate, and ask Her to help you
in all you do. For your penance say three times, "O Mary, conceived
without original sin, pray for us." Go in peace, and God bless you.
May 14, 1880: It was good for you to recall the sins of your past life.
Now bear in mind that we are about to start the novena to Mary, Help of
Christians. Entrust yourself to Her. Try to honor Her during this novena
and have your boys do the same. She will particularly help you overcome
all temptations. For your penance, say one Hail Mary and repeat three
times the invocation, "Mother most pure, pray for us." Go in peace and
God bless you.
July 22, 1880: Today is the feast of St. Mary Magdalene. Though once
a great sinner, she turned a new leaf in life and never again strayed from
the right path. Pray to her that you may do the same. For your penance
say one Our Father and Hail Mary in her honor. In your act of contrition,
renew your sorrow for your past sins, especially sins of ... Go in peace
and God bless you.
August 8, 1880, Toward the End ofthe Retreat: Don Bosco greeted me
by name. "There now," he said, "we know each other. I shall pray that
you may make a good retreat and I'll do all I can to help you. You must
pray too and do your very best in preparing for your annual confession.
Don't bother too much about the little things; stick to the important ones.
Go in peace and God bless you.
August 13, 1880, Last Day of the Spiritual Retreat at San Benigno:
Confess once more the sins of your past life and then be at peace. Strive to
keep your good resolutions. Go in peace.
September 3, 1880: Three days after the San Benigno retreat, Don
Bosco said to a priest, "Bear in mind that a priest never goes to heaven or
hell alone."
August 27, 1881: At the beginning of the spiritual retreat at San
Benigno Don Bosco said to me, "Be at peace. From now on make it a
point to observe exactly even the smallest rules because they are the ones
that will lead us into paradise."
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588
THE BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS OF SAINT JOHN BOSCO
September 11, 1881: During the retreat at San Benigno Don Bosco told
me: "Confess again all your past sins and those you may have forgotten.
Make some good resolution. If you recall other faults or sins of omission,
acknowledge your guilt and steadfastly resolve to do your utmost to
correct yourself."
November 11, 1883: Don Bosco said to a newly ordained priest, "Now
that you have attained your goal, have but one concern, your ultimate
goal-a holy death. Start thinking about it now and don't wait for death
suddenly to overtake you."
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INDEX
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ABBREVIATIONS
D.B.
D.M.H.C.
E.H.D.
G.N.
M.H.C.
S.C.
S.S.
Don Bosco
Daughters of Mary, Help of Christians
Exercise for a Happy Death
Good Night
Mary, Help of Christians
Salesian Cooperators
Salesian Society
A
Acireale: benevolence of the bishop for
D.B., 83, 102; fruitless negotiations
about a Salesian house in, 240ff
Adversaries: D.B.'s amiability with,
38, 9 lf; D.B.'s a. in Rome, 345-348.
See also Gastaldi, Lawrence
Adversities: D.B's serenity in, 61-69,
82f, 100, 110-130
Ailments (D.B.'s): motion discomfort,
3; eyesight trouble, 3, 57f, 87f;
varicose veins, 324f. See also Sac-
rifice
Alassio: D.B's stopover on his way to
France, 2; site of annual conference
of St. Francis de Sales, 24-35;
D.B.'s recommendations to the boys,
33f; D.B.'s familiar meeting with
Mary Mazzarello and the Daughters
of M.H.C., 191
Albano: D.B.'s invitation to his Sale-
sians to see him in Rome, 59;
withdrawal from, 245 f
Albera, Paul, Fr.: mention of, 223,
240, 383, 493; biographical note,
559
Alimonda, Cajetan, Bishop: panegyric
of St. Francis de Sales at Alassio,
34; high esteem for D.B., 34f;
elevation to the cardinalate, 84;
D.B.'s appeal for help in obtaining
some privileges, 18 lf
Alumni: celebration of D.B.'s name
day in 1879, 102f; in 1880, 400-
405; ingratitude of some a., 229ff,
405f
Aneyros, Frederick, Archbishop: letters
to D.B., 220f, 518; letter from D.B.,
508f
Annecy: D.B.'s contribution to a
memorial to St. Francis de Sales,
261ff
Anticlericalism: of Italian government
officials against D.B.'s secondary
school at the Oratory, 100, 110,
116, 152, 154f
Argentina: government's esteem for the
Salesian missionaries, 221; civil ·war
in, 515ff
Ariccia: D.B.'s invitation to his Sale-
sians to see him in Rome, 59;
Salesians' withdrawal from, 246f
Artisans: D.B.'s concern for the
Oratory's a., 13f
Auteuil see Paris
Authorities, Civil: D.B.'s correspon-
dence with c.a. in defense of the
Oratory's secondary school, 62f,
11 ?ff, 121f, 129ff
B
Barberis, Julius, Fr.: letters from D.B.,
12f, 44, 316, 366f; mention of, 24,
26, 32, 80; director at San Benigno
Canavese, 252f, 299; biographical
note, 560f
Beaujour Society: president, 8; new
contract, 11; D.B.'s report to
591
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592
INDEX
the B.S. on his visit to La Navarre
and Saint-Cyr, 36; papal decoration
for the director of the, 285f
Beauvoir, Joseph, Fr.: pastor of the
mission at Viedma, 498; biographical
note, 561
Belmonte, Dominic, Fr.: mention of,
104, 325; director at Borgo San
Martino, 280; biographical note,
561
Benefactors: humorous incident at dinner
with, l 6f; letters from D.B. to, 35ff,
78f, IOlf, 107, 194f, 287f, 290ff,
367f, 370f, 391f, 444-447, 450;
outstanding b, 74f, 265, 370f; D.B.'s
way in seeking help from, 323f
Berto, Joachim, Fr.: in Rome with
D.B., 47, 59, 339f, 348, 350f, 354,
364f; D.B.'s spiritual monitor, 302f;
D.B.'s gratitude for, 364; biograph-
ical note, 562
Bianchi, Nicomedes: his part in the
shutdown of the Oratory secondary
school, 113ff
Biographies: D.B.'s directives about b.
of deceased Salesians, 299
Bilocation (D.B.'s): instance of, 552ff
Bishops and Archbishops: D.B's medi-
ation between the archbishop of
Bologna and the Italian government,
72ff
Blessings (D.B.'s): efficacy of, 17,
19, 21f, 37, 39f, 75, 77, 316-321,
550f; D.B.'s humility in not taking
credit for the efficacy of his b.,
325f, 331, 530-533
Bodrato, Francis, Fr.: provincial of
South America, 26, 298, 497, 508;
D.B.'s directive to write to Leo XIII
twice a year, 212; letters from D.B.,
509-512; serious illness and death,
526ff; biographical note, 562f
Bollettino Salesiano: a police house
search of the Oratory about the
printing of the, 417ff
Bologna (City): D.B.'s mediation be-
tween its archbishop and the Italian
government, 72ff; offer of a boys'
home to D.B., 73
Bologna, Joseph, Fr.: director at
Marseille, 5; difficulties with Canon
Guiol, 9f, 312ff, 478, 483; letters
from D.B., 99f, 343, 369, 388,
45 2f; preparing for the religious
persecution, 483ff; biographical note,
562f
Bonetti, John, Fr.: serious misunder-
standing with the cathedral's rector
in Chieri, 170ff; suspension from
hearing confessions, l 72f; appeal
to the Holy See, 174; local clergy's
support of, 175; unending appeals
and anguish, 176-179, 182-186;
appeal to the Pope, 187ff; another
false accusation against, 190; bio-
graphical note, 563
Borgatello, Maggiorino, Fr.: witness to
an important declaration of D.B.
at Lucca, 379f; biographical note,
563f
Borgo San Martino: planned with-
drawal of Salesian teachers from
the local municipal school, 280;
D.B.'s first conference to the local
Salesian cooperators, 428-433
Bourlot, Stephen, Fr.: mention of, 517;
biographical note, 564
Boys: enthusiasm at D.B.'s return
to the Oratory from journeys, 78;
D.B.'s concern about their conduct,
79; D.B.'s kind correction of a young
boy, 304f; letters to D.B. on his
name day, 398ff; D.B.'s dream about
the boys' spiritual condition, 437ff.
See also Dreams (D.B.'s), Predic-
tions (D.B.'s)
Branda, John Baptist, Fr.: letter from
D.B., 14
Brescia (City) see Pisogne
Bretto, Clement, Fr.: mention of, 304,
535; biographical note, 564
Brindisi: Salesians' withdrawal from
their recent foundation in, 25 6
Burglary: in D.B.'s residence in Rome,
352ff
c
Cagliero, John, Fr.: in France with
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INDEX
593
D.B., 2-23, 307-337; exploratory
tour of Italy and Sicily for new
Salesian houses, 31, 240f; encour-
aging report about his exploratory
tour of Italy, 83; defense of the
D.M.H.C. in Nizza Monferrato,
196f; witness to instantaneous cure
by D.B., 321; letter to Fr. Rua about
D.B.'s wonders in Marseille, 322f;
biographical note, 564f
Calumny: against D.B, 226-231; against
St. Leo's Oratory in Marseille, 482f
Caprioglio, Felix, Fr.: mention of, 517;
biographical note, 565f
Carhue (Patagonia): settlement in the
Pampas evangelized by Fr. Cos-
tamagna, 218f
Cartier, Louis, Fr.: mention of, 478;
biographical note, 566
Catania: exploratory visit by Fr. Cag-
liero for a girls' orphanage, 31;
benevolence of Sicilian bishop for
D.B., 83; fruitless attempts to open a
Salesian house in, 242
Catechesis: D.B.'s zeal for, 362, 428
Catholic Church see Church, Catholic
Cays, Charles, Fr.: D.B.'s esteem for,
14; biographical notes, 14, 566;
letters from D.B. to, 15, 259f;
admirable obedience, 37f; hard work
and difficulties in his work at Chal-
longes (France), 256-261
Ceccarelli, Peter, Msgr.: offer of a
prize for a book on St. Peter, 103,
105; D.B.'s request to the Pope for
an honorific title for, 359f
Ceria, Eugene, Fr.: Preface, xiii-xvi,
biographical note, 567
Cerruti, Francis, Fr.: mention of, 2,
104, 384, 486; provincial of Liguria,
25, 298; biographical note, 567
Challonges (France): opening of a
festive oratory and school, anti-
clerical opposition and eventual
closing, 256-261
Charisms: of Oratory boys, 48, 380
Charisms (D.B.'s): reading of con-
sciences, 22f, 86f, 333, 528, 550;
other charisms, 352, 528-533, 548-
552, 554; bilocation, 552ff. See also
Blessings (D.B.'s), Cures (D.B.'s),
Predictions (D.B.'s)
Charity (D.B.'s): in respecting national
customs, 3; a means to promote
vocations, 27; with adversaries, 126,
154, 422; toward wayward priests,
290f, 340f; rewards of, 378; toward
a hired murderer, 405; toward perse-
cuted religious, 426; toward the
D.M.H.C., 529
Chastity: recommended to Salesians in a
dream by D.B., 89; D.B.'s extreme
care to safeguard it, 325; a favorite
theme ofD.B., 434. See also Morality
Chieri: Archbishop Gastaldi's first
attempt to close the St. Theresa
Festive Oratory for girls, 172f; un-
lawful suspension of Fr. Bonetti,
l 72f; controversy about the death
and burial of a D.M.H.C., 186f;
popularity of the girls' festive
oratory, 195. See also Bonetti, John
Choele-Choel (Patagonia): settlement
on the left bank of the Rio Negri,
zeal of Fr. Costamagna, 219. See
also Patagonia
Church, Catholic: D.B.'s love of the,
169, 460f, 492. See also Popes
Church of the Sacred Heart (Rome):
remote planning, 455f; Leo XIII's
worldwide appeal to bishops for
contributions, 456; start of construc-
tion and early difficulties, 457f;
recourse to D .B. and his final accep-
tance to bring to completion the con-
struction of the, 459-474; appointment
of a Salesian pastor, 469-472; D.B.'s
reason for accepting to build the, 474
Cibrario, Nicholas: director at Valle-
crosia, 278; letters from D.B., 278,
336f
Circulars (D.B.'s): about a lottery, 2,
50; to Salesian cooperators, 2, 225f,
252, 289, 376f, 383f; for the promo-
tion of Letture Cattoliche, 301; to
pastors for referral of adult vocations,
302; to Salesian directors for finan-
cial help, 451 f
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INDEX
Coadjutor Brothers, Salesian: D.B.'s
circular to pastors for referral of
young men wishing to become modem
lay religious, 302
Comboni, Daniel, Bishop: pontifical
Mass at the Oratory on the feast of
M.H.C., 393; biographical note, 393f
Communion, Holy: and priestly or
religious vocations, 26; D.B.'s advice
about frequent c., 28f
Community Life: D.B.'s directive about
admitting outsiders to, 29
Conference of St. Francis de Sales:
at Alassio in 1879, 24-35; D.B.'s
brief report on his visit to southern
France, 25; D.B.'s talk on vocations,
26ff
Conferences (D.B.'s): to Salesian coop-
erators, 7, 34, 50f, 75, 94ff, 326-
330, 356f, 376-379, 383f, 390f,
427-433; on vocations, 26ff; to
Salesians on the growth of the S.S-.,
276
Confession: a man invariably com-
pelled to make his c. to D.B., 22;
and priestly or religious vocations,
26; D.B.'s norm about frequent c.,
28; a ministry D.B. never relin-
quished, 86; confession of an atheist,
3l 9f; a rope, symbol of confession,
438. See also Charisms (D.B.'s),
Confessors
Confessors: D.B.'s advice to Salesian
c., 27f; a young cleric's notes about
D.B.'s advice in confession, 586ff
Costamagna, James, Fr.: mention of,
100, 193, 229, 522; letters to D.B.,
193, 222; military chaplain during
an expedition into Patagonia, 218ff,
223; letters from D.B., 22lf, 519f,
523; appointed acting provincial in
Argentina, 518; biographical note,
568
Cremona: withdrawal of the Salesians
from, 254f
Cures (D.B.'s): various cures, 5, 40f,
315, 530f, 550f; not granted because
of lack of generosity, 8f; by D.B.
after his death, 37
Customs, Local: D.B.'s acceptance of
Le., 3f
D
Dalmazzo, Francis, Fr.: procurator
general of the S.S., 163, 186, 299ff;
first audience with Cardinal F errieri,
301, 347f; burglary and arson in his
residence, 352f; D.B.'s draft of
suggestions for the Pope, 362f; letters
from D.B., 466ff, 470f, 492, 514;
pastor of the Church of the Sacred
Heart in Rome, 469f; biographical
note, 568f
Damascus: five young men from D.
educated by the Salesians at Nice,
284
Daughters of Mary, Help of Christians:
message from D.B. to the, 13; possi-
bility of a girls' orphanage in
Cataria, 31; increasing membership
but poor health, 32; Holy See's
request for clarification about the,
162, 166ff; festive oratory for girls
at Chieri, 170-190; familiar meeting
with Mary Mazzarello and the
D.M.H.C. at Alassio, 191; transfer
of the motherhouse to Nizza Mon-
ferrato, 192; Fr. Costamagna's praise
of the, 193; fierce attacks against
D.B. and the D.M.H.C. for sheltering
a Jewish maiden seeking baptism,
198-208; co-founders of the mission
of Patagones, 497f; D.B.'s report
to Leo XIII about the work of the
D.M.H.C. in Patagonia, 503;
general chapter, 524; statistics, 525ff;
anecdotes about D.B.'s chance meet-
ings with, 528-533
Daughters of Mary, Help of Chris-
tians-Houses: new foundations in
1879-192, 248; 1880-525ff;
norms for new foundations, 192;
D.B.'s keepsakes to the D.M.H.C.
and their superiors at Nizza Mon-
ferrato, l 93f; hostility toward the
D.M.H.C. in Lu Monferrato, l 95f
Death: a reminder to D .B. that he too
was mortal, 90. See also Dreams
(D.B.'s), Predictions (D.B.'s)
Debts: D.B.'s trust in Divine Providence,
80f; D.B.'s dread of, 365
Demoniac Possession: D.B. and cases
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595
of, 42, 354f, 381f
Dinners: invitations to D.B. by dis-
tinguished prelates and laymen, 16f,
48, 333, 350f, 379f; D.B.'s witty
admonitions to priests at two separate
dinners, 439ff
Directors, Salesian: advice for, 27, 89,
281; the center of unity in our
houses, 28; copy of D.B. 's first
triennial report to the Holy See sent
to, 156; D.B.'s special strenna for,
293; circular to Salesian d. for finan-
cial help, 451 f
Divine Providence see Providence,
Divine
Dogliani, Joseph, Br.: musical compo-
sition on D.B.'s name day, lOOf;
D.B. 's fatherly gesture for, 1OOf;
biographical note, 569
Dreams (D.B.'s): a medicine for D.B.'s
poor sight, 87f; Youngsters Against
Warriors, 88f; Rain of Thorns and
Roses, 424ff; A Mysterious Banquet,
437ff; symbols in, 438f; Mary's
Mantle, 487f
Durando, Celestine, Fr.: mention of,
62, 77, 104, 116, 118, 128, 238,
240, 257, 266, 298, 542; explor-
atory tour of Italy and Sicily for
new Salesian houses, 31, 77, 240f;
trip to Rome in defense of the
Oratory secondary school, 128; letter
from D.B., 342; audience with Leo
XIII, 359; biographical note, 359f
E
Este: warm welcome to D.B. on his
stopover, 74f; D.B. meeting with
S.C., 75
Esteem for D.B.: by people at large,
39ff; by priests, 41f, 47; by Vatican
personnel, 48; by prelates and car-
dinals, 48; by the nobility, 50; by
government officials, 50
Exercise for a Happy Death: D.B.'s
request to the Holy See for a plenary
indulgence to be gained on the day of
the, 354; importance D.B. gave to
the, 408, 437
F
Fagnano, Joseph, Fr.: mention of, 101,
223; director of San Nicolas de los
Arroyos, 224; director of the mission
at Patagones, 497f; letter from D.B.,
52 lf: biographical note, 570f
Faith see Providence, Divine
Family Spirit: means to promote. 89;
an instance of, 308f
Fascie, Bartholomew, Fr.: mention of,
139; biographical note, 571
Fassio, Michael, Fr.: mention of, 519;
letter from D.B., 521; biographical
note, 57 lf
Ferrieri, Innocent, Cardinal: letters
from D.B., 163f; first audience to
Fr. Dalmazzo, 301, 347f; bias against
D.B., 345-348, 491 f
Finances: D.B.'s constant efforts to
provide for the Oratory's needs,
50, 70, 81f; D.B.'s prudent adminis-
stration, 81f, 85f; D.B.'s appeals to
ecclesiastical and civil authorities for
subsidies, 278f; D.B.'s fear of debts,
365
Florence: negotiations for opening a
Salesian hospice in, 71; D.B.'s stop-
over on his way to Turin from Rome,
71, 375f; urgent need to save young-
sters from Protestant influence, 375f
Forbearance see Patience
Foreign Missions see Missions, Foreign
France: D.B.'s visits to the Salesian
houses in, 1-23, 307-337, 386ff;
French pilgrims at the Oratory, 92ff;
D.B.'s prediction of a religious perse-
cution in, 296f; religious persecution
in, 475-493; D.B.'s timely instruc-
tions to the Salesian directors about
the forthcoming religious persecution,
477f, 481-487. See also Frejus,
Marseille, Navarre, Nice, Paris,
Saint-Cyr, Toulon
Francesia, John Baptist, Fr.: provincial
of Piedmont, 25; mention of, 104,
295, 298, 384; transfer from Varazze
to the Valsalice College, 280; bio-
graphical note, 572
Francis de Sales, St.: a look-alike man
handing a booklet to D.B. in a
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INDEX
dream, 88f; D.B.'s contribution for a
memorial to, 261 ff
Frejus: D.B.'s brief stops at, 4, 309
G
Gastaldi, Lawrence, Archbishop: unex-
pected friendly visits to the Oratory
and to the Valsalice College, 46f;
refusal to allow a bishop to pontificate
or preside at a solemn Mass at the
Oratory, 102; first attempt to close
the girls' festive oratory at Chieri,
170; Fr. Rua'sletterto, 171; unlawful
suspension of Fr. Bonetti from hear-
ing confessions, 172f; unusual con-
descension toward Salesian ordinands,
173f; Fr. Bonetti's appeal to the
Holy See, 174; D.B.'s report to
Cardinal Ferrieri about Fr. Bonetti's
suspension, 174f; Gastaldi's second
thoughts about Fr. Bonetti's suspen-
sion, 176ff, 188; short note of D.B.
to, 188; anonymous pamphlet defend-
ing Fr. Bonetti, 190; controversy
with D.B. about the publication of
accounts of miracles attributed to the
intercession of M.H.C., 410-417;
complaints to the Holy See about
D.B.'s delay in replying to an offer of
his, 419-423; complaints concerning
his unexpected visit to the Salesian
house in San Benigno, 423
Gazzetta de/ Popolo: D.B.'s letter in
defense of the Oratory's secondary
school, 133f
General Chapter see Salesian Society-
General Chapter
Ghivarello, Charles, Fr.: mention of,
24; director of Saint-Cyr orphanage,
298; biographical note, 572f
Girls: festive oratory for girls at
Chieri, 170-190
Good Nights, Salesian: 33f, 275f
Grosso, John Baptist, Fr.: mention of,
272; biographical note, 573
Guidazio, Peter, Fr.: mention of, 29,
229, 265; director at Montefiascone,
245; director at Randazzo, 267ff;
biographical note, 573f
Guiol, Clement, Fr.: coldness toward
D.B., 4; excessive demands of the
Salesians, 9f; D.B.'s magnanimity
toward, lOf, 311-314; letters from
D.B., 36f, 71f, 94, 285f, 288, 335,
349f, 360f, 385f, 478, 481; visit
to the Oratory, 284; D.B.'s concern
about maintaining friendly relations
with, 343, 348f
H
Health: D.B.'s poor h., 3; D.B.'s solici-
tude for the h. of his pupils, confreres,
D.M.H.C. and benefactors, 12, 15,
32, 191, 224, 511. See also Ail-
ments (D.B.'s)
Holy Childhood Association: D.B.
petitions for aid, 209, 212ff
Holy See: D.B.'s reports to about his
work to safeguard the faith in Italy
and about the financial needs of the
Salesian South American mission,
54; D.B.'s first triennial report
on the state of the S.S., 156-159;
observations made by the Holy See
and D.B.'s clarifications, 160-169;
request for further clarification
about the state of the S.S. and
D.B.'s reply, 164f
Hostility see Adversaries
Humility: instances of D.B.'s h., 82,
302f, '325f, 332, 336, 380, 440,
555
I
Immaculate Conception: deliverance
of a woman from demoniac vexa-
tions on the feast of the, 42
Isili (Sardinia): fruitless negotiations
about a Salesian house in, 236ff
J
Jesuits: D.B.'s offer of shelter, 476; first
victims of the religious persecution
in France, 496
Jewess: fierce attacks against D.B.
and the D.M.H.C. for sheltering a
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597
Jewish maiden seeking baptism, 198-
208
John Bosco, St.: health, 3, 57f, 87f,
324f; popularity, 5ff, 309, 330ff,
344f; heroic spirit of sacrifice, 32f;
generosity, 49; humility, 82, 302f,
325f, 332, 336, 380, 440, 555;
serenity, 354; attempts on his life,
405ff. See also Adversities, Blessings
(D.B.'s), Charisms (D.B.'s), Journeys
(D.B.'s)
Joseph, St.,: protection from accidents
and fulfillment of a vow, 271f
Journeys (D.B.'s): hardships, 1, 3,
17ff; to France, 1-23; to Rome,
46-60, 338-371; to Turin from Rome,
71-78; to Naples from Rome, 350[(
K
Kindness: of D.B. in correcting boys,
272, 304f. See also Charity
L
La Navarre see Navarre
La Spezia, short stopover by D.B.
on his way to and from Rome, 38,
382f; D.B.'s request to the Holy See
to subsidize his work at, 383
Lago, Angelo, Fr.: mention of, 87;
biographical note, 57 4
Lanzo: St. Joseph's protection in several
accidents and fulfillment of a vow,
27 lf; D.B.'s kindness in correcting
a boy, 272; memorandum on the
school's operation, 273f; glowing
praise of our school and of D.B.'s
system of education by the director
of correctional institutions in Turin,
274f; spiritual retreats in 1879, 275
Lazzero, Joseph, Fr.: mention of, 24,
78f, 253, 315; councillor of the
Superior Chapter, 298; biographical
note, 574
Lemoyne, John Baptist, Fr.: letter
from D.B., 13; director of the
D.M.-H.C. at Momese, 13; biograph-
ical note, 575
Leo XIII: D.B.'s petition for spiritual
favors and honorary titles, 54f; D.B.'s
audiences with, 55f, 355-360; D.B.'s
petitions on behalf of his foreign
missions, 209-212; letters from D.B.
to, 278, 500f, 512; subsidies for
D.B.'s works, 214, 278f; D.B.'s un-
founded fears about the Pope's feelings
toward him, 355; D.B.'s draft of
suggestions for, 362f; request to D.B.
to take over the construction of the
Church of the Sacred Heart, 461;
high praises for D.B., 480; D.B.'s
report on the Salesian missions,
504-508; D.B.'s petition for ordina-
tions outside the regular time, 512f
Letters (D.B.'s): to benefactors and
cooperators, 2, 16, 35f, 78f, lOlf,
106, 287f, 290ff, 304, 343, 367f,
370, 391f, 444-447, 450-453, 536f;
to Fr. Rua, 3, 43, 315, 366, 417; to
Fr. Barberis, 12f, 44, 316, 366f;
to Fr. Lemoyne, 13; to Fr. Branda,
14; to Fr. Cays, 15, 259f; to
Salesians, 36, 44, 99f, 223f, 278,
281, 336f, 342, 369, 384, 442ff,
448f; to Fr. Guiol, 36f, 7lf, 94,
285f, 288, 335, 349f, 360f, 385f,
478, 481; to government authorities,
62f, 117ff, 121f, 129ff, 273, 279f,
418f, 490; to priests and religious,
71f, 94, 124ff, 344, 368, 397, 453;
to upperclassmen at Borgo San
Martino, 90; to King Humbert I,
121 ; to newspapers in defense of the
Oratory's secondary school, 133f;
to Fr. Margotti, 136f; to Cardinal
Nina, 179f, 215, 300, 345, 422;
to Leo XIII, 209-212, 278, 500f,
512; to Fr. Costamagna, 221f, 519f,
523; to Fr. Ronchail, 282ff, 365f,
477f; to Fr. Durando, 342; to
people at large, 453f; to Fr.
Dalmazzo, 466ff, 470f, 492, 514;
to Archbishop Aneyros, 508f; to Fr.
Bodrato, 509-512; to Fr. Vespignani,
520f; to Fr. Fassio, 521; to Fr.
Fagnano, 521f
Letture Cattoliche: D.B.'s promotion
of, 301
Lotteries: of paintings in 1878-79, 2,
106. See also Finances
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INDEX
Lu Monferrato: hostility toward the
D.M.H.C., 195f
Lucca: warm welcome to D.B., 39,
376; great esteem for D.B., 40f;
progress of the festive oratory, 42f;
D.B.'s conference to the S.C., 376-
379
M
Magliano: D.B.'s visits to, 58, 374f;
Card. Bilio's praise of the seminary-
boarding school at, 281 f
Magnaminity: instances of D.B.'s m.,
4t lOt 79t 311-314
Margotti, James, Fr.: letter from D.B.,
136f. See also Unita Cattolica
Marenco, John, Fr.: director at Lucca,
39f, 376, 381; biographical footnote,
575f
Marseille: cold reception and then
enthusiasm for D.B., 4-7, 330ff;
D.B.'s conference to the S.C., 7,
326-330; expansion of the Salesian
school, 7f, 483ff; problems in the
relationship of the Salesians to
St. Joseph's parish, 9ff, 311-314,
345; D.B.'s request to the Italian
consul for a government subsidy,
83; progress in the construction
of a new wing at St. Leo's Festive
Oratory, 284f; instantaneous cure by
D.B., 314; financial needs of St.
Leo's Oratory, 332f; D.B.'s timely
instructions to safeguard his houses
from the religious persecution, 481 f,
489; two traitors at St. Leo's, 482f;
Salesians ordered to vacate their
house, 483f; D.B.'s assurance that
Salesians would not be evicted, 485,
487; D.B.'s dream about the Blessed
Virgin's protection of St. Leo's Ora-
tory, 487f; D.B.'s grief at the Holy
See's misinterpretation of his clarifi-
cations about a Salesian novitiate
in, 491ff; D.B.'s prediction about
St. Leo's future expansion, 549f
Mary, Blessed Virgin: D.B.'s trust in
the help of, 6, 75, 302, 487f;
prediction for the S.S., 488. See
also Mary, Help of Christians
Mary, Blessed Virgin-Immaculate
Conception see Immaculate Concep-
tion
Mary, Help of Christians: cures through
the intercession of, 75; French pil-
grims at the Oratory on the first
day of the novena, 92f; D.B.'s
promotion of the novena to M.H.C.,
302; feast of M.H.C. in 1879, 99;
in 1880, 390-398; controversy with
Archbishop Gastaldi about the publi-
cation of accounts of miracles attrib-
uted to the intercession of, 410-417
Mary Mazzarello, St.: meeting with
Don Bosco at Sampierdarena, 191;
D.B.'s familiar meeting with Mary
Mazzarello and the D.M.H.C. at
Alassio, 191; sorrowful departure
from Momese, 192; letter to the
D.M.H.C. at Las Piedras, Uruguay,
192f; reelection as Mother General,
526
Mediocrity: D.B.'s handling of mediocre
young Salesian, 80
Meditation: importance of, 437
Milan: D.B.'s four-day stay in, 77;
efficacy of D.B.'s blessing, 77;
futile offer of a boarding school
to D.B., 77f
Milanesio, Dominic, Fr.: apostolic
explorations in Patagonia, 498f;
biographical note, 576
Missionaries, Salesian: advice about
choosing m., 89, 225; no expedition
of m. in 1879, 209; zealous work
of m. in Patagonia, 218f, 223, 499;
enthusiasm for D.B.'s letters, 222f
Missions, Foreign: D.B.'s report to the
Congregation for the Propagation of
the Faith, 54; D.B.'s petition to
Leo XIII on behalf of his f.m.,
209-212
Modena: first self-organized meeting of
S.C., 75ff; fruitless negotiations about
a Salesian house in, 235f
Monateri, Joseph, Fr.: D.B.'s emissary
in Rome to negotiate about a Salesian
house, 242f; director at Albano,
245f; director at Varazze, 280f;
letters from D.B., 281, 384, 443;
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599
biographical note, 576
Montefiascone: short-lived new founda-
tion, 244f
Monterotondo (Rome): fruitless negoti-
ations about a Salesian house in,
240
Morality: a matter of life and death
for the S.S., 437; D.B.'s promise
to send a letter dealing with the
chief safeguards of, 43 7; earnestly
recommended by D.B. to Salesian
pupils, 521
Moreno, Louis, Bishop: opposition to
D.B.'s planned foundation in San
Benigno Canavese, 249f
Mornese: transfer of the sisters' mother-
house to Nizza Monferrato, 192. See
also Daughters of Mary, Help of
Christians, Mary Mazzarello
Murder: attempt to murder D.B., 405ff
N
Nai, Louis, Fr.: biographical note,
576f
Name Day (D.B.'s): the Oratory's
celebration in 1879, IOOf; in 1880,
398-407
Naples: D.B.'s trip to N. from Rome
to discuss the possibility of opening
a Salesian house, 350ff
Navarre, La: D.B.'s visits, l 9f, 309f;
hopes about its future, 31; D.B.'s
report to the Beaujour Society, 36
Nationalism: D.B.'s efforts to dispel
any fear of n. in the S.S., 3f
Newspapers: comments about the clos-
ing of the Oratory's secondary school,
120, 122f, 128, 135-140; calumnies
against D.B. and rebuttals, 226-233
Nice: D.B.'s visits to, 2f, 20ff, 307ff;
efficacy of D.B.'s blessing, 2lf; a
sudden conversion and reading of
hearts, 22f; letters from D.B. to the
director at, 282ff; financial needs of
St. Pierre's Hospice, 332f; generosity
of benefactors, 333ff
Nina, Lawrence, Cardinal: audiences
to D.B., 46, 48f, 339; cardinal
protector of the S.S., 55ff, 182;
D.B.'s request for the renewal of
some privileges, l 79f; D.B.'s report
about Archbishop Gastaldi's hostility
toward the S.S., 180f; letters from
D.B., l 79f, 215, 345, 422, 543ff;
letters to D.B., 421, 423
Nizza Monferrato: transfer of sisters'
motherhouse from Mornese to, 192;
D.B.'s visits to, 193f; hostility
toward the D.M.H.C., 196-199;
General Chapter, 524
Nosegays (D.B.'s): for the 1879
Christmas novena, 292
Novenas: Christmas novena, 1879,
292; D.B.'s promotion of the
novena to M.H.C., 302
Novices: D.B.'s concern about, 12f;
D.B.'s way of dealing with a quick-
tempered novice, 79f; advice to and
about n. in a dream, 89; summer
vacation of clerical novices at San
Benigno Canavese in 1878-79, 253;
relocation of the 1878-79 novices
and clothing day ceremony at San
Benigno Canavese, 254. See also
Novitiate
Novitiate: Holy See's request for clarifi-
ciations about the sta~ of the n. and
D.B.'s answer, 160, 164; D.B.'s plan
to move the n. to San Benigno
Canavese, 250ff; relocation of the
n. to San Benigno Canavese, 254;
D.B.'s practical norms for admission
to the, 435f; D.B.'s grief at the Holy
See's misinterpretation of his clarifi-
cations about a n. in Marseille,
49lff. See also Novices
0
Obedience: admirable o. of Count
Cays, 37f; recommended to novices
in a dream, 89, 408f
Oddenino, Anthony, Fr.: rector of the
Chieri cathedral, 170; animosity
toward the Salesians and serious
misunderstanding with Fr. Bonetti,
17lf
Oratory (Valdocco): unexpected friendly
visit from Archbishop Gastaldi, 46f;
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INDEX
D.B.'s constant struggles to provide
for its needs, 50, 70, 81, 289,
451 f; government harassment of its
secondary school, 61-69, 108-155;
D.B.'s letters and reports to govern-
ment officials, 62ff, I I 7ff, 121f,
129f; enthusiastic "Welcome Back"
to D.B. after long absences, 49, 70,
78; reorganization of its administra-
tion, 85f; visits by French pilgrims,
92ff, 386ff; celebrations of the feast
of M.H.C., 99, 390-398; decree
shutting down the secondary school,
100, 110; celebrations of D.B.'s
name day, 1879-IOOf; 1880-398-
407; D.B.'s memorandum to the
prefect of the province and to others,
I 10ff; D.B.'s conciliatory meeting
with the provincial school board,
I I 3ff; D.B.'s attempts to delay the
school's closing, 116-119, 121f, 129f;
Unita Cattolica's comment on the
closing of the Oratory's secondary
school, 120; newspapers' comments
about the closing of the Oratory's
secondary school, I 22f; charges and
countercharges, 123-127, 131 ff;
D.B.'s reliance on the boys' prayers,
291; D.B.'s prediction about two
deaths at the, 315f; attempt on
D.B.'s life, 405ff; purchase of land
for expansion of the, 407; police
house search in connection with the
printing of the Bollettino Salesiano,
417ff
Outsiders: D.B.'s directive about, 29;
an outsider admitted to the Oratory
and turning into an informer against
D.B., 231
Osservatore Romano: defense of the
Oratory's secondary school, 136
p
Paraguay: plan to send missionaries to,
214f
Paris: signing of agreement about an
orphanage in Auteuil, 11 f; end of
negotiations about Auteuil, 94
Patag6nes: history of, 220; progress
of the mission at, 496ff
Patagonia: first contact with the
Indians on their own lands, 216-220;
military expeditions into, 21 7; govern-
ments's invitation to have Salesian
priests as army chaplains, 218ff;
spiritual harvest, 223; Fr. Rua's
report to the Salesians about our
missions in Patagonia, 225; D.B.'s
report to the S.C., 225f; beginning of
the real missionary work in, 494-
523; history of the Patagones and
Viedma missions, 496-499; four
D.M.H.C. accompanying the Sale-
sian missionaries, 497f; D.B.'s efforts
to have an apostolic vicariate erected
in, 499-511. See also Carhue,
Choele-Choel, Patag6nes, Viedma
Patience: instances of D.B.'s p., 18,
80; D.B.'s special strenna for direc-
tors, 293
Pavia, Joseph, Fr.: mention of, 407;
biographical note, 577
Perrot, Peter, Fr.: mention of, 18;
director at La Navarre, 309; biograph-
ical note, 576f
Persecution, Religious: D.B.'s prediction
about a religious persecution in
France, 296f; D.B.'s opinion on,
337; in France, 475-493; D.B.'s
offer of shelter to the Jesuits during
the persecution in France, 476
Peter, St.: D.B. winner of a contest for
a biography of, 103-106
Peter's Pence: donation from a French
gentleman through D.B., 340
Piccollo, Francis, Fr.: mention of, 59;
biographical note, 577f
Piscetta, Louis, Fr.: mention of, 550;
biographical note, 578
Pisogne: fruitless negotiations about a
Salesian house in, 238f
Pius IX: personal purchase of land for
the future Church of the Sacred
Heart of Jesus in Rome, 456
Popes: D.B.'s staunch loyalty to the,
103-106, 135, 212, 232
Possession, Demoniac see Demoniac
Possession
Poverty (Virtue): D.B.'s love of
personal poverty, 300f, 307, 434f
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601
Prayer: D.B.'s spirit of, xiv; efficacy of,
378, 427. See also Prayers
Prayers: D.B.'s reliance on his sons'
p., 3, 11, 291; trust in D.B.'s p., 40,
302, 306
Predictions (D.B.'s): about a woman
suffering from demoniac vexations,
42; to sisters, 293ff, 527, 530ff;
to Salesians, 295ff; about deaths,
315f, 372, 546f; about the end of a
nun's illness, 320; to a young postulant
about her studies, 321f; to a prej-
udiced boy about his future priestly
vocation, 375; about the future of St.
Leo's Oratory, 483ff, 549f; of a long
life, 547f
Preventive System of Education: neces-
sity of total control of a house for
the success of the, 1O; success of
D.B.'s system at Randazzo, 268;
glowing praise of the p.s. in a
magazine, 274f; D.B.'s exhortation
to alumni priests about the appli-
cation of the, 402ff
Priests: D.B.'s aid to wayward priests,
290f, 340f; D.B.'s concern about
keeping friendly relations with, 343,
348f; deep impression made by D.B.
on a priest, 396f
Privileges (Canon Law): D.B.'s requests
for the renewal of some privileges,
54f, 158, 179f, 359
Profession, Religious: excerpt from a
sermon by D .B. after a religious
profession, 276f. See also Vows
Protestants: D.B.'s work in stemming
Protestant inroads in Italy, 53f;
Protestant efforts to drive the
Salesians out of Vallecrosia, 277
Providence, Divine: D.B.'s unlimited
trust in, xivf, 80f, 289, 461, 464,
545, 555
Provinces, Salesian see Salesian Society
-Provinces
Provincials: appointment of new p., 25f
Purity see Chastity
R
Rabagliati, Evasius, Fr.: biographical
note, 578
Randazzo: benevolence of the bishop
for D.B., 83; opening of a Salesian
house at, 264-270; success of D.B.'s
system of education, 268
Religious Persecution see Persecution,
Religious
Religious Profession see Profession,
Religious
Retreats: at Lanzo in 1879, 275;
D.B.'s abolition of triennial vows
in 1879, 275f; D.B.'s comments
about temperance at the second
retreat in Lanzo in 1879, 277
Rinaldi, Philip: mention of, 15, 25 4;
reminiscences about D.B.'s love of
personal poverty, 435; biographical
note, 579
Rocca, Angelo, Fr.: director at La
Spezia, 38, 382; biographical note,
579f
Rocca, Louis, Fr.: mention of, 2, 26,
304; biographical note, 580
Rome: D.B.'s trip to Rome in 1879
at the request of Leo XIII, 46-60;
D.B.'s audience with Cardinal Nina,
46, 48f, 339; D.B.'s conference to
the local S.C., 50f; prospects for the
opening of a Salesian house in, 51 f;
advice to D .B. in a dream about
opening houses in Rome, 90; fruit-
less negotiations for St. Michael's
Hospice and a technical school,
242ff; D.B.'s activities in March
and April 1880, 338f, 354-373;
burglary and fire in D.B.'s residence,
352f; departure from, 371
Ronchail, Joseph, Fr.: mention of, 3,
17, 24, 307ff, 383; letters from D.B.,
282ff, 365f, 477f; witness to D.B.'s
humility, 336; biographical note,
580
Rossi, Joseph, Br.: mention of, 307;
biographical note, 580
Rota, Peter, Fr.: mention of, 296;
biographical note, 581
Rules: advice to directors about pro-
moting the obsrvance of the, 89,
511
Rua, Michael, Fr.: D.B.'s reliance on,
1, 70f; letters from D.B., 3, 43,
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INDEX
315, 366, 417; substituting for D.B.
for the first time in giving a con-
ference to Salesians at Alassio, 35;
D.B.'s recommendation to trust in
Divine Providence, 80f; letter to
Archbishop Gastaldi about St.
Theresa's Festive Oratory in Chieri,
171; report on D.B.'s behalf about
our missions in Patagonia, 225;
substituting for D.B. in Marseille,
480; biographical note, 58 lf
s
Sacraments: the source of priestly
and religious vocations, 26; D.B.'s
norms as regards the frequent recep-
tion of the, 28f. See also Commu-
nion, Holy; Confession
Sacred Heart Church see Church of
the Sacred Heart
Saint-Cyr: D.B.'s visits to, 17, 19f;
D.B.'s hopes about, 31; D.B.'s report
to the Beaujour Society about his
visit to, 36; arrival of the D.M.H.C.,
248
St. Leo's Festive Oratory see Marseille
St. Michael's Hospice see Rome
St. Theresa's Festive Oratory see
Chieri
Sala, Anthony, Fr.: mention of, 74;
biographical note, 582
Salesian Congregation see Salesian
Society
Salesian Cooperators: D.B.'s letters to
benefactors and to cooperators, 2,
16, 35f, 78f, lOlf, 106, 287ff, 290ff,
304, 343, 367f, 370, 391f, 444-447,
450-453, 536f; D.B.'s conferences
to, 7, 34, 50f, 75, 94ff, 326-330,
356f, 376-379, 383f, 390f, 427-433;
first self-organized meeting of S.C. at
Modena, 96ff. See also Circulars
(D.B.'s)
Salesian Schools: D.B.'s difficulties
concerning the certification of teachers,
61-69; D.B.'s memorandum to Italy's
premier, 65f; Salesian pupils' good
results at state examinations, 68;
a newspaper's defense of the Oratory
secondary school, 69; Italian laws
about public and private secondary
education and disagreement over
their interpretation, l 08ff; order to
shut down the Oratory's secondary
school, l1 O; D.B.'s memorandum
to the prefect of the province and
to other influential people, 11Off;
D.B.'s conciliatory meeting with
school board member, l 13ff; crux
of the problem: lack of certified
teachers, 115; D.B.'s attempts to
delay the closing of the secondary
school, 116-119, 121f, 129f, 140-
151; newspapers' comments on the
closing of the Oratory's secondary
school, 120, 122f, 130; charges
and countercharges, 123-127, 131ff;
Holy See's request for clarification
about the status of Salesian schools
and D.B.'s answer, 161f; former
pupil turning against D.B., 229ff
Salesian Society: Cardinal Nina, secre-
tary of state and cardinal P.rotector
of the S.S., 55f; conditions for its
growth and long life, 89; first triennial
report to the Holy See on the state of
the, 156-169; Holy See's disapproval
of the printing of the triennial report,
162f; conference of D.B. on the
growth of the S.S., 276; statistics in
1880, 298f; doubts about the stability
of the S.S., 468f; prediction of the
Blessed Virgin for the S.S., 488
Salesian Society-Constitutions: D.B.'s
exhortation for the exact observance
of the constitutions, 409
Salesian Society-General Chapter: a
delay of the second petition to the
Holy See for the postponement of the
second general chapter, 26; second
general chapter, 407ff
Salesian Society-Houses; prospects
for the opening of a Salesian house
in Rome, 51ff; advice to D.B. in a
dream about the opening of houses
in Rome, 90; D.B.'s three phases in
the fruitless negotiations for the
opening of new houses, 234; un-
realized new foundation in 1879,
235-247; opening of new houses in
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INDEX
603
1879, 248-270; withdrawal from
three houses, 254-261; refused, de-
layed or hardly begun established
new houses, 534-545
Salesian Society-Privileges see Priv-
ileges (Canon Law)
Salesian Society-Provinces: erect10n
of new p. and appointment of provin-
cials, 25f; Holy See's request for
clarification about the provinces of
the S.S., 161, 164f
Salesians: chastity recommended to
Salesians in a dream, 89; suggestions
for fostering vocations, 89; D.B.'s
directives about biographies of de-
ceased S., 299; honored by the
National Organization of Catholic
Conventions, 374
Salesians, Lay see Coadjutor Brothers
Sampierdarena: D.B.'s stopovers at, 2,
339, 383f; conference to S.C., 383f
San Benigno Canavese: opening of a
day and evening school and youth
center at a former abbey, 248, 251 f;
abbey's history, 248f; opposition of
the local bishop, 249f; relocation
of the novitiate to, 254; Gastaldi's
complaint to D.B. about his visit to,
423f; D.B.'s first conference to the
local Salesian cooperators, 427f;
D.B.'s circular to S.C. about, 252
San Nicolas de los Arroyos: decline
in the pupils' enrollment and its
cause, 224
Santo Domingo: request for Salesian
missionaries, 216
Sardinia see Isili
Schools, Salesian see Salesian Schools
Sacrifice: D.B.'s spirit of, 4f, 32f,
330
Sicily: benevolence of several bishops
toward D.B., 83. See also Acireale,
Catania, Randazzo
Sigismondi, Alexander: his family's de-
votedness to D.B., 15; D.B.'s letter
to the wife of, 16
Sisters, Religious: Holy See's request
for clarifications about the Salesian
priestly ministry to sisters, 161, 166
Society for the Propagation of the
Faith: D.B. petitions for aid, 209,
213
Society of Jesus see Jesuits
Sorbone, Caroline: D.B.'s predictions
to, 527f
Souls: D.B.'s zeal for the salvation of,
377f, 428, 432
Spiritual Retreats see Retreats
Strenna: for 1880, 293
Superiors: advice to s. about the right
spirit in their houses, 89
T
Temperance: one of the two pillars
of the S.S., 89; D.B.'s comments in
a talk at the second spiritual retreat
at Lanzo in 1879, 277
Tomatis, Dominic, Fr.: director at San
Nicolas de los Arroyos, 223; letter
from D.B., 223f
Trione, Stephen, Fr.: mention of, 246,
269; biographical note, 583
Toulon: D.B.'s stopovers at, 17, 310f
u
Unia, Michael, Fr.: mention of, 254;
biographical note, 583f
Unita Cattolica: sponsor of a contest
for a biography of St. Peter and one
of St. Paul, 103-106; comment
on the closing of the Oratory secon-
dary school, 120, 122, 127; articles
on the celebration of the feast of
M.H.C, 394f
v
Vallecrosia: Protestant efforts to drive
the Salesians out of, 277; D.B.'s
plans for expansion, 277f; laying of
the cornerstone of the Church of
M.H.C., 338f
Valsalice College: friendly visit from
Archbishop Gastaldi, 47; inauguration
of a bird museum, 120
Veronesi, Moses, Fr.: mention of, 541;
biographical note, 584f
Vespignani, Joseph, Fr.: mention of,
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604
INDEX
517; letter from D.B., 520f; bio-
graphical note, 585
Viedma: progress of the Salesian mis-
sion at, 498
Vocations (Priestly and Religious):
D.B.'s conference on, 26ff; means to
foster vocations, 89; D.B.'s advice
to upperclassmen at Borgo San
Martino, 90; D.B. accused of moral
pressure on young men, 229, 232f;
D.B.'s circular to pastors for referral
of adult vocations, 302. See also
Predictions (D.B.'s)
Vocations, Native: recommendation to
foster native v. in the foreign missions,
89
Vocations, Salesian: means for fostering
Salesian v., 89
Vows: D.B.'s view about triennial
vows, 29f, 275f; advice to D.B.
about admitting candidates to the
novitiate and to religious profession,
89; D.B.'s policy in admitting novices
to the novitiate and to vows, 435f
w
Waldensians: conversion of a young
Waldensian at the Oratory and the
Protestants' anger, 95f
Work: one of the two pillars of the S.S.,
89; D.B.'s recommendation to work
without harming one's health, 511;
D.B.'s dedication to, xiii
z
Zeal (D.B.'s): in guiding the Salesians
to God, xv; efforts to instill zeal for
the salvation of souls, 377f, 428,
432f