On the morning of Tuesday, 12 March, the Rector Major met with the Salesian Missionary Community of São Marcos, in the presence of the Daughters of Mary Help of Christians who work with the Salesians. After Lauds (Morning Prayer), the Rector Major addressed words of encouragement to his missionary confreres, recalling that work with indigenous peoples is one of the pillars of the Salesian vocation.

Subsequently, Card. Fernández Artime went to the village of Our Lady of Fatima, which receives assistance from the Salesians from the missionary presence in São Marcos. The village is about an hour's drive along a dirt path from the Salesian Mission house.

The meeting was immediately exciting, with the blue sky, the white earth and the heat near 37° C intensifying the colours of the Xavantes' body paintings. As soon as he arrived, the Cardinal was greeted by the embraces of the local people, starting with children, and then continuing with the young people and adults who formed long queues to ask the Rector Major for his blessing.

With the priests already dressed for the liturgy, the natives themselves asked for an entrance procession to show solemnity and respect for the religious celebration and for the president of the celebration, the Rector Major. And later the whole celebration was also animated with songs in the Xavante language, with the whole assembly composed of adults, young people and Xavante children who, despite the strong sun, stood in front of the prepared altar in the centre of the village.

Together with the Rector Major, the Provincial of Campo Grande, Brazil, Fr Ricardo Carlos, the Vice Provincial, Fr Ademir Lima, the Rector of the missionary presence in São Marcos, Fr Douglas Chrystiano Souza, the Parish priest of the missionary community, Fr Alfred Haidler, the Rector of the Salesian presence in Barra do Garças, Fr Slawomir Bronakowski, and Salesian missionary, Fr Miguel Paes da Silva, concelebrated. And since the arrival of the Salesian Rector Major in Meruri, the Provincial of the Daughters of Mary Help of Christians in Belo Horizonte, Sister Teresinha Ambrosim, was also present at the meetings with Cardinal Fernández Artime.

At the end of the Mass, it is worth noting that the Cardinal received the title of citizen of the municipality of Barra do Garças and also the headdress as chief Xavante, in recognition of the work carried out by the Salesians with the native populations.

In the early afternoon, shortly after 3 pm, the 10th Successor of Don Bosco arrived in the Salesian Missionary Presence in Sangradouro, also welcomed in this case by a large and festive host of first nations people.

Later the Rector Major reached the Xavante village, about 500 metres from the Salesian missionaries’ house, accompanied by the Rector of the community, Fr Amércio Rezende de Oliveira, to participate in the Warã at the centre of the village of Sangradouro – that is, at the meeting of the village elders. And in this moment of dialogue between authorities, the elders thanked the Cardinal for his presence among the indigenous people and asked him to send other Salesians to work in the missions.

Before concluding his visit to the Salesian missions among the indigenous peoples of Mato Grosso, Cardinal Fernández Artime, on his penultimate international trip as Rector Major, wanted to express his vision of the experience of this trip: "I already knew a lot about our missions in Mato Grosso thanks to the information received in Europe, but now that I am faced with the reality of these missions, the first feeling is one of deep emotion and thanksgiving to God for these decades and this anniversary of service. For me, this reality is a reason for enormous gratitude for all that, with the grace of God, all our brothers and sisters who have gone before us have done for these peoples."

The 10th Successor of Don Bosco then concluded: "If it had not been for the presence of Don Bosco's charism, the situation of these peoples would certainly be different. Either they would no longer be here, or they would be much smaller, or they would not be in some of these lands, or they would not have multiplied so much. I believe that, despite all our limitations, we have managed to respect their culture. For this I am deeply moved by the gratitude they show us."

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