This re-reading of the founding moment of the Salesian charism was presented also to a larger audience via streaming and to the numerous persons present. It showcased the elements that showed the rootedness of little John's experience to the biblical tradition and to the proclamation of the Gospel. Taking a radically original approach, the Rector Magnificus of UPS, went on to widen the gaze the horizon much beyond the educational "programme" of the Father and Master of Youth - and entered into the very heart of his spirituality.

The meeting, planned and organized by the Rector of the Basilica, Fr Michele Viviano, began with the screening of salient sequences of Leandro Castellani's film 'Don Bosco' (made in 1988, one hundred years after the saint's death) in which Pope Pius IX asks the priest from Turin, who was still uncertain of his path, to identify the founding moment of his experience.

It took the founder of the Salesians a long time to comply with Pius IX's request to put down on paper the memory of that intimate event. He would not explicitly 'use' that dream to attract young people to Valdocco or to outline the method of reception, but he would continue to cherish it in his heart. It was only in 1874, sitting at his desk, that he would respond to the Pope by reconstructing the elements of what he understood to have been an extraordinary personal call.

This is the key to his spirituality that is available to re-read in the biography of this 'founder', comparable to Benedict of Norcia, to Francis of Assisi, to Dominic of Guzman, to Ignatius of Loyola. With a task suited to the times of history and of the Church: that of discovering the possibility of leading every young person back to a path of drawing closer to God, to the point of touching the heights of holiness.

There is then a perfect theological adherence of the "Dream at age of  Nine " to the Jewish and Christian tradition: the same "way" of the dream was followed by God to address Jacob and the patriarchs; and then to Mary of Nazareth, to Joseph, to Paul of Tarsus. It is a modality that does not ensure certainty, except for the possibility of retrospectively understanding the extent of the solicitation received from the Spirit.

It is also important to note that 'dreams' also entrust immense responsibilities, which a person could never accept if he or she realized their magnitude. They are real challenges to reasonableness and concreteness. They are 'impossible' projects, remarked Fr Bozzolo, but precisely because of this, that they are entrusted to people who trust in God. "You will make it possible" was replied to a John Bosco who, still dreaming, had not lost his sense of reality and wanted to know "how" the metamorphosis of wolves into lambs would take place.

The answer in the dream, and in the reality of faith, is the hand of She - to whom Mamma Margaret taught to turn to in prayer - who leans on the boy's shoulder. The "lady" does not give an answer, does not give instructions or recommendations; but assures closeness, benevolence and protection. It is enough to launch oneself into the following of Christ, without expecting to have everything clear. Paradoxically, explained the speaker, the more light one receives, the more one is in the dark! The disciple can only make his way by walking. It is a 'bet' that has its foundation in Jesus' resurrection, that is, in the fact that he left a trace of victory over death, the ultimate impossible.

The dream ends in tears: of fear? Of joy? In the meantime, he feels as if he has been beaten. The little Johny asks his interlocutor: "who are you?" but gets no answer! His mother had taught him to ask the strangers he met who they were. But the name was not provided! It was so with Abraham and Moses -when they were met by the Word. God has no name that we can know. When we try to name him, we can only stammer a few consonants. If this is the common matrix of the experience of the dream at the age of Nine, we are faced with a holiness that spans time! A work that transcends contingencies!

While contemplating this mystical episode, the question arises - which a young woman posed at the conclusion of the meeting in the House of Mary Help of Christians in Valdocco: "How do we recognize transcendence in our experience?" "Life is inhabited by a call," replied the speaker, "what is around us is not a show. Everyone's life is destined for others; every life is structurally a call. It is something that belongs to us even if we have not placed it within ourselves. For this reason, we must give space to the Word of God so that it can emerge and be understood'.

This contemplation finds a valuable aid in the book that was made available to those present at the end of the meeting, and which can be found in bookshops: 'The Dream at the Age of Nine – A Theological Reading' written by Fr Bozzolo himself. It has been published and translated into several languages by the Salesian Athenaeum Bookshop (LAS Publications).

For those who would like to relive the evening with Fr Bozzolo, the video of the live broadcast is still available on the basilica's YouTube channel.

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