Saint John Bosco. Founder of the Society of St. Francis de Sales.

Today's Saint: Saint John Bosco. Founder of the Society of St. Francis de Sales. Director, Educator, Mentor, and Friend to hundreds of boys many poor and some orphaned.

St. John Bosco is a modern saint who touched the lives of so many people that his order, founded and approved in 1869, already holds 5 saints and 4 blesseds. St. John began his life of preaching when he was still young. When his father passed away he took on many odd jobs to help his mother and family. He would often sneak away to the circus and fair and learn some of the tricks that he had witnessed at these events. He would then put on his own, one man shows, to the children in his neighborhood and end the show by repeating the homily that he had heard that morning. This turned into children begging to see his tricks, and St. John requesting only one thing in return, that they went to mass.

While the Church is always cautions against personal reliance on dreams and visions, St. John would often have prophecies in his dreams, guiding him to better minister to the children in his care, and even informing him when one of them was going to die. He always used this to better the spiritual states of all of his school boys.

He taught that their where 4 necessities that each follower of Christ must have to obtain holiness:

Frequent and devout Communions

Frequent and good Confessions, hiding nothing

Loyalty to the Holy Father

Good Companions

These are 4 faithful points to meditate on this day.

St. John Bosco, pray for us.