HONG KONG: 15 May 2014
-- How
to
receive and how to pass on a spiritual heritage.
This
was what principals and leaders from Salesian schools in
China Province
tackled recently at a 'spiritual camp', involving Salesians
and lay
people, with special emphasis on training the laity to pass
on the
Salesian inheritance.
At the end of a 2 day spiritual camp for Salesian Schools’
supervisors
and principals, they have equipped themselves with better
understanding
of Don Bosco’s spiritual experience and with what they could
pass on to
their teachers and students.
Through different activities, they discovered that the
inheritance was
not an easy task. Focusing on how to receive the experience
and how to
pass on the experience accurately and appropriately involved
concentration, listening and considerations. Being leaders of
Salesian
schools, they need to have better understanding of Don Bosco’s
spiritual experience, to assess what will be the best way to
pass it on
to the teachers and students, and to consider how much they
can absorb
and which parts are useful to them.
“I come so that they might have life and have it more
abundantly.”
(John 10:10). Jesus came not only to give life but to give
more
abundant life. This is the same for all the supervisors and
principals,
how do they give life and more abundant life to the teachers
and
students in their schools? As principals of the schools, they
have to
lead the school by certain religious values and by giving
Jesus to the
students. This is the spirituality of Don Bosco and his love
for the
young especially those who are poor and needy. The principals
have to
be the lay Salesians and to play the role of the Salesian
confreres in
the school setting.
One of the principals said that although she came alone, she
would not
feel lonely as there was a Salesian family. The members shared
the same
mission which was a grace from God instead of a job. She felt
so at
home to be there. Another principal shared that he nearly
forgot his
happiness of being related to Jesus. He would remind himself
and pass
on this experience to his colleagues in school. That would be
a true
transmission of Salesian spiritual experience. Another
principal said
that one of the priests reminded him that the schools would
rely on lay
principals as the Salesian confreres were getting old.
Moreover, there
were other responsibilities that Salesians needed to take up.
Then he
understood that this was the spiritual inheritance, the
Salesian
mission in the schools was handed on from Salesians to lay
cooperators.
