St. John Bosco had a powerful dream on May 3rd, 1868 called the “Two Pillars,” which reminds us what will keep us closely tied to Jesus Christ, no matter what storm will overtake us in life.

The vision illustrated the need to remain firm in devotion to the Blessed Mother and the Holy Eucharist. Here is the vision:

Imagine yourself to be with me on the seashore, or better, on an isolated rock and not to see any patch of land other than that under your feet. On the whole of that vast sheet of water you see an innumerable fleet of ships in battle array.

As escorts to that majestic fully equipped ship, there are many smaller ships, which receive commands by signal from it and carry out movements to defend themselves from the opposing fleet. In the midst of the immense expanse of sea, two mighty columns of great height arise a little distance the one from the other. On the top of one, there is the statue of the Immaculate Virgin, from whose feet hangs a large placard with this inscription: Auxilium Christianorum—Help of Christians; on the other, which is much higher and bigger, stands a Host of great size proportionate to the column and beneath is another placard with the words: Salus Credentium—Salvation of the Faithful.

The supreme commander of the big ship is the Sovereign Pontiff.

The Pope stands at the helm and all his energies are directed to steering the ship towards those two columns from whose summits hang many anchors and strong hooks linked to chains.

What the vision stresses is that as long as the Church remains focused on these Two Pillars of devotion to Blessed Virgin Mary and the Holy Eucharist, she will be able to weather any storm that happens outside. Additionally, St. John Bosco’s vision reminds us of the role of the Pope as commander of the ship who keeps us sailing towards these Two Pillars.

As members of the Pope’s Worldwide Prayer Network, we have a particular devotion to the Immaculate Heart of Mary and the Holy Eucharist and a strong adherence to following the lead of the Pope. We are reminded of these pillars of our faith each day in our Morning Offering:

O Jesus, through the Immaculate Heart of Mary, I offer You my prayers, works, joys, and sufferings of this day in union with the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass throughout the world. I offer them for all the intentions of Your Sacred Heart: the salvation of souls, reparation for sin, and the reunion of all Christians. I offer them for the intentions of our bishops and of all Apostles of Prayer, and in particular for those recommended by our Holy Father this month.

Saint John Bosco’s vision reminds us that in the midst of great turmoil, we must remain rooted in our prayer life and keep our eyes fixed on Our Lady and Jesus in the Eucharist, while following the Holy Father as he leads us through these pillars. Then and only then, will we have peace in our hearts and in the world.