75. Touring the dormitories 1869 (MB. 9,524).
On January 8, 1869, our Saint spoke thus: I dreamed that two people were arriving. One was holding a lantern in his hand and the other some written sheets. They invited me to go up to the dormitories and they stopped at the foot of each bed. The one with the lantern illuminated the face of the one who slept there and the one with the sheets placed a sheet of paper on the bed on which was written the number of years that each sleeper had left to live.
The narration of this dream caused an enormous impression and many youths approached him to ask him for information about the years of life they had left. One of them was the founder of the Salesians in Colombia, Father Rabagliatti.
Many other times Don Bosco went in dreams to the dormitories. Sometimes he saw a sword hanging over the head of a student, a sign of his coming death. On the bed of many pupils he saw a poster on which their sins were written, or a word indicating their principal fault. That is why many times during confession, he would say to them: "Do you want to tell the sins, or shall I tell them to you? And the young people were astonished to see that he told them with impressive accuracy the faults they had committed.
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76. The three lassos and the confession, 1869.
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On April 4, 1869, he gathered all the students in the study hall and told them the following dream: I dreamed that I was in the Temple, which was completely filled with young people: the present students and many more to come in the future. They seemed to be preparing for confession. My confessional had a huge crowd of young people waiting for me to go to confession.
I began to confess, but then seeing that so many were asking for confession I got up from the confessional to look for other priests to help me confess: But as I passed through the midst of the young people I saw that several of them had a lasso tied around their necks. I went up to one of them and said to him: "Why don't you take that lasso off your neck? He replied, "I can't take it off, because there is one behind me who is holding the lasso tightly.
I looked again and saw that in the midst of the young men many horns were sticking out. I looked more closely and found there a horrible animal, in the form of a huge cat, with a monstrous snout, long horns, and it was shrinking as not to be seen.
And I noticed with horror that each of the young men had beside him an animal as horrible as the previous one. And each animal carried between its claws three lassos. I approached one of them and asked him: - Tell me, what are you doing here? He answered me: - With these three lassos I obtain that the young people do not confess or confess badly, and with them I bring to damnation a tenth part of the people.
- And what do these three lassos mean? - I asked him.
- I don't tell you because you tell that to the young people - the monster answered me.
I took the pot of holy water in my hands and said to him: "Either you tell me what those three lassos are or I will pour holy water on you. In the name of Jesus Christ, tell me what they mean.
The monster twisted and said: - The first lasso means to keep silent about their sins. That they not confess to the confessor the sins they have committed.
- And the second lasso? - The second lasso means that they confess without repentance, without feeling true pain and regret for having offended God.
- And what does the third lasso mean? -I don't want to tell you the third lasso . I have already told you too much.
- Tell me what the third lasso means or I'll pour holy water on you.
The monster began to shoot flames from its eyes and drops of blood and screamed: - The third lasso means don't make resolutions to behave better, and don't heed the confessor's advice.
All the other cats began to protest brutally against this one who had told me the secret of the three lassos, and I, seeing that a tumult was going to form, poured holy water on them and they disappeared making a great noise, and when I heard that great noise... I woke up.
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I was terrified to see that many young people, whom I thought were very good, had the three lassos around their necks.
It is good to remember what each lasso means: the first one, to keep silent about one's sins out of shame when going to confession. Or not to say them, or to say them but in lesser number than they were. The second lasso: to confess without repenting, without feeling contrition or regret for having offended God with the sins committed. And the third is to confess without serious intention to convert, to change one's life and to become better. Those who wish to get rid of these three lassos must confess their sins without keeping silent about them, and truly repent before going to confession, and strive to make a good resolution in each confession and try to fulfill it as best as possible.
The monster before disappearing said to me: - Observe the fruit that the young people draw from their confessions. The main fruit of a confession should be to make amends for their faults. If you want to know if I have already tied them with lassos or not, then observe if they amend or not, if they improve their conduct and behavior or if they continue as before.
Something that filled me with sadness was to see that those who wear the three lassos around their necks, or at least one, are many more than I had imagined. Each one of us should think seriously if we do not have one of those lassos around our necks, and try to remove it.
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