THE MESSAGE OF THE RECTOR MAJOR
Fr. Angel Fernandez Artime
MARY HELP OF CHRISTIANS
IN THE “CITY OF ETERNAL
HEAT”
“Once again in my travels around the Salesian world I was able to see for myself that Mary Help of Christians—as Don Bosco promised—is a beacon that illuminates, a safe harbor, and maternal love for her Son and for all of us, her sons and daughters.”
On March 27, in the presence of over 3,000 people, the Rector Major crowned
the statue of Mary Help of Christians with a solid gold crown, gold donated by
the faithful over the course of history, a crown placed only on special
occasions. The statue was brought from Spain on May 23, 1920.
My
dear friends, faithful readers of Salesian
media, and all friends of Don Bosco and his precious charism—
I
come to you in this month of May to tell you, as is my custom, something that I
experienced recently and that has touched my heart. At the same time, it’s made
me reflect on a certain responsibility we have regarding our devotion to Mary
Help of Christians. Then I’ll tell you why.
A Salesian
City
It
took place at the end of March when I was visiting Peru again. I wanted to go to
the most northeastern part of the country to visit a city and a Salesian presence
that is very significant, for several reasons:
-
Because it’s called by its own inhabitants “the city of eternal heat.” Indeed, it’s
very hot, and the humidity makes it feel even more so.
-
At the same time, it’s a very Salesian city. The Salesians have been present
there for more than a century. Thus, a whole style of relationships and
educational ties that are very familiar, very simple—in short, very Salesian—have
permeated that town’s spirit.
-
Above all it’s a very Marian city, one very devoted to Mary Help of
Christians since it lies in the orbit of two Salesian presences.
-
Last, I would like to highlight the magnificent educational service given at
Don Bosco School since the arrival of the Salesians and, especially in recent
decades, with the Salesian presence called Bosconia. This is a humble,
beautiful work in one of the poorer neighborhoods plagued by conflict, on the
outskirts of town. Thanks to the joint effort of many people (both in civil
society and in the Church), and especially thanks to the charism of Don Bosco,
that part of the city continues to be transformed, providing the opportunity
for hundreds of boys and girls to receive technical training. Without this
school, they wouldn’t have any chance for a profession. Here they learn and exercise
a skill and train for the world of work. There’s even a magnificent Salesian
medical center in Bosconia that’s run by one of the official groups of our
Family, the Damas Salesianas (Salesian
Dames).
I
believe I’ve quickly described what I found in the “city of eternal heat.” This
was all worth mentioning, but it’s not all. Here an especially deep devotion
to Mary Help of Christians touched my heart. In an almost impromptu gathering—because
I had announced only a couple of weeks earlier that I’d like to meet them—I met
a crowd of more than 3,000 people who gather at 6:00 p.m. on any given weekday to
celebrate the Eucharist in honor of our Mother, the Help of Christians. I saw
hundreds of children and young people with their fathers and mothers, and
dozens and dozens of boys, girls, and teenagers from the various Salesian youth
centers in the area, along with their teachers, and others. The “eternal heat
of the city” seemed little to me compared to the faith, devotion, interiority
and prayer, the singing and all that I imagined was filling the hearts of those
people, just as it filled mine.
Once
again in my travels around the Salesian world I was able to see for myself that
Mary Help of Christians—as Don Bosco promised—is a beacon that illuminates, a
safe harbor, and maternal love for her Son and for all of us, her sons and
daughters. She is certainly the MOTHER
to whom we ought to abandon ourselves, for she will always bring us to her Beloved
Son. I saw this also in Piura.
It’s a sine qua non
At
the same time, I’d like to add another small comment, a necessary
self-criticism of all of us who are sons and daughters of Don Bosco. It’s this:
the Spirit of God reaches where He wants and touches, as only He knows, the
hearts of His faithful. This is also the case with devotion to the Mother of
the Son of God, but she has always desired to count on us. The criticism I
make is that this devotion to the Mother of Heaven, to our Mother the Help of
Christians, hasn’t been made known like this, with the same intensity and the
same apostolic passion in all parts of the world or in all our presences. There
are places where we have developed schools, have made progress, and have surely
served the good of those people, but we haven’t known how to make our Mother known
and loved. This would be incomprehensible to Don Bosco. I’ll tell you that it’s
equally incomprehensible and unacceptable to me. If, in Don Bosco's Family,
there are people who don’t turn to or spread devotion to the Help of
Christians, they may be devout but they’ll not be sons and daughters of Don
Bosco. She is our Mother. Devotion to the Help of Christians as the Mother of
the Lord and our Mother isn’t optional in the Salesian charism—as it wasn’t
optional for Don Bosco. It’s a sine qua
non.
I
wish with all my heart that she, the Mother of the Beloved Son, she our Helper,
continue to be as special to everyone in all parts of the world as she is in “the
city of eternal heat” (Piura, Peru).
Happy
feast of Mary Help of Christians to everyone around the world.
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