107. Apparition of Dominic Savio 1876
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The night of December 22, 1876, was memorable in the Oratory or school of Don Bosco in Turin, because that night he narrated one of his most important and beautiful dreams. He had all the staff of the house, students, teachers and religious, gathered to tell them a dream that two days before he had promised to narrate to them. It is easy to imagine the general expectation that there was to listen to him.
When they saw him appear in the cathedra, they received him with enthusiastic applause as it happened every time he gathered all the staff of the house to talk about some topic of special interest. As soon as he indicated that he was about to begin speaking there was a profound silence. And so he spoke: On the night of December 6, I began to dream and it seemed to me that I was on a small height in front of a plain that looked like glass. There were the most beautiful flowers one could imagine and the most exquisite fruit trees one could wish for. In addition, there were so many elegant and luxurious buildings that for the construction of just one of them it seemed that all the treasures of the world had been spent. I used to say to myself: "Ah, if my young people could come and enjoy the sight of these beautiful flowers and taste such tasty fruits and live in such luxurious houses.
And at that moment there came to my ears a marvelous music as if intoned by a hundred thousand musical instruments, as beautiful as any famous musician in the world is capable of composing anything like it.
And I saw among those gardens and fruit trees thousands upon thousands of joyful people, singing with a thousand and thousand voices these beautiful hymns of the Apocalypse: "To God who sits on his throne and to the Lamb, praise, honor, glory and power forever and ever" (Rev. 5:13).
As I listened enthusiastically to the heavenly songs, I saw an immense crowd of young people coming toward me. Many of them had studied in our schools and I knew them. Many more would come in future times and were unknown to me. In front of them came Dominic Savio and with him several Salesians who have already died.
When that crowd of young people arrived near me, they stopped about five meters away. They were filled with a great joy that could be seen in the brightness of their eyes and in the radiance of their faces. They looked at me with a gentle smile and remained silent.
Dominic Savio came forward by himself and stood so close to me that if I stretched out my hand I could touch his shoulders. He was silent and looked at me smiling. How beautiful he looked. His dress was marvelous: a white tunic adorned with diamonds and embroidered with gold.
At the waist a red band, all full of precious stones (emeralds, pearls, rubies, etc.) so close to each other that they almost touched, and forming such beautiful drawings that I was thrilled to contemplate it all.
From his neck hung a necklace of beautiful flowers, which had leaves that were diamonds and were placed on golden stems. Those flowers shone more brilliantly than the midday sun, and all of them beautifully illuminated the rosy and kind face of Dominic Savio, who wore a crown of roses on his head and appeared so pleasant and venerable that he looked like an angel.
(At this moment Don Bosco made a gesture of emotion that shook all his listeners. After a brief pause, he continued).
- And like Dominic Savio, all his companions were beautifully dressed. Each one had a red sash around his waist, just like the one Dominic Savio wore.
I asked him: "Dominic, are these the joys of paradise? And he answered me: "No, these are not the joys of the Eternal Paradise, but only natural joys. For "Eye has not seen, nor ear heard what God has prepared for those who love him. If anyone were to see something of what is enjoyed in paradise, he would die of emotion.
- And what is enjoyed in paradise? - It is impossible to tell you what is enjoyed in paradise. But the main thing is that you are with God ("This is eternal life: to know the true God and Jesus Christ whom he has sent" (St. John 17:3).
I asked Dominic Savio again: "Why are you wearing such a beautiful white tunic? And a choir from Heaven began to sing those words of the Apocalypse: "These are they who have purified their souls with the blood of the lamb" (Rev. 7:14).
I asked again: - And why are you wearing this red sash? And a voice sang this phrase from the Holy Book: "Those who have kept the virtue of purity will follow the Lamb of God wherever He goes" (Rev. 14:4).
I understood then that the red sash, the color of blood, was a symbol of the great sacrifices made, of the violent efforts and almost martyrdom suffered to preserve the virtue of purity, and that to remain chaste in the presence of the Lord, he would have been ready to sacrifice his life, if circumstances had demanded it; that this red sash also symbolized the penances and mortifications that free the soul from falling into many sins. And that the white tunic was a sign that he kept his soul white, without stain of sin.
Then, contemplating all those numerous groups of young people following Dominic Savio, I asked him: "Who are those who follow you? And a choir of young people answered me singing: - "They are like the angels of God in heaven" (Mt. 22:30).
I asked Dominic again: "Why are you, if you are not the oldest, the one who is leading this group? He answered me: "I am the oldest of those who have died in the Oratory, because I was the first of your students to pass on to the next life. And besides: I bring a message from God.
This answer made me understand that Dominic Savio was sent as God's ambassador to bring us a message from Heaven.
I asked him again: - What do you tell me about the past life of our Work? - As for the past, I have to tell you that the Congregation has done a lot of good. Do you see that huge group of young people? - Yes, I see them, how numerous they are, how happy their faces are, and look at the sign in front of them.
- I can see it. It says: SALESIAN GARDEN.
- Well", continued Dominic Savio, "all these young men were educated in your work or by your religious or by persons who were directed from here towards the priestly vocation. But their number would be a hundred million times greater, if they had had greater faith and greater trust in God's Providence.
I heaved a sigh of sadness at this reproach and resolved that in the future I would try to have greater faith and trust in God's Providence.
- And what do you say about the present? Dominic Savio presented me with a beautiful bouquet of flowers. There were roses, violets, sunflowers, gentians, lilies, immortelle, and among the flowers, ears of wheat. He offered me the bouquet and said to me: "May your students strive to have each one of these flowers, and may they not lack any of them, and may they not let them be stolen.
- And what do these roses mean? - The rose means charity. The violet means humility. The sunflower means obedience. The gentian (bitter flower that lowers fever) means mortification and penance. The lily represents purity or chastity. The ears of wheat signify frequent communion. The evergreen means that these virtues are to be cultivated and possessed always and to try to persevere in practicing them. Remind everyone that those who practice the virtue of purity will be like angels of God in Heaven.
- Dominic, what consoled you most at the hour of death? - What consoled and rejoiced me most at the hour of death was the assistance of the powerful and kind Mother of God.
Tell your disciples not to forget to invoke Her at all the most important moments of life.
- And as for the future, what can you tell me? - That next year six of your disciples will be called by God to eternity. But take comfort in the fact that they will pass from the desert of this world to the garden of paradise. They will be crowned as good winners. The Lord God will help you in your work and send you other equally good disciples.
- Patience! - I exclaimed, "And what about our Congregation? -As for the Congregation, God is preparing great events for it. Next year a light will appear in it, a dawn so splendid that it will illuminate the four ends of the earth, from east to west and from north to south: a great glory is prepared for it. If the priests of the Congregation know how to make themselves worthy of the high mission that God has entrusted to them, the future of the community will be marvelous and many souls will be saved through them, on condition that they are very devoted to the Virgin Mary and that each one preserves the virtue of chastity which is so pleasing in the eyes of God.
- And what about me, what do you say to me? - Ah, if you only knew how many difficulties you will still have to go through.
- And of the Holy Father? - Hard spiritual battles await him, but God will soon bring him to give him his reward.
- And our young people are all walking on the way of salvation? Your young people are divided into three groups. They are on three lists. Look at the first list.
And he handed it to me. The list was entitled: "The unwounded. The unstained. They are those who keep their souls white, without stain of sin. I saw that there were many of them. Some of them I know. Others will come later. They marched along a narrow and difficult road and were attacked from all sides with arrows and spears, but they were not wounded.
Domingo immediately gave me the second list of students. That list was entitled: "Those who have been wounded". They are those who have committed sins but have repented and confessed and have been forgiven. They were much more numerous than those on the previous list. Many marched along bent over and discouraged.
Dominic held in his hand the third list which bore the following title: "Those abandoned in the way of perdition," and contained the names of those living in mortal sin. I wanted to look at the list to find out who they were, but Dominic said to me: "Wait a minute, if you open that list, such a horrible stench will come out that we will not be able to bear it. The angels have to withdraw in disgust and horror, and the Holy Spirit himself is nauseated by the horrible stench of sin.
And he gave me the third list, saying to me: "I have to withdraw because of what is going to happen at once; but read the list of those who live in sin. Take advantage of this news to do the greatest good to your disciples and do not forget to recommend them to get the bouquet of flowers that I presented to you. Let them keep the virtues represented in those flowers.
Then I opened the third list. And at that instant the individuals written on it appeared before me, and I was able to observe them personally. How sad I was to see them in that group. Many of them I know. And the serious thing is that many of them seem to be good, and some of them even seem to be the best among their fellows, and yet they are on the list of those who live in sin.
But as soon as I opened the list, such an unbearable stench spread around that my head ached and I wanted to vomit. And the sun went dark, and an awesome lightning bolt crossed the space and a horrendous thunder was heard, so loud and terrible that I woke up.
And that stench impressed me so much that eight days later, just remembering it made me want to vomit.
I dedicated myself to find out if in truth the souls of the young people were as I had seen them in those lists and everything I observed in the dream turned out to be exact.
What Dominic Savio announced to Don Bosco in this dream or apparition, was exactly fulfilled. The following year six pupils died. And in that following year a Shining Star also appeared, a dawn that illuminated the four ends of the world: The Salesian Bulletin, the magazine that in 33 languages and with more than two million copies per month brings to all the friends of Don Bosco the Salesian news, and has managed to make his community and his works known in all the continents, and has obtained many vocations and a great amount of help for the Congregation.
Pope Pius IX, of whom Dominic Savio said that "God will soon take him to give him his reward", died 14 months after this dream.
To Don Bosco he announced: "Ah, if you only knew how many difficulties you will still have to go through". And indeed, in these years he was persecuted by people he would never have thought would persecute him. And the difficulties he faced were immense, for example: obtaining the resources to build the Basilica of the Sacred Heart in Rome and suffering terrible illnesses. But with God's help he succeeded.
The police inspector in Turin was a good Catholic who, upon hearing that Don Bosco had been told of six deaths in his school for the following year, set out to find out exactly if the announcement had indeed been fulfilled. And at the end of the year 1877 when the sixth pupil died, our man was convinced that Don Bosco was indeed a man enlightened by God and he left his position in the government and became a Salesian and a great missionary beloved by all, Father Angel Piccono.
What made Don Bosco doubt whether this dream was a reality or just a fantasy was that he had seen among the list of those living in sin certain young people who were known at school to be the best of all. He began to find out and was able to verify that although outwardly they were irreproachable, their real life was one of sin and hypocrisy. He was able to convert and transform several of them after this vision.
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108. The death of Pope Pius IX, 1877.
On February 17, 1877, I dreamed that I arrived in Rome and that the Holy Father, the Pope, was receiving me in audience. We began to chat and suddenly the face of Pius IX became radiant with light. I said to him: "Ah, Holy Father, if my young people who love you so much could see you as you are now, how excited they would be! But immediately the Holy Father lay down on a sofa and said: - Let them bring a sheet to cover me from head to foot.
Then he got up and went through a door and never appeared again.
Immediately I heard my friend Buzzetti tell me: - The Pope is dead.
I was excited... I woke up.
Note: A year after this dream. The Holy Father Pius IX, after a brief illness, died a saintly death.