Introduction

As we begin the month of December and continue our journey in the season of Advent, we enter a time when “The Manger and the Maze: Guiding the Youth to Abundant Life at Christmas” becomes not only our theme but our guiding light. The Jubilee of Hope, inaugurated on December 24, 2024, continues to lead us toward its solemn conclusion on January 6, 2026. Even as the Holy Doors of the other major basilicas prepare to close later this month on December 28, we are invited to help young people to journey from the maze of uncertainty toward the simplicity and peace found at the Manger. 
 

December is especially treasured by the Salesian Family. On December 5, the memorial of Blessed Philip Rinaldi reminds us of a fatherly guide who helped countless youth find direction amid life’s complexities. On December 8, we celebrate both the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception and the birth of the Salesian mission through Don Bosco’s encounter with Bartholomew Garelli, with a Hail Mary, an unforgettable moment when a boy lost in the maze discovered hope beside the Manger-like warmth of Don Bosco’s heart. 

As 8th December marks the foundation of the Salesian Congregation, we renew our commitment to guide the young toward abundant life, culminating in the joyful celebration of Christmas on 25th December, where the Manger remains our surest compass through every maze. 

A Promise and a Paradox

In the silence of the first Christmas, a promise was born not in thunder, but in the cry of a child: “I came that they may have life and have it abundantly” (John 10:10). Yet, for countless young people, this abundance feels like a distant dream, eclipsed by the shadow of addictions that promise fulfilment but deliver only emptiness. Saint Augustine’s timeless insight reveals the heart of the issue: “You have made us for yourself, O Lord, and our hearts are restless until they rest in you.” Addiction is a disordered attempt to satisfy this God-given restlessness. 
 

The Illusion of Fulfilment: Understanding Addiction 

Addictive behaviours are counterfeit solutions, mimicking fulfilment while leaving the person more isolated and restless. They are a thirst for the infinite, tragically misplaced in finite and destructive outlets. Recently, I met Ravi a bright 16-year-old boy. His eyes, once full of dreams, were glazed over; his academic performance was in freefall. He was spending over eight hours a day on a mobile betting app. He wasn’t living; he was disappearing. His story is tragically common.

Across India, millions of young people are being ensnared, their capacity for relationship, study and joy systematically diminished. 
 

A Generation in Peril

The scale of the challenge is captured in a sobering portrait of a generation at risk: 

Digital Addiction: Studies indicate that 35-45% of Indian youth show symptoms of social media addiction, with urban adolescents averaging 7-8 hours of daily screen time.

Pornography: An estimated 70% of young males aged 15-25 have been exposed to online pornography, with increasing patterns of dependency. 

Gambling: Mobile betting apps have devastated the life of several youngsters. 

Substance Abuse: Millions of youth grapple with alcohol use disorders, with many needing help.

These addictions do not operate in isolation; they assault the very foundations of a young person’s holistic development: 

Physical: They lead to stunted growth, neurological damage and increased mortality. 

Intellectual: Addiction impairs cognitive function, with studies showing a 30-40% drop in academic achievement among affected youth. 

Emotional: Depression, anxiety, and suicide rates are 2-3 times higher, with the WHO citing addiction as a major factor in youth suicide. 

Spiritual: Addiction creates a void, replacing authentic relationships with God and others with compulsive idols. 

This is not abundant life. It is, as the Pontifical Council for Health Care Workers warned, “one of the most worrying plagues of our times.” 
 

Emmanuel: God with Us in the Struggle 

Into this broken reality, the Christmas message erupts with explosive hope: “Emmanuel, God-withUs.” This is not a distant God offering empty promises. The Incarnation is the ultimate act of solidarity; God entering the human condition in its most vulnerable form. Emmanuel is with the young person seeking solace in alcohol, the one trapped in the cycle of pornography, the one drowning their anxiety in compulsive gaming.

We see this divine companionship in Scripture: “Do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you” (Isaiah 41:10). For a youth feeling enslaved, “Emmanuel” is the ultimate assurance. He is the divine companion in the rehabilitation centre, the silent strength in the moment of temptation, the source of a hope that does not disappoint. 
 

 

Our Call to Action 

In response, the Church must become what Pope Francis calls a “field hospital,” offering comfort and healing on the front lines. We must foster environments where young people can speak openly about their struggles without judgment or shame. Parents, teachers, and youth workers must be equipped to recognize the signs of addiction and intervene with wisdom and love, mirroring the Good Shepherd who leaves the ninety-nine for the one. 
 

The current situation of the young who have fallen a prey to various addictions manifests a reality very different from the parable of the Good Shepherd mentioned above. Many social analysts, youth workers, spiritual masters and psychologists admit the fact that, today, ninety-nine sheep out of one hundred are lost due to addictions and only one sheep remains with us. In this situation, as the shepherd of the young we cannot work or search all alone, we need to network with others, that is, with all the members of our community, the Salesian family and others who can share in our mission. In fact, St. John Bosco himself realised and admitted that he needed the help of others in order to carry out the mission entrusted to him by God. Our formation to be apostles of the young has constantly prepared us and insisted on becoming a father and friend of the young. Today’s youngsters are losing themselves in multiple ways but the pity is that they are not aware of it. 

The lesson Jesus gives us through the parable is that no one should be lost. God refuses to accept that even a single person is beyond His love. While human logic might say, “losing one among many is no great loss,” the Shepherd’s heart burns for the one who is most wounded, forgotten, or abandoned. His mercy is not occasional, it is His constant way of loving. God throws no one away; He searches tirelessly, one by one, until each one is found. This mission of the Good Shepherd was embraced passionately by St. John Bosco, who dedicated his life to seeking out the poorest and most ‘at-risk’ youth. He walked the streets to find them, welcomed them, believed in them, and revealed God’s tenderness to them. Today, we as Salesians and Sons of St. John Bosco have to carry forward this same mission, that is, to go where the young are most lost, most in danger, and bring them home with the compassion of Jesus. Our mission for the young mirrors the Shepherd who refuses to stay in the fold but goes out into the night searching for the lost one: His beloved. 

As we prepare for Christmas, this parable becomes even more moving. The mystery of the Incarnation is God Himself entering our darkness to find us. Jesus becomes the Shepherd who not only looks for the lost but becomes one of us, walking our roads, entering our wounds, and carrying us back on His shoulders. The manger itself speaks of this love: God chooses not a palace but a feeding trough, placing Himself at the very level of human poverty so that no one can say, “He is too far from me.” And if our lives often feel like a maze, confusing, broken, full of dead ends, Jesus enters that maze from within, tracing every path until He finds us. Christmas is the celebration of a God who would rather be born in a manger and walk our maze of suffering and uncertainty than lose even one of His children.

In every community, someone is lost or missing. Their absence leaves a real emptiness, and we must not accept it as inevitable. Jesus teaches that no one is definitively lost not even at the last moment. His perspective is always hopeful, creative, and compassionate. The whole flock rejoices when the lost one is found. We, who have been found by mercy, are called like St. John Bosco to seek, welcome, and gather every lost brother and youngster back into God’s joyful embrace. Our initial and on-going formation teach us this great secret.  
 

 

Conclusion: The Light That Breaks the Chains 

This Christmas, as we gaze upon the manger, let us see it as God’s definitive answer to the world’s pain. The light of the Christ Child “shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it” (John 1:5). The darkness of addiction is powerful, but it is not more powerful than the Light of the World. 

Let us be that light for our young people. Let our families and parishes be places where they experience the authentic, abundant life Christ promises; a life of relationship, purpose, and joy. Let us assure them, through our words and actions, that no matter the struggle, “Emmanuel – God with us” is present. He is the hope that breaks every chain, the love that casts out all fear, and the promise that in Him, they will find the life for which they truly long. May the Peace of the Newborn King fill every heart seeking freedom this Christmas season.

 

Yours affectionately,
Fr. Don Bosco SDB 
INM Provincial 
 
Date: 01.12.2025 
Place: Chennai - 10