Australian Salesian Bulletin

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.

“Take what, Don Bosco?” Michael was completely mystified.

“Take half.” “Half of what?” “Never mind,” said Don Bosco, “you’ll understand when the time comes.” In the brief meetings he had with Michael, Don Bosco sensed without doubt that this was a young man of special quality. Somehow, in that moment when he looked at Michael and studied him, Don Bosco, a man of deep faith, came to a clear awareness of the calibre of this young man, and in retrospect we can only marvel at the gift by which he was able to read the hearts of young people with such confidence.  He obviously did so with eyes of Faith.

There is a similarity between this encounter between Don Bosco and Michael Rua and the way Jesus ‘called’ some of his disciples. In his Gospel John reports: “The next day Jesus decided to go to Galilee. He found Philip and said to him, “Come with me!” Philip was from Bethsaida, the town where Andrew and Peter lived. Philip found Nathanael and told him, “We have found the one whom Moses spoke about in the book of the Law and whom the Prophets also wrote about. He is Jesus, son of Joseph, from Nazareth. “Can anything good come from Nazareth?” Nathanael asked. “Come and see,” Philip answered. [Jn 1,43-46].

No matter the opinions and prejudices that people might have, the impact of the presence of Jesus caused the scales of fear and falsehood to fall away to allow reality to come into the light of truth. How often this was the case in the Gospel stories of Jesus! How often this was the case in the growing slums around the city of Turin where Don Bosco called the hordes of displaced young lads to come to the Oratory where they could find freedom to be themselves enjoying the games and Don Bosco’s guidance, at least for the day on Sundays.

In 2010, despite the great advances in society since the time of Don Bosco, there are still young people in great need of a ‘Don Bosco’ to take an interest in them and give them ‘a leg up’ so as to be confident to live happy, meaningful lives.

The Salesian Family have inherited Don Bosco’s ‘Preventive System’— Don Bosco’s ‘Way’—as it was developed in the Oratory and in his encounters with young people on the streets of Turin and which is now captured in four basic metaphors:

‘A Home that welcomes

A Parish that evangelises

A School that prepares for life

A Playground where friends can meet and enjoy themselves.’

Young Michael Rua experienced the impact of these four characteristics of Salesian presence and was captivated by the spirit they created. He joined Don Bosco and became his ‘right-hand’ assistant and later replaced him, after his death, as leader of the Salesians. Similarly, as the above Gospel passage shows, the Apostles, Peter, Andrew, Philip and also Nathanael—all from Bethsaida—stayed with Jesus and carried on his mission after his Ascension. Likewise, Don Rua stayed with Don Bosco and passed on his charism.

In another section of John’s Gospel (Jn 12,1) it is reported that some Greek enquirers approached Philip and asked, “Sir, we want to see Jesus!” He took them to experience the impact of being in the presence of Jesus.  Similarly, Don Rua and the Salesians down through the decades since his death have shown generations of youth the ‘Way to Jesus’ in the friendly manner of Don Bosco, the “Father and Teacher of Youth”, as he was identified by Pope John Paul II.

The impact of Don Bosco’s charism lives on in his ‘Preventive System’ and the measure of success is the degree to which its implementation in today’s setting, creates the experience of ‘A Home that welcomes, A Parish that evangelises, A School that prepares for life and A Playground where friends meet and enjoy themselves.’ For all members of the Salesian Family this is to be applied in our homes, our schools, hostels, Mission Centres and anywhere Salesians have established a presence (an Oratory).

Many of today’s young people insist, “WE WANT TO SEE JESUS!” There is an acute need for a ‘Don Bosco’ and a ‘Don Rua’ who will confidently respond "COME AND SEE."