CHAPTER XXIII
CHURCH OF THE SACRED HEART IN ROME. DON BOSCO IN SPAIN
In 1884 Don Bosco was the victim of so serious an illness that grave fears were felt throughout the Society that they were about to be bereaved of their saintly Father. In the face of so irreparable a loss, Masses and prayers were offered from thousands of hearts with a fervor and earnestness of faith that won the victory.
After Don Bosco had recovered sufficiently to say Mass and resume some of his duties, he sent a letter of thanks, through the Bulletin, to all those "who had kindly prayed for him. With all his children he supplicates the Lord to bless and prosper his Co-operators and in this difficult and trying time to avert all disgrace from them and their families."
Don Bosco had built many churches, some of which were splendid and imposing, out of the alms of his faithful Co-operators. Pius IX, who had beheld with heart-rending grief several churches confiscated in Rome, saw the need of a new place of worship on the Esquiline Hill, where fifteen thousand souls were deprived of spiritual helps. Shortly before his death in 1879, he said to Don Bosco: "You must build another church here in Rome; it will be the crowning work of your
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