The journey from group to individual spiritual companionship : a Salesian perspective

Abstract

Youth is such a delicate but exciting time in life. It is a time of personal discovery. It can also be the most challenging period in a person's life These are the years that will shape the rest of one's life and will begin to form the basis of who one is. Youth is a time of great physical, mental, emotional and spiritual change. Youth is a time to break into the real world and discover just what makes it so great. However, it is not always so easy, especially if one is unaccompanied. Adult reality unfolds itself to the young person, presents life options, and is in turn shaped by the choices one makes. Young people need significant adults who can offer spiritual guidance and can facilitate spiritual growth. With the young, Don Bosco sought to offer a very holistic accompaniment while promoting meaningful life options. He responded to the needs of yom1g people of his time and accompanied them in their discovery and embracing of a valid response to their human and Christian call. By creating a family environment at his Oratory, Don Bosco managed to enable a spiritual growth process within a group. This spiritual group formation would gradually lead to a particular type of individual spiritual companionship. This was based on loving kindness, familiarity and a profound relationship based on sincere friendship which Don Bosco was able to establish with each youth. The whole atmosphere within the oratory would facilitate and encourage the young to open up and seek spiritual guidance. Don Bosco's method of spiritual formation and companionship did not end with his life. He was able to radiate a charism built on genuine family relationships adapted to forms of expression which developed in different historical moments and within various cultures. In 1903, the Salesians of Don Bosco arrived in Malta offering Don Rosco's charism as a response to the needs of the young on the island.