ST. JOHN
BOSCO (1815-1888) popularly known as Don
Bosco was an Italian priest, educator and writer of the 19th
century. While working in Turin, where the population suffered many
of the ill-effects of industrialization and urbanization, he
dedicated his life to the betterment and education of street
children, juvenile delinquents, and other disadvantaged youth. He
developed teaching methods based on love rather than punishment.
A follower of the spirituality and
philosophy of St. Francis de Sales, St. John Bosco was an ardent
devotee of Mary under the title Help of Christians. He later
dedicated his works to St. Francis De Sales when he founded the
Salesians of Don Bosco, based in Turin. Together with Maria Domenica
Mazzarello, he founded the Institute of the Daughters of Mary Help of
Christians, a religious congregation of nuns dedicated to the care
and education of poor girls. He taught St. Dominic Savio, of whom he
wrote a biography that helped the young boy be canonized.
On 18 April 1869, one year after the
construction of the Basilica of Mary Help of Christians in Turin, St.
John Bosco established the Association of Mary Help of Christians,
connecting it with commitments easily fulfilled by most common
people, to the spirituality and the mission of the Salesian
Congregation. The ADMA was founded to promote the veneration of the
Most Holy Sacrament and Mary Help of Christians.
In 1876 St. John Bosco founded a
movement of laity, the Association of Salesian Cooperators, with the
same educational mission to the poor. In 1875, he began to publish
the Salesian Bulletin. The Bulletin has remained in
continuous publication, and is currently published in 50 different
editions and 30 languages.
St. John Bosco established a network of
organizations and centers to carry on his work. Following his
beatification in 1929, he was canonized as a saint in the Roman
Catholic Church by Pope Pius XI in 1934.
Of course,
he had mystical gifts, the most famous are his numerous prophetic
dreams and visions. There three in particular that point to the
chastisements of France and Rome, the arrival of a Warrior with a
White Banner from the north who meets the Pope, (which sounds like Great Monarch and the White Flag of the French Monarchy as seen in prophecies by other mystics), and the eventual Triumph of the Church and the Age of
Peace.
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The
Famous Dream of the Ship and the Two Columns, May 30, 1862.
(A
description of the future attacks against the Church, and apparently,
the Age of Peace where heresies will cease and all will seek to join
the True Church.)
"Imagine
yourselves to be with me on the seashore, or better, on an isolated
rock and not to see any patch of land other than what is under your
feet. On the whole of that vast sheet of water you see an innumerable
fleet of ships in battle array. The prows of the ships are formed
into sharp, spearlike points so that wherever they are thrust they
pierce and completely destroy. These ships are armed with cannons,
with lots of rifles, with incendiary materials, with other arms of
all kinds, and also with books, and they advance against a ship very
much bigger and higher than themselves and try to dash against it
with the prows or to burn it or in some way to do it every possible
harm.
"As
escorts to that majestic fully equipped ship (the Church), there are
many smaller ships, which receive commands by signal from it and
carry out movements to defend themselves from the opposing fleet.
"In
the midst of the immense expanse of sea, two mighty columns of great
height arise a little distance the one from the other. On the top of
one, there is the statue of the Immaculate Virgin, from whose feet
hangs a large placard with this inscription: Auxilium
Christianorum - 'Help of Christians'; on the
other, which is much higher and bigger, stands a Host of great size
proportionate to the column and beneath is another placard with the
words: Salus Credentium - 'Salvation
of the Faithful.'
"The
supreme commander on the big ship is the Sovereign Pontiff. He, on
seeing the fury of the enemies and the evils among which his faithful
find themselves, determines to summon around himself the captains of
the smaller ships to hold a council and decide on what is to be
done.”
"All
the captains come aboard and gather around the Pope. They hold a
meeting (NOTE: probably the First Vatican Council: 1869-1870), but
meanwhile the wind and the waves gather in storm, so they are sent
back to control their own ships. There comes a short lull; for a
second time the Pope gathers the captains together around him (NOTE:
probably the Second Vatican Council: 1962-1965), while the flagship
goes on its course. But the frightful storm returns. The Pope stands
at the helm and all his energies are directed to steering the ship
towards those two columns, from the top of which and from every side
of which are hanging numerous anchors and big hooks, fastened to
chains.
"All
the enemy ships move to attack it, and they try in every way to stop
it and to sink it: some with writings or books or inflammable
materials, of which they are full; others with guns, with rifles and
with rams. The battle rages ever more relentlessly. The enemy prows
thrust violently, but their efforts and impact prove useless. They
make attempts in vain and waste all their labor and ammunition; the
big ship goes safely and smoothly on its way. Sometimes it happens
that, struck by formidable blows, it gets large, deep gaps in its
sides; but no sooner is the harm done than a gentle breeze blows from
the two columns and the cracks close up and the gaps are stopped
immediately.
"Meanwhile,
the guns of the assailants are blown up, the rifles and other arms
and prows are broken; many ships are shattered and sink into the sea.
Then, the frenzied enemies strive to fight hand to hand, with fists,
with blows, with blasphemy and with curses.”
"All
at once the Pope falls gravely wounded. Immediately, those who are
with him run to help him and they lift him up. A second time the Pope
is struck, he falls again and dies. A shout of victory and of joy
rings out amongst the enemies; from their ships an unspeakable
mockery arises. But hardly is the Pontiff dead than another Pope
takes his place. The pilots, having met together, have elected the
Pope so promptly that the news of the death of the Pope coincides
with the news of the election of the successor. The adversaries begin
to lose courage.”
(NOTE:
while many have interpreted the vision of the death of the pope to be
literal, it could also be symbolical – i.e. the papacy will be
attacked gravely two times, and on the second time will appear to
have been given a death-blow, but a new pope takes his place
immediately showing that nothing can attack the papacy. The sight of
their failure to destroy the papacy makes the adversaries of the
Church lose their courage.)
"The
new Pope, putting the enemy to rout and overcoming every obstacle,
guides the ship right up to the two columns and comes to rest between
them; he makes it fast with a light chain that hangs from the bow to
an anchor of the column on which stands the Host; and with another
light chain which hangs from the stern, he fastens it at the opposite
end to another anchor hanging from the column on which stands the
Immaculate Virgin.
"Then
a great convulsion takes place. All the ships that until then had
fought against the Pope' s ship are scattered; they flee away,
collide and break to pieces one against another. Some sink and try to
sink others. Several small ships that had fought gallantly for the
Pope race to be the first to bind themselves to those two columns.
"Many
other ships, having retreated through fear of the battle, cautiously
watch from far away; the wrecks of the broken ships having been
scattered in the whirlpools of the sea, they in their turn sail in
good earnest to those two columns, and, having reached them, they
make themselves fast to the hooks hanging down from them and there
they remain safe, together with the principal ship, on which is the
Pope. Over the sea there reigns a great calm."
St. John
Bosco explains his dream: "The enemy ships are persecutions. The
most serious trials for the Church are near at hand...Her enemies are
represented by the ships that tried to sink the ship if they could.
Only two means are left to save her amidst so much confusion:
DEVOTION TO MARY MOST HOLY and FREQUENT COMMUNION, making use of
every means and doing our best to practice them and having them
practiced everywhere and by everybody."
(NOTE: this
could be a vision of the Age of Peace as the pillars in the middle of
the sea are great supports, but they must be only temporary as a ship
is meant to reach a destination port in the end, i.e. Heaven. The
ship has not yet reached Heaven, but is anchored. The anchor is a
symbol of HOPE, and as St. Paul says, there is no hope in Heaven as
hope is not needed there, so the dream is obviously showing the
Church will enjoys a time of great peace on earth when it is anchored
between Mary, and the Blessed Sacrament, which also means the MASS.
Of interest, other mystics have said Mary will be instrumental in
bringing about the Age of Peace, and Ven. Bartholomew Holzhauser said
our greatest support during the time of confusion will be the
doctrines of the Council of Trent, which of course defined the form
of the Latin Mass for all time. So, could St. John Bosco's dream
also be telling us that when the Church is anchored to the pillar of
Tradition with regards to the Mass, we will enjoy the Age of Peace?)
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'First'
Prophecy of 1870 – A prophecy of the Chastisements
France and Rome, and a Warrior from the North with a White Banner. (The Great Catholic Monarch with the White Flag?) (From
'The Biographical Memoirs of Saint John Bosco' by Rev. Angelo
Amadei, S.D.B. Volume X 1871-1874, Salesiana Publishers New
Rochelle, New York, 1977)
St. John
Bosco: “God alone is almighty, all-knowing, all-seeing. God has
neither past nor future; everything is present to Him, everything at
a single point of time. Nothing eludes God. No person, no place is
distant from Him. In His infinite mercy and for His glory He alone
can unveil the future to man. On the vigil of the Epiphany of this
year, 1870, all material things in my room disappeared, and I found
myself contemplating supernatural matters. It was only a matter of an
instant, but I saw a great deal. Although what I witnessed was
sensibly present, I find it extremely difficult to communicate it to
others intelligibly, as one may realize by what follows. This is the
Word of God in human parlance:
"War
will come from the south, peace from the north.”
"The
laws of France no longer recognize the Creator. The Creator will
reveal Himself by visiting her three times with the scourge of His
wrath. The first time He will destroy her pride by defeat, pillage,
and destruction of crops, cattle, and men. On His second visit the
great whore of Babylon, which the faithful grievingly call Europe's
brothel, (i.e Paris) shall lose her leader and fall prey to chaos."
“Paris!
Paris! Instead of fortifying yourself with the Lord's name, you
surround yourself with houses of ill repute. You yourself shall
destroy them; your idol, the Pantheon, will be razed to the ground,
so that it may truthfully be said that 'iniquity has lied to itself.'
[Ps. 26, 12] Your enemies will plunge you into anguish, famine,
terror, and the contempt of nations. But woe unto you if you do not
recognize the hand which smites you! I want to punish your
immorality, your desertion, your contempt for My law, says the Lord.”
"On My
third visit, you shall fall under the foreign yoke. From afar your
enemies will see your palaces in flames, your home in ruins, soaked
in the blood of your heroes who are no more." But behold, a
great warrior from the north appears, a banner in his right hand, his
arm bearing this inscription: 'Irresistible is the hand of the Lord.'
At that moment the Venerable Old Man of Rome went forward to meet
him, wielding a flaming torch. The banner then grew larger and its
blackness became white as snow; in its center stood out the name of
the Almighty in golden letters.The warrior and his followers bowed
profoundly to the Venerable Old Man and joined hands with him.”
(NOTE: the
next excerpt is a part of the vision St. John Bosco revealed to Pope
Pius IX in February 12, 1870 – here is is inserting it with
Heaven's exhortations to the Pope):
"Now
the voice of Heaven is addressed to the Shepherd of Shepherds. (To
Pius IX.) You are in solemn conference with your co-workers (the
Vatican Council), but the enemy of good never stands idle. He
cunningly plots and sets all his wiles against you. He will sow
discord among your helpers and will rear enemies among My sons. (The
grave frustrations [suffered by Pius IX] during the Vatican Council.)
The powers of the world shall vomit fire. They would love to smother
My words in the throats of the guardians of My law, but they shall
not succeed. (This has already been attempted and will still be
attempted, especially in Prussia.) They shall do much harm, but only
to themselves. Hurry! If knots cannot be untied, sever them. Do not
halt in the face of difficulties, but go forth until the hydra of
error has been beheaded (through the proclamation of the dogma of
papal infallibility). At this blow earth and hell shall tremble, but
the world will be saved and the faithful shall exult. Gather around
you only two co-workers, yet wherever you go, carry on the task
entrusted to you and bring it to completion (the Vatican Council).
Days go by swiftly and your years are reaching their appointed
number, but the great Queen shall always assist you, and, as in the
past, She shall always be magnum et singulare in Ecclesia praesidium
[the powerful, prodigious defense of the Church.” (End of the
excerpt to Pope Pius IX ….)
St. John
continues with his vision....
"But
you, O Italy, land of blessings, who has plunged you into desolation?
Not your enemies, but your own friends. Do you not hear your children
begging for the bread of faith, unable to find one to break it for
them? What shall I do? I shall strike the shepherds and scatter the
sheep so that those who sit upon the chair of Moses may seek better
pastures and their flock may gently listen and be fed. (A seeming
allusion to inadequate religious instruction.) "But My hand
shall be heavy upon both flock and shepherds. Famine, plague, and war
shall cause mothers to mourn the blood of their sons and husbands
shed on foreign soil. What shall befall you, ungrateful, effeminate,
proud Rome? You have reached a point when you seek and admire naught
in your sovereign but luxury, forgetting that both your glory and his
lies on Golgotha. Now he is old, frail, defenseless, and
dispossessed. Nevertheless, though captive, his words cause the
whole world to tremble.”
"O
Rome! Four times shall I come to you! The first time I shall smite
your regions and its people. The second time I shall bring slaughter
and destruction to your very gates. Should not that make you open
your eyes? A third time shall I come, and I will demolish your
defenses and defenders. At My Father's command, terror, dismay, and
desolation will reign. My wise followers flee, but My law is still
trod underfoot. Therefore, I shall come a fourth time. Woe to you if
My law again shall go unheeded. There shall be defections among both
learned and ignorant. Your blood and that of your children shall wipe
out your transgression” War, plague, and famine are the scourges to
smite human pride and malice. Where are your magnificent villas and
palaces, you people of wealth? They have become the litter of squares
and streets!"
“And you
priests, why are you not prostrate between the vestibule and the
altar, weeping and praying that the scourge may cease? Why do you
not take up the shield of faith and preach My Word from the rooftops,
in the houses, streets, and squares, and even in inaccessible places?
Do you not know that this is the terrible two-edged sword which
smites My enemies and placates the wrath of God and man? These
things shall inexorably come to pass, all in succession.”
“Things
follow too slowly upon each other, but the great Queen of Heaven is
at hand; the Lord's power is Hers. Like mist She shall scatter Her
enemies. She shall vest the Venerable Old Man with all his former
garments." (i.e the Pope?) There shall yet come a violent
hurricane. Iniquity is at an end, sin shall cease, and before two
full moons shall have shone in the month of flowers (i.e. May), the rainbow of
peace shall appear on the earth. The great Minister shall see the
Bride of his King clothed in glory. Throughout the world a sun so
bright shall shine as was never seen since the flames of the Cenacle
until today, nor shall it be seen again until the end of time."
(NOTE: While
St. Bosco's contemporaries attempted to show this prophecy had to do
with the Franco-Prussian War of the early 1870s at Pius IX's
pontificate, at the same time, they had to admit that there were
still many details that did not fit the events of that war, and
therefore St. Bosco's prophecy must refer to a future time. His
prophecy indeed fits with the prophecies of other mystics foretelling
the destruction of Paris and the harassment of Rome before the Age of
Peace occurs via the reign of the Great Monarch and Angelic Pontiff.
Marie-Julie Jahenny also predicted France would be hit with three
crises, Paris would be destroyed, and that the Great Monarch would
come in the third crisis. She also predicted years of hardship and attacks on Rome.
St. Bosco says the Peace shall come before two full moons happen in May - that would be a 'blue moon', and the next cloesest years we will have a blue moon / two full moons in May are 2026 and 2045)
St. Bosco says the Peace shall come before two full moons happen in May - that would be a 'blue moon', and the next cloesest years we will have a blue moon / two full moons in May are 2026 and 2045)
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Second
Prophecy (May 24 -June 24, 1873) (From 'The Biographical
Memoirs of Saint John Bosco' by Rev. Angelo Amadei, S.D.B. Volume X
1871-1874, Salesiana Publishers New Rochelle, New York, 1977)
This seems to allude to the darkness attacking the Church before the
Age of Peace, a prophecy of a Pope going into exile with true
followers of the faith tending to dwindle, also, it is a prophecy of
the chastisements sent to Rome - Observations in parenthesis by St.
John Bosco himself.
It was a
dark night (error), and men could no longer find their way back to
their own countries. Suddenly a most brilliant light (faith in God
and in His power) shone in the sky, illuminating their way as at high
noon. At that moment from the Vatican came forth, as in procession, a
multitude of men and women, young children, monks, nuns, and priests,
and at their head was the Pope. (It seems to allude to the
suppression of monasteries and schools run by religious and to the
Pope's exile.) But a furious storm then broke out, somewhat dimming
that light, as if light and darkness were locked in battle. (Perhaps
this means a battle between truth and error, or else a bloody war.)
Meanwhile the long procession reached a small square littered with
dead and wounded, many of whom cried for help. The ranks o f the
procession thinned considerably. After a two- hundred-day march, all
realized that they were no longer in Rome. In dismay they swarmed
about the Pontiff to protect him and minister to him in his needs.
At that
moment two angels appeared, bearing a banner which they presented to
the Supreme Pontiff, saying: "Take the banner of Her who battles
and routs the most powerful armies on earth. Your enemies have
vanished; with tears and sighs your children plead for your
return."One side of the banner bore the inscription: Regina sine
labe concepta [Queen conceived without sin], and the other side read:
Auxilium Christianorum [Help of Christians].The Pontiff accepted the
banner gladly, but he became very distressed to see how few were his
followers. But the two angels went on:
"Go
now, comfort your children. Write to your brothers scattered
throughout the world that men must reform their lives. This cannot be
achieved unless the bread of the Divine Word is broken among the
peoples. Teach children their catechism and preach detachment from
earthly things. The time has come," the two angels concluded,
"when the poor will evangelize the world. Priests shall be
sought among those who wield the hoe, the spade, and the hammer, as
David prophesied: 'God lifted the poor man from the fields to place
him on the throne of the princes of His people.'
"On
hearing this, the Pontiff moved on, and the ranks began to swell.
Upon reaching the Holy City, the Pontiff wept at the sight of its
desolate citizens, for many of them were no longer. He then entered
St. Peter's and intoned the Te Deum, to which a chorus of angels
responded, singing: Gloria in excelsis Deo et in terra pax hominibus
bonae voluntatis [Glory to God in the highest, and peace on earth to
men of good will].When the song was over, all darkness vanished and a
blazing sun shone. The population had declined greatly in the cities
and in the countryside; the land was mangled as if by a hurricane and
hailstorm, and people sought each other, deeply moved, and saying:
Est Deus in Israel [There is God in Israel].From the start of the
exile until the intoning of the Te Deum, the sun rose two hundred
times. All the events described covered a period of four hundred
days.”
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