Saint Dominic Savio

On the occasion of Saint Dominic SAVIO’s feast

« Gaudete et exsultate »: an appeal for holiness in today’s actual world is Pope Francis’ third Apostolic Exhortation.

“To be holy does not require being a bishop, a priest or a religious. We are frequently tempted to think that holiness is only for those who can withdraw from ordinary affairs to spend much time in prayer. That is not the case. We are all called to be holy by living our lives with love and by bearing witness in everything we do, wherever we find ourselves. Are you called to the consecrated life? Be holy by living out your commitment with joy. Are you married? Be holy by loving and caring for your husband or wife, as Christ does for the Church. Do you work for a living? Be holy by laboring with integrity and skill in the service of your brothers and sisters. Are you a parent or grandparent? Be holy by patiently teaching the little ones how to follow Jesus. Are you in a position of authority? Be holy by working for the common good and renouncing personal gain”. (Gaudete et Exsultate, n. 14).

As is usual for Pope Francis, these are very clear and simple words! I would now like to focus our attention on the road to holiness as we find it in DOMINIC SAVIO’s life. GC23 and the first letter of Fr. Pascual Chávez, Don Bosco’s ninth successor, as well as n. 31 of Mbegu (youth dossier) will be my guides as I present the following thoughts, which are useful both to the young and to ourselves since “our holiness is a holiness for the young and with the young; because as we strive for holiness, both the young and the Salesians work together: either we become saints with them by accompanying them and learning at the same time with them, or we will never be saints” (AGC, n. 379, p. 22-23).

All of us are called to live “a high level of ordinary Christian life” as Pope Saint John Paul II used to say. At the Paris Youth World Days in 1997, he addressed the young and said: “Be holy!” As a matter of fact, when delving into Dominic Savio’s life, we find that holiness is possible as we execute our daily tasks, in each day’s ordinary life, wherever we are and whatsoever situation we find ourselves in. Once, on the occasion of the feast of Don Bosco’s holy patron, Dominic had written a little note asking for his preferred gift: “Help me to become a saint”. For Don Bosco holiness is not complicated and I would like to illustrate this in 6 points.  

1. Holiness is to be found in our daily activities, in the down to earth reality of every day

Daily life is where God’s presence is to be found and where is discovered his endless activity. Salesian experience contains in itself this joyful and at the same time fundamental intuition: it is not obligatory to detach oneself from ordinary life in order to find the Lord. Not everything is God, but everything can tell us something about God: the beauty of nature, the wonders of science, love of one’s parents, friendship among the young, commitment and courage found in the young in youths’ movements, studies and work… Don Bosco would say: “Do your very best every day when you are doing something and that’s sufficient to become a saint!” No use looking very far; it’s day by day that holiness becomes possible.

2. Holiness is a predisposition of hope to bathe in joy.

For youngsters in a Salesian house, holiness consists in being always joyful. Both Don Bosco and Dominic Savio illustrate this fact! Don Bosco sees it as a continuous joy, at the same time true and profound where one sees life as being a feast, and faith as happiness itself. There is no way you’ll find authentic joy in cheap pleasures, but you can find it by giving of yourself! True joy is to be found in goodness, in love, in charity, in sacrifices and in efforts that make you grow and become a man.

3. Holiness consists of a strong and personal friendship with Jesus-Christ.

Comradeship and friendship are very important values in the life of youngsters. We can also have an experience of friendship with Jesus or, at least, we can feel this friendship growing as we go along. This is how Jesus can become our greatest friend in life. But in order to reach that goal, we first have to know who Jesus is, to listen to what he says, meet him and spend some time with him. Slowly but surely, we might become fascinated by him, and want to love him even more and desire to follow him throughout our Christian life. It may even happen that we will be attracted by him and want to commit ourselves because of him. Indeed, once having established close ties of friendship with him, one that surpasses ordinary admiration or sympathy, we will manage to deepen our knowledge and adhesion to the person of Christ. This is how we will be able to accept willingly and generously what the Gospel demands of us, no matter how difficult this may be.  

In order to achieve this friendly relation with Jesus, we need personal prayer founded on the     Word of God. We also have to let ourselves be transformed by the sacraments of reconciliation and of the Eucharist. Dominic Savio was a saint because he was familiar with Christ!

4. Holiness is attained through a sentiment of belonging to the Church, and by being always more responsible and courageous.

Youngsters love to be together and this is true of those in our Salesian houses where they feel a great need to stay together, to form a community and become an efficient symbol of the Church we want to build together. And if they love to get together and stay like that, it is surely because they have something in common; not only that, but they have “someone” in common. The one who brings us together is none other than our common friend: Jesus Christ, our one and only Savior. He is the one who brings us together in communion, because our world needs more than ever before brotherhood and peace. In order to reach that goal, we must work for greater freedom, more truth, justice and love. Each one must start by doing this himself: we create communion first of all in our heart and in our life. Then, once we have established a profound and authentic friendship with Christ, it will be easier to create communion and manifest it wherever we may be or what we do.

5. Holiness is a concrete and active commitment for the greater good.

Youngsters can become apostles among their friends, or others of their age. The history of the youth at the Oratory during Don Bosco’s lifetime is full of examples of this apprenticeship of Christian life: serving others in an ordinary way and once in a while in an extraordinary manner. Wherever we work, be it in a school or parish or in youth movements, the usual services or tasks we accomplish are situations where we already get a feeling that we are on the road leading to personal holiness. Holiness does not consist of inspiring words, but rather in “doing something good” and in “being someone” in the midst of our brothers. It demands that we acquire an attitude of nearness and of solidarity with others who suffer and thus end up by brotherly sharing.

6. Holiness also means relying on the motherly presence of Mary. 

We are all aware of the importance of a mother in the family. Mary, the mother of Jesus, occupies a very important place in our houses. On their way to becoming young adults, our teenagers need Mary’s help in order to pass safely through this period of change. It is very simple to call on Mary because she exercises an exceptional power in favor of the children of God and the disciples of the Lord Jesus: where one finds Jesus’ mother, disciples become believers (cf. her presence at Cana) and are capable of remaining faithful (cf. her presence at the foot of the Cross). Let us all turn our looks upon Mary, Mother of the Church and of the Salesian family: let us learn with Mary and from her how best to contemplate Jesus Christ, our friend and brother.

Dominic Savio became a saint because he always remained close to Jesus! He became a saint by living daily his ordinary life, with hope and joy and through a solid friendship with Jesus, at the same time constantly living in a Christian community and rendering services to others and having great confidence in Mary, Help of Christians. In Don Bosco’s houses, anyone can really become a “saint”.

Camiel Swertvagher, sdb.