Book release

My book, Saint Francis de Sales: Life and Spirit, has been released today. Many thanks go to Joanne Kinney and Fr John Graden at DeSales Resources and Ministries for bringing the book through the editing and publishing phases, as well as to Sr Mary Grace McCormack and the Visitation Sisters in St Louis for all they did to host me during the re-editing phase, and for Sr Mary Grace's arduous work in proofing this volume.

The book can be purchased from DeSales Ministries and Resources in Stella Niagara, New York. They have a bookshop on their website.

Salesian initiative day 2

Today we began to formulate a formal statement for what we hope to come from the Salesian initiative. Here is the working draft of the proposal:

North American Salesian Network

The North American Salesian Network is an intentional network of collaboration by Salesian organizations:  

The initial aim of the network is the sharing of talent, resource materials and programs to enhance the training of our members and the accomplishment of our respective missions, ultimately spreading the Gospel in the Salesian tradition. The initial commitment of organizational membership includes participation in an annual gathering, contributions to a collaborative website and sharing of information through social media or an e-newsletter.

The founding group has put together his Vision Statement:

We envision a collaborative effort among our Salesian associations and institutes to empower us in refreshing our North American culture with the spirit of St. Francis de Sales and our Founders.  

We hope to facilitate the sharing of Salesian resources, educational services, technological expertise, vocational efforts and other key ministries that will enable us to touch hearts and "live jesus" across a wider expanse of people.  

Together we enter into the mystery of Christ and help to bring all people to Christ with the strong gentleness and zeal of St. Francis de Sales. 

Salesian Initiative

For the second year, a group of us are gathering at St Paul Retreat House in Detroit to discuss ways of sharing and spreading Salesian spirit in the United States. Those who have come include the Oblates of St Francis de Sales, the Oblate Sisters, the Visitation Sisters (2nd Federation), the Daughters of St Francis de Sales, the Missionaries of St Francis de Sales, the Salesian Network, the Salesians of Don Bosco and the Daughters of Mary Help of Christians.

A very interesting group from my educational point of view is a group that has existed since 1988 called the "Salesian Network." This grows out of the experience of the Visitation Sisters in the USA, where they have 5 schools. The "Salesian Network" that facilitates the formation of "minds and hearts through gospel-based teachings" in their schools. I do believe that we Salesians of the San Francisco province would benefit by making contact with this network.

There are many areas in which we can be collaborating, from formation of laity to training of novices, to sharing the Salesian spirit in dioceses and among the unchurched. More ideas will come out tomorrow, no doubt, as our discussions become more direct.

Fatherless

A friend of mine sent me an article that tries to say that we should not worry about the gun culture as much as the fatherless culture in America. In other words, the 20-year-old who shot up Newtown had a father in his life, he might not have become a killer. That sounds like a good ploy for not reforming the broken system that allows anyone and everyone to tote a gun in the USA. Maybe the author is correct.

Don Bosco College Library in 1967

On the other hand, I clearly remember a comment made by Fr Paul Aronica, who was my professor of literature at Don Bosco College, in Newton, New Jersey - way back in my college days at the start of the 1970s. We were studying the Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, and Fr Paul compared the theme of fatherless Huck and fatherless Tom Sawyer to many other fatherless figures in American literature, cinema and television (there was no YouTube in those days). Fr Paul remarked that the United States created a fatherless culture when the merchants and plantation owners gathered in Philadelphia on 4 July 1776 sent a declaration of independence to the King of England. By throwing out the King, they disowned their father, and Unitedstatesians have been disowning their fathers ever since.

Throw out the father and collect guns! these are actually more American than motherhood and apple pie.

Contribution of Arthur Lenti

Chris Woerz has circulated by email to the Salesian Family an article from Chennai that quotes Fr Arthur Lenti abundantly. Chris speaks with pride at seeing our own Fr Lenti quoted by Salesians in another province.

Actually, from my vantage point in Rome, this is not new.  Arthur J. Lenti has become one of the important authors in the Salesian world now. I hear many quoting from his works. In Sicily, after the publication of his great Opus of 7 volumes, some professors have gone back to the Journal of Salesian Studies and have begun to translate some of those vintage articles into Italian. In Spain they describe his writing as scientific, enlightening and inspiring.

In a few days Arthur Lenti will celebrate his 90th birthday. His birthday is actually 31 January, feast of St John Bosco, whose life and work Fr Arthur has made the center of the last 28 years of his work at the ISS. But of course, when Arthur was born in the province of Alessandria, close to Torino, in 1923, Don Bosco was not yet a canonized saint. That canonization would not have come until Arthur was 11 years old. Nor were Salesian Studies his professional interest. Arthur trained at the Biblicum in Rome, and taught Sacred Scripture for many years. He was able, however, to use the biblical scholars techniques in approaching the documents, published and unpublished, around Don Bosco to give us a fresh understanding of the apostle of the young. This certainly accounts for the great wave of enthusiasm throughout the world for his contribution. Chris Woerz is right to be happy! More that that, we are right to want to learn from what Arthur has worked so hard to give us: a clear study of the life and times of St John Bosco so that we can look a the needs of our own times, and then to do what we can on behalf of the young, as Don Bosco would do.

It is good to see this happening. It validates not only the hard work of research and teaching done by Fr Arthur, but the whole purpose of the Institute of Salesian Studies in Berkeley. May the new leaders of the ISS find the resources and backing to move forward.

Traveling again

It is the second day of the new year. I've been with my mother in Bellflower for the holidays, where I could celebrate with family and life-time close friends. It is time now to begin my return trip to Europe, but I will pass five days in Berkeley to prepare for the Spring Term and to see my doctor(s). Well, they are not really "my" doctors, but I'm their patient. Sounds rather pompous to claim that I have a doctor or two really, when the reality is that I have to do what they say, and they don't do what I say.

On the other hand, I'm not sure that I can even claim having students, if that is the criterion. They rarely do what I say and I'm always scurrying to help them come through a semester somehow. No, I don't have my own students, but there are many students who have me as a teacher, or perhaps as an instructor. I don't have a cat or dog either.…… but I don't think anybody can have a cat.

Hmmm, very philosophical, but I've just finished a cup of coffee at the Los Angeles International Airport (LAX), after going through TSA security. I will be boarding a flight for San Francisco soon, and am happy for the new year, for the avoidance of the fiscal cliff, and for all the good friends in my life, with whom I wish I could spend more time. This week in Bellflower has reminded me how important that really is.

Christmas Novena Memories

One of my fondest memories from my high school years at St Francis in Watsonville was our participation in the Christmas novena each year. This began on the evening of 16 December and continued until Christmas Eve. Of course we were all home usually by the Saturday before Christmas, so those few days in which we were able to join in that prayer service were intense.

As I remember it, during the first year that I participated, as a freshman, the vice-principal (we called him the Prefect of Studies) explained the celebration to us. This was part of his role. He was the member of the school administration to bring the new boys, freshmen and others, into the traditions of the school and of the Salesian world. My first year the Prefect of Studies was particularly keen on doing this, perhaps because he was a natural-born storyteller. I'm speaking of Fr Larry, who was 40 years old at the time. 

Winter scene of St Francis, inner courtyard, back in the day

Anyway, according to the authoritative and loquacious Fr Larry, the novena that we were singing was originally composed in Latin and came, not from Rome, but from Turin (Torino). We would be singing the same verses and praying the same prayers that St John Bosco and his boys sang and prayed 100 years before us. This was very impressive to me, as a fourteen-year old. That Don Bosco himself said these words: whoa! Of course, the words were all from Scripture, but Fr Larry did not tell us that, and it did not occur to me that we would be praying the words pronounced by Isaiah and the prophets and the psalmists as we sung the evening novena… therefore, the words that the Jewish and Christian community had cherished for thousands of years. Maybe Fr Larry was more Bosconian than scriptural, or maybe he thought this would be too much for us to fathom or appreciate. Who knows? In fact, 100 years were enough for me. 

Saints John Bosco and Dominic Savio: old polychrome statue now at Camp St Francis, Aptos

The first time I joined in and sang these prayers, I imagined the spirits of the boys from Don Bosco's first Oratory sitting with us in the benches, singing the same words, praying that the Savior would come without delay. The opening refrain for the singing of the prophecies was melodic and pleading but joyful at the same time: 

The Lord our King is drawing near: o come, let us adore Him! 

Two of the fourth-year boys sang the prophecies in a duet, and we all responded with the refrain. By the end of the first evening, I knew the refrain by heart, both the melody and the words. It has remained with me until this day. 

Remembering the words and the melody is very good, because this year in Rome, as in every year that I have been here, the three communities of the professors will join together in the evening to sing the same novena. We will sing it in Latin and Italian, but the content of the texts and the melodies are the same. 

Regem venturum Dominum, venite adoremus.

The Lord our King is drawing near: o come, let us adore Him!

Growing into contemplation

Painting of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Taillores (on Lake Annecy)

Tomorrow is the feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe, I'm thinking of Mary in America, and especially of Mexico. Am also thinking about Fr Roger Luna, whose anniversary of death is tomorrow.

Fr Roger taught me English in 11th and 12th grade at St Francis in Watsonville, and I joined the choir that he directed during those years. That was a lot of fun for me at that age. Fr Roger was also my director when I was discerning whether to join the Salesians or not, and guided me through the prenovitiate with 10 of my companions. Only 8 of us entered the Salesian novitiate; only 5 of us made our vows a year later… but that is another story.

Roger B. Luna, SDB, in 1966, Director of St Francis, Watsonville

Fr Roger was easy to talk to, and I took advantage of this during high school, and later as a young Salesian. When I first became came to De Sales Hall as province vocation director in 1983, and later as director of the prenovitiate community until 1990, I went regularly to Fr Roger for spiritual direction. As always he received me and accompanied me with joy and wisdom that I will never forget.

Once Fr Roger told me that as we grow older we all tend to become contemplative. Well, it sounded good, but I know some pretty rowdy old people!! I suspect, however, that Fr Roger was quite contemplative in his youth, but carried to extroversion by the needs of the young and poor families that he served as the first Mexican-American Salesian in the USA. He could organize a wonderful Posadas Christmas Novena for the immigrants, but he could also sit quietly with a score written by Mozart on his lap, imagining the sounds and voices, and bringing those to prayer. Yes, he was a contemplative, even though he might have been a hyper-active one!

A panorama to contemplate, at Hermitage St Germaine, above Lake Annecy

Fr Pascual Chavez speaks to Salesians at the UPS

Fr Pascual Chavez addresses the university community tonight

Tonight the rector major, Fr Pascual Chavez, has come to the UPS to share on the life of the Salesian  Society during 2012 and its potential impact on the university. This is something of an annual event, and I will try to record some of what he is saying on my iPad to post it all immediately.

Fr Pascual begins with a reflection on the New Evagelization. He remained perplexed, he says, because the emphasis of the Holy See seems to center on the new movements. This became very apparent during the recent synod of Bishops (held from 11-25 October this year). The synod made no place in its consideration for the contributions of religious communities to evangelization, past or present. It was only after the superiors general of women and men put together their own document and sent this to the synod that the bishops half-way mentioned the apostolic efforts of those in the consecrated life. However, the synod's acknowledgement was minimal, and if one goes back to the working documents of the assembly (the Instrumentum laboris), consecrated life seems to be totally ignored.

Fr Pascual Chavez, during a brief question period

The synod tries to respond to the changes in society, the diffidence and suspicion toward the Church seems to be on the rise in today's world, along with the growing secularization of society. The bishops spoke at length about secularization, but not about the causes for ill-feeling towards the Church. Yet, diffidence and secularization are themes that do not reflect the whole church. These represent mostlly what is happening in Europe and not on the other continents. The rector major asks, with a certain amount of apprehension, are we becoming euro-centric again?

New melody: The capacity of the Church to give  positive response to the needs of men and women today is something that the experience of the synod may call into question. There were a number of bishops (too many!) who wanted to sound the alarm or go on the offensive (against the world, against non-Christians, against secularists, in a new apologetics rather than a new Evangelization). The pope himself had to speak up to counter some of the strident rhetoric heard in the synod assembly. Pope Benedict asserted that the Church today must let the Gospel sound with a new melodies as a new song. Only if the Gospel is heard in a fresh way will the Word of Christ be in a position to enlighten the life of women and men today. This is the sense of Benedict XVI's call for an ongoing and constructive dialogue between Faith and Culture.

Hearts aflame: hearts renewed, pastoral ardor and missionary fervor. Ben 16 insists that there is an event at the start of faith, a meeting with a person that enchants you and fasinates you. No new E without conversion of the new evangelizer. this is not a new crusade, but a falling in love with Christ, who forces no one.

Resect fornew contexts and everty context -- absolutely  indispensible.

However, when B16 speaks in the light of Rede;ptoris Missio, he says in histoy there is a fiirst evanvggelization. with this is ordinary ministry in everyday circumstances.  NE is not for the new chuyrches, not for those that are getting strong and starting to becoe mature.  It is for those who used to be Xtian but of ancient Xtian tradition who have left the faith and the practice of the faith.

At the synod, there were those who thought NE is a new crusade (very negative) contrasted by other bishops > The best prepared bishops are the French bishops. Religious are very clear: great symphathy and empathy  with this world.  Is the church closed now?

If you do not have humility, you cannot respect God's way, who entered the world on his tiptoes.

The US bishops wanted new apologetics; the Asian bishops spoke of new humility. The French bishops contested this. So two aaproaches emerged. The message that comes out is that the Gospel is beautiful and enchanting. Let the Gospel speak to our  world.

Pious Aeneas at the T-Sign

My brother Mario sent me an email today, with the above photo taken on 24 October, where he and his son (my nephew) John played in a charity golf tournament to benefit the youth at St Dominic Savio parish.

Mario sent the email to my brother Sal and to me, and his message is the following.

Hi Guys, I thought you might enjoy this picture. Every year, I sponsor a T-sign in Dad's memory for the golf tournament which benefits the Youth Center at Savio. This year, John played as part of the foursome with me, Nelson and Jack Hastert. This picture was taken on the 9th tee box on Wednesday 10/24/12. I never got to play golf with Dad, but every year at the tournament with his name on the sign, I feel that he is out there with me.

My reflections, maybe prompted by today's Gospel, centered on how piety was originally a family word, and how I see it played out in this gesture of my brother.

In the ancient Latin, the word pious really did not have any link to religion, but it was a word to describe the love that a son had for his father. Thus, Aeneas, who did everything to ensure his father's health and welfare in the midst of the terrible Trojan war, is called pius Æneas. Only in the 14th century was the word applied to religious contexts, as Christianity was seen as strengthening family in the context of the Greatest Commandment: You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength: this is the first commandment. And the second is like, namely this, You shall love your neighbor as yourself (Mark 12:30-31).

Our first neighbors are the members of our family, and then those living near to us, and then those in need who are far off. During the 14th Century when the plague known as the Black Death devastated Europe, those who risked their own lives to care for the plague victims were called pious. In the intensity of the risk, they turned to the figure of the Suffering Jesus who in his Passion gave his life to save poor sinners out of love for The Father. In this identification with Christ Crucified, the word found an enlarged meaning, so that the pious were united with Christ, and their piety became the merciful assisting of those in most need. Another word was born then too: compassion. It meant to suffer (passio) along Christ (with-suffering/com-passion). Piety, mercy, compassion, pity, active charity: all were pressed into these words, so that charity toward neighbor became complete only with true charity towards God -- love of God with one's whole being, and love of neighbor as one would love oneself. Piety summed it all up.

So piety, as we see it today, is intensely religious, but it was originally intensely centered on the family. It would be a wonderful thing if we could recuperate that original meaning. By the looks on the faces of my brother Mario and his son John, I think they are certainly living that family piety.

Salesian Family Day

The Salesian Family Marian Day has taken place in October for several years now. This year I was asked to speak. Since St Dominic Savio had so many events since August, St John Bosco High School hosted the Salesian Family… but there were four other events going on, including a football game this same morning. This is homecoming weekend at St John Bosco, after all, and a busier weekend could not have been chosen.

Today's presentation was set to be in keeping with the theme for 2012-2013 in the run up the 200th birthday of St John Bosco in 2015: Don Bosco Educator. I was asked to bring out some ideas on the educative charism of Don Bosco. For a long time I did not know how to put this together, but I finally settled on Don Bosco and His Young People. This is a theme that I have been exploring in the course that I teach in Rome on the social-religious-political-cultural context of Don Bosco's century. After I have worked on this theme, I realized that Fr Lenti has put a lot of this forward in the second volume of his study on Don Bosco. However, I also realize that Fr Lenti has said everything on Don Bosco already, so I decided not to worry about bringing out anything new.

In attendance were members of many different branches of the Salesian Family, and I already knew most of them, except for the 20 students from Bosco Tech that were brought along. Poor kids! This was not designed for young people, and nobody told me that they would be present until this morning. I had not directed my talk to them, and I consider it an injustice to constrain kids to hear speeches designed for adults. Nobody ever consulted me on this aspect… but that is another story.

Reflections on Annecy 2012

Basilica of the Visitation, Annecy

Spending July and August in Annecy, for some Salesian days with Francis de Sales, Jane de Chantal and my Salesian sisters… well this was something that I had looked forward to for months, and when we were arrived in old Annecy, I found the experience exhilarating.

This has not been my first visit to Annecy. The first time I had gone I had been in my 20s, and went with my theology classmates from Torino. I had since returned three other times, for days of reflections, or on pilgrimage, or on retreat. This Summer 2012 pilgrimage, then, has been my fifth time visiting the places of Francis de Sales, but this has seems so much richer after 18 years of teaching courses on the life and spirit of the saint.

Sr Anne-Marie Baud plays with the door knocker at Chateau de Sales, Thorens

It was exciting to me to have one of my former students, Sr Anne-Marie Baud do so much of the footwork and bring our group to visit the Holy Source of the Visitation, and many of the places where Francis and Jane lived and worked. I have been to these places with scholars who knew of them through meticulous study, but Anne-Marie is a native of Savoy. As she told me the first time I met her, “My family was converted by Saint François de Sales!” To travel with her to these wonderful places was to have an insider’s view. This made all the difference, as far as I was concerned, for she gave a sense of joy, adventure, intimacy and enthusiasm to every corner of Annecy.

It was also a great treat for me to spend 12 days with the Sisters of the GBR province, for many of the sisters I have known in different places over the years (Torino, Bollington, Chertsey, Battersea, London, Berkeley, Melbourne), so it was fantastic for me to renew our friendship and to do so in the company of Francis and Jane – the saints of Christian friendship. The prayer moments, prepared by the sisters each morning and evening, were fresh and always seemed to hit the mark for my own spirit in these days, and the sisters made each day’s liturgy prayerful and profound. The companionship at table was another treat, enjoying the wonderful meals, the beautiful sunshine, hearing of the sisters’ work and apostolic experiences – all of this fed my heart and soul. How privileged I felt to participate in the renewal of vows of the junior professed, and the golden jubilee of three sisters who came from the same parish so many years ago and who have worked in very different places but who could gave the whole pilgrimage/retreat a wonderful, youthful tone.

Any help that I might have provided in the way of the conferences and the homilies was amply repaid by the great warmth of family spirit that I experienced in return. I cannot thank you enough – collectively and individually – for these wonderful days of prayer and refreshment, of spirituality and family spirit too.

Abundant blessings on all!

Birthday party in Sacramento

If I had been thinking straight, I would have taken a lot of photos… i only got two of my Aunt Rose as she opened gifts. Today in Sacramento her sons Louie and Johnny celebrated her 80th birthday and invited all her friends and their friends, as well as the Boenzi crew.

So, Dominic and Barbara, Gary and his friend, Mario and Diane, and I made it to Sacramento. The others arrived last night; I drove in this afternoon, and then drove back to Berkeley. That's not to bright. The others are all staying in a motel not far from the Mauro home, and so making a whole weekend of it, but I was just lucky to get out of the house.

Both Dom and Diane had the same idea: they put together albums of Boenzi photos and family trees, and Rose recognized the photos and began to tell her grandchildren all about the family lore.

Rosa Boenzi Mauro at age 1, in 1933,  Chicago

All the way home I kept thinking what a milestone this is. Rose is the youngest of my father's siblings, and the only one still alive. Even when I was a child I knew the stories, as my father used to talk about his favorite sister and her childhood in Chicago. Actually, she was his only sister. Rose was born when my father was 10, and he was always protective of her. Actually, all four of her brothers were protective of Rose, but to hear my father, he considered her the apple of his eye. I think she always knew it too, for "Johnny", as she calls him, was always there for her in her childhood and youth.

As the youngest, Rose was more removed from the trauma of immigration than her brothers. Whereas my father was fluent in Neapolitan and carried on all the traditions of the family as brought to America from the old country, Rose only understood the dialect. She responded to her parents in English rather than Neapolitan. Of course, Dominic and Rudy married American girls, and so they eventually had few people with whom to speak the language (only Rose and my father married Italians), but for Rose it was not a matter of losing the contact. By the time she was growing up, America was at War, and all the immigrants were staunchly proving their loyalty to the USA. She grew up more conscious of America than of her Italian roots.

Rose Boenzi and Carmen Mauro on their wedding day, 28 November 1953

Having said that, I know that Rose was my father's pride and joy. She was only 16, but she was part of the bridal party when my parents married. My father was the last of his brothers to wed, and that was in 1948. Rose married in 1953, at the age of 21. She married a baseball player, Carmen Mauro, whom she met when he was playing on the Chicago Cubs. She and Carmen would be godparents to my youngest brother Mario, and role models for him.

Rose and Carmen on their 40th Anniversary, 1993

So, even though Rose is 17 years older than I am, I recall those stories and think of her as the young one.

Funny how that works.

Have a happy 80th birthday, Aunt Rose, and a great 81st year!

Francis de Sales for the novices

Today I end a week with the novices of the two American provinces. I was invited to Rosemead to give a mini-course on Saint Francis de Sales. We began on Monday morning and ended yesterday afternoon, and we spent an average of 2.5  hours in the mornings and 1 hour in the afternoons.

Well it seemed to have gone well. I had asked them to read the Introduction of the Devout Life ahead of time, and during the week I presented some of the main points of the teachings of the saint each morning. Each afternoon we had a discussion on one part of the Introduction to the Devout Life (as there are five parts). The five young men seemed to participate well in the discussions.

One of the things that I pointed out to the novices, as I do, now, with most Salesian groups is that we Salesians have lost touch with the teachings of St Francis de Sales. In the first decades of the Salesian Society, the life and teachings of this saint were much discussed and absorbed, so to speak. However, once Don Bosco was beatified (1929), we let Francis de Sales slip into the background as we stressed Don Bosco's life and teachings more. That was natural, I suppose. It was important to come to know the new contributions of the new saint. But if we want to go back to the sources (as Vatican II called religious to do), then it is important to gain a deeper understanding of Don Bosco's model for the evangelization and education of the young, St Francis de Sales.

That is a tall order, but at least five more young Salesians have a better insight into who Francis was and why he appealed to Don Bosco.

Manuscript almost ready

Lambert International Airport, St Louis. As I wait for my return flight to San Francisco, I write down a bit of a report of my trip to the city of St Louis.

Entrance to the Visitation Monastery, St Louis

At this point I am almost ready to submit the final draft of my manuscript for the book on Francis de Sales. All during this week I have been staying at the Visitation Monastery in St Louis and working on the text. With the help of Sr Mary Grace McCormack, who proof read it, I have re-edited my work and rewritten passages that were unclear. Sr Grace critiqued every chapter and sub-chapter. This was very helpful. Her encouragement and the excitement of the other sisters over my efforts gave me some courage that this project might even be worth while.

Adventures on St Joseph's Day

Today is the feast of Saint Joseph. In English he is called "the foster father of Jesus", but in Italian he is called "the supposed father of Jesus -- il padre putativo". I do like the Italian term better.

Images of St Joseph and other saints on sale at CVS pharmacy in Bellflower

We had a work day here at Berkeley, of course. In addition, this was the last day of the provincial visitation that began on 9 March, so it was busy and a little stressful. I was main celebrant at the 6.45 morning mass that turned out to be very solemn and festive despite the fact that God was not awake yet. In the evening we celebrated with some guests as well and our main meal and afterwards. So it turned out to be a great day…

… except for the fact that I fell down the stairs coming out of the dining room and gashed my head, twisted my ankle, went to the doctor for treatment and must meet a surgeon for reconstructive surgery on my face because the gash is so drastic. My ankle is wrapped too. Other than that, no big damage was done. I still have a load to teach this week, and at the end of the week I am (still) planning on going to St Louis to complete work on the manuscript of my book on the life and spirit of St Francis de Sales.

St Joseph carries the Child Jesus into Egypt (Holy Family Church, Artesia)

Hmmmmm. I promise not to moan too much for the pain. At the same time, I have to say that we have celebrated a very happy feast of St Joseph here in Berkeley with the Salesian community and a number of close friends.

Leadership meeting

My provincial superior, Fr Tim Ploch, wants me to go to Detroit during Easter Week for an important meeting of groups promoting the pastoral style and spirituality of Francis de Sales in the USA. It is a meeting of provincials and community leaders from the Oblates of St Francis de Sales, the Daughters of St Francis de Sales, the Oblate Sisters of St Francis de Sales, the Visitation Sisters of Holy Mary of the First Federation (cloistered) and the Second Federation (semi-cloistered). Invitations were advanced to the provincials of the Salesians of Don Bosco, the Daughters of Mary Help of Christians and the Cooperator Salesians.

Tim Ploch at Don Bosco Hall

Ideas for this meeting surfaced last August after the National Conference on Salesian Spirituality. Fr John Graden and Fr Michael Murray of OSFS centers in the Western and Eastern Provinces were asking how the Salesians could better collaborate in projects to promote the spirit and teaching of Francis de Sales along with them. Eunan McDonnell and I were at that post-conference session and we both said that unless the Salesian provincials were involved at the organizing level, not much would happen for us. Indeed, Salesians are very centralized in terms of our governing structures and mentality. Based on that conversation, John Graden and Joanne Kinney began to plan for such a leadership summit.

John Graden, Joanne Kinney and Eunan McDonnell in Wilmington last August

As it turns out, our province has an important gathering of all the communities during Easter Week, continuing with pastors and directors. This means that Tim Ploch cannot attend the leadership summit proposed by the Oblates of St Francis de Sales. So he is sending me to the Detroit meeting.

In my mind, this defeats the purpose. I suggested to Tim that we ask DeSales Resources to schedule the meeting for another time, but he responded. "No. It doesn't make sense that they postpone the meeting just for me. You can represent me." Besides, he added, Tom Dunne, provincial of the New Rochelle Province, will be attending. Evidently he and Tom have been discussing all this.

This does not convince me really. I know how our centralized mentality will function. Yet, Tim knows that for the last 11 years I have been working on a national committee to promote Salesian studies with other congregations and orders. This is why he is sending me. 

Visiting Visitations at Vatican

This afternoon I headed down to the Vatican for the conference with the Visitation Sisters of the Mater Ecclesiae Cloister. It took an 75 minutes to get to the Vatican from the University, by bus and subway, and then 15 minutes to to get the necessary visitor passes through passport control… and another 15 minutes to walk up the hill to the monastery. When I got to the monastery, the sisters were at Vespers (I could hear them chanting as I walked up to the building), so I needed to wait 40 minutes before ringing the bell? After meeting with the superior in the parlor through the grate, i did the last preparations for the conference. Then we began.

Since today is the first day of the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity, I presented some experiences of Francis as missionary in the Chablais, and of his dealings with the Calvinists of Savoy and Geneva. All of the sisters come from countries where Catholics are the majority (Spain, Colombia, Equitorial Guinea, Italy), so they have not had direct contact with people of other faiths. We had a good little give-and-take at the end along those lines.

On the right, the superior, Sor María Bogogna

Then I gave them greetings from the Visitandines in the USA, for some knew of my invitation to give this conference. I went on to tell the Vatican sisters more about the USA foundations, particularly about the community in North Minneapolis. They were both fascinated and very delighted by what they heard.

The monastery of cloistered nuns in the Vatican was the idea of Pope John Paul II. His idea was that the monastery would be entrusted to an order of nuns for five years, after which a different order with a different charism would take over. He had designated a period of five years, but Pope Benedict has shorted the term to three years, which is more a measurement used in religious communities. The first group of nuns were Poor Clares; the second group were Benedictines. The Visitandines are the third group and the first to be limited to a three-year term, and they are already in their third year. Their time in this community will come to an end in October 2012. The Good Mother told me that the time is passing too quickly, but that all the sisters who are participating are grateful for the experience for forming an ad-hoc community in the Vatican. They feel that they are a support to the Holy Father and the Church Universal in a very tangible way. I found them all very gracious, bright, down-to-earth, with a sense of humor that makes you feel at home among them.

Dawn at 7.05; Daybreak at 7.35

There was a giant full-moon this morning when I went to the university chapel at 6.30 for prayers. Usually I like to walk outside for the few steps that go from the ground-floor of the theology building to the entrance of the chapel, on the lower level. If nothing else, it reminds me not to stay indoors all day.

In any case, the moon shone round and bright — this is the night of the full moon. The sky was very black and the air very cold. I wanted to grab my camera, but I remembered the words of one of my instructors in the summer of 1965 when I took a course in photography at Bonny Dune. That instructor was Mike Perry, and he noted that the moon is always moving, but we only notice when we try to photograph it. If we use a shutter speed of less than 1/30th of a second, it will be blurry because of that movement. Of course, my camera is a simple little kodak digital, with no f-stops, no changeable lenses, and not much else. I really cannot take photos in low-light because my hands are not steady enough. Oh no, this is not a condition of aging. Its part of my story since I was at least 12 years old… but that’s for another time.

With this knowledge, I knew I could not photography the moon. All I could do was to gaze up at the moon and marvel at its incredible brightness this morning in the still-night sky.

It was still dark when we began the mass at 7.00, and still dark when we left the church at 7.30. I saw the sunrise while I sipped a caffè-latte for breakfast. I was thinking of all the deadlines that I have to meet this week, and how next week is the last week of instruction. No time for hesitation.

Roman sunrise at the UPS

On Sunday night I sent in my syllabi to DSPT for the Spring Term, which begins in Berkeley on 30 January. My departure from Rome is set for 28 January… I will have a day to regroup my strength, if there is any left. Meanwhile, I have 11 more class sessions here in Rome before the exams. I had better start packing soon. 

Epiphany and the proclamation of Easter

Today in the parish church of Our Lady of the Annunciation (L’Annunciata) in Acerra, Don Mimmì, the parish priest, read the announcement of Easter. I was concelebrating with him and the Bishop Emeritus of Acerra, Don Antonio Riboldi.

The Easter proclamation, quite traditional, goes like this:

Dearest brothers and sisters:
   The glory of the Lord  has shown and will always shine in your midst until He comes again. In the rhythm and events of time, we recall and we live the mysteries of salvation.
   Central to the entire liturgical year is the Triduum of the Lord, crucified, buried and risen, that will culminate with the Sunday of the Passover, Easter Sunday, on 8 April. 
   On every Sunday, the Paschal feast each week, the Holy Church commemorates this great event in which Christ has overcome sin and death. From Easter all the other holy days are determined: 
   Ash Wednesday, beginning of the Lenten Season, on 22 February.
   The Ascension of the Lord, 20 May.
   Pentecost, 27 May. 
   The first Sunday of Advent, 2 December.
   In the feasts of the Holy Mother of God, of the Apostles, of the saints and the commemoration of the faithful departed, the pilgrim Church on earth proclaims the Paschal Mystery of her Lord.
   To Christ who was, who is and who is to come, Lord of time and of history, be unending praise for ever and ever.
   Amen