SALVINO R. GALEA S.J., Founder YCW in India

Obituary

FR. SALVINO  R.  GALEA, S.J.

Founder of the  “Young Christians Workers”  in India

A native of Malta, Fr. Salvino Galea came to Bengal as a scholastic in the late ‘30’s, making his solemn profession as a Jesuit in the chapel of St. Xavier’s College, Calcutta, on 2 February 1948, with the desire “to serve the Lord alone and the Church, His spouse, under the Roman Pontiff, the Vicar of Christ on earth” (Pope Paul III, A.D. 1540). Among the many factors that contributed to his priestly vocation was the active part he played as a young lad of 16 in the dispute between the Catholic Church in Malta and the Constitutional Party. Naturally, young Salvino came out strongly for the Church. An interesting incident took place in the Cafè Internazionale in Valletta, where he met with lawyers and older people who supported the Pope against the Constitutional Party. Three Hungarian barmaids happened to enter the Coffee House, and the conversation of the others turned from the Pope to the barmaids, that was quite disedifying. The young Salvino was shocked. “I started hearing comment that were not edifying. I had the courage to stand up, turn towards them and asked them whether this was the sincerity of their religious sentiments.” He went home and removed the badge of the political party, and while doing so, heard a voice speaking in his mind: “The Church can only rely on those who love the Church above all else.” Many years later, Archbishop Mercieca of Malta would declare, “That man (Galea) loves the Church.”  That was the love he brought to Calcutta and instilled into the hearts of the Young Christian Workers (Y.C.W.).

 When in 1946 the Superior General of the Jesuits issued a letter to the whole order on the  necessity of the social apostolate, a strange intuition told Fr. Galea that he would be assigned that work. Sure enough, he received a mandate to be Promoter of the Social Apostolate in Calcutta.  The problems of young wage earners  -   the exposure and shock of working life after the comparative security of home and school, the working conditions in offices and factories, the situation of injustice and exploitation  -  touched a raw nerve in young Fr. Galea. He felt the need to contact and group together the young workers, listen to the hard facts they brought from their work places and neighbourhoods, and help them to judge the facts in the light of Gospel values. He originally called his organisation “The Social Guild”, but on hearing of the Y.C.W. in Belgium, begun by Canon Joseph Cardijn, and realising that the two movements used the same methods, he switch over to the international Cardijn model. Thus was born the “Young Christian Workers” of India.

It was not merely a matter of  rallies and slogans, though these were in place when required. Rather, the achieving of lay leadership in the world of wage earners demanded serious study of the Gospel in the environment of work, acts of self-sacrifice, indoctrination into the Church’s social teachings, reporting and judgement of “facts of the week”, humanisation of the neighbourhood, daily public evening Rosary, and call to prayer. Canon Cardijn’s triad of “See - Judge - Act” was always handy, leading to campaigns of social awareness, of cleanliness in the areas,  the successful launching of “Ladies Only” trams and buses, pasting Easter and Christmas posters (“The workers of the world welcome Christ the Worker”) and monthly recollections. If anyone succeeded to form lay leaders in the working environment, it was Fr. Galea. He also made it compulsory for Y.C.W. leaders to work at least once a week in the newly established “Nirmal Hriday” Home for the Dying. Those were the days when the young Mother Teresa was struggling to consolidate her work in Calcutta. Fr. Salvino Galea was strong in his convictions, powerfully expressive of his views, gentle in his dealings with fellow humans, and persuasive of the needs of the young workers’ movement. Through all the words and actions there radiated a childlike and loving heart. Many senior men and women lay leaders in Calcutta and abroad draw inspiration from his training still today, and they remember him all their life. Good Fr. Galea’s personal influence was  the occasion of generous response to the call of the priesthood and religious life in the case of at least eight Y.C.W. members. From the Y.C.W. flowed naturally the Y.C.S. and L.T.S., the two movements for students, that use the same method. So much more good could have come out of his work were it not cut short by ill health and certain elements of opposition. He was compelled to leave India and return to Malta. No one can forget how he kissed goodbye the Y.C.W. flag as his train steamed out of Howrah station. Thereafter he made a brief appearance in India on a lecture tour of the seminaries.

Back in his country, he was as involved as ever in youth ministry, preaching retreats, talking on social issues, and serving as confessor in Rome. And though his heart was intent on returning to India, he very sadly never made it; all those promises of a resident permit proved false. Advancing age slowed the pace. Diabetes was taking its toll;  the left leg was lost to it in November 1998, and other complications set in. His final months were spent in the Home for the Elderly Clergy, where, together with other priests and religious, he was well taken care of. The end came sweetly on 3rd. July ‘99. He died as gently as he had lived, his memory enshrined in the hearts of all who knew him.

May he rest in the Lord whom he had loved all his life.