Salesian Cooperators of St Philip the Apostle Province at Eastern United States, Eastern United States 00000 - The Salesian in the World:

By: Brittany Marie Harrison

The vocation of the Salesian Cooperator is one of the unique innovations of St. John Bosco (Don Bosco). Originally conceived as far back as the beginning of the Oratory, when he invited his mother, the Servant of God Margaret Occhiena Bosco, to assist him in caring for the young boys who surrounded him, this vocation gradually developed into something more far-reaching.

There were always good hearted-people desiring to do more to aid Don Bosco in assisting the young. These people, not satisfied with supporting Salesian work with monetary donations, wanted to donate their time and talents, as well. Blessed Michael Rua’s mother was one of many women who eventually joined Don Bosco’s mother, Margaret, in caring for the boys. They did the mending, the laundry, the cleaning and cooking, and cared for the altar linens and vestments of the Oratory chapel. They are regarded as the first Salesian Cooperators along with diocesan priests like Don Borel and St. Joseph Cafasso, who gave their time and talents to aid Don Bosco in teaching and caring for his boys.

Don Bosco also found help among the other alumni of his Oratory. These men never forgot the priest who had so tirelessly cared for their spiritual and material needs when they were young. They assisted him by teaching their trades in the Oratory workshops to boys rescued from the streets by Don Bosco. A number of future Salesian Brothers came from these young men. Yet Don Bosco was not satisfied with having only priests, coadjutors, and sisters. He felt there was something missing in his Salesian Family, something truly unique in his era.

Thus, the vocation of the Salesian Cooperator became clearer in Don Bosco’s mind and he organized his helpers and benefactors into a more cohesive unit with the common mission and spirit of the Salesian Family. After a number of failed experiments, Don Bosco finally crystallized the vocation of the Salesian Cooperator.

What Don Bosco envisioned the Salesian Cooperator as, and what the political and religious climate of Piedmont, the center of the Italian revolution at the time, allowed it to be, differed. Don Bosco had hoped the Salesian Cooperators would be an organization of laypeople and priests who, not bound by vows, would belong to the Society of St. Francis de Sales, (now known as the Salesians of Don Bosco) while living in their own homes. These people would strive to observe the rules of the Salesian Society and assist the young when needed. This plan did not succeed because the Church had never seen such an innovation and at a time when religious congregations were being suppressed in Italy, success seemed unlikely. The very idea of a blending of the religious and the secular in the lives of individuals seemed impossible.

So what happened to Don Bosco’s great vision of the Salesian Cooperator? What became of the “Salesian in the world”? After the set back concerning the impossibility of having “extern members” in 1864, Don Bosco drew up new drafts of the rules for his “secular Salesians” in 1874. The Cooperators, during this time were known by many different names, until finally on May 9, 1876, Pope Pius IX approved the rule and name of the Union of Salesian Cooperators.

In the mind of Don Bosco, the identity of the Salesian Cooperator was always clear; how this vocation was manifested evolved over time. In our era, the Cooperator is seen as a true Salesian in the world blending the religious and secular in service and innovation. At the core of this vocation is love of God and the people He has placed in each one’s path. Whether current tasks are the mending of clothes, as Don Bosco’s mother did, or teaching the faith to the young like Don Borel, the Salesian Cooperator understands that nothing is small in the eyes of God. If you do what you do with the intention of loving God and his people, you can obtain the goal you strive for – your own sanctification and that of others. What matters is not the job or duty of the moment, but the spirit with which it is done – the Salesian spirit – loving kindness, reason and religion.