St. John Bosco Today March - May 2019

Special Issue

THE

DON BOSCO

NE TVET

P h ippines St. John Bosco Today | March-May 2019

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Contents St. John Bosco Today Volume 48 I Number 4 | March-May 2019

a Magazine of Information and Religious Culture of the Salesian Family in the Philippines

Message of the Rector Major.....................3 Editor’s Note................................................5 The Relevance of Tvet in the Country’s System of Education...................................6 Don Bosco One Tvet Philippines, Inc......8 Don Bosco Tvet Past Pupils: Work Ready with a Soul .................................................12

EDITORIAL TEAM Owner Salesian Society of St. John Bosco Printer Don Bosco Press, Inc. Publisher Don Bosco Press, Inc. Editor Fr. Bernard P. Nolasco, SDB Associate Editor Fr. Joel Camaya, SDB Copy Editor Fr. Mario Baclig, SDB Coordinators Fr. Fidel Ma. Orendain, SDB (FIS), Sr. Rachel Flor, FMA & FMA Past Pupils, Sr. Sophia Akiko Oshita, SCG, Imelda Benitez-Domitita ASC, Dr. Victor B. Endriga DBAPNF, Maria Junifer Maliglig, adma, Evangeline Dolliente FADS Art Director Early Macabales Graphics & Design Studio DBPI-Multimedia Section Circulation Commission on Social Communication For subscription, please contact Commission on Social Communication 3/F Don Bosco Provincial Office, Don Bosco Compound, C. Roces Ave. cor. A. Arnaiz Ave., Makati City, Philippines Tel (02) 893-8227 loc. 114 | Telefax (02) 892-8174 Annual subscription (4 issues) P300.00 Send your comments and suggestions to salesianbulletinphilippines@gmail.com Visit us at www.sdb.org.ph Copyright© 2019 by Don Bosco Press, Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this magazine may be reproduced without permission from the publisher.

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St. John Bosco Today | March-May 2019

The Province of St. John Bosco Philippines North Tvet Centers..............16 The Province of Mary Help of Christians Philippines South Tvet Centers..............22 The Philippine Province of the Daughters of Mary Help of Christians Tvet Centers.............................................26

Tvet: St. John Bosco’s Living Heritage Reliving St. John Bosco’s Promise through Modern-Day Apostleship.............................28 Commentary on the Strenna 2019...........30 Salesian Family News Cmma Hall Of Fame Award – Word & Life Magazine.....................................................34 Tatlong Singkwentang May Kwento: Don Bosco Tondo's History.........................36 Book Launching of "Tayo na sa Antipolo"....39 Gone to the Father......................................39 Fr. John Benna, SDB Fr. Andres Cervantes, SDB

Strenna 2019 So that my joy may be in you.

Message of the RECTOR MAJOR

(Jn 15,11)

Holiness for you too My Dear Salesian Family,

C

ontinuing our century-old tradition, at the beginning of this New Year 2019 I address myself to each one of you, in every part of the “Salesian world” that as the Salesian Family we constitute in more than 140 countries.

I do so while giving a commentary on a subject very familiar to us, with a title taken directly from the Apostolic Exhortation of Pope Francis on the call to holiness in today’s world: Gaudete et Exsultate.

In choosing this subject and this title I want to translate into our own language and in the light of our charismatic sensitivity the strong appeal to holiness that Pope Francis has addressed to the whole Church.

Therefore I want to emphasize those points that are typically “our own” in the context of our Salesian spirituality, those shared by all the 31 groups of our Salesian Family as the charismatic inheritance received from the Holy Spirit through/by means of our beloved Father Don Bosco, who will certainly help us to live our lives with the same deep joy that comes from the Lord: “So that my joy may be in you.” (Jn 15:11)

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I can assure you that they are addressed to everyone.

To all of you my dear Salesian confreres. To all of you sisters and brothers of the various different congregations and institutes of consecrated and lay life in our Salesian Family. To all of you brothers and sisters of the associations and various groups of the Salesian Family. To the fathers and mothers, to the men and women teachers, to the catechists and leaders in all our centres throughout the world. And to all the teenagers and young people in our great Salesian world.

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St. John Bosco Today | March-May 2019

WHo arE THEsE Words addrEssEd To?

I can assure you that they are addressed to everyone.

To all of you my dear Salesian confreres. To all of you sisters and brothers of the various different congregations and institutes of consecrated and lay life in our Salesian Family. To all of you brothers and sisters of the associations and various groups of the Salesian Family. To the fathers and mothers, to the men and women teachers, to the catechists and leaders in all our centres throughout the world. And to all the teenagers and young people in our great Salesian world.

I accept the invitation addressed by the Pope to the whole Church. His Exhortation is not a treatise on holiness, but a call to today’s world, and especially to the Church, to live life as a vocation and as a call to holiness; a holiness made flesh in this present time, today, wherever each one may be, in our/their current circumstances.

I make my own this always fascinating call to holiness because this “present time” in the Church demands it of us. Like me, all the recent Rector Majors have made very significant contributions to the topic of Salesian holiness and our holy Patrons.

As in previous years, I believe that in addition to being read personally, these ideas may be appropriate and suitable “guidelines” for the educative and pastoral programmes needed in the various different contexts and situations of the “Salesian world”, in which we are operating.

(Continuation on page 30)

fr. Ángel fernández artime, sdb Rector Major

EDITOR' EDITOR'SSNOTE NOTE

Dear Reader, This Special Issue of St. John Bosco Today on the Don Bosco - ONE TVET Philippines will allow you to know what the Salesians of Don Bosco of both the North and South Provinces and the Daughters of Mary Help of Christians are offering to the young people who may have not enough material resources to pursue tertiary education but have so much passion and determination to improve their lives and prepare themselves for a more promising future through technical-vocational education and training.

It is quite unfortunate how some sectors of society keep on branding the Catholic Church as doing nothing to alleviate the plight of the poor in our country. The Don Bosco TVET in the Philippines is just one of the many wonderful things that the Catholic Church is doing for the poorest of the poor. This unfortunate remark shows so much ignorance and arrogance. It becomes more unfortunate if this kind of remark comes from government officials who, instead of harassing the Church, must give their full support for the Church’s endeavors for the poor and the marginalized sectors in our society inasmuch as these endeavors are primarily the duty and the responsibility of the government.

Not to brag anything about it, we just have to let you readers know that you can be a part of this and other noble endeavors that the Catholic Church is involved with in whatever capacity you may see yourselves best fit to extend a helping hand. The Salesians of Don Bosco and the Daughters of Mary Help of Christians together with the different members of the Salesian Family who also are greatly involved in their respective ministries in helping the poor sector of our society.

What St. John Bosco began more than a hundred years ago for the youth who may be poor economically but who are so rich in promises, the whole Salesian Family continue to do in many wonderful ways. The Technical and Vocational Educational Training is just one example. May this Special Issue ignite a spark of awareness and appreciation in your heart, dear reader, on how St. John Bosco continues to be alive today in our Church’s so many works of charity for the poor and the marginalized sectors in our society, in particular, the poor and the needy youth. viva don bosCo!!!

fr. bernard P. nolasco, sdb Editor in Chief St. John Bosco Today | March-May 2019

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The Relevance of Technica and Training (TveT) in The Coun Youth, whom society often labels as “underprivileged,” when welcomed into our TVET centers, become crucial players in a more inclusive and progressive society and living witnesses of Christ’s Gospel values in all aspects of life. witnesses of Christ’s Gospel values in all aspects of life.

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t. John Bosco was highly regarded in his time because of his “foresight” and his “practical” approach and response to the signs of the times. Early in his ministry, he saw many young people out in the streets left to fend for themselves. They lacked the necessary skills and competencies to find a decent job. They became easy targets for exploitation and worked in inhumane conditions. In response, he started the “artisan schools” or technical schools, where the young people could be trained in the trades and become productive members of society.

The situation in the Philippines is not farfetched.

As early as 1971, the Salesians of Don Bosco (SDB) saw the importance and relevance of technical-vocational education and training, not only as a means to give employment opportunities and alleviate poverty, but more so, as the guarantee of the integral development of poor youth. Up to the present, the Salesians continue their educating and evangelizing mission, transforming the youth into “upright citizens and good Christians.”

A major challenge in technical-vocational education and training is the common perception that it is “inferior” to the more “prestigious” baccalaureate or post-graduate

MAIN FEATURE

ONE TVET

al-vocational education ntry’s System Of education

By Fr. Jose Dindo S. Vitug, SDB

degrees, owing to various sociological and cultural factors. This stigma persists up to this time. And yet there is a big demand in industry for skilled workers with the right attitudes, values, and skills. In fact, many graduates who apply in the local employment market are deemed unfit for in-demand jobs as attested to in the “Jobsfit Report” of the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE). Furthermore, many applicants lack also the “soft skills” or interpersonal skills and attitudes needed to land them a job.

The Don Bosco-One TVET Philippines, the network of the eighteen Don Bosco TVET institutions in the Philippines, aims to be at the forefront in advocating technical-vocational education and training as an important element in nationbuilding. In these centers, student-trainees are enabled to apply knowledge to real-life situations and demonstrate this capability. Thus, they learn faster and become better equipped with the knowledge, attitudes, and skills suitable in the workplace.

The achievements and accomplishments of these years prove the effectiveness of the Don Bosco institutions and demonstrate the relevance and specific contribution of TVET to our present society. Our advocacy, coupled with continuous dialogue with other institutions in the government, industry, and the private sector, resolved many misconceptions and

added traction to the impetus of ensuring the place of technical-vocational education and training in a wellbalanced and productive society.

Paradigms and mindsets are slowly changing.

Today, technical-vocational education and training is viewed by many sectors as a tool for productivity enhancement and poverty reduction. What studies pointed out is being confirmed; the economic competitiveness of a country depends on the skills of its workforce. These skills and competencies in turn are dependent on the quality of the country’s education and training systems. (cf. Min, 1995) That is why many countries have taken steps to strengthen policy guidance and regulatory frameworks for technicalvocational education and training and to improve partnerships with the private sector and employers. (cf. Pavlova, 2014) The mission of the Don Bosco-One TVET Philippines calls for greater determination from Salesians and lay mission partners alike. Youth, whom society often labels as “underprivileged,” when welcomed into our TVET centers, become crucial players in a more inclusive and progressive society and living witnesses of Christ’s Gospel values in all aspects of life.

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Don Bosco-One Tvet Philippines, Inc.

By Dr. Marc Laurenze C. Celis

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MAIN FEATURE

ONE TVET

n August 9, 2017, the Don Bosco-One TVET Philippines, Inc., headed by Fr. Jose Dindo Vitug, SDB, Executive Director was launched at the Don Bosco Technical Institute in Makati. This multistakeholder collaboration aims to address the economic exclusion of marginalized youth in the country by assisting the various Don Bosco Technical-Vocational Education and Training (TVET) centers in the Philippines, thus insuring higher quality standards in the centers.

The main objective of the Don Bosco - One TVET Philippines, Inc., is to establish a unified system of governance and animation for the TVET centers of the two Salesian provinces, Northern Philippines (FIN) and Southern Philippines (FIS). Through networking, there shall be more systematized directions and policies, improved quality standards, and expanded linkages with various entities in the government and the academe, and with enterprises, chambers, foundations, and non-government organizations.

THe TveT CeNTeRS IN NORTHeRN PHILIPPINeS (FIN) don bosco TvET Center, San Jose City, Nueva Ecija TvET department of don bosco academy, Mabalacat, Pampanga don bosco youth Center, Tondo, Manila don bosco Technical College, Mandaluyong City don bosco Technical institute, Makati City don bosco Press, Makati City Tuloy sa don bosco, Muntinlupa City don bosco TvET Center, Canlubang, Laguna don bosco TvET Center, Calauan, Laguna don bosco Training Center, Naga City, Camarines Sur don bosco agro-Mechanical Technology Center, Legazpi City, Albay

THe TveT CeNTeRS IN SOUTHeRN PHILIPPINeS (FIS) don bosco Training Center, Borongan City, Eastern Samar don bosco boys Home and vocational Training Center, Dumangas, Iloilo don bosco boys Home Training Center, Liloan, Cebu don bosco Training Center, Victorias, Negros Occidental don bosco Technology College, Cebu City don bosco Technological Center, Balamban, Cebu don bosco Training Center, Pasil, Cebu City don bosco Training Center, Mati City, Davao Oriental

OUR GOALS

1

2

This goal covers TVET training among professions with excellent job perspectives to guarantee decent employment and income, increase the attractiveness of TVET, and promote TVET as a viable alternative for the youth.

This goal can be achieved through stronger collaboration and linkage with government agencies, business chambers, and the academe, as well as through compliance monitoring based on the Technical Education Skills Development Authority (TESDA) and other quality management processes.

Strengthened contribution to the social transformation of society through holistic technical-vocational education and training, and empowerment.

Increased influence on regional/ national technicalvocational policies and implementation schemes.

3

High placement rate and appropriate employment of TveT graduates.

This goal can be realized through networking, the placement of graduates in appropriate companies, and enhanced technology to back up the process.

4

established sustainable structures for networking among Don Bosco TveT centers and other TveT stakeholders.

This goal calls for the establishment of national and regional offices that supervise, monitor, and assist the network, especially in standardization and quality assurance.

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A

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Highlights in 2017

P

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Highlights in 2018

 Launching of the Don Bosco - One TVET Philippines, Inc.

 Curriculum Design and Development (2 batches)

 FIS TVET CAMP

 Authentic Learning and Assessment (2 batches)

 Philippine TVET Conference  Philippine Education Conference

 Gathering of Experts for the Standardization of the Curriculum (7 qualifications)

 Competency-Based Training

 Session Planning

 Seameo Voc-tech Curriculum Design and Development Seminar (2 Batches)

 Gender and Development Course

 FIS TVET Directors Benchmarking  Benchmarking in Puerto Princesa School of Arts And Trade

 SEAMEO Polytechnic (Indonesia)  SEAMEO – China Exchange (China)  Edu-Tech Conference (Manila)  Mati–Banquerohan Agricultural Program

 Study Visit to Don Bosco Technical College, Thailand

 SEA-TVET (Indonesia)

 Benchmarking in Singapore and Malaysia

 FIN Salesianity Formation

 TVET Directors Summit  Review of Policies for Human Resources and Student Policies

 Visibility Event with German Ministry and PCCI  FIN TVET encounter  FIS BOSTEC VII Highlights Advocacy  Mobile Training Center (ANCOP)  Edukasyon.Ph (Visibility project /promotions)

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By the Numbers

Website and AvP Don Bosco-One TVET Philippines, Inc., also launched a website [https:// www.db1tvet.com/] that serves as a hub for trainers, trainees, and industry partners.

Trainers can access resources that will aid them in classroom management.

Trainees can apply for scholarships online and past pupils are updated on the available jobs in their area. Industry partners can keep abreast with what is happening in the organization.

2412 ► Number of students in the Don Bosco TVET system every year

26

►Number of training programs in 2017

42

►Number of training programs in 2018

896 ► Number of trainors

formed in 2017 and 2018

145

► Number of Equipment and Materials Support Projects for upgrading machinery to registration/ accreditation standards

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Don Bosco TveT

Past Pupils:

Work-Ready with a Soul!

BY DR. MARC LAURENZE C. CELIS

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t. John Bosco came into this world during the beginning of the Industrial Revolution. His lessons on life’s hardships started early, precisely when his father died. His mother Margaret taught him and his two other brothers to carry each other’s work-burden and help with the upkeep of their home and farm. She also taught them that work is a privilege and that joy would make it lighter.

Margaret was a woman of tenderness and character. The love she lavished on her sons was immeasurable. There were less words and more deeds. Her lessons on Christian fortitude, fear of God, and upright living were countless. As sturdy as the towering heights of the Alps, she stood as a pillar and exemplar of goodness.

One day, the young John greeted the parish priest who acknowledged his greeting with a curt bow of the head. Deeply saddened, he told his mother, “When I grow up, I am going to be a priest, and I will talk to children all the time. I will do everything for them.” Often John would spend his time with other farm boys. More than once

MAIN FEATURE

ONE TVET

Over 6,000 underprivileged youths reap the benefits of the training programs offered in twenty-three DB-TVET centers nationwide. Companies, both foreign and local, support these endeavors through scholarship grants given to poor but deserving trainees.

he came home with a torn shirt or a bruised cheek. Once, his mother asked him what happened. He replied: “Mama, those boys are not really bad. They just do not have a good mother as I have. They do not know their catechism, and their parents do not take them to church.” He added: “When I am with them, they behave better. Please, Mama, may I go with them?”

God’s plan took hold of the young boy completely.

He learned to juggle, perform magic tricks, and walk the tightrope. Eventually, he opened his own carnival show with an admission price of one rosary, to be recited by all spectators. An added attraction would cost the audience the privilege of listening to his version of the Sunday sermon.

The show grounds were the field in front of their house.

When John was nine years old, God called him through a dream. The young boy found himself fighting a crowd of rowdy boys. Suddenly, a man appeared and said: “Not with blows will you help these boys, but with kindness and goodness.” Before John could ask who that man was, a woman placed her arms around him and said, “Watch what I do, John.” The rowdy crowd of boys was changed into a pack of wild animals. When the woman put out her hand, the beasts turned into a flock of lambs. Confused, John began to cry. But the woman consoled him and said, “This is your field

of work. Be humble, steadfast, and strong!” All throughout his life, this response kept resounding.

Over the course of time, this dream unfolded as St. John Bosco dedicated himself to the ministry on behalf of poor and abandoned youth. It took root in the industrial city of Turin (Italy) and spread throughout Europe and the world. Eventually, this unique mission of exercising “spiritual and corporal works of charity towards the young, especially the poor, and the education of boys to priesthood” reached the Philippines.

Since 1951, numerous Don Bosco schools, centers, and parishes were established all over the country.

Highly significant are the Don Bosco Technical-Vocational Education and Training (TVET) Centers. Over 6,000 underprivileged youths reap the benefits of the training programs offered in twenty-three DB-TVET centers nationwide. Companies, both foreign and local, support these endeavors through scholarship grants given to poor but deserving trainees. They also provide materials and equipment related to their industry. This partnership bears fruit in past pupils who are ready for work, but work-ready with a soul! Below are three TVET past pupils’ testimonies.

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TVET Past Pupils'

TESTIMONIES Paying It Forward

Arjie Arguelles

Luisito Cagape, Jr.

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“

Arjie Arguelles and Luis Cagape Don Bosco Dumangas

I am doing something not to make a profit but to help people. The Salesians who taught me had a genuine vocation for teaching.

I wanted to be that person too.

- Arjie Arguelles

”

Luisito Cagape, Jr., and Arjie Arguelles are both assistant instructors at the Don Bosco Boys’ Home in Dumangas, Iloilo.

“I was a pupil at the Don Bosco Boys’ Home back in 2014— 2015,” said Luisito. “I never saw myself as someone who would teach. But I had always been motivated whenever I saw Fr. Allen Elevado, SDB, teaching. Every time he speaks I felt inspired. He gave me the academic and intellectual hook on which to hang my nostalgia.”

For Arjie, who graduated in 2016 at the same TVET Center, his motivation to teach was different.

“My motivation is deeply personal,” said Arjie. “I struggled hard when I went school. So in every classroom I was assigned, I looked for myself, the kid who was struggling, the kid who did not understand, and was unhappy. But, I suppose, the real reason I teach is ideological. I am doing something not to make a profit but to help people. The Salesians who taught me had a genuine vocation for teaching. I wanted to be that person too.”

In September of 2018, Luisito and Arjie were sent to Padang, Indonesia, for a 30-day Internship Exchange Program under the Southeast Asian Ministers of Education Organization. Here they showed not only their technical expertise but also their deep rootedness in being sons of Don Bosco.

To A Brighter Tomorrow Michael L. Mirabel, Seaman Don Bosco Mandaluyong

Asked about his living conditions then, Michael L. Mirabel recalled his life as a student while living in the squatter area at the Welfareville Compound in Mandaluyong City. His life now is a far cry from his life then. Today, he lives in what he describes as a simple but decent home in Dumaguete City, the fruit of years of hard work, sweat, and tears.

“

All the knowledge in the academic, technical, and spiritual aspects were served to all students as a full package to boost our self-confidence in facing the real battles in life and to pursue our dreams.

From TveT to Salesian

“

Fr. Marlon e. eleosida, SDB Salesian Priest

I would not have dared enter the seminary of Don Bosco had I not felt the love of the Salesians. This is what I am sharing with all the young I encounter.

”

”

Michael is with the manning agency, Maritime Resource Management Ltd., and currently works as the Chief Electrician on a tanker vessel. “Without the certificate I acquired from Don Bosco, there would have been no chance for me to apply for a decent job. All the knowledge in the academic, technical, and spiritual aspects were served to all students as a full package to boost our self-confidence in facing the real battles in life and to pursue our dreams.” He added: “Don Bosco will mold you into a person ready to face the world in all aspects.”

Every Salesian has a unique vocation story. Fr. Marlon E. Eleosida, SDB, or “Fr. Lonx” to everyone, is no different!

Back in 2000, he was a student in the Manpower Skills and Training Center of Don Bosco Technical College, Mandaluyong City. “I was staying with my cousin in Pasig City because I was working then,” Fr. Lonx narrated. “I enrolled under the MSTC and took the Electronics course during the evening classes. I worked from 5AM to 4PM in a small food stall in front of DBTC, then attended the classes from 5PM to 9PM. After that long day, I had to travel back home to Pasig.”

It was not until the middle of the year when Fr. Lonx transferred and stayed in the Pinardi House of Don Bosco Mandaluyong. “I would not have dared enter the seminary of Don Bosco had I not felt the love of the Salesians. This is what I am sharing with all the young I encounter.”

Fr. Lonx is currently assigned to the National Shrine of Mary Help of Christians Parish in Better Living, Parañaque City.

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DON BOSCO

Don Bosco Training Center

TveT

CeNTeRS

San Jose City, Nueva Ecija

Per Agrum Ad Sacrum (From the Field to the Sacred) The Don Bosco Training Center (DBTC) in San Jose City is a technical-vocational training center for marginalized youth. It is managed and administered by religious priests and brothers belonging to the Society of St. John Bosco or Salesians of Don Bosco (SDB). It was registered with the SEC as a non-stock, non-profit corporation on Sept. 6, 1995.

year Established

1995, Diocese of San Jose

flagship Courses     

Philippines North

Province of St. John Bosco (FIN) Compiled by Angelo Luciano 16

St. John Bosco Today | March-May 2019

Automotive Servicing NC I Automotive Servicing NC II Shielded Metal Arc Welding (SMAW) NC II Motorcycle Small Engine Servicing NC II (MSES)



Don Bosco Academy of Pampanga, Inc.

Don Bosco Youth Center Tondo, Inc.

Luctor Et Emergo

Per Angusta Ad Augusta

Tondo, Manila

Mabalacat , Pampanga

(i struggle and i Win)

(Through difficulties to Greatness)

The TVET Department in Don Bosco Academy, Mabalacat caters primarily to the out-of-school youth of Mabalacat and the neighboring towns of Pampanga and Tarlac. It is a TESDA-registered institution, established in 1983 when Don Bosco Academy was still in Bacolor, Pampanga. It was relocated to Mabalacat after the 1995 onslaught of lahar. In 2003, it expanded its courses to cater to the specific training needs of the surrounding industries.

The Don Bosco TVET Center of Tondo was established in 1971 and continues to be managed by the Salesians of Don Bosco. The Center offers the abandoned and out-of-school youth from different areas of Tondo, Manila, and nearby cities and provinces the opportunity to undergo TESDA (Technical Education and Skills Training Authority) accredited technical and vocational training. Thus they can attain gainful employment and help their families rise up from poverty.

year Established

1983, 2003, Archdiocese of San Fernando (Pampanga)

flagship Courses       

Automotive Servicing NC I Automotive Servicing NC II Electrical Installation & Maintenance NC II Electrical Installation & Maintenance NC III Machining NC II Mechatronics Servicing NC II Shielded Metal Arc Welding (SMAW) NC II

year Established

1971, Archdiocese of Manila

flagship Courses      

Automotive Servicing NC I Automotive Servicing NC II Electrical Installation & Maintenance NC II Electrical Installation & Maintenance NC III Machining NC II Mechatronics Servicing NC II

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Don Bosco Technical College Mandaluyong City

Don Bosco Technical Institute Makati City

Ascende Superius (rise up Higher)

M iora Eligo (i Choose the better Things)

The TVET Center, formerly known as MSTC

The Don Bosco TVET Center, Makati, was established in 1971 primarily to offer the youth of various communities technical training as a means of acquiring employable skills. It is both home and school for poor and out-of-school youth who look forward to gainful employment in the future. The center is managed by the Salesians of Don Bosco (SDB).

(Manpower Skills Training Center), in Don Bosco Technical College, Mandaluyong, started in 1971.

It offered a one- year basic machine shop course.

Soon after, it opened new courses: Industrial Electricity, a six-month course on TV-Video, and Refrigeration and Air-conditioning. In 1999, the TVET Center adopted the competency-based training curriculum to improve the delivery of formation. At present, the center offers five 15-month courses.

year Established

1971, Archdiocese of Manila

flagship Courses

 Electrical Installation & Maintenance NC II  Machining NC II  Mechatronics Servicing NC II  Domestic Refrigeration and Air-Conditioning

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year Established

1971, Archdiocese of Manila

flagship Courses

 Automotive Servicing NC II  Machining NC II  Mechatronics Servicing NC II  Shielded Metal Arc Welding (SMAW) NC II  Domestic Refrigeration and Air-conditioning

Tuloy sa Don Bosco Street Children village

Don Bosco School of Printing

Tuloy Foundation, Inc., is a non-government, nonprofit organization registered with the Philippine Securities and Exchange Commission in 1996 and licensed and accredited by the Department of Social Welfare and Development to “provide residential care services for children and youth.” It was founded in 1993 by Fr. Marciano “Rocky” Evangelista of the Salesians of Don Bosco with ten lay volunteers committed to the cause of poor, abandoned, and homeless children. It pursues the charism of St. John Bosco who dedicated himself to the care and training of poor boys in the 1800’s.

Founded in 1993 and granted official recognition in January 1995, the Don Bosco School of Printing, managed by Don Bosco Press, Inc., seeks to bring into the printing industry a new breed of skilled workers. The one-year TESDAsupervised skills training/intensive program enables the trainees to acquire knowledge and develop specific skills in the print production processes. Christian formation and extracurricular activities give focus to spiritual growth, family spirit, proper work attitude, and the ideals of Bosconian service. Included in the training program is values-formation to prepare the students to face the challenges in their future career in printing industry. The program covers traditional printing methods as well as leading-edge printing machines.

Alabang, Muntinlupa City

year Established

2001, Diocese of Parañaque

flagship Courses        

Automotive Servicing Refrigeration and Air-condition Servicing Building Wiring Installation Baking Science Technology Computer Hardware Servicing Basic Metal Arc Welding (short course) Culinary Arts Dressmaking (Industrial Sewing Machine Operation)

Makati City

year Established

1993, Archdiocese of Manila

flagship Course 

Printing Press Operations

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Don Bosco College

Don Bosco TveT Center

Ad Maiora Natus

Spes et Ministerium (Hope and Ministry)

In 1963, Don Bosco Seminary College, Canlubang, was established form qualified Salesian personnel to take care of the different Don Bosco institutions in the Philippines. Later on, in 1972, the college opened its outreach program, the Don Bosco Manpower Training Center (DBMTC), now known as the Technical Vocational Education and Training (TVET) Department. In answer to the urgent need of qualified industrial workers, the center offers to poor but deserving young people quality education as well as spiritual and values formation.

The Salesians of Don Bosco (SDB) started their missionary presence in Southville 7, Site 3, Calauan, Laguna, in 2009. The first step was the celebration of the Eucharist in the basketball courts and streets of the different relocation sites. Eventually, they moved into sports, gathering the youth through basketball and volleyball. There was no football field then. Today, they offer technical-vocational education and training.

Canlubang, Laguna

Calauan, Laguna

(born for Greater Things)

year established

1972, Diocese of San Pablo (Laguna)

flagship Courses       

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Automotive Servicing NC II Electrical Installation & Maintenance NC II Machining NC I Machining NC II Mechatronics Servicing NC II Shielded Metal Arc Welding (SMAW) NC I Shielded Metal Arc Welding (SMAW) NC II

St. John Bosco Today | March-May 2019

year established

2010, Diocese of San Pablo (Laguna)

flagship Courses   

Automotive Servicing NC I Computer System Servicing NCII Shielded Metal Arc Welding (SMAW) NC II

Don Bosco Training Center Naga City

Don Bosco Agro-Mechanical Technology Center Legazpi City

Natus Ad Perficere (born to Perform) The presence of the Salesians of Don Bosco in Naga City, Camarines Sur, first took the form of a parish, Our Lady of Mount Carmel Parish. In 1997, Archbishop Leonardo Z. Legaspi, OP, DD, urged the Salesians to hurry and put up a training center for the out-of-school youth. This was finally realized in 2010, with Bro. Enrique Enriquez, SDB, as the first technical director.

Don Bosco Agro-Mechanical Technology Center in Banquerohan was the fruit of the vision and initiative of the bishop of Albay, Bishop Jose Sorra, DD. In his pursuit and passion to help the underprivileged, marginalized and less fortunate youth yet have the enthusiasm to learn and be responsible, said bishop deemed it proper and decent to build a training center for the said purpose. This was also paralleled to the development of virtues and character attributed to being good Christian followers in the workplace and in the community as well.

year established

year Established

2010, Archdiocese of Caceres

2001, Diocese of Legazpi

flagship Courses

flagship Courses

  

Automotive Servicing NC I Computer System Servicing NCII Shielded Metal Arc Welding (SMAW) NC II

  

Machining NC I Shielded Metal Arc Welding (SMAW) NC II Motorcycle Small Engine Servicing NC II (MSES)

St. John Bosco Today | March-May 2019

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DON BOSCO TveTCeNTeRS Don Bosco Training Center Borongan, Eastern Samar

Don Bosco Boys Home and vocational Training Center Dumangas, Iloilo

History has recorded the words of the American General Jacob H. Smith, in retaliation for the Balangiga massacre in 1901. “The interior of Samar must be made a howling wilderness.” The return of the Balangiga bells recalls the destruction wrought on the island and the unwavering spirit of the people. Samar continues in the wilderness of Nature’s fury by way of typhoons, as well as of Nature’s glory in the lush virgin forests, unexplored caves, and wide unconquered rivers. The Salesians are doing their share with the establishment of the Don Bosco Training Center in Borongan City.

year Established

2001, Diocese of Borongan (Eastern Samar)

flagship Courses

 Computer System Servicing NCII  Shielded Metal Arc Welding (SMAW) NC I  Motorcycle Small Engine Servicing NC II (MSES)

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St. John Bosco Today | March-May 2019

Don Bosco Boys Home and Vocational Training Center is located in P.D. Monfort South, Dumangas, Iloilo. It was founded in February 1998 as a charitable institution for the marginalized boys and out-of school youth of Panay and Negros. This first and only Don Bosco institution in Panay owes its existence to the late Archbishop Alberto Piamonte and Hon. Narciso D. Monfort.

year Established

2006, Archdiocese of Jaro (Iloilo)

flagship Courses

 Machining NC I  Shielded Metal Arc Welding (SMAW) NC I  Shielded Metal Arc Welding (SMAW) NC II

Philippines South

Province of Mary Help of Christians (FIS) Compiled by Angelo Luciano

Don Bosco Balamban Technological Center, Inc

Don Bosco Training Center

Don Bosco Technological Center in Balamban is under the supervision of Don Bosco Technical College in Cebu City.

The daily persistence of Bishop Alo, DD, paid off with the coming of the Salesians in Davao Oriental in the early 1990s. In a ten-hectare land in Dahican, Mati, the training center and parish were established. In 1993, the center offered training courses in mechanical and automotive technologies. Later, it ventured into agricultural skills to meet the requirements of the farming communities in Davao.

Mati, Davao Oriental

Cebu City

year Established

1998, Archdiocese of Cebu

flagship Courses

 Shielded Metal Arc Welding (SMAW) NC I  Shielded Metal Arc Welding (SMAW) NC II  Basic Gas Metal Arc Welding Course (GMAW/MIGPlate)  Basic Flux Cored Arc Welding Course (FCAW Plate)

year Established 1979, Diocese of Mati

flagship Courses    

Automotive Servicing NC II Machining NC II Shielded Metal Arc Welding (SMAW) NC II Motorcycle Small Engine Servicing NC II (MSES)

St. John Bosco Today | March-May 2019

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Don Bosco Technical College Cebu City



Don Bosco Boys Home –Training Center Liloan, Cebu

Ardua NonTimeo (i fear no Hardships)

1952, Archdiocese of Cebu

Don Bosco Boys’ Home was initially the Cebu Juvenile Home, set up in 1972 to house young detainees who violated the curfew hour during the martial law era. It was the initiative of Lt. Col. Eddie Foronda of the Philippine Constabulary (PC). The institution was managed by the Hijas de Jesus Sisters. After ten years of operation, it was handed back to the Philippine Constabulary owing to lack of personnel and funds. Doña Maria Aboitiz, a great philanthropist, asked the Salesians of Don Bosco to take over the institution. Fr. Peter Zago, SDB, could not refuse. In 1986, the institution was reborn as the Don Bosco Boys’ Home. Eventually, a TVET center was established.

flagship Courses

year Established

In 1949, several concerned citizens of Cebu City established Cebu Boys Town to house the street kids and orphans of the city. In 1954, the work was offered to the Salesians of Don Bosco, who accepted it without hesitation. A year later the institution was relocated to its present location in Punta Princesa, Cebu City. Boys Town grew into an educational institution, and gained a name in the technical field.

The training center for out-of-school youth stands on par with the college.

year Established    

24

Audeo et Spero (i dare and i hope)

Carpentry NC II Electrical Installation & Maintenance NC II Machining NC II Motorcycle Small Engine Servicing NC II (MSES)

St. John Bosco Today | March-May 2019

1989, Archdiocese of Cebu

flagship Courses

 Computer System Servicing NCII  Shielded Metal Arc Welding (SMAW) NC I  Motorcycle Small Engine Servicing NC II (MSES)

Don Bosco Training Center Pasil, Cebu City

Ad Astra Per Aspera

Don Bosco Training Center Victorias City, Negros Occidental

Altiora Quaero

(To the stars through difficulties)

(i seek Higher Things)

Don Bosco Youth and Training Center in Pasil, Cebu City, epitomizes the Salesians’ continued presence among the poorest in the Philippines. In 1967, Pasil was the garbage dump of the city. Into it the Salesians of Don Bosco dared to set foot and pitch tent.

Don Bosco Training Center-Victorias is the outreach of Don Bosco Technical Institute, Victorias City, Negros Occidental. A survey done in 2002 revealed that the people of Victorias City perceived Don Bosco as a school for the rich, with no outreach programs for the poor. Thus was the training center perceived. It eventually opened on June 1, 2003.

Fueled with a strong desire to help the community, especially the young, the Sto. Niño Parish was established in 1970. Later in the early 1980s, the Skills Training Center was opened to provide vocational skills training to poor but deserving out-of-school youth, and keep them off the streets and away from gangs.

year Established

1979,Archdiocese of Cebu

flagship Courses       

year Established

1952, Archdiocese of Bacolod (Negros Occidental)

flagship Courses

 Computer System Servicing NCII  Shielded Metal Arc Welding (SMAW) NC I  Motorcycle Small Engine Servicing NC II (MSES)

Automotive Servicing NC II Dressmaking NC II Furniture Finishing NC II Machining NC II Shielded Metal Arc Welding (SMAW) NC II Motorcycle Small Engine Servicing NC II (MSES) Motorcycle Small Engine Servicing NC II (MSES)

St. John Bosco Today | March-May 2019

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DON BOSCO TveTCeNTeRS Mary Our Help Technical Institute for Women

Mary Help of Christians School Agri-technical Center

Cebu

Oriental Mindoro

The Blessed Maddalena Morano Convent of the Salesian Sisters in Barangay Parang, Calapan, was established in 1995 under the Apostolic Vicariate of Calapan (Oriental Mindoro). The Sisters manage the Agri-technical Center. They also are involved in campus ministry, public school catechesis, outof-school youth education programs, dormitory ministry, ministry among indigenous people, Mangyan outreach program and the Convergence Team of Oriental Mindoro.

flagship Courses

 Animal Production (Swine) NC II  Animal Production (Poultry-Chicken) NC II.

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St. John Bosco Today | March-May 2019

In 1986, The Women Development and Technology Center was established in Minglanilla, Cebu, to provide technical-vocational education and skills training to graduates or non-graduates of secondary education. In 2005, the Department of Technical Vocational Education was separated from the Mary Help of Christians School, and became known as the Mary Our Help Technical Institute for Women.

flagship Courses       

Industrial Arts (IA) Electronic Products Assembly and Servicing NC II Bookkeeping NC III Housekeeping Servicing NC II Barista Servicing NC II Food and Beverage Servicing NC II Dressmaking NC II

SALeSIAN SISTeRS

Daughters of Mary Help of Christians Compiled by Angelo Luciano

Mary Our Help Technical Institute for Women

Laura vicuña Technology Center

In 2008, the Mary Our Help Technical Institute for Women opened to serve the youth of Barrio Mabiga, Mabalacat, Pampanga, under the helm of the Mary Help of Christians School.

The Laura Vicuña Foundation, Inc., was organized in 1990 to build the capacities of children in need of special protection through integral education and development. The Technology Center in Manila offers technical/ vocational courses which allow the street children and other indigent youth from depressed communities to take TVET courses. In 2000, the center implemented the Dual Training System (DTS), which offers trainees higher chances of self-sufficiency and employment through a dual in-plant and in-school training. While studying, they already earn 75% of the minimum wage.

Manila

Negros Occidental

Pampanga

flagship Courses  Book keeping NC III  Computer Hardware Servicing NC II  Cosmuer Electronics Servicing NC II  Industrial Electronics  Travel Services NC II

Laura vicuña Women Development and Training Center

The Laura Vicuña Women Development and Training Center was established in 1999 in Hacienda Malihao, Barangay 20, Victorias City, Negros Occidental. The Sisters also handle an oratory, catechesis, COME (Community Mobilization for Education) Project, and a boarding house.

flagship Courses     

Bookkeeping NC III Commercial Cooking NC II Dressmaking NC II Housekeeping NCII Tailoring NC II

flagship Courses

 Bookkeeping  Instrumentation and Control Servicing  Consumer Electronics Servicing

St. John Bosco Today | March-May 2019

27

TeCHNICAL-vOCATIONAL

eDUCATION AND TRAINING:

ST. JOHN BOSCO’S

LIvING HeRITAGe

By Jose Victor Pelayo

Reliving St. John Bosco’s Promise through Mod

s

t. John Bosco, popularly known as Don Bosco, was an Italian Roman Catholic priest who devoted his life to the education of disadvantaged and abandoned youth. While caring for them in his center in Turin, he developed a teaching method based on love rather than punishment, a method that later became known as the Salesian Preventive System. This system of education drew inspiration from a dream he had when he was nine years old. According to his memoirs, he dreamt of a group of poor boys who were ill-mannered and quarreling among themselves. He tried to stop them with force. But a noble man appeared and told him that he would have to persuade the boys with gentleness and kindness rather than with physical force. He interpreted this dream as a sign from God. He did his best to win the attention of poor boys, learning juggling and acrobatic feats by observing traveling entertainers and performing before them. His performances would begin and end with prayers and a bit of catechism.

Regarding education, St. John Bosco said: “Experience has taught me that if we wish to sustain civil society, then we should take good care of the young.” To ensure the best care for the young, he fused together education and evangelization, attempting to form citizens of civil society and of God’s kingdom.

St. John Bosco was a follower of the spirituality of St. Francis de Sales. To him he dedicated his works when 28

St. John Bosco Today | March-May 2019

he founded the Society of St. Francis of Sales. The Salesians’ charter defined the society’s mission as “the Christian perfection of its associates obtained by the exercise of spiritual and corporal works of charity towards the young, especially the poor, and the education of boys to the priesthood.” Since its birth in 1859, the mission of the Salesian Congregation has unfolded in leaps and bounds throughout the world, reaching the shores of the Philippines.

The Salesian Fathers and Brothers opened their first foundation in the Philippines in 1951. Since then, they have been embodying the wisdom of their founder through the establishment of schools, training centers, and youth centers.

Worth noting was the rise of various Don Bosco technicalvocational education and training (TVET) centers throughout the country. In the hope of attaining and sustaining genuine progress, the men and women of these TVET centers have been devoting their time and expertise in forming poor young men and women who envision better lives for themselves and their families. In addition to providing the necessary skills for productive and gainful work, they also form them into upright citizens and good Christians.

This actually is the core of the educating and evangelizing mission of the Salesians. Fortunately, numerous international and local partners are willing to support these students with financial subsidies.

Stories abound of Don Bosco TVET graduates who carry fond memories of their life in the centers and share

MAIN FEATURE

ONE TVET

dern-Day Apostleship the different paths they took to reach their present status. Some shared their starting points—their humble beginnings and their common goal of improving their lives. They believed that by studying in a Don Bosco TVET center, they would develop the skills necessary for their dream jobs. Others talked about the teachers and instructors they came to admire and with whom they continue to keep in touch as dear friends. Some students took the radical path of becoming Salesians themselves.

The sense of gratitude was common to all; they were happy to have chosen the Don Bosco TVET center. When asked if they would send their children to study in Don Bosco, their answer was a resounding Yes. They would have not become a professional worker, a seaman, an instructor, or a priest, if not for the education and formation they received in Don Bosco.

Simply put, the mission of St. John Bosco, which goes back to its roots some hundred and fifty years ago, continues to unfold in these graduates. The pillars of Salesian education—reason, religion, loving kindness— helped them reach their fullest potential and become responsible members of society and the Church. Now, they are the modern-day apostles of St. John Bosco.

Now, they are bringing his message and charism to their workplaces and homes, to their communities and localities. St. John Bosco’s living heritage indeed!

In the hope of attaining and sustaining genuine progress, the men and women of these TVET centers have been devoting their time and expertise in forming poor young men and women who envision better lives for themselves and their families.

St. John Bosco Today | March-May 2019

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COMMENTARY ON THE

STRENNA 2019 This commentary of the Rector Major about the Strenna 2019 will be presented in four parts in the four issues of St. John Bosco Today beginning with this March-May 2019 issue. To get the full text of the commentary, please visit: http://www.bosco.link/index.php?document_ srl=44113&mid=RetorMajor

God Calls Everyone To Holiness

I should imagine that not a few people, even among ourselves and certainly among the many young people who heard the Pope’s call, have felt that the word ‘holiness’ may sound somewhat remote, in many cases very remote and unfamiliar in the language of today’s world. It is quite possible that there are cultural obstacles or interpretations that tend to confuse the path of holiness with a kind of alienating spiritualism that is fleeing from reality. Or perhaps at best the term “holiness” is understood as a word applied to and applicable only to those who are venerated in the pictures or statues in our churches.

Therefore, what the Pope is doing is quite admirable and even “daring” as he presents the perennial relevance of Christian holiness that is to be seen as a call coming from God Himself in his Word, and is proposed as the goal in every person’s journey. In Gaudete et Exsultate (GE), the Pope wrote: God “wants us to be saints and not to settle for a bland and mediocre existence. (GE,1) The call to holiness is a natural part of our Salesian tradition (Saint Francis of Sales). The appeal of Pope Francis attracts attention above all on account of the force and the determination with which he maintains that holiness is a call addressed to everyone, not just to the few, in so far as it corresponds to God’s fundamental plan for us. It is aimed therefore at ordinary people, at those people we accompany in their ordinary daily lives consisting in the simple things typical of ordinary people.

It is not about a holiness for the heroic few or for exceptional people, but about an ordinary way of living an ordinary Christian life: a way of living Christian life rooted in the present day with the dangers, the challenges and the opportunities that God offers us as life unfolds.

Sacred Scripture invites us to be holy/saints: “You therefore must be perfect as your heavenly Father is perfect.” (Mt 5:48) “ Be holy for I the Lord am holy.” (Lev 11:44) There is then an explicit invitation to experience and to bear witness to the perfection of love that is not something 30

St. John Bosco Today | March-May 2019

different from holiness. Holiness, in fact, consists in the perfection of love; a love that above all was made flesh in Christ.

Saint Paul in the letter to the Ephesians referring to the Father also writes: “In Christ, the Father chose us before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. He destined us in love to be his sons through Jesus Christ according to the purpose of his will to the praise of his glorious grace which he freely bestowed on us in the Beloved.”

(Eph 1: 4-6) No longer servants therefore but friends. (Jn 15:15) No longer strangers and sojourners but fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God. (Eph 2:19) Therefore each and every one of us is called to holiness: that is to a full and fulfilled life according to God’s plan, in communion with Him and with our brothers and sisters.

It is therefore not a question of a perfection reserved to a few, but of a call addressed to everyone. Something that is infinitely valuable yet not a rarity, but rather is part of the common vocation of believers. It is the beautiful proposal that God makes to every man and woman.

It is not the pursuit of a false spirituality that takes one away from the fullness of life, but the fullness of being human made perfect by Grace. It is life to the full as Jesus promised.

Not with a standardized, trivialized, and rigid approach but a response to the ever-new breath of the Spirit, that creates communion while showing appreciation for the differences.

Indeed, the Spirit is at the origin of the noble ideals and undertakings which benefit humanity on its journey through history.

It is not a question of a collection of abstract values subscribed to and shown outward respect, but of a harmony of all those virtues that incarnate the real values in one’s life. It is not merely the ability to reject evil and embrace good, but a constant attitude ready with joy to live the good life well. It is not a goal that is reached in an instant, but an ongoing journey accompanied by God’s patience and kindness, that involves personal freedom and commitment. It is not an attitude that excludes what is different, but rather a fundamental experiencing of what is true, good, just and beautiful.

Finally, holiness is living according to the beatitudes, so as to become salt and light in the world; it is journey towards being fully human as is every genuine spiritual experience.

Therefore becoming holy does not require cutting ourselves off from our own nature or from our brothers and sisters, but rather living a full and courageous human life and an experience (sometimes hard won) of communion and relationship with others.

“Becoming a saint” is the first and most urgent task for the Christian.

Saint Augustine declares: “My life will be true life, all full of thee.” It is in Him, God Himself that the possibility of the path of holiness in following Christ is to be found. The path of holiness is made possible for a Christian by the gift of God in Christ: in Him – of whom the saints and especially the Virgin Mary are a marvellous reflection – is revealed simultaneously the fullness of the face of the Father and the true face of man.

In Jesus Christ the face of God and the face of man shine out together. In Jesus we meet the man from Galilee and the face of the Father: “He who has seen me has seen the Father.” (Jn 14:9) Jesus, the Word made flesh, is the complete and definitive word of the Father. From the moment of the incarnation, the will of God is fulfilled in the person of Christ. He shows us in his life, in his words and in his silence, in the choices he makes and in his actions, and above all in his passion, death and resurrection, what God’s plan is for man and woman, what His will is and the way to correspond to it.

This plan of God for each one of us today is simply the fullness of Christian life that is measured according to the extent to which Christ lives within us and to the degree in which, with the grace of the Holy Spirit we model our lives on that of Jesus the Lord. Therefore it does not mean doing extraordinary things but living in union with the Lord, making his actions, his thoughts and behaviour ours. In fact going to Holy Communion means expressing and bearing witness to the fact that we want to take up and make our own the style of life, the way of living and the very same mission of Jesus Christ.

The Second Vatican Council itself in the Constitution on the Church firmly proposed the universal call to holiness and declared that no one was excluded: “In the various types and duties of life, one and the same holiness is cultivated by all who are moved by the Spirit of God and who obey the voice of the Father, worshipping God the Father in spirit and in truth, following the poor Christ the humble and cross-bearing Christ in order to be made worthy of being partakers in his glory.” (LG, 41)

The “Holiness Of Next-Door Neighbours” And The Universal Call To Holiness

Edith Stein, while still an atheist, wrote about having received a decisive impetus towards conversion from two encounters: one with the wife of a friend killed in the war, who having become a widow, in spite of intense sorrow demonstrated the surprising light and strength of faith; the other was in a church (where Edith had gone simply out of artistic interest) with an elderly woman who had come in with her shopping baskets in the middle of a busy day to spend a moment of deep trust and

adoration with Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament.

Don Bosco had as his mother and first teacher Margaret Occhiena: a simple uneducated peasant woman, with no theological training, but with a wise heart and an obedience based on faith.

Saint Teresa of Lisieux used to say that as a child that she understood little of what the priest was saying, but it was enough for her to look at the face of her father Louis to understand everything.

None of these lay people – Anna Reinach a friend of Edith, the unknown woman with the shopping bags, Mama Margaret or Papà Louis Martin – ever thought in their lifetime of being holy, nor were they aware of the influence they were having on the people around them through their ordinary way of acting.

The presence of these simple and determined people, of these “next-door saints” – as Pope Francis describes them (GE,7) reminds us that what is important in life is to be holy, not to be declared saints one day. In addition, it helps to reflect on the fact that the canonized saints first of all reached the simple holiness of the people of God. They all share the same glory in a deep and unswerving communion.

To live holiness then is the experience of being forestalled and saved, and learning to correspond to this faithful love. It is the responsibility of responding to a great gift. From this point of view, perhaps one of the most important contributions to Christian spirituality is that made by the Bishop of Geneva Francis of Sales with his efforts to propose holiness for everyone taking “devotion” out of the cloisters into the world.

In his splendid work “Introduction to the Devout Life” he writes: “As in the creation, God commanded the plants to bring forth their fruits each one according to its kind, so he commands all Christians who are the living plants of his Church to bring forth the fruits of devotion, each according to his quality and vocation. Devotion ought then to be not only differently exercised by the gentleman, the tradesman, the servant, the prince, the widow, the maid and the married woman but its practice should be also adapted to the strength, the employments and the obligations of each one in particular.

Wherever, then, we are or we may, should aspire to a perfect life.

The history of the Church is strongly marked by the many women and the many men, who with their faith, with their love and with their lives have been like beacons that have illuminated and continue to illuminate so many generations throughout time including the present. They are a living testimony to how the power of the Risen Lord in their lives has reached such a level that like St Paul they have been able to declare so many times without using the words: “It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me.” (Gal 2:20). And they have demonstrated this, sometimes through the heroism of their virtues and sometimes through the sacrifice of their lives in martyrdom, and at other times through a life constantly offered for others even until death. (GE, 5) At the same time there is a holiness without a name, that of those who have not achieved the honours of the altar, whose lives may not always have been perfect, yet even amid their faults and failings they kept moving forward and proved pleasing to the Lord. (GE, 3) This is the holiness of our own mother or grandmother or of others close to us; it is the holiness of a marriage which is a beautiful path St. John Bosco Today | March-May 2019

31

of growth in love; the holiness of fathers who develop, grow to maturity, and give themselves generously to their children, often with unexpected sacrifices. Men and women, the Pope recalls, who work hard to support their families. The sick who bear their illness patiently and with a spirit of faith, in union with the suffering Jesus; elderly religious, with a life given and who never lose their smile or their hope. (cf. GE, 7) It can be said with certainty that in every age of the history of the Church and everywhere in the world there have been and still are saints of all ages, and in all conditions of life with very different personal characteristics.

Pope Benedict XVI expressed this very well when speaking about his personal experience, he said: “I should like to add that for me it is not only the great saints that I love and know well who are the “sign-posts”, but also the simple saints, that is to say the good people that I see in my life, who will never be canonized. They are ordinary people, one might say, without any signs of heroism, but in their everyday goodness I see the truth of the faith.”

Certainly we find all this is the way so many people have incarnated the Christian path in their lives. Some may seem “small” and others “great” but all have followed an attractive and fascinating journey.

Pope Benedict concludes with a very valuable expression which in my judgment sums up in a magnificent way the message of the Strenna for this year, when he says: “Dear friends, how great and beautiful but also simple is the Christian vocation seen in this light! We are all called to holiness; that is what the Christian life is.”

Mary of naZarETH: a uniQuE liGHT on THE PaTH of HolinEss

All these simple and very often anonymous paths of holiness always have a model to look to and on which to reflect.

Christian holiness has in Mary of Nazareth, the Mother of the Lord, of the Son of God the most beautiful and the closest model.

Mary is the woman of the “Here I am” of full and total availability to the will of God. Saying: “let it be to me according to your word” (Lk 1:38), Mary is saying that she finds full and deep happiness in everything that “let it be” implies in faith.

Not only when the Son leaves home and is separated from her because he has to carry out the mission of the Father; but also at the final moment in which Mary experiences sorrow for his crucifixion and death. An atrocious sorrow for a mother to experience.

In Mary, the Mother of the Lord, we can witness the richness of a life that has accepted God’s plan at every moment; a life that has been a constant “Here I am” said to God. How fascinating it is, from this point of view to contemplate Mary and to meditate on the value of human life and its full significance in the context of eternity!

The courageous acceptance of God’s mysterious plan leads Mary to become the mother of all believers, the model for each one of us in listening to and welcoming the Woes of God and the safe guide towards holiness. And this because she teaches us that only God can make our life great. “Only if God is great is humankind also great. With Mary, we must begin to understand that this is so. We must not drift away from God but make God 32

St. John Bosco Today | March-May 2019

present; we must ensure that he is great in our lives. Thus, we too will become divine; all the splendour of the divine dignity will then be ours.”

For this reason it is impossible to think that the easy path of holiness can be followed by the Christian without having recourse to Mary our Mother. Looking to her is to learn how to believe, how to hope, how to love. And if we pray like her and with her we shall certainly experience in our daily journey that consolation that can come only from God. In addition, invoking her as the Mother of the Son of God we shall open our hearts to the gift of her intercession as Mother of the Son and of her? His sons.

WiTH salEsian sEnsiTiviTy

Therefore it could be said that to become a saint is to have everything. If one does not become a saint one loses everything. The goal of holiness and the invitation almost tender, to achieve it is also the great message of Don Bosco, the pivot on which hinges his whole spiritual proposal and his life witness.

The holiness that Don Bosco proposes is easy and pleasant, but also strong as he suggests. In Dominic Savio’s declaration: “I want to become a saint, I must become a saint. I can have no peace until I become a saint” one can hear much – if not everything – of what Don Bosco had managed to convey to him, following the sermon in which Dominic had heard these encouraging words: “It is easy to become a saint. Everyone should become a saint. There is a great reward waiting in heaven for those who try to become saints.” Don Bosco himself continued writing that this talk was like a spark that set off into a consuming blaze the love of God in Dominic Savio’s heart.

In the wisdom of Don Bosco, who curbed Dominic’s desire for penance and recommended to him instead fidelity in his life of prayer, in his studies and in duties done well, and diligence in recreation (and we can also say in the whole area of relationships in life), there emerges the awareness, typically Salesian, of the universal call to holiness.

In founding the Society of Saint Francis of Sales in the first place, and then (together with Mary Domenica Mazzarello the co-foundress) the Institute of the Daughters of Mary Help of Christians, Don Bosco proposed as the object, right up to today, the sanctification of its members.

Don Rua reminded the Salesians of this shortly afterwards when he exhorted them in these words: This is what our beloved Don Bosco taught us in the 1st article of the Holy Rule, where it says that the object of our Pious Society is first the Christian perfection of its members and then various works of charity, both spiritual and temporal on behalf of the young.

Without that the whole apostolic endeavour on behalf of youth would prove fruitless. Don Bosco knows perfectly well that the first, most radical and decisive way to help others is to be saints.

In this school of new and attractive apostolic spirituality, Don Bosco interpreted the gospel from an original pedagogical and pastoral point of view which meant a new “fusion” of the common elements of Christian holiness that was well balanced, congenial and regulated; the virtues and the means to holiness had their own proper place, quantity, symmetry and beauty that were characteristic.

Word & Life Elevated to the

CMMA Hall

of Fame

By Gladys Ramos

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St. John Bosco Today | March-May 2019

SALeSIAN FAMILY NeWS Word & Life Magazine was recently

elevated to the Catholic Mass Media Awards (CMMA) Hall of Fame during the ceremonies held at the Star Theater on November 14, 2018. It joined the ranks of past Hall of Fame awardees in different media categories like 24 Oras, TV Patrol, Pepito Manaloto, and Maalaala Mo Kaya.

Msgr. Gabriel Viola, Secretary to the Papal Nuncio to the Philippines, handed the special rock trophy to Fr. Salvatore “Sal” Putzu, SDB, General Editor of Word & Life Publications, who excitedly went up the stage together with his staff.

The CMMA grants the Hall of Fame award to “excellent mass media works, rooted in Filipino and Christian values, that have proven to stand the test of time.” This prestigious honor is only given to awardees which have won in the same category for five times. Word & Life Magazine has previously won the CMMA for Best Youth Magazine in 2004, 2013, 2014, 2015, and 2017. It also won a Special Citation in the same category in 2007.

Making God’s Word Come Alive

Word & Life Magazine is a nationally-circulated magazine that helps its readers make God’s Word come alive in their life. It blends the fun, the educational, and the spiritual in a mix that young people love and relate to – with Sunday readings and reflections, comics, short stories, trivia, advice, entertainment columns, and inspiring articles. It also has insightful articles on hot issues that affect society, such as HIV/AIDS, extrajudicial killings, death penalty, gay marriages, divorce, and abortion. Good role models featured in the magazine include saints and ordinary people like Efren Peñaflorida (kariton classroom for the poor), Kritzia Santos (scholarship and education for the poor), and Joanne Mosquera (library for war-torn Marawi) who are making a difference in their own small ways.

The multi-awarded youth magazine was actually born in 1989 as the Philippines was celebrating the National Bible Year. Fr. Sal, a Salesian missionary from Italy, was impressed with the faith of the Filipinos.

But he noticed that although they went to Mass and were devoted to the Blessed Virgin Mary, they had very limited knowledge of the Bible. Since they lacked a proper foundation on the Word of God, their faith did not grow and did not always translate into action. Their lives and behavior did not seem to be sufficiently influenced by the teachings of Jesus.

To address this problem, Fr. Sal established Word & Life Publications, with Word & Life magazine as its maiden publication.

Impacting Lives

Since then, Word & Life Publications has touched the lives of its readers, young and old, for almost 30 years. Nicole Joan Arroyo, a high school student in General Santos City, shares, “Sometimes I find it hard to understand and reflect on a certain Gospel reading; but because of those stories (in Word & Life Maazine), I learn new things and come to a realization because somehow, I can relate with those experiences and they inspire me.”

Even seminarians and Church servants find inspiration from Word & Life Maazine. Iane, a seminarian from Bicol, shares, “I am very pleased with this magazine because it really helps me strengthen my vocation to the priesthood.

It’s very, very helpful.”

Amazing Writers and Artists

The magazine is home to CMMA award-winning writers and artists which include Fr. Sal Putzu, SDB (Serviam Award for Individual, Best Comic Story), Fr. Bernard Nolasco, SDB (Hall of Fame for Best Entertainment Column), Glady V. Ramos (Best Entertainment Column, Best Comic Story, and a Special Citation for Special Feature), Dondy S. Daguio (Best Comic Story), and Alden C. Sarmiento (Best Comic Story).

Fr. Remo Bati, SDB, former chaplain to Filipino migrants in Rome, has also previously received a Special Citation for Short Story and an award for Best Comic Story for the OFW (Overseas Filipino Workers) stories he has written for Word & Life. Raymund E. Narag, a criminologist and assistant professor in Southern Illinois University, wrote about his experience in a Philippine prison and won a Special Citation for Short Story in 2016. Dann San Miguel, a Fine Arts student from UP Diliman, also won for Best Comic Story in 2017.

Also in its roster of regular contributors are leaders from different renewal communities like Rina-Lorena R. Manuel (Ang Ligaya ng Panginoon, Pathways) and Lee-an Rosal (Live Christ Share Christ). Aimee Joy Bautista, a speaker/ missionary of Live Life, also writes for the youth magazine.

Recently, Bobby Quitain, a sought-after inspirational speaker, Evangelization Head of Ang Ligaya ng Panginoon, and Regional Director of Lingkod ng Panginoon, also became a regular columnist for Word & Life.

Gift for Pearl Anniversary

The CMMA Hall of Fame award is a fitting gift, ushering in the Pearl Anniversary of Word & Life as it celebrates its 30th year on June 2019. It is a wonderful encouragement to continue the legacy of St. John Bosco, the founder of the Salesians, who wrote and published newsletters, biographies, plays, reflections, and history books. Indeed, Don Bosco considered writing as an important part in educating and evangelizing the people, especially the youth.

And Word & Life is doing just that.

St. John Bosco Today | March-May 2019

35

Tatlong Singkwentang May Kwento:

DON BOSCO TONDO’S HISTORY

By Bro. Jogar Villanueva, SDB

St. Paul VI in Tondo (1970)

“I believe that, young or old, we have as much to look forward to with confidence and hope as we have to look back on with pride.” - Queen Elizabeth of England The district of Tondo, Manila has its impoverished image of the cramp and congested slum areas, the violence brought about by gang fights and crimes, the huge trucks in the port area, the notorious landfill of the Smokey Mountain, the grandiose feast of the Sto. Nino, the roaming image of the Black Nazarene and the shopping mega of Divisoria. And yet 50 years ago, Don Bosco begun its presence in this district of the metropolis. In spite the penurious situations of Tondo, hope and life emanate in the faces and stories of the poor young people that puts into life Don Bosco Tondo’s motto: Per Angusta, Ad Augusta (Through Difficulties to Greatness).

THE INITIAL PLAN

Soon after Rev. Fr. Pierangelo Quaranta, SDB completed his term as Rector of Don Bosco Mandaluyong in 1964, he started working on the plan to establish a Salesian presence in Tondo.

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St. John Bosco Today | March-May 2019

The idea was a result of over a 10-year on and off surveys and inspections conducted by the pioneers of Salesians in the Philippines. It is interesting to know for a fact that areas beside the Pritil Market and former site of Bureau of Public Works and Highways near Pier 10 were earlier identified as possible site of a youth center before it was settled to the present location of Don Bosco Tondo near Pier 16. The plan was made possible through the generous heart of the late industrialist Don Andres Soriano, Sr. of San Miguel Corporation who believed that the preventive system of Don Bosco could help the people rise from the misery of slums.

THE FOUNDATIONS

THE YOUTH CENTER (DBYC) (1968-2018)

In 23 July 1967, the first Filipino Cardinal and then Archbishop of Manila, His Eminence Rufino J. Santos joyfully celebrated the first Holy Mass inaugurating the new foundation and laying down of the cornerstone in a swampy area of Barrio Magsaysay.

First Lady Imelda R. Marcos attended the ceremony.

SALeSIAN FAMILY NeWS On the feast of the Immaculate Conception of that same year, the Salesian work started with Fr. Miguel Solaroli, SDB leading the Salesians, and Sr. Gloria Agagon, FMA leading the Salesian sisters. Lay volunteers from Don Bosco Makati, and later on from the Holy Child-Tondo, visited the center every Sunday to celebrate the Holy Mass and conduct catechism, games and film showing.

THE PARISH (SJBP) (1969-2019)

Two years after, in 10 July 1969, the same Cardinal and Archbishop of Manila officiated the canonical erection of the very first Salesian parish in the Philippines under the Archdiocese of Manila. It was named after St. John Bosco with Rev. Fr. Leo Barratoni, SDB as the first parish priest. Fr. Miguel Solaroli, SDB was the first rector of the Salesian community.

Since then, the Don Bosco Youth Center and the Parish Community worked hand in hand in carrying out the mission of Don Bosco for the young and the poor. During this time, a group of Salesian Sisters or FMAs came around to ensure equal opportunity of growth for the young girls of Tondo. The youth center provided social services, technical and seamen’s trainings and youth programs while the parish provided spiritual formation and liturgical means for the people.

Visit of the Vatican Secretary of State Agostino Cardinal Casaroli (Sept 1971)

THE TRAINING CENTER (TVET) (1971-2021)

In November 1971, both the Salesians and the Salesian Sisters introduced a free vocational and technical skills training program intended for boys and girls. Its main purpose is to cater the educational needs of the area’s qualified young men and women who are abandoned or from underprivileged families. The first courses offered were Auto-Diesel Mechanic, General Machine Shop and Carpentry and later Welding Technology, Electronics, Garments Technology, Refrigeration & Air Conditioning and Computer Technology, Tailoring and Dressmaking and later Hi-Speed Sewing and Secretarial Program in 1987. The latter course was upgraded in 1989 when the Computer Education was integrated in it.

Mother Teresa with +Fr. Peter Zago and the FMA during her stay in DB Tondo (1977)

THE SAINTS’ GRACIOUS VISITS

A great moment in the history of the Don Bosco Tondo was the papal visit of His Holiness, St. Paul VI in 29 November 1970. Already with a chapel and three basketball courts, Don Bosco Tondo played host to the Vicar of Christ who blessed the sick, visited the house of a poor family (Navarro Family) and shared with the people who flocked to Don Bosco. It was a grace-filled and momentous event, indeed.

In 1977, St. Mother Teresa of Calcutta also visited and stayed with the FMAs in Don Bosco Tondo while laying the foundation of the mission of her institute in Tayuman.

Visit of the Papal Nuncio Archbishop Bruno Torpigliani (1990) St. John Bosco Today | March-May 2019

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The Salesians of Don Bosco in front of the parish church during the FIN Province Day last November 30, 2018

►

THE GREAT TEST OF FAITH

The Rector Major with some catechists of the DB Youth Center

►

Salesians of Don Bosco from Tondo

►

The Rector Major, Fr. Angel Fernandez Artime, SDB, during his visit to DB Tondo in March 2016

Through the years, the collaborative efforts of the priests, religious and the lay people have tremendously grown up and went beyond traditional clergy and lay relationship because a lot of successes were achieved from the spiritual richness of the people in Tondo. Hence, when a massive fire in April 1, 1971 gutted down the Barrio Magsaysay, the people recognized the lost and the pains, but they immediately rise in hope and believe that God never left them. In this tragedy, the hands of God and His graces were manifested among the residents. This paved the way for government to undertake zoning/physical and infrastructure development/improvement in the area.

THE FRUITS OF YOUTH MINISTRY

The shepherding of the Salesians in Don Bosco Tondo provided direction and spiritual enlightenment among the residents and even helped discern vocation among the young boys and girls in the area. At the present there were many Salesian vocations that came from DBYC Tondo some of them are: (SDBs) Fr. Rafael Galve, Fr. Roger Tamares, Br. Enrique Enriquez, Fr. Fernando Urbano, Fr. Eduardo Hila, Fr. Benhur Borja, Fr. Ramon Borja, Fr. Abner Santos, Fr. Ezekiel Veloso, Fr. Luis Badilla, Fr. Samson de Leon and Cl. Daniel Gonzales; (FMAs) Sr. Runita Borja, Sr. Evelyn Buhangin, Sr. Purificacion Cruz, Sr. Juliet de Leon, and Sr. Araceli Domingo. They are proofs that the Salesian youth minsitry is truly alive in Don Bosco Tondo.

DON BOSCO TONDO AND BEYOND

DBYC Tondo will continue to trust God in doing the work of Don Bosco among the poorest of the poor. 50 years is just another beginning. The Salesian mission in Don Bosco Tondo is far beyond imagination in the next half-century years to come. With the graces from Divine Providence that come in various ways and means, the building of the Kingdom of God in the hearts and families of the young people of Tondo will continue to grow.

VIVA DON BOSCO!!!

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St. John Bosco Today | March-May 2019

SALeSIAN FAMILY NeWS Book Launching of

"TAYO NA SA

ANTIPOLO"

By Reverend Jerome Quinto, SDB

Parañaque City, the Philippines, 24 January 2019 – Don Bosco Center of Studies (DBCS) celebrated the feast of our titular patron Saint Francis de Sales, on the third day of novena to Saint John Bosco, which is also the first monthly commemoration of Mary Help of Christians in the Philippine church’s Year of the Youth with the launching of the book “Tayo na sa Antipolo: A Theo-dulâ of the Alay Lakad sa Antipolo” by Fr. Juvelan Paul Samia, SDB.

The Author

Tayo na sa Antipolo: A Theo-dulâ of the Alay Lakad sa Antipolo by Fr. Juvelan Samia, SDB is the fourth of the DBCS Monograph Series which includes: Theo-Dulâ of the Salubong: A Filipino Theological Dramatic Approach to Popular Religion by Fr. Rafael M. Dela Cruz Jr., SDB (2014); Youth Discipleship by Fr. Raymond Victor Acuña (2014); and, A Body Broken for Broken People: Divorce, Remarriage, and the Eucharist by Fr. Francis J. Moloney, SDB (2015).

FR. JOHN BENNA, SDB Born: November 20, 1933 Died: November 17, 2018

FR. ANDRES CERVANTES, SDB Born: February 2, 1932 Died: November 21, 2018

Gone To The Father

St. John Bosco Today | March-May 2019

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St. John Bosco Today | March-May 2019