Italy - Rector Major meets with Salesian novices of Europe
Turin, Italy - May 2023 - Within the Salesian Congregation's "Project Europe," the Salesian novices of Europe are experiencing their annual meeting (May 20-25), around the feast of Mary Help of Christians. They come from the novitiates of Colle Don Bosco (Italy - Special Circumscription Piedmont and Aosta Valley) and Kopiec (Poland-Wrocław). Participating in the big celebration in Valdocco allowed them to meet the Rector Major, Fr. Ángel Fernández Artime, who conversed with them for about two hours, offering some reflections and engaging in conversation with the novices. Among the topics discussed: faith as the foundation of the Salesian vocation; discernment to live as Salesians according to the lay or presbyteral form; awareness that new vocations present the characteristics of today's youth; and the youth apostolate lived in the categories of father, brother, and friend. In the preceding days, the young two novitiates gathered at Colle Don Bosco and, in an atmosphere of true fraternity, shared their knowledge of each other and the formation paths of their respective communities. Having arrived in Valdocco, they participated in the feast of the Help of Christians by offering their service, remembered all Salesian novices, and prayed for the gift of new vocations.