39. The two columns, 1862
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On May 30, 1862, Don Bosco said to all the assembled students: "I am going to tell you a dream I had. I have so much confidence in my disciples that I would even tell them my sins, except that if I told them they would all run away frightened and the roof of the house would fall in. But what I am going to tell them tonight is for their spiritual good."
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I dreamed that I was on the seashore, on a high rock, from which I could see no firm ground but that which was under my feet.
On that immense liquid surface I could see a countless multitude of ships arranged in battle array, and each ship had at its end a huge, sharp iron point ready to smash anything that came in front of it. The ships were armed with cannon and filled with rifles and different weapons and with very many incendiary bombs, and also with damaging books.
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And all those ships were going against a much higher ship trying to destroy it with their iron spikes, or set it on fire or do as much damage to it as possible.
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This majestic ship, which was provided with everything it needed, was escorted by numerous small ships, which received orders from it, carrying out maneuvers necessary to defend themselves against the enemy fleet. The wind was blowing in the opposite direction to the direction of the great ship, and the rough waves of the sea favored the enemy.
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And in the midst of the battle I saw two great columns rising from the middle of the immensity of the sea, which rose to enormous heights. On the one was a statue of Mary Immaculate and underneath it a large sign that read: "Mary Help of Christians". On the other was a very large Holy Host, and beneath it a huge sign with this inscription: "Salvation for those who believe."
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The Supreme Commander of the greater ship, who was the Supreme Pontiff, realizing the fury with which the enemies were attacking and the very complicated situation in which his loyal servants found themselves, arranged to summon all the pilots of the lesser ships to a meeting. All the pilots boarded the captain's ship and gathered around the Pope. But when they saw that the hurricane was becoming more and more violent and that the storm was becoming more dangerous every day, the captains were sent out again, each one to direct his ship.
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Calm was again restored for a short time, and the Pope again gathered the other captains together with him, but the storm became enormously frightful.
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Then the pope personally took the helm of the captain's ship and strove with all his energies to steer the ship until she was placed in the middle of the two columns from which hung anchors, and fenders for fortification and lifebelts.
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And all the enemy ships rushed to attack the ship where the pope was going, and tried to sink or wreck it. Some attacked him with bad books, others with evil writings in the newspapers, many fired their cannons and tried to attack him with the sharp iron ends of their ships, which crashed violently against the gigantic captain's ship without sinking it or stopping it in its march.
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From time to time the enemy ships succeeded in making immense slits in the sides of the Pontiff's ship, but immediately a gentle breeze blew from the two columns and miraculously closed those slits.
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Another curious fact: Many enemy ships, when trying to shoot against the captain ship, exploded and sank into the sea, and many rifles also when going to shoot against the Church, exploded. Then the enemies set out to attack with small arms: insults, blows, curses, slander, and so the combat continued.
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Suddenly the Pope was seriously wounded. Those who accompanied him ran to his aid. He recovered, but was wounded a second time, fell and died. A shout of victory resounded in all the enemy ships and the joy of the opponents was immense. But the other pilots gathered and elected a new Pontiff, who took the helm of the captain's ship tightly in his hands. The enemies began to lose heart.
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The new Pontiff, handling the ship very well, took it to place it in the middle of the two columns and with a chain tied the front part of the ship (or prow) to the column where the Holy Host was, and with another chain he tied the other end (the stern) to the column where the statue of Mary Most Holy Helper was.
Then a great confusion arose. All the ships that had fought against the ship captained by the Pope, fled, dispersed, collided with each other and destroyed each other. Some in sinking sank others.
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The ships that had remained faithful to the Pope approached the two columns and tied themselves tightly to them.
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Other ships which for fear of combat had withdrawn and were standing at a distance prudently observing the events, on seeing the enemy ships disappear into the abyss, then sailed also towards the two columns and there remained calm and serene in the company of the captain ship led by the Pope. An absolute calm reigned in the sea....
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At this point in the narrative, Don Bosco asked Father Rua: -- "What do you think this dream means?"
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Don Rua answered: - "It seems to me that the captain ship is the Catholic Church, and the other ships that help the captain ship are the Catholic faithful led by their bishops. And that the enemy ships are all those who attack our Holy religion. And it seems to me that the two pillars are devotion to the Blessed Sacrament of the Eucharist and to Mary Most Holy."
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Don Bosco added: "Yes, and in the ships that attack are represented the persecutions that come to the Catholic Church, to which terrible dangers and attacks of enemies are going to come. But there are two remedies left to us: to frequent the sacraments and to have a great devotion to the Blessed Virgin. Let us do all we can to practice these two remedies ourselves and to obtain that others also practice them always and at all times."
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Note: Several of the listeners copied this dream and each gave their own interpretations. It has been thought that the captain calling the other pilots to a meeting was Pope Pius IX who called the bishops to the First Vatican Council. After some meetings the bishops had to return to their cities because the war of 1870 broke out. In 1878 Pope Pius IX died, who had been much fought against by the enemies of religion. Later Pope St. Pius X arrived, who propagated devotion to the Blessed Sacrament and to Mary Most Holy (he brought the Church closer to these two columns and organized Catholics to defend themselves united in Senates, Chambers and government of the whole world, thus taking away from the enemies of the Holy Church the omnipotent power they had in almost all countries. Before this Pope, Catholics almost did not participate in elections and did not get themselves elected, and the enemies could do from the government all the evil they wanted to do against religion. Pius X said: "Catholics will elect and be elected". And so there was soon in every country a strong group of Catholics in Congress and in government, and the anti-Catholics were like the ships of the dream: they fell back and began to sink. And those who were indifferent and watched the struggle from afar, seeing that the Catholic Church was once again respected and esteemed, began to draw closer to her as a sign of friendship.
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Were there three pontiffs? Canon Bourlot, who was a student and was present when Don Bosco narrated this dream, went to lunch with Don Bosco and his Salesians 24 years later, in 1866, and in the middle of lunch he said: - "That time Don Bosco said that the pontiffs were three."
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Father Lemoyne, who was the one who wrote the wording of the dream, was at that time chatting with another and Don Bosco called him and said: "Listen to what this Father is saying"... and he implied that he agreed with what the canon was saying. He said that Don Bosco told them that there were three Popes: the first one, the one at whose death the wicked rejoiced. The second, the one who replaced the previous one and with a strong hand took the helm and guided the ship safely. And the third, the one who steered the ship until he placed it between the two columns.
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After 1907, Canon Bourlot returned to the Salesian House in Turin and told his superiors: "Do you realize that there were three pontiffs of the dream? The first, Pope Pius IX, who convened the Council and whose death made the enemies of religion rejoice. The second, Leo XIII, who led the Church with a sure and strong hand. And the third, Pius X who dedicated himself to propagate devotion to Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament and to the Blessed Virgin".
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40. Sacrilege, 1862
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One day in 1862, Don Bosco was recommending to the priest confessors that they ask God for the grace to know how to confess well and to obtain the efficacy of the word and the virtue of prudence, and he reminded them that many make bad confessions out of fear. And he told them the following: "One night I dreamed that I saw a young man with a rotten heart full of worms. I paid no attention to the dream, but the next night I dreamed that I saw a dog biting the heart of that poor young man.
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Then I became convinced that Our Lord wanted to help that boy by removing from his conscience some sin he had unforgiven.
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And one day I met him and said to him, "Would you do me a favor?"
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- Yes, of course, of course, what is it? - Do you want to tell me if you have any sin on your conscience without having confessed it? He wanted to deny it, but I said to him: "What about that sin, what about that other one, why haven't you confessed them? Then he looked at my face and began to cry, and said to me: "You are right. I have had those sins on my conscience for two years and I have never been able to confess them.
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And that boy put himself at peace with God.