Orange: New Year of Formation

By Br. John Taylor, SDB

(Orange, NJ – September 4) – Last week, the community united for the first time this school year. The members of the Salesian community, consisting of formators and men in formation, here in Orange are currently: Fr. John Nazzaro, Fr. Greg Fishel, Fr. Dieunel Victor, Fr. Juan Pablo “JP” Rubio, Fr. Tom Ruekert, Br. Minh Tu Nguyen, Br. Pascal Mukuye, and Candidate Joseph “JJ” Galvez. I have discovered that the character and nature of the Salesian community is uniquely different from year to year. In this we see the unity in diversity of the Catholic Church.

During the first two days of Orientation Week (August 19-23), the formation staff met so as to lead and guide the men in formation. On the night of the second day of that week, the formation team and the men in formation began the community meetings with a prayer because God is the center and source of our formation and vocation. The next day, we oriented ourselves in surrender and love to Jesus Christ in adoration. The rest of the day our community discussed policies, guidelines, and responsibilities for each member. We embraced the reality that we are one family in which we build up one another through our contributions, encouragement, and corrections. It’s a beautiful thing to consider ourselves one family with privileges and responsibilities toward one another. It reminds us of the first Christian communities described in the New Testament. We later enjoyed a community night of trivia, which tested our broad knowledge in a joyful environment.

To top off the week, we traveled to Bear Mountain for a day of contemplating the beauty of God's creation shared with each other. From the summit, we saw the panorama of the Hudson Valley in all its lush beauty. This brings to mind how, as we begin the year, we see the big picture of the upcoming year in community. There are hills and valleys and the renewing waters of the Hudson. And, through it all, God is with us guiding us every step of the way. May our dear Father St. John Bosco guide us with the intercession of Mary Help of Christians to a deeper union with Jesus Christ.