{"id":827,"date":"2026-09-24T13:51:06","date_gmt":"2026-09-24T13:51:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp.ddev.site\/?page_id=827"},"modified":"2026-09-24T13:51:06","modified_gmt":"2026-09-24T13:51:06","slug":"perche","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/sdb-staging.178-32-140-152.plesk.page\/en\/societa-salesiana\/perche\/","title":{"rendered":"Why Salesians do what they do"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Salesian Congregation in the world<\/strong><\/p>\n

Why? What is the motivation?<\/strong>
\nThe question “why do the Salesians do what they do?” touches the heart of the Salesian vocation. It does not concern first of all the works, the structures or the activities \u2013 oratories, schools, vocational training centres, universities, parishes, social works, etc. \u2013 but the interior root that generates them. The reason why the Salesians do what they do is theological before being organisational: it is born of an experience of God and of an ecclesial call.<\/p>\n

1. Why they believe in the loving kindness of God<\/strong>
\n At the origin there is the certainty that God loves every person, and in a particular way the young. The Salesian vocation is founded on this conviction: every boy carries a project of good, often hidden, sometimes wounded, but real. Education then becomes cooperation with the action of grace.
\n Don Bosco’s motto \u2013 “Da mihi animas, cetera tolle<\/em>” \u2013 expresses this educative passion. It is not a matter of social activism, but of dedication to the integral salvation of the person. The Salesians work in the educational field because they see in education a privileged place of growth and of integral human promotion.<\/p>\n

2. Why they feel sent to the young, especially the poorest<\/strong>
\n The Salesian “why” is closely linked to an evangelical preference. The mission is not generic: it is directed to the young, with particular attention to those living situations of material, cultural or spiritual poverty. This option does not arise from a sociological strategy, but from an evangelical reading of reality.
\n Poor young people are not a problem to be managed, but a theological place: in them the call of Christ manifests itself in a particular way. This is why the Salesians choose to dwell in the existential peripheries, to share the daily life of the boys, to offer educational spaces in which they can feel welcomed and valued.<\/p>\n

3. Because they believe in education as a path of transformation<\/strong>
\n The educational choice is not neutral. It implies a precise anthropological vision: man is capable of growth, of responsibility, of openness to the transcendent. The Preventive System elaborated by Don Bosco \u2013 founded on reason, religion and loving kindness \u2013 translates this vision into practice.
\n The Salesians do what they do because they believe that prevention is more effective than repression, that presence is more incisive than control, that the educational relationship is the place in which the future is built. Investing in the school, in vocational training, in spiritual accompaniment means contributing to the building of a more just and supportive society.<\/p>\n

4. Because they recognise themselves as heirs of a charism<\/strong>
\n The Salesians do what they do because they know themselves to be custodians of a charism raised up by the Holy Spirit in the Church through Saint John Bosco<\/strong>. The charism is not a static memory of the past, but a dynamic force that asks to be made present in the different historical and cultural contexts.
\n Being faithful to Don Bosco means interpreting creatively the new forms of poverty among the young, using adequate languages, inhabiting the new educational settings, including the digital ones. Fidelity does not consist in the repetition of forms, but in coherence with the original intuition: to love the young and to lead them to the encounter with Christ.<\/p>\n

5. Because they desire to “form good Christians and honest citizens”<\/strong>
\n This expression sums up an integral vision of the person. Salesian education does not separate the religious dimension from the civil one. Forming “good Christians” means accompanying people to a conscious and lived faith; forming “honest citizens” means educating in social responsibility, in respect for the law, in work, in solidarity.
\n The “why” of the Salesian works is therefore also cultural and social. The Salesians are convinced that the transformation of society passes through the formation of consciences. For this reason they invest energy in the school, in the university, in vocational training, in youth ministry.<\/p>\n

6. Because they experience that joy is possible<\/strong>
\n A distinctive trait of the Salesian charism is joy. Not a superficial joy, but the gladness that is born of the Gospel. The Salesians do what they do because they have experienced that holiness is possible and they desire to propose it to the young as a realistic and attractive path.
\n The Salesian educational environment \u2013 often described as “a home that welcomes, a parish that evangelises, a school that prepares for life, a playground where friends can meet” \u2013 expresses this conviction: faith does not impoverish humanity, but brings it to fulfilment.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Ultimately, the “why” of the Salesians is a response to a call. They do what they do because they feel sent by God to the young; because they believe in the transforming power of education; because they live a consecration that makes them signs of the love of Christ; because they recognize themselves as part of a charismatic history that continues.
\n Every work, every initiative, every project finds here its ultimate motivation. It is not simply a matter of “doing good”, but of being, at the heart of the world of the young, signs and bearers of the love of God.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Salesian Congregation in the world Why? What is the motivation? The question “why do the Salesians do what they do?” touches the heart of the Salesian vocation. It does not concern first of all the works, the structures or the activities \u2013 oratories, schools, vocational training centres, universities, parishes, social works, etc. \u2013 but […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":0,"parent":851,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-827","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sdb-staging.178-32-140-152.plesk.page\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/827","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sdb-staging.178-32-140-152.plesk.page\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sdb-staging.178-32-140-152.plesk.page\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sdb-staging.178-32-140-152.plesk.page\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=827"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/sdb-staging.178-32-140-152.plesk.page\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/827\/revisions"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sdb-staging.178-32-140-152.plesk.page\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/851"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sdb-staging.178-32-140-152.plesk.page\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=827"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}