DAEJEON:
2 December
2013
-- Advent is
a time of promise. What better day, then,
than the first Sunday in Advent for 39 new Salesian
Cooperators to make
their Promise after a solid three-year preparation.
“As
a professor at the Catholic university, after joining the
Salesian
Cooperators I have been helped so much by the spirit of Don
Bosco in my
educational activity. I now look at the students individually
with the
heart of Don Bosco, and can love and help them. Only one thing
I
regret, and that is that if I had known Don Bosco’s love for
the young
earlier when our children were younger it would have benn much
better
for my home education." Song Kyeongyae (Annunciata is her
Christian
name) who made her Promise today.
"Because most of my employees are young people, Don Bosco’s
love for
youth has a good effect on the way we manage our company.
Previously I
considered them merely to be part of the employer-employee
relationship. But belonging to the formation process for the
SCs, and
learning about Don Bosco’s spirit, the idea of family became
prominent
for me, so like him I am trying to help them so they can live
a better
life. The atmosphere of the work place has improved, become
more
familiar and naturally this has consequences in terms of
better
productivity for the company.” These were the words of Na
Jeongseop
(Joseph) who also made his Promise today after a three-year
preparation. Joseph and Annunciata are a couple and both of
them are
members of the Information-Culture Centre’s team at the Don
Bosco Youth
Centre in Seoul.
The Salesian Cooperators in Korea are in a phase of vigorous
growth.
There are now 514 members in 38 Centres across the country,
and are
increasing at a rate of somewhere between 2~30 new promises
per year in
each Centre. The 39 who have just made their Promise represent
the
largest group that have done so.
It has not just been about numbers, though. The Province
introduced a
'Cooperator’s formation school’ two years ago — a monthly
special
conference by sdbs in Seoul and Gwangju, in order to
strengthen the
spiritual life of the Promised as well as for those intending
to make
their Promise.
In particular, at the beginning of the liturgical year, on the
first
Sunday of Advent there is a ceremony for mena dn women making
their new
Promise, followed by a two-day retreat for all Cooperators.
This year,
about 170 members gathered at Daejeon, Salesian Youth Centre
from all
over the country, making their reflection on the past year and
preparing a more reasonable attitude for society as
Cooperators in Don
Bosco’s spirit. Fr Stephen Yang, the national delegate,
emphasised, in
an address with the title ‘Don Bosco’s spirituality’, how
society
nowadays desperately needs Don Bosco’s spiritual experience.
He spoje
of the difficulties especially in exercising preventive
activity in the
digital field where the educator is inevitably an ‘immigrant’.
The
President of the National Council, Mr Henry Wee also gave
testimony to
his experience as a Cooperator in school. He has just retired
after 40
years teaching. he spoke of ‘practising Don Bosco’s
spirituality’.
“Today we have heard the word ‘Wake up and wait’ in the
proclamation of
the Gospel. You are now members of the ‘Salesian Family’ by
the Promise
you have just made before the cross. To the Salesian, ‘wake up
and
wait’ means none other than living a life faithful to the ‘Da
mihi
animas cetera tolle’ for the salvation of souls in Don Bosco’s
spirit.
Starting from your family and then the world around you, give
more
attention to the poor, care of the young in need, and in a
variety of
ways accompany their journey of growth” the Provincial, Fr
Stephen Nam
stressed in his homily. He once again emphasised that it is
God's
special blessing on the Salesian Family in Korea by giving a
large
number of new SC members. He asked all present to pray and be
active in
encouraging new vocations for all Salesian Family Groups,
specially
those of Consecrated life.
