He gathered them on Sunday afternoons, taught them, played with them, found them apprenticeships and gave them a home. He’d learned juggling and conjuring tricks as a boy, and he used them to draw a crowd before teaching the catechism. In 1859 he founded the Salesians to continue the work. He died in 1888 and was canonized in 1934.
Historical Context
His approach to young people, the “preventive system,” rested on three things: reason, religion and loving kindness. He said it wasn’t enough to love young people. They had to know they were loved.
A Prayer to St John Bosco
St John Bosco, you gave your whole life to young people.
Pray for the young people in my life:
keep them safe, help them find good friends and good work,
and lead them to Jesus.
Give parents, teachers and youth workers your patience and joy,
and teach us to make sure every young person knows they are loved.
Amen.
For a Troubled Teenager
St John Bosco, you never gave up on the boys others had written off.
Pray for (name). Don’t let anyone give up on them.
Amen.
For Teachers and Youth Workers
Lord, through St John Bosco, give us reason, faith and loving kindness
in everything we do with young people.
Amen.
Best Times for This Prayer
- On 31 January, his feast.
- At the start of a school year or youth programme.
- When worried about a young person.
Scripture Connection
“Charity suffereth long, and is kind.” — 1 Corinthians 13:4
Bosco’s whole method was this verse: patient, kind love that young people can feel.
Related prayers
For young people, see the Prayer for a Young Man and the May 6 Prayer (St Dominic Savio). For coaches, the Coaches Prayer.