(ANS – Ljubljana) – In the Marian month in Slovenia there is a widespread so-called "Šmarnice" Marian devotion, so named because it takes its name from the flowers in May, the "lilies of the valley". It is a devotion that includes a short account for each day of the month about a character or an event in relation to the Blessed Virgin Mary and a task to be put into practice for the listeners. This year this devotion is enriched with a particular Salesian touch.
(ANS – Turin) – On 18 April 2024, the Association of Mary Help of Christians (ADMA) celebrates 155 years since its foundation: in Turin on 18 April 1869, by the work of St John Bosco, the year after the consecration of the Church of Mary Help of Christians in Turin (9 June 1868), as a sign of gratitude for the benefits that people recognised as received from the Virgin, and as an instrument for the defence and growth of the faith of the Christian people.
(ANS – Lima) – The centenary of the consecration of the high altar in the Crypt of the Basilica of Mary Help of Christians in Lima was celebrated on 19 March, on the feast of St Joseph and in homage to Fr José Calasanz Marqués, then Provincial of the Salesians in Peru and Bolivia – now recognised as Blessed by the Church – on account of his name.
(ANS – Rome) –As we approach the feast of St John Bosco in this Bicentennial year of his most famous dream at nine years of age, for the readers of ANS we would like to propose a trio of dreams among the best known, most significant and most "prophetic" for the Congregation and the whole Church. We begin today with the one that went down in history as "The Dream of the Two Columns" (Biographical Memoirs VII, 169-171), whose content, so truly ecclesial, is often cited and recalled in many different places and circumstances, even outside the Salesian world.
(ANS – Rome) – Many of the dreams that Don Bosco told his boys had obviously educational purposes, so much so that very often not even his biographers were able to clearly demarcate the boundary between dream, vision and pedagogical storytelling. Among these we can certainly include the one known as “the dream of the snake and the rosary” (Biographical Memoirs – VII 141-145). Occurring in the summer of 1862, it is a clear manifestation of how central Mary Help of Christians was not only in the saint's life, but in his pedagogical vision; and how Marian devotion was never in contrast to, but rather an encouragement for his boys to move towards a full experience of sacramental and ecclesial life.
(ANS – Lisbon) – The official anthem of the 9th International Congress of Mary Help of Christians has been presented in these days. With the text by Fr Simão Cruz, SDB, and music by António Ferreira, the hymn presents Mary as Mother and Protectress, who guides the paths of the Salesian Family and all its children.
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.