EAO Good Night Talk (13)                                                                  

April 5, 2015

 

What Attracts Vocations to Consecrated Life?

 

Dear friends and confreres, a heartfelt greetings to all!

After forty days of the Lenten season we are glad to share the deep joy of our encounter with the Lord Jesus, Crucified and Risen for all of us, for each human person!

During the past two months in our China province visitation I have listened many times with deeper concern about Salesian vocations among the SDBs, members of various groups of the Salesian family and also among  our mission  partners. We are called to build up the vocation culture and we need   to provide regular opportunities for vocation camps, meetings and encounters. Almost all of the EAO provinces have their vocation director.

 

Unfortunately there are also many "special places" of our region with very few vocations. After 52 years of our presence in Taiwan we have still only three Taiwanese SDBs (one priest, one student of theology and one post-novice). In the oldest EAO presence (China-Macau) we have no new Salesian novice for the past 24 years. On  the other hand, there is a  new "vocation spring" in Australia, first Salesians from Cambodia and from Pakistan. I often ask myself, "What attracts the youngsters today to Salesian consecrated life?"

 

There are many answers but one of them is Fr. John Lee (a Korean missionary in South Sudan who died of cancer in 2010)! It is hard to believe of the ongoing impact (five years after the release) of the 90 minutes movie, "Don't cry for me, Sudan!” on the Salesian vocation or even on the new catechumens in our Region (https://vimeo.com/69300535). In Korea every year some of the new aspirants confess about the initial attraction to Don Bosco through Fr. Lee's witness. Many missionary vocations of Vietnamese Salesians started from this movie. Even some teenager catechumens in Japan owe their first moment of faith journey to this young missionary.

 

The image of Fr. John is that of a totally dedicated  missionary sent to the youth in a very difficult place. He touched the hearts of many Sudanese youth through his very dedicated ministry of the "Assistant" in the Oratory. Don't cry for me, Sudan shows a sincere and highly committed follower of Jesus. Yes, many have cried and have been deeply touched by his story! There is nothing more attractive than the life of a Salesian assistant, immersed among the youth, fully as their servant, giving all and forgetting himself!

I wish you a fruitful Easter season 2015, fifty days of opportunity to witness the Oratorian life style of humble serving presence among the young, among our brothers and sisters.

 

In Don Bosco

Fr. Václav Klement, SDB

EAO Regional councillor