(ANS – Rome) – As often happens with saints, Don Bosco looked at the history of everything from God's perspective. With his eyes fixed on heaven, he never took his feet off the ground.
(ANS - Rome) - Making one’s own the recommendation of the Rector Major to extend the devotion to Mary Help of Christians throughout the Salesian world and beyond, ANS - Agenzia iNfo Salesiana is launching today a series of in-depth articles on the figure of "Don Bosco’s Madonna." The focus on this first day is on how Don Bosco's devotion to Mary Help of Christians was born and developed.
(ANS - Rome) - Today marks 139 years since the famous "Letter from Rome" that Don Bosco wrote to his Salesians to warn them of the risk of losing the truly "Salesian" nature of being among young people, of educating and evangelizing them. A way of being present among young people that implies loving, requires the visibility of this love, knows how to raise questions, provide models, gives birth to dreams, projects and prospects, and finally generates mature men and women capable of building the Kingdom of God in service to their brothers and sisters. In recent times, Rector Major Emeritus Fr. Pascual Chávez Villanueva proposed an updated reading of this letter, which is and remains a charismatic cornerstone for the whole Congregation and for the Salesian Family.
Kathmandu, Nepal - April 2023 - On the afternoon of April 25, a number of South Asian bishops, accompanied by Msgr. Paul Simick, Apostolic Vicar of Nepal, made a surprise visit to the "Don Bosco" center in Kathmandu. The bishops paused to interact with the Salesians and guests at the center, showing a keen interest in learning about the mission and its activities. The group included two Indian Salesian bishops: Msgr. Nirmol Vincent Gomes and Msgr. George Rajendran Kuttinadar. They are in Kathmandu to familiarize themselves with and study the documents of the Federation of Asian Bishops' Conferences (FABC); the visit to the Salesian work was also part of the program of exposure to different parishes and mission stations to learn about the realities of the Church in Nepal. Earlier in the day, they made a long and encouraging visit to the only parish and school in Kathmandu, located in Sidhipur-Lubhu, conversing with parishioners and youth for over two hours.
Perhaps few people know the history of the granary of the little house of the Becchi, the hamlet of Castelnuovo d'Asti (now Castelnuovo Don Bosco), where Don Bosco was born.
(ANS - Rome) - Almost certainly a great number of readers have been receiving the monthly Salesian Bulletin (SB) for many years. One often happens to hear that their parents, grandparents and perhaps even great-grandparents read the SB. But perhaps not everyone knows how it came into being and why 146 years ago Don Bosco conceived, produced and popularized it.
PHOTO GALLERY
INTERVIEWS
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RMG – “Do Elderly Salesians have a role in the Digital Culture?”The answer in the letter “Sharing wisdom and hope in digital culture” from the General Councillor for Social Communication
(ANS – Rome) – In view of the current digital reality, and due to the presence, especially in some regions of the Salesian world, of a large number of elderly Salesians, the General Councillor for Social Communication, Fr Gildasio Mendes, has decided to dedicate a special letter to them, entitled: "Sharing wisdom and hope in digital culture". Here is how he explains to ANS readers today the origins, significance and perspectives of this document.
EDITORIAL
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Myanmar – Tragedy of Innocent Children in the midst of Armed Conflicts(ANS – Naypyidaw) - Myanmar finds itself immersed in profound grief and anguish as innocent lives, particularly those of children, continue to be mercilessly lost in the enduring armed conflicts. Families are left devastated by the tragic loss of their loved ones while the relentless violence shows no signs of abating. This week, a heartfelt plea from Myanmar reached our community, shedding light on the heart-wrenching death of a young girl Juliet in a military airstrike, prompting a unified call for prayers and action.
EVENTS
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Italy – "Education and culture of safeguarding in sport. Towards the establishment of protection and prevention models": PGS conference with UPS(ANS – Rome) – The synergy between the Salesian Youth Sports Centres (PGS) and the Pontifical Salesian University (UPS) in Rome gave rise to the conference on "Education and culture of safeguarding in sport. Towards the establishment of models of protection and prevention", which will take place on 13 April, from 9:00 a.m. to 12:45 p.m., at the UPS facilities in Rome.
SPECIAL REPORTS
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Latin America – Strengthening Vocational and Educational Commitment Today: 30 Years of the Salesian School in Latin America(ANS) – Since the first meeting in Cumbayá (Ecuador), 30 years ago, educational processes on the continent have found a collaborative epicentre which has given rise to the Salesian School in (Latin) America – ESA, in Spanish – as a forum for reflection and a common path. Many Salesians of Don Bosco (SDB), Daughters of Mary Help of Christians (FMA) and other groups of the Salesian Family (SF) have enriched this synodal journey, focusing on young people and their integral development. What are today's demands of us in the educational field? How are we building the Salesian School of the future? Can we further strengthen this great Salesian educational network in America? Some FMAs and Salesians who were at the first meeting in 1994, share their experience and their vision of how this journey has allowed a growth in the understanding of the youth reality, in the strategic decisions within the Provinces themselves and in the challenges that emerge for Salesian education.
MESSAGES OF THE RECTOR MAJOR
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I’M A SALESIAN AND I’M A BOROROTHE MESSAGE OF THE RECTOR MAJOR, Fr Ángel Fernández Artime, SDB
Diary of a Happy and Blessed Missionary Day
Dear friends , I’m writing to you from Meruri in the state of Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil. I write this greeting almost as if it were a journalistic report, because it has been only 24 hours since I arrived in the middle of this Brazilian state.