Happiness – the Road to Sanctity

One of the characteristics of Salesian holiness is happiness.  In fact, we know how often we see a child who has just received the Sacrament of Reconciliation, and we know how happy they are as they leave, to be in a state of grace.  I know I have had this same sensation, and have heard others speak of it.

Smiling Saint

In his lifetime, St. John Bosco often encouraged the young people he worked with to be happy.  There is something simple and child-like about joy and Jesus told us to become like little children.  St. Dominic Savio, one of St. John Bosco’s pupils even began a group called, “The Society of Happiness.”  

Here we can see a picture of Don Bosco, taken in the 1800’s.  Go ahead and look at many other pictures from that era and you will see something different about “Johnny B” as some of the kids in our schools affectionately call him…yes, this Saint, this man of the 1800’s is there with a full smile on his face.  It’s amazing to see and evident that the joy he nurtured in his heart evidently spilled over!

Mother Mazzarello, the Co-Foundress of the Salesian Sisters, together with Don Bosco is seen in very few photos.  This is because she lived in a very rural and remote part of Italy, and unlike John Bosco, was not near the city.  In both pictures we have, Mother Mazzarello was very sick, so her face lacks the smile that is common in so many of Don Bosco’s pictures.  But what we do have are the words of our Mother.  “Happiness,” she said, “is a sign of a heart that loves the Lord very much.” 

Today, I would encourage all of us to think about and promote joy in ourselves and in others.  It’s All Saints’ Day!  Maybe we need to begin again; maybe it’s time to go to Confession, but God calls us to that immense joy that cannot be taken from us.  Let’s not only nurture joy in ourselves, but by our good deeds and great kindness, promote joy in others.

Below, I’m sharing one of my all-time favorite videos.  I’ve seen groups of adults crack up at little Ethan, and his happiness at the simplest things in life.  My wish for you: that you can live this child-like simplicity and be fully happy…it is a sure road to holiness and a sign that you are in God’s grace.

The Power of a Smile

Today was a great day at the General House of the Daughters of Mary Help of Christians!  It was our day to say thanks to an extraordinary woman who has dedicated the last eighteen years of her life to us, her Daughters.  For six years, Sr. Antonia Colombo, FMA was a Visiting Councilor for the Salesian Sisters.  In this task, she went often to visit the different communities of our Salesian world.  She listened to the Sisters and got to know a bit about our presence throughout the world.  Then, she was asked, and accepted to me our Mother General.  Though the name sounds official, and even a little military, we just call her “Mother” and she has really been like a mother to all of us – over 14,000 Daughters of Mary Help of Christians – and Mother Antonia’s Sisters and Daughters. 

Last night, Mother Antonia thanked the Sisters of the General House for the work they have done in preparation for the chapter, but also in accompanying her in the last eighteen years of her life.  You can read more about that here.

In the last few months, living here at the General House, “Casa Generalizia” it has been impressive to see this very unassuming woman, often called to multiple tasks, and often called upon to speak, act so humbly.  I was impressed to see her helping Sisters as they arrived for our General Chapter.  She was there to welcome us, to ask if we needed help.  She even often asks me how the task of translating is going.  Really, she seems to have an eye for everyone, especially the least. 

The most disarming thing about Mother Antonia is definitively her smile…it’s amazing!  Somehow, when this woman looks at you and smiles, there is a sense that she wishes to share her life and her love with you – that she cares about you and can see Jesus within you.  She never seems to lose sight of Jesus within the person she is addressing, or of actually being the presence of Jesus for those who surround her.  In fact, one of my favorite things I read that she wrote, was,

In a culture of the transient, which distances people from that which is essential, being tangible signs that point to Someone Else is transmitting the awareness of the primacy of the spirit, of the importance of following Jesus with a passionate love, so that we will not be invisible witnesses to Him, but His hands, His feet, His heart that wants to embrace the world, to give Himself to the last drop, so that all of us can have life and hope.

Let’s pray that every Salesian Sister and every member of this “vast movement” known as the Salesian Family can in fact become Jesus hands, feet, and heart, to embrace the world, and as Don Bosco and Mary Mazzarello did, give our selves to the last drop.  Only then will we unleash the real power of love – the power of our smile!

“Vado io” or “vado she-o”…

 

There is a saying in our constitutions, and in our history, which is in Italian.  It says that we should live in an attitude of “vado io” (pronounced “va-doh’  ee’-oh”, or in English, “I’ll go.”).  It is the desire of every Daughter of Mary Help of Christians to fully live this willingness to be the first to do whatever is necessary.  This is why so many of our brave Sisters head off each year for the missions.  It’s  a beautiful way to live life, and when many people live this together, it’s easy to see that each one tries to make life easy for one another. 

When I was in formation, we would often hear, “it’s ‘vado io’, not ‘vado she-o’”.  We would laugh about the changing of the term, and the implication of our responsibility to be the first to step forward and offer to do work. 

In response to a questionnaire, I was looking for a definition of what customer service is, when I came across this on www.simpletruths.com, a sight I highly recommend.  I think that this young man, though he is not Salesian, nor has he undergone any formation to be a Salesian, understood well what it means to live in a spirit of “vado io” and to do something with a particular touch that demonstrates a willing heart.

more about “The Simple Truths of Service Movie“, posted with vodpod

 

I ask the Lord to renew this spirit in me and to grant this spirit to each Salesian Sister throughout the world.  Fourteen thousand (plus) of us living like this will certainly be able to change human history, don’t you think?

 

Hoping for a full mind and heart!

This is really my first attempt at blogging.  I’ve often thought of embarking on this path previously, and maybe you have even been through this, but I think to myself, “what do I have to say to the world?”  And yet, I often know that people do wonder what religious think, how we perceive reality, and they wish that we would share our thoughts with the world.

Perhaps one of the things that most inhibits me from putting thoughts “out there” for the world to see is a quote from one of Mother Mazzarello’s letters.  Our foundress, St. Mary Mazzarello, used to tell us

Dear Sister, you are studying, right?  I think you are also studying how to become a saint. Remember that to be able to become saintly and wise, you must speak little and reflect quite a bit.  Speak little with creatures, even less of creatures and not at all of ourselves.

Beginning a blog is really opening up my heart and mind to the world, and hopefully, this “little bit of talking with creatures” that I will engage in, will leave our hearts full, and not just be empty words. 

So,  I’ll close with these words to Mother Mazzarello – a prayer from me to her:

“Mother, look…a way to share your wisdom with the world.  You can speak your words of encouragement and faith to humanity at large…electronically…and be known as never before.  In you life, you wrote to people – but how many letters do we have?  Are there even one hundred?  Through me, let the world, and especially the young know of Jesus’ great love for them.”

St. Mary Mazzarello...Pray for us!