BE ALL THING TO ALL PEOPLE Translated from Thai to English by Mr.Chalor Wannaprateep and Revision made by Rev.Aaron Alcoceba, S.D.B. INTRODUCTION After the Golden Jubilee of the Congregations of Sisters Servants of the Immaculate Heart of Mary in 1987, the idea of digging deeper into the origin of the Congregation has been more strongly thought of. It was then that a group of members have been assigned to compile both the history of the Congregation and the founder’s biography, to make this a source for the renewal of life of the Congregation When the work was seriously begun, several questions and challenges were found. But there was one incident which looked like the providence of God and became the inspiration for the Sisters in charge to work on the biography of H.E. Gaetano Pasotti. In 2003, Father Nestor Impelido, a Salesian historian, with encouragement of the Salesian Rector Major, showed his interest and contacted us that he would like to make a research on important confreres in Salesian history, those whom nobody had yet worked on, especially those in Asia. Father Nestor Impelido is a member of the Salesian Province of Philippines- health and several other important historical matters of the Salesian Congregation taking up priority, his research on Fr. Pasotti’s biography stopped short. Since our Congregation has the urgent need of this biography, slowly we continued the work, asking information and seeking advice from Fr. Nestor Impelido from time to time. It can be claimed that this must be God’s way to push us to earnestly begin this work. Thanks be to God! Later on, while the Congregation of Sisters Servants of the Immaculate Heart of Mary was preparing its 75th Anniversary Celebration in 2012 [7 December 1937 – 2012], the Mother General and her Councilors agreed that the preparation should start 3 years in advance, beginning from early 2010, so that all areas of activities will be taken cared of. A commission was established for each category of activities. It began with the spiritual preparation, both short-term and long-term, which is considered to be the most important part of all in order that the preparation and the celebration would be a process of spiritual renewal for all the members, including all the collaborators. Year 2012 would be the “Holy Year” of our Congregation. In preparing the activities, the organizing committee saw that the spiritual dimension would be the most important of all, and it must be the basis for a radical renewal through deeper knowledge of the life of the Founder and the history of the Congregation, giving credence to the saying: “Those who do 1 not know their own history, do not have a future.” Hence, a group of Sisters have been assigned to do additional research and compile the biography of our Founder and the history of our Congregation, to make a comprehensive document so that it can be studied and reflected upon for the renewal of the Congregation’s life, charism and mission. We were well aware that this work would be quite a challenge due to the fact that the biography of our Founder, H.E. Gaetano Pasotti, was voluminous, involving a wide, complex contexts, because he was an Italian Salesian missionary priest, who used to be a missionary in China for 9 years before coming to be a missionary in Thailand for another 23 years, a pioneer of the Salesian missionary work in Thailand after the footsteps of the MEP. Finally, he became the first Bishop of Ratchaburi Diocese after this was separated from the Diocese of Siam. He had undergone tough experiences and challenging situations during the difficult times of Thailand. However, while we accepted the limitations of our capabilities, we were also encouraged to work on this project in order to announce the glory of God in the life of H.E. Gaetano Pasotti. We thank God for guiding his life and for fulfilling his assigned mission, both in the Church of China and in Thailand. This included the founding of the Congregation of Sisters Servants of the Immaculate Heart of Mary. The life and spiritual heritage that he gave us has become a constant inspiration for the Congregation, and this would be the impetus for us to move forward with courage and dedication, after his footsteps and through his intercession. Within the limited time-frame, the Committee on history had received information from several sources, including those that were already available. The first part of the biography was then compiled, from 1890 to 1930. This included his childhood, his early religious-priestly life, his being a missionary in China and his first three years in Thailand. This was proposed to the Sisters on 8 December 2010, the first year of the jubilee preparation, for them to study and reflect on. Since the second part of his life [1930 – 1949] was quite complicated, and his field of work more expanded, the Committee needed more time to collect data for compilation. The Committee, therefore, opted to compile the last part of his life, the year 1950, in order to propose this to the members on 3 September 2011, the 61st death anniversary of H.E. Gaetano Pasotti, the second year of the jubilee preparation. Finally, the historical Committee, desiring to let the whole life of H.E. Gaetano Pasotti be more known thoroughly and deeply, spent the last year of preparation for the 75th anniversary of the foundation of our Congregation to collect data of the middle part that was temporarily put aside, and compile all the three parts together to compose a book, to be on time for the celebration. This work is the result of the compilation of data from various sources which the Congregation has, from the archives of the Salesian Province of Thailand, the Salesian Archives in Rome, and from others. Utmost loyalty to the texts and time frame of the events was kept; interpretations were limited to necessary matters only, because the compilers were not in the contexts of the various events. Aside from this, the title: “Omnia Omnibus” – “ All things to all people” was chosen for this book 2 because this was the motto of H.E. Gaetano Pasotti when he was chosen as the first Bishop of the Diocese of Ratchaburi. Besides, this could best summarize his life and mission. The first objective of this book is, above all, for the members of the Congregation of Sisters Servants of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, to better know the father, Founder of the Congregation. Aside from this, we wish to extend this to those who have known or heard about him, and to all who wish to know him who played an important role in the Church in Thailand. Certainly, this book is not yet perfect, and there must be some mistakes and errors. I, in the name of the historical Committee, am ready to receive the comments and advices of the readers in order to make improvements and make this a more perfect book. May this book be a window of opportunities for those interested to study, to make further deeper and more detail research. Sr. Sompong Thabping In behalf of the Historical Committee 75th Anniversary of Foundation Congregation of Sisters Servants of the Immaculate Heart of Mary December 2012 3 FOREWORD “How do you know me?” [Jn 1, 48] “O Lord, you have probed me, and you know me.” [Ps 139, 1] The Lord knew them all, [cfr. Jn 2, 24] and He chose the one He desired to be His instrument. This book “All Things for All People,” which is now in your hands, is a proclamation of the goodness, the love, and the greatness of God shown in the life of H.E. Bishop Gaetano Pasotti. God has chosen this simple country boy from Pinarolo Po of Pavia, Italy, to be a Salesian priest, a missionary to China and Thailand, the first Bishop of the Diocese of Ratchaburi, and finally the founder of the Congregation of Sisters Servants of the Immaculate Heart of Mary. He wholeheartedly devoted his whole life for God’s work and for the good of the souls in the lands where he was sent. In order to answer the call of the Church and the desire of the Sisters of the Congregation for the religious to go back to the birth of their charism and to know their founder, since the General Chapter of 1985, the Congregation established the Commission to gather the history of H.E. Gaetano Pasotti, to work on the translation and compilation by sections, so that the members can study and learn from the life of their father-founder. This work required time, patience and intense effort to search for data from various sources, compile and arrange the life, the mission - in the area of administration, formation, pastoral ministry – due to his being a missionary and a Bishop. This valuable history included the opinions and the feelings of those who knew and were close to the Bishop. On the occasion of the 75th anniversary of the foundation of the Congregation of Sisters Servants of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, the preparatory Commission for the celebration agreed to finish the history of H.E. Gaetano Pasotti in order to proclaim his honor on this important occasion. Although this plan was not realized on time for the anniversary celebration [held on Saturday, the 8th of December 2012], yet this did not tone down the intention of the preparatory Commission. Thus, this book “All Things for All People” is now a reality.