Saintly Saturday - St. John Bosco

Today’s saint is St. John Bosco, whose feast we celebrate January 31. Born on August 16, 1815, in Becchi, Italy, John lost his father just two years later, leaving him and his brothers to be raised by their mother. They were very poor and worked laborious lives as farmers, but nonetheless, John became very devout, eventually coming to discern a vocation to priesthood. After witnessing a troupe of traveling performers, John decided to learn their tricks in order to hold people's attention. With this technique, he would perform for the children he played with and afterwards, while they were still attentive, repeat the homilies he had heard. In order to be ordained, he would need an education, so he left home at the age of twelve, finding a job at a vineyard. He worked there for a few years before meeting Fr. Joseph Cafass, was willing to help him. He entered seminary and was ordained a priest in 1841, being first assigned to the city of Turin.

At the time, there was great poverty in Turin, so John worked with the children of the poor. After seeing the great number of young men and boys who were in need, both materially and spiritually, he worked tirelessly to help them, by finding work and suitable lodging. Later, in 1859, John established the Society of St. Francis de Sales, or the Salesians, in order to assist him in his ministry of helping to keep young boys out of trouble and guide them in their faith formation. John Bosco died on January 31, 1888 and was canonized on April 1, 1943.

Through the example of his life, St. John Bosco teaches us to extend our hand in help towards the needs of others, not just the material needs, but the spiritual needs. Furthermore, he shows us that we can do this without going halfway across the world. Not everyone is called to leave their homes and lives to help others. This is an incredible calling and hundreds of men and women respond to God’s grace everyday through this way of life! But like St. John, we are also called to reach out to those who are in need right in front of us, regardless of whether or not we travel a thousand miles in order to meet them. So, let’s start there.

St. John Bosco, pray for us!