Australian Salesian Bulletin

One that I recently witnessed was the graduation in basic building skills of 106 previously unemployed young men.  Most of these were school dropouts who used to spend their days sitting by the roadside and throwing stones at passing cars.

For these graduates it was clear that this was the first time their achievements were not only publicly acknowledged. What is more, about half have already secured paid jobs, a significant achievement in a country where the level of unemployment is still very high.

East Timor is still the poorest country in South East Asia where a good percentage of the population survives daily on limited food.  I was in Timor last month; it was, I think, my 17^th visit in ten years and twelve months since my previous visit.  What were my impressions? They were of a greater sense of purpose and safety.

The Government appears to be doing what it was elected to do; it is moving in the right direction. Like all governments, it is criticized for not doing more and not doing it quickly enough!

Dear Confreres

It is an honour, a pleasure and surely a welcome duty to reply on behalf of the jubilarians to your encouraging words of appreciation as expressed by Fr Provincial before this evening’s Eucharist and now Fr Norman Ford. Appreciation is very meaningful word: it has a twofold significance. First on your part it means you find in our lived lives a value to be acclaimed and honoured, and then secondly in the sense of adding value, your words appreciates our lives as your confreres and uplifts us. So we thank you both for the honour and also your encouraging appreciation.

Diamonds, gold, rubies and silver are the traditional symbols of respective anniversaries but let us this evening give them flesh and blood.

When young Michael Rua visited ‘The Oratory’ with his brother Louis, he warmed immediately to the rather different type of priest in charge of the Oratory – Don Bosco. In his first conversation with Don Bosco who questioned him about his family, he explained who he was and how his mother was not too keen on him attending the Oratory.

Michael managed to persuade his mother to let him attend the Oratory once again. It was on this occasion that he saw Don Bosco giving out medals of Our Lady to the boys who had raced him the full length of the field and back again but had not been able to beat him. Michael approached Don Bosco, and even though he had not taken part in the race, asked if he, too, could have a medal. Don Bosco looked at him and studied him for a moment then he said, “I’ll tell you what I’ll do Michael, I’ll give you something more than a medal. Hold out your hand.” Michael immediately held out his hand and Don Bosco said, “Now take this.” Don Bosco held out his left hand and with his right hand made a motion as if to saw it in half.