Direction of Intention My God we give you

Direction of Intention My God, we give you this conference-session about ongoing formation – forming the formators. Please give us the grace to conduct ourselves during it in a manner most pleasing to you. Amen Saint Francis de Sales…

Opening Prayer PRAYER FOR A FORMATOR Adapted from “Prayer for a Formator” by Thea Quinto, DLS-CSB LMO) You have brought me to the ministry I am in by Your design. Many times I wonder at the choice You have made, but I can only TRUST in Your goodness and unfathomable wisdom. The work is not easy, Lord. There are days that I find myself weary in thought, spirit, and body. There are many challenges, and at times, seemingly insurmountable tasks before me. Let me never forget that THE WORK IS YOURS and that I am here to help You accomplish the work. Remind me that You will always give me sufficient grace to face everything.

When work is overwhelming, and seemingly hopeless, let me not forget the necessity of going to prayer. Remind me that You too always took time to STOP AND PRAY. When I find myself face-to-face with difficult personalities, let me not forget that I too can be difficult at times. Remind me that You sent and continue to send individuals to mold and nurture me also. And when I am ready to give up, let me not forget the wonder and gift of TOUCHING THE HEARTS of others and guiding them to become the one whom You created them to be. Remind me constantly that this is a MINISTRY OF LOVE radiated by JOY. May I always follow the example of Your life. Glory be. . . Mary Help of Christians… Don Bosco & Mother Mazzarello… St. Joseph…

What are the purposes of this session? • Follow up on Forming the Formators Workshop • Introduction to Strenna 2020 “Your will be done, on earth as it is in Heaven” (Mt. 6: 10) “GOOD CHRISTIANS AND UPRIGHT CITIZENS” • Quick overview to 2018 Handbook of the Salesian Cooperators – Second Revision - Province of St. Philip the Apostle • Formation to the service of leadership in animation and in governance – Guidelines and Indications…

Forming the formators • Intro • Background • Other announcements or important messages, activities, etc.

Don Bosco • Good Christians • Upright Citizens • With the help of Mary, our Mother https: //www. youtube. com/watch? v=HSg 8 NT-B 2 Mg&t=524 s

General guidance's CHAPTER IV: Membership and Formation of the Salesian Cooperator • • Entrance into the Association Sense of Belonging On-going Formation Initiatives Formation to the Service of Leadership

Entrance to the Association Art 57. When the Formator, in accord with the Delegate, and the Aspirant feel that he/she has: • Sufficiently absorbed the teachings of the initial formation program • made the spirituality and the apostolate of the Salesian Cooperator his/her own • been fully involved in the life and apostolate of the Center and of the Association • is ready to commit to this Vocation for life, the Aspirant writes his/her “Letter of Request” (q. v. , Appendix, pp. 55+56) to the Local Council asking for their approval for him/her to make the Promise so as to be admitted to the Association. He/she includes in this request: • his/her motivations for becoming a Salesian Cooperator • the assurance of sufficient understanding of all that is required of a Promised Salesian Cooperator and the length of time spent in initial formation • that it is a true Vocation in the Church and membership in an officially-recognized Lay Association of the Faithful, governed by Canon Law • that it is a Promise for life • and anything else he/she wishes to share in regards to taking on Don Bosco’s mission as his/her own. He/she signs this request by hand.

Sense of Belonging Art 69. The usual form of maintaining a healthy sense of belonging is for each Member to be actively and whole-heartedly involved in the life of his/her Center, expressed by: • Regular and participative attendance at scheduled meetings • Active collaboration in apostolic endeavors • Interest in and sharing of one’s own and others’ experiences, joys, and sorrows • Cheerful participation in the life of the Association through attendance at Formation Days, Retreats, and other initiatives sponsored or promoted by the Association and the Salesian Family to help all grow in their vocation and Salesian Spirituality • Eagerness in knowing what the other Centers of the Province and the World and the Association at the various levels are doing • An annual renewal of the Promise • Contributions to the Economic Solidarity of the Association.

On-going Formation Initiatives Art 83. Normal sources for permanent formation through reading, reflection, and assimilation in one’s life include (copies of which should be available in the Local Center’s Library): • The Holy Bible • The Encyclicals and other writings, homilies, and speeches of the actual Holy Father • The Magisterium of the Church: especially regarding the Social Justice Doctrines of the Church the role of the laity and Lay Associations of the Faithful in the Church, and the Documents of Vatican Council II • The lives of the Saints, especially of Salesian Saints and Blesseds • The contemporary documents of the United States Catholic Conference of Bishops and of the Ordinary of one’s Diocese • The Charter of the Charismatic Identity of the Salesian Family • The teachings and documents of the actual Rector Major, especially his Strenna • The current writings, messages, and directives of the World Council, the Provincial Council, the Regional Consulta, and any of their Members • Web resources of the Association on the Regional- and world-wide levels and other Salesian websites: (www. sdb. org , www. cgfma. org , http: //www. ilgrandeducatore. com , e. g. ) • Salesian publications, especially, The Salesian Bulletin (for the most recent list of Salesian Publications available from New Rochelle, please visit “Salesiana Publishers” under “Shop Salesian” on Don Bosco Salesian Portal) • Publications and courses of study which help one grow and mature as a human being, according to Catholic Christian perspective • Publications and courses of study which keep one up-to-date in youth ministry, especially those of Salesian origin • Publications and courses of study which keep one up-to-date in regards to legislation and political candidates’ stances concerning Social Justice and Pro-Life issues • Publications and courses of study which keep one up-to-date in one’s field of work - Publications and courses of study which keep one up-todate in their area of particular service as a Local or Provincial Councilor, if applicable.

Formation to the Service of Leadership Art 86. In addition to the Project of Apostolic Life, Discerning the Call, the Official Commentary, and other documents of the Association and its Members/Delegates will help those called to the service of leadership to understand better the full reality of the Association, and, therefore, the responsibilities in regard to it which are theirs… … to the service of leadership in animation and in governance – Chapter IV The service of animation and of leadership in the Association is clearly and explicitly indicated in the Project of Apostolic Life as a particular and important apostolate of the Salesian Cooperator. Its fundamental purpose is that of making the Association grow and mature: • in communion; • in the spiritual life; and • in the Salesian mission. This objective becomes concrete when each member of the Association is accompanied along his path of growth in these three areas so that he can always be more conformed to the identity traced out by the Project of Apostolic Life. The importance of the formation of the leaders as one of the fundamental areas of formation, together with initial and ongoing, is easily seen from this fact and springs from it. It is important: • for the person himself. • for the service he must render. • for the realization of the mission.

Formation to the Service of Leadership Links to official documents Official Documents from the SEM: • Guidelines and Indications for the Formation of the Salesian Cooperators (2015) • Criteria for Animation and Governance of the Association of the Salesian Cooperators (2016) • Animating Economic Solidarity (2018) Official Documents of St. Philip the Apostle Province: • Delegate Resource Manual (2017) • Province Handbook to the Project of Apostolic Life of April 29, 2013 (2018) • The Compendium (2019) And two others written by the World SDB and Italian National SDB Delegates, respectively: • The Identity of the Salesian Cooperator (2014) • A Prophecy’s Journey: The History of the Salesian Cooperators from Their Origins to the Threshold of Vatican Council II (2016).

Preparation

Trainer Instructor Formator Coach Educator

Definitions from Webster dictionary… Instructor 1: one that instructs : TEACHER especially : a college teacher below professorial rank Trainer 1: a person who trains someone or something: such as a: one whose occupation is to guide or instruct people in fitness and exercise routines - a personal trainer Coach [from the concept that the tutor conveys the student through examinations]a: a private tutor hired a coach to help her daughter prepare for the test b: one who instructs or trains an acting coach a birth coach especially : one who instructs players in the fundamentals of a sport and directs team strategy - a football coach - a pitching coach - a gymnastics coach Educator 1: one skilled in teaching : TEACHER 2 a: a student of theory and practice of education : EDUCATIONIST SENSE 2 b: an administrator in education

What do you think?

Formator’s Profile Taking on a formative task is a responsibility that requires on the part of the formator some skills and some inner attitudes, in a certain way already acquired, but that must be cultivated and matured progressively. The effectiveness of the formative action depends very much on these attitudes and skills. The Cooperator's formator must be: • a person who frequently meditates on God and who lives in deep Sacramental union with the Lord Jesus: that is, a person with a strong inner life, who can transmit to others a taste for spirituality; • a faithful person who bears witness to his faith and his vocational choice with his life: witness is the most effective formative communication and condition – more than any other; • a person who follows closely the Magisterium of the Church, the Pope, the Bishops, and deepens it: the Magisterium is in fact the master path of all Christian formation; • a person who has assimilated the values of the Preventive System and Salesian Spirituality and who continues his/her reflection on and deepening of Salesianity: the formator must be able to bear witness to his Salesian vocational choice and a manifest lively fidelity to it;

Formator’s Profile • a person who knows the PVA, the Official Commentary, the Criteria, the ASE, and the Formation Guidelines and Indications well for these are official documents, in the light of which the identity, commitments and associative membership of the Cooperator are defined; • a person who gets fully involved in the life of the Association or local Center and who knows how to convey a lively sense of belonging; • a person conscious of being a mediator of the Truth: the formator does not possess a truth of his own to teach (his ideas and opinions, but puts himself at the service of that which he is but an instrument; ) • a person willing to work and study to be better qualified for the service to be provided: in forming, he cannot improvise; it is necessary to prepare, both at the doctrinal level and the levels of methodology and that of communication; • a person without the desire for prominence: a formator must be able to demonstrate self-control to avoid temptations, even involuntary, of self-affirmation or strongly personalistic attitudes; • a person able to listen and be flexible: this is important because it allows you to enter into the experience of your interlocutors to find the communication and language that is best suited to them, in dialogue with them; • a person capable of open communication and dialogue: the formative moments will be all the more effective and fruitful the richer the dialogue, communication, and confrontation, which the formator will be able to foster.

Formator’s role The role of the Formator requires, before all else, wisdom and common sense. This does not take away the fact that there is certain specific knowledge, above all in the area of the sciences of formation, which can enrich reflection on the formative experience. The knowledge of some simple elements of psychology, also, and, in particular, the branch that deals with relationships can better the relational dynamics in leading groups and in one's understanding of relationships with individuals. Another important element is represented by a good knowledge of the development and deepening of matters concerning society in addition to good knowledge of the area in which one lives and of other educational agencies which network, especially within the Salesian Family.

Formator’s responsibilities Art. 29 Responsibilities and Initiatives as Regard Formation § 1. Salesian Cooperators are the first ones responsible for their own human, Christian, Salesian, and professional formation. § 2. The Association promotes and supports personal and group formation through the action of qualified Salesian Cooperators, Delegates, and other members of the Salesian Family.

PVA - Regulations Art. 16 On-going Formation Initiatives § 1. Conscious of the importance of on-going formation, the Salesian Cooperators: - develop their own human gifts, so that they might fulfill ever better their family, professional, and civic responsibilities; - mature in their faith and in charity, growing in union with God, to render their life more Gospel-like and more Salesian; Salesian Family Charter. 39 -43. - dedicate time to reflection and study to deepen Sacred Scripture, the Doctrines of the Church, their knowledge of Don Bosco, and Salesian documents. § 2. The formative initiatives are: - periodic meetings, ordinarily held monthly, carried out according to the demands of life and of the apostolate of the members of the Center; and other forms of encounter, possibly open to the territory and to the civic society; - intense moments of prayer and of discernment; - contacts with the Groups of the Salesian Family at all levels; - deepening of the documents of the Rector Major and of the publications of the Salesian Family, giving preferential attention to the Salesian Bulletin (and Snippets). § 3. Meetings and planning or verification initiatives which the Association promotes at various levels have great importance in the formative plan. Proposals of specific themes with other Groups of the Salesian Family are to be favored. Participation in such initiatives must be adequately prepared, and their fruits are to be shared with all the members of the Center. § 4. The Association commits itself to utilize the many means of social communication and the new technologies to collaborate in cultural dialogue, to foster the development of their critical capacity, and to elaborate and spread formative publications accessible in various ways to all.

PVA - Regulations Art. 17. Formation to the Service of Leadership § 1. The service of animation and of leadership in the Association is an apostolic one, by means of which the Association grows and matures in communion, in the spiritual life, and in the Salesian mission. It may be requested of any and all the Salesian Cooperators to offer their energies and abilities for a determinate amount of time in the service of animation and of leadership. § 2. The Salesian Cooperators welcome with availability the time of leadership service requested of them, live it with discernment and synergy, and deepen the specific formation which is necessary to qualify them for their task according to the established programs of the Association. At the end of their period of service they give witness to their belonging with attitudes of simplicity and availability for the Association. § 3. The Salesian Cooperator who has a role of responsibility in the political sphere is invited to suspend temporarily his/her role as Coordinator of the Association at whatever level, in order to avoid any interference.

Moving forward and conclusions Next sessions will include some of the roles and responsibilities of Coordinator, Treasurer, Delegate and Secretary from the Provincial Council level and the Local Centers: • Feb 20 th, (Role of Coordinator) • March 26 th, (Role of Treasurer) • May 7 th (Role of Delegate) • June 18 th (Role of Secretary). This link should be posted as an excellent resource related to the materials we cover and plan to cover on the next several months: https: //donboscosalesianportal. org/official-family-groups/salesian-cooperators/

Closing Prayer V. The Angel of the Lord declared unto Mary, R. And she conceived of the Holy Spirit. Hail Mary… V. Behold the handmaid of the Lord. R. Be it done unto me according to Your Word. Hail Mary… V. And the Word was made flesh, R. And dwelt among us. Hail Mary… V. Pray for us, O holy Mother of God. R. That we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ. Let us pray: Pour forth, we beseech You, O Lord, Your Grace into our hearts; that as we have known the incarnation of Christ, your Son by the message of an angel, so by His passion and cross we may be brought to the glory of His Resurrection. Through the same Christ, our Lord. Amen.