THE TREASURES OF THE ASSOCIATION
The fifth and sixth chapters of the training course proposed by the Primary ADMA, Turin-Valdocco, concern, participation in the spiritual goods of the Association and the general organisation of ADMA worldwide respectively.
5. THE ASSOCIATION’S TREASURES
In the previous stage of this formation programme, we dealt with the theme of the personal commitment of those who join the Association. In this stage, we will see that when we seek to do God’s will, the gifts we receive are far greater than our contribution. In fact, associates share, by the firm desire of Don Bosco, the spiritual treasures of the ADMA and of the whole Salesian Family! These spiritual treasures are made up, in particular, of the indulgences and the fruits of worship and prayers which are raised in the Basilica of Mary Help of Christians in Turin and in the churches where the Association is erected.
Pope Francis helps us understand the meaning of the indulgences that the Church gives us, explaining that:
“In the Sacrament of Reconciliation, God forgives sins, which are indeed erased; yet, the negative imprint that sins have left on our behaviour and thoughts remains. God’s mercy, however, is even stronger even than this. It becomes the indulgence of the Father who through the Bride of Christ reaches the forgiven sinner and frees him from every residue of the consequence of sin, enabling him to act with charity, to grow in love rather than relapse into sin. (...) Mother Church is able, by her prayer and life, to meet the weakness of some with the holiness of others. To experience indulgence therefore means to approach the Father’s mercy with the certainty that His forgiveness extends over the believer’s entire life. Indulgence is experiencing the holiness of the Church sharing in all the benefits of Christ’s redemption, so that forgiveness may be extended to the extreme consequences to which God’s love reaches”.
To obtain an indulgence, beyond the state of grace, it is necessary that the faithful:
has the interior disposition of complete detachment from sin, even if only venial;
makes a sacramental confession of his sins;
receives the Blessed Eucharist;
prays according to the intentions of the Supreme Pontiff;
renews, at least privately but explicitly, his promise to faithfully observe the Rules of the Association.
There are also many prayers and good works with attached Partial Indulgences. Among them the two recommended by Don Bosco in the Regulations of the ADMA:
Blessed and praised be every moment the Most Holy and Divine Sacrament.
Mary Help of Christians, pray for us.
It is wonderful to know and experience that each one’s journey of faith and grace benefits all the members of the Association and that the mutual prayer and intercession of Mary Help of Christians are a source of grace.
6. ORGANISED TO BE UNITED WITH THE BASILICA OF VALDOCCO
Organisation is an instrument at the service of individuals and groups, and therefore must not suffocate but promote and support fraternal relations and the apostolic commitment of members. According to the Salesian spirit, all that is needed are a few clear, simple and shared rules to help people move forward, to give continuity and order to the good that already exists and is being done, looking more at life and experience rather than at formulations or juridical concerns.
On a worldwide level, ADMA is made up of local Groups, each of which lives in close communion with the Shrine of Mary Help of Christians in Turin-Valdocco and with the Association founded here by Don Bosco, which takes the name of Primary ADMA.
The canonical erection of the local ADMA is the responsibility of the SDB Provincial for all the SDB and FMA communities, through a Decree of Erection. For all the other ADMA, whether diocesan, or of other Religious Institutes, or of other Groups of the Salesian Family, they are erected by the SDB Provincial, competent in the territory, with the written consent of the diocesan Bishop.
A typical element of the ADMA is, immediately after the erection of a local Group, the request for aggregation to the Primary ADMA of Turin-Valdocco. This act expresses not only a juridical fact but first and foremost a spiritual bond of communion with the cradle of the Association and simultaneously a concrete link with all the Groups of the Association spread throughout the world. The bond of unity is constitutive for each local group: through the aggregation to the Primary Association of the Shrine of Mary Help of Christians in Turin-Valdocco, one manifests one’s full belonging to the Association and can enjoy the spiritual advantages because one is linked to it and with it, dependence on the Rector Major of the Salesian Congregation.
Each local Group of the ADMA is called to take care of, to live and to bear witness to the close spiritual bond with the Shrine of Mary Help of Christians. By reason of the founding charism, there is, in fact, an original, constitutive link between the ADMA and the Shrine of Mary Help of Christians, centre of communion and source of grace. The ADMA Primary, in a special way, is called to take care of and make visible this spiritual and historical link between the Association and the Shrine of Mary Help of Christians. It will also propose all those means which facilitate communion with the local groups, through contacts, visits, different forms of communication and information, concrete gestures of solidarity. It is important and vital to maintain and cultivate this relationship on the part of each local Group and the provincial and national coordination bodies.
By virtue of the special bond which binds it to the Shrine, the ADMA is the only group of the Salesian Family which has its headquarters in Turin. By tradition, the President and the Spiritual Animator of the Primary ADMA are also of the whole Association, with the following tasks:
officially representing the Association both at Church level and within the Salesian Family;
promoting the International Congresses of Mary Help of Christians;
to participate, when there is a request and an invitation, in the Congresses and in the Provincial and National Councils.
Gian Luca and Mariangela Spesso
