FOREWORD
The Importance of the Memoirs for the
Salesian Family
by the Very Reverend Egidio Vigano Rector
Major of the Salesian Society
It gives me great pleasure to write this foreword for the first English
edition of the Memoirs of the Oratory of Don Bosco. This jewel of
Salesian literature will be a great help toward a better knowledge of Don
Bosco's personality in the first forty years of his life (1815-1855); it will
make for a better understanding of the early, inspirational apostolate at
Valdocco, its evolution, and its steady growth despite difficulties on all
sides.
The Memoirs of the Oratory is simply written, engagingly
intimate, warmhearted; and there is a touch of humor in it too. I hope the few
thoughts in this foreword will help readers to benefit much from the profound
spirituality that finds its natural seedbed in these writings of our founder.
But apart from any reflections this foreword may engender, the thing that will
really and truly help Salesians understand the heart of Don Bosco will be the
great love we have for him and our firm resolve to know him better, so that at
this point in mankind's history we may be able faithfully to continue his
mission and spirit.
The renewal of our Salesian holiness, of which I have spoken often,
must begin with these memoirs. They have a very special place, a particular
significance among Don Bosco's writings. When his memoirs are read in terms of
Don Bosco's sanctity — which is
essential to understand them fully—they reveal a substance that is quite
surprising.
The word "holiness" is hardly found
in the test, but Don Bosco's holiness is
evident throughout the Memoirs, He reveals, for example, a keen awareness that God
was using his humble person to establish a great project
for the salvation of innumerable young persons, especially the friendless
ones.
Pondering what use his Memoirs would
be, Don Bosco concluded that it
"will be a record to help people overcome
problems that may come in the future by learning from the past. It will serve to make known how God himself
has always been our guide."1
These considerations are basic; they
prompt me to focus on three contemporary
concerns and what Salesians can learn about them in this classic
document so abounding in inspiration
and foresight, so personally relevant. These
concerns are the relationships
of tradition and novelty, pastoral charm and ascetical discipline, and spirituality and action.
1. Fidelity to Don Bosco in an Age of Novelty
We must face the fact that our
generation is totally
enthralled by the latest trends. But these novelties
do not constitute the whole of reality. In the future there is God, of
course; but God does not
belong solely to the future —"Christ yesterday
and today and forever" (Hebrews
13:8).
The Salesian of our times is still
a contemporary of Don Bosco, for yesterday
was the beginning of tomorrow! To act as though the Salesian charism were merely the result of the signs of
the times would be sheer philosophical immanence without
faith. It would be tantamount to substituting
for the founder an impersonal, ambiguous, and relative gnosis, disguised
with a facelift dictated by fashion.
The true Salesian must anticipate
the new times. If he shuts himself off
from them, he becomes a mere curiosity in a museum; if he allows himself to be engulfed by them he
destroys himself. If, however, in
their midst he emerges as a
bearer of a permanent charism of
the Holy Spirit, then he is
indeed true to his vocation.
The Salesian of Don Bosco
moves into the new times from a platform of
traditions; for him there is no future without fidelity to
the past. The Salesian will lose his identity if he does not
guard the traditions of his vocation, does not explore their
depths, does not develop them.
And this demands a "return
to the sources" if there is
to be any true renewal. The
Second Vatican Council tells us that
"renewal of the religious life involves
... a continuous return to the
sources of all Christian life and
to the original inspiration behind a given community and an adjustment of the community to the changed conditions
of the times."2
For many people the concept
of tradition is distasteful. They
feel that anyone invoking tradition is
applying the brake rather than pressing
the accelerator. Nevertheless,
remaining faithful to tradition is
the only way we can deal with the signs of the times and preserve
our identity. An identity card carries
a photograph and specific data,
after all, not vague directional promises.
Christianity also makes its promises,
but it founds its future on fidelity
to its traditions. Once again, Vatican
II reminds us: "In his gracious goodness
God has seen to it that what he had revealed for the salvation of
all nations would abide perpetually in its full integrity and
be handed on to all generations."3 And again: "Therefore the apostles, handing on what they themselves had
received, warn the faithful to hold
fast to the traditions which they
have learned either by word of
mouth or by letter, and to fight
in defense of the faith handed on
once and for all."4
Assuredly tradition is not static and entombed: it makes progress within the Church with
the help of the Holy-Spirit. The signs of the times do not merely
"occasion" superficial external modifications; they actually present a new dimension that must
be understood as genuine progress.
For this reason it is a mistake
to hold that everything was crystal clear in
the beginning, and that in practice there is nothing important
to be changed. The greater thoughtfulness and human sensitivity that mark the new do not constitute merely
an external way of life. Indeed bring with them
genuine values hitherto unknown.
We are not lacking in loyalty
when we say that these values do
not begin with Don Bosco or the
Gospel, but arise from the contemporary human situation.
It is only by grasping the realities of the signs of the times that
we can speak of "living traditions" that contain their permanent
Gospel values as a salvation message for mankind in the various stages of its
development. Truly, tradition must be living. And this brings us to the nub of
the matter: to accept new values and still conserve an authentic tradition, we
simply must return to the Gospel through the insights and spirit of Don Bosco.
Our striving for relevance, our new attitudes and methods, our decentralization,
our debunking of certain moral observances that are no longer valid — all these efforts are of no earthly use to us if we
forget the Gospel and the way Don Bosco did things.
For the Salesian of this new world, the signs of the times are
particularly important. It is of vital concern, however, for him to turn back
to the Gospel through Don Bosco, if he is to preserve his identity and grow in
the future. Hence the importance of knowing and deepening our understanding of
our origins, of studying the Salesian spirit, of pondering the depths of our
Salesian Preventive System. Unless we return to our founder and study him
profoundly, we undermine the dialog between God and the world proper to our
vocation, for we are sent by God himself to the young people of the new age.
2. Two Pillars of Salesian Holiness
We take it for granted that our lives as Salesian religious cannot possibly
be separated from the very real presence of God, from the demands of holiness.
This holiness of the new age must be solidly based on two pillars that uphold
our vocation: pastoral charity and ascetical discipline. These virtues were not
lived fully only by Don Bosco; they are the two principal marks of every
disciple of Christ, no matter what his vocation.
A. Pastoral charity is described
in our renewed Salesian Constitutions as the sum and center of our spirit.5
It is our heritage from Saint Francis de Sales, doctor of charity, from whom we
take our Salesian name.6 Such charity demands from each of us a
heart like Don Bosco's; he said,
“I have promised God that I would give of myself to my last breath
for my poor boys.”7 “The Salesian spirit finds its model and
source in the very heart of Christ, apostle of the Father.”8 Since,
in the first place, our mission is entrusted to the community,9 the
community must be based charity, and our vows will be at its service;
"brotherly our apostolic mission, and the practice of the evangelical
counsels are the bonds which form us into one and constantly reinforce our
communion.”10
It is charity that spurs our Salesian community to undertake its
joint pastoral work. "By the charity to which they lead, the evangelical
counsels join their followers to the Church and her mystery in a special
way,"11 says the conciliar Constitution on the Church. Speaking
of the universal cal1 to holiness (chapter 5), that Constitution reminds us at
"the first and most necessary gift is that charity by which we love God
above all things and our neighbor because of God."12
It is not through any ideological system but through charity lived
publicly according to a practical ideal expressed in their vows that religious
(as distinct from the Church's hierarchy and laity) "give splendid and
striking testimony that the world cannot be transfigured and offered to God
without the spirit of the beatitudes."13
Pastoral charity is too vast and important a topic to be treated in
these brief lines. Here I have been content to emphasize it as one of the most
radical and indispensable conditions for a Salesian of the new age. It is not
enough for confreres to be well versed in humanities and the sciences. We shall
never build for the future if we are not motivated by the charity of the Holy
Spirit, that charity by which love of our neighbor is the fruit of love of God.
Indeed, the unifying quintessence of charity lies in the fact that our love for
our neighbor must depend on our love for God.
B. The second distinctive mark is ascetical discipline. We think of
the parable of the salt in the Synoptic Gospels (Mark 9:49-50; Matthew 5:13; and
Luke 14:34-35). Jesus speaks of his disciples as the salt of the earth. The
three evangelists comment on the Lord's words; they describe the disciple and
his essential make-up. A careful scrutiny of the text makes it clear that the
salt is the spirit of sacrificial renunciation indispensable for any disciple.
Oscar Cullman, a Protestant exegete and observer at Vatican II, has made
a close study of these texts and has written on the enlightening metaphor of
the salt:
Salt gives life, purifies; but it has this quality only because it is also
caustic and causes pain. In this sense the disciple's suffering is great, but
for this very reason it confers on him the strength to fulfill his lofty mission
as disciple. Now we know that the function of a disciple depends completely on
the spirit of sacrifice and total renunciation he must possess. To be a disciple
without renunciation and suffering is a contradiction—like the salt that has lost its essential, elements.
The essential quality of a disciple is inseparable from the function he must
carry out for mankind, and vice-versa. To be a disciple means to be always a
disciple for mankind. And since being a disciple demands the spirit of
sacrifice, the world needs the disciple who is willing to suffer, renounce
himself, and make sacrifices.14
Let us not deceive ourselves: if the salt loses its flavor, what use is it?
I doubt that those responsible for forming the Salesians of the new age will be
found among the leaders shouting fashionable slogans and playing down
Gethsemane and Calvary; waxing eloquent in favor of the poor from the comfort of
their armchairs; continually thinking up new forms of prayer but rarely speaking
with God; relentlessly proclaiming the outdatedness of sexual taboos while
calmly accepting amusements and friendships that put their purity of heart at
risk; parading as paladins of social justice by playing politics instead of
spreading and living the Gospel; downgrading authority in favor of
brotherliness, yet neglecting the spirit of sonship we owe to the Father; and
accepting neither the obedience of the cross nor self-sacrifice for the good of
their confreres.
Let us never forget that our Salesian future must walk the way of holiness; it will require confreres who daily practice pastoral charity and genuine ascetical discipline. This will help us avoid chasing the will-of-the-wisp, especially when we honestly discuss and examine the future together. History teaches us that it is the holy people who truly open up for the Church the frontiers of new eras.
3. The Basis of Salesian Spirituality
The final aspect on which I wish to touch is one that is basic to Salesian
vitality in the new times. Indeed, on it hinged Don Bosco's own holiness — that spiritual characteristic of being able to
achieve a vital union of being and action, consecration and mission, love of God
and neighbor, prayer and work —that is, the "grace of unity."15
This is a characteristic of the apostolic holiness of the active life to which
"the Salesian for all seasons" must witness.
When Don Bosco speaks of his vocation and that of his co-workers, he means
it to be realized in a saving mission for the young and the working classes.
He was called by God to be active in the Church and was put in charge of a group
of people characterized by activity —
work, work, work!
Thus it is vital for us to seek a sanctity that is enhanced and perfected
by apostolic action. The active life is part and parcel of our vocation; this is
recognized and proclaimed by Vatican II in the famous number 8 of Perfectae
caritatis. The active life belongs to the very nature of our religious life.
Our vocation imbues us with a "holiness in activity."
Not all religious vocations are the same; there are quite a number of
institutes of the contemplative life. We too must be contemplatives—in action.16 We have much to learn from pure
contemplatives, then, for our different vocations are complementary in the unity
of the Body of Christ.
Of course there really is a distinction, but it does not necessarily
mean separation. Such a distinction, however, does provide more than sufficient
grounds for different vocations. It is a historical fact that certain vocations
concentrate publicly on those specific areas of the Church's sacramental
reality that have more to do with either being or activity, and it is in both of
these that the Salesian vocation is to be found. For a Salesian, belonging to
the Church means ecclesial action, wherein witness is realized in a specific
service.
The distinction does not aim to make any essential division between
one aspect and the other, but rather to unite in different forms the various
elements that give a characteristic tone to the variegated unity in the
Church. Assuredly being part of the Church is, per se, more important than
ecclesial action. Between witnessing and service there is certainly a
distinction; however, one way of giving witness (and it cannot be called vague
or useless!) consists in rendering a service.
It should be abundantly clear that the Salesian called to carry out
such a service must never lose sight of the fact that he must carry it out as a witness;
to do otherwise would falsify his vocation, since the whole Church exists
and works as a "universal sacrament of salvation."17 To
witness in his service, the Salesian must possess and daily cultivate the
"grace of unity" —which is pastoral
charity deep in the heart, enthusiastic and mystic. Don Bosco expressed
this intimate and ardent unity in his Da mihi animas, caetera tolle, which
defines the essence of his spirit.
All these requirements will oblige the Salesian of the new era to search into the way of the Gospel traced out by his founder, to play his proper part in human history, to study pastoral practice and the subtle meaning of action. Thus his heart will be steeped in the spirit of Don Bosco's Valdocco Oratory; he will perfect an authentic theology of the active life and discover in it both the riches of holiness and the visible dimension of the sacraments as he pursues his mission to the young and the working classes.
Notes
1. Preface.
2. Perfectae caritatis, 2 (Abbot ed.).
3. Dei verbum, 7.
4. Ibid., 8.
5. Constitutions of the Society of St Francis de Sales (Rome, 1985),
article 10.
6. Ibid., 4.
7. Ibid., I; MB XVIII, 258.
8. Constitutions, II.
9. Ibid., 44.
10. Ibid., 50.
11. Lumen gentium, 44.
12. Ibid., 42.
13. Ibid., 31.
14. Oscar Cullman, La fe y el culto en la Iglesia primitiva
(Madrid: Studium, 1971), pp. 307-308.
15. Acts of the Superior Chapter, no. 127.
16. Constitutions, 12.
17. Cf. Lumen gentium, I.