Fr. John Nazzaro Reflects on 9/11

Fr. John Nazzaro Reflects on 9/11

From Salesian News, weekly newsletter of the New Rochelle Province

Fr. John Nazzaro (left) and Fr. Jim Marra
when they were young Salesians at Camp Don Bosco, Newton, N.J.

(New Rochelle, N.Y. – September 10, 2026) – Twenty-five years have passed since  September 11, 2001, when a series of terrorist attacks shook America and the whole world, and which are still regarded as a watershed moment in human history. In the aftermath of that tragedy, Salesian Fr. John Nazzaro, now treasurer of the Eastern United States and Canada  Province (SUE), was called upon to assist and offer comfort to those affected: an experience that remains as vivid as ever in his mind and heart.

Even though 25 years have passed since 9/11, the days that followed that dreadful day still linger in my mind, heart, and soul. As time passes, we sometimes forget the loss of innocent lives and the courageous first responders who sacrificed so much with pride, dignity, and patriotism.

It is special to me because I shared being a chaplain at Ground Zero with my classmate, my best friend, and my brother, Fr. Jim Marra.

Fr. Jim called me the day after 9/11 and told me that Cardinal Egan of New York needed priests to volunteer at Ground Zero around the clock. Fr. Jim and I signed up for three 12-hour shifts, from 3:00 p.m. to 3:00 a.m. It was mandatory that two priests accompany each other as a source of support for what the ministry entailed. At that time, Fr. Jim was pastor at Corpus Christi Church in Port Chester, and I was director of Salesian High in New Rochelle.

Traveling to New York was difficult, and Mr. Louis Ruiz was able to drive us to Manhattan, where we were escorted to a hotel that housed the home base of FEMA.

At FEMA we were briefed about what we would encounter. We were taken by van through Battery Park, which was filled with people waving flags with patriotic signs and signs of gratitude for first responders. Once on site, we passed two priests who were leaving the site. One of them cried, and the other looked as though he were in shock.

We were fitted with oxygen masks and proceeded to the temporary morgue, which was a tent right in the middle of Ground Zero. The heat radiating as our feet was enough to melt your shoes, and the smell of sulfur was enough to gag you so if you didn’t have a mask on.

Our task was to bless the remains that were found and help the coroner ID the body part(s) and notify the Javits Center, which was used as a morgue since more remains were coming.

We blessed remains during those long hours, which seemed like an eternity. We consoled first responders who had lost brothers and sisters in law enforcement and the fire department.

We consoled each other, seeing, as Fr. Jim put it, “pure evil.” This was Fr. Jim’s hometown, and he was a proud New Yorker.

I share this with everyone after all these years because it was difficult to talk about it previously. But one thing I do remember is that my classmate, my best friend in the whole world, and my brother, Fr. Jim, shared this experience with me. It has been a bond through life and death since Fr. Jim passed away nine years ago.

To our young men in formation and young Salesians, I pray you will have a similar kind of friendship of trust, concern, and bond of love that can come only from Jesus and his Mother. I miss Jimmy terribly.

After a year, Fr. Jim and I received a letter from the government thanking us for our service. I was asked to write a chapter about our experiences for a book which became a best seller, but I refused the offer. Memories for me were for those who are not with us are in my heart; they are at peace. Lord, may they rest in your peace.

The Pit and signs with some of the names of the terrorists' victims
(February 24, 2005)

Sustainability, Partnerships, and New Challenges

Sustainability, Partnerships, and New Challenges

RASS looks ahead to 2030

(ANS – Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic – September 10, 2026) – Sustainability, collaboration, and the ability to forge new partnerships were the key themes of the 2d day of the 17th meeting of Salesian Social Works and Services of the Salesian Social Network of the Americas (RASS), dedicated to sustainability, partnerships, and the future—looking ahead to 2030. It was a day of discussion and formation that brought together representatives of Salesian social works and services from the Americas, with the aim of strengthening a network called upon to respond to new social challenges.

The day began with a time of prayer and spirituality led by the Ecuador Province, in memory of FMA St. Maria Troncatti. Following a review of the key moments from the previous day (which ANS didn’t report on), the discussions also touched upon the themes of migration and the integration of young people in vulnerable situations into the labor market, with a particular contribution from the delegation from Haiti.

The formation session was led by Angel Gudiña, coordinator of the Don Bosco Network, exploring the theme of sustainability in Salesian social works and collaboration with non-Salesian organizations. Sustainability was presented not merely as an economic issue, but also as the ability to build lasting and mutually beneficial relationships with a wide range of stakeholders: public institutions, businesses, 3d-sector organizations, the Church, the Salesian Family, and local communities.

Sustainability was addressed from a broad perspective, examining the relationship between feasibility, equity and sustainability. Models drawn from the business world and corporate social responsibility were presented, as were the 7 fundamental themes of social responsibility outlined in the ISO 26000 standard. Economic sustainability was described as a challenge that is simple to understand but complex to achieve, particularly for initiatives aimed at vulnerable populations.

The discussion continued with a round-table session attended by representatives from the business world, non-governmental organizations, and public institutions. Among the elements considered crucial for building lasting partnerships, trust, transparency, the ability to account for resources and, above all, the ability to demonstrate the impact of interventions in concrete terms emerged as key. The Salesians’ long experience working alongside vulnerable children and young people was also recognized, along with their ability to create safe environments and prevent situations of greater hardship.

There were also key challenges to address: reaching new territories and communities, strengthening work with migrants and young people experiencing homelessness, developing new programs, and raising the profile of the results of social initiatives, while remaining true to the Salesian mission and remaining open to changes in society.

In the afternoon, a participatory workshop looked directly toward 2030. RASS was described as a “well-structured,” “participatory,” “dynamic,” and “growing” network, capable of uniting organizations from different countries around a common mission. Future priorities identified included strengthening the network’s structure, securing its own resources, forging new alliances, and developing international volunteering.

Fr. Francesco Preite and Dr. Micaela Valentino also spoke during the day, addressing the work of the Salesians for Social [sic]. In particular, they discussed the Universal Civil Service program abroad as a potential area for collaboration with RASS. The initiative was presented as a formative experience in which young people take the lead in a mission open to the world. The proposal highlighted new prospects for international coordination, formation, and volunteer work.

The day concluded with the celebration of the Eucharist, led by the Uruguayan Province and presided over by Fr. Federico Salmeron (of the North Argentina Province). He emphasized that the Salesian mission can’t be lived out or carried out in isolation, as it springs from a Church called to walk in communion and to be a sign of God’s love among young people, especially the poorest and most vulnerable. Therefore, building alliances, collaborating, coordinating efforts between provinces, and remaining open to engaging with new social actors are essential ways of strengthening the mission of evangelization and education.

Fr. Michael Conway, director of Salesian Missions in New Rochelle, is one of the participants in the meeting.

Another Overnite Camp at Green Pond

Another Overnite Camp at Green Pond

The Lord gave us a terrific Labor Day weekend, and I took advantage of it to go camping in Harriman State Park on Sunday afternoon, Sept. 6 (after my noon Mass), into Monday morning.  I returned to one of Fr. Jim Mulloy’s and my favorite spots, a campsite high above Green Pond.  The elevation there is 1,110 feet.  I neglected to check the elevation at pond level—or at the parking lot on Kanawauke Road, by which I might have gauged the net gain in elevation on the hike in.

I reached the parking lot around 3:15 p.m.  It was just about full, and a day hiker pulled in right after me.  I think we got the last 2 convenient spaces.  Despite that, that chap and 2 women returning to the lot were the only people I saw that afternoon.

Ascending Island Pond Road

It’s a pretty easy hike, 45 minutes, from the lot to Green Pond by way of the White Bar Trail, Island Pond Rd., and either the Nurian or the Dunning trail.  However easy, since I hadn’t hiked in a while, my legs were ready to stop by the time I ascended the hill above the pond.

I was last in that area over a year ago when I passed by it to a site farther into the woods, off trail.  The site where Fr. Jim and I have camped multiple times (most recently in April 2023) looked like it hadn’t been used in weeks.  There was a bit of litter away from the main area (the fire pit and logs, above).  One bit was a large towel that was left on the grounds weeks or even months ago.  On Monday morning, I set it on the large rock at the fire pit to dry in the sun, then an hour later made a fire, put it by the fire, and eventually burned it.

Meanwhile—on reaching the site, first thing I did was pray Evening Prayer.  Then I put up my tent in the same spot I usually do (a nice mossy cushion beneath it).  To my chagrin, I found that after my last campout (with Bro. Lorenzo), I’d mixed up the tent flies.  I got the incorrect fly to do the job, however. 

Then it was time to prepare supper, already a little later than my confreres would have been eating at home.  I had freeze-dried mac and cheese, Crystal Lite, dried apricots, and a granola bar.  I gathered firewood, which was abundant, the site not having been used lately.  Most of it was small enuf that I didn’t have to cut it, but I did use my saw on a couple of larger pieces.

Red bear bag (left), tent (near center), backpack, fire pit

I hung the bear bag with the rest of my chow and the little bit of trash I’d generated.  I roamed a bit to take some photos, then laid the fire and lit it—not so much for warmth as for atmosphere.  I sat and read an issue of America for over an hour while also feeding the fire.  The insects were slightly pesky.

I retired after 9:00 p.m. and slept fitfully.  The only sounds were acorns falling from the trees prolifically and distant traffic (from the Thruway and possibly one of the roads cutting thru Harriman, Arden Valley and Kanawauke roads).

When I got up at 6:30 a.m., it was 53°--cool enuf for another layer of clothing.  I found a rock more or less flat and celebrated Mass.  After retrieving my food, I made breakfast:  oatmeal with freeze dried apples added, coffee, apricots, and mixed nuts.  Then Readings, Morning Prayer, some meditation, some more reading.  The sky was cloudless and the sun warm, but the area is well shaded.  I laid another fire in order to burn the ratty towel I mentioned above, and alternated between feeding the fire, reading America, and gradually breaking camp—all very relaxing and leisurely.

Green Pond from campsite

At 11:30 I brought out lunch (ham and cheese sandwich, Crystal Lite, apricots, granola bar), then finished packing up.  I doused the fire with a liter of water—and then didn’t have to carry any water in my pack; that’s always the heaviest item.  Even so, the pack must have weighd nearly 30 pounds (tent, sleeping bag, pad, hatchet, saw, cookware, rope, clothes, etc.).

Leaving Green Pond area on the Dunning Trail

At noon I departed, and 40 minutes later I was back at the parking lot.  I met one chap coming up Island Pond Road and saw 3 people way ahead of me returning to the lot.  But the lot was full, so evidently there were a lot of day hikers out on the various trails accessed from that lot.

I made a stop at the Marian Shrine on my way home; got home at 2:45 p.m.

On Tuesday I had an appointment with my dermatologist (happy to know that I use sunscreen and a hat); she found a tick in a spot not readily visible to me, removed it, and prescribed a dose of antibiotic as a preventive.

Photos: https://linkit.shutterfly.com/tx4-BZ

Homily for Thursday, Week 23 of Ordinary Time

Homily for Thursday
Week 23 of Ordinary Time

Sept. 10, 2026
1 Cor 8: 1-7, 11-13
Christian Brothers, St. Joseph’s Residence, N.R.

Students from the Salesian school in
Saragossa, Spain, form a large heart full of joy (ANS)

“Knowledge inflates with pride, but love builds up” (1 Cor 8: 1).

We’re familiar with Paul’s hymn to love in 1 Cor 13.  Here in ch. 8, he already gives us a hint of that.  He counsels his friends in the church at Corinth that love for their brothers and sisters is superior to their knowledge.

What knowledge?  That the pagan gods are nothing.  They don’t exist.  They’re phantoms of the Greek imagination.  So any sacrifice to them—to Zeus, Athena, or any of them—is offered to nothing; it’s not sacred; it’s meaningless.

But some Christians don’t grasp that knowledge.  They still think that eating meat that was supposedly consecrated to one of the gods ought not be consumed, whether purchased in the market or served at a pagan friend’s dinner.  In their eyes it would be sinful.

Those with knowledge know better.  But, Paul says, out of charity toward the sensitive consciences of their less knowledgeable brothers and sisters, they ought to refrain from eating such meat.  That’s love in practice.  That’s humility rather than knowledge inflated with pride.  Paul himself practices that restraint:  “If food causes my brother to sin, I will never eat meat again, so that I may not cause my brother to sin” (8:13).

Paul is telling us to be sensitive to the consciences of our fellow Christians.  In a time of so many diverse opinions and styles of worship, devotions, doing penance, and living the Gospel day by day, it’s still wise and prudent advice.  “Love builds up” our brothers and sisters.

Homily for Feast of Birth of Blessed Virgin Mary

Homily for the Feast of the
Birth of the Blessed Virgin Mary

Sept. 8, 2026
Rom 8: 28-30
Collect
Christian Brothers, St. Joseph Residence, N.R.

Madonna & Child with angels & saints (Ottaviano di Martino Nelli)

“Those who love God, who are called according to his purpose” (Rom 8: 28).

We celebrate the birth of the Blessed Virgin 9 months after we celebrate her immaculate conception.  Our celebration is about her, but even more it’s about “her Son, the dawning of salvation” (Collect).

St. Paul writes of God’s purpose, which is the salvation of the human race.  For that purpose he foreknew, predestined, and called a chosen woman.

In Mary’s immaculate conception we acknowledge that God justified her from the beginning of her existence.  The divine choice and justification are in light of the divine purpose.  God “conformed to the image of his Son” (Rom 8:29) her who would bear the Son “so that he might be the firstborn among many brothers” and sisters (8:29).  The 1st of the Lord Jesus’ many brothers and sisters, in a marvelous Christian paradox, is his mother.

“Those he justified he also glorified” (8:30).  He glorified her with the gift of the Holy Spirit thru whom she conceived her Son (Matt 1:20).  He glorified her by her Son’s giving her as a gift, from the cross, to his beloved disciple (John 19:26), thereby rendering all his disciples his brothers and sisters, and his mother our mother too.  He glorified her by assuming her into heaven when her earthly life was complete.

The birthday of our Blessed Lady becomes, in a sense then, also our birthday.  It foreshadows our birth by water and the Holy Spirit (cf. John 3:5), for we also have been called according to the divine purpose, called to be conformed to the image of the Son, predestined by God’s choice to be justified and glorified along with his mother, our mother.

Salesian Response to Nepal's Devastating Flood

Salesian Response to Nepal’s Devastating Flood

(ANS – Mugling, Nepal – September 7, 2026) – On August 26, a sudden surge in the Bhote Koshi River, on the border between Nepal and Tibet, triggered by the collapse of a glacial mass and an ice avalanche, caused a devastating flood in the districts of Rasuwa, Nuwakot, Dhading, and Chitwan. The force of the water, accompanied by mud and debris (with some waves reportedly reaching heights of 25 feet and more), swept through the town of Mugling, destroying entire villages, roads, and infrastructure. Faced with this emergency, the Salesians were quick to provide a concrete response.

The conditions in which they are operating are far from straightforward. Rescue workers, hampered by the destruction, continue to search for survivors. To date, the death toll stands at over 1,200; more than 4,200 people are still missing, according to the latest figures released by the Nepalese disaster management authority. Thousands of people have lost everything. The lack of safe water and adequate hygiene further increases the risk of disease and infection, particularly in places where displaced people are forced to live in overcrowded conditions. Two pupils from a Salesian school have lost their parents, and many other families are in the affected areas. Fortunately, the Salesian communities have not been directly affected.

The Salesian response

From the outset, the Salesians mobilized a team from the Nepal Don Bosco Society to tackle the emergency and coordinate aid for the displaced, beginning to collect food and relief supplies to store them in local collection centers and distribute them as quickly as possible. The team met with local authorities, secured the necessary coordination and approval for emergency response activities, carried out a rapid assessment of emergency needs and beneficiaries, and established a mechanism for delivering immediate assistance to the most vulnerable families.

Currently, the missionaries have managed to reach Bidur Town Hall in Nuwakot, but have been unable to continue on to Timure and Rasuwa due to a sudden rise in the river level, which has further damaged the already compromised road. For this reason, the army is organizing the distribution of relief supplies to inaccessible areas, using helicopters where road transport is no longer possible. The Salesians are working on a strategic and operational plan to coordinate emergency response, future reconstruction, and the socio-economic recovery of the affected area.

For further information, including on how to support the displaced population in the wake of this immense tragedy, please visit the “Missioni Don Bosco” website.

Homily for 23d Sunday of Ordinary Time

Homily for the
23d Sunday of Ordinary Time

Sept. 6, 2026
Collect
Rom 13: 8-10
Villa Maria, Bronx
St. Francis Xavier, Bronx
Our Lady of the Assumption, Bronx

John Paul II w Card Wyszynski in Poland, 1979.
Wikipedia, public domain

“O God, … may those who believe in Christ receive true freedom and an everlasting inheritance” (Collect).

When Pope John Paul II in 1979 made his 1st trip back to Poland after his election, tens of thousands of Polish factory workers, miners, farmers, housewives, and students gathered to celebrate Mass with him and to hear him preach.  To the great embarrassment of the Communist party bosses, they took up the chant, “We want God!” repeated over and over.

The Communists had promised that eliminating God from Polish life would free people to make great material progress and find happiness.  They’d promised to create a workers’ paradise.  Polish reality was something else.

Government propaganda couldn’t convince anyone to be satisfied with their lives.  Anyone could see thru the lies their leaders told them about religion, progress, and their Soviet friends.  One bitter joke circulating behind the Iron Curtain had a Communist commissar asking a worker how much 2 + 2 added up to.  The worker responded, “How much would you like it to be?”

Human beings want truth—not only in math but in culture, politics, and philosophy.  We want truth about who we are and what we’re created for.  So the Poles demanded God and the freedom to believe, to pray, to practice their faith and to be treated as images of God, not creatures of the state.  They demanded the freedom to “sing joyfully to the Lord, … to come into his presence with thanksgiving” (Ps 95:1-2).

The truth of who we are and what we’re created for involves our dependence on God, who created us in his image and made us for love—love for him and for our sisters and brothers.  “He is our God, and we are the people he shepherds, the flock he guides” (Ps 95:7).  He’s given us a moral code, true guidance toward happiness as human beings.  St. Paul cites part of that in our 2d reading:  “You shall not commit adultery; you shall not kill; you shall not steal; you shall not covet.  You shall love your neighbor as yourself.  Love does no evil to the neighbor” (Rom 13:9-10).

Human experience demonstrates that moral failures—selfishness, sexual misadventures, lies, greed, gossip, etc.—don’t lead us to happiness.  Rather, they enslave us and make us miserable.  Moral failures deny the truth of who we are and what God intends for us.  He made us in his image, created us to be his “beloved sons and daughters” (Collect) and confirmed that in the life, death, and resurrection of Christ.  Adhering to Christ—“we want God!”—keeps us in truth and promises us “an everlasting inheritance” (Collect), the inheritance he wants to bestow on his children, the sisters and brothers our Lord Jesus.

Salesians in Amazon Have New Energy Source

Salesians in the Amazon Have a New Energy Source

Salesian Missions funds photovoltaic energy system

(ANS – Manaus, Brazil – September 3, 2026) – The Salesian province of Manaus, Brazil, installed solar panels at the provincial house and at the Salesian community in Maturacá, located in the Upper Rio Negro region, thanks to donor funding from Salesian Missions of New Rochelle.  The project directly benefited more than 1,000 people, including teachers and students of the Immaculate Conception School and parishioners of Our Lady of Lourdes Parish.

A Salesian explained:  “The project represents much more than mere financial savings. It promotes the use of clean, renewable energy, reduces environmental impact, and ensures better conditions for the Salesians to carry out their educational, pastoral, and social activities, reaffirming the province’s commitment to care for our Common Home.”

For more than 60 years, the Salesians have been in Maturacá, where they share life with the indigenous Yanomami people.  Salesians provide education and pastoral care, offering support to families and promoting human dignity.

With the installation of 26 solar panels, the community now has a system capable of fully meeting the energy needs of the religious house and part of the school and parish.  The use of the diesel-powered generator has been reduced by around 90%, lowering operating costs and reducing the environmental impact.  Furthermore, the system is modular and can be further expanded in the future, enabling it to supply power to other areas of the mission thru the installation of new panels and batteries.

The provincial house, which coordinates the pastoral, educational, and social programs of the entire province, had faced high electricity costs, frequent blackouts, and growing operational demands due to its role as the administrative, logistical, and spiritual center of the province.  The stabilization of its energy and the reduction of costs will generate a cascading impact that directly benefits local teams and, consequently, thousands of people assisted in the Amazon.

Jhone Fonseca Vilela is the 19-year-old father of a 1-year-old son.  He acts as president of the student guild and actively collaborates with the Salesian youth center and school.  He resides at the Xapono Yanomami of Ariabú community, located in Pico da Neblina National Park.  The community has about 1,200 people who preserve their language and traditional customs but face pressures from western culture.  The local population lives with serious problems such as illegal mining, alcohol and other drugs, and poor access to quality healthcare and education.

Vilela reports a profound transformation in the community and school after the solar power was installed.  He noted:  “The use of freezers allowed the conservation of natural proteins for school meals.  This replaced the previous consumption of canned food and ensured access to cold water.  The energy also enabled electricity in classrooms and internet access.  Now students can conduct school surveys, watch instructional videos, and follow news.  The technology has allowed community members to communicate with relatives living in other geographical regions as well.”

Inspired by the severe shortage of health professionals in the region, Vilela’s goal is to complete high school and attend a college or technical training in healthcare.  His main focus for the future is to obtain a profession to directly help his people and provide better living conditions for his own family.

Salesian missionaries in Brazil provide education, workforce development, and social services thruout the country.  Missionaries help to meet the basic needs of youths who are poor, including children living on the street, and provide them with an education and life skills to gain employment, break the cycle of poverty, and lead productive lives.

Source: Salesian Missions

Homily for Saturday, Week 22 of Ordinary Time

Homily for Saturday
Week 22 of Ordinary Time
Memorial of St. Teresa of Calcutta

Sept. 5, 2026
1 Cor 4: 6-15
Collect
Provincial House, New Rochelle, N.Y.

St. Paul mosaic
San Vitale Basilica, Ravenna

“What do you possess that you have not received?” (1 Cor 4: 7).

In the opening section of his 1st Letter to the Christian community at Corinth, Paul has been contrasting the wisdom of the world with spiritual wisdom.  The latter is a gift of the Holy Spirit and is summed up in the cross and the resurrection of Christ.

Paul is disturbed by the factionalism he’s detected among his friends.  They’re more than friends; they’re his “beloved children” because he “became [their] father in Christ Jesus thru the Gospel” (4:15).

He’s disturbed because some members of the community seem to be giving their loyalty to Apollos or Peter, even to him, rather than to Christ and, it appears, to be claiming importance in Corinth based on which apostle they’re following.

That’s not what Paul and Apollos have taught them; they ought not “be inflated with pride in favor of one person over against another” (4:6); ought not be claiming importance on the basis of which preacher they’re listening to.

Paul uses irony—it might be read as sarcasm—to try to bring his “beloved children” back to the reality that all of them have been given a gift, namely the Gospel, the Gospel that’s foolishness in the eyes of the world:  we apostles are “like people sentenced to death, … a spectacle to the world….  We are fools on Christ’s account…; we are weak, … held in disrepute….  We have become like the world’s rubbish, the scum of all…” (4:9-13).

That, as Paul wrote a few verses earlier (our reading yesterday), is what it means to be “servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God” (4:1).  That identifies us with the cross of Christ.  That is the wisdom of God’s Holy Spirit (cf. 2:10-15) that will enable us to come in due time to the resurrection and to reign with Christ (4:8).   That we will possess only because we’ve received it (4:7), not consequent to our own power, wisdom, or nobility, but only by God’s generous gift “in Christ Jesus thru the Gospel.”

Mother Teresa’s life and ministry illustrate Paul’s message.  No one she and her sisters cared for on the streets of Calcutta or in their other houses earned or deserved their care—except insofar as those destitute, sick, and dying people are God’s beloved children.  The sisters freely bestow a gift of mercy on them in the name of the Gospel, in the name of God’s “Son thirsting on the cross” for the hearts of “our suffering brothers and sisters” (ibid.).

St. Teresa of Calcutta and the Salesians

St. Teresa of Calcutta and the Salesians

“Do not let anyone separate your love for Christ from your love for the poor”

Fr. Egidio Vigano', rector major, greets Mother Teresa

(ANS – Rome – September 4, 2026) – On September 5 the Church celebrates the liturgical memorial of St. Teresa of Calcutta, the Albanian-born nun who became an Indian citizen, and died on Sept. 5, 1997.  She was canonized by Pope Francis on September 4, 2016.

Behind the most famous image of Mother Teresa – bent over the sick and dying on the streets of Calcutta – lies a very significant story: that of her long and fruitful relationship with the Salesian Congregation, a bond that spanned almost 5 decades of history and which continues, even today, to inspire a shared commitment to serving the poorest of the poor.

A meeting born of service to the poor

The first documented contact between Mother Teresa and a Salesian dates to October 7, 1950, at the very beginning of her mission. It was Fr. Attilio Colussi, pastor of the cathedral of the Most Holy Rosary in Calcutta, who delivered the homily during the Mass marking the religious profession of the first 12 Missionaries of Charity. Fr. Colussi would continue to offer spiritual guidance to Mother Teresa’s sisters until his death in 1988, at the age of 81, often recalling, during retreats and conferences for religious, the origins of Mother Teresa’s vocation to serve the abandoned.

From that 1st meeting, a network of collaboration emerged that spread thruout India and beyond. Fr. Rosario Stroscio, who served as Salesian provincial of Calcutta between 1967 and 1972, became a central figure for the Missionaries of Charity.  When the government authorities issued an unfounded expulsion order against him for alleged “conversions,” it was Mother Teresa herself who intervened, requesting that he be appointed chaplain to her sisters at Prem Dan Tengra, the large convalescent home for tuberculosis patients.  The government not only revoked the expulsion order but also suggested that he be granted Indian citizenship.

“The point of union between you and us is precisely this: the poor”

The high point of this relationship came in the mid-1980s, when Mother Teresa addressed the Salesian Congregation in Rome directly on May 17, 1984 – during a meeting with the members of the 22nd General Chapter, still led by Fr. Egidio Viganò – a speech that remains the most profound and frequently quoted account of that bond.  Mother Teresa spoke gratefully of the support the Salesians offered to her sisters, especially in Calcutta, and described the Salesian vocation as “this beautiful gift from God … to be bearers of God’s love.”

Recalling Don Bosco, she said that the founder of the Salesians “had a great love for the poor; he always saw Jesus in them” – not “as an act of faith,” but out of “a deep conviction.” From that shared charism arose the phrase that sums up the entire relationship between the two religious families:  “The point of union between you and us is precisely this: the poor!”

In that same address, Mother Teresa recounted episodes that would become part of her most widely known testimony: the thousands of people gathered from the streets of Calcutta and accompanied to a peaceful death, the introduction of the daily hour of Eucharistic adoration in 1973 – a decision made following a unanimous request from her sisters during a general chapter of the Missionaries of Charity – and her encounter with a young Hindu couple who donated the savings they had set aside for their wedding feast to the hungry people of Calcutta.  It was on that occasion that she delivered the exhortation which the Salesians still remember today as a true spiritual testament:  “Do not let anyone or anything separate your love for Christ from your love for the poor!  It is so easy to allow someone or something to take away the joy of loving and serving the poor.  They are God’s greatest gift to us!”

Shared works, from Bengal to Yemen

The collaboration between Mother Teresa and the sons of Don Bosco was not limited to words but took the form of concrete works spread across various regions of India.  In Calcutta, when Fr. Anthony Thaiparambil launched the Ashalayam project in 1985 for street children in a rented room in the Howrah Pilkhana slum – the very setting described by Dominique Lapierre in The City of Joy – it was Mother Teresa who proposed the division of tasks that would shape their collaboration:  “We will take care of the girls.  You commit yourselves to serving the boys.”  Mother Teresa personally took part in the blessing of the center’s homes in 1991 and 1995, and until Christmas 1995, the children of Ashalayam would go to sing at the motherhouse of the Missionaries of Charity, where she herself would hand out sweets to them.

In Guwahati, in the northeastern state of Assam, the collaboration began in 1977 when Fr. Joseph Thelekkatt, headmaster of the local Don Bosco School, took a group of pupils to meet Mother Teresa in Calcutta.  From the wish that Mother Teresa expressed on that occasion – to open a home in Guwahati, even in a rented property – a project emerged which involved the chief minister of Assam, Golap Borbora, and which today comprises 3 homes run by the Missionaries of Charity in the city.  The sisters continue to refer to Fr. Thelekkatt, who later became provincial, as “Mother’s son.”

Still in northeastern India, in the state of Arunachal Pradesh, where Christian institutions had been banned since 1977, a chance meeting in Calcutta in 1986 between Mother Teresa and the young Salesian Fr. Jose Chemparathy led to the 1992 opening of the 1st house of the Missionaries of Charity in Pappunalla, near Itanagar, followed by a 2d house in Borduria, which Mother Teresa visited in person in 1993. It was precisely to bless the first church in Arunachal, in Borduria, that Mother Teresa, that year, declined Pope John Paul II’s invitation to accompany him to World Youth Day in Denver, preferring instead to travel to that remote mission accompanied by the archbishop of Guwahati, Thomas Menamparampil – who had known her since 1958, when he was still a Salesian novice at Bandel.  That legacy endures.

 Nearly 50 years of encounters, shared works, and words that transcended the boundaries of their respective congregations remain today, in the liturgical commemoration of September 5, a living legacy for the Salesian Family.  As Mother Teresa herself told the Salesian chapter members in 1984, invoking the intercession of the founder of the oratory:  “St. John Bosco must be very pleased to see that his congregation upholds this honor for the poorest of the poor.”