World Mission Advisor Fr. Alfred Maravilla had the opportunity to present the updated Guidelines on the profile of the "Missionary today" to the Salesian Region of Africa – Madagascar. He explained how today, for the whole Congregation, it is necessary to move from a conception of the "missionary available to bring gifts for contexts of poverty," to that of the "missionary available for the proclamation of the Gospel wherever the need is felt." Such a change of mindset requires that DIAMs be involved in the formation and preparation of all, and especially of future missionary vocations, which, in Africa and Madagascar, are steadily increasing.
To better take into account the missionary dimension as a dimension of the Salesian charism, DIAMs have also been invited to place the fostering of the "missionary spirit" inherited from Don Bosco at the center of their animation in the Provinces, local communities, and the Salesian Family.
Through a well-designed program, DIAMs were able to share their experiences, along with moments of community and brotherhood. They had the opportunity to recharge themselves charismatically with the celebration of the Feast of Don Bosco and a visit to the Salesian Sites. Fr. Mike Pace, a Salesian member of the community in charge of hospitality at Valdocco, through his lively and very timely presentation of the new Casa Don Bosco House Museum, was able to make all the participants dream of a world in which the Gospel announced and proclaimed is truly a source of inner transformation, just as Don Bosco knew how to live it for the poor and abandoned youth of his time.
At the end of the work, the forthcoming 150th anniversary of the First Missionary Expedition, to be celebrated in 2025, put everyone back on the road and ready for action. Every Province and Vice-Province in the Region shall now have to integrate a process not only of celebrations but especially of missionary renewal that looks to the future, into their Provincial Plan. "May the Lord help us in this journey, in view of new hopes for young people," Fr. Fouda said to conclude.
