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DON BOSCO TODAY
THE MAGAZINE FOR THE SALESIAN FAMILY
Lent 2011
2
Dear Readers
You will notice that we have entitled this edition of
Don Bosco Today as the Lent Issue. There are many
reasons for this. The first is that Lent is traditionally
a time of reflection. The Rector Major Fr Chávez
is asking us to consider this year the whole area of
Vocation, with the message from scripture of Come
and See. He reminds us that Life is a Vocation – a
call to great things, a response to the invitation
Come and See. Vocation is not an optional extra,
it is an optional essential, it is essential because
without our response to God’s call we miss out on
so much that belongs to us; but it remains optional,
because it is not forced on us - we have to choose.
That choice is a life-long process of trying to
understand what God wants of us, a process of
reflection, of prayer, of trying to understand our
life.
The Church offers us the season of Lent as a
precious time of reflection. The articles in this Lent
issue of Don Bosco Today may help us. One way
which many young people today find of reflecting
on life is the opportunity to be volunteers, as Mary
Biddle explains in her article on VIDES. James
Gallagher invites us to revisit our memories of the
Pope’s September visit, as we reflect on Education,
all that we do for our children to help them
appreciate the value of their lives, their vocations.
There are two articles on Buses, a fascinating
example of how new ways of helping young people
can develop in different parts of the world but in
very similar ways. The article on Catacombs
reminds us of what sacrifices were made by our
ancestors in the faith. Finally in the We
Remember pages we pay tribute to those who were
an example for us.
I make no apology for the publicity we give to two
new publications of which we are justly pround –
Fr Michael Winstanley’s Lenten Sundays and A
Swatch Journey through Lent. Michael’s book is
a very profound reflection on the Sunday gospels
– an ideal Lenten companion. Our new swatch is
an attempt to help young people reflect and pray.
Our first swatch book has far exceeded our
expectations. I have often said that I consider each
new book we produce as a New Salesian, because,
like don Bosco, I am convinced that a good book
can do an immense amount of good.
We invite feed-back, please let us know what you
like and what you dislike about our books or Don
Bosco Today. On a practical level please write
your comments on our books on our website:
www.don-bosco-publications.co.uk
Other people may be encouraged to read a book
if you have found it helpful.
Finally a sincere word of gratitude,
for all you generous donations.
Without your help the work of Don
Bosco would be severely limited.
Thank you.
Fr Tony Bailey SDB
Editorial
Page 4
Vides
Page 6
Education
Page 9
Bosco Bear
Page 13
Oratory on
Wheels
3
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Page 14
Catacombs
Page 16
Sierra Leone
Page 18
We Remember
Page 20
Easter 2011
4
The most important aspect of VIDES is
the formation of our volunteers. We want
to give each of our volunteers the
opportunity to grow in self belief and in
their own understanding of Salesian
spirituality. This thread runs through
every single VIDES weekend and project,
ensuring all of our volunteers have the
opportunity to reflect meaningfully on
their own self development. Our
volunteers are central to the work we do.
Believing that volunteers are at the heart of our work,
it was crucial to get the balance right as I began my full
time work for VIDES. So many volunteers give of their
time throughout the year, preparing and delivering
projects. The new full time role had been managed so
as not to disempower any of our current volunteers; it
was rather to enable VIDES to grow
and develop in ways that had previously not been
possible due to time restraints.
Many volunteers in VIDES choose to commit to a
management team, with each team looking after a
different area of our work. For example, we have a
Youth Development Team which runs our annual
‘VIDES for Youth’ weekend for 14-16 year olds and our
annual ‘come and see’ weekend. Our Volunteer
Development Team is responsible for writing and
developing formation opportunities for all volunteers
and meets many times through the year. These are only
two of our five management teams. Through these teams,
volunteers are encouraged to develop their own
leadership skills, to develop their own ideas, bringing
their own creativity to the vision and work of VIDES.
Reaching Out
5
The role of the Outreach Development Worker is
different to any volunteer role and really is about
encouraging and enabling more young people to have
the opportunity of volunteering with VIDES, as well
as being about working with local communities, so that
they can offer youth ministry projects in their own
areas.
VIDES runs summer projects in the UK every year,
which last for ten days and are planned by our UK
Projects Team. The projects are run by a team of
VIDES volunteers who live in community and work
with local children and young people aged from 8-16.
We run our summer projects in areas we are invited
into and commit to an area for five years. This is so
we are able to help a community
develop their own youth provision
and so that our work is sustainable.
In the past, VIDES has been unable
to commit fully to an ongoing
relationship with each host
community throughout the year, as our
volunteers have not always had the time
to be able to do this. My role has
enabled me to begin to work much more
closely with host communities, listening
to their needs and trying to respond in the
best way we can. Some of our host communities
have heard little about the Salesian Family, yet they
see in our volunteers a way of working with the young
that is loving, patient and optimistic. We always try
to explore Salesian youth work with host communities,
sewing seeds that will hopefully grow in the future.
One such need that surfaced from communities was
helping to train local young people, so that they can
help with VIDES youth projects in their localities. We
have begun to meet this need by writing and running
a VIDES Youth Leadership Programme. VIDES has
worked with young people in Birmingham, Runcorn,
Bootle and Croxteth (Liverpool), enabling them to
develop their self confidence and leadership skills. We
hope to develop this programme in the near future.
Another aspect of my work is the development of the
VIDES Friends Clubs. These clubs are locally run and
engage children and young people in development
education, as well as helping them to make new friends
and grow in confidence. The children choose a VIDES
project to support somewhere in the world, often a
place our volunteers have been to in the past. They
learn more about how children and young people live
in other parts of the world and how different their lives
are. For example, our club in Runcorn is committed
to a project in Tanzania. The children and young
people plan and deliver fundraising events, take part
in activities and help to plan the programme for their
club. I believe this helps them to develop their own
sense of citizenship, as well as giving young people a
safe place to be themselves and have fun. We are
looking forward to June, when we will hold our first
national VIDES Friends residential.
I am often working in schools, or delivering
presentations, introducing the work of VIDES and in
some cases, introducing the Salesian
way of working with young people. I
have run sixth form days, encouraging
young people to think about their
contribution to the world, as well as
delivering workshops to Year 9 pupils
alongside PSHE schemes of work. It
is always a privilege to see young
people engaged in meaningful questions,
especially when they are reflecting on our
Salesian ethos.
This outreach work gives me great hope for the future.
There are so many young people full of excitement and
enthusiasm for the work of the Salesian Family! Our
VIDES volunteers continue to work selflessly for the
good of the young and their work is vital to the
development of our organisation. Having a full time
worker for VIDES is new and challenging, but I am
so grateful for the opportunity. The Rector Major
reminds us as we enter 2011 that we need to endeavour
to bring young people to a greater awareness of
themselves, others and God, through the invitation
Come and See. I endeavour to hold this message close
to my work as we move into a new year and I hope
that my invitation to young people and communities
to come and see the work of VIDES will be just the
start of their Salesian journey.
For more information about any of our projects, please
email the VIDES Office on videsoffice@videsuk.org.uk.
Mary Biddle
The most important
aspect of VIDES
is the formation
of our volunteers.
6
Broader than schooling
Catholic education is wider than and should not be
identified with Catholic schooling. It is a task in which
we are all involved in home, parish and school, as
parents, priests and teachers. Yet our attention is to a
large extent being focused on the Church’s mission
within our schools to the young, their families, the
parishes and the wider community. The Pope during
his visit praised and valued the work that is being done
in Catholic education for the young here in Britain.
Can we celebrate Catholic education?
Two years after the restoration of the hierarchy in 1852
the bishops of England and Wales boldly stated ‘the
first necessity is a sufficient provision of education
adequate for the wants of the poor…prefer the
establishment of a good school to every other work.
There are, of course, a number of Catholics, who may
wonder if we are still true to that mission and whether
our present day endeavours are worthy of celebration.
There are Catholics who believe that our schools are
falling short at least in the vital mission of passing on
the faith to the younger generation. The youthful
presence or lack of it at Sunday Mass clearly makes
many raise this question. Many others, including
myself, believe that we do carry on that same mission
but in a world and Church that is very different.
In his homily in Westminster cathedral the Pope
referred to contemporary culture influences today
One of the great challenges facing us today is
how to speak convincingly of the wisdom and
liberating power of God’s word to a world
which all too often sees the Gospel as a
constriction of human freedom, instead of the
truth which liberates our minds and enlightens
our efforts to live wisely and well, both as
individuals and as members of society.
The Bigger Picture
Talking to the children and young people gathered in
St. Mary’s Strawberry Hill the Pope reminded them
of what he called:
the bigger picture over and above the subjects
you study, the different skills you learn. The
life of faith needs to be the driving force behind
every activity of the school, so that the Church’s
mission may be served effectively, and the
The Pope on Education
7
young people discover the joy of entering into
Christ’s being for others.’
We need to be careful when we speak of our schools
as a community of faith. There are many in our schools
who are not of the Catholic faith both among teachers
and students. Yet it is essential that we see the Catholic
school is an educating community inspired and
challenged by the Christian faith vision concerning the
dignity of each person and the wonder of God’s
creation of which we are the stewards. The Pope
acknowledges that not everyone in the school is of the
Catholic tradition yet he wished to include them since
it is only right that respect and friendship for
members of other religious traditions should be
among the virtues learned in a ‘Catholic school’.
That does happen in nearly all our schools. It
points up the importance of the induction
process of new staff.
Integral Human Development
The Pope spoke of the Catholic school providing ‘an
integral education’, ‘a rounded education for the whole
person’. In his latest encyclical he speaks of education
for ‘integral human development’. Every area of the
taught curriculum is required to include the spiritual
and moral dimensions, and these are looked at both by
Ofsted and diocesan inspectors. The school has very
real potential for providing such ‘rounded education’.
Sense of Community
One of the experiences that young people who attended
the various events with the Pope spoke most
enthusiastically about was being together with so many
other young people and people of all ages. The
community dimension of school is much appreciated
by students. They speak highly of their companionship
with other students and of the helpful and friendly
relationships with many teachers. When talking to
students in the course of inspections they frequently
highlight this aspect – ‘It is like a family’ is a frequent
remark In his address to the young people in
Strawberry Hill the Pope said
indeed, the life of faith can only be effectively
nurtured when the prevailing atmosphere is one
of respectful and affectionate trust. I pray that
this will continue to be as a hallmark of schools
in this country’.
I believe it is a hallmark of most of our schools and
one we should not overlook. In our schools students
are also given the opportunity to take on all sorts of
responsibilities in the school: as members of the School
Council, as prefects and mentor to younger students
and as members of anti- bullying campaign.
We are made to receive love; we are made to give love
Outside Westminster cathedral he eloquently reminded
the young people that ‘we are made for love…we were
made to receive love and we have from all those people
in our lives who have helped us to realise how precious
we are in their eyes and in the eyes of God’. And he
enumerated a number of such people including friends,
parents, teachers and others . He then went on to say
that ‘we are made to give love. Every day we have to
choose love and this requires help’. Such help is given
by many teachers who enable students to fulfil their
unique potential and to find their true place in life, to
fulfil that ‘definite service’ or ‘mission’ that God has
in mind for each one. The Pope urged young people
to respond to God’s love ‘by reflecting something of
his infinite goodness’. He spelt out some ways that
they could do this:
Avoiding destructive and dangerous tendencies that
cause suffering and damage,
Feeling compassion for people in difficulties, being
ready to help,
Coming to the aid of the poor and hungry.
One of the most impressive aspects of Catholic schools
today is the great amount of fund raising for various
charitable causes locally and globally. The students
not only give a good deal but are very aware of why
they do so. While they thus try to enrich the life of
others, they enrich their own. This is an important
dimension of our Christian faith which the young in
our schools are very much engaged.
Time for Silence and Reflection
The Pope reminded the young people that this ‘requires
moments of silence…because it is in silence that we
find God and in silence we discover ourselves’. The
young find silence difficult. They are constantly
bombarded by noise, noisy music; they are forever on
their phones and all the other technical machines the
carry around. Silence is in short supply! Yet in my
experience the good Catholic school addresses this call
of the Pope. There are well prepared and creative acts
8
of collective worship which allow for prayer and
silence as they reflect on issues that are topical and
speak to the young. Most schools now have a chapel
or quiet room and chaplains often introduce them to
various forms of meditation and prayer. The liturgical
year is marked by special services. In form time each
day there is the opportunity for a brief reflective prayer
and silence. This is, of course, something which heads,
chaplains and advisers need to oversee and ensure that
it takes place.
Help to Families
The Pope did not really mention this feature of school
life during his visit. However, he has stressed the need
to support families in many of his talks. He certainly
stressed it forcefully to the Salesians gathered in Rome
for our recent General Chapter. He urged us in our
youth ministry not overlook the needs of families
which ‘frequently have difficulty in facing the
challenges of education; they are often unable to make
their contribution or are absent’. The document The
Catholic School on the Threshold of the New
Millennium praises schools ‘for the unpretentious yet
caring and sensitive help offered in those cases , more
and more numerous above all in wealthy nations, of
families which are fragile or have broken up’. Our
schools have close links with families, are aware of
problems and seek to offer sensitive care. We need
only ask Headteachers.
The Pope’s Tone and Language
Throughout the visit the Pope addressed his advice and
challenges to the young and their educators by way of
invitation, not in a judgemental or overly negative tone.
He addressed their aspirations and ideals .Young
people turned out in their thousands, many schools
sending a large delegation of students to the various
events. They were deeply impressed and thoroughly
enjoyed the experience. We can, however, be fairly
sure that not all turn up every Sunday at Mass. Yet we
can hardly call the visit a failure. The Pope inspired
many, made them think seriously about what they are
doing with their lives and challenged them to live the
Gospel and try to follow the way of Christ. Our
Catholic schools in addressing the many needs of the
young in difficult circumstances and in the context of
the constant initiatives of Governments seek to do the
same. Bishop Brian Noble spoke of ‘keeping alive the
rumour of God’. In many ways that is what we do in
our schools and we should not be too negative or
judgemental of what we see as their success. They staff
and students could do with our praise and
encouragement.
Recall the Parable of the Sower
We must respect the freedom of the person and we
must acknowledge the cultural and religious
environment in which our young are growing up.
There are many strong influences upon them in their
search for meaning and for that definite mission which
is theirs and to which they will try to commit
themselves. We could do well to recall the parable of
the Sower with the different results of the sowing. A
possibly better title for the parable would be that of
The Seed that Struggles to Grow. Matthew tells us that
when the seed fell on good ground in one case it
yielded a hundredfold, in another sixty, and in another
thirty. We too often want a hundredfold and are not
content with or wish to celebrate a reasonable partial
harvest of sixty or thirty fold.
Jim Gallagher SDB
9
A world record?
Well, Darkwood Forest record. We also feed the ducks in the lake. They make
me laugh with their little legs going like the clappers to get to a piece of bread
before the others. There are swans and geese there too and sometimes some
pesky seagulls fly in.
Rio says he cant wait till he's old enough to drive a sports car: he’d like to be
Lewis Hamilton! When he’s in a car he makes noises like bruummm
……bruummm and meeee…amm. I’m not sure Id feel safe in a car with him!
We have bikes and scooters and skates. We even like walking. I have a friend
who used to do hill-walking with his brother.
Most people are good at talking. I am! However, some people talk about themselves
all the time which can be very boring. Have you ever tried LISTENING to OTHER
people? You can learn a lot; you will definitely learn that people are not all the same;
they’re different and that’s fine. Everyone isn’t the same as you.
One of the things that can make people different is where they come from.
Some people are born in large towns and cities. They live with cars, buses, trams,
trains, shops, markets, cafes, restaurants, cinemas, theatres, noise and lots of other
people.
Some people come from small towns and villages in the countryside; they live with
trees, streams, hills, animals, the wind on your face, the sky, peace and quiet. They
often work on their own or with just a few people.
Hello children and hello Spring!
Lighter nights mean going out more.
Sometimes we go running round Lake Glass.
10
11
12
1 2 3 4 5
6 7
8
9
10 11 12
13
14 15
16 17
18
19
Across
1. Crucify means to die on what? (5)
4. Laid on floor for Jesus (4)
6. Wednesday at start of Lent (3)
8. Lent is a time to think less about who? (2)
9. Ash Wednesday to Easter Sunday. (4)
Down
2. What Jesus did after dying. (4)
3. Short for ‘saint’. (2)
4. Roman Governor. (6)
5. Name of 2 women at crucifixion. (4)
6. The end. (4)
NAME: AGE: ADDRESS:
Please send your entry to Don Bosco Publications; Thornleigh House; Sharples Park; Bolton. BL1 6PQ
AUTUMN 2010 COMPETITION WINNERS.
STORM CLOUDS.
The winners of the Competition are CLAIRE from Bolton : BETH from Darlington and HANNAH from
Coatbridge.They will each receive a book from Don Bosco Publications as their prize. The whole of Claire’s
class sent an entry so we have sent her school a book for the class library.
Beth is 6 years’ old and we thought you’d like to read her entry.
STORM CLOUDS:
13
As part of his efforts to save souls, Don Bosco
was ready to adopt a wide variety of means and
equipment, including some of the most avant-
garde for his time. This gift for seeking new ways
and possibilities for reaching out to the young and
helping them to be at ease with one another,
society and God, is something that Salesians have
in their blood. A modest indication of the seeking
of new approaches to reach young people of
today's streets is the Minibus Veselja project, or
the Fun Minibus.
The initiative started out in the Slovenia Province
a decade ago as part of the Skala Project (in
Slovenian, the rock). It tackles the problem of
young people at risk, especially those on the
street. The idea of the minibus begins from the
same assumption that Don Bosco made: we need
to go out looking for young people where they are
to be found. This is why we have an oratory on
wheels,going around the streets of the Slovenian
capital, Ljubjana, especially in the suburbs where
immigration, from the Balkan regions in
particular, leaves its mark with all the
consequences this implies: problems of education,
schooling, integration, and employment.
The vehicle, especially adapted for this kind of
street work, has three educational spaces: a chat
room in the front, a games room in the back and
a Veranda attached externally, under an awning.
The project has a social and educational structure
split into three sessions: there are psycho social
and guidance activities, creative, educational and
spiritual ones, and then finally sports and
entertainment. The first aim of this mobile youth
centre is to gather street children together (those
with the least opportunities in life) in a setting
which offers them the stimulus, as desired by the
Preventive System of St John Bosco. Besides
prevention we can also intervene in some of the
most difficult cases (secondary prevention) which
require support from specialised agencies.
The Minibus programme takes place three times
a week, and in summer and autumn holidays,
daily, where it is also known as the Street
Oratory. This way holidays for these youngsters
are an experience of active, fruitful free time and
being together.
14
In 1930 Pope Pius XI, invited the
Salesians to look after, on behalf of the
Holy See, one of the most precious relics
of the early Church, a piece of land
blessed with saints and martyrs, and the
goal of many pilgrimages. Fascination
for this martyrs’ plot of land has attracted
pilgrims throughout the centuries and
they continue to come, from all parts of
the world, today. A large number of
these pilgrims, some hundreds of
thousands every year, are young people.
The Catacombs of St Callistus in Rome,
according to Pope John XXIII the most
august and celebrated of the Roman
Catacombs.
Today, after 80 years of continuous
service by the Salesians, the Catacombs
of St Callistus are served by a
community of 30 Salesians from 14
nations.
The Catacombs of St Callistus are the most ancient
collection of burial places, and the best preserved, on
the Via Appia. This huge burial area, belonging to the
Church, dates from the end of the second century.
These catacombs took their name from Deacon
Callistus who was asked to administer the area by
Pope Zephyrinus. When he, in turn, became Pope, he
enlarged the complex and it became the
burial place for sixteen Roman Pontiff's
from the 3rd century (Crypt of the Popes).
You enter the catacombs by a steep
staircase, which leads to the Crypt of the
Popes, here there is a small chamber with
the tomb of St Cecilia. On the walls you
can see paintings going back to the 5th
and 6th centuries, amongst them the
oldest extant image of the saint in an
attitude of prayer. It was from here, in
1821, that Pope Pasqual I brought the
ecilia’s sarcophagus to the Church which
bears her name in Trastevere.
Once you leave St Cecilia's crypt, you go
further along to an ossuary1, with layer
upon layer of tombs stretching to around
four metres high, and then along a
gallery opening onto a series of cubicles
known as the Sacraments on account of
the paintings alluding to baptism and the Eucharist.
After visiting the huge sarcophagus of Pope Milziade,
the path leads off into other areas dedicated to Saints
Gaius and Eusebius in what is known as the Liberiana
because of three inscriptions said to belong to Pope
Liberius (352–366), where the archways are painted
with scenes from the Old and New Testaments.
1 A site for the final resting place of human skeletal remains.
The Catacombs of St Callistus
15
Continuing on, you come to a primitive area known as the Lucina Crypts, housing the tomb of Pope
Cornelius decorated in Byzantine style and, nearby, two frescoes, one with The Good Shepherd, the other
depicting two fish and two baskets of bread and a glass filled with wine, evidently symbols of the Eucharist.
For organisational and security reasons visitors and pilgrims may only visit a small section of the catacombs,
but this already leaves an unforgettable impression. Just knowing that you are in touch with places where
some 56 martyrs in 18 saints are buried can be a powerful spiritual experience. No wonder then that you
see so many groups of young people, scouts and students coming from all over the world to the catacombs
to be inspired by the relics of the Early Church.
Salesians and Lay Guides serve in the Catacombs
Visitors are led by guides who speak their language for a thirty-minute tour with a detailed explanation
which is more than just history and culture. Each visit becomes a lesson in Church history which many
people find quite moving. To make the visit more meaningful there is the opportunity of celebrating Mass
down there. There are dozens of Masses every day in many languages, in various parts of the catacombs,
a prayerful experience as pilgrims join the early saints of the Church in prayer.
The catacombs of St Callistus attract Salesians from all over the world who, acting as guides, give part of
their life to this service. Some have been working here for more than 50 years while others come to St
Callistus catacombs just for a brief period of service. There is no lack of young volunteer guides, either,
especially in summer, who benefit from this powerful relic age of the Early Church.
Fr Tadeusz SDB
16
Archbishop Edward
Tamba Charles, of
Freetown, has blesses the
, a bus
which will provide street
children with medical first
aid, food, clothes and
teaching. Through it, the
NGO which is
directing the Salesian
project for street children,
will be present in the
more marginalised places
of Freetown with
professional social
services, youth ministry
initiatives, nurses and
legal aid for children.
The bus is well-equipped with various things from
first aid kits, sports and games material and a film
projector and is aimed at the children and
youngsters most at risk providing them with access
to health care, information about hygiene and
safeguarding their health (HIV/AIDS…), as well
as social and pastoral activities.
Social and pastoral workers are also collaborating
with other aspects of the work of the Don Bosco
Fambul as well as organisations such as the
hospitals and the Union of Family Support (under
the Police of Sierra Leone). Each day the bus will
visit five of the most deprived areas: Susan`s Bay,
Cline Town, Mabella, Hagan Street, Guardia Street.
There are four stages in the over-all project:
assistance for individuals, family care, pastoral
work and networking with other institutions (police,
hospitals and other bodies). It will almost certainly
be integrated into the basic social services or the
services provided by the Catholic Church which
the Government in Sierra Leone is developing in
collaboration
Freetown - Sierra Leone
17
with UNICEF and the Catholic missions. Already
the current programme of Don Bosco Fambul
offers important and successful activities: a street
children project, with vocational training, a youth
centre, youth ministry and accompaniment at times
of difficulty.
An internal needs assessment of Don Bosco Fambul
revealed that many street children in the slum area,
particularly girls, are physically and socially
isolated from appropriate provision and facilities
of Don Bosco Fambul that could meet their crisis
needs. Don Bosco Fambul set up an innovative
pilot project for Sierra Leone to reach better the
street children in the different slum areas of
Freetown through a Don Bosco MOBIL with
professional social workers, nurses and legal
advisers for the kids.
The bus carries appropriate materials and
equipment for first aid, counseling and recreation
(games, etc.). Further a cinema inside the bus
helps to educate the youngsters through helpful
movies. The implementation of the project will
give vulnerable children and teenager access to
medical care, individual counselling and advice,
information about hygienic, health (HIV/AIDS,
etc.) and social education. The qualified and
professional street social workers are cooperating
in partnership with other departments of Don
Bosco Fambul and organizations like hospitals
and the Family Support Union (Sierra Leone
Police). The bus will reach daily five slum area:
Susan´s Bay, Cline Town, Mabella, Hagan Street,
Guard Street.
The concept focus on four activities: individual aid,
family tracing, community work and networking
(with police, hospitals and other stakeholders).
This action will have strong potential to be
integrated in the basic package for social welfare
services, implemented by the government of Sierra
Leone in partnership with UNICEF and various
NGOs. Moreover, the current existing program at
Don Bosco
Fambul offers significant complementary and
ensuing measures (a 10 month street children
program, skill training, youth centre, and crisis
line).
18
Death
Faith sheds on death
a soft and gentle light,
reminding us of its positive and
consoling aspects.
For a Christian,
death is not the end
but the beginning:
it is the beginning
of true life,
the gate
which opens onto eternity.
It is like hearing
from behind
the barbed wire
of the concentration camp
the longed-for announcement:
We Remember
A Salesian Provincial declared, Sister Eileen is outstanding in her
ability as a teacher she has the natural gift for leadership; she is
painstaking and most efficient in work and exercises that kind gentle
influence which is most effective in its results.
Perhaps the most touching testament to Sister Eileen’s true Salesian
educational presence among the young teenagers is found in a letter,
respectfully addressed to the Provincial by the students of Sister
Eileen’s class at St William of York Secondary School, when they
were dismayed to learn of her forthcoming transfer to our secondary
school in Chertsey. They recognised not only her role in their
personal and scholastic development but above all the religious and
moral values she imparted to them, We need her guiding hand which
she has so willingly given to each of us by her religious example, from
which we have learned to love our faith and all it means. The love
and gratitude she inspired in generations of young people is borne
out by the continued affectionate contact with her past pupils.
On retiring from school, Sister Eileen took a theology course at
Maynooth and then for the next four years served as a Religious
Adviser to secondary schools, first in Paisley and then in the Glasgow
Archdio- cese. Advancing years finally caught up with her and she
moved to London for the remaining years, taking part in community
life for as long as she was able.
Sister Eileen died on the 11th December 2010 in St Thomas’ Hospital
in London.
While we pray for her, we ask her to obtain for our province
enthusiastic vocations of her calibre.
Sister Pauline FMA
Provincial
Sister Eileen was born in Enniskillen, Northern Ireland. She came to know the
Salesian Sisters through the Salesian Bulletin sent home by younger brother
Dennis was then studying at the Salesian aspirantate at Shrigley, he subsequently
died a Salesian missionary in Shillong, shortly before he was due to be ordained
a Salesian priest.
Eileen entered the Sisters at Chertsey in September 1933 and began teaching in
the school there. For the next forty years, Sister Eileen would dedicate her energies
and talents to the young people in our schools and in other Catholic secondary
schools.
Her colleagues noted not only her academic ability but, above all, her devotion
to the young. She was firm but gentle; who lead by example.
She was able, wrote one headteacher, to transform casual youngsters into
hard-working, enthusiastic students who took great pride in their work and
achievements.
SISTER EILEEN CAVANAGH FMA 1913 - 2010
19
FR JAMES WALSH SDB 1918 - 2010
James was born in Belleek, in Northern Ireland. At the age of 13 he travelled across the
Irish Sea to begin his aspirantate at Shrigley Park. In 1936 he moved to Beckford to
commence his novitiate year. James was ordained a priest at Pallaskenry, Co Limerick in
July 1947. For the next 40 years, except for one year of studies at St Mary’s College,
Strawberry Hill, James was a teacher at our Salesian schools in Battersea and Chertsey,
Farnborough and Cowley. Besides teaching geography and other academic subjects, James
also shared with many youngsters his great love of sport, especially athletics. In 1991 he
moved up to Glasgow, there his kindness and practical concern for others which had always
characterized his approach to those entrusted to his care, really came in to their own. He
was especially devoted to the sick and to the house-bound and spent many hours visiting
those who were in hospital. Eventually in May 2009, and almost into his 91st year he moved
to St Joseph’s, Bolton where he remained until just a few weeks before his death at Nazareth
House, Prestwich, Manchester on 17th December 2010.
James’ Christian faith was a simple, uncomplicated faith, a faith that enabled him to accept and overcome the
difficulties and challenges that are inevitably part of our daily lives. That was especially true of the last months of
his life. His increasing frailty, his almost total deafness must have caused him much frustration, yet never once did
he grumble and complain. His patient acceptance of the burdens and limitations of old age spoke eloquently of his
childlike trust in Jesus and Mary. It is our hope and prayer that they have already welcomed him into the joys of
heaven.
FR TERRENCE AYLWARD SDB 1923–2011
Terry was born in Maesteg, South Wales, and throughout his life he was always proud of his Welsh roots.
In 1940, at the age of 17, Terry entered the Salesian aspirantate at Shrigley Park and three years later, even though
his overriding desire was to become a Salesian priest, he generously volunteered to serve his country as a soldier in
the Royal Artillery. Military service followed in France, Belgium and Holland during the last two years of World
War II and then in Germany during the first year of peace. Demobilisation came in the summer of 1946 and within
six weeks he had entered the Salesian Novitiate.
During his years of priestly training the word that was applied most frequently to
him was earnest and it underlined his burning desire to become a good and faithful
Salesian. Terry’s Salesian life was centred on Bolton, firstly at Thornleigh where he
taught from 1956 to 1985 and then at St Joseph’s where he returned in retirement
in 2000 after 10 years in parish ministry and retirement in Bootle. During those years
Terry’s influence was great but perhaps much of it went unnoticed and was not very
spectacular at the time.
This year (2011) the Rector Major’s strenna focuses on the need to develop a vocations
ministry and culture. Over thirty years ago Terry was quietly doing just that, as he
strove to encourage vocations to the priesthood and the religious life among his pupils.
He formed a Vocations Group which met, after school, on a Friday and from that
group six are now priests whilst several others joined religious life or attended
seminary for a time.
20
Easter Joy
