Fr. Paul Albera's Annual Strenne

Fr. Paul Albera’s Annual Strenne

(ANS – Rome – Dec. 15, 2023) – “The Venerable Don Bosco, in educating youth, made such effective use of the ‘good word’ spoken each night with loving fatherly simplicity, that he was able to ensure that this very important educational medium was uniquely effective on the last day of the year. It was the strenna, that is, the Christmas or New Year's gift, which seemed more precious to our good father than any other gift, and therefore he enjoyed offering it to his beloved boys.... Those dear moments remained indelibly imprinted in our hearts.” These were the words that the 2d successor of Don Bosco, Fr. Paul Albera, used in 1916, to describe the meaning, value, and effectiveness of the strenna.

Fr. Albera, like Fr. Rua, always pursued the direction of great fidelity to Don Bosco – so much that he was called “the little Don Bosco” – and if one wants to trace a difference with Fr. Rua, it is that Fr. Albera had two models to imitate: the founder and his 1st successor. His term of office was described as being “in the footsteps of Don Bosco and Fr. Rua,” and Pope Pius X himself outlined the program: “Do not deviate from the customs and traditions introduced by Don Bosco and Fr. Rua.” With such an imprint, it is therefore not surprising that Fr. Albera’s strenne follow in the footsteps of his predecessors.

Instead, what was new with Fr. Albera is that his strenne were reported for the first time in the Acts of the Superior Chapter (at least the final strenna, in 1921); and that there is one expressly addressed to the Salesian past pupils. In 1911 Fr. Albera presided over the first of the past pupils’ international congresses.

Fr. Albera was Rector Major for 11 years (from 1910 to 1921), and we received 9 strenne from him, which tend to be quite brief and concisely written, but at the same time rich in spiritual suggestions.

Among the recurring themes of Fr. Albera’s strenne, explicit references to Don Bosco could not be missing as an example to be imitated and invoked; but even where the reference is not explicit, the memory of Don Bosco is always present and proposed as a model. As for the other topics, the idea of the strenna continued as a useful tool to recall the means for growth in Christian or religious life.

Finally, considering that Fr. Albera’s term of office was largely marked by the "useless slaughter" of the First World War and its long trail of death and destruction, the invitation to live life from a Christian perspective, involving commitment and sacrifice and looking to the afterlife, became even stronger.

Here, then, are the strenna messages offered by Fr. Albera:

1913: - For the confreres: "Make the prescribed spiritual reading regularly and with commitment. Don Bosco highly recommended it and attached so much importance to it. If we can, do it together then, but no one should in any case deprive himself of this spiritual fodder and should supplement it in some way when good reasons prevent him from being there with the community.”

- For the boys: “Holy love for the angelic virtue. Everyone knows how often and insistently Don Bosco returned to this topic when speaking to young people. As we approach the 25th anniversary of his departure from this earth, there is no better way to recall his memory than by instilling in our young people a particular commitment to observe in their thoughts, affections, words, and deeds the virtue that he held most dear and that he wanted above all to shine in his children.”

1914: – For the confreres: “Make the monthly rendiconto regularly, humbly, and simply.”

– Repeat to the young people in our institutes what our Ven. Don Bosco said: “Make sure that the devil never finds you unemployed.”  

1915: – For the Salesians. “I will pay a very fervent visit to Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament every day. And I will ask for the grace for me and my confreres to persevere until death in our vocation.”

- For the young people. "I will make Dominic Savio’s motto my own: ‘Death but not sin.’”

1916: - For the Salesians: “The constant practice of charity ut sint unum, that is, so that they truly form one heart and one soul.”

– For our dear pupils: “Be brave everywhere and always, and never let yourselves be overcome by human respect in the practice of religion and virtue.”

1917: – For the Salesians. "We show our affection for our Venerable father Don Bosco by scrupulously observing the Constitutions he has given us and that the Church has approved.”

– For the young people. “Make every confession as if it were the last one of your life.”

1918: – “Seize every opportunity to practice mortification.”

– For the past pupils: .”..Heartfelt unity of all members with their own association and of all associations with each other.”

1919: – “I will now be more generous in responding to the good inspirations that the Lord sends me.”

1920: – For the confreres: “May we serve the Lord with great delicacy of conscience.”

- For the young people: “Ensure the effectiveness of confessions through a commitment to put your good resolutions into practice.”

1921: – For the Salesians: “Convinced that humility is the foundation of perfection, we will endeavor to practice it as best we can in thoughts, words, and deportment.”

– For the young people: “Never forget that God finds his delight in a soul adorned with his grace. If, on the other hand, the soul is stained by sin, God abandons it, and it becomes the sad dwelling place of the devil. Therefore, be on guard against sin!”