Saint Dominic Savio (1842-1857)
Dominic Savio was born in 1842 in the village of Riva (Northern Italy), and was blessed with a strong faith even
as
a young boy. In 1854, at the age of twelve, Dominic’s teacher, Fr
Cugliero recommended that he enrol at St John Bosco school (The Oratory
of St Francis de Sales) in Turin, Italy. He soon impressed his teachers
with his dedication to his studies, commitment to his faith and his
maturity as a person.
Dominic used his gifts of leadership to positively influence his
friends. Dominic had a strong and active faith. He prayed regularly and
had a great love for the sacraments, especially the Eucharist. He often
spoke to his companions about the benefits of loving and serving God and
he wanted to become a Priest and be a missionary.
When a new student arrived at Oratory he would be the first to greet
them and would encourage them by reassuring them. “Here we make holiness
consist in always being happy” and to become a good Christian was “not a
matter of doing extraordinary things but of doing ordinary things
extraordinarily well”.
Dominic’s natural cheerfulness and sense of humour enabled him to
engage others - he was enthusiastic in games during recreation time and
was able to guide the course of the conversations so that nobody was
hurt, criticised or ridiculed. However, Dominic was never a physically
strong boy and his health was always weak.
Dominic died on March 9th, 1857 at the age of fifteen.
Additional narrative
Click here to read a more detailed biography of St. Dominic Savio.
