Why is don bosco a saint

He established a group known as the Oratory of St. Francis de Sales, and became a kindly spiritual father to boys in need. His aging mother helped support the project in its early years. John's boyhood dream came to pass: he became a spiritual guide and provider along with his fellow Salesian priests and brothers, giving boys religious instruction, lodging, education, and work opportunities.

He also helped Saint Mary Dominic Mazzarello form a similar group for girls. This success did not come easily, as the priest struggled to find reliable accommodations and support for his ambitious apostolate. Italy's nationalist movement made life difficult for religious orders, and its anti-clerical attitudes even led to assassination attempts against Don Bosco. But such hostility did not stop the Salesians from expanding in Europe and beyond.

They were helping , children in houses by the end of Don Bosco's life. Margaret a woman of courage and faith taught the boys that work was a privilege and so they had to take responsibility and carry out chores such as firewood to cut and collect, fields to work on, sacrifices that had to be made in order to keep their home and farm.

At a very young age, the future saint knew God called him to serve youth. When he was just nine years old, he was inspired by a dream that would change his life forever. He saw a multitude of very poor boys who were fighting and cursing amongst each other. The wild animals suddenly changed into gentle lambs. At the right time you will understand everything. Ever since that dream, he knew it was his destiny to become a priest and would dedicate himself to assist the poor youth but in order to fulfill his dream, he had to leave home and assist the city school where he would walk for hours to receive an education.

Soon after he started his own shows, kids and neighbors would gather around to enjoy performances. Don Bosco was 26 years old when he was ordained to the priesthood in Turin. He would now be called Don Bosco and would come to celebrate his first mass the day right after in the church of St.

Some parish priests accused him of stealing boys from their parishes. The Chief of Police of Turin was opposed to his catechizing of boys in the streets, which he claimed was political subversion. In , Fr. Bosco established the Society of St. Francis de Sales. He organized 15 seminarians and one teenage boy into the group. Their purpose was to carry on his charitable work, helping boys with their faith formation and to stay out of trouble.

The organization still exists today and continues to help people, especially children around the world. In the years that followed, Fr. Bosco expanded his mission, which had, and still has, much work to do. Bosco died on January 31, The call for his canonization was immediate. Pope Pius XI knew Fr. Bosco personally and agreed, declaring him blessed in John Bosco the Patron of Stage Magicians.

Bosco had pioneered the art of what is today called "Gospel Magic," using magic and other feats to attract attention and engage the youth. Saint John Bosco is the patron saint of apprentices, editors and publishers, schoolchildren, magicians, and juvenile delinquents. His feast day is on January Copyright Catholic Online.

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Federal Tax Identification Number: Your gift is tax-deductible as allowed by law. Toggle navigation. They were his own Salesians! Certainly they would fare no better than the others, but the yelling ceased. The wild faces became human again. The natives dropped their weapons and sheepishly looked up into the missionaries' faces. Then they bowed their heads in prayer! The dream began to become a reality in ; at the request of Argentina and the Holy See, Don Bosco sent ten missionaries to Buenos Aires to care for Italian immigrants.

Four years later, under the energetic leadership of Fr. John Cagliero later Cardinal , they penetrated the hinterland of Patagonia down to the icy Strait of Magellan and the Falkland Islands.

The young Salesian Congregation ranks highly in number among the Catholic Church's missionary orders. Indeed, rarely has the Church seen such a tireless apostle. Trained to labor from his boyhood, he occupied himself with boys, constantly interesting himself in their activities. On Sundays, after a strenuous day with his Oratory, he often had to be carried home; more than once he fell asleep fully dressed, kneeling at his bedside.

For many years he slept only five hours a night, skipping a night each week. After a day of physical work, he would spend the quiet hours of the night penning letters to friends for aid, sending letters of comfort to those who begged for his prayers, and writing books on mathematics, literature, the Bible, and Church history for boys. He began a pamphlet series, the "Catholic Readings," and for some time wrote a pamphlet a month on Catholic faith and morals.

Always at the call of the Church, he was a tireless confessor; he was a popular preacher and never refused an invitation to preach a mission or a retreat. Even when age began creeping up on him, he worked. More than once the people of Turin saw a boy leading him by the hand through the streets, dozing while he stumbled along. As an older man, he lost sight in one eye, and the other was impaired. His legs were swollen to painful proportions.

His back was curved by weakness, yet his mind was crystal clear. He never laid down the burden. Besides his youth activities, he interested himself in matters of Church and State, acting even as a mediator for the Pope. He spurred boys on to Catholic action; he favored and worked for retreat movements, mission crusades, the catechetical movement, and foreign missions. While at prayer one time, Don Bosco was interrupted by the visit of a wealthy noble.

Three times he was called. Finally he went. With such a marvelous sense of values, he was able to temper his activity with deep, ceaseless, and fervent piety.

In fact, the energy of his work came from this carefully tended fire of prayer in his soul. And God rewarded him in a wonderful way. Toward the end of his life, his prayers wrought miracles.

His blessing carried astonishing powers. Sometimes he was seen rising in ecstasy during the Mass. But, with characteristic humility, he labored to feed his ministry with prayer; so much so that Pope Pius XI said of him that he prayed every moment of his life.

When Don Bosco planned to build a basilica in Mary's honor in Turin, he drew up the plans and called an architect to start the excavations. I have lived poor and shall die poor. Yet this impoverished priest, who lived on the coarsest of foods and wore the poorest garments often borrowed , spent millions for his boys, opened large schools, built one basilica to Mary in Turin and another to the Sacred Heart in Rome, and financed great mission expeditions.

The faith that God would provide worked miracles in his life. Such generosity of spirit could not go unrewarded by God, for whom this priest slaved the 72 years of his life. Besides providing for his work, God gave him the gift of miracles. With his blessing, Don Bosco cured people disease. After his prayers on their behalf, the deaf heard, the lame walked, and once, a dead boy was raised to life. He had the gift of prophecy.

He could read consciences, and used this gift to assist penitents in confession. He could foretell one's vocation, as well as one's future. Don Bosco often told his young people that being a saint was easy. His holiness was attractive because it was rooted in charity and exceptional purity that drew people to him.

Though he sometimes did extraordinary penances, he would never allow them to his boys. He told his Salesians and the young people that God wants us to be happy and to rejoice in the love of Jesus. Just do your duty in school, at home, at work the best you can. Offer you life to God: the happy times and the sad or challenging things: life sends many opportunities to join in the sufferings of Jesus: bad weather, disappointments, physical illness, sorrow these will make you saints.

Dominic Savio, one of his students who died at the age of 14, is Don Bosco's proof to the world that holiness is not a monopoly of the monastery or of the desert. It belongs everyone, the young and the old. The last years were difficult for him. He was old and tired but he kept up with all the activities of his Salesians, inspiring them to greater achievements for youth.

But when he took to his bed in December of , he said, "Now I go to my rest; I shall not get up again. With the names of Jesus and Mary on his lips, Don Bosco's soul passed to his God and his Lady as the morning Angelus bell was summoning the faithful to prayer.

Don Bosco left a legacy. His ideals, his spirit, his constant activity are all still with us in his Salesian priests, brothers, and sisters, who strive to perpetuate his work on earth. As for himself, Don Bosco would say, as he often told his admirers, "I have been an instrument in the hands of Mary. She has done everything. Had I been a worthier instrument, I would have accomplished a great deal more.