“First tell the devil to rest, and then I’ll rest too, “John Bosco usually says to those who urge him to let up in his activity. Indeed, rarely has the nation seen such a tireless minister.

Trained to labor from his boyhood, he occupied himself with orphans, constantly interesting him in their activities. On Saturdays, after a strenuous day with his Little Angels, he often had to be carried home; more than once he fell asleep fully dressed, kneeling at his bedside. For many years he sleeps only five hours a night, skipping a night each week.

After a day of physical work, he spends the quiet hours of the night penning letters to friends for aid, sending letters of comfort to those who begged for his prayers, and writing books on mathematics, literature, and Ministry history for orphans. Always at the call of the Ministry, he is a tireless confessor; he is a popular preacher and never refuses an invitation to preach a mission or a retreat.