"In every corner of Peru we celebrate our Mother" is the expression of jubilation of the local Salesian Family. And it's not just a ready-made sentence; it's the truth. Those who have known the Salesians know that in the identity of their charism there is love for the Mother of Jesus invoked under the title of Help of Christians.
For example, in the majestic Shrine of Mary Help of Christians in the district of Breña, in Lima, completely renovated, throughout the nine-day journey there are Masses at all hours, and at 7.00 pm the Novena begins, with the participation of hundreds of faithful who come to recite the rosary, to attend Mass and to ask Mary for special grace. The sanctuary was inaugurated in 1921, thanks to the hard work of many Salesians, and above all of the famous Fr Carlo Pane.
"We are on our way to celebrating the centenary of the Basilica of Mary Help of Christians in Breña, in 2021," writes historian David Franco Córdoba, "inaugurated as a national tribute for the centenary of Peru's independence. As a Salesian wrote in September 1917, during the construction of this temple: 'It will be a monument lasting more than bronze, which in the coming centuries will tell that a generation of believers and patriots has passed here.'"
And indeed to celebrate this magnificent anniversary, a video was produced with the title of a phrase that Don Bosco dreamed about wherein the Virgin Mary uttered: Hic domus mea, inde gloria mea (This is my home, from here my glory will go forth).
The producer, Tulio Manuel Mesta, writes: "I'm only giving back some of the affection and favors I have always received from our Mother Help of Christians."
In the various houses or centers of the whole Salesian Family the novena is celebrated with the participation of thousands of faithful, and one of the main themes proposed by the preachers is holiness, in the wake of the Strenna of the Rector Major for 2019.
And thus we see Mary Help of Christians truly being celebrated in every corner of Peru: Lima, Callao, Cusco, Arequipa, Ayacucho, Piura, Huaraz, Huancayo, Ica...
