CHAPTER ONE

SALESIAN FORMATION IN THE PRESENT-DAY CIRCUMSTANCES.

THE RATIO

1.1VOCATION AND FORMATION: A GIFT TO BE WELCOMED AND FOSTERED

1.The Salesian vocation is a gift of God rooted in baptism. It is a call to become, like Don Bosco, disciples of Christ and to form communities bearing witness to the Good Shepherd’s love for the young. “We respond to this call by committing ourselves to an adequate ongoing formation, for which the Lord daily gives us his grace.”¹ By responding faithfully to his vocation each Salesian finds his path to complete fulfilment in Christ and his way to holiness.²

“Jesus called his Apostles individually to be with him, and to be sent forth to preach the Gospel. Patiently and lovingly he prepared them and gave them the Holy Spirit to guide them into the fullness of Truth. He calls us too to live out in the Church our Founder’s project as apostles of the young.”³

What the first disciples experienced in their encounter with Jesus and the road they trod as they shared his life, accepted the mystery of his person, embraced the cause of his Kingdom and espoused the evangelical style of life he proposed are also the experience of every Salesian and the path he follows.

Formation is the joyful acceptance of the gift of one’s vocation and its actualization at every moment of one’s life and in every situation. Formation is a grace of the Spirit, a personal attitude, an education for life.

1.2WITH OUR GAZE ON DON BOSCO, FOUNDER AND EDUCATOR, AND ON THE REALITY OF THE CONGREGATION

2.Don Bosco was a true disciple of Christ. He was deeply a “man of God, filled with the gifts of the Holy Spirit and living as seeing him who is invisible”.⁴ Zeal for the Kingdom, service of the Church, and response to the needs of the times – these were the typical features of his life, in which he perceived the presence and support of Mary Immaculate, Help of Christians.

Young people and their salvation were his vocation, his mission and his constant field of vision. For their sake the Spirit bestowed on him the heart of a father and teacher, capable of total self-giving: “I have promised God that I would give of myself to my last breath for my poor boys.”⁵ In his predilection for the young, especially the poorest among them, in his concern for the working-classes and in his missionary undertaking he found his life’s identity.

Don Bosco lived this vocation joyfully, aware that the gift he had received was to be communicated to others. He was able at every moment to evoke participation and sharing in responsibility.⁶ Many people shared his spirit and his mission, living them out in a wide range of vocations. In this way, the Salesian charism became from its beginning a community, a family, a movement.⁷

Don Bosco the Founder wanted a community of consecrated persons at the centre of his work, persons who would dedicate their lives entirely as educators and missionaries of the young, especially the poorest, living in fraternal and apostolic communities, and following Jesus in his obedience, poverty and chastity.⁸ Inspired by the goodness and zeal of St. Francis de Sales, Don Bosco called them Salesians.⁹

3.Conscious of his responsibility for the charism the Lord had entrusted to him, Don Bosco devoted himself to the formation of his first sons as his priority. “One cannot think of Don Bosco as a founder without at the same time thinking of him as a educator.”¹⁰

Formation was his “constant preoccupation and greatest endeavour, from the time of the Oratory when he chose from among his boys those who gave hope of eventually remaining with him, until the last years of his life when his insistent recommendation to Rectors, Provincials and missionaries was to work earnestly for vocations and their formation.”¹¹ He did not limit himself to the search for collaborators, but invited them to become to some extent both disciples and teachers at the same time, “founders” of a new Congregation together with him.¹²

4.“The first Salesians,” our Constitutions say, “found their sure guide in Don Bosco. Living at the very heart of his community in action, they learned to model their own lives on his.”¹³

“Fathering a charism”¹⁴ which he lived in the style of the Preventive System, Don Bosco was led:

- to impart to his spiritual sons the fire of his “da mihi animas”, an enthusiasm for the mission among the young and an interior joy born of a total dedication, in work and sacrifice, to the cause of the Kingdom;

- to offer them an environment rich in values and relationships, built upon mutual confidence and inner freedom;

- to accompany them individually by educating them to a simple but deep experience of God, by offering them a maturing process incarnated in their daily lives, by opening up vast horizons before them, and by making them responsible for his apostolic project.

In fostering vocations and in the long-drawn-out work of forming his own disciples, he was at one and the same time demanding as well as patient, firm as well as flexible.

Salesian formation means identifying oneself with the vocation which the Spirit has raised up through Don Bosco, possessing his ability to share it with others, and drawing inspiration from his attitude and method of formation.

5.The Salesian Congregation is the bearer of an original experience of the Holy Spirit in the Church, one that was lived by Don Bosco; it is a creative continuation of his project and his spirit in history.¹⁵ Right from its origins until the present-day it has lived and fostered that experience with affection and constant fidelity, and has made an effort to communicate it in different ways, especially by caring for vocations and engaging in the work of formation. In the postconciliar period it has made a particularly intense effort to be faithful and to renew itself; evidence of this have been the process of reformulating the Constitutions and the reflections and guidelines of the General Chapters.

Today the Congregation is universal in its appearance and in its roots. The Holy Spirit has given its charism the capacity to bear fruit for the good of young people and continues to raise up persons who wish to “stay with Don Bosco” and live out the Salesian mission in religious consecrated life. The Congregation is present all over the world, inserted in a great variety of human, cultural, religious and pastoral contexts; there it faces different situations: starting up or refounding, consolidating or expanding, redimensioning or relocating. Different too are the contexts in which vocations emerge and develop, and variable their number, background and depth.

When speaking of Salesian formation therefore we have to take into account the reality of a single vocation lived out in different ways at world level; we have to consider this particular “Don Bosco in the world” – gratefully, responsibly and realistically.

In this way the Salesian vocation appears as an identity in constant evolution: while remaining the same, it renews itself in creative fidelity and incarnates itself continually. Growing in Don Bosco’s charism and striving to be faithful to it: this is formation, and it is an absolutely basic priority for the Congregation today and for every Salesian, just as it was for Don Bosco himself in his early days.

1.3REFERENCE POINTS FOR FORMATION AT THE PRESENT DAY

6. To achieve its objectives, formation today needs to focus on certain points. It must understand the context within which a vocation develops, be in tune with the Church and docile to her guidance, feel with the Congregation’s experience of the Salesian charism and adhere to the pattern of formation it proposes.

1.3.1Understanding the context: key influences and challenges

Each one’s experience of his vocation and formation is marked by the human and historical context to which he belongs and within which he has to operate; it is a “contextualized” experience.¹⁶ The setting and the needs of inculturation and evangelization make demands of every form of religious life and apostolic mission and have a deep effect on them. The different cultural contexts bring key influences and challenges to bear on the concept and development of the person and his formation.

Faced with this taxing and ambivalent reality, it becomes imperative to engage in a work of discernment and to be able to respond with the help of a proper pedagogical strategy. It becomes the responsibility of every confrere and the specific duty of those involved in the animation and formation of vocations to understand the various contexts and the questions they raise, and to grasp the requirements demanded of whoever wishes to live his vocation. Creating a suitable formative experience requires close consideration to be given to one’s context.

This is all the more necessary in a situation which is complex, fragmented and in constant flux, and for a Congregation which is becoming ever more universal and pluricultural.

7.At the level of the Church and the Congregation, there are overall views of the existing reality and shrewd interpretations of some particular situations. We mention this here in order to lay stress on the constant concern for formation which should permeate the Congregation at world level, and in their different contexts the Provinces, as well as those responsible for formation: it is a matter of carefully considering and duly discerning situations in relation to initial and ongoing formation.

The objectives and the methodology of formation must be constantly attuned to a pastoral reading of cultural situations, and those in charge of formation must become capable of a dialogue which takes account of both elements.¹⁷

Aware that a single presentation is not possible because of the variety of situations, we shall draw attention to some of the challenges that are emerging in the different contexts and closely affecting the experience of vocation.

- The unique and sacred dignity of the human person is universally recognized today, but we come across situations in which an exaggerated exaltation of the individual leads to subjectivism and individualism.

- There is a growing awareness of the dignity of the woman and her role in building the new society, but in many places she is still manipulated and exploited in various ways; hence the ambiguous treatment she receives.

- A strong emphasis is laid today on the aspect of sexuality, but all too often in an ambiguous or distorted manner; there is a need therefore for sound and mature personalities.

- Pluralism is already a widespread reality in many places. It can turn into an enrichment, but it requires people who have a strong sense of identity and are able to make mature decisions; otherwise there is a risk of falling into relativism and weak thinking.

- Considerable importance is attached to the value of freedom, and there is a growing awareness that it can be safeguarded only through a well-formed conscience.

- The existing complexity of the world and of life tends towards fragmentation and makes it difficult to lead a well-integrated life.

- The pattern of constant change, the push towards globalization and the insistence of persons and groups on preserving their own identity call for a critical stance and an equilibrium, with a grounding in one’s own culture, albeit with due openness.

- In the religious sphere, one notices a greater desire for spirituality and for God, while, on the other hand, there are vast areas in which religious values are increasingly irrelevant and of little consequence in people’s lives.

8.This description of both positive and problematic elements resonates deeply in everyone’s heart, and particularly affects the formation of those who embrace the vocation to consecrated life, be they young or not so young. It becomes necessary to ask about the kind of “youth situation” within which vocations arise today and the relationship between the criteria and models of life which that situation proposes and the project of Salesian consecrated life. There cannot be a uniform answer to these questions because “youth situations” are so diverse, and those who embark on their first formation bring with them their very different experiences of family, culture, religion, work, study and contact with Salesians; moreover, the paths they have led in following their vocation have differed so widely.

Let us recall a few characteristics that are particularly relevant from the point of view of formation:

- Young people want to be the architects of their own lives, but their horizons are often very limited and they experience difficulty in making decisive choices either for the long term or for life, choices which call for constancy and sacrifice.

- They are sensitive to the values of the human person, but at the same time are fascinated by the consumer society.

- They are apt to defend their freedom, but lacking solid points of reference and affected by rapid changes, they can turn into disoriented personalities, not sufficiently formed and wanting in psychological consistency.

- Particularly in the sphere of sexuality they are influenced by the way people behave in the environments in which they live; the emotional aspect too carries a lot of weight with them.

- They often draw their information, their understanding of reality and their values from the world of social communication. They do not have a strong sense of history, and for this reason they are inclined to give importance to whatever is immediate.

- In their daily relationships they are open, sincere and ready to communicate. They are flexible, tolerant and can easily adapt to new situations. In general they are capable of generosity and service to those in need, and several of them are in the volunteer movements; however, these positive experiences need to be integrated with their life, lest they remain a parenthesis.

- While the educative and evangelizing impact of the family and the school is on the wane, the complexity of modern times makes it difficult to forge unity in one’s life and prolongs the process of growing to maturity and personal identity.

- Young people are sensitive to religion. They search for God and for the values which can give meaning to their lives. They feel the need for spirituality and prayer, but they do not always find it easy to follow the trends in society and at the same time interiorize their own relationship with God.

1.3.2The experience and the guidelines of the Church

9. Aware of the challenges of the present time and faithful to the renewal ushered in by the Council, the Church has been decisively studying the various forms the baptismal vocation can take, and has been showing how the different specific vocations integrate with and enrich each other in an ecclesiology of communion.

In this context the Church has:

- fostered a renewed awareness of the vocation of the laity and has invited everyone to aim at a better quality of Christian life, one that is more solid, personalized, and capable of entering into dialogue with culture;¹⁸

- given a deeper understanding of consecrated life and its place in the Church, asking that it be lived in authenticity and fidelity to one’s charism and as a sorely needed prophetic witness in the world of today;¹⁹

- reflected anew on the ministry of priests, highlighting their service to the People of God and their need to improve relationships and communication in their pastoral work.²⁰

The Church has given prominence to the witnessing and apostolic aspect of the Christian vocation. She wants everyone to be involved in the commitment to the new evangelization, in the renewed missionary thrust and in the dialogue between faith and culture. Actively inserted in situations of cultural and religious pluralism in the different social contexts, she offers deeper insights into the motivations and manner of inculturating the faith, of opening up to ecumenical and inter-religious dialogue, of expressing solidarity with the world, and in particular, of promoting justice and peace.

10.For the Church a formation that is of high quality and relevant to the times is the key to renewal and the vitality of vocations. While proposing it as a strategic priority and a constant commitment, the Church draws attention to the importance of certain elements: a clear identity with regard to vocation and charism, a formation that is personal and at the same time shared with others, a programme of formation that takes account of the characteristics of the new candidates and the rapidly evolving human and cultural context, and an ongoing formation that keeps alive one’s enthusiasm and fidelity in regard to one’s vocation.

Several recent documents offer criteria, guidelines and instructions for formation. Among them are the following: Vita consecrata,²¹ Potissimum institutioni (Directives on Formation in Religious Institutes),²² Inter-Institute Collaboration for Formation,²³ Pastores dabo vobis,²⁴ Ratio Fundamentalis Institutionis Sacerdotalis (Basic Programme of Priestly Formation),²⁵ and Directives on the Preparation of Educators for Seminaries.²⁶

1.3.3The experience and the guidelines of the Congregation

11.The Congregation has had to react to the rapid cultural changes, to the world of the young, to the exhortations of the Church and to its own situation in the world. The path it has taken in recent decades testifies to the strenuous efforts it has made for a renewed understanding of its charism, for a relaunching of its mission, and its openness to renewal.

Some aspects of vocation have been the object of new emphases: from the meaning of apostolic consecration to a renewed understanding of the Preventive System, from a felt need for spirituality to a community experience, from a basic culture to ongoing formation, from an awareness of the specificity of vocations to their complementary and reciprocal relationships within the Salesian Family, from an ability to draw in lay people to the animating role of Salesians in the educative and pastoral community.

New challenges are arising from the situation of our communities, from the new working model²⁷ and the new relationship with lay people, from a stronger sense of togetherness in the Salesian Family, from the new frontiers of our mission and the new situations of poverty, and from the need to convey a message through our works.

12.Each Salesian is called to respond to these challenges, and the Congregation is strongly urged to provide for a genuine and renewed Salesian experience as well as a formation that helps the confreres and the communities to be:

- bearers of a clear Salesian identity and a high quality spiritual and apostolic experience;

- clearly identified by the grace of unity, in imitation of Don Bosco, who achieved “a splendid blending of nature and grace”;²⁸

- able to discern situations and react positively, and consequently to be creative in the pastoral field and launch significant projects for the benefit of young people;

- conscious of their role as an animating nucleus within a network of shared responsibility with lay people, which is the educative and pastoral community;

- aware that the Salesian vocation is a vocation open to sharing its mission and charism with a spiritual Family and a Movement which take their inspiration from Don Bosco, Father and Teacher.

All this requires that we flesh out a practical plan of action to form Salesians for the Church and the world of today.

13.The text of the Constitutions, officially approved by the Church, is the sure foundation on which to trace the path of fidelity to our vocation and to organise the work of formation.

It falls to the General Chapter and the Rector Major to exercise their responsibility and competence in ensuring unity of spirit; they offer the proper means to look after, safeguard and develop the charism, and propose particular normative guidelines to ensure that the formation of the members is able to meet the demands of the common vocation.

On the basis of the indications given by the Constitutions, the General Chapters, and the Rector Majors, the Congregation has produced other documents that serve to deepen the Salesian experience and show how to cultivate it. These are, for example, the commentary on the Constitutions²⁹ and texts concerning our educative and pastoral praxis, the part we have to play within the Salesian Family, and the exercise of authority by the Provincial and the Rector.³⁰

Among the official texts, the Ratio (“The Formation of the Salesians of Don Bosco”) is a document of unique importance. It shows how to pass on the charism of Don Bosco “so that it will be lived in its integrity by future generations, in different cultures and geographical regions,” and it also explains to Salesians “how to live that spirit in the different stages of life on the way to full maturity of

faith in Christ.”³¹

1.4THE RATIO: PURPOSE, CONTENT AND THOSE TO WHOM IT IS ADDRESSED

1.4.1The purpose of the Ratio

14. “The principle of unity in the Congregation,” our Constitutions say, “is the charism of our Founder, which of its richness gives rise to different ways of liv­ing the one Salesian vocation. Formation is therefore one in its essential content and di­versified in its concrete expressions; it ac­cepts and develops whatever is true, noble and just in the various cultures.”³²

From this standpoint the Ratio Fundamentalis Institutionis et Studiorum is an instrument for forging vocational identity and a particular service for unifying and decentralizing formation. It “sets out in an organic and instructive way the complexus of principles and norms concerning formation which are found in the Constitutions, general Regulations and other documents of the Church and of the Congregation”;³³ it contains the guidelines and general norms that must guide the Provinces in laying down how the work of formation is to be carried out, keeping in mind the demands of the cultural context.

The Ratio is a practical and secure guide that aims at expressing the ideals that Don Bosco has left us as his legacy. It gives practical norms and presents a synthesis of the conditions, the pedagogical methods and the processes that ought to characterize formation at world level.³⁴ In it is to be found the basis of unity for every legitimate pluralism in the manner of conducting the work of formation and the programme of studies.

15.It was the GC21 which required that the Salesian Ratio be drawn up. The first edition was published in 1981; the second was prepared in 1985 after the Code of Canon Law was published and the renewed text of the Salesian Constitutions was definitively approved. The present revision was asked for by the GC24³⁵ in the light of the new challenges of evangelization and inculturation, and in response to the renewed commitment to formation that emerged very strongly from the analysis of the state of the Congregation and from the deeper study of the theme of the Chapter.³⁶

1.4.2The structure and content of the Ratio

16.The Ratio is made up of two parts, followed by four Appendices.

The first part opens with a chapter that highlights some aspects of Salesian formation in the circumstances of the present-day and declares the purpose of the Ratio (chap. 1). There follows a presentation of our Salesian vocational identity: the starting point and goal of our formation (chap. 2), the dimensions of our formation together with a description of certain values and attitudes required by our Salesian vocation (chap. 3), and some strategies for a methodology of formation (chap. 4).

The second part concentrates on the formative process seen from the standpoint of ongoing formation. After an introduction which outlines the characteristics of the formative process (chap. 5), the various periods or phases of initial formation right up to perpetual profession are presented one by one, and for each of them are spelled out the nature and the purpose, the particular characteristics and a few necessary conditions (chap. 6 – 11). The final chapter deals with ongoing formation (chap. 12).

Four Appendices complete the document. Two of them offer suggestions for drawing up the Formation section of the Province Directory and the Provincial Formation Plan. A third contains guidelines for the programme of studies. And a fourth presents some significant documents on formation.

1.4.3Those to whom the Ratio is directed

17.The Ratio is a text entrusted to all Salesians. In it they will find the solicitude of the Congregation for the holiness and training of its members. In particular, the confreres in formation will find in it an invitation and a motivation to grow personally in identifying with their Salesian vocation and to embrace their commitments with complete awareness.

In a special way, the Ratio is entrusted to the Provinces and directly concerns the Provincial and his Council, the Rectors of communities, the Provincial Delegate and Commission for Formation, those holding responsibility for formation, and all those who are animators of vocations and of initial and ongoing formation.

In line with the principles and the general criteria set out in the Ratio, every Province has the duty of laying down, through the various organs of animation and government, “the method of formation according to the needs of its own cultural context and in conformity with the directives of the Church and the Congrega­tion”.³⁷ This responsibility requires a permanent attitude of reflection and dialogue between Salesian identity and the cultural context. Collaboration in this field is to be encouraged among Provinces that are in similar circumstances.

18.For a Province, which is the community responsible for inculturating the Salesian charism, accepting the spirit and the mind of the Ratio means establishing a formation climate and mentality at the level of the Province, a service of animation and government which accords real priority to the care of vocations, and a group of confreres – normally the Provincial Delegate for Formation and the Provincial Commission for Formation – who have a real capacity for reflecting, evaluating and putting forward suggestions for consideration. Such a group, acting in dependence on the Provincial and his Council, will be responsible for animating and coordinating the formation enterprise at the various levels.

The Province will express its responsibility in connection with the Ratio by drawing up:

- the formation section of the Provincial Directory, in which it will transpose the policies and requirements of the Ratio in precise norms, applying them to the local situation;³⁸

- the Provincial Formation Plan, a plan of initial and ongoing formation that contains objectives, urgent needs, priorities and a concrete course of action – in line with the Ratio – that are fixed after, and based on, an attentive and up-to-date assessment of the situation of formation. The plan makes for a formation process that is gradual and organic, permits a verification and a constant adaptation to situations, and helps to keep improvisation and immediate concerns at bay.³⁹

19.“The principle of unity in the Congregation is the charism of our Founder, which of its richness gives rise to different ways of liv­ing the one Salesian vocation. Formation is therefore one in its essential content and di­versified in its concrete expressions; it ac­cepts and develops whatever is true, noble and just in the various cultures.”⁴⁰

Pluralism in the manner of effecting Salesian formation in line with the needs of a particular cultural context⁴¹ requires that the charism be the basis of unity.

20. “At world level the practical guide for formation will be the Salesian ‘Ratio fundamentalis Institutionis et Studiorum’, and at provincial level a Directory approved by the Rector Major with the consent of his Council.

“The Ratio sets out in an organic and instructive way the complexus of principles and norms concerning formation which are found in the Constitutions, general Regulations and other documents of the Church and of the Congregation.”⁴²

The Ratio is a document at the service of the unity and decentralization of formation in the Congregation. It therefore gives directions, and is normative in its practical indications, wherever they are found. It must serve as a basis for the formation section of the Provincial Directory, for the programme of studies and for the Provincial Formation Plan.

21.Let the Provincial and the Provincial Delegate for Formation see to it that all the confreres are acquainted with the Ratio and the booklet “Criteria and Norms for Salesian Vocation Discernment. Admissions”. These two documents should become a constant point of reference for those who, by virtue of their different roles, hold responsibility in the formation and vocation sector (the Provincial Council and the animators, the Rectors, those involved in the work of formation, the confessors, etc.).

22. It is the prime responsibility of the Provincial and his Council to animate the work of formation. Every Province must ensure that formation is carried out in an organic, systematic and coordinated manner as a service that is mindful of the different situations, reflects, plans and evaluates.

Ordinarily, this service will be undertaken by the Provincial Delegate and the Provincial Commission for Formation, in agreement with and under the responsibility of the Provincial and his Council.

23. “It is the duty of the provincial community, through the various organs of animation and government, to lay down the method of formation according to the needs of its own cultural context and in conformity with the directives of the Church and the Congrega­tion.”⁴³

The formation section of the Provincial Directory, formulated by the Provincial Chapter⁴⁴ and approved by the Rector Major with the consent of his Council, “applies the principles and norms of Salesian formation [set out in the Ratio] to the concrete local situations.”⁴⁵

Let every Province evaluate on a regular basis – normally through the Provincial Commission for Formation, or if considered opportune, in line with its proper function, through the Provincial Chapter – the practical implementation of the formation section of the Provincial Directory. This information will be sent by the Provincial to the Councillor for Formation.

24.In conformity with the Provincial Directory, let the Provincial see to the formulation of the Provincial Formation Plan as an operational blueprint in the field of initial and ongoing formation. The plan should contain criteria, objectives, strategies, and lines of action. It should provide for a sharing of responsibility and a gradual approach at the working level, and lay down the modalities for verification. It ought to be the fruit of a community reflection on the formation guidelines of the Church and the Congregation.