The role of Catechist General and the concrete Salesian experience which he had accumulated as Visitor, led him to choose as the opening topic of his 'edifying' magisterium, the Spirit of piety. He was of the view that the enthusiasm of the Salesians, their fervent initiatives, so much appreciated in public opinion, were not without their shadows: “Speaking to you from the heart, I confess that I cannot ward off the sad thought and fear that this flurry of Salesian activity, this zeal that has seemed up till now impermeable to any discouragement, this warm enthusiasm that up till now has been sustained by constant success, will diminish one day when they are no longer fruitful, purified and sanctified by a true and solid piety”¹⁸.

He very clearly stated: if, “by God's grace we have many exemplary confreres”, we also have many neglectful Salesian unfortunately, who offer “everywhere the sad spectacle of their laxity and indifference ..., unfortunately they vegetate in a state of deplorable mediocrity and will never bear fruit”¹⁹. He was convinced that “the entire system of education taught by Don Bosco is based on piety”, and that if the Salesian “is not solidly pious, he will never be right for the task as educator”²⁰. It is enough to think of Don Bosco, of the “sacred fire of piety” which pervaded his being, of his “uninterrupted union with God”, which was “the notable characteristic of Don Bosco’s”: “evidence of this was the unchanging equality of humour that shone from his invariably smiling face. At whatever moment you went to him for advice, he seemed to interrupt his conversation with God to listen to you, and that the thoughts and encouragement he gave you were inspired by God”²¹.

From his contemplation of this ideal, Fr Albera then moved on to suggest practical resolutions: being exact in practising the practices of piety established by the Constitutions; sanctifying daily activity by carrying them out in God's presence, “with great purity of intention”, with “generosity of spirit”, with “holy indifference for everything that God, through the superiors, disposes”. This is the way to “put into practice the precept of constant prayer” and practice “the active piety of which St. Francis de Sales often speaks, and which was the secret of Don Bosco's holiness”²².

As an antidote to laxity, spiritual laziness, he suggested sacramental practice, the examen of conscience, frequently lifting the mind to God little moments of affection, entrusting ourselves to Mary Help of Christians: useful initiatives for maintaining the fervour of piety which permeated the life of the Founder. “Fervour is a burning desire, a generous willingness to please God in everything. It especially has to be maintained when we do acts of devotion, but as already indicated, it also has to accompany all of our actions and likewise transform them, we might say, into religious practices”²³.

Here we find ourselves, in language and concept, in the flow of modern spirituality, the spirituality that had nurtured ascetic literature between the 17th and 19th centuries. But the different historical scenario in which Albera was putting forward these issues, and the circumstances of life and work of his listeners, gave a certain concreteness to his exhortations. Fr Albera has in mind a spiritual pathology which was widespread in the Salesian Congregation: “the great illness of many given to God's service is agitation and excessive zeal given to exterior matters. How difficult it is to reign in our activity and keep it within the right limits!” He quotes the “evisceratio mentis” of St Bernard, but has in mind the Salesian caught up in the vortex of contemporary life which, because of a misunderstood cult of work and the drive to get things done, does not know how to “ever find a moment to recollect, enter into oneself, in order to know where one is going”²⁴.

During his time in office, Fr Albera gathers the principle topics he deals with in his letters, around this core idea. Be it his reminder to the Salesian about religious discipline,²⁵ or his exhortation to live from faith²⁶ or pointing out practical ways to be obedient,²⁷ or speaking of chastity²⁸ and the Salesian spirit in new historical situations,²⁹ or speaking of the Oratory, the Missions and Vocations,³⁰ he was always moving within this area of piety and fervour and leading back to them, with finesse and attention to detail. The model of the Salesian which emerged from his material is one who is ardent in faith and delicate in his ways, strong in spirit and humble of heart, zealous in works and quietly spoken, industrious in carrying out his mission and continuously immersed in God.

The desire “to work vigorously for the glory of God and the salvation of souls”, learned at Don Bosco's school, nurtures an inward and outward attitude which is disciplined, that is “a way of living which conforms to the rules and customs” of the Pious Salesian Society, and which allows us to fulfil its purpose³¹. It is not sufficient just to avoid evil, but we need to do good in an irreproachable way. In a disciplined Salesian house “perfect order reigns”. “Clarity and propriety” shine out in everything. “The timetable is scrupulously observed”. Everything is quiet and industrious: “and who knows how much this regularity contributes to recollection of spirit and makes our work fruitful?”.

“Indeed you will see an amiable candour, innocent simplicity, spontaneous and holy joy shining from the faces of those who live in that house, reflecting the peace in their hearts, the serenity of their consciences. You will find nobody who does his duty ex tristitia aut ex necessitate .... Every religious shows that he is completely happy in his vocation, and ... prefers his humble circumstances a thousand times over to the world's honours, prefers his poverty and mortifications to the riches and enjoyments of the world”³².

In his circular of 23 April 1917 to Provincials and Rectors on ways to preserve Don Bosco's spirit in the houses, Fr Albera provides a list of the features of the “spirit of Don Bosco” which the Salesian should clothe himself in: sincere piety; observance of the Constitutions; real poverty; the cult of chastity as a life style and an educative atmosphere; generous obedience; charitable correction; kind and patient fatherliness ; humility; zeal for the salvation of souls made practical through caring for the confreres, the young, past pupils and vocations³³.

It is a vigorous image that emerges. We are not true sons of Don Bosco unless we take “huge steps along the way to perfection”, fighting “mediocrity”, which slows down our spiritual impetus, and “legality”, which weakens the generosity of our love for God:

“Thrust the boat out into the deep, do not limit your efforts to what is strictly necessary, be grandiose in your aspirations when it is a case of the glory of God and the salvation of souls; get far away from the shore which lowers your horizons and you will see how abundant the fishing for souls will be .... In doing this the motto of the zealous apostle is the same as the brave soldier's: courage! Onwards! .... The good Salesian, bowed down under the weight of his crosses, tribulations and sacrifices, will say with St. Francis Xavier, full of joy: amplis, send me more of them, or with St. Francis of Assisi: This is so good that every pain is a delight for me”³⁴.

We Salesians must be like Don Bosco: “tireless workers”, “fruitful initiators of works more appropriate and timely for the greater good of the youth in every country, and for preserving for the Congregation the primacy of modernity which is proper to it”. But we do not yet have the right to see we are true sons unless we urge ourselves on, like him “to grow daily in perfection in our Salesian vocation, making every effort to copy the spirit of interior life of our Venerable [Don Bosco]”.³⁵

At the core of this spirit, according to Fr Albera, two movements are essential to it: “the notion of the animator”, which is “working for souls to the point of total self-immolation”, and “the most perfect act”, which is giving oneself totally to God. So we are brought back to the substance of the founding spiritual attitude put forward by Don Bosco to the young in some of his most personal works which consisted not only in “giving oneself in good time”, but in “giving oneself totally to God”. This is what our Founder did, as Fr Albera reminds us: “throwing himself into God's arms and never separating himself again from them was his most perfect act. He did this every day, and we need to imitate him in the best way possible, to sanctify our work and our soul”³⁶.

Such a movement of the spirit is the basis of apostolic and educational virtues, purifies our intentions and nurtures that special love of “predilection” for the young that is able to transform the educational activity of the Salesian into a “heavenly pedagogy”. It might sound rhetorical, but it can be understood in the idea that Fr Albera has of this “pedagogy”:

“It is thinking of the greatness of the ministry of educating youth and forming them to true and solid virtue: carving out the whole man from the child, like the artist carves out the statue from marble: getting young people to shift from a state of intellectual and moral inferiority to a higher state: forming their spirit, heart, will and conscience through piety, humility, kindness, strength, justice, abnegation, zeal and edification, grafted in them imperceptibly through example ... and setting their hearts on fire, so they will practice it by loving, attracting, conquering and transforming them”³⁷.

So then, in the sensitivities and outlook of the first two successors of Don Bosco, the motto of the Congregation, Work and Temperance, is enriched by a third element, Prayer or Piety. This aspect is certainly not absent in the teaching and practices of Don Bosco's life, but it became urgent to emphasis it in new historical contexts to correct what is revealed to be the “dominant defect” of the Salesians: undisciplined hard work, excessive agitation, educative superficiality. Thus was the "spirit of Don Bosco" being clarified in all its wealth of spiritual nuances and its ascetic implications for the daily life of Salesian communities.