Papua New Guinea - A new Salesian parish dedicated to Mary Help of Christians
Rapolo, Papua New Guinea - August 2019 - On 16 August, the archbishop of Rabaul, Msgr. Francesco Panfilo, SDB, erected a new Salesian parish dedicated to Mary Help of Christians in Rapolo, dividing the cathedral's current parish. The main challenges of the parish are the high rate of juvenile delinquency in the villages and the pastoral care of Catholics. One of the parish's important features will be the youth center. Fr Alfred Maravilla, Superior of the PGS Vice Province, and Msgr. Panfilo invited the Salesian Oblates of the Sacred Heart, founded by Mons Cognata, to work in the new parish mainly for the education of children through the kindergarten, the catechesis of the villages and the formation of the Catholic community.