St. John Bosco
Feast day: January 31
St. John Bosco was an Italian priest who lived in the 19th century and founded the Society of St. Francis de Sales (Salesians). He is known for his great faith and strong prayer life enabling him to find the means to educate many poor inner-city children.
Undeterred by his early farm life and the difficulties of finding money to get educated himself, St. John Bosco trusted in inner calls from our Lord and the Blessed Mother and was determined to become a priest and to help orphan boys. He saw that his own mother had given him a virtuous background and a strong Catholic faith, and he wanted to share these gifts with those who did not have them.
“This is the field of your work. Be humble, steadfast, and strong!” These were the words which St. John Bosco recounted as said to him by the Blessed Mother for the first time when in a dream he witnessed cursing and angry boys. St. John Bosco claimed that he heard these words again and again from Our Lady as he began his work in reforming the lives of poor youth. It was this type of encouragement from Christ and his mother that enabled St. John Bosco to accomplish what seemingly looked like an impossible task.
As he labored alone in a town after school working to become a priest, he learned how hard it was to live as an orphan. This personal experience of an orphan’s life also enabled St. John Bosco to further understand and aid children without families.
After founding his own religious order and the Salesian missions, and co-founding the Institute of the Daughters of Mary Help of Christians (Salesian Sisters), St. John Bosco died in 1888.
His order today runs training centers and college preparatory schools throughout the world. He is an example to us today of perseverance in working for the good of others against many odds and of using the talents we have been given to help the disadvantaged.
Reflection
O Lord, give me eyes to see those in need around me. Who needs my help in both big and small ways? Where do you want me to serve you today and each day? Lord, give me a heart of compassion like St. John Bosco to understand where others are coming from and to make a difference in their lives for the better. May they look up and only see you, dear God of love, in me. We make this prayer through the intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Amen.
Prayer
O God, who raised up the priest St. John Bosco
as a father and teacher of the young,
grant, we pray,
that, aflame with the same fire of love,
we may seek out souls and serve you alone.
Through Our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
God, for ever and ever.
