T H E S A L E S I A N B U L L E T I N • Y E A R 1 1 7 • I S S U E 2 • S U M M E R 2 0 0 9DON BOSCO
full story on page 4
T H E M A G A Z I N E F O R T H E S A L E S I A N F A M I L Y
DON BOSCO TODAY
2 DONBOSCOTODAY
Editorial >>
Dear Friends
You will notice that we have
changed the format of Don
Bosco Today. It is an attempt
to make this magazine easier to
read. We would welcome your
comments on the new format or on any of our articles.
If you know of anyone who would appreciate a copy
being sent to them please advise them that a phone
call (01204308811) or email (joyce@salesians.org.
uk) will guarantee them a copy. I would like to thank you
for the support you give to the work of Don Bosco, your
generosity always impresses me.
Earlier this year we were privileged to be asked by the
Australian Salesian Province to publish a fascinating
work on Don Bosco by Fr Ian Murdoch. Ian, who died
in January of this year, devoted much of his very active
Salesian life to the study of Don Bosco. His book Starting
Again from Don Bosco has been very well received and
its publication is one of the ways we have marked the
150th anniversary of the founding of the Salesians of
Don Bosco. We are offering this commemorative edition
to our readers for a reduced launch price of £10. All our
books, including this book, will be offered postage free
until September 1st. We would really appreciate reader’s
reviews of any of our books. We could publish these
reviews on our website (anonymously if you so wish).
As always, this issue of Don Bosco Today attempts
to look at the work of Don Bosco for young people in
different parts of the world. For so many years our country
always had a great tradition of missionary endeavour;
so many men and women travelled to distant lands to
preach the gospel. However we have to face the reality
that our own country is now missionary territory and we
must welcome missionaries from other countries. As you
will see on page four, the Salesians have started Project
Europe in response to this reality,
Tony Bailey SDB
a.bailey@salesians.org.uk
Contents
4-5 Pioneers of Project
Europe
Last year the Salesians
launched Project Europe,
with the aim of leading
the continent back to its
Christian roots.
6-7 Bitten with the
Salesian Bug
The more I got involved with
the Salesians the more alive
I felt.
8 Teaching computing
in the Solomon
Islands
Volunteer teachers of English
and Computing from the
UK have been privileged to
assist young people.
9-12 Bosco Bear
It’s a Mystery
Plus . . . Ryan’s winning story
from the Spring competition.
13 A New Kind of Piggy
Bank
Recently, the Salesian Sisters
have sought and obtained
financing for an original
project
14-15 Love Really Matters
The Salesians of South Africa
at the Don Bosco Centre
in Walkerville, developed a
program called Love Matters.
4
6
8
13
DONBOSCOTODAY 3
MY DONATION TO THE WORK OF DON BOSCO
Please find enclosed my donation of
Name
Address
Post code
Tel
Fax
Email
I am happy for my donation to be acknowledged by email
Registered Charity No. 233779 Charity Registered in Scotland No. SC039294
Cheques made payable to
DON BOSCO PUBLICATIONS
To donate by credit or debit card
please phone 01204 308811
Taxpayer’s option
Please send me a Gift Aid form
DON BOSCO PUBLICATIONS
Thornleigh House, Sharples Park, Bolton BL1 6PQ
Tel 01204 308811 Fax 01204 306868
Email: joyce@salesians.org.uk
SALESIAN MISSIONS
Fr Joe Brown SDB
2 Orbel Street, Battersea SW11 3NZ
Tel 020 7924 2733
Email: donbosco@btconnect.com
Sister Helen Murphy FMA
Provincial Office
13 Streatham Common North, Streatham,
London SW16 3HG
Tel 020 8677 4573 Fax 020 8677 4523
Email: provincialoffice.fma@ukonline.co.uk
DESIGN AND PRINTING
Concept4Creative Tel 01282 611331
Printed on paper manufactured from a sustainable
source using vegetable based inks
ARTWORK
Val O’Brien
PHOTOGRAPHY
ANS Rome
Fotalia
CHILDREN’S PAGE
Cliff Partington
WEBSITES WORTH VISITING
www.salesians.org.uk
www.don-bosco-publications.co.uk
www.sdb.org
www.sdb.org/ANS
www.cgfmanet.org
www.salesiansisters.org.uk
www.salesianyouthministry.com
www.donboscoyouth.net
www.bosconet.aust.com
www.youthoutreach.org.hk
16-17 Our Responsibility
for the Rights of a
Child
The Salesian Family has
no reason for being, other
than for the salvation
of the young, in all the
meanings of the word
salvation.
18-19 A Vast Movement
for the young
Speaking of the Salesian
Family today is to
describe a certain sense
of citizenship.
14
16
18
4 DONBOSCOTODAY
Last year the Salesians launched Project Europe, with
the aim of leading the continent back to its Christian
roots. This project is similar to Project Africa, which
was launched by the Salesians in the late 1970s and
resulted in a surge of Salesian missionary activity on that
continent. In 2008 Father Pascual Chávez, Rector Major
of the Salesians, said:
Today, more than ever, we become aware that our
presence in Europe needs to be re-thought. We
need to renew our Salesian presence for greater
impact and effectiveness in this continent. We
must seek a new form of evangelisation, in order
to respond to the spiritual and moral needs of the
many young people, who appear to be wanderers
without guides and without destination.
One way of renewing the Salesian presence in Europe
is the creation of the necessary conditions for warmly
welcoming Salesians from other parts of the world,
who are prepared to work with young people in another
country in Europe. However we must be aware of the
need of a process of inculturation. What do we mean
by inculturation? In February 1981, Pope John Paul II
said, in an important message to the peoples of Asia,
broadcast from the Philippines:
Wherever she is, the Church must sink her roots
deeply into the spiritual and cultural soil of the
country, assimilate all genuine values, enriching
them also with the insights that she has received
from Jesus Christ.
This is the story of three young Salesian Brothers, from
Poland, who have become pioneers in this great project
– Project Europe. As part of their Salesian preparation for
the priesthood and commitment to the Salesian way of
life, they agreed to work, for a year or two, in a Salesian
community in England. Jacek, Daniel and Dariusz
volunteered for this with a certain amount of trepidation,
but after many months in England they have no regrets.
What were their fears or concerns as they embarked
on this adventure? First of all, the language. Was their
English good enough? Would they be able to understand
Pioneers Of Project Europe
This interchange of ideas and concerns is vital in the process of inculturation.
DONBOSCOTODAY 5
English as spoken by English children? They had heard
that English is spoken differently in different parts of this
small country. They had also heard rumours of Cockney
and Scouse. They were assured that, when they arrived,
they would be enrolled in a reputable language course.
One of the first principles of Project Europe is that the
receiving Province must be prepared to take decisive
steps to ensure that the visiting Salesians have every
opportunity of learning the language of the host Province,
and learning it well, preferably with a recognised
qualification. We have a unique opportunity to offer them
the chance to learn English. They are encouraged to
make it clear to the members of their new community
that they want to be corrected when they make mistakes
in English. If the Salesians do not correct them, the
children will.
All three Brothers now speak English very well and can
appreciate the nuances of regional accents. At first,
the youngsters in our schools took delight in correcting
them, but now the Brothers have the confidence to spot
the grammatical mistakes young people make and, with
great satisfaction, can correct them.
Another fear the Brothers had, before they arrived, was
the uncertainty of being able to cope in a country where
there were so few Catholics. Poland is a very Catholic
country, with strong Catholic traditions – priests can walk
the streets in their cassocks, even everyday greetings can
be religious in nature e.g. Pochwalony Jezus Chrystus –
Praised be Jesus Christ to which the proper answer is
Na wieki wieków – For all eternity. I don’t think we can
appreciate the comfort they feel living in a Catholic
country. Needless to say, their fears were unfounded.
While they may still miss the way feast days are celebrated
in their native Poland, they have appreciated the strong
faith of so many Catholics in this country.
When a young Salesian comes to this country he needs
someone who will befriend him, someone who will:
• Answer his questions
• Listen to his worries
• Spend some free time with him
• Enquire about his family and his previous way of life
Although each of the Brothers is based in a different
community, working in a different parish and a different
school, each one of them has found, in their communities,
fellow Salesians who were only too happy to listen to
them, offer them advice, spend time with them and
genuinely encourage them. This interchange of ideas
and concerns is vital in the process of inculturation. When
we work in a different culture from our own we need to be
open enough to appreciate the best things in that culture
even if they are different from the culture of the country
where we once lived. We need to appreciate the ways the
Church has adapted to the culture of that country, even
if it is different from the way the Church has developed
in our own country. All three Brothers expressed genuine
appreciation of the help they had received from teachers
in the schools and parishioners in the parishes in which
they worked. They really appreciated the way so many
lay people had understood Don Bosco and taught them
how to deal with young people in a Salesian way.
In talking to Jacek, Daniel and Dariusz, I asked what advice
they would give to other Salesians who were thinking of coming
to work in England. Apart from practical advice like, Bring an
umbrella, they suggested the following:
Be yourself, don’t pretend to be a different person.
Speak English, even when you are not sure you are right.
Be prepared for the best experience of your life.
Tony Bailey
6 DONBOSCOTODAY
When I first met the Sisters in 2002
I had only been teaching for one year.
I had been asked by a friend to join our
Diocesan group travelling to Toronto,
Canada for World Youth Day. Having had
no previous experience of World Youth
Day I had no idea of what to expect; if
I am honest, I was more attracted by
the thought of ten days in Canada than
anything else! I certainly didn’t expect
my whole life to change. >>
In the group that was travelling from Motherwell Diocese
there were two Salesian Sisters (Sisters Bernadette and
Isabel). I had never heard anything about the Salesians
before and this was also my first dealing with nuns. The
Sisters told me some things about their Congregation,
their founders, Don Bosco and Mary Mazzarello, and
about the type of work they did. I remember being
fascinated by it all and asking lots of questions. I also
remember being struck at how normal and approachable
they were - I felt like I’d known them for ages!
When we were in Canada we attended a Salesian Day.
People connected with the Salesian Family from all
around the world gathered together. This was definitely
a highlight for me because although the atmosphere
was electric and I had an amazingly enjoyable day
I discovered something much more - I finally found a
name that described how I felt about people and things
and my outlook on life and that name was Salesian.
You could say that it was here that I was bitten with the
Salesian bug.
After we returned home the Sisters kept in touch with
me and I was invited to other Salesian events in this
province. I got to know more of the Sisters and the young
people who were involved with them. I remember the first
time I went to Kendal for the Prayer Weekend and being
struck by how welcoming everyone was and how much
I felt at home.
The more I got involved with the Salesians the more alive
I felt. I remember speaking to my friends just after World
Youth Day and telling them all about my experience
Bitten with the Salesian Bug
The more I got involved with the
Salesians the more alive I felt.
DONBOSCOTODAY 7
and about these Salesians I had met. My friends were
laughing and saying, Oh, don’t tell us you’re going to be
one of them. Although I laughed too, something inside
made my stomach flip and I remember hearing myself
think, Could that be for me? However, as quickly as that
came into my head I pushed it out, No Way! That’s not
for me.
I tried to suppress that feeling and thought for ages, for
about two years I think. Each time it came I would push it
further to the back of my mind and try my best to ignore it.
However, it was stronger than me and each time it came
back, it was much more forceful than before. Some of
the Sisters asked me if I had ever considered Religious
Life and I denied it so much. Although I was desperate
for someone to ask me about it, I couldn’t bring myself to
talk about it when they did.
Then one day I received a letter inviting me to a
Discernment Weekend in Newmains Pastoral Centre.
I convinced myself that I was only going to help make up
the numbers but deep down if I am honest I was hoping
that if I went I’d discover that this wasn’t for me and then
I could get on with my life. As you can guess, that never
happened. It was during this weekend that I realised
I had to do something about this and talk to someone –
I had tried to deal with it myself, but it wasn’t any better.
So, after the weekend I emailed Sister Kathleen and
asked if I could meet her for a chat. From that I began
the Accompaniment Programme in which I met with her
once every month and discussed lots of things from all
different areas of my life.
During these months I continued to feel that God was
calling me, in some way. I decided that unless I tried
the next step I would never know, so I asked to make
a Community Experience. I spent a year as part of
the community in Newmains, whilst at the same time,
continuing in my teaching post at the school I had always
worked in. My experience of community in Newmains
was fantastic, I very quickly felt at home there. The Sisters
were all really welcoming and embraced me into the
community. I never once felt like a visitor in their home,
I always felt part of everything. In that community I was
the youngest member by almost 40 years but I never
felt that it was an issue. Everyone reached out to one
another – the sisters to me and me to them – and made
the effort to highlight common interests and similarities
as well as appreciating the differences.
As my Community Experience drew to a close I continued
to feel that God was calling me to the Salesian Religious
Life which meant I asked to become a Postulant. For a
year I left Scotland and came to Liverpool. Once again,
I was gifted with a wonderful experience of community
and completely different experiences within mission.
I also regularly attended Inter-Congregational Courses
with people at the same stage as me from all different
Orders. This was a fabulous experience as, apart from
making lots of new friends, it showed that young people
are still choosing Religious Life today. I am now at the
stage were I am discerning my future and the next step
of my journey. At the moment I feel certain that God is
calling me to apply for entry into the Noviciate and as
they say……watch this space!
Anne Frances McNamee
See Salesian Sisters website http://www.salesiansisters.org.uk/
8 DONBOSCOTODAY
Teaching computing in the Solomon Islands
Angela and I are volunteer teachers from the UK of
English and Computing who have been privileged to
assist the Salesians of Don Bosco. >>
Angela achieved a life-long dream when she retired, by
going to work in underdeveloped countries, teaching
English to underprivileged children. Her first assignment
was in Ethiopia on the war-torn border with Eritrea. She
loved working with children so much that she volunteered
to go again, this time to Cambodia, again a country
that had suffered terribly with thousands of orphaned
children.
This is where I joined Angela as a teacher, and since then
we have worked in East Timor, the Philippines, Ghana,
and El Salvador. I had long since realised that children
need the chance for an education, and deaf and hard
of hearing students are no exception to this. The Don
Bosco Technical Training Centre this weekend opened
its doors to 27 deaf and hard of hearing students and
their teachers from Aruligo.
After meeting Brother George
and his students at the
Marist Centre,
I was impressed by their signing abilities, and then
thought about how to get them to communicate.
After a brief conversation with Fr Ambrose Pereira SDB,
our Rector, the idea quickly grew that we could offer
these boys and girls computer studies at our Centre,
which would allow them to communicate with the outside
world.
We have all been amazed at how quickly they have
mastered computer skills. I see no reason why, long term,
they could not be usefully employed in this computer-
related age, as they are in my own country. Their artistic
skills are astonishing; after but a few hours of lessons
they were far ahead of many other students at this stage.
This program will need financing for the longer term for
it to succeed, but the long-term benefits to society will
outweigh any costs incurred now. I would like to thank
Sister Anna Maria Gervasoni FMA, Fr Ambrose Pereira
SDB, the Salesians and all staff and students who gave
up their weekend to help in this project. Giving is far
more rewarding than receiving.
Leo Duffy,
Don Bosco Volunteer
GBR
DONBOSCOTODAY 9
Bosco Bear
C
h
ild
re
n’
s
S
ec
tio
n
It’s a Mystery!
Hello Children,
What will happen in the future? It’s a mystery! 40 years ago there were no
computers: no mobile phones: and colour TV had only just been invented!
My story, in this magazine, has a ghost in it. There’s a very famous mystery
about a ghost ship called the Mary Celeste. It was found, in the Atlantic
Ocean, with no-one on board. Stories in newspapers said a warm cup of tea and a bowl
of apple pie were in the kitchen: a cat was asleep on top of a wardrobe:
and washing was hung out to dry. What HAD happened?
There have been lots of answers to this mystery. I think it was a giant
wave (Tsunami) that washed the crew into the sea.
Rio thinks pirates attacked the ship and threw the sailors overboard.
Suzi thinks it could have been a sea monster or an alien attack!
We just don’t know. There are lots of mysteries that you
can’t find the answer to; but it is important to THINK about
mysteries and to TRY to find the answer.
It can be fun to THINK about mysteries.
COMPETITION: SPRING 2009: We would like to thank the 50 children who sent entries.
The winning entry was written by RYAN from St. Joseph’s Primary School: Stanley, Co.
Durham. His story is published below:
MONEY
Frankie (a rather artistic, smiley boy) was running home through a dark, rainy night. He
was almost there when he skidded in a puddle and splashed his blonde hair with mud.
However, a rectangular shape was sticking out of the bath of sludge. Frankie picked it
up: it was a box. He pushed open the rusty metal lid. Right there was a load of coins
and notes! He slammed it shut, grasped it and charged down the damp, dark streets.
Eventually he approached his huge house.
Frankie wobbled in and screamed I’m home! He staggered upstairs to get dried and
more importantly, to get changed. Once he had finished he went to see his mam and
dad. Frankie showed his parents the box. His mother opened it…..and looked so happy;
her eyes were gleaming. His parents immediately grabbed him and started kissing and
cuddling their son. Frankie was amazed, but without thinking he snatched the box,
ran to the kitchen bin, and threw the box away! His parents were screaming as soon
as they noticed what he had done. Frankie just smiled and gave his Dad a hug; then
he explained that when his parents were amazed at the money and gave him love, he
realised that there is more to life than money. His parents realised what he meant. Love
means more than money. Having him explain that, they forgot all about the box.
Money is not always important; your family is much more important than anything.
Money may buy us food and drink and other supplies but you only need a little piece of
money to buy food. You don’t need any to get love from your family. Remember, money
isn’t everything.
10 DONBOSCOTODAY
HAUNTED HALL
Bosco, Rio, Suzi, Molly and Graham were spending the
weekend in an old house called Haunted Hall.
The Ghost of Duke Edgar, who owned the Hall 200
years ago, was said to walk the corridors at night.
On arriving they went to their rooms to unpack.
Suddenly they heard Graham Greyhound shout
out: Come here quickly!
Graham was staring at the desk near the front door.
I put some coins on here when I came in and they’re gone.
Strange, said Bosco.
Look at this, exclaimed Molly! She pointed at the lock in the door.
I had the key for the door. I’m sure I left it in the lock and it’s gone too!
This is getting spooky, shivered Suzi Squirrel. What was that tale
about a ghost?
Leave it to me, said Rio. I’m a bit of a detective you know.
We need some clues. Fingerprints, footprints in the
snow. That kind of thing.
It’s Summer, Bosco pointed out! Let’s go to bed.
THE GHOST:
Aaaaayy! The scream went all round Haunted Hall.
Bosco, Molly and Graham ran out of their rooms
onto the landing where Suzi stood terrified.
Aaaaayy; Aaaaayy, she yelled!
Calm down Suzi, said Bosco. What’s the matter?
Th-th-the g-g-g-ghost, stammered Suzi. It’s gone
into the bathroom.
Follow me, said Bosco. One behind the other,
they tiptoed to the door. THEN….it opened! And
out came……..Rio! He had a white blanket over
his head and body.
Ghastly Ghosts, exclaimed Bosco! What on
earth are you doing?
It’s cold, explained Rio. So I wrapped a blanket around me!
I think we can forget the Ghost of Haunted Hall for now, said Molly!
WHO DONE IT?
DONBOSCOTODAY 11
A BRIGHT IDEA!
It was breakfast on Saturday morning.
Conjuring cutlery, gasped Bosco.
My knife and spoon have gone.
Why would anyone want to steal a
knife and spoon?
Thief, came a sudden shriek! Robber,
came another shout!
What now? wondered Bosco.
My bracelet has gone, cried Suzi. So has my watch, complained Rio.
This is getting ridiculous; let’s go outside
and have a think, suggested Bosco.
It was a lovely, warm, summer’s day.
Bosco lay down on a bench and
gazed up into the sky. The Sun shone
in his eyes….it made him blink…. and
as he blinked Bosco suddenly knew
who the thief was!
DO YOU? (Answer on next page)
HONESTY PAYS
People like honest people. People
do not like dishonest people. For
example; if you find money on the
floor at school the right thing to do
is to hand it in to a teacher who will
find out who it belongs to. Just think how
pleased you would be if you lost some money
and someone handed it in.
Stealing is always wrong: even being greedy and taking more than your fair
share is wrong. If you are honest and fair other people will respect you. Even
more important is that you get SELF-RESPECT which means that YOU know
that you are an honest person and that’s how you want to feel about yourself
all through your life.
Another kind of honesty is to tell the truth and not to lie. If people think that you
do not tell the truth they will not trust you and you will end up with fewer and
fewer friends.
There are things that you know are right and things that you know are wrong.
DO WHAT YOU KNOW IS RIGHT!
WHO DID IT?
C
h
ild
re
n’
s
S
ec
tio
n
12 DONBOSCOTODAY
Bosco got Rio, Suzi, Molly and Graham into a circle.
I’ve been thinking about everything that’s been stolen, said Bosco. Coins, a
key, a knife and spoon, jewellery and a watch; and I’ve just realised they have
something in common. They’re SHINY. And I know someone
who can’t help picking up shiny objects!
Oh, dear, oh dear, oh dear. I’m so sorry, said Molly Magpie
I didn’t mean to steal; honestly. Magpies just can’t help
picking up shiny objects. Let’s go to my room and see
if they’re there.
And they were: in a drawer, under a mirror.
We forgive you, said Suzi. You’re our best friend and
we know you aren’t a thief: but we’ll keep an eye on you in future!
Thanks Inspector Bosco, smiled Molly. I didn’t have a ghost of a chance of
getting away with it!
COMPETITION: TRUE OR FALSE?
1. Don Bosco’s Christian name was John.
2. Agatha Christie wrote whodunits.
3. A Tarantula is a very large insect.
4. England is to the east of Wales.
5. King Henry VIII had 5 wives.
6. The Harry Potter stories are written by K J Rowling.
7. A year is the time it takes the Earth to travel around the Sun.
8. Barack Obama is the President of the USA.
9. The Salesians take their name from St Francis of Sales.
10. The word Internet is short for International Network.
11. The capital of Scotland is Glasgow.
12. The holders of the soccer World Cup are Italy.
13. The film Slumdog Millionaire is set in China.
14. The Queen has three sons and one daughter.
15. Gary Barlow writes the songs for Take That.
16. Paella is a popular Spanish meal.
17. There are more true answers than false answers in this quiz.
Please send entries to Bosco Bear DON BOSCO PUBLICATIONS
Thornleigh House, Sharples Park, Bolton BL1 6PQ
Please include Name, Age and Address
DONBOSCOTODAY 13
Kim Son is a district at the centre of the
Province of Ninh Binh (Vietnam). The area
covers 163 km2. The economic situation is
still precarious, and the zone belongs to
the depressed part of the Province. >>
The population counts 171,000 inhabitants with 39,000
families. 2,098 are poor families that earn their daily
bread and the necessities of life through the cultivation
of fields. Since the families are numerous, the land
does not produce enough for all. For three years Sister
Maddalena Ngo Minh Chau and other Sisters of her
community have visited the poor families and help them
through long distance adoptions that allow the children
to attend school. Recently, considering the situation, the
Salesian Sisters have sought and obtained financing to
promote the raising of pigs (pork is the basic element for
the Vietnamese people). Sister Maddalena had singled
out the families available to begin the activity with the
help of micro-credit. Groups consisting of five poor
families each have been established. Each family has
made a written request for help and has promised to pay
back the debt within 10 months. A person responsible
who will distribute the money and receive the restitution
has been appointed for each group. All is regulated by
income. Thus began the activity and each family received
a loan of three million piastres which is equivalent to 150
Euros for the acquisition of a sow. At the end of the 5th
month it is expected that there will be the first piglets
that can be sold. Then each family will give back half the
sum received as a loan, 1,500,000 piastres equal to 75
Euros and the other half will serve to continue paying the
expenses for the raising of the pigs and for the family.
After ten months it is expected that the families will have
paid back the whole loan. After about a year there will be
another litter of piglets that the family could sell, keeping
all the earnings.
A New Kind of Piggy Bank
14 DONBOSCOTODAY
A Salesian from South Africa explained the
project as follows:
When the scope of the AIDS pandemic in sub-Saharan
Africa caught the world’s attention, many organisations
sought to address the problem in a manner that they
believed would help halt the spread of the disease.
As one might expect, controversy and conflict has
surrounded the decisions to use one program or another.
The Salesians of South Africa at the Don Bosco Centre in
Walkerville, 30 kms south of Johannesburg, developed a
program called Love Matters to counteract some of the
popular programs used to combat AIDS, believing that
the Church needed to promote a program based on true
love and commitment, not just convenience.
A Salesian from South Africa explained the project as
follows:
I believe the safe-sex campaigns are doing little more
than promoting sexual irresponsibility, by devaluing
the meaning of the great gift of sex. The media have
succeeded in brainwashing even many of church-going
youth into believing, that as long as it is safe, promiscuity
is not harmful. Sex is only a sin if you don’t use a condom,
declared one of them to me. Why can’t anti-AIDS
campaigners promote abstinence as aggressively and
unconditionally as anti-smoking campaigners promote
non-smoking? Is it really unrealistic to expect young
people to say NO to sex before marriage? To me that
reveals a very condescending attitude to the moral
aptitude of young people. If we begin to present chastity
as a heroic virtue again, or even just as cool, rather than
as a far-fetched option for mad monks, they will strive
for it. I’ve never met anyone who regretted waiting till
marriage; I’ve met lots who wished they had.
While billboards and adverts advocate condoms as
the secret weapon which will help us win the war
against AIDS, a few of us have an alternative weapon
to promote, which I believe is the only true solution even
though it will never be popular. It begins with a radical
choice for chastity. Be faithful if you are married; abstain
if you’re not. Why should I abstain or be faithful, if I’m told
I can condomise and that it is safe! No condom is ever
sold with a guarantee. At best they reduce the risk. But
even if you don’t fall pregnant or catch a nasty STD, you
cannot protect your heart or mind with a condom. Safe
sex still breaks hearts; it jeopardises one’s emotional
and spiritual health. If only our campaigns could bluntly
promote the fact that the safest sex is NO sex outside of
a loving marriage commitment. I believe the time is long
overdue for us to boldly promote chastity and make it
fashionable by means of a Church-sponsored chastity
campaign on a large scale. We need to challenge the
youth of this country to set their ideals on the full truth,
not half-truths. They do believe that sex is sacred; that
chastity, not safe sex, is the path to health, happiness
and holiness. That chastity safeguards friendships. That
it enables you to kiss so many fears goodbye. It’s the
secret to remaining both healthy and holy. We’ve called
our program Love Matters. We believe that if rates of
infection among youth are slowing down ever so slightly,
it is because of the abstinence-only message, that some
more experienced educators are promoting. If only we
were able to access just 1% of the money millions that
safe-sex campaigns are getting, we could help stem the
tide much quicker.
Post-Love Matters comments from
Participants:
• This has been a very spiritual experience for me.
I am an adopted child, and throughout my life so
far I thought that my biological mother had just
wanted to get rid of me and that she hated me. But
this campaign has made me realise that I am worth
something, and that she did love me enough to give
me a life that she herself could not provide for me.
• My biological mom was 17 when she had me,
unmarried and left in the lurch. I now appreciate that
I was not a mistake. Sure, she made a bad decision
and I was the consequence. But she redeemed
herself by giving me life. Love Matters has helped me
think a lot about my purpose in life and I have taken
decisions to strive to make something worthwhile of
this gift of life. I hope to meet my biological mom one
day, and this camp has made me more determined
to do that.
• My father died when I was 8 and again this camp has
helped me move on and stop feeling sorry for myself.
Parishes are focusing on the needs of couples and
families and celebrating the greatness of marriage, with
a campaign called: Making Marriage More. We rejoice
at this initiative, considering that we add our bit through
the Love Matters program which has a component on
marriage and building family-life, but which especially is
to be seen as a remote preparation for marriage program.
Love Really Matters
The Salesians of South Africa Confront AIDS >>
body copy
DONBOSCOTODAY 15
Postscript
The 53rd Commission on the Status of Women, held at United Nations Headquarters
in New York March 3rd - 13th this year, was an opportunity for several branches of
the Salesian Family to collaborate with NGOs and governments to address this
year’s priority theme: The equal sharing of responsibilities between women and
men, including care giving, in the context of HIV/AIDS. The Salesian Sisters, the
Salesians of Don Bosco, lay collaborators, and students, all participated in and
contributed to the deliberations of the Commission.
A number of people thanked the Salesian Family for their intervention and were
appreciative of their decision to deliver it using both a male and a female speaker.
Our major collaborative effort was the presentation of the Salesian Project from
South Africa – Love Matters.
We’ve called our program Love Matters.
16 DONBOSCOTODAY
Our Responsibility for the Rights of a Child
We have a unique geographical and cultural presence,
responsible for the education of so many young
people. We acknowledge this with humility, but also
with awareness. We are talking of a precious heritage:
a heritage that carries a huge responsibility. Through
the Gospel of Jesus and the charism of Don Bosco,
we must attempt to transform society by removing the
deep causes of injustice and poverty. By evangelisation
we must enable the growth of the child, in all his or her
dignity; especially the poorest child.
Like Don Bosco, in his time, we must be active agents
of a child’s salvation. Don Bosco asks us today to put
the child at the centre, as the ongoing choice in the
life of every one of our communities. This is why, for
the complete salvation of the young, the Gospel asks
us today to set out on this path of the rights of the
child. This means treading a new path and learning
new languages. We must leave nothing untried for
the salvation of the young. Today we cannot look into
the eyes of a child without seeing ourselves as the
promoters of that child’s rights.
The Centrality of the Quality of Education
Only education can promote a new world, where every
child can live a free and dignified life, in peace. We are
faced with an educational crisis caused by so many
inequalities, faced by an education so often determined
by market forces. These forces serve to maintain the
status quo, privatise wealth and cause all kinds of
poverty. As a result, together with young people and
their families, we are called to examine the quality
of the education we offer. Does it have the capacity
to bring young people to a mature appreciation of
universal values? Values such as respect, the fostering
of the dignity of the human being, personal and social
responsibility for justice and solidarity, active citizenship.
We need to examine the capacity of our education to
communicate the Gospel and bring young people to
encounter Jesus, as part of an education which frees
them from all forms of poverty and marginalisation.
We are called to scrutinise our capacity to give full
expression, in our Salesian communities and in our
educative and pastoral communities, to values which
promote the dignity of the human person, not only
through our teaching but also through our witness. This
kind of scrutiny and evaluation will, as a consequence,
lead us to put certain choices into practice, which are
deeply Salesian; in particular it will ask us:
• To renew our choice of starting from those who are
the least in any Salesian work.
• To educate to awareness of human rights in
all our works and activities: schools, technical
and professional formation centres, universities,
oratories and youth centres, parishes, and
associations. Works that are not directly concerned
with hardship and marginalisation can and must
also educate to and for human rights. Human rights
will help change the status quo, power structures,
dominant life styles, consumer patterns; that are
a powerful means at our disposition for promoting
and protecting the young who are more at risk,
weak or in need.
The Salesian
Family has no
reason for being,
other than for the
salvation of the
young, in all the
meanings of the
word salvation.
The Salesian
Family has
contact with
15 million boys
and girls in
130 countries
around the
world >>
DONBOSCOTODAY 17
• To renew our choice for a complete education,
where education and evangelisation are like two
sides of the same coin. Holistic education of this
kind means educating young people to social and
political involvement following the inspiration of the
Church’s Social Teaching.
Our Educational System and Human Rights
without discrimination of any kind, irrespective of
the child’s or his or her parent’s or legal guardian’s
race, colour, sex, language, religion, political or
other opinion, national, ethnic or social origin,
property, disability, birth or other status. (Article 2
of Convention on the Rights of the Child)
In the same way, Human Rights offer to the preventive
system new frontiers and opportunities for dialogue and
networking with other bodies with a view to identifying
and removing the causes of injustice, iniquity and
violence. Don Bosco could not speak of the Human
Rights, because that legal category did not then exist.
But Don Bosco was a precursor of so many of the
elements in a view of the child and adolescent which is
today defined by the language of Human Rights.
Fr Pascual Chávez Villanueva
I conclude with a short poem by Gabriella Mistral,
short but full of prophetic meaning, and which tells
us why today, more than ever, we should speak of
an educational emergency and how today more than
ever the way forward can be found in the heart of Don
Bosco:
Our Responsibility for the Rights of a Child
His Name is
Today
We are guilty of many
errors, of many faults,
But our worst crime
is abandoning the
children,
Neglecting the fountain
of life.
Many of the things we
need can wait.
The child cannot.
Right now is the time his bones are being formed,
His blood is being made and his senses are
being developed.
To him we cannot answer, Tomorrow.
His name is Today.
Gabriella Mistral
Nobel Prize-winning poet from Chile
18 DONBOSCOTODAY
Speaking of the Salesian Family today is to describe a certain sense
of citizenship. The expression Salesian Family is not found in Don
Bosco’s terminology, but it was present in his heart and in the spirit
of everything he did. There can be no doubt that for our Father the
centre and purpose of his whole life was the mission received from
God which he saw taking shape more and more clearly following his
dream at nine years of age. The conviction of his vocation did not
dispense him from the obligation, which at times was difficult and
painful, of discerning the path it was to take and discovering the
means to put it into practice.
A vast movement for the young >>
DONBOSCOTODAY 19
The March Of The Laity
The various activities and work of Don Bosco, including the
founding of his Congregation, and with Mary Mazzarello,
that of the Daughters of Mary Help of Christians were
not ends in themselves, but ways of carrying out the
mission. Describing the charism as Salesian indicates a
spirit and a style of action inspired by the loving kindness
of Saint Francis of Sales. It is possible to think of a
movement as formed by concentric circles at the centre
of which is the animating nucleus which is the FMA and
the SDB consecrated religious. Certainly the tiny seed
has become a large tree and now a wood. In the 2009
Strenna I expressed the very practical form of our mission
in this way: Let us commit ourselves to making the
Salesian Family a vast movement of persons for the
salvation of the young.
We are Family >>
We are not a work group but a family which lives in
communion and has a mission, like a heart that beats
with a double rhythm, the systolic and the diastolic, the
two alternatives which cannot be separated without
losing their identity. The mission reminds us that it is not
a question of just being together as on Mount Tabor,
but of working in harmony for the education and the
evangelisation of the young. The clearest example of this
union is to be found in the Past Pupils Association. The
Salesian Constitutions say that they are also members
of the Salesian Family by reason of the education they
have received (Constitution 5). No one who has been in
one of our houses or centres can be rejected, something
unthinkable in a family. The bonds are closer when they
commit themselves to take an active part in the Salesian
mission in the world: in a family the collaboration of
everyone in the common mission is no
small matter. The word movement
underlines the dynamism of the
mission and recalls the passage in
the gospel which describes Jesus
walking towards Emmaus with two
disciples. For us the disciples
are the young. We are called to
accompany them to Jesus,
the only one who can give
meaning to their lives.
All of this we are doing
in the much wider
perspective of the universal
Church, and in more practical terms within the local
Church. Saint Francis of Sales was considered an
innovator when he presented holiness as the aim of
every Christian. Don Bosco puts the emphasis on the
right/duty of collaborating in the Church according to
the Salesian charism. The Second Vatican Council
highlighted the apostolate of the laity and the vocation
to holiness. Indeed as Leon Bloy wrote, Every Christian
is either an apostle or an apostate! The lay people who
share with us the Salesian mission and spirit are not
merely collaborators but people who are co-responsible,
even if on different levels.
Nowadays a great variety of groups and associations for
voluntary service have developed; this situation is a new
way of being aware of others, a challenge to confront
the dominant injustices and selfishness of people, a
significant vocational option and the complement of
the educational process. Voluntary service continues
to expand in some regions; local and national service,
missionary, social and vocational service is developing,
especially in America. In other countries international
and missionary voluntary service has developed e.g. in
Europe; while others are welcoming volunteers e.g. Africa
and Asia. Salesian voluntary service is a well-worthwhile
opportunity for young people who have been involved in
pursuing the youth ministry process, as it helps them to
make mature decisions about their option for a committed
Christian life. It often becomes the occasion to make
contact with and provide evangelisation opportunities for
young people outside our own centres. In the end, what
matters is the salvation of youth.
by Fr Pascual Chávez Villanueva SDB
20 DONBOSCOTODAY
To you, Father, our praise is due
for Don Bosco
the dream that inspired him
the trials that tempered him
and the signs that guided him;
for those who have shared
his indomitable zeal
men and women,
religious and lay,
in every time and place;
for the humble beginnings
at Valdocco
and for every educative
environment called
to be a revelation
and gift of your love;
for the immense ranks of
young people
who invade our life
and disturb our heart
prompting it to imitate
that of the Good Shepherd.
To you, Father, our praise is due
with Mary
our powerful Helper
in the Holy Spirit
through the Risen Christ.
Amen.
From Starting Again from Don Bosco by Ian Murdoch SDB
