Chapter 6. 

School at Mondonio - He puts up with a great injustice

It seems that Divine Providence wanted to help Dominic to realise that this world is a place of exile where we have no resting place, it may be, on the other hand, that it was God's design that he should be known in as many places as possible, so that his goodness and strong virtue might be a source of inspiration to all who saw him.
Towards the end of 1852 his parents left Murialdo and set up house in Mondonio, a village near Castelnuovo. Here Dominic continued the same way of life and I need to repeat what other teachers had said about him earlier. His teacher, Father Cugliero, among other things had this to say about him, though I have been selective in order not to repeat myself too much:
I can truthfully say that in twenty years..of teaching boys I have never had one to equal Dominic. He was only a boy in age but he had the sense and judgement of a fully mature man. He was very diligent and applied himself to his lessons, and his good-naturedness and readiness to help won him the affection both of his companions and teachers. I could not help marvelling at the way he could fix his attention in church, and I often said to myself 'This is certainly an innocent boy, whose heart and affections are already in heaven.
The following is an incident among others recounted by Father Cugliero.

One day, an incident of so serious a nature took place at the school such that expulsion was the obvious punishment for those responsible. The culprits realised this and sought to save themselves by coming to me and laying all the blame on Dominic. I could not imagine that the boy had done anything so stupid, but his accusers were so insistent and emphatic about it that I believed them. I was very annoyed and went to the classroom. I left the boys in no doubt as to what I thought about the whole affair, and then I turned to Dominic and minced no words in telling him off, saying that he deserved to be expelled and that he would have been, had it not been the first time he had done such a thing, and that he should make sure it would be the last time. Dominic did not say a word, but stood there with his head bowed, accepting humbly all that was said to him.
God, however, protects the innocent, and next day it came out who the real culprits were. Somewhat ashamed of all the abuse I had heaped on his head, I took him aside and asked him: “Why did you not tell me you were not responsible”? He replied: “I knew that these boys had already been up to so much mischief that this would certainly earn them expulsion, and I thought I would try to save them, as I probably would not be expelled, seeing that it was my very first time . . . also, I remembered that Jesus had been blamed unjustly and had not said anything, and I thought I should do the same”.
No more was said, but all admired Dominic's patience, which was able to return good for evil and was even ready to accept serious punishment to save those who had told such lies about him.
This was Father Cugliero's testimony.

Chapter 5. 

His behaviour at school at Castelnuovo d'Asti 

– What his teacher had to say

             From his experiences at this school Dominic learned how to get on properly with the other boys. If he saw one who did his best, was obedient, tried hard at his lessons, he made him his friend. Those who were always giving trouble, making no effort to learn, ready with bad talk and such like, he avoided like the plague. Those who were in between he tried to help, if he could, in whatever way was possible; but he never made them his close friends.

Dominic's life at the school at Castelnuovo can be a model and an inspiration for any boy who wants to get on, to follow God and also prepare himself for life. I give here what Father Allora, the priest who was the head of this excellent school, wrote about him thus:

I am very glad to write what I know about Dominic Savio, who in a very short time won my admiration and esteem. I have an unfailing memory of his exemplary life and happy disposition.

I cannot say very much about his piety and devotion as he was excused from taking part in the school religious services, on account of his living so far away.

He passed the entrance examination with distinction and was admitted to Class 2 on June 21st, the feast of St. Aloysius, Patron of Youth. He was not very strong physically, but he had a very pleasant appearance and was very well mannered. He was always cheerful and good tempered and never imposed himself on anyone. He made a very good impression on his teachers by his diligence and made up for some of the others who never bothered or showed interest, no matter what was done for them. He lived up to his name [Savio=wise] not only in his lessons, but in everything he did and said. Right from the first moment he made progress in his studies. He quickly got to the top of his class and remained there getting high marks in all subjects. This was not simply because he was clever but because he worked very hard and came to have a great love for his lessons. It was also because his studies were not simply for himself but for God.

Although he was not very strong physically he never missed a day off school. It should be remembered that he had over two miles to walk four times a day in the mud, snow and cold of the winter and the oftentimes intense heat of the summer. I had great hopes for Dominic and it was with great regret that I saw him go away. His parents had to move to another district and so it was necessary for him to leave; I was afraid that for one reason or another he might not be able to continue with his studies; this would have been a tragedy for so wonderful a boy.

It was a great joy for me when I heard later that he had been accepted at the Oratory of St. Francis de Sales; I knew that there he would have great opportunities both for his mind and soul. Thus the testimony of Father Allora.

Chapter 4.

School at Castelnuovo d'Asti 

-An edifying occasion 

-Wise answer to bad advice

It was clearly high time for Dominic to go to another school as he had gon
e as far as he could in the little village school. Both his parents and himself desired this very much but they had not the money which would make this possible. They could only turn to God, the supreme master of everything, and who would see to all that was needed to make it possible.
“If only I were a bird”, Dominic would say sometimes, “I would fly morning and evening to Castelnuovo, and so I would be able to carry on with my lessons”.
His keen desire finally overcame all difficulties, and it was decided that he should go to the county school, although this was about three miles away. Dominic cheerfully walked the six miles there and back every day. The varieties of weather, the dust and the very hot sun in summer, mud, rain, storms and fierce winds at other times of the year, never got him down or stopped him from going to school, although he was barely ten years old when he started. He was obedient to his parents, which helped him to look after his health and to put up with any discomforts. A local farmer used sometimes to see Dominic on the road, and one afternoon when the sun was beating down mercilessly he approached the boy and started talking.
“Aren't you afraid to be on your own on this lonely road, especially in the dark winter evening”?
“But I am not alone: my guardian angel is with me”.
But don't you get fed up having to go backwards and forwards in heat like this”?
“No, I am doing it for a Master who pays well”.
“Oh, and who is that”?
“God the Creator, who rewards even a cup of water given for his sake”.
The farmer used often to recount this incident and predicted a great future for Dominic.
Some of his school companions were not very good, and on one occasion he was in grave danger of doing wrong. In the hot weather some of the boys used to go swimming in the streams and other water pools where water was available. Bathing has its physical dangers and, not infrequently, the death by drowning of young people and adults has to be lamented. It can also have its dangers for the soul in certain circumstances, when boys are stripped together and have little care and respect for each other.
Dominic was persuaded by some of his companions to go swimming with them on one occasion. But when he saw what was done and said, he was profoundly grieved and made up his mind never to go again.
A short time afterwards two of the same boys came to him again.
“Dominic, are you coming to play”?
“What are you going to play”?
“We're going swimming”.
“I'm not going. I am afraid of drowning”.
“Come on, be a sport: we'll have a great time and feel much fresher in this heat”.
“But I 'm afraid”.
“Don't be afraid. We'll teach you, and soon you will be swimming like a fish, and leaping about like the rest of us”.
“But isn't it wrong to go to such dangerous place to swim”?
“Not at all. If so many go, how can it be wrong”?
“Still, I feel uneasy about it and don't know what to say”.
“Come on, take our word for it, we'll look after you”.
“I think I'll go to ask my mother if it is all right for me to go”.
“Don't be stupid - don't say anything to your Mum. She won't let you go, and she will also tell our parents and we will be in for a good hiding”.
“Well if my mother won't let me go, I'm not going. In any case if you want the truth I'll tell you. I went once before, but never again; not simply because it is easy to get drowned there, but more still because from what I saw last time it is also easy to offend God; so don't talk to me any more about swimming. In any case if your parents don't want you to go, you know you should not go. God punishes children who disobey their parents”.
This is how Dominic answered the harmful suggestions of his companions and in doing so avoided a grave danger through which, if he had allowed himself to go, he might well have lost his innocence, the loss of which leads on to so many sad consequences.

Chapter 3. 

His first communion 

– Preparation, recollection and memories of the day

Nothing stood in the way of Dominic's being allowed to make his First Communion. He knew the basic catechism by heart, and understood very well what the Holy Eucharist was. He had also a great desire to receive Jesus into his heart. There was only one difficulty, his age. At that time boys and girls did not normally make their First Communion until they were eleven or twelve years old. Dominic was only seven. To look at him, he seemed even younger, and so the parish priest hesitated to put him forward. He sought advice from some of the other priests and they, knowing Dominic's state, said that he need not hesitate. The way was now clear and Dominic was told that he could make his First Holy Communion.
It is not easy to describe the joy which filled him at this news. He ran home trembling with excitement and joy to tell his mother. Much of his time was given to praying and reading; he made visits to the Blessed Sacrament and it seemed as though he was trying to outrival the angels in his devotion.
The evening before he went to his mother and said: “Mother, tomorrow I am receiving Jesus in Holy Communion for the first time; forgive me for anything I have done to displease you in the past: I promise you I am going to be a much better boy in every way”. Having said this, he burst into tears. So did his mother, as she put her arms round him, unable to say anything except. “Pray for me and for your father, pray that God may keep you always his own”.
Dominic was up early next morning, dressed himself in his best clothes and hurried off to church. It was not yet open so he knelt down on the steps, as was his custom, and tried to pray until the other children arrived and the church was opened. With Confession, preparation, thanksgiving and sermon, the service lasted five hours. Dominic was the first in church and the last to leave. Time seemed to mean nothing to him and he scarcely seemed to know whether he was on earth or in heaven.
It was a wonderful and never-to-be-forgotten day for him; it was a renewal of his life for God, a life that can be taken as an example by anyone. If one got him to talk about his First Communion several years later, his face lit up with joy and happiness as he said: “That was the happiest and most wonderful day of my life”. He made some promises on that day which he preserved carefully in a little book, and often re-read them. He let me have this little book to look at and I give them here just as he wrote them.
Promises made by me, Dominic Savio, when I made my First Communion in 1849 at seven years of age:
I will go often to Confession and I will go to Holy Communion as often as I am allowed.
I will try to give the Sundays and holy days completely to God.
My best friends will be Jesus and Mary.
Death, but not sin.
These promises were the guiding light of his life until he died.
If among those who read this book there are any who have yet to make their First Communion, I would urge them strongly to try to do as Dominic did; to let him inspire them in their preparation and all that they do. With all my heart too I recommend to parents, teachers and all those who are responsible for the young, to give the greatest importance to this great act. Be assured that the First Communion very well made is a solid moral foundation for the rest of the child's life. It will certainly be an extraordinary thing to find anyone who has made this great act with real devotion and care and has afterwards gone astray. On the other hand there are thousands of young people who have gone astray and who are the despair of their parents and those responsible for them; I would not hesitate to say that the trouble began with the little or no real preparation for the First Communion. It is better to delay making it, or not to make it at all, than to make it badly.

Chapter 2. 

Good behaviour at Murialdo 

– Signs of virtue – Attendance at the village school

In this chapter there are facts which some might find difficult to believe. In giving them I quote from a statement given me by Dominic's parish priest:

“Soon after I came to Murialdo, I would often see a small boy about five years old coming into the church with his mother. I was very struck with the serenity of his face and his unaffected piety, and was not surprised that others noticed the same. If, when he came to church in the morning it was locked, you would see something very interesting. He would quietly kneel down and say his prayers, instead of beginning to play about in some way or other as boys of his age would do. It did not matter if the ground was muddy or the snow was thick on it, he knelt down just the same. Curious to know who he was, I made enquiries and found out that he was the son of the blacksmith, Charles Savio.
If ever I met him on the road he would wave while still some distance away and his face would light up with a smile. At school he made rapid progress not simply because he was clever, but also because he tried very hard. Some of the boys he had to mix with were rather rowdy and far from good, but I never saw him quarrelling. If they did try to involve him in some disturbance, he would patiently hold on and at the first opportunity quietly slip away. If they wanted him to join with them robbing orchards, damaging property, making fun of old people or suchlike, he not only refused, but stated quite convincingly why he thought it was wrong to do so.
This spirit of piety did not drop off as he grew older. He was only five years old when he learned to serve Mass and he always did so with great attention. He tried to be at Mass every day, and if there was someone else serving he would hear Mass from the benches. As he was rather small, he could not reach the missal when it was on the altar. It brought a smile to one's lips to see him anxiously coming up to the altar, standing on tip-toe and reaching as far as he could in the effort to get hold of the missal-stand. If the priest saying Mass wanted to please him, on no account should he change the missal over himself, but pull the stand right to the edge where Dominic could get hold of it and carry it triumphantly to the other side.
He used to go regularly and frequently to confession, and since he already knew how to distinguish heavenly bread from the earthly kind, he was allowed to make his First Communion. Communion was something he did with great devotion. Seeing how grace was working in his soul so marvellously, I often thought to myself, “What promise there is here for the future; may God open up the way for him to reach the heights he is capable of attaining”. That is what the priest at Murialdo wrote.

The life of Dominic Savio
as narrated by Don Bosco

You yourselves have often asked me to write you something about Dominic Savio, and having done what I could to satisfy your earnest wishes, here then is his life briefly and simply written.
There have been two difficulties in particular in writing this life for you. The first one is the talk which writing about things many people still living have seen and heard gives rise to. I think I have got around this by only writing about the things which we ourselves saw. The second one is that, since Dominic lived here for three years, I have had to speak about myself in different ways. I have tried to overcome this by treating things in as historical a way as possible. If, however, in spite of this I seem to refer to myself unduly, consider it to be the result of the the great affection I have for Dominic and for you all; this lets me talk freely to you and keep no secrets from you.
You might ask me why it is I have written Dominic's life and not that of some of the other boys who had such a reputation for virtue and whom you were so fond of - Gabriel Fascio, Louis Rua, John Massaglia come quickly to mind, apart from many others. It is quite true that the goodness of these boys would make their lives very well worth writing, but Dominic stood out even above these. In any case, I have it in mind with God's help to write something about them for you, so that you can do the same as they did.
In this fifth edition, then, I have added some new details which I hope will also be interesting for those who have read this life in earlier printed editions.
In the meantime, reading about Dominic's life, say to yourselves what the great St. Augustine said in similar circumstances, Si ille cur non ego? That is, if a boy of my age, just like me in every way, who had to meet the same temptations as I have to or worse, could follow Christ with such courage and wholeheartedness, why should I not do the same? Remember that true religion does not mean simply saying things, but doing them. If you read something that you admire, don't content yourself with saying: “This is great”; say rather, “I am going to do the same”.
May God give you and all those who read this little book the grace to benefit from it. May the Blessed Virgin whom Dominic loved so much, grant that we may, all of us, love God with all our heart and soul. For He alone deserves all our love and service.
Fr John Bosco


Chapter 1.
Home – The boy's character – His early goodness
>Dominic's parents, Charles and Brigid Savio, were poor, hard working people and belonged to Castelnuovo d'Asti1 >a little town about ten miles from Turin. In 1841 they went to live in Riva.2
When Dominic was two years old his parents decided to return to their native place and they found a home at Murialdo on the outskirts of Castelnuovo d'Asti.
His parents dearly loved their son and had only one idea – to bring him up as a good Christian. Dominic was naturally good, with a heart which was a fertile field for the things of God. He learned his morning and night prayers readily and could already say them by himself when he was only four years old. He was constantly beside his mother, eager to help her in every way. If he did go off sometimes, it was only to go into some corner and try to say some prayers.
>“From his earliest years”, said his parents, “when children find it very difficult to keep still, and are always wanting to touch and pull things about, Dominic was not only obedient and ready to do anything we asked but was also always trying to do whatever made us happy”.
When his father came home at night from work, Dominic would run to meet him, take his hand, or jump up into his arms, something they noted with interest and with pleasure. “Dear Dad”, he'd say, “how tired you must be. True? You work so hard for me and I'm not always good, in fact I cause trouble. I pray to God to give you health and to make me good”. And with that he would offer him a chair or stool to sit on, would keep him company and do a thousand little things for him. “This was real comfort for me in my work” the father said, “and I was impatient to get home and kiss my Dominic who had won over my heart completely”.
His love did not stop at his parents; his love of God was older than his years. He wanted to say his prayers and never had to be reminded, much less driven, to say them at night and before and after meals. The Angelus too. Rather, it was he who reminded others, should they happen to forget.
One day, distracted by something unusual, his parents sat down to the meal without saying grace. Dominic immediately said, “Dad, we have not said our grace yet”, and began himself to make the Sign of the Cross and say the prayer.
On another occasion there was a visitor in the house who was asked to stay for dinner. When the meal was put on the table, the man sat down and began eating without making the Sign of the Cross or saying any prayer. Dominic did not presume to correct the visitor, but left the table and stayed away until the visitor had gone. When asked by his parents why he had acted in this very unusual way, he said, “I did not like to be at table with one who eats just like animals do.”

St. Dominic Savio,

Pray for us!

St Dominic Savio

Many people love him then and now. I myself is a devotee of him. it feels good to talk to him every night, kissing his relic and asking him to accompany me while I sleep. I even ask  God to send me a dream where I can talk to Savio. Its good to have a friend at your side, ready to listen, and when you see him, you will be inspired by his glory which is God himself