CONTENTS - Don Bosco's Madonnadonboscosmadonna.org/2011archives/mar.pdf · March 2011 2 Don Bosco's Madonna From The Editor's Desk: Forgive just as we Forgive!..... 3 3 - Hope: A

March 2011 2 Don Bosco's Madonna

From The Editor's Desk:Forgive just as we Forgive!.......3

3 - Hope: A Chance And A Decision- Fr. Erasto Fernandez. SSS.....4

Our Gentle Pioneer!- Fr.Michael Mascarenhas, sdb...7

Octavio Ortiz, sdb...........................8

Carrying the Cross With Faith andCourage - Tommaso Marferra........9

The Crucifixion, Born Again, etc...- St. Martin’s Messenger.........10

Witnesses In And For Our Times:St. Nicholas of Flue(March 21) - Mario Scudu.........12

Lectio Divina: I Do Not Call YouServants Any Longer (Jn, 15:15)

- Antonio Rudoni.....................17

Quietspaces: We Are Made For Love- Pope Benedict XVI..................18

The Lunch Hour- Michelle Mach.......................20

Don Bosco’s Characteristics:At the Pinardi Cottage- Natale Cerrato......................23

NewsBits......................................26

Reflecting on Mary: In the Footsteps of the Mother of Jesus - Eamon R. Carroll, O.Carm. .28

DON BOSCO'S MADONNA Mumbai MARCH 2011 vol.12 No. 11

In a Cheerful Mood.........................15Loving Children to their

Loving Mother...........................32The Devotion of

the Three Hail Marys................33They Are Grateful to

Our Lady & Don Bosco.............34Thanks to Dear

St. Dominic Savio.....................35

CONTENTSCONTENTSCONTENTSCONTENTSCONTENTS

Cover: St. Joseph,Foster Father of Jesus

Traditional

And Marysaid ‘Yes’

when she knewthat it was

the will of God.

(from a Popular Hymn)


Fr. Ian Doulton sdb

Forg ive just as we Forg ive!

Have you ever noticed how much easier it is to say ‘I am sorry’, than to say ‘Please forgive me”? The

former does not require a response, whereas thelatter needs a response. Forgiveness has to be given,

and we fear it might be withheld. You cannot take forgiveness forgranted. Maybe that is why I remember so well conducting aninterpersonal-skills workshop where I was conducting a sessionentitled “The Gift of Happiness.” The group I was working with waspretty close-knit. They had known each other for a couple of years.The instructions were: to write a positive note to each of the othermembers of the group and sign it with their names. These were thenexchanged and the members sat in silence, reading their notes. It didnot take long before sounds of sobbing and running noses wereheard. Most of the members later shared that what touched andrelieved them most was the fact that someone in the group hadforgiven them for a hurt that they had caused in the recent or distantpast. That simple gesture moved them immensely and there theywere…strapping young men, in the prime of their lives with tears intheir eyes…but smiles on their faces. That was how moved theywere by this gift of forgiveness.

In this Lenten season we are moved to ask God’s forgiveness andwe are reassured that God is always ready to forgive us. I wonder:have I ever felt the joy and relief at being forgiven the way thoseyoung men felt at that workshop? And if I have never experiencedthe joy of being forgiven in that way, can I want to offer it to otherswho have offended me in some way?

Not forgiving others is some kind of curse, and forgiving them is ablessing and a joy for them. It is uniquely Christian that we forgivejust as we hope to be forgiven. I remember the funeral of a man whohad deserted his wife and family, causing great pain and unhappi-ness. His eldest son spoke briefly when offering a prayer. He toldGod that the family forgave their father for his cruelty to them andasked God to do likewise. He was in tears as he asked this throughChrist, Our Lord.

Forgiveness as we forgive those who trespass against us can beconsigned to the small print as it were. Often we give up somethingfor Lent. Maybe this Lent we might try forgiving those who havetrespassed against us. It might not be as easy as it sounds but it willdo us a great deal of good, and be a real Easter joy for those whohave to wait for forgiveness.


3. HOPE: A CHANCE AND A DECISION3. HOPE: A CHANCE AND A DECISION3. HOPE: A CHANCE AND A DECISION3. HOPE: A CHANCE AND A DECISION3. HOPE: A CHANCE AND A DECISIONby Fr. Erasto Fernandez, sss

CEL SERIES

By now, Hurricane Katrina iswell-known to all as one of the

most devastating tragedies in re-cent American history. WhenKatrina swallowed the Gulf Coastand ravaged particularly the cityof New Orleans in August of 2005,Christy Johnson was working forHUD in Oklahoma City. Katrinahit precisely when she had herown personal pressing issues,adding to the chaos and confusionshe faced in the office. ‘How couldI help others when I was strugglingmyself?’ was her main concern.Yet, the office phone lines neverquit ringing.

She and her associates spokewith numberless victims who des-perately kept trying to locate fam-ily members lost in the flood. Theyall urgently needed assistancewith housing, food and clothing.The monumental task of immedi-ate relocation was overwhelming.

Very few had jobs they could re-turn to which meant that pay-checks would quit coming andmoney inevitably run out. Devas-tation set everywhere like blocksof solid concrete. It took weeksbefore any federal assistance wasavailable to the majority. Somereceived none at all!

Even though several agencieswere there to help, the traumamade some callers demanding,others rude or even belligerent.Most were impatient and hysteri-cal. Some were even openly sui-cidal. The going was tough, butjust when Christy thought she hadheard it all, she got a call fromBrenda, a single woman in herearly fifties with no children.Brenda was all alone and hadbeen sheltering in a crowdedhome in Houston for the pastmonth. When asked how she wascoping she calmly replied: “I’veheard that my house is still under-water and at this point, I have noidea if rebuilding is even a possi-bility. The hardest part of all ofthis, though, is seeing the elderlysuffer. The young have longer torecover, but many of the elderlyhave no other resources.” She hadbeen hit hard but her heart stilloverflowed with compassion forothers, especially the elderly.“Iknow that recovery lies ahead,”she continued placidly. “I believethat if we were the ones chosen toendure this hardship, then Godwill give us the grace to endure.The destruction of our city hasgiven birth to a spirit of unity…My hope isn’t based on my cir-


cumstances,” she added, “myhope is based on my decision tohope. Hope is a choice.”

Wow, thought Christy. Neverhad she heard such rocklike faithin the midst of a near total loss.Brenda had been storing trust andconfidence in her spiritual pantryfor a rainy day… and what a rainyday it was! Moments later, as shegot back to her computer, the re-alization hit Christy like a thun-derbolt: Brenda couldn’t edit herpast. Her tragedy was impossibleto revise. There was no delete but-ton, no escape key to press. Theonly thing Brenda could changewas her attitude. She had beeninvoluntarily transplanted, butshe made a decision to thrive, notjust survive!

Silently Christy ventured aheartfelt ‘thank you’ to Brendahundreds of miles away. ‘Thankyou for showing me how to main-tain hope — even in the face ofadversity.’

Attitudes Make All the DifferenceThe faithful and the faithless

face the same vicissitudes of life,but the faithful at least have theassurance that their lives are in thehands of a caring God – thus goesa paraphrase of Ps. 32:10-11. Or

as Marian Zimmer Bradley put it,“The road that is built in hope ismore pleasant to the traveller thanthe road built in despair, eventhough they both lead to the samedestination!” The calamities of lifehit all of us at some point or other,but what a difference in the waydifferent people face these calami-ties!

To the unbeliever or the onewho subscribes to Reincarnation,disasters natural or otherwise arebut the result of the whims andfancies of the gods, or the outcomeof our own sinful past life. To be-lievers whose faith is but skin-deep, suffering of this kind is nomore than a punishment for one’spresent sins – divine justice catch-ing up with our sinful escapades.To people with a deeper faith,adversities are God’s way of test-ing our endurance – there will, ofcourse, be a reward for the perse-vering, but right now that is nottoo much of a solace. It is onlythose whose faith in God’s lovingprovidence is unshakable whowill see it as none of the above, butas an expression, mysterious

March 2011 6 Don Bosco's Madonna(Continued on pg. 22)

though it be, of the loving provi-dence and care of a personal God.They see it as the opportunity forGod to manifest his tremendous,unbelievable love for his own. AsPaul put it, “We know that allthings work together for good forthose who love God, who arecalled according to his purpose…If God is for us, who is against us?32 He who did not withhold hisown Son, but gave him up for allof us, will he not with him alsogive us everything else?” (Rom8:28-32). As Brenda herselfpointed out in the story above,Katrina helped to bring peoplecloser in that city of New Orleans!

The Power of his Risen PresenceThe coming of Jesus as Saviour,

and especially his redemptivedying and rising, will not changeNature’s vagaries but his unshak-able trust in the Father’s love asdemonstrated in his peace-filleddeath on the Cross makes it pos-sible for us to adopt a more posi-tive attitude towards every un-pleasant occurrence. And thegreater the depth of our grasp ofthis mystery of God’s love, themore outstanding will be our wayof accepting it and benefiting fromit. To some it is at best somethingto be taken with a philosophicalshrug saying, ‘From the time weare born till we ride in a hearse,there is nothing so bad that itcould not be worse!’

To others it is a time to proveone’s spiritual growth, to perhapsgrit one’s teeth and hang on fordear life till the storm rides by. Tovery few, however, would it bethe occasion to say a heartfelt‘thank-you’ to God or to bless Godfor the gift! But strangely, it is onlythese last who come out of the

most scathing difficulties joyfuland triumphant or as the apostlesdid, “rejoicing that they were con-sidered worthy to sufferdishonour for the sake of thename” (Acts 5:41).

Average Christian AttitudeMost Christians, however, seem

to have chosen to adopt the atti-tude of ‘fight or flight’ with regardto the crosses that come their wayas they journey through life. Un-fortunately, with such an attitudeall that they finally get is moresuffering or mental agony – withno reduction in the actual painfulsituation. But what they reallymiss out on is the thrill of meet-ing the Risen Lord in the midst ofthe suffering and sharing also inhis triumph. Only once they haveexperienced the thrill of sharingthe Cross with Jesus and becauseof that sharing also the glory of hisresurrection, will they consciouslychoose to opt for a change of atti-tude.

However, we need to rememberthat even this change of attitudeis not something we achievethrough our own skill and inge-nuity. That too is a gift from theFather and he has already pouredit out on all of us in abundancethrough the Spirit he has sent tous. The power to change our ap-proach to life’s problems is al-ready within us, if only we careto search for it. Unfortunately it isonly found by those who start offby not placing any obstacles to allthat the Lord ordains for us.When we start off with a con-scious or unconscious aversion forsuffering, strangely enough weseem to bring more of it upon our-


NewsVOCATION PROMOTION

OUR GENTLE PIONEERFr. Michael Mascarenhas sdb,

Legal Consultant for the Salesian Province of Panjim-Konkan

For further information contact Fr. Brian Moras sdb: [email protected]

LLLLLast year 2010, I kept the 40th anniversary of my ordination and

50th anniversary of my Salesian pro-fession.

My eldest brother Hector opted tojoin the Jesuits. He was a student ofSt. Xavier’s and I was a day-studentof Don Bosco’s Matunga, and optedto join the Salesians.

We come from a middle classhome in Dadar, Shivaji Park, a to-tally non-Christian locality. I wasone of 8 children, 6 brothers and 2sisters. My father, Mark, an ex-tremely pious man, found time forpersonal prayer in spite of puttingin 8/10 hours of clerical work at hisoffice. My mother, Dolly, as youmay imagine had her hands fullwith domestic chores, looking after8 growing children, and yet instill-ing a sense of the sacred and insis-tence on the daily rosary. It is thisprayerfulness in our home, thathelped two of us follow the priestlycall.

At Don Bosco’s Matunga becauseof the great Salesian stalwarts: Fr.Casarotti (Rector and later Provin-cial), Fr. Mcfarren, the disciplinar-ian and Fr. Restelli, the live wireamong the day-scholars. almost 8boys left for the Vocation house atTiripattur in distant Madras State(now the state of Tamil Nadu).

Fr. Restelli had a magical waywith the day scholars. His footballand cricket and bubbling spiritswere a great draw amongst bothCatholics and non Catholics.

What was impressive was the at-tractive Salesian Spirit. The holidaycamps at Khandala (long beforeDon Bosco, Lonavla was bought),played a great part in giving a vi-

sion to many a youngster.Tiripattur was an oasis of Salesian

spirit. Among the staff there, wasBro. Vincent Vaz, Bro. Salu andBro.Benedict Furtado, so everyBombay boy felt at home.

I thank the Lord that my priestlyministry carried me into Gujarat,South Maharashtra, South Goa andNorth and South Kanara. Today, atthe request of the Provincial I amtrying to complete the pending le-gal and land issues in the newlyformed Panjim-Konkan Region.

Now we await a green signal tolaunch out into our first work inMangalore City at Jeppu (a shelterhome for underpriviledged boys).

My dear youngsters and parents,it is important to be daring todayand discern God’s call in our lives.The journey of a thousand milesbegins with a small step, take thefirst step, and trust God. In all thingsthe greater glory of God.


OCTAVIO ORTIZ1879 - 1958

SALESIAN SAINTSALESIAN SAINTSALESIAN SAINTSALESIAN SAINTSALESIAN SAINTOF THE MONTHOF THE MONTHOF THE MONTHOF THE MONTHOF THE MONTH

O ctavio Ortiz was born inLima on 19, April, 1879, the

eighth son of Manuel and BenignaCoya. In 1892 the Salesians openedthe first vocational school in Peru.Octavio, who had been attendingthe Salesian Oratory for a year, en-tered as a student carpenter. Hewas very diligent and attentive.One day in the kitchen, while hewas stirring the soup with onehand he was reading the Catechismwhich he held in the other. One dayBishop Costamagna saw him andinquired: “What is that boy read-ing? Instead of training to be a car-penter he could be a priest” and soit was. He was sent to the novitiateat Callao and made his perpetualvows into the hands of Fr. Albera,then the extraordinary visitor. Hecompleted his regency in the samehouse. In 1907 he became the firstSalesian priest of Peru. He starteda professional school in Piura andCallao was highly respected and es-teemed as director. In 1921, muchto his surprise, he was appointedBishop of Chachapoyas, in thenorth of the Andes. The territorywas as large as a third of Italy. Itwas rugged terrain and very iso-lated, not linked to any other cities.Octavio wanted to be a Salesianbishop using the methods of DonBosco. He chose as his episcopalmotto: “Da mihi animas” (TheSalesian motto) expressing his zealfor souls. Just like Don Bosco heconvinced the city authorities of histime to give Chachapoyas roads,hospitals, water and electricity. He

promoted many cultural initiativesand good literature. During histime he wanted Catechism to betaught in all the city’s churches ev-ery Sunday and for this he estab-lished the Union of Catechists withwhose help he organized religiousinstruction in schools. He was alsosolicitous about the formation ofthe clergy. He was constantly trav-elling either on horseback or on footthrough dense forests and overmountains and across rivers tomeet his flock. Once in five yearshe was able to meet every one inthe diocese of 120,000 souls. In 1953Pius XII appointed him assistant tothe papal household. Following anoperation on March 1, 1958 thegood bishop died. He is buried inhis cathedral. He was revered forhis sanctity by so many and thefame of his holiness spread far andwide.

The diocesan process was initi-ated on 8 July, 1992 and it con-cluded on 22, December, 2001.


CARRYING THE CROSS WITHFAITH AND COURAGE

by Tommaso Marferra

Does it still make sense to practice the devotionof the Stations of the Cross?

History is life’s great teacherbecause it permits us to dis-

tinguish the essentials from the or-dinary in order that we may un-derstand the true meaning of life.This also applies to the Way of theCross but let us proceed step bystep. Did not Jesus say: “If anyonewishes to come after me…let himdeny himself, take up his crossand follow me”? Although thisadmonition refers to all the mo-ments of our life it also finds itsresonance in the practices ofChristian worship that have beeninfluenced by the spirituality ofevery age.

In Jerusalem they celebrated theevents of the life of Jesus in theplaces where they actually tookplace, especially the events thattook place during that first HolyWeek. It is easy to imagine the pil-grimages to the Holy Places andthe powerful experiences espe-cially along the Via Dolorosa,from the Praetorium (of Pilate) tothe Basilica that was built byConstantine over the sight of theCrucifixion and sepulchre ofJesus. This was not yet the “devo-tion of the way of the Cross,” buta pilgrimage to the holy placesthat was deeply moving. To con-firm this, there was also an apoc-ryphal text from the fifth centurywherein was stated that the Vir-gin Mary, after the ascension ofJesus daily visited the places that

had been sanctified by her Son.But the devotion of the Via

Crucis as we know it really beganafter Holy Land had been con-quered by the Turks in the XVCentury. The impossibility ofsome to undertake the pilgrimageto the Holy Places led them tobuild some kind of reminders ofthose places around Europe.

This was how Holy Mountainscame to be established beginningwith the one at Varallo in 1491,where each stage or “station” ofthe life of Jesus was representedby the foundation of a little chapel.The evolution of the spirituality ofthat time brought into focus thepassion of Christ. That is how wefind, during the same period, theoutdoor Via Crucis in Germanyconsisting of seven “stations”(meeting Mary, the Cyrenean, thewomen of Jerusalem, Veronica,the fall, death and placing in thearms of Mary).

From then on the devotion


spread throughout Christendom.In the beginning these “stations”were celebrated only in thechurches that were administeredby the Franciscans – who were thecustodians of the Holy places. In1731 Pope Clement XII extendedthe devotion of the Via Crucisthroughout the Church setting thenumber of stations at 14, whichuntil then varied according to lo-cal traditions.

Even this brief historical surveyreveals several insights, and hintsat many answers. For example, itshows that the Via Crucis, whichin recent centuries has been acharacteristic devotion specific tothe season of Lent was not linkedto any particular liturgical seasonbut rather associated rather with‘baptismal catechesis’ that punc-tuated the Sunday and the week-day lectionary throughout theyear. While enjoying popular sup-port, the Via Crucis was not evenmost specific or significantly as-sociated to the celebration of GoodFriday when the Passion andDeath of the Lord was celebratedwith a very ancient liturgicalritual.

Since all the pious practices of

the Via Crucis are essentially ameditation on the passion of theLord they always have profoundsignificance. A sound and com-prehensive answer to the mean-ing and the value of the Via Cruciswas given by John Paul II on GoodFriday of 1994 at the Coliseumwhen he significantly altered the14 “stations:” Jesus in the garden,he is betrayed, condemned, de-nied by Peter, sentenced by Pilate,scourged and crowned withthorns, he carries the cross, Simonof Cyrene helps him, he is ap-proached by the women of Jerusa-lem, he is crucified, he promisesthe kingdom to the good thief, heturns to his Mother and the dis-ciple at the foot of the cross, Jesusdies and is laid in the tomb - a verymoving and eloquent model thatspeaks for itself.

This does not mean we losesight of the essentials, because,while we respect the sensitivity ofpeople we should not ‘canonize’the formula of that devotionwhich is simply an instrument toaid Christians reflection on theirsufferings in the light of Christ’spassion as they carry their crosseswith faith and courage. To thisend, these devotions ought to bevalued as instruments of devo-tion.

The Via Dolorosa

The 9th Station onthe Via Dolorosa, Jerusalem


The Crucifixion, Born Again, Lk 21, Purgatoryfrom St. Martin’s Messenger, Ireland

Q. Crucifixion seems to me to be ahorrific form of death. Where did itoriginate? Did the Romans think it upthemselves or did they get it fromsomewhere else?A. Crucifixion was an eastern cus-tom that was taken up by the Ro-mans. It meant being scourgedfirst, then taking up your cross (orcrossbeam at least) and carrying itto the place of crucifixion and thenbeing put to death. Not all crimi-nals were crucified. Torture anddeath on the cross were inflicted inRoman society on only two classesof people- rebels and slaves. Romancitizens were never crucified. Sucha death would be beneath their dig-nity. Only the lowest forms of life(in Roman eyes) were subjected toa form of execution that was com-pounded in its cruelty by humilia-tion and disgrace.

Q. I often hear the expression ‘Bornagain Christian’. What does thatmean?A. Catholics do not normally usethe term ‘Born again Christian’,but for them it describes how aperson conceived in sin (originalsin) is reborn by Baptism as a childof God and is therefore an heir tothe kingdom of heaven. (Jn 3:5)Catholics speak of the infusion ofDivine grace and being incorpo-rated into Christ – it is a supernatu-ral rebirth. We become sharers inthe life of God. For other Chris-tians it usually means a new ex-

perience of Christ brought aboutthrough Baptism or some instantconversion from sin to a dedicatedservice of God.

Q. What does Christ mean when hesays ‘Heaven and earth shall passaway but my words will not passaway’? (Lk 21) I thought heavenwould last for eternity.A. Yes, heaven as we understandit (The Beatific vision and eternalhappiness with God and all thesaints) will last for all eternity. Thisis our faith. The heaven spoken ofhere means the ‘sky and earth shallpass away but my words will notpass away.

Q. What do Catholics mean by Pur-gatory?

A. The whole idea of Purgatoryis that even though we can be for-given of our sins through the deathof Jesus Christ, we still committedthem and infinite justice demandssome sort of atonement on ourpart. It is our final purification. Wesinners are not quite ready to beushered into God’s presence with-out first being purified. The Coun-cils of the Catholic Church in alltheir official teachings have notgiven us any description of Pur-gatory. In the medieval ages theyconjured up all sorts of punish-ment by fire, pain and torture butthere is no foundation either inscripture or in our tradition forthese imaginings.


PROFILES

ST. NICHOLAS OF FLUEGRANT ME ALL THAT DRAWS ME TO YOU

(1417 - 1487)by Mario Scudu (T/A I.D.)

Saints, sanctity and sanctification are three simple words that

are widely used in Church circlesand beyond; words branded todayas outdated, not modern (or postmodern). They are words with verydifferent meanings but words thatleave us uncomfortable with our at-titudes, beliefs and lifestyles.Speaking of saints and of holinessis not a very “in-thing.” It may evenbe annoying or even taboo. Canyou imagine a TV “talk show,” ora commercial being dedicated tothe life of a saint or how to grow inholiness? This would get verypopular audience ratings. Listeningto someone speak about the life ofa first-century saint or someone re-cent like Padre Pio of Pietrelcina orperhaps Mother Teresa of Kolkata,would make us do an involuntaryexamination of conscience of ourChristian life or simply of our hu-man lives. That is true becausesaints were real people who livedas disciples of Christ up to the veryend of their lives and – from apurely anthropological point ofview – they were individuals wholived their humanity to its full po-tential. Therefore they were not in-

dividuals for just one era of theChurch. They continue to challengeus even in to day.

Who, then, are the saints? Thisis a question that Susanna Tamaro(of the famous Catholic Italianmagazine – Famiglia Cristiana) hasaddressed. Here are her thoughts:“Who really are the saints? This isa frighteningly huge task whichrefers us to something evenbroader: What is holiness?

First, we need to clarify one thing.In the saints, there is nothing softor mawkish, because saints, aboveall else, are people who go “againstthe grain.” There can hardly beanything weak or timid about that.

Unfortunately, the images ofpopular devotions are often mis-leading. The lives of saints must beread. Only then will we becomeaware of their vitality, their uncon-ventionality or the total lonelinessand deep despair that they mayhave experienced. Saints are notfirst class individuals, blessed witha kind of superiority because ofwhich they lived effortlessly, pro-tected from the world. On the con-trary, saints were individuals wholived with immense intensity, dili-


gence and total dedication. Surren-der and commitment seem to becontradictions, but they are not.The diligence and total dedicationof the saints were seen in theirstruggle against the forces of evilwhich they were able to overcomeby surrendering themselves in lovebecause “of the Love that createdthem.”

From the Father of a Family toa Monk

Susanna Tamaro’s definition ofholiness quoted above seems toperfectly fit the saint we proposefor this month of March: St. Nicho-las of Flue. He was a Swiss nationalwho was not just someone signifi-cant for his contemporaries of thefifteenth century but he is very rel-evant for us today. Nicholas of Fluewas certainly not weak or submis-sive. He renounced the secularworld with the socio-cultural envi-ronment in tow. He did not justexist, he lived. He was not influ-enced but he influenced others totake up just and courageous causes.He built himself up conscientiouslyand responsibly to live in his worldwhich was Switzerland of his era.He was able to go “against” thepopular trends of thinking and act-ing by witnessing to deeply Chris-tian ideals of peace and reconcilia-tion. He constantly sought dialogueand consensus over the need for(armed) action. Others promotedless dialogue and more action. Heretorted with patient dialogue inplace of armed conflict. He knewhow to live alone without falling topieces because he was supportedby strong convictions and a cleardetermination to surrender himselfto God, writes Susanna Tamaro.The two elements that seem to fea-ture prominently especially during

the last two decades of his life(which coincide with his life of soli-tude) were his fervent surrender toGod and his love for Christ, to liveonly for Him as he presents him-self to us in the Eucharist and whoremains the sign and summit ofChrist’s love for us and the world.

Nicholas was born in Flue, Swit-zerland in the Canton of Obwaldin 1417 in the same year that theCouncil of Constance was con-vened to bring about an end to thegreat schism of the West thus rais-ing the hopes of Christendom. Alas,hopes were ephemeral because “inthe Christianity of the time, linkedas it was to the feudal state, wasnow on the decline and there wasa widening gap between churchinstitutions that were attached totheir powers even though theirleaders were either unworthy orunfaithful and who followed a fos-silized scholastic theology as op-posed to a new spiritual currentthat emphasised personal piety”(Ph. Baud).

On the political front, the smallSwiss Confederation was lookingfor an identity, independence andtrade. In this ecclesiastical and po-litical environment, though therewas a severe crisis in vocations,Nicholas matured with a determi-nation that was disconcerting. Atage 50, he gave up farming andbeing the head of his family, em-braced solitude and began to livethe life of a monk. Prior to this hewas married to Dorothy and had10 children by her. Everythingseemed to be fine but within him-self he was struggling. He heardGod calling him to leave every-thing, family, farms and his earthlysecurity. When he became certainabout the call he asked his wife’s


permission and that of his grownup children and withdrew into soli-tude. So, “his beloved wife” (as healways referred to her) and hisgrown-up children granted himtheir permission. He was now freeto follow his call to prayer and pen-ance. His destination was the re-gion of Alsace where he joined the“friends of God” (Gottesfreunde).There he flourished. Was this thewill of God? Was God really speak-ing to him? It was not the voice ofsome well known theologian orscripture scholar, but the voice ofan illiterate peasant. The Gospelsays that “the Spirit blows where itwills”, may be even in the voice ofan illiterate farmer. That was howit was in 1467 and that is how it istoday. Nicholas was told that hehad to serve God anywhere but notamong his own people. Nicholaswas welcomed as a sign. Hethought no more of Alsace but re-turned quietly to his people andwent to live in a remote valley notfar from his own house. There helived in solitude, poverty, prayerand penance. The fame of his sanc-tity spread quickly throughout theentire Confederation. This waspartly due to the extraordinary factthat Nicholas lived only on thebread of the Eucharist. There wasno other natural food that he ate.This was a grace from God and hewas blessed with several visions.Even though he lived in solitude hewas not unaware of the fate of hiscountrymen. In fact, he was calledto mediate during a civil war thatwas brewing in 1481. Bruder Klaus(his brother) was sent to ask himfor a message of peace and dia-logue in order to seek the commongood. For Nicholas “mercy in allthings is more precious than jus-tice” and “wisdom is more precious

than wealth.” “Peace alwayscomes from God because God ispeace which cannot be de-stroyed.” And then urged his fel-low countrymen, saying loudly:“So try to keep the peace.” Becauseof his successful mediation and hisrecord of peace and harmony hisbrother, Bruder Klaus is consideredthe “Father of the Nation.” Todaywe refer to this as the bi partisanapproach, that is, Catholics andProtestants. Interestingly that waswhat he offered Zwingli (1484-1531) one of the founders of SwissProtestantism (along with Calvin).Years after his death they said ofNicholas: “You certainly knowwhat the pious Brother Nicholasof Flue said about the federal gov-ernment. There is nothing youshould reject more than oppres-sive selfishness or self-interest.Selfishness is the enemy.”

Nicholas, the holy hermit, wholived only on the Eucharist and thecontemplation of the Passion ofChrist, died in 1487. He was 70years old, 20 of which he lived insolitude away from the world butpraying for the world and thus con-tributing to his own salvation.

According to many Nicholas’ lifewas endowed with copious

visions and apparitions


IN A CHEERFUL MOODWake Up CallAn elderly gentleman checked intoa New York hotel. The clerk men-tioned the phone service the estab-lishment made available for callingguests who wished to rise at an earlyhour."No need for that, young man,"snapped the old timer. "I alwayswake up at five A.M. sharp with-out an alarm clock.""Very good, sir," the clerk replied,then asked, "Would you mind call-ing me at six?"

Cell Phone FindAn employee of the airport founda cell phone in one of the boardingareas. She switched it on, hoping acaller would identify the owner. Itrang, and she answered it, butthere was no response. When itrang a second time, another femaleemployee answered, and the samething happened.Moments later, a supervisor cameby and picked up the ringingphone. "This is Bob. May I helpyou?""Bob," the bewildered womancaller finally spoke. "Where is Bill,and who are those two women he'swith?"

Pupil's QuestionA young pupil asked, "Master,what is fate?""Ah, my son, it is what has broughtgreat nations together. It has madethe world a smaller place in whichto live. It has inspired men of worthto work endless hours. It will someday enable men to span the uni-verse and light years of travel willsoon become mere seconds intime.""And that, my master, is fate?""Oh, fate! I thought you said

freight."

Better PreachingAfter the visiting preacher fin-ished, a woman came up and said,"You were much better than thepreacher we had last Sunday. Hespoke for an hour and said noth-ing.""Thank you," the visiting preacherreplied."Yes," she continued. "You did it infifteen minutes."

Drum ProblemThere was once a small boy whobanged a drum all day and lovedevery moment of it. He would notbe quiet, no matter what anyoneelse said or did. Various attemptswere made to do something aboutthe child.One person told the boy that hewould, if he continued to make somuch noise, perforate his ear-drums. This reasoning was too ad-vanced for the child, who was nei-ther a scientist nor a scholar.A second person told him thatdrum beating was a sacred activ-ity and should be carried out onlyon special occasions. The third per-son offered the neighbours plugsfor their ears; a fourth gave the boya book; a fifth gave the neighboursbooks that described a method ofcontrolling anger through biofeed-back; a sixth person gave the boymeditation exercises to make himplacid and docile. None of theseattempts worked.Eventually, a wise person camealong with an effective motivation.He looked at the situation, handedthe child a hammer and chisel, andasked, "I wonder what's inside thedrum?"


I DO NOT CALL YOU SERVANTS ANYLONGER, I CALL YOU FRIENDS

(Jn. 15, 15)by Antonio Rudoni

There are several people whodo not believe in God because

they do not want to “depend” onHim. They believe that they cher-ish their independence so muchthat they do not want to be sub-servient to anyone!

Being autonomous today seemsto mean living in opposition toChristian heteronomy or depen-dence. Why did Jesus the perfectman say: “That which the Fatherhas commanded me I proclaim”(Jn. 12:49) and “I do all that hecommands me” (Jn. 14:31).

That is what the Teacher tells hisdisciples: “If you remain faithfulto my word you are truly my dis-ciples” (Jn. 8:31), and he goes fur-ther and says: “Whoever does notreceive the Kingdom of God likea little Child will never enter it,”because he himself lived as the sonof his Father, in a very childlikemanner. He even called him Abba,meaning, daddy (Mt 26:39, Lk22:42, Jn 14:31).

Thus dichotomy between themodern mindset and the Christianmentality seems irreconcilable.Yet, for a long time Christianshave been saying “to serve God isto reign.” How can this be pos-sible?

Cardinal Martini, a great scholarof Sacred Scripture writes that theobedience of Jesus and his dis-ciples is not servitude. It is an ex-pression of a perfect love!

In fact, the Divine Son, incarnatein Jesus, obeys the Father becausehe fully supports the Father’s planfor humanity. In accepting thisplan, he accepts the Father’s willout of love for and for the salva-tion of man. Embracing the Fa-ther, the Son accepts him as thelimitless source of every perfectgift. Thus, the infinite gift of theFather is unconditionally acceptedby the Son. The Father’s gift ofboundless love meets the warmthof the infinite Son who is fully Godand equal to the Father!


On that last evening, just beforehe died, Jesus revealed his deep-est confidences. He told his dis-ciples what they needed to knowabout their vocation: “I no longercall you servants but friends” (Jn

15:15). This revelation gives lifeand demands a change in the des-tiny of all created things. By ourvery nature we are only servants

but because of his divine goodnesswe are invited to be his friendsequally sharing his dignity and hislife. Therefore since we are hisfriends we view him in a new lightbecause we now share his divinelove.

So, just as he is uniquely linkedto the Father, we too are called tobe linked to both of them! Godgives himself completely to uswhen we receive him. When weare united to him, his will becomesour will, his life, our life, his free-dom, our freedom, his fullness,our fullness.

Therefore, obedience to God’scommandments really meanstruly embracing him, his light andhis warmth. This obedience, then,is not a kind of dependence butthe fruit of love and a yearning tobe united to him. Thus, the holi-ness of God becomes the holinessof man and when we embraceGod we do not surrender our in-dependence but we realize ourfull potential because only Godcan give us that latitude to live aboundless life.

The Last Supper, The French School of XVII Cent - Musee des Beaux Arts, Lille

Obedience,then, is not

a kindof dependence

butthe fruit of loveand a yearning

to be unitedto (God) him.


DEDICATED TOTHE HOLY FAMILY

WE ARE MADby His Holiness P

On the occasion of the opening of the 10th International Youth Forum -on the theme “Learning to love” - which began in Rocca di Papa, nearRome, on 24th March, the Holy Father addressed a Message to CardinalStanislaw Rylko, President of the Pontifical Council for the Laity, for thosetaking part. The following is a translation of the Pope’s message which wasgiven in Italian

I am pleased to send my cordial greeting to you, to the collabora-tors of the Pontifical Council for the Laity and to all who are

taking part in the 10th International Forum for Youth, which is beingheld this week at Rocca di Papa on the theme “Learning to Love”.

“Learning to Love” this theme is central to the faith and toChristian life and I am delighted that you have the opportunity toexamine it together. As you know, the starting point of any reflec-tion on love is the very mystery of God, for the heart of the Christianrevelation is this: Deus caritas est. Christ in his Passion, in the totalgift of himself, has revealed to us the Face of the God who is Love.

Contemplation of the mystery of the Trinity leads us into thismystery of eternal Love, which is fundamental for us. The firstpages of the Bible say, in fact, that “God created man in his ownimage, in the image of God he created him”; that is, “male andfemale he created them” (Gn 1:27).

For the very reason that God is love and man is his image weunderstand the person’s profound identity, his vocation to love.Human beings are made for love; their lives are completely fulfilledonly if they are lived in love. Thus, after many years of searching, StTherese of the Child Jesus came to understand the meaning of herlife: “My vocation is Love!” (Manuscript B, folio 3)’

I urge the young people to put their whole heart into seeking theirvocation to love, as people and as baptized people. This is the key totheir entire existence. They can therefore invest all their energy indrawing close to this goal, day after day, sustained by the Word ofGod and by the Sacraments of Reconciliation and the Eucharist.

The vocation to love takes different forms according to the state oflife. I wish to recall the words of the holy Cure d’ Ars: “the priest-hood is the love of Jesus’ Heart”. In the following of Jesus, priestsgive their lives so that the faithful may live by the love of Christ.Called by God to give themselves entirely to him with an undividedheart, consecrated people in celibacy are also an eloquent sign of


DE FOR LOVEPope Benedict XVI

God’s love for theworld and of thevocation to love Godabove all else.

I would also like toencourage the youngdelegates to discoverthe greatness andbeauty of Marriage:the relationshipbetween the man andthe woman reflectsdivine love in a quitespecial way; thereforethe conjugal bondacquires an immensedignity. Through the Sacrament of Marriage the spouses are unitedto God and with their relationship express the love of Christ whogave his life for the salvation of the world.

In a cultural context in which many people consider Marriage as atemporary contract that may be violated, it is vitally important tounderstand that true love is faithful, it is the definitive gift of self.

Since Christ consecrates the love of Christian spouses and iscommitted to and with them, this fidelity is not only possible but isthe way by which to enter into ever greater charity. Thus, in thedaily life of the couple and of the family, the spouses learn to love asChrist loves. To measure up to this vocation a serious educationalprocess is necessary and this Forum also fits into this perspective.

These days of formation through encounter, listening to confer-ences and common prayer, must also be an encouragement to all theyoung delegates to make themselves witnesses among their peers ofwhat they have seen and heard. It is a real responsibility. TheChurch is counting on them to ensure that they respond with joyand faithfulness to Christ’s commandment: “that you love oneanother as I have loved you” Jn 15:12).

I assure all the young people of my prayer and warmly send aspecial greeting to all the participants in the International Forum.

From the Vatican, 20 March 2010


THE LUNCH HOURby Michelle Mach

Time is an illusionand lunch time doubly so.

- Douglas Adams

A Short Story

I clutched a yogurt in one hand as I tried to eat and catch up

on customer e-mail during thenoon hour. Even fifteen minutesin the employee lunchroomseemed too much of a luxury. Mycompany, like many companies,had cut costs by not replacingpeople as they left. The survivorswere expected to take up the slack.

For me, this meant no lunchhour, plus taking work home inthe evening or on the weekends. Ididn’t feel I worked at a job; I feltI was my job. I wanted to quit, butgiven the economy, I felt I couldn’tuntil I had another job in hand.Nice in theory, but given howcranky all the extra hours mademe feel, it was difficult to convincepotential employers to hire me. Ifelt trapped. Then a chance con-versation with a stranger’s six-year-old daughter changed myoutlook. The young girl was posi-tively bouncy, standing in linewith her mom at the grocery store.

“Good day at school?” I asked.A nod.“What’s your favorite subject?”“Lunch.”I smiled at the answer. I remem-

bered when that had been my an-swer. At lunch, there were noadults to tell you what to do andwhen to do it. You could sit andtalk with your friends or play anexuberant game of four-square.

You could draw pictures or swingon the monkey bars. The time wasyours to do whatever you wanted.Sometimes we planned our time,bringing stickers to trade or Chi-nese jacks for a weeklong tourna-ment. Sometimes we were morespontaneous, only deciding whatto do while we were eating ourpeanut butter and jelly sand-wiches and slurping our little pa-per cartons of milk.

That brief encounter left mewondering: What had happenedto lunch?

I knew that by law I was entitledto a lunch break at work. So I de-cided to simply start taking it. Theoffice was located in the downtownarea of a small town and I set outto explore it. A few blocks awaywas a local art museum with freeadmission. At the end of anotherstreet, I was startled to discoversome horses grazing in a field. Acute gift boutique made for pleas-ant and sometimes humorousbrowsing, particularly lookingthrough the leftover holiday itemsand laughing at the sometimesfunny things, like jack-o’-lanternsunglasses and temporary Santatattoos that no one had the foresightto buy.

When the weather turned cold,I visited the used bookstore orpublic library. Near the library


was a small man-made pond thatattracted ducks and small childrenwith their parents, all of whom pro-vided much amusement as theydemanded to be fed. Even runningerrands at lunch to the bank or thepost office brought me a small mea-sure of joy. Doing those errandsduring the week freed up sometime on the weekends for fun ac-tivities.

When I decided to take back mylunch hour, I braced myself forcatty remarks or stares from myco-workers, but they never mate-rialized. In fact, I watched in

amazement as some of my co-workers started to drift away oc-casionally from their own desksduring lunch. We started invitingeach other out for walks duringgood weather and discovered thatwe had other topics of conversa-tion beyond the now commoncomplaints about work.

I’m still looking for a new posi-tion, but with less stressed-outurgency than before. You can’talways change your circum-stances, but you can alwayschange your perspective.

Form IVStatement of ownership and other particulars about the newspaper:

Don Bosco’s Madonna

1. Place of Publication:

2. Periodicity of Publication:3. Printer’s name and nationality:

4. Publisher’s name:5. Editor’s name:6. Name & address of individualswho own the newspaper andpartners or shareholders holdingmore than 1% of capital.

St. Paul’s Press, 58/23rd Rd., TPS III,Bandra, Mumbai - 400 0501 & 2 of every monthFor Bombay Salesian Society,Fr. Edwin D’Souza sdb (Trustee)IndianDon Bosco Shrine Office,Matunga, Mumbai 400 019.- do -Fr. Ian Doulton sdbBombay Salesian SocietyDon Bosco Shrine Office,Matunga, Mumbai 400 019

The magazine is a non-profit publication

I, Fr. Ian Doulton, hereby declare that the particulars given above aretrue to the best of my knowledge and belief.

Dated: March 1, 2011Sd/-

Fr. Ian Doulton sdb


selves. On the other hand, whenwe can trustfully say to the Lordthat we are ready to accept what-ever his infinite love prescribes forus, we allow his divine power ofsurge within our spiritual veinsand what a difference we experi-ence. The peace and joy we receiveare unbelievable, yet palpableenough for all to see!

Eucharist – the School ofLoving Acceptance

It is for this reason that we needto understand better what we arecalled to do in each Eucharist wecelebrate. In the Early Church, theEucharist was commonly knownas ‘the breaking of the bread.’ Butthis breaking was not done just inview of the meal that was to fol-low. The breaking signified pre-cisely the readiness of those cel-ebrating Eucharist to break ofthemselves, of their convenienceand comfort particularly in favourof their poorer brethren. In sym-bol, that of breaking the bread andsharing the Cup, participants inthe Eucharist signify their totalreadiness to accept lovingly andjoyfully all the crosses the Fatherhas planned for them.

Having expressed this readinessof theirs in symbolic fashion, theythen go out and live it in theirdaily lives. Thus, rather than besurprised at adversities doggingtheir steps throughout the day, theChristian actually anticipates theirbeing a part of his/her dailyschedule; spiritually prepared forthem s/he grabs them by thehorns, thus transforming theminto occasions for sharing in theglory of the Risen Lord. Havinglived this positive approach for ashort while, the dedicated Chris-

tian is also able to pick up thesigns of the presence of the RisenLord in the midst of this suffering.This could be a tiny little kindnessby an unknown person coming atthe right moment and most unex-pectedly or a suggestion thatchanges the course of the entiresituation making it shorter andlighter. Or it could be a strangeroffering to share the burden withus, even without our suggestingit. Whatever it be, the best part isthat we do recognize with a thrillperhaps even saying within our-selves, “It is the Lord” as John didnudging Peter when they beganto haul the nets in with the hugecatch of fish!

The Risen Lord does not hidefrom his chosen ones; rather hereveals himself plainly but gener-ally in a challenging manner, of-fering us the added joy of discov-ering his presence. One of the un-mistakable signs that we have metthe Risen Lord is that we cannotbe at peace until we have sharedthe ‘good news’ with those whoare close to us. And in the verysharing we further experience hispresence for he here uses us as hiswitnesses, offering the Kingdomblessings to many more persons.

ConclusionWhether we like it or not, ca-

lamities are going to be very mucha part of our lives. But the nexttime we are hit by one, could weconsciously choose to remain si-lent and still – listening deeply forsigns of the presence of the RisenJesus? Having caught at least afew examples of these, we findourselves calm and serene, enjoy-ing the marvelous goodness of theLord. “I am with you even till theend of time” (Mt. 28:20).

(Continued from pg. 6)


AT THE PINARDIAT THE PINARDIAT THE PINARDIAT THE PINARDIAT THE PINARDICOTTAGECOTTAGECOTTAGECOTTAGECOTTAGENatale Cerrato

In the first decade of the Oratoryof Valdocco (1846-1856) the

Pinardi cottage still stood alongsidea new house that was built by DonBosco which was attached to thechurch of St. Francis de Sales. Inthose years Don Bosco and hisapostolate for poor and abandonedyoungsters won the sympathy andadmiration of Abbè Rosmini andthe Rosminian Fathers

The House of UrchinsWhile writing to the Rosminian

Fr. Joseph Fradelizio, who hadmoved from Stresa to Sacra di SanMichele, Don Bosco said: “I wassorry you did not find a place whenyou passed through Turin. Now,however, you’re not staying inStresa but a short distance from me.I hope to see you soon at The Houseof Urchins”(E35).

“The House of the Urchins” (Casabirichinòira – in Piedmontese) wasused to describe the Pinardi Cot-tage that was full of urchins.

This was a Piedmontese term.The word “House” is not used ex-cept to indicate the title of nobilitylike “The House of Savoy” and

“The House of Cavour.” That wasalso how Abbè Rosmini’s familywas referred to as well. He was afamous philosopher and theolo-gian and the founder of the insti-tute of Charity (called theRosminians).

In Piedmont, the Italian word“house” in its simplest sense, is sim-ply referred to as ‘ca.’ So, when DonBosco referred to “The House ofUrchins” and as his own humble‘family,’ which he simply referredto it in an abbreviated way, whichin Italian was “Birichinesca”– as ajoke.

Inexperienced WaysOne Sunday evening in the

spring of 1848, Don Bosco wasteaching catechism to his boys in aroom near the chapel. His backfaced the window that opened onto the street. Suddenly a darkhooded figure appeared armedwith a gun which he fired at DonBosco. He then disappeared imme-diately. No one will ever know who

The Pinardi Cottageat the beginning (Crida)


that figure was but it was easy toimagine the terror in the eyes ofthose youngsters as they saw thehooded figure in the window be-hind Don Bosco, aiming and firingthe pistol.

The bullet had pierced the win-dow without shattering the pane,and had passed harmlessly underDon Bosco’s armpit, slightly tear-ing the side and sleeve of his cas-sock and embedding itself into thewall, causing a few inches of plas-ter to fall to the floor. All Don Boscofelt of the bullet was a slight pres-sure as if someone was tugging athis robe. Not in the least discon-certed, he showed such calm andpresence of mind as to allay the feargripping the boys. He reassuredthem with a smile, “What? Are youafraid of a joke in poor taste? Somescoundrels don’t know any better.Look they’ve ripped my cassockand damaged the wall! Oh,well…let’s get back to our cat-echism.” Seeing him unhurt afterthe attempt on his life, the boyssoon became their usual selves.Meanwhile Don Bosco kept re-marking: “If the Blessed Virgin hadnot made him miss his aim, he

would certainly havegot me. But he was abad shot.” Then, look-ing at the rip in his cas-sock he exclaimed: “Oh,my poor cassock! Theonly one I’ve got!” (cfEBM 3, 211-212)

“To Do Much Good!”Years later the sons of

Don Bosco spoke of hispenance while eating.Card. John Cagliero,one of his first disciplestestified: “Don Bosco’smeals were always very

frugal, if not downright meagre. Asa boy I was present at his meals in1852 – 1853. He ate the same soupand bread served to us; the maindish which Mamma Margaret pre-pared for him generally consistedof vegetables, sometimes mixedwith tiny pieces of meat or an egg;sometimes it was only pumpkinwith a little seasoning. The samedish, warmed up, would be servedagain at supper.”

Don Bosco generally preferredpotatoes, turnips and vegetables,provided they were well-cooked,because they were easier for himto digest. He ate so frugally that wewere amazed how he could standhis arduous tasks.

In drink, too, Don Bosco was amodel of temperance. What littlewine he took came from thesamples and leftovers from themarket which was sent almostweekly to the Oratory; red andwhite, sweet and dry, were allmixed together; sometimes goodwine was mixed with sour. If thewine was good, he would then in-stantly reach for water to dilute itand “make it even better,” as hewould say. With a smile he would


add, “I’ve renounced the worldand the devil, but the pumps.” (Thepun Don Bosco intended is perfectin the original Italian since the wordpompe means both “pomps” and“pumps”) alluding to water pumps(cf EBM 4,133-134).

In the Bread BasketThis was how Card. John

Cagliero described his entry intothe Pinardi Cottage on 2nd Novem-ber 1851:

“I shall always fondly rememberthe moment I arrived at the Ora-tory on the evening of 2nd Novem-ber (1851). Don Bosco introducedme to his mother, saying, “Mamma,here is a small boy fromCastelnuovo. He wants to becomereally good and go to school.”Mamma Margaret replied, “you’realways bringing in boys when youknow very well that we have nomore room.” “Oh, you’ll find a little

corner for him,” replied Don Boscosmiling. “In your own room per-haps,” she replied. “that won’t benecessary,” continued Don Bosco.“He’s so small he can sleep in thegrissini (slender breadsticks aboutthree feet long) basket. We couldhoist it from a beam just like a bird-cage.” Laughing at the remark,Mamma Margaret left the room tofind a place for me. That night an-other boy and I slept at the foot ofDon Bosco’s bed (cf EBM 4, 202-203).

Who would have thought that,that youngster would become oneof the first Salesians and then thehead of the first missionary expe-dition to Argentina and later hewould become the first Salesianbishop and Cardinal? At the age of88 he exclaimed:

“If I were reborn 88 times I wouldbe a Salesian 88 times over!”

Monsignor Cagliero visitshis mission on horseback

(detail from a paintingby Mario Bogani)

Don Bosco presenting theConstitutions to Fr. Cagliero

who is leaving for the missions


NEWSBITSVATICAN CITY

Pope Benedict XVI praised themillions of Catholic women in theworld who inspire their husbandsand children to live truly Chris-tian lives.

At his weekly general audienceon Oct 27, 2010 the pope said hewanted to recognize “the manywomen who, day after day, en-lighten their families with theirwitness of Christian life”.

“May the Spirit of the Lord raiseup holy Christian spouses todayto show the world the beauty ofmarriage lived according to theGospel values: love, tenderness,mutual help, fruitfulness in gen-erating and educating children,openness and solidarity with theworld, and participation in the lifeof the Church,” he said.

The pope’s remarks aboutwomen in the Church and in fam-ily life were part of his addressabout the life and influence of St.Bridget of Sweden, who lived inthe 14th century. Bridget and herhusband, Ulf, were the parents ofeight children.

“Often, as happened in the lifeof St. Bridget and Ulf, it is thewoman who, with her religioussensitivity, delicacy and sweet-ness, is able to make her husbandmature in the faith journey,” hesaid.

After Ulf died, Bridget sold herpossessions and dedicated her lifeto prayer and good works, whichmakes her a model for Christianwidows, the pope said.

St. Bridget also received divinerevelations, many of which wereaddressed “in the form of harshadmonitions. To believers in her

time, including religious and po-litical authorities so that theywould correctly live their Chris-tian life,” Pope Benedict said.

But she always shared the rev-elations “with an attitude of re-spect and full fidelity to themagisterium of the church, par-ticularly the successor of theApostle Peter”, Pope Urban V, headded. OR

USAFr. Schiffer and seven other

priests survived Hiroshima bypraying the Rosary daily…

“Realize the power in your handwith the Rosary, for in your handsyou hold the power of God. If youdo not recognize the Rosary, canyou expect to be recognized byMy Son? How much can you ex-pect? Why do you hide My Ro-sary? It was with a Mother's lov-ing heart that I chose to give youthese pearls of Heaven that youreject.

“Woe to all dedicated who seekto remove these from the littleones' hands, for their punishmentwill be metered in accordance toit!

“Why has sophisticated mancast aside these tokens of My love?Those who remain true to My Ro-sary will not be touched by thefires. Gather these treasures, Mychildren, for the time will comethat you will not find them on thecounters of your stores.” - OurLady of the Roses, October 6, 1970

Eight Jesuit priests survived thesearing hurricane of blast andgamma rays during the atomicbomb explosion in Hiroshima, Ja-pan, in 1945. They were in a rec-


tory only 8 blocks from the blind-ing centre of the nuclear flash. Al-though everyone within a mileradius perished, all survived andthey attribute their survival to theRosary and living the Fatima mes-sage.

At 2:45 a.m. on August 6, 1945,a B-29 bomber took off from theisland of Tinian to drop the firstatomic bomb on Japan. At 8:15a.m. the bomb exploded eight cityblocks from the Jesuit Church ofOur Lady's Assumption inHiroshima. Half a million peoplewere annihilated. However, thechurch and eight Jesuit fathers sta-tioned there survived (four of thepriests were Fathers HugoLassalle, Kleinsorge, Cieslik andSchiffer. According to the expertsthey "ought to be dead," beingwithin a one-mile radius of theexplosion. Nine days later on Au-gust 15, Feast of Our Lady's As-sumption, U.S.forces were or-dered to cease fire.

This is the incredible story of thelate Fr. Hubert Schiffer, as retoldby a priest who met him:

I met Fr. Schiffer in the late 70sat the Tri-City Airport in Saginaw,Michigan, as he was going to givea talk for the Blue Army Novena/Triduum. As I chauffeured himaround he told me stories of hislife, especially of the atomic explo-sion at Hiroshima. On the morn-ing of August 6, 1945, he had justfinished Mass, went into the rec-tory and sat down at the break-fast table, and had just sliced agrapefruit, and had just put hisspoon into the grapefruit whenthere was a bright flash of light.His first thought was that it wasan explosion in the harbour (thiswas a major port where the Japa-nese refueled their submarines.)

Then, in the words of Fr.Schiffer: "Suddenly, a terrific ex-plosion filled the air with onebursting thunder stroke. An invis-ible force lifted me from the chair,hurled me through the air, shookme, battered me, whirled me'round and 'round like a leaf in agust of autumn wind." The nextthing he remembered, he openedhis eyes and he was laying on theground. He looked around andthere was NOTHING in any di-rection: the railroad station andbuildings in all directions wereleveled to the ground.

The only physical harm to him-self was that he could feel a fewpieces of glass in the back of hisneck. As far as he could tell, therewas nothing else physicallywrong with himself. Many thou-sands were killed or maimed bythe explosion. After the conquestof the Americans, their army doc-tors and scientists explained tohim that his body would begin todeteriorate because of the radia-tion. Many of the Japanese peoplehad blisters and sores from theradiation. To the doctors amaze-ment, Fr. Schiffer's body con-tained no radiation or ill-effectsfrom the bomb. Fr. Schiffer at-tributes this to devotion to theBlessed Mother, and his dailyFatima Rosary. He feels that he re-ceived a protective shield from theBlessed Mother which protectedhim from all radiation and ill-ef-fects. (This coincides with thebombing of Nagasaki where St.Maximilian Kolbe had establisheda Franciscan Friary which was alsounharmed because of special pro-tection from the Blessed Mother, asthe Brothers too prayed the dailyRosary and also had no effects fromthe bomb.)gloria.tv


IN THE FOOTSTEPS OFTHE MOTHER OF JESUS

by Eamon R. Carroll, O. Carm.

The Chicago Tribune in its is-sue of November 3rd 2001

showed a picture from Califor-nia of a group of people lookingup at a four-story mural of OurLady of Guadalupe in down-town Los Angeles, unveiled onNovember 2nd, of that year. Itwas on the wall of a building, 35by 50 feet, one of the largest re-ligious images in California.

The blind Italian tenor AndreaBocelli made his American de-but in Detroit at the end of Oc-tober 2000, in the operatic roleof Werther. He has been fea-tured in a number of PBS TVshows. Some of his recordingsare on sale, both CD and DVD:one is the classical album ‘Sa-cred Arias: Timeless Arias ofHope and Devotion,’ advertisedas including some of the mostbeautiful music and inspired‘Ave Marias’ ever written, and aswell the hymn of the Great Jubi-lee ‘Gloria a te, Cristo Gesù.’ It isdifficult to make a correct list-ing of the many settings of theAve Maria.

As I write I have before me anadvertisement from the Christ-mas catalogue of the Ave MariePress of Notre Dame, Indiana,for a recording available in bothstereo cassette and compactdisc, with the title Ave Maria bythe Santa Barbara RegionalChoir with Sue Ann Pinner thesoprano soloist and director.Among its 17 Marian hymns areten Ave Maria’s ‘presentedchronologically from GregorianChant through Bach-Gounod,Morzart, Schubert, Brahms,Verdi, Rachmaninoff and more.’

On June 2nd 1999, ‘Skylark,’the name of a 13-member con-sort of Women’s voices, new tothe Chicago scene, gave anopening concert in Evanston.Calling their programme “Ave”they presented 16 hymns to theVirgin Mary from the 1500s tothe present. One was Schubert’sfamiliar Ave Maria that the com-poser set to a poem by Sir WalterScott. Almost miraculously, as areviewer noted, the Latin textalso fits the tune. Other offerings


included a Magnificat byVaughan Williams, also one byMichael Haydn, an Angelus byWilliam Mathias, a Regina Coeliby Brahms and the “litanies tothe Black Virgin” which theFrench composer Poulenc wroteafter a friend’s sudden death.

There is a society of philat-elists who collect stamps de-voted to the Blessed Virgin. Onesuch example turned up in myrecent mail from Madrid, Spain: a115 peseta stamp for the canonicalcoronation of the statue of Maria

Santissima dela Estrella(Most HolyMary of theStar). Littleknown herein the UnitedStates, thereis a recentsplendid li-turgical ritualfor such coro-nations, fullyapproved bythe Holy See:Order ofCrowning anImage of theBlessed Vir-gin Mary(English edi-tion 1986.)

For over ayear ‘best-seller’ bookshave in-cluded TomB r o k a w ’ sThe GreatestG e n e r a t i o n( R a n d o mHouse, NewYork, 1998),essays about

people who lived through theGreat Depression and SecondWorld War. The first, under thesection ordinary people, is ‘Tho-mas and Eileen Broderick’ withthe subhead ‘Chicago, Illinois-Insurance Agency Owner-82ndAirborne.’ Broderick lost hiseyesight from a German sniper’sbullet. On the first page of thearticle are the words “What’s ahandicap? I don’t have a handi-cap.” It tells of his long recov-ery, determined effort to learnBraille, and entry into the insur-

Roger van de Weyden does not separate the Eucharistfrom the Mass, nor the Mass from the Sorrowful Motherof Christ, offering herself as a victim co-jointly with herSon. St. John, in the habit of a cleric supports, her

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ance business. One of his sevenchildren is quoted on how heused to tell them of his injury inthe war and how he went withhis mother to Lourdes to prayfor a miracle. Before she put thewater on his eyes this was thefavour he asked the Lord: ‘If Ican’t have my eyesight back,could you find me a girl for meto marry?’ His prayer was an-swered.

When I was telling this storyto a man I know, who was alsoin the war, he told me that wasalso his prayer, and it too washeard. Our Lady gets her way:no one is closer to the heart ofher beloved Son.

Back around the time of theFirst World War, there wasfound in Egypt a papyrus frag-ment with a prayer written inGreek. It ended up in an Englishmuseum and was not publisheduntil 1937, when it was imme-diately recognized as the earli-est form of the familiar prayer:“We fly to thy patronage, holyMother of God, despise not ourpetitions, but in your mercy hearand answer us.” Scholars debateon how old it may be, perhapsas early as A.D. 300, from anarea where the title ‘Mother ofGod’ was in use. It is the earli-est prayer we have that explic-itly calls on the Blessed Virginfor her assistance. Subsequentlyit became very well known ev-erywhere. The Latin is Sub tuumpraesidium, often set to music. Inthe chapter on our Lady in the2nd Vatican Council’s Constitu-tion on the Church, (No. 66), thisbeloved prayer is quoted.

Another ancient prayer used inthe Church’s liturgy is the invo-cation “Vignare me, laudare te,

Virgo sacrata. Da mihi virtutem con-tra hostes tuos.” On my 50th anni-versary of ordination, I put on aholy card the first line: ‘Make meworthy to praise you, holy Vir-gin.’ I left off the continuation:‘give me strength against yourenemies.’ Harsh though that sec-ond line may sound, ‘da mihivirtutem, , the ‘enemies’ referredto are those who deny the truthsabout her Son, Jesus. Refusing tocall Mary ‘Mother of God’ maymean denying that her son is theSon of God. That title was canon-ized at the ecumenical Council ofEphesus A.D. 431 using the Greekword for Mother of God,theotokos, the very word in theancient prayer: We fly to thy pa-tronage.

Both traditional prayers, ‘We flyto thy patronage’ and ‘Make meworthy to praise you,’ have beenused as inscriptions for beautifulholy cards from Germany(Beuron) that came to my noticerecently. The scene is our Ladyseated on a throne, her small sonleaning forward to give the scapu-lar to the kneeling Saint Simon, anangel standing in attendance be-hind him. In one case the inscrip-tion runs: We fly to thy patron-age, O holy Mother of God. Theother card has the same scenewith the Latin inscription ‘Makeme worthy to praise you’ and hasalso the Latin ejaculatory prayer‘Regina, Decor Carmeli, ora pronobis’ (Queen and ornament ofCarmel, pray for us) and aprayer for the feast of St. SimonStock (May 16): ‘O Lord, let thepeople consecrated to Thee, andto Thy Virgin Mother, rejoice inthe feast of Saint Simon, whomThou hast given them for theirfather and guide; and since they


have received through him amark of protection so mighty,may they reach the eternal fruitsof predestination. Amen.’

John Paul II dated his masterlyletter The Gospel of Life forMarch 25th 1995, the feast of theAnnunciation of the Lord, com-memorating the conception ofJesus the Life of the world. Cen-tral to that mystery is the VirginMother of the Saviour, to whomthe Holy Father addresses theclosing section of his letter. Stu-dents of history customarilycome across the abbreviationsO.S. and N.S. They stand for ‘oldstyle’ and ‘new style.’ The stylesintended are before and after theintroduction of the GregorianCalendar in 1582. Papal astrono-mers corrected the imbalance ofthe Julian calendar by droppingten days. For example St. Teresaof Spain died on October 4, 1582,but her feast is kept on October15. It took a long time for thewhole world to accept theGregorian calendar, in part, outof anti-Catholic reluctance. Formany Christian centuries boththe civil and the religious year

began on March 25, and thespring tax dates still reflect thatcustom. George Washingtonwas born 1732 O.S., as Englandand her colonies did not acceptthe Gregorian Calendar until1752. The Catholic Church didnot change the beginning of theyear from March 25 to January1st, 1622.

The 1927 book by the Ameri-can author Willa Cather DeathComes for the Archbishop is basedon the life of French-born Arch-bishop John Baptist Lamy ofSanta Fe (died 1888). It has somebeautiful pages describingLatour (her fictional substitutefor Lamy) reflecting on themeaning of our Lady to his lifeand priestly work. Mary wasvery special, as Cather writes:“Once again this has been hismonth: his Patroness had givenit to him, the season that had al-ways meant so much in his reli-gious life,” (203) Again (256): “Alife need not be cold, or devoidof grace in the worldly sense, ifit were filled by Her who was allthe graces; Virgin-daughter, Vir-gin-mother, girl of the peopleand Queen of Heaven...”.

Dear Mother, Lady clothed in white,At your head a halo bright,An angel came to you one night,To tell you of your joyous plight.Chaste St. Joseph you did wed,And laid your Babe in manger bed.St. Joseph, you and Baby fled,But came back when the king was dead.Mary, Lady clothed in light,Help me be radiant in your sight.

(Hannah Polk Age 14)

To My Mother


LOVING CHILDREN TOTHEIR LOVING MOTHER

Thank you, Mary Help of Christians for giving me a beautiful housewhich I was praying for. We managed to buy the house while Iwas undergoing treatment for breast cancer. I am happy to saythat through your powerful intercession I have been able to resumemy normal activities and am on the road to recovery. Thank youalso for many other favours that I received. June AcharI am grateful to Our Lady for the many favours received, especiallyfor the marriage of my son. P. Kulandaisamy and Family, ChennaiIn the month of June my son was travelling by bike at dawn. Dueto bad light he went over a speedbreaker and fell off the bikesuffering severe head and face injuries. Thanks to Mother Mary,some passing vehicles stopped and took him to a very goodhospital. He was in the ICCU for some days without having toundergo any surgery. I am most grateful to Our Lady and to all ourheavenly protectors for saving him. Johnson, BangaloreWe are grateful to Mary Help of Christians for her constantprotection and intercession especially in helping our mum togradually recover from her recent serious illness. Mr. & Mrs. T. Moraes, MumbaiThanks to the Virgin Mary for the fulfillment of all my wishes. Mrs. Susan Raju, BarodaMany thanks to Mother Mary for the graces and blessings showeredon us. Thank you for a job and for saving me from a heart attack intime. Abraham D’Souza, MumbaiMy sincere thanks to God our Father and Mother Mary for curingme and giving me another life. Arnold Soares, MumbaiMy granddaughter developed a boil on her scalp which appearedrepeatedly again after application of medicine. The doctorssuggested an excision. We were frightened and turned to MotherMary and prayed before the Blessed Sacrament. It eventuallydisappeared and there has been no sign of it again. We are mostgrateful to Our Lady for this favour. Rita & Fly, GoaMy son met with a car accident and was knocked down but heescaped with minor injuries. I am grateful to Mary Help of Christiansfor protecting him. Elizabeth Mathias, MumbaiMany many thanks dear Mother Mary for the successful operationof my son. Mrs. S. FonsecaMother, thank you so much for your blessing and mercy for myson Clint who passed his Std. XII without tuition. Argentina Fernandes, MumbaiMy sincere thanks to Mother Mary for the favours I received. Alice D’Souza, MumbaiMy sincere thanks to Mary Help of Christians for a successful herniaoperation. John F. D’Souza, MumbaiMany thanks to Jesus, Mother Mary and all the saints for helpingme out of a minor depression and a brain surgery. A Devotee


THE DEVOTION OF THE THREE HAIL MARYS

The devotion of the THREE HAIL MARYS isa very simple yet most efficacious devotion.Everyday, recite Three Hail Marys, adding theinvocation: "O Mary, My Mother, keep me frommortal sin." Many people recite the Three HailMarys as part of their morning and night prayers.To practise this devotion in time of danger, stress,special need or temptation, is a sure means toobtain Our Lady's help.

Thank you, dear Mother Mary for granting my husband employmentthrough the recitation of the three Hail Marys and for many other favoursreceived. A. Cota, MumbaiI am grateful to Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament and Our Lady Help ofChristians for answering my prayers. The three Hail Marys workswonders for me and my children and their spouses and also my grandchildren. I am grateful for all the favours I have received and I continueto receive and I continue to pray for all our illnesses. Keep us MotherMary, in your loving care always. Mrs. Gracy Abreo, MumbaiI am most grateful to Our Blessed Mother through the faithful recitationof the three Hail Marys both my sons passed their Std. X & XIIexaminations and secured good results. Jennifer D’Souza, MumbaiThank you dear Mary Help of Christians for all the favours received.

Delialah Mascarenhas, GoaThank you Mother Mary for blessing my sister with a beautiful babygirl through the powerful devotion to the three Hail Marys. Helen, BangaloreOur sincere thanks to the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus and our BlessedMother for all the favours received. We sincerely seek your blessingsand graces on us, our children and our grandchildren. Marshal and Rose D’Cunha, ThaneOur grateful thanks to the Infant Jesus and Mary Help of Christiansfor the many favours received especially for helping our daughterthroughout her pregnancy and for blessing her with a healthy babygirl. S & P Pereira, AustraliaOur heartfelt thanks to Jesus and Mother Mary for a good medicalreport and for many blessings and favours received. A. Mendonca, MumbaiOur sincere thanks to Mother Mary and Dominic Savio for a safedelivery and the gift of a baby boy granted through the recitation of the3 Hail Marys. Cecilia & Frady Fernandes, GoaThank you dear Mother Mary for the blessings and favours receivedthrough the recitation of the three Hail Marys. Sunita Gomes, Mumbai


THEY ARE GRATEFUL TOOUR LADY AND DON BOSCO

Dear Mother Mary Help of Christians, Don Bosco and Dominic Saviothank you for giving my children good health and for a partner formy sister-in-law’s son. A DevoteeOur grateful thanks to Our Lady, Don Bosco and Dominic Savio forhelping our daughter Vernar to completed her Std. X and now andher XII and helping her get admission into a good MBBS college.

Alice Stella Verginia, KeralaThank you dear Mary Help of Christians, Don Bosco and DominicSavio for the gift of a lovely daughter, Riona. She is now 5 yearsold. Rajan & Cynthia Xess, MumbaiOur sincere thanks to Mary Help of Christians, Don Bosco andDominic Savio for all the graces and blessings granted to our family. Mrs. Claudette D’Abreo, ItalyMy grateful thanks to Mother Mary and Don Bosco for the settlementof an insurance claim. Thanks also for freeing me from crampsduring my dialysis. I am praying to be dialysis free. S.K. Alexander, ChennaiThank you, dear Mother Mary, Don Bosco and Dominic Savio forgranting me overwhelming success in my IIP examinations. Wayne D. D’Almeida, MumbaiOur sincere thanks to Our Lord Jesus Christ, Mother Mary, Help ofChristians, Don Bosco and Dominic Savio for all the favoursreceived. Jesley Fernandes, GoaI am most grateful to Our lady and Don Bosco for our good healthand wellbeing. Debra & Kirk Claremont, AustraliaMy sincere thanks to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, Mary Help ofChristians and St. John Bosco for the blessings of good health, asuccessful retirement and a good family. Rosalind Moreira, CanadaOur sincere thanks to Mother Mary for all the favours received.

Mrs. Godinho, MumbaiWe are most grateful to Mary Help of Christians for all the blessingsand graces received. Dear Mother, do continue to bless us. Effie Rodrigues, MumbaiOn 10 November 2010 we were in Thailand and were parasailingwhen suddenly the engine of the boat my son was in failed and hewas plunged into the sea. He remained beneath the water for quitesome time. He was rescued by some boatmen and was unhurt. Itwas a miracle Our Lady protected him. We say the prayer ofprotection to Our Lady whenever we leave home. Thank you Jesusand Mother Mary for your protection. Mrs. Betty D’Silva, MumbaiOur sincere thanks to Our Lady, Don Bosco and Dominic Savio forthe safe delivery and for looking after our baby throughout thetroubled pregnancy. Mrs. Nisha Maria Barretto, UKOur sincere thanks to Our Lady, Don Bosco and Dominic Savio fora very great favour received. Ingrid C. D’Souza, Karwar


APOSTLESHIP OF PRAYERMARCH 2011

THANKS TO DEAR ST. DOMINIC SAVIO

General Intention: That the nations of Latin America may walk infidelity to the Gospel and be bountiful in social justice and peace.

Missionary Intention: That the Holy Spirit may give light and strengthto the Christian communities and the faithful who are persecuted ordiscriminated against because of the Gospel.

Our sincere thanks to Our Lady and to DominicSavio for the safe delivery of my daughter-in-law and the gift of a beautiful baby girl. Mrs. R. D’Souza, PuneThank you, dear Jesus, Mother Mary andDominic Savio for a safe delivery and forblessing us with the gift of a healthy baby whomwe named ‘Osha’ and for all the gracesreceived. Oswald and Shamin Fernandes, MumbaiMy grateful thanks to Mother Mary, Don Boscoand Dominic Savio for my safe delivery and

the gift of a normal healthy baby girl. Thank You Mother Mary for allthe favours granted to my family. Mrs. Christine Gomez, CochinMy heartfelt thanks to the Infant Jesus, Mother Mary, St. Dominic Savioand St.John Bosco for blessing us with a good life partner for ourdaughter. Please keep us all under your protection always. Toni, GoaOur heartfelt thanks to the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus and St. DominicSavio for protecting our son from a window which came crashing downjust a few seconds after he had entered the school building. Richard & Evelyn D’Souza, MumbaiMy sincere thanks to the Lord Jesus, Mother Mary, St. John Boscoand St. Dominic Savio for the many favours received. Ms. Samantha Fereira and Mrs C. Dias,. MumbaiI am grateful to Our Lady and Dominic Savio for the gift of a baby boy.

Mrs. Michelle and Bosco D’Souza, Melbourne, AustraliaMy sincere thanks to Our Lady, Don Bosco and Dominic Savio for twosuccessful operations and a speedy recovery as well and for all theblessings bestowed on me and my family. Mrs. Amita Gracias, GoaOur heartfelt thanks to Mother Mary, Don Bosco and Dominic Saviofor the gift of a baby girl after 7 years and a quick and normal delivery.I am also grateful for an admission for MBA. Merlin Pramod, MumbaiThank you Heavenly Father, Jesus, Mother Mary and Dominic Saviofor the gift of a baby whom we named Tomas Savio. Please continueto protect our cousin’s child. C.N. Rebelo, Goa


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MARY WAS THERE

Don Bosco's Madonna, has developed to its present form from a folder published in 1937,by late Fr Aurelius Maschio, on behalf of the Salesians of Don Bosco, Bombay.

The magazine is sent to all who ask for it, even though there is a fixed subscription(Rs 200/- India & Rs 400/- Airmail)). We trust in the generosity of our readers/benefactors.Whatever you send us will help cover the expenses of printing and mailing; the surplus ifany, is devoted to the support of orphans and poor boys in our schools and apostolic

centres.To help a poor lad to reach the priesthood, is a privilege

You can help by establishing a Perpetual Burse with:Rs 5000/-, 10,000/-, 15,000/- for a boy studying for the priesthood;

But any amount, however small, will be gratefully received.Send your offerings by Payee cheque or Draft on Mumbai banks;MO/PO/INTL MO/BPO/Bequests, Wills, Perpetual Burses, all favouring Don Bosco'sMadonna or Bombay Salesian Society or Rev. Fr. Edwin D'Souza, (Trustee).Please address all correspondence to:

Rev. Fr. Edwin D'Souza, sdb.,SHRINE OF DON BOSCO'S MADONNA,

Matunga - MUMBAI - 400 019 - INDIAPhone/Fax: 91-22- 2414 6320, email: [email protected]

http://www.donboscosmadonna.org/www.dbmshrine.org

My 20 year old son Nikhil met witha major car accident on 22nd Oc-tober 2010 at 11 PM while return-ing home after dinner with threeof his friends. The car he was driv-ing hit the median while he wastrying to avoid some stray dogs onthe road. The car turned over thriceand was completely damaged. Allof them escaped without any ma-jor injury. Surely we felt our Be-loved Mother’s protection thatnight. It was the month of the Ro-sary and the whole family prayedthe Rosary every day during thatmonth. We are grateful for OurLady’s protection in saving thelives of those boys. Shanti Anand, Puducherry

Documents

CONTENTS - Don Bosco's Madonnadonboscosmadonna.org/2011archives/mar.pdf · March 2011 2 Don Bosco's Madonna From The Editor's Desk: Forgive just as we Forgive!..... 3 3 - Hope: A