Salesian Cooperators of St Philip the Apostle Province at Eastern United States, Eastern United States 00000 - Things Every Salesian Cooperator Should Know

Ø      Officially founded: May 9, 1876, Turin, Italy

Ø      Over 35,000 members worldwide

Ø      21 Religious Organizations make up the Salesian Family - the Salesian Cooperators are one of three founded by Don Bosco (SDBs, FMAs, Cooperators)

Ø      Mama Margaret, Don Bosco’s mother, is traditionally considered the first Salesian Cooperator. We could add to her name those of Father John Borel, Saint Joseph Cafasso (Don Bosco’s spiritual director), Blessed Michael Rua’s mother, Saint Benedict Joseph Cottolengo, and Count Charles Cays (who later became a Salesian priest) among many others.

Ø      (Blessed) Pope Pius IX, and Pope Leo XIII were Salesian Cooperators (BM Vol. XIII, 472, 489)

Ø      “The same field of action is proposed for Salesian Cooperators as for the Society of Saint Francis de Sales (Salesians of Don Bosco) with which they intend to associate.” Don Bosco, Regulations for Salesian Cooperators, IV

Ø      “… [T]his Association is considered by the Holy Father as a Third Order with this difference - that in the older Third Orders, Christian perfection was proposed in the exercise of piety. This (the Association of Salesian Cooperators) has for its principal end an active life in the exercise of charity towards one’s neighbor and especially towards youth who are in moral danger.” Ibid., III

Ø      The Association of Salesian Cooperators (ASC) is technically a Society of Apostolic Life (a Public Association of the Faithful according to Canon Law - can.301, §3), but we can also be referred to as a Third Order, Vol. X (pg 560) of the Biographical Memoirs states that Don Bosco wanted to make it clear that “… he intended to give the associate members of the Congregation of Saint Francis de Sales the status of regular tertiaries.”

Ø      “The members of the Salesian Congregation will consider all Cooperators as other brothers in Jesus Christ and will have recourse to them every time that their work can help to the greater glory of God and to the advantage of souls. With the same liberty when the need arises, the Cooperators will turn to the members of the Salesian Congregation.” Reg. VI., 1.

Ø      “The Cooperators are destined to do much good in the Church and for civil society. In time, their work will be so esteemed that I already seem to see not only families but cities and whole countries becoming Salesian Cooperators.” Don Bosco, Salesian Bulletin, March 1878

Ø      “All the members of the Salesian family receive from the Holy Spirit a special grace of enlightenment and decision in view of the concrete needs of poor and abandoned youth.” Special General Chapter of the SDB, Document 1, no. 163

Ø      “One should understand the aim of the Pious Union. The Salesian Cooperators should not only collect alms for our institutions but above all should work for the salvation of their brothers and the young in particular, with all means at their disposal, spiritual and otherwise.” Don Bosco, Feb 23, 1882, Cathedral of Toulon

Ø      “We Salesian Cooperators (we would prefer to say ‘Salesians who are Cooperators’) want this message to reaffirm our renewed conviction that today’s social needs require our dedicated work in the Church. Not only our Baptism calls for this, but also our membership in a Union founded by Don Bosco for the very purpose of serving the local Church and the Pope.” Message of the Salesian Cooperators to the Special General Chapter, July 2, 1971

Ø      “I have studied very much about the way of founding the Salesian Cooperators. Their true and main purpose is not that of helping the Salesians, but of helping the Church, the bishops, parish priests, under the “high” direction of the Salesians in the works of charity, catechism, education of poor children. Helping Salesians is just one of the many ways of helping the Catholic Church. It is true that we can appeal to them in our urgencies, but they are an instrument in the hands of the bishop. The only one who until now has understood this properly is the bishop of Padova who said clearly that nobody should feel any jealousy towards the Salesian Cooperators, because they belong to the dioceses and that every parish priest and every parishioner should become a Cooperator.” BM XVI, 21