"May it be a great place of discernment to encourage further pastoral work in the Province": Fr Gianpaolo Roma, the new Superior of IME Province, officially started work with these words. , It is coordinated by the Provincial Youth Ministry Delegate, Fr Giuseppe Russo.
Discernment and Dreams are the biblical categories that served as the "common thread" at the conference, further explored by the two speakers, Frs Piccolo and Roberto Spataro, who provided interesting interpretations of the Pastoral Proposal for the bicentenary of Don Bosco's childhood dream. Father Piccolo, a Jesuit and professor at the Pontifical Gregorian University, dealt with spiritual discernment by presenting the methodology of "Conversations of the Spirit", proposed by the Synod of the Church as a working tool for journeys of of Faith "in common". Father Roberto Spataro, a Salesian and full professor of Greek Language and Literature, examined the biblical dreams of Joseph, Paul and Solomon on the following day, in the light of contemporary educational challenges.
Not only face-to-face formation, but also opportunity for involvement. The second phase of the conference, in fact, involved the approximately 120 participants in "Discernment Workshops", three practical workshops in which the method suggested by Father Piccolo was tested in relation to three areas of discernment: new young people, new family situations and new educators.
The final morning was dedicated to Provincial Programming: vision, actions and measurement indicators were presented by those responsible for each setting and animation sector, elaborated in the light of the Province's Educative and Pastoral Project for the six-year period 2023-2028.
At the end of the three days, the Provincial, Fr Roma, shared his three dreams with the confreres and lay people: "I dream that the ECPs are genuinely prophetic; I dream of confreres and lay people who live the educative and evangelising mission with commitment and dedication; I dream, finally, of young people who allow themselves to be involved in walking closely with other young people in following the Lord." All that remains is to get back on the road in each community, with the all-Salesian capacity to dream and make people dream through the educational mission, and in full trust in God who, paraphrasing the slogan of the Pastoral Proposal, "sees farther than we do".
Source: donboscoalsud.it
https://www.infoans.org/en/component/k2/item/18852#sigProId0c66cef3b6
