Advent begins

Storm Clouds over the UPS

The last day of November, and this is the first Sunday of Advent. Again I joined the Don Rua Community for the morning liturgy and breakfast. The conversation centered on the latest terrorist attack in Mumbay. Political groups use religion to fuel unrest so that they can seize power: this seems to be the tactics behind all the recent violence in India, according to some of the Indian Salesians with whom I spoke at table.

At this point I do not know what to think of all this. Still, I need to be more aware of what is happening in India, since yesterday I received an invitation from Fr Joe Almeida, provincial of the Salesians in Guwahati, to come next summer and facilitate three retreats. I need to respond to that invitation… I'll do this in the next couple of days, as soon as I am sure of my calendar and commitments for 2009.

In the meantime, I continue to reflect on the recent presentations that I have been making: in Malta, and yesterday with the Comunità Don Rua. Salesians, young and old, are anxious to receive more input on the Salesian spirit and charism. This is the area that we have worked on for many years at Berkeley and at the Spirituality Institute here at the UPS. I often think that the whole world is immersed in this… but then I find out that very few are hearing these instructions. More outreach is needed.

And since I am part of a group that is deep into all the Salesian sources and traditions, it is imperative that I and all those others who are doing Salesian research respond to those who are asking for more.

This is also why it is very important that we form a team of younger scholars to take up the research and the study. The Salesian world is vast, but too few are engaged in this study and teaching of the charism. We risk losing touch with our roots, losing sight of our goals, losing vigor to serve.

Those were the thoughts coming to me after these interventions. Rain continued to pour today in the morning. This weather keeps us close to home.

Retreat day with Don Rua Community at Sacrofano

The new director of Don Rua Community, Fr Jose Chunkapura, invited me to facilitate the trimester retreat for his community today. The retreat day was held at Sacrofano, at the Fraterna Domus. This was my third trip to this center.

Fraterna Casa preserves the natural environment to offer a place for prayer, reflection, study and fellowship as an innovative retreat center

The Fraterna Domus is called a Casa dell’Accoglienza (a hospitality house) rather than a retreat center. In reality, it is like an entire village. As usually happens, we left the UPS at 8.30 and reached Sacrofano by 9.00. The director had asked me to give a conference in the morning on Don Bosco in the Salesian constitutions. I gave this talk in the morning. That was followed by quiet time, adoration of the Blessed Sacrament at 11.30, dinner at 13.00, group sharing at 15.00, Mass at 17.00, followed by evening prayer.

Roman woods at Sacrofano

As I just said, I gave the morning talk. I also facilitated the group sharing, and presided and preached at the mass, which was the liturgy of the last Saturday of the liturgical year.

Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament: Don Rua Community at Prayer

In my talk I centered on Don Bosco’s efforts to give the Salesian Society the constitutions in accordance with the standards and demands of the Church during the years of the founding experience. The fact that he had to revise the constitutions repeatedly became a learning process for him. He began to realize that the norms were important, but that it was crucial to name the spirit that animated his emerging community. This experience was similar to that of all the great founders, and in a particular way, to that of Francis de Sales who gave the first community of the Visitation of Holy Mary not only the constitutions but also the directory.

Village of Sacrofano. In the distance you can see Roma. The minaret of the Great Mosque at Parioli and the cupola of St Peter’s Baslica stand out… okay, you need extremely good eyes!

Don Bosco’s original purposes risked dissolving when the revision of Canon Law in 1917 meant a more juridical interpretation of religious documents such as constitutions and regulations. The call of Vatican II to religious and consecrated persons to “return to the spirit of the founder” offered the Salesians the opportunity to rethink the constitutions. The re-writing of these moved them away from language of dry demands to become an exhortation. In fact, there is more of Don Bosco to be found the constitutions today than in the official text between 1917 and 1971.

Roman pines and park within the grounds of Fraterna Domus

In my mind, these are all known facts. However, the bulk of the Salesian priests on this retreat were born in the 1970s. The only constitutions that they have ever known are those approved in 1984, which are the fruit of the long effort to renew religious life in the spirit of Vatican II. They did not know the history, and they did not know the stories of what Don Bosco went through to found the Salesian Family, and what the Salesians have gone through to faithfully bring the Salesian Family into changed times and new cultural realities.

Fraterna Domus is built as a series of buildings of various sizes, with rooms for hospitality, for group work, for conferences, and for worship. Each has its own character

At this point, I do not yet know how all this was received by the Don Rua community. They seemed happy and were certainly responsive. Yet, since the day was spent in silence, it is hard to tell what they really felt about it. On the other hand, I was happy to have the down time too. It rained off and on most of the day, but I wandered around the grounds of Fraterna Domus, through the woods and around the porticoes. I listened to podcasts from Vatican Radio, and let my imagination flow.

Don Albino Ronco, Paul Rabha (India) and Paolo Liu-Qing-Chun (China) in group sharing

Following the Eucharist we celebrated the Evening Prayer. We could not integrate them into the mass because we did the Saturday liturgy, but with Vespers we move to the opening of the next day… that is Sunday… and the first Sunday of Advent. The prayers were well done; the music helped involved everyone, and we ended the day with the sun down and hearts at peace. The return trip to Rome and the UPS went very well, in spite of the rain.

And at the evening meal with my Gesù Maestro community, I heard thay they enjoyed their retreat day at Salesianum, in via della Pisana. We can now turn our thoughts toward Advent and the Christmas season.

Padre Rafael Montenegro (Venezuela) chats with director Fr Jose Chunkapura (India) over a cup of coffee before leaving Sacrofano after the retreat day.

Salesians who try to finish degrees

Sinval Marques Pereira takes notes

Today I thought I would be simply preparing my classes for next week and correcting assignments that have come in to me… but I had the visit of several students who asked me to help them with the preparation of their thesis proposals.

Working on the thesis for the licentiate is always daunting, but I see that they are making headway. Some spoke to me a month ago, and already they are making breakthroughs. They are less “lost” than they seemed a few short weeks ago. In other words, I feel that enthusiasm is maturing in many of these students, and capacity as well.

What they need to keep in mind is that completing the degree is an honor but urgent. Qualifications and training at this level is vital, not only for themselves, but for their provinces and the young people that they educate. Once they have their degrees and qualifications, they will have learned the method to train and form others. They will then be able to better equip others to share in the Church’s mission.

Of course it is not easy. Every one of us would rather be directly involved in the work of education and evangelization. We would rather be right there with the people and with the young. When I was 29, I worked with 110 teenagers in a special education situation. There was a lot of satisfaction to that. I felt I was making a difference in the lives of young people who needed real help. Now, at 59, I rarely spend time with teenagers directly. However, I work with 78 adults who will be working in education, or in the missions, or faith formation. My students come from many different countries and from every continent. I am just one of many teachers that follow them up… but my hope is that I can help them to strengthen their own response and to become more qualified, more capable, more zealous in the mission to which they are called.

Yes, in my youth I imagined that I would spend my whole life working with kids-at-risk… That would have brought a lot of joy to me: a lot of satisfaction that I was making a difference. Things have not turned out that way. Yet my hope is that, in strengthening the vocation of young adults given to the mission of education, my contribution will make a difference in the lives of many more young people than the original 100 to whom I was dedicated back in the day.

Thanksgiving reflections from Italy

Today is Thanksgiving Day in the USA. It is not Thanksgiving Day in Italy.

This may seem obvious, but I have been surprised by how many of my friends in the USA have asked me, «How do the Italians celebrate Thanksgiving Day?».

Italy does not have this holiday tradition. Oh, this does not mean that Italians do not have a tradition of pilgrims! The difference is that pilgrims here were not Calvinists or Separatists from England who left from the Netherlands to arrive in North America at Plymouth Rock. Pilgrims here make the journey on foot, to shrines and sanctuaries and holy places, in prayer and penance, as individuals who build community along the way. They live the journey in all simplicity, and are welcomed by families and communities who provide space and nurture for them as they make their way to the holy place. The tradition is centuries old, and not particularly Italian. It has grown up in Christian Europe, but has its roots in ancient Israel and before.

But that is a topic for a later reflection… and I just put it to say that the American reference to “The Pilgrims” is to a group that has historic import to British North America. Italy does not share this history.

In any case, I did send greetings to many of my family members and friends through e-mail and other electronic means. There was news this morning of an attack against Americans in India (Mumbai and other places: a coordinated, simultaneous massacre). I wondered it that attack was timed to coincide with Thanksgiving. I’m sure it was. So my thoughts and prayers go out to all those persons and families hurt by this evil event.

With that news in front of us today, it seems banal to make other reflections on the little stories of daily life. It seems to me that chatter comes to a halt when we see such evil. We stunned by the malice of it all, and need to ponder what it all means.

But this is all the more reason to call down the blessings of God on one another: that the feast of Thanksgiving may be a time for cherishing loved ones, remembering the good that God and others have done for us, and reflecting on how we may offer these gifts back to humanity for the good of all.

Buona festa di Ringraziamento: Happy Thanksgiving.

Class discussions and computer issues solved

Yesterday’s class began with the worrisome sign that the cord of the computer had become too hot and begun to melt. That was on my mind from the time I woke up today, but only to work out a strategy for purchasing that same part as soon as possible. However, for today's classes, I did not need any electronic resources. This was to be an interactive day in our class.

English-speaking Asia-Asian Pacific Group

There was no need to use Power Point this morning in my Youth Spirituality course. Today was the day we had already set aside for group work on chapter two of the text by Jacques Schepens, who taught the course for 20 years before I took it up last year.

Polish-speaking Euro-Africa Group

In the beginning of the term I had expressed my hope that the students would work in groups according to the languages in which they felt most comfortable speaking. The last time we did this, some went to the Italian speaking groups because they wanted to improve their command of this language. The result was that they could not speak, and the Italians themselves were inhibited from sharing because they had to accommodate those who struggled with the tongue.

English-speaking Africa-Asia Group

After that experiment in free organization, I decided to become quite direct both yesterday and today. The point of the group discussion is that everyone have a chance to speak and to listen, I stressed. Even if people are of the same language, the variety of experience because of country of origin and apostolate mean that there will still be an opportunity to see how others work in other parts of the world.

Arabic-speaking Group (Egypt, Lebanon, Syria)

Now this little but insistent introduction had its effect. When I sent them go into groups, they did divide by languages. Two Brazilians and two Congolese joined with Italians, but that was fine since they all have been in Italy for some time and command the language very well. For the rest, we ended up with one Spanish-speaking group, two English-speaking groups, two Italian-speaking groups, one Polish group and one Arabic-speaking group. And did they ever talk! Wow! The discussions were very animated!

Italian-speaking Group (Italy-East Asian Pacific)

The class broke into seven groups today. As I say, the discussions seemed quite lively. The topic comes from the second chapter of Fr Jacques Schepens presentation on youth spirituality. That chapter, which he calls Spirituality in the Context of the Christian Religion. This is an interesting chapter, considering that he spends most of this unit on the search for God in a secularized, post-modern environment. Specifically, he examines some of the major literary and philosophical figures of the 20th century… figures such as Simone Weil (1909-1943) and Etty Hillesum (1914-1943), neither of whom entered the Church but who came to know God intimately as the Transcendent, or as vertical transcendence. The unit goes on to look at the search for transcendence (horizontal transcendence) but philosophers such as Albert Camus, Luc Ferry and André Comte-Sponville. While these and other search for Transcendence (if not meaning) in life, they also open the door to new ways of thinking of the Sacred. They are at home with Religiosity without the Church, or even of Religiosity without God. Where does that leave the Church? Where does that leave Christian educators?

Italian-speaking Group (Brazil, Congo, Ivory Coast, Romania, Italy)

The groups all grappled with these and similar issues. As the groups discussed, I went from group to group to listen in… and sometimes even to share my thoughts, when asked by the group to do so. I had no problem joining in or at least listening to those groups speaking Italian, Spanish or English. With the Polish group and the Arabic-speaking group, I simply listened to catch the expression in the voices, and watched the expression on the face of each speaker. While I did not spend a long time with each group, I saw enough to realize that each and every person participating today had read with discernment, and was ready to pronounce their considered opinion on the issues at hand.

Spanish-speaking Group (Spain & Latin America)

When the time came to cease discussion and give some feedback to the wider group, there were some who went on discussing. It was as if I was cutting them short. They got over it, and shared their impressions of the process. All seemed quite happy to go through this sharing with others. Some affirmed that these were topics that demanded a deep participation, and others noted that hearing the impressions of other readers, who may have come from a different part of the globe, was quite stimulating.

As soon as the bell rang, I was ready to dismiss the students… but a few wanted to speak with me as we left the classroom… so much so that I had to hurry to a meeting of the professors of the Spirituality Institute. We were having our monthly meeting today during the last morning class period. The entire length of the meeting was dedicated to approving (or not) thesis proposals. We have more students than professors to follow them up… but that is a chapter for another day.

A quick bite to eat, and then headed down to city center, to find the Mac store. I brought along the ruined power pack, plugged in my iPod, and caught the 90 bus for Stazione Termini. From there I walked to St Mary Major, where I found via Merulana… and then walked down the street in search of the Macstore, which is called Futura Grafica (Future Graphics).

This was the store where I purchased that last powerpack when in May 2007 I had a similar problem. When I showed the burned powerpack to the Macstore employees, they did not seem surprised. Within 30 seconds they pulled a new one from the shelf. In my conversation with them, I discovered that this is a common problem.

Well, this is the fifth time that I have had a problem with my present laptop… Damage to the hard disk has been covered by the guarantee, but as of August, the extended guarantee has run out. I need to make plans to get a new laptop in the coming year. With this in mind, I browsed through the computers on display at Futura Grafica. I purchased an upgrade of the Operating System for my desktop (Mac Leopard). A new OS is planned for 2009 (snow leopard), but no one knows when that will become available.

That's it, then. I spent 30 minutes in a different world, that of computers and technology… with my mind on things besides theology and culture. Then I started back home, anxious to catch the 90 bus before nightfall. That put me back on via Merulana, toward S. Maria Maggiore… There she was: right at the center of things. The sight of this church was enough to bring me back out of MacWorld and into Roma Caput Mundi. The trip home was relaxing and happy… It was not so bad after all that my powerpack burned the cord, because I had a little outing to a beautiful part of the city.

Santa Maria Maggiore, seen from the via Merulana

Computer issues … again

When I tried to plug in my computer in the classroom this morning, so that I could show a powerpoint, there was no connection. I thought the electricity in the room was out. Then I noticed that the cord of the power-pack was damaged… slightly burned, really.

With a bit of care, I was able to get it to work. This was important, since the material that I was presenting in the Youth Spirituality course (TA2160: Spiritualità Giovanile) was all new. It is not contained in the classnotes that I had printed and distributed to the class at the start of the term.

Happily, my computer and I made it through the double class period. Still, it is very risky. I absolutely need to buy a new cable for the computer. It is the second time that this has happened with the cable while in Rome (the last time was in May 2007). I don't know if Macintosh is ready for the extreme conditions that electricity in Italy tends to exhibit. It means that I will need to make a trip to the Apple Store tomorrow. I cannot do it today, because I have another a triple class period this afternoon with those in my seminar on Salesian storytelling.

Classes? They are going well. I'll bring this all up-to-date soon, if my computer survives.

Formation issues over coffee

My return flight to Rome yesterday was the same as that booked by Paul Formosa, who has come to Italy for a series of formation meetings in Turin. I met Paul at his house — St Alphonsus — at 7.00… and after a quick cup of coffee, Eric Cachia brought the two of us to the airport.

Paul Formosa, Salesian leader of Malta

Malta's airport is stupendous: open spaces, a great atrium, marble floors, spacious areas for clearing security… and there it was basically empty when we got there. So we had a chance to have another cup of coffee as we waited at the gate. How cool is that? Instead of tight chairs crowded in the gate area, Malta's departure lounge if filled with tables and chairs. There are diners and cafes here and there, and you can sit at a table and chat with friends while you wait for your flight to be called. Amazing, really.

Paul and I reviewed the events of the last few days before he went on to speak of his purpose in coming to Italy. Malta has two young Salesians in the second year of theology at the Crocetta in Turin, and one novice at Monteoliveto in Pinerolo. There are consultations these days of all the provinces that have young people in these formation programs, and Paul wanted to arrive early so he can speak personally with the two Maltese theology students before the meetings take place.

The problem of choosing the right formation program is felt very acutely by the Maltese Salesians. They are too small to have their own novitiate or theology school, so they must send their novices to other provinces. In the past they have sent them to England, to Ireland, to Sicily (for novitiate) to Rome, to Ireland, to Israel (for theology). Now they are choosing formation houses in the environs of Turin. This is where Don Bosco started… where the Salesians started. It is not a glamorous place, as Maynooth, Rome, Bethlehem or Jerusalem would be. But, do you know what? The young Maltese in formation really like these communities (Monteoliveto and Crocetta).

Salesian house at the Crocetta in the 1970s

What is wrong with the program in Jerusalem or Rome or All Hallows in Ireland? Great programs, all of them, but they leave a feeling of discomfort for the Maltese Salesians, says Paul. The Salesians in Malta live in environments that are small and very personable. Rome is big and dispersive. All Hallows has a great academic program in pastoral theology, but Ireland itself has no young Salesians, so to study there is to forego a peer group. Jerusalem is … well, besides being a bit dangerous at the present time, is not as organized as it could be. It offers a program in English, but all the resources remain in Italian.

It may seem strange to say that formation in Turin is more on the small, personable side which appeals the the Maltese. Turin has a population of two million people, but there is a small town feel to it.

This comes through with the theology program at the Crocetta. It is community based. Studies in theology are done in an environment of discernment, vocational and personal. The community is international, with about 60 students, but everything is oriented to the same goal. This differs from Rome, where each person works out his own program in a university setting. Rome stresses degrees; Crocetta stresses preparation for a life of ministry in community.

So this was the gist of the discussion between Paul and I. We spoke of all this and more over coffee, and during that time several people came up to greet him… several of them cousins, actually. At 9.10 we began to the boarding process for our flight to Rome, and continued the discussion of formation, of youth ministry, of education and catechesis, of the life of the Salesian Family in Malta, in Ireland, and a few English-speaking countries where we have common friends. 

Once we arrived in Rome, Paul continued to Torino for his week of meetings, and I took the local train to Rome's northern end. I got off at Nuovo Salario and walked back to the University. It was clear, sunny, windy, wonderful. It took me 20 minutes to make the uphill trek, and I had just enough time to clean up for the mid-day meal: Sunday dinner. For the rest of the day I washed clothes and got nostalgic for Malta.

Oratorian heart of Don Bosco - model and criteria for Salesian apostolate

The theme of the Salesian Family Symposium at Sliema this year is Educating with the heart of Don Bosco. When Paul Formosa invited me to speak at the conference, he spoke about giving the audience some historical perspective on Don Bosco and his preventive system of education with some applications to the contemporary situation of young people, their families and educators.

At first I worried that I would not have anything to say, and that I should turn this down… but I had turned down other invitations to come to Malta in the past couple of years because of the costs of travel or the time ot the year. I did not want to tell the Salesians in Malta again that I was not able to come. So I thought of building my talk around recent teachings of Pascual Chavez as well as delving into the famous Oratory Criteria for Salesian spirit and mission as outlined in the Salesian constitutions.

And what are the Oratory criteria? Briefly we can speak of them with four phrases. The Salesian educative and pastoral environment, intentionally and charismatically, needs to become:

A home that welcomes

A school that educates

A church that evangelizes

An open space where friends can meet and grow together

The «oratory criteria», outlined in chapter 40 of the Salesian constitutions, are perhaps a more complete way that the traditional labels of «preventive system» with «reason, religion and kindness».

In article 40 of the Salesian constitutions we read:

Don Bosco lived a pastoral experience in his first Oratory which serves as a model; it was for the youngsters a home that welcomed, a parish that evangelized, a school that prepared them for life, and a playground where friends could meet and enjoy themselves.

As we carry out our mission today, the Valdocco experience is still the lasting criterion for discernment and renewal in all our activities and works.

These statement — the oratory model — formed the core of my thought in developing the presentation for the Salesian Family in Sliema yesterday.

Photos: 1) Zambia camping trip, 27 August 2006 [Swavek]; 2) Children missionaries to their peers, San Pedro Carchá, Guatemala, 13 September 2004 [ANS]; 3) Salesian Youth Movement prayer experience, Brazil, 7 September 2008 [ANS]; 4) Zambian youth dance by tradition, 9 December 2006 [Swavek].

Malta: Salesian Family Day

Salesian Family Symposium 2008: Educating with the Heart of Don Bosco… this was the main activity of this day. Interaction with the Salesians and others continued throughout the day, however, and what I learned from many conversations and contacts helped me to shape my presentation at the Symposium.



As I had done yesterday, this morning I woke up early and joined the mass at St Patrick's church, at the entrance of the school. Fr Joseph Cini, who was already chaplain when I visited in 1997, continues in that post and celebrated the morning Eucharist. Then, after a quick breakfast with the Salesians of St Patrick's, I returned to Number 10 Downing the Street (as they joke about the delegation house and its address) to work on notes for this evening's Salesian Family Symposium. In fact, the reason for my coming to Malta this week has been to make a presentation to the members of the Salesian Family in Malta gathered for this Symposium.

Tonight's event was the Third Annual Salesian Family Symposium (but really the fourth such gathering) for Malta.

The first symposium was held in 2004 on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the canonization of St Dominic Savio. The second was held in November 2006, in the year of Mamma Margaret and at the time that she was declared Venerable. In 2007 the theme was Return to Don Bosco and the Oratory spirit.

All these Salesian Family Days have tried to develop the yearly themes of the Salesian Family as given by the Rector Major in the strenna, so it is no surprise that this year's theme is Educating with the Heart of Don Bosco.

The keynote for this year's presentation is assigned to me. It is a bit daunting, really. There are posters of the even all over the island. I have seen my name in print more in the last two days in Malta than during my whole life in California or elsewhere. And when I introduce myself to people here, they all recognize the name because, of course, they have seen it on the poster and, they tell me, they are looking forward to this evening's events. If I was not already prone to have butterflies in my stomach before speaking, this would have put a whole garden of butterflies inside my gut.

After two days of listening to the Salesians here, I re-worked my presentation through most of the morning today. With the assistance of powerpoint, I presented the story of how Don Bosco began his mission of evangelization and educative among the young of Turin in the 1840s… and how from experience he became more aware of new needs and new challenges.

My talk was followed by a question and answer period. Then two young people gave testimony. They were Dorothy Bugeja and John Caruana.

Dorothy is a leader of the SPYS program, well-known throughout the entire country for youth empowerment. She spoke of how she came to know the Salesian way through her involvement in Youth Ministry. She did not know of Don Bosco or the Salesian way before joining SPYS, but she found herself at home with the style and spirit, and it has transformed her life.

John is a Science and Physics teacher at Savio College in Dingli. He only met Don Bosco and the Salesians during his last year of university when doing his student teaching practicum. He did this at Savio College, and enjoyed the experience so thoroughly that when the course was completed, he submitted his résumé for a position as a physics teacher at the school on a permanent basis. In fact, he turned down higher paying positions to do this. Now, he is in his second year at Savio College, and speaks of Don Bosco as his "second father. The interventions by both young people were outstanding.

At 20.00, the assembly moved across the street to St Patrick's chapel for the Sunday liturgy of Christ the King. Fr Paul Formosa presided and 8 priests concelebrated. Music was led by the young adults of Savio College Formation Group, and young people from SPYS, the Oratory and St Patrick's had leading parts to play in the liturgy. The evening ended formally with the mass, but many stayed around to visit in the vestibule after the liturgy.

At this point the impressions are very great and I still need to process the event. It has been a full and wonderful day.

Malta: Salesians try something new

Trip to Senglea

At 10.00 in the morning I met Paul Formosa at his house, St Alphonsus, on Triq Carm Galea. Besides being provincial delegate of the Maltese delegation, Paul is rector of this community which celebrates 100 years this year. I had a cup of coffee with Paul and with Eric Cachia, the community and delegation financial administrator. Then Paul drove me to the bay town of Senglea, which is one of the poorest areas of the nation.

Entrance to St Alphonsus Community on Triq Carm Galea

The Salesians have been wanting to work in this area of the country for years, but there never seemed to be an opening. Last year, however, the Jesuits moved out of a "house" where they had been working for 50 years, and the Archbishop offered the house to the Salesians. Two ex-provincial delegates are working there and forming the first community as of last month, October. They are Victor Mangion (rector) and Alfred Sacco. They are joined by the only Brother of the delegation, Emanuel Gatt.

As we neared the town of Senglea, Paul pointed out the dome of the parish church. That church, baroque in the style of the 1500s, is a beauty to behold. But we are not in the parish. We have our own house, he said, and pointed to another dome. We got closer and I realized that the house is a convent -- a huge one at that.

"The Jesuits could not longer carry forward their mission here," Paul told me, "so this is why we have the opportunity. But the house needs a lot of work."

I looked at the main entrance, and recognized the statue of St Philip Neri. "So, the Oratorian Fathers were here first?" I asked.

Paul looked surprised. "Yes! How did you know that?"

"The statue of Filippo Neri. Who else would put that at the entrance?" My response made Paul laugh… and we walked up the short way from where we parked on the street to enter by the open door, under the guardianship of St Philip Neri, who was distracted obviously, because he was looking out over the roofs at the sea.

Victor was in his office, waiting for us, and Alfred came up the corridor almost immediately. There were workmen everywhere, plastering, painting, sanding… well, workmen and their adolescent sons who worked beside their fathers in the trade. I could not help but reflect how when most people move, they remodel their homes so that they can get a higher value for the sale. This place has been neglected for years. It isn't that the Jesuits got old and could not maintain it. They came 50 years ago, and the last attempt to clean the facility goes back before their arrival. How sad.

We walked from room to room on what I thought was the ground floor… and until we went down a flight of stairs… and saw another door out to the ground… More rooms, high ceilings, and two or three entrances. "This is the part we will give over to the young people for their games," said Fr Victor. "The real idea of the center is to reach out to the poor of this area," he continued. "At this point we are making contacts… but mainly we are cleaning up this old monastery.

Succession seen in Senglea:
Paul Formosa, at center, with his two predecessors as provincial delegates,
Alfred Sacco (L) and Victor Mangion (R).

On the lower floor there was one door locked. Victor pulled out his huge keyring and unlocked it, and accompanied us inside to the convent library. As with most of the building, the room was covered with a layer of dust, but this was the convent treasure. The books went back to the 1600s and 1700s. I recognized the style of binding, since I had worked in a library through high school and college. There were books on pastoral life and preaching, as well as on arguments of Christian teaching. This was the formative resource of generations of Oratorians who had ministered on the island of Malta, and now these books all rested quietly on open shelves, waiting to be rediscovered by scholars. All the books that I looked at were written in Latin. It would have been wonderful to work through a few shelves and see what was really there, but there was no time. Our tour continued.

We climbed the stairs again, and then went into what I thought was a side room. Instead, it was the entry to the room. From here we could see two bays, with ocean liners and fishing fleets. The bay of Valletta, and the Mediterranean Sea beyond.

Cruise ship moving docked at Valletta

We could also see the parish church, which was barely a five-minute walk on the street. Victor explained that the parish church (The Nativity of Mary) was bombed by the Germans during World War II, as were many other churches, and the docks and ports. But this convent was never bombed. This was not a miracle, but a practical matter for the Germans. From the air they used to spot the dome of this convent church, and the dome would guide them into the harbor, where they would make their attacks. Just as they did with London, the Germans bombed Malta continuously during 1941, for this was an important port for the British. And just as in London, the people of Malta courageously rode out the bombings.

Red dome of the convent church makes the it highly visible

The parishioners took advantage of the sad situation, and moved everything into the convent. It housed people and was the church for the duration of the war. Only after the war did they rebuild their church of the Nativity of Mary. They rebuilt it according to the style and specifications of the original 1580 structure, and in 1956 this parish and national shrine to the Virgin Mary was completed and consecrated. It had been declared a basilica by Benedict XV in 1921, and it looks every bit that today.

Relevant to the Salesians is that the convent and church that they have taken over last month actually belongs to the parish ever since the Oratorians left. So, all the expense for the renovations are paid for by the parish.

To get a better look, we climbed up to the next level of roof – the roof of the convent church. It is dedicated officially to St Philip Neri, but the people of the region and the sailors and fishing population call it "Our Lady of Good Port". When from the sea they see the red dome and the massive doors of the Church, they know they can turn into the safe harbor. So not just the Germans used the church as a guide into Malta's harbors; the people have done it for four centuries.

View of the entrance of the bay into the Mediterranean Sea from church roof

We climbed up to the roof of the church by means of the bell tower. The view was even more complete that that which we had seen from the roof of the convent. It was also evident that, except for a row of homes immediately in front of the church, the majority of the dwellings in the neighborhood are poorer… especially as the stretch away from the convent. "This will represent a new kind of work for us," Paul explained to me. "We are not going to set up a new structure here, like a school or a hostel. Instead our plan and hope is to work with existing agencies: to bring our sensibilities to people already working for the poor of Senglea.

This sounded interesting. It is something that, in our own province, we have been trying to do in Boyle Heights and East Los Angeles. Of course, we do not have a 17th-century shrine to work from, I thought. This does have the advantage of adding visibility to the Salesians who will engage in this outreach mission.

After a good look around, the four of us climbed back down through the belltower and followed into the church. The church is bigger inside that I had suspected from the outside or even from the roof. Or maybe this is illusion. In any case, the worship space is perfectly baroque (and I love baroque). There was evidence of a lot of cleaning and polishing going on in these days. The people who are attached to this church as their woship community are getting the church ready for the visit of the Rector Major, Pascual Chávez, on 9 December, when he will celebrate a mass here.

Will that mass be a way to launch the mission? Will it just be a stop-over of sorts? This is an important question. The risk of the new presence in Senglea is that people may expect the Salesians to become curators of a 16th-century convent and church… museum curators. Instead, they have come to Senglea to make a contribution to the poor families and the young. They are hoping to to really work for the human development of these families. Quite a proportion of Salesians in Malta are trained psychologists, social workers and counselors. They are attracting a number of young adults to the community who are already trained in these skills. Hopefully, the mission at Senglea can be shaped by this expertise and awareness.

This was the gist of our conversation as we walked through the convent, and as Paul and I drove back to Sliema. New challenges demand new expertise and innovative approaches, but in the same spirit of the Salesian charism. And the new challenges, represented by Senglea offer new hope to the Salesians in Malta.

Malta: at the heart of the Mediterranean

This morning I got up at 5.00, and hurried my clean-up, for today I was bound for the airport and a trip to Malta.

Why Malta?

To join the Salesians of Malta for the Annual Salesian Family Conference in Sliema. I have been asked by the leader of the Salesians on that island nation, Paul Formosa, to give the opening talk there this coming Saturday. The theme is to be "Educating with the Heart of Don Bosco."

Travel from Roma to Valletta

It took me over an hour to get ready and make sure I had all I needed, even though I had packed last night. I left the university by 6.10. I should have left 5 minutes earlier, because my wait for the bus was a long one. Yet, I met an elderly woman there who was waiting to catch the same bus and the same train as I… and we spoke about her daily trips to Magliana to see her husband who has been hospitalized there for some weeks now. When the bus finally arrived at 6.33, the driver raced through four stops the train station at Nuovo Salario, and we made it just in time to climb the stairs and board the train. It was 6.36.

After the first three stops, many passengers exited to get a connecting train at Tiburtina or Nomentana… and I found myself sitting next to the same eldLinker woman. We continued our little conversation and read a bit until her exit at Magliana… and I went on to Fiumicino, arriving at 7.44… At 8.00 the desk for Air Malta opened. I was the first to check in… and then faced security clearance. It was a good thing that I was early, because this was the slow part. Not that the officials were slow, but because the majority of the passengers are not used to air travel. By 9.00 I was through to the secure area, and so grabbed a breakfast and waited at the gate for the 10.05 boarding. As usual, I had lots to read, and so was not worried about wasting any time.

Paul Formosa met me at Malta International Airport, and drove me to Sliema, where I will be staying these days. I've known Paul since my first visit in 1997, and we have remained friends. Often we have communicated by internet, exchanged ideas on youth animation. Lately we have been in touch through Facebook. In fact, it was through facebook that Paul invited me to come to Malta for the Salesian Family Seminar this coming weekend.

Impressions of Don Bosco's work in Malta

They say that if you go to a new place for a week, you can write an encyclopedia. If you stay a month, you can write a book. If you stay a year, you can write an article. If you stay a lifetime, you remain puzzled as to what to say at all.

In this scheme of things, I should be able to write an encyclopedia of my impressions tonight, after 10 hours on the island of Malta… but since I came here 11 years ago, I probably could not put together even a article. That's okay. I'll do my best to record some initial impressions of the Salesian reality here (if not the national reality).

Provincial House

Well, it is the Salesian provincial delegate house, because Malta is not a province, nor a vice-province (visitatoria), but a delegation of the Irish province. The history of how this came to be is quite interesting and if I have time later to digress on to this point, I will tell the story. But this is a day for quick impressions… And so I just will say that the "delegation" house is on Triq San Gwan Bosco 10 -- at "number ten, St John Bosco Street". How is that for a Salesian address!

The house is completely under remodeling. The only rooms that are not being touched right now are those on the second storey (which, of course, in the USA would be the 3rd floor because Unitedstatesians like to be more dramatic and it makes their buildings sound taller). These were remodeled recently, from the look of it. My room overlooks the playground of the Oratory and right now I can hear the young people in the game center with their music and laughter. Quite nice to hear the enthusiasm of youth even at this hour.

The rest of the house is all being remodeled: woodwork, plaster, entries, upgraded toilets and bath rooms, ungraded electrical connections and internet, and painting. The reason for the wholesale upgrade is that the Salesians will welcome the Rector Major, Fr Pascual Chávez, to Malta next month, for the feast of the Immaculate Conception and the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Salesian Oratory.

With this the house is a bit empty. There are two Salesians living here for the moment: Fr Joseph Forte, whom I met 11 years ago shortly after his return from India, and another Salesian. The delegate is living at the house of St Alphonsus, one block up the street.

St Patrick's, Sliema

St Patrick's Salesian School, Sliema

This is the first Salesian house in Malta. The first Salesians were sent by Blessed Michael Rua and arrived here in November 1903. It took two years to complete the construction of the Salesian Industrial School, as it was originally to be called, but once the first boys arrived in March 1905, the school was re-named St Patrick's, after the patron saint of the first rector, Fr. Patrick O'Grady.

The work is of historic significance, and we did feature an article about the work in the Journal of Salesian Studies about a decade ago. In fact, it was Paul Formosa who wrote that article… and with Paul, I joined the community for a light lunch after parking my luggage at the delegation house.

Savio College, Dingli

In the evening, Paul took me to Dingli, on the far side of the island. Paul had been been rector for the past 12 years. During my last visit in 1997, Paul had just taken over there. This past September he left the post because he is now the provincial delegate.

We joined the formation community for a prayer before the Blessed Sacrament and supper. There were ten young adults and four Salesians (two of them recently ordained) that we met. I quickly learned that two of the young adults are aspirants, and a third will make the step soon. The others are part of a program called "Come and See". They actually spend two weeks each month working with the boys of the school and living with the community. The structure of the school and of the Come and See program is a bit complicated to explain at this moment, but what immediately needs to be said is that the vocation discernment program is healthy and mixes study, apostolate, community life, prayer, peer-exchange and personal responsibility. The young adults (all in university or recently graduated) are enthusiastic, supportive of one another, committed to the mission to youth and, from what I could see during the prayer hour, also very committed to a sacramental and scriptural prayer life.

Historic Malta by night

There is much to say about Dingli - and I'll add notes later… but it is getting late and I need to wrap this up.

Following the supper visit with the young Salesian community there at Dingli, and a tour of the facilities where I noted many important improvements that had been put into force since my first visit more than a decade ago, Paul took me for a drive to some of the historic places. Mdina, ancient capital of Malta, and Valetta, capital since the 17th-century. We admired the many wonders that we could see by the night lighting, and mainly spoke about the present climate in the Salesian delegation, the challenges to the Christian culture of the island, and the youth situation in Malta.

The night tourism was good to deepen conversations that Paul and I have tried to maintain over the internet for the last decade… and to orient me for the conference that I am to give on Saturday night to the Salesian Family.

Last impressions before going to sleep

Finally I can say that Malta is a tiny nation, and the Salesians are small in number here… but they use their resources well and have a great impact on the general public because they are strategic in their planning and global in their thinking. I'll try to give examples in the next few days.

Here I am: I love baroque artifacts… even old canons :-)

More on talents and gifts

The readings this morning at the liturgy echoed those of Sunday — the story of the talents, as told this time in Luke’s gospel. The parable in Luke starts out differently than in Matthew, and so sets different parameters.

A nobleman went off to a distant country
to obtain the kingship for himself and then to return.
He called ten of his servants and gave them ten gold coins
and told them, ‘Engage in trade with these until I return.’
His fellow citizens, however, despised him
and sent a delegation after him to announce,
‘We do not want this man to be our king.’
But when he returned after obtaining the kingship,
he had the servants called, to whom he had given the money,
to learn what they had gained by trading.

Ten servants; ten coins; clear directive: engage in trade with these; clear timeframe: until I return; clear context: his fellow citizens despised him.

Well, on his return, the noble men checks to see how the trade has gone. Each servant has received one gold coin, and the first comes back with 10 while the second comes back with 5. We do not hear of all ten servants, but we meet the third, who buried it.

In the Matthean account (Mt 25:14-30), the servants had been entrusted with talents according to their ability; in the Lukan account (Lk 19:11-28), each is given one gold coin. And the consideration today (perhaps because we heard this parable after hearing the message from the Book of Revelation) centered on this parable as a response to the early Christian community that wondered what to do to prepare for the Return of Christ in Glory. Do not just wait around. Do not hide yourselves. I have given you something precious: go out and “engage in trade with these until I return.”

What does this mean for the Church then? And what does it mean for the individual Christian? It is not about individualized survival: it is about making the Gospel known, letting it traffic, engaging it in the market place, letting the sum of it change and grow in the give and take between the servant and the merchants, between the Christian and the surrounding culture, between the Church and the Contemporary World. And the rendering of account at the end of time, when the “nobleman”, Christ, returns, will be based on this engagement.

This reminds me of the Vatican II’s pastoral constitution on the Church and the Contemporary World, Gaudium et Spes. We are not to hide from life; we are not to flee the world. We are instead to take stock of our being of the same stuff as the world, and of engaging the world in God’s word… in Gospel. After all, the joys and the hopes, the griefs and the anxieties of the men of this age, especially those who are poor or in any way afflicted, these are the joys and hopes, the griefs and anxieties of the followers of Christ (GS§1).

Lots to reflect on today — and all this happened before the first cup of caffelatte.

Youth ministry or youth pastoral or youth apostolate?

This morning I had breakfast with Cryil de Souza and Francis Vincent Anthony. I have known both of these professors since my student days at the UPS in the early 1990s, at which time Cyril was new to the faculty and Francis, like myself, was completing his studies. Cryil is now the head of the Department of Youth Pastoral and Catechetics. Francis is Associate Professor of Foundational Theology.

Cyril told me that today the core team of the Youth Pastoral Department would begin to go over the minutes and notes of the Research Seminar held some days ago, and start to evaluate how to carry the reform of the department forward. In fact, there are two more weekends scheduled that will work as parts 2, 3 and 4 of the seminar. These take place in February, March and April. By that time I will have returned to California (or at least, this is the plan). However, as I told Cyril and Francis, I am very interested in how things develop. I also told them of the hopes of Michael Sweeney and Gael Sullivan to develop a youth ministry component both for the ISS and the DSPT.

Cyril stresses that studies in this area are constantly challenged by the every changing trends in culture and approach — and that these trends and shifts are most noticeable for those who are close to the young.

My own comments reflected conversations that we have been having in Berkeley over the last couple of years, particularly with Michael Sweeney. Michael stresses the need to recuperate the word Apostolate rather than speak only of Ministry. I said to Cyril and Francis that I have the feeling that the adoption of the word ministry in English to translate the Italian pastorale tends to create some difficulties. Ministry is very much an church word, and tends to keep us working within the confines of structure, Cyril agreed. Apostolate, instead, is all about being sent out into the wider world and is not tied down by structures, but is about being sent into the world, even the world of the unchurched.

Francis, who works a lot with language, observed that words can mean anything we define them to mean in a given context. While I agreed that this is true in the close confines of an academic environment, I also disagreed in terms of the application of this in a wider cultural context. The language we use, I feel from my own experience, has a way of shaping us, just as we stretch and shape language. What a word means in the wider experience of the folks determines how our words are received and our message interpreted and applied (or not). And this is where I see the wrestling with the theme of the renewal and reshaping of the Youth Pastoral Catechetics Department at the UPS. Pastoral means something much wider to the Rector Major Pascual Chávez than it does to the professors and many provincials.

Well… we had to leave it at that. Even after two cups of caffelatte and an extra roll, we had to get on to the work of the day. There are classes to be taught and students to see… this is a university after all.

Photos - Top: Cyril De Souza and Gianfranco Venturi at Seminario of 8 November (photo by Joe Boenzi); below: Michael Sweeney, OP, speaks at Salesian Province Feastday in Richmond, 2007 (photo by Duoc Le)

St Paul and Benedict's advice for driver safety

This evening we heard a reading the pope's noon-time Angelus message from today during our evening prayer liturgy. This is a practice that the Gesù Maestro Community has been following during this academic year. Pope Benedict gives a wonderful explanation of the parable of the talents, and helps us reflect on what Jesus encourages us to assume as our attitudes. The parable teaches us that there is no room for fear in accepting the Lord's call and the Lord's gifts, according to the pope.

That is an outstanding message, really.

But I was also struck by what the pope had to say after the Angelus prayer. He spoke about the tragedy of death on the highways of the world because of the incredible number traffic accidents. I had not realized that today marked the U.N. World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims. The pope is sensitive to these kinds of initiatives by the U.N. and other organizations, and he reminded the faithful in St Peter's Square at the noon prayer that it is important to remember "in a special way all of those who have died from car accidents."

Pope Benedict had words about the victims, but also important words for drivers. I quote him here:

Let us pray for their eternal repose and for the consolation of their families who are mourning their loss. Dear brothers and sisters, I implore everyone – drivers, passengers and pedestrians – to listen carefully to the words of St. Paul in today’s Liturgy of the Word: ‘Let us be awake and sober.’ Our behavior on the road, must be characterized by responsibility, attention and respect for others. May the Virgin Mary guide us securely along the roads and highways of the world.

What a great way to put it!

Funny, but I never thought that St Paul had anything to say to me when I am driving. Yet, when you really think about his story in the Acts of the Apostles, Paul’s own conversion to Christ happened after an incident on the road. So, in this year of St Paul, why not recognize that his words can be applied to our own journeys, on the road of life and on the highways of the world: be awake and sober! It certainly makes a lot of sense.

Thank you, U.N. for instituting this World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims. Thank you, Pope Benedict, for putting the day in perspective for Christians. Oh, and thank you St Paul! Wow, you thought of everything… well, almost!

[Photo by REUTERS/Max Rossi (VATICAN) 16 November 2008, captured from Yahoo News Photos]