The Childhood of Saint John Bosco

Saint John Bosco was born on August 16, 1815 in Castlenuovo d’Asti. His parents, Francis and Margaret Bosco, named him Giovanni Melchior. Giovanni is the Italian name for John. He grew up on a homestead located about 12 miles from Turin, Italy.
John was the youngest of three boys. When he was just 2 years old his father died.

His mother then raised John and his older two brothers by herself. She was very devout, and she educated John in the faith teaching him the value of hard work and living out his life of virtue by bearing good fruit. He worked hard as a child.

A Dream about Jesus and Mary

Young John had a vivid dream when he was nine. In this dream Jesus and Mary appeared and gave him a mission to educate young people in the faith. Now he knew his vocation. He was from a poor family and there was no money for formal schooling. A neighboring farmer was kind enough to teach John to read and write and do his sums and when he was 9, he began to hike a few miles to a local priest to do more advanced schooling. As a young boy he began to show leadership among his peers, believing with faith in his calling.

Putting on a Carnival Show

His mother was a woman of virtue in the community, and she was very loving toward her boys. John played often with the boys in his community while growing up. Sometimes he got roughed up, but he would tell his mother that they really weren’t so bad, they just didn’t know their catechism and their parents didn’t take them to Mass. Soon John was learning how to juggle and walk a tightrope. Eventually he opened his own carnival show on the field in front of his family homestead. He requested a recitation of the rosary by all the spectators as the price of admission. He even preached a Sunday sermon. His mother could clearly see that he had a vocation.

Boarding and Public School

Acting in faith, she divided her husband’s estate and used some of the money to pay a good family she knew to board John in Castelnuovo. He was able to attend a public school while living with this family.

John felt the hardship of urban life and felt like an orphan might, living so far from his loving mother. He also took a job to support himself. He did all kinds of jobs by the time he was 15 years old: he worked in a blacksmith shop, a tailor shop, as a waiter, a pin-boy in a bowling alley, with a shoemaker. Even with all this work outside of his school time, John was able to complete three years of high school in one scholastic year. He had a fantastic memory, was hard working, and had very good study skills.

Called to Become a Priest

During this whole time in his life, John was driven by his conviction that God’s divine will for him was to care for young boys through a vocation to the priesthood. In 1835, at the age of 20, John entered the seminary. St. John Bosco was ordained a priest in 1841. In Italy “Don” is the word used for priests, much like we use the word “Father”.

Serving Orphaned Boys

Saint John Bosco was most known for opening an oratory and trade school for orphaned and abandoned boys in Turin, Italy. He wanted to keep the boys out of trouble, help them learn a trade, and foster vocations to the priesthood. He devoted his life to saving boys from poverty and crime. At that time the slums of Turin were filled with sweatshops that offered low wages and forced children to work with hazardous machinery.

The End of His Life

He fulfilled God’s will for his life when he began his ministry to take care of these boys. Without any money he began taking up the work of caring for these teens. Every week he would organize Masses and hear confessions and offer recreational fun for these troubled teens who slave labored in the factories. One night in December of 1887, an old Don Bosco told his fellow priests that he would go to his rest and not get up again. His last words to his religious sons and brothers was to hold fast to three things: stay devoted to Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament, keep a devotion to the Virgin Mary, Help of Christians, and always come to the defense of the Holy Father. He passed away on January 31, 1888 with the names of Jesus and Mary on his lips.

Saint John Bosco, pray for us!
Sacred Heart of Jesus, have mercy on us!
Immaculate Heart of Mary, pray for us!