APPENDIX 10

LETTER TO THE YOUNG

The capitular Assembly, during its reflection on the journey of faith, had constantly in mind young people with the love and interest of Don Bosco. At the end it asked the Rector Major, as Successor of Don Bosco, to send a message to youth in the form of a letter, which would interpret the sentiments of the members of the Chapter and of all Salesians. The letter has already been sent to the provinces and is here published as part of the Acts of the Chapter.

Dear young people,

and you personally who are now reading this letter.

I am very glad to be able to make contact with each of you in this way, in the name of Don Bosco, your "father, teacher and friend". I am writing in the name of the very many Salesians who are spread over all five continents, and are at home wherever there are young people like you.

God has put into every salesian heart a burning desire: to be always in the company of those who are young, to understand their deepest feelings, to share their hopes and difficulties, their dreams and plans. Don Bosco is a genial model of this heart that beats for the young. He has transformed his predilection for them into a mission, making it the reason for his very existence. He launched the method of kindness, which is at the foundation of all the Salesians try to do for youth.

1. Try, on your part, to be open each day to life's wonders. Explore the world around you, make lasting friendships, savour the joy of being alive, build a happy future, get involved in things of

worth. You should enjoy the gift of life to its fullness. It is for this that Don Bosco has made himself your friend!

But his concern for you stems from a greater Master of love, who gives spice, sense and energy to the lives of all. Don Bosco's friendship for the young, and ours too, is rooted in the fascinating personality of Jesus Christ, who came and continues to come with the power of God to make everything new, to fill man's future with hope, with justice, with great ideals and values, with true happiness. In him you can see how great man is: it is God who is close to us, who is our companion on our journey through life, and is in fact the Way, the Truth and the new Life.

2. But today mankind is living through a period of tremendous changes. And you yourselves are thinking over many and great problems which are at present troubling society and individuals.

Previously unheard of things are happening around us. Myths that have stood for decades are collapsing; yesterday's popular ideologies are crumbling; and at the same time there are appearing

on the horizon worrying phenomena which nevertheless exert a certain attraction. To start with, many young people are shaking off shackles that deprived them of freedom and stunted the

development of their growth in life; they are trying new ways to proclaim values which must grow stronger.

But a trap lies hidden in the shape of new idols, attractive mirages that are emerging, and you need a watchful conscience and an attentive mind to make sure that what is only fleeting, pleasure, violence, desire for power, indifference and discouragement do not gain the upper hand. Committed research and courageous discernment are called for.

The reactions of youth serve as a provocation for educators, and in the face of all these innovations the Salesians do not intend to stand on the sidelines as so many spectators. They have taken an initiative, called the "GC23" or "General Chapter", a world assembly that worked intensely for two months

(last April and May). Salesians came together from all five continents to reflect, to compare, and to make plans around a theme they felt to be urgent: "How to educate young people to the faith

at the present day". And there came out from the assembly plans and decisions, of which the practical consequences will also involve all of you. We wanted it to stir up in ourselves, and in you too, a strong enthusiasm for renewing our mutual friendship and prompting us to journey together towards the ideals of God's plan for the salvation of man.

But the youth scene varies greatly from one country to another. The complexity is so great that it is important to understand the different cultures, to note what young people are wanting, and identify the challenges emerging from the main situations. We have become aware that faith is lacking because

Christ is not known, or at least no value is given to the original aspect of the history of salvation, or in other words of the event that is central for everyone. Even in traditionally christian countries knowledge of Christ cannot be taken for granted.

And so it becomes important for us Salesians to ask ourselves how we should live as believers in the Lord, enthusiastic for the cause of his Kingdom, committed to making the "good news" resound among youth as something credible at the present day; what kind of journey should we undertake with you young people to grow into new life; how should we live together to produce in our educative communities the oratory, the school and the group so as to be "always prepared to make a defence to anyone who calls you to account for the hope that is in you" (1 Pet 3,15).

As you can see, these are weighty questions, but we faced them squarely and we have tried to formulate a response, tracing out a road we would like to follow together and clarifying the goal

we want to reach.

3. A first point we need to think about is the health and visual capacity of your young eyes; what do you have them fixed on, what are your sensitivities, your desires, and your worries.

At the present day, to a greater extent than ever in the past, you young people have a growing awareness of the value of each individual. You are convinced that always and everywhere each

one must be considered worthy to live: the captain of his soul and responsible for his destiny. And so any educational relationship based on indifference, lack of commitment or manipulation of the

person, would be clean contrary to the awareness of your dignity.

All of us, youth and adults alike, contribute to our mutual education, each contributing what he or she is. And so it is not just a fashionable formula to invite you to make a journey with us, but rather a pedagogical requirement with deep roots.

As adults dedicated to the education of the young, the Salesians feel an urgent need to renew with you a kind of "educational pact" to enable us to advance together on the journey

of faith. Such a pact would be demanding, but would lead to growth. Travelling together implies attention to one's companions on the journey and a fellow-feeling with them; it calls for

reciprocal interest so that there is a common wave-length for communication, willingness to identify authentic values, and the desire to share motives which foster the sense of life.

But to bring all this about, the Salesians have need of you young people. Each one of you personally must make his own indispensable contribution: the vigour of your youth, the will to

live, the joy of hoping, imagination in research, generosity in action, enthusiasm in concrete practical commitment.

The areas of interest are many but complementary; there is neither monotony nor uniformity; we are travelling towards a common goal at different speeds but with a clear idea of where we are heading. We have our eyes on the same goal.

The "GC23" has given the Salesians a very interesting document that indicates the different possibilities for this journey, starting as it does from such a wide variety of situations. Approach one of them and get him to tell you about some of the valuable suggestions in the document, the analyses it

contains, its reflections and guidelines. It is an up to date gift for the journey towards the year 2000, to give a youthful aspect to history which will continue to develop as it continues into the third millennium of the christian faith with stronger hope.

4. But there is a fundamental argument that I would like you to think about. Our faith is centred on the concrete facts of human history: it is a far cry from the notion that religion is the "opium of the people", that has been derided and opposed by certain ideologies.

In the era of the ancient polytheistic myths the christian faith was looked on rather like a kind of atheism: it never accepted idols, either on Mount Olympus or in the towns. In more recent times, in the climate of an invading atheism, it has always professed a realism so strong as to reach beyond even the horizons of materialism itself, going as far as proclaiming the "resurrection of the flesh" and the coming of a "new world".

The eyes of our faith are fixed firmly on the Man of Nazareth, Jesus the Christ, who became the "Lord of history" at Jerusalem in the Passover of the New Covenant. He has revealed to us who God is: total Love!

The "Father" , who created the world for us, and follows us with infinite mercy; the "Son" who made himself one of us, thus becoming humanity's goal through the centuries; the "Holy Spirit", the bearer of truth and the power of innovation; God, one and three, the source and coronation of everything!

He is a Love, therefore, who invites us to share as leading agents in improving creation by our own work, through science, technology and ecology; who shows us history as the space for playing out an adventure of self-donation for a struggle with him against evil and in support of justice, of solidarity, of peace, etc.; who stays at our side and helps us to develop his plan for the salvation of mankind through the primacy of the values of the resurrection. In this way the bearer of this faith, the authentic believer, appreciates in the world the real values of the laity; in the vicissitudes of history he sees the values of genuine liberation, and in the signs of the times those of authentic evolution.

Do not tell me that all this is abstract and difficult. It is in fact the supreme reality that becomes ever more fascinating the more it penetrates into our mind. This is the truth the intelligence is panting after; it opens vast horizons for man's activity.

The christian faith has its eyes open to everything; it does not take refuge in things that are obscure, and does not like occult rites; it looks for the light of the Mystery of Love and enjoys sharing in its riches. Everyone feels in his inner being the instinct and nostalgia for this Mystery, for its plenitude of

truth, of life and of beauty. It is like the sun which, although one cannot gaze upon it with the naked eye, enlightens and gives warmth to everything, involving us all in the great feast of life.

I said that faith looks to the Christ-event, and Christ is no stranger to you. He is concerned that you should have a deep realization of this. He challenges you to make you grow. He died for you and now lives for you; he wants to establish with you a relationship of personal friendship, in response to the dialogue that he himself has begun, a dialogue that is wide and objective in scope and involves you. You would in fact be extremely thoughtless if you were unaware of his love and his truth.

As well as this, since friendship of faith is neither myth nor fantasy nor ideology, but history, he offers you help and a model in Mary, his mother: "She who believed" and who has been appointed by the same Lord to be the Helper of all believers. She will accompany you as a mother in the journey that has been put before you.

5. But how can you progress in this journey? Following in the footsteps of Don Bosco, the "GC23" offers you the results of salesian experience in a practical proposal of youth "spirituality".

Here lies the great secret for success. Spirituality is a continually growing internal energy which brings you gradually into harmony with the Lord's Spirit. He is truly present with his gentle power in the life of everyone. With him you can make unbelievable progress: look at Dominic Savio, at Laura Vicuña at Pier Giorgio Frassati. Through the energy of a spirituality the Lord helps you to build and testify to the synthesis between faith and life which is precisely the content of "holiness".

It is a matter of living the faith by becoming immersed in daily life as the best place in which to listen to the invitations of the Spirit. What Don Bosco - the master of youth spirituality - indicates from a pedagogical point of view is not only prayer or involvement in exceptional matters, but rather a plan that covers the whole of your existence in its multiple and most diverse expressions.

And so life is spent in joy and commitment. The Spirit in fact does not want you to be sad or a stranger to your environment. Youth is a period of great value. It has traits of similarity with its creative presence. Hope and happiness, the desire for self-donation and responsibility, the will to prepare for life and develop solidarity with others, all find a place in the journey on which you set out. The kind of spirituality Don Bosco offers you leads to the formation of a personal conscience awake to the progressive experience of the Mystery to the point when it becomes expressed in living energy. It is in this sense that spirituality becomes a driving force that gives christian dynamism to existence.

And in this evangelical progress you do not walk alone; you have company: the group, the local community of believers, the Church - the Body of Christ and People of God - who are at your side in every step forward that you make.

6. And there you have the substance of what I wanted to say to you. Don Bosco is calling you by name; he is suggesting a plan to you; he is offering you good company; he is pointing out to you an

ideal of "youthful holiness" that is not difficult to attain: an ideal that is simple and for every day, interior and apostolic, joyful and shared with others.

But he makes to you and to all young people an appeal that he has very much at heart. It can be expressed in the slogan "youth for the young", invented by some of you. Its meaning you can guess at once: to cultivate friendship with Christ means to put yourself on his side, to make your own his plan of action, to live for others, to bring about the growth of good things in society. The "gospel beatitudes", which are the autobiography of Jesus, express the lines along which you must commit yourself.

The recurring forms of death, like exploitation, alienation, overbearing behaviour, injustice, discrimination, intolerance etc., are all threats which destroy the quality of life and are the ruination of history. They are of use to those fighting for the triumph of good! In this way, with the spirit of the beatitudes the christian faith will appear in truth as the energy of history.

And you, every single one of you, has the task of bringing this spiritual force to the transformation of the world.

7. It is an interesting thought that every generation has to write its own history, its own gospel. In the words of a famous author: "On the day when the spirit of youth goes cold, the teeth of the whole world will begin to chatter."

I pray for you; I pray for all young people. And the Salesians are doing likewise. And Don Bosco, whom the Pope has proclaimed to be the "father and teacher of youth", intercedes for you, goes before you and guides you with his heart on fire as the Lord's disciple.

To all of you I send my sincere good wishes that you may press on to the goal.

Sincerely, and in the name of all the Salesians,

Rome, Pentecost of the Spirit, Fr Egidio Viganò

3 June 1990 Successor of Don Bosco