Chicago: 25 Years of Salesian Missionary Zeal y Más!

By Fr. Richard Alejunas, SDB

(Chicago, IL – September 7) – Since 1998, the Salesian mission in Chicago has continued to respond to the needs of its predominantly Hispanic immigrant community, the local archdiocesan Church, and the missionary goals of the Congregation and the province. Its original focus on young immigrant workers and family evangelization continues to grow and evolve.

Beginning in 2018, the Archdiocese of Chicago initiated the parish restructuring of the local Church with its new evangelization program, “Renew My Church.” On July 1, 2020, the Salesians of Don Bosco accepted St. James Church on Fullerton Avenue as its second Chicago parish. For three years, both St. John Bosco (SJB) and St. James (SJ) were pastorally animated by one Salesian community based at SJB.

As of July 1, 2023, the Archdiocese united the two churches into the new St. John Bosco-St. James Parish, located on two campuses. Both campuses work hard at maintaining parish unity, Salesian identity, and a common mission of evangelization.

SJB—McVicker Avenue Campus

• St. John Bosco Church is open seven days a week for sacraments, devotional /prayer groups, youth/adult formation programs, group movements, etc.
• St. John Bosco Rectory Office manages the parish’s sacramental celebrations, communications, ministry scheduling, and evangelization efforts.
• Casa Guadalupe (Lupita) is the former SDB residence at the SJB rectory that at one one-time housed 7/8 Salesians, but now can sleep 35 adults or youths. It has been repurposed into a house of evangelization for weekly gatherings and monthly retreats.
• St. Dominic Savio Youth Center is the home of the parish’s youth and adult catechesis/lifelong formation program, social justice outreach, Salesian Young Adult Group, the summertime Camp Don Bosco junior site for ages 4-7, and much more.
• St. John Bosco School Building houses a Chicago charter elementary school and is the weekend home for family catechesis.

SJ—Fullerton Avenue Campus

• St. James Church is open seven days a week for sacraments, devotional/prayer groups, youth/adult formation programs, group movements, etc.
• St. James Rectory Office manages parish youth ministry, stewardship, and EPC council, and houses St. James Hall with two gathering spaces each seating 75-100 persons. Salesian Residence (at SJ Rectory) can presently sleep 12 with common spaces that include a full chapel, conference room, reading room/library, rooms for community, recreation, exercise, etc.
• Valdocco Salesian Youth Ministry Center is a former convent/school converted in 2020 to the home of the Salesian Oratory open five days a week for youth/young adult ministry, summertime Camp Don Bosco senior site for youth ages 8- 14, and a top floor that sleeps up to 30 youths or young adults for retreats, etc.
• The Auxilium Center (Lifelong Formation House) is the former 1929 rectory that now houses various parish groups including Bible classes, Sunday catechesis for youth and families, and the future home of a daily Eucharistic adoration Chapel.
• St. James School Building houses a Chicago charter elementary school and is the weeknight/end home for the Salesian Oratory, summer day camp, and much more.

Salesians confident and clear in our identity

In his 2022-23 provincial visit report, Fr. Tim Zak used the province’s strategic plan to describe our Chicago presence. The remainder of this article will simply highlight four of those areas.

The local Salesian community along with many lay collaborators acts as the animating nucleus of this grand Salesian work with an unapologetic focus on its Salesian charismatic identity. The SDBs are not in Chicago solely to celebrate the sacraments in English, Spanish, and Polish, but “to accompany poor, marginalized, and at- risk young people and their families in their encounter with Jesus Christ to be agents of hope and transformation in the world.” (SEPP)

The former provincial noted in his report that: “The Salesian identity is evident in this Salesian presence, not as an imposition, but as a gift. Thank you for giving witness to our Salesian consecrated life and accompanying others in the practice of the Preventive System.”

The Salesians witness to the parish community and wider local Church by living a rhythm of communal prayer and common life that includes the daily and monthly practices of piety prescribed by the Salesian Constitutions as well as weekly lectio divina, Eucharistic adoration, and a Saturday community Mass and meals. We form a community of brothers diverse in culture and generations. We accompany each other in our ongoing formation and religious discipline.

The Urgency of Evangelization

When our local Episcopal Vicar, Bishop Kevin Birmingham, was asked several years ago what is the plan of the Archdiocese once the parish restructuring phase is complete he simply responded, “Evangelization!” Here in Chicago, we are all about forming baptized Catholics as missionary disciples of Christ, whose personal encounter with the Lord will ignite a movement of persons to renew and rebuild this local Church.

“Moving into the more spiritual aspects of Renew My Church and recognizing the impact of the pandemic on the practice of the faith, the parish has new programs to further (re-)evangelize the people: family catechesis, catechist workshops, Alpha. All this is on top of already extensive efforts for evangelization and catechesis. Congratulations! It should be noted that the religious education program has approximately 500 children and 350 parents. There are approximately 180 catechists and 80 volunteers in youth ministry. You have a strong force for the evangelization of the family and neighborhood, deserving the investment of time and money in the volunteers’ formation.” (Zak)

The Salesian Sacrament of Presence

As a community of consecrated religious, we choose to belong to the young (and the poor). We continue to grow Salesian youth ministry on two campuses in the new reality of the one Salesian parish of St. John Bosco-St. James. We choose to accompany all parish youth ministry activities with our “sacramental Salesian presence,” to share the weekly “good nights” among all the SDBs at the Valdocco SYM Center, to grow the Camp Don Bosco summer program for youth ages 4-14, to accompany young adults, and much more.

We Salesians choose to accompany all parish activities, adult ecclesial movements, the Salesian Family, etc. as animators of this expansive ministry. One SDB is assigned as a full-time chaplain of religious education/youth catechesis that touches the lives of over 500 youths.

“The continual emphasis of the Rector Major on the Salesian sacrament of presence is applicable to the SDBs in Chicago. Your joyful presence at the numerous programs and activities allows you to mentor our confreres, colleagues, and young people to grow humanly, spiritually, and as leaders. The people love you and they love when you are with them.” (Zak)

Together with Lay People in the Mission and in Formation

With an army of empowered lay faith leaders, youth and adult alike, the Salesian charism moves forward in Chicago. This formative lay accompaniment experience is built upon twenty-five years of prophetic Salesian leadership from an array of former local Salesians like: Directors/Pastors—Fr. Bill Bucciferro, Fr. Tim Zak, and Fr. Tom Provenzano; Parochial Vicars and/or CYMs—Fr. Serges Lamaute, Fr. Juan Bosco Jimenez, Fr. Luis Aineto, and Fr. Greg Fishel; and Coadjutors Br. Charlie Todel and Br. Charles Thenier.

Fr. Zak’s final note: “Congratulations on all you are doing as an EPC to involve and form the family. This is in line with the Church and Congregation. It will help the young grow in healthy environments, better prepared to face the challenges of life today. The Salesian Family in the Chicago area is growing, thanks to your animation. The ADMA group of St. John Bosco is officially established. A new group of ADMA at St. James is being formed. The Cooperators remain active in the parish, especially at the Valdocco Salesian Youth Ministry Center.”