austraLasia #2181


A combined Feast of importance for the Congregation

ROME: 24th June 2008 --  24th June each year is a double feast day, for reasons possibly only partly understood by many.  It is the feast day of the Rector Major (in his role as successor of Don Bosco rather than who it happenes to be at any particular moment), and also of the Past Pupils of Don Bosco.
    Which brings us to a curious point.  24th June is the Feast of St John the Baptist.  John Melchior Bosco, if one goes to the details contained at St Andrew's Parish Church in Castenuovo (now C. Don Bosco, but in his time, C. d'Asti) was baptised on 17th August in the parish church at Castelnuovo d'Asti but he was named for John the Evangelist rather than John the Baptist.  So how it is that the Rector Major's Feast Day is held on 24th June?
    Here is where the Past Pupils of Don Bosco come in - and their origins go back to the Oratory. They were 'Don Bosco's boys', after all. It was they who made the mistake, as kids at the Oratory wanting to do something for what they thought was their Father's name day.  Don Bosco was hardly one to put them out or deny a good opportunity for festivity, especially since this was a 'summer' feast and the other one would not only have been winter time but just two days after Christmas!
    And it all fits in nicely these days, since one could hardly hold the feast day of a man called Pascual on 24th June either!  It has ceased to be any kind of 'name day' and, instead, a feast of gratitude - which it really was anyway in that original Oratory setting.
So - while saying 'happy feast day' to our Rector Major - let's not also forget that it is, appropriately, also the feastday of the Past Pupils of Don Bosco. Happy feast day to them too!

Click here to comment on this item. You will need to enter 20eao02 when asked for a password.
  _________________
 AustraLasia is an email service for the Salesian Family of Asia Pacific.  It also functions as an agency for ANS based in Rome.  For queries please contact admin@bosconet.aust.com . Use Bosconet-wiki to be interactive. RSS feeds - just go to Bosconet, click on austraLasia 2008 in the sidebar. You will see the RSS orange icon in your browser address bar - add it from there.  Avail yourself of the Salesian Digital Library at at http://sdl.sdb.org

Title: australasia 2181
Subject and key words: SDB General RM Feastday, Past Pupils
Date (year): 2008
ID: 2000-2099|2181