Live Life to the Fullest: A True Joy to the World

Christmas is often thought of as a magical time of the year where the joy and anticipation at the coming of Christ is combined in great awe with the wonders of the lights and holly. Hope fills the hearts of us all as trees are adorned, love comes rushing in as plans to be with family are made, and belief in miracles surges as we are reminded of the true reason for the season. It is indeed a beautiful and magical time of the year that aims to remind of how we are called to live life to the fullest. In our own Salesian history, there are many instances that we can take great example from of the power of this wonderful season.

Fr. Eugenio Ceria, SDB captures a profound event that took place shortly before Christmas in the sixteenth volume of the Biographical Memoirs.  A woman came to the oratory with her nine year old daughter that had been paralyzed from infancy and could only speak with great difficulty.  Further, the doctors had given up hope that the little girl would ever get better.  Don Bosco had the girl placed on a sofa next to her mother, blessed the child, and then asked the girl what her name was.   She readily responded that her name was Mary, a response that surprised the mother.  Next, Don Bosco asked the girl to make the sign of the cross.  The mother went on to explain that her daughter had lost the use of her left arm, but when Don Bosco asked the girl to move it, she had mobility in the arm.  Don Bosco continued on to ask the girl if she was ready to walk.  The mother, again wary of her daughter’s abilities, explained to Don Bosco that the little girl’s legs were much too frail to move around on her own.  Don Bosco retorted “Her legs are alive,” and instructed the girl to walk. The girl got right on her feet and began walking, and with that Don Bosco said his goodbyes to the pair and sent them home. His faith and strong belief in God’s goodness was just the Christmas gift that this family needed, and it was certainly one that would impact their every days from that point on.

The sentiments of this story have a striking resemblance to the encounter between Bosco and Bart Garelli that gave birth to the Salesian apostolate.  The first thing that Don Bosco asked was the young man’s name.  When additional questions were asked, it became evident that Bart did not have the necessary skills to seek employment and Don Bosco offered to train him.  Then Bart learned how to make the sign of the cross and was asked to continue the lessons needed to make his first communion.  The turning point in the conversation occurred when Don Bosco asked Bart was he was good at.  Bart finally found his voice and said, “My friends say I’m a pretty good whistler.”  Once again, Don Bosco lovingly challenged Bart much like the young girl and her mother to have faith and see the great miracles that surround faith that is even as small as mustard seed.

The encounters with Mary and Bart express a Christmas message of God’s desire for us to live fully so that we can participate well in the kingdom at hand.  The young girl that came to the oratory was gifted with the physical mobility and speech that would enable her to live well with her family and friends.  Bart Garelli was gifted with a lived faith through religious instruction, he was trained in vocational skills, and he was given the confidence to see the possibilities of his life.  As we move into this Christmas season, let us remember all of the ways that we have been gifted in life. Whether they’ve been great big miracles or every day reminders of God’s love for us, let us never forget that the true meaning of Christmas is God’s desire to draw nearer to us, and that is indeed the best present of all! Merry Christmas and Happy, Blessed New Year!

Post Turkey Day Bowl

No this blog is not going to be a how-to on what to do with Thanksgiving left-overs.
The formation community ventured to Eagle Rock Bowling Alley in West Orange, NJ for a post Turkey-Day outing on November 27.  Given our boisterous approach to the game, many of the onlookers must have wondered how we could squeeze so much fun out of bowling.  There was one moment where I noticed the entire bowling hall stopped their games to observe the gregarious nature of our group. A bunch of consecrated men having rip, roaring fun?!?! Who would have thought?

For some of us, it was the first experience of bowling; for one who was a veteran bowler, he showed his stuff by getting four strikes in a row; for one who was in his 80’s, he showed the younger guys a thing or two; and for one athlete type among us, he showed us how to be a “switch bowler”.

During the second game someone added a shrieking call to sound off right at the moment a bowler released the ball.  Needless to say, many gutter balls ensued during the remainder of the game.

In the game of bowling, three consecutive strikes denotes a “turkey”.   In our Salesian outing, although we did not accumulate too many high scores, if fun was rated with a point system, we would have a “300” perfect game. The greatest take away from the experience was our ability to share in the joys of community life. With many schedules to attend to and the general busyness of all that we do as a community, taking the time to have a laugh and have some fun is a great reminder that we are not on this journey alone. St. John Bosco founded our Salesian community for the mission of bringing Christ to young and the poor through faith and fun; he encouraged playing and praying as avenues to grow closer to Christ. As he put it best, “My children- jump, run, and play, and make all the noise you want. But avoid sin like the plague and you will surely gain heaven.”  

Waking Up the World with Hungry Hungry Hippos

Since Pope Francis spoke to an audience of religious superiors in 2014 at World Youth Day in Rio de Janiero about “Waking up the World,” that quote has gained much notoriety.  The quotable message stresses how we are to live prophetic lives, make the Church attractive to youth, become more generous and willing to sacrifice, and talk to youth in a language that will resonate meaning and compassion to them.

         Waking up the world is an art form that can open young people to discipleship.  Pope Francis has written about how we need to “go out of ourselves” before we can be wake up others.  This entails that we have the intentional desire to alert youth to know that we are “in their corner” in life.  Young people knew that St. John Bosco was out for them because he identified with their real needs during an industrial era where a hard work ethic lacked a balance with play.  By promoting the experience and memories of playing in the playground, the youth enjoyed each other’s company and came to relate better with Salesians and collaborators, and for that matter, the world. 

Two weeks ago, Br. Craig Spence and I had an opportunity to visit with the St. Frances Cabrini Youth Group in Brooklyn, NY for their Tuesday evening program. To say that we thoroughly enjoyed our time with this extension of the Salesian family would not be enough.  When we entered their meeting room, we were asked to join in a friendly live action version of the game “Hungry Hungry, Hippos”. Some of you may have seen this new recess craze all over YouTube wherein participants ride around on small scooters and gather as many balloons from the center of the room as they can before their team pulls them back to base. I thought it was such a new, cool way to bring this cherished board game to life.  In fact, during the game it was hard to tell whether the youth or adults were having more fun.  That activity set the mode for the rest of the evening because the youth felt engaged and comfortable in a compelling way to relate with others.   Later, when Craig and I presented our vocation witnesses and session to them, we were well received for the presentations because the youth group had gotten off to a great start and genuine bonds had formed.

  The live action recess version of Hungry, Hungry, Hippos was transformed into a recreational game by a teacher who had the instinct  to create  an indoor playground experience when there was too much snow to have recess outside.  This teacher crafted a great way to “wake up youth” to see their indoors as their new playground.  As this teacher “woke up the world” for youth during heavy snows, how can we wake up youth wherever they might be?  At church? At youth groups? Through the use of social media?  Or, how might we wake up youth this summer as the heat index increases?   Both Jesus and Don Bosco continue to serve as examples of Pope Francis’ now iconic phrase. They went to the young people where they were and woke them up to love of God and the faith, not with giant productions or lengthy lessons but rather with a simple genuine care to see everyone  joyfully come to God with open hearts and take His love all in…..much like Hungry, hungry hippos take it all in!

15,037 Worldwide, We are Salesians!

The latest statistics have recently been published that paint the picture of who the Salesians are all around the world.  As of the end of 2014, there are 15,037  Salesians serving in 131 countries on six continents around the world. The Salesians still remain the 3^rd largest religious missionary organization in the world, dedicated to continuing the work of St. John Bosco to bring the love of Christ to the young and the poor. 

The number of the Salesians included 426 novices, 2,620 seminarians,  1,742 coadjutor brothers, 18 permanent deacons, 10,231 priests,  and 122 bishops. The greatest concentration of Salesians can currently be found in the Mediterranean Region, while the smallest region is made up of the areas of Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Paraguay, and Uruguay . In our own North American provinces, the numbers helped to highlight the work that we do around the US and Canada. The two American provinces counted 166 men in U.S. East and Canada and 95 men as a part of U.S. West.

We join together to continue to pray that God and Mary Help of Christians will continue to guide the works of Salesians around the world. We also pray for a continued increase in vocations; that those who are discerning a vocation with the Salesians will be filled with the Holy Spirit, and understand God’s call in their lives to be like St. John Bosco.  Mary Help of Christians, pray for us!

Don Bosco Bicentenary Tour: Stop 1- Tour de Gator

I was fortunate to travel last week on the first leg of the vocation tour to celebrate the bicentenary of Don Bosco’s birth was with the Gators at the University of Florida in Gainesville. The environment at the Catholic Center at U of F, given its formative character and its missionary outreach, was very welcoming and energetic. It definitely prepares the students to be agents of discipleship and to discern their prospective future vocation. What a great place to begin! 

A viewing of the vocation video followed by a Don Bosco skit was performed at a discernment house and at the Catholic Center.   Three Salesian alumni: Francis Mijares (Immaculata-LaSalle), Eddy Neret (Immaculata-LaSalle, and Jimmy Sebesta (St. Pete Catholic) were on hand to help with the skit and give witness talks on how the Salesian charism had impacted their lives.  For sure, the reunion with these alumni was a highlight of the entire experience.

Of the 50,000 students presently at the University of Florida, 10,000 are Catholic.  The goal of the Catholic Student Center at St. Augustine, headed by Father David Ruchinski, is to reach all Catholic students on campus by offering various programs and ministries to help in their growth and formation.  We were fortunate enough to have new participants gather with us on January 14 at the Catholic Student Center for a late evening of ministry formation geared to empower students to appropriate their faith, and bring it to the larger campus environment. 

That is essentially the goal of this two-year program.  This tour consists of prayer, evangelization, and salvation history so as to bring awareness of our own calls and vocations. With continued prayer and determination, I’m off onto the next stop on the tour. Stay tuned!!