(ANS - Naples) - "Study to make yourself loved": Don Bosco asks this of us at all times and in every moment of our educational activity, so that it may be increasingly in step with the needs of children. This is the basis for the two-year formation program for Salesians and lay people proposed by the "Blessed Michael Rua" Province of Southern Italy (IME), which began its second year on February 19, with significant participation from all the houses of the Province.
(ANS - Rome) - "We need medicines, especially to treat wounds and tourniquets, painkillers, splints, bandages to stop bleeding." This is the cry for help that comes from the Salesians in Ukraine, all of whom remain in the country alongside the civilian population to help, relieve, distribute food and transport the most fragile people to areas of the country less exposed to bombing or abroad.
(ANS – Rome) – March 8, 2022, International Women’s Day, marks the anniversary of the birth into Heaven of the Servant of God Mother Rosetta Marchese (1922-1984), Superior General of the Institute of the Daughters of Mary Help of Christians, a generative woman because she was completely handed over to God. Sr. Francesca Caggiano, FMA, Vice-postulator of the cause of beatification, describes the traits of generativity rooted in a profound interior life.
(ANS - Rome) - The identity of Don Bosco's Salesians stems from religious consecration: it was the young people who accepted to take their vows with Don Bosco that gave the original form to the Salesian identity. Returning to the roots of Salesian consecrated life is the task implicit in the path of rediscovery of identity indicated by the Rector Major for this six-year term. Pope Francis has repeatedly called all consecrated persons, and Salesians in particular, to take on the effort of the prophecy of their charism.
(ANS – Rome) – The World Confederation of Past Pupils of Don Bosco is in contact with the past pupils in Lviv in Ukraine who are currently enduring a difficult time. The past pupils are involved in supporting the Salesian work in Lviv as well as involved in working in organizing the Ukrainian Educational Platform that are currently helping refugees from cities that suffered the most.
Fossano, Italy - March 2022 - In recent days, the students of the Salesian Vocational Training Center in Fossano (Cuneo) participated in the first of a series of meetings on the prevention of drug use. During the meeting with Captain Balsamo and Lieutenant Mela of the Carabinieri police of Fossano, they defined what a narcotic substance is, how many and what are these substances, what are the effects of their use, how one becomes dependent on them, and how difficult it is to stop using them. In addition, there was an in-depth examination of the criminal and administrative implications, what are the risk behaviors that result, and the social consequences of such conduct, all seasoned with the direct experience and stories of the two officers present.
PHOTO GALLERY
INTERVIEWS
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RMG - Preparation, objectives, challenges and perspectives of GC29: in dialogue with the Moderator, Fr Alphonse Owoudou(ANS - RMG) - Just a few days before the beginning of the 29th General Chapter (GC29) of the Salesian Congregation, Fr Alphonse Owoudou, Councillor for the Africa-Madagascar Region and Moderator of GC29, recounts in detail, through an articulate interview, the work preceding and underlying this responsibility, indicating the spirit that will animate it and the attitudes and conditions to make it truly a Cenacle in which the Holy Spirit can act, for the benefit of the Congregation, the Salesian mission and the youth of the world.
EDITORIAL
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RMG – Don Bosco: “The Fascinating Saint”(ANS - Rome) - Don Bosco is perhaps the most amazing and fascinating saint, history has ever produced. The humble work which he began for the welfare of his poor and abandoned boys in Italy has produced astonishing results, and today there are nearly 14000 Salesians working in 138 countries, and there are more than 200,000 members belonging to the 32 groups of the worldwide Salesian Family sharing the charism of Don Bosco and reaching out to the needy young people.
EVENTS
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Spain – 33rd Edition of the Edebé Prize for Children's and Young Adult Literature: Here Are the Winners(ANS – Madrid) – The 33rd edition of the Edebé Prize for Children's and Young Adult Literature has been awarded to Beatriz Giménez de Ory (Madrid, 1972) for her novel Tres niños tristes y medio unicornio (Three Sad Children and Half a Unicorn) and David Lozano (Zaragoza, 1974) for his novel La cacería (The Hunt).
SPECIAL REPORTS
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United States – CATHOLIC WORLD DAY OF THE SICK: Salesian Missions highlights medical programs for people in need around the globe(ANS – New Rochelle) – Salesian Missions, the U.S. development arm of the Salesians of Don Bosco, joins Catholic organizations around the globe in honoring the Catholic World Day of the Sick. Every year on Feb. 11, the Pope marks the day with a special message calling for spiritual and physical closeness to all those who are ill. Saint John Paul II instituted the day “to encourage the people of God, Catholic health institutions and civil society to be increasingly attentive to the sick and to those who care for them.”
MESSAGES OF THE RECTOR MAJOR
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GOOD, FAITHFUL, AND COURAGEOUS SERVANTSTHE MESSAGE OF THE VICAR OF THE RECTOR MAJOR, Fr Stefano Martoglio, SDB
During this Jubilee year, in this difficult world, we are invited to rise up, set out again, and, in newness of life, make our journey as human beings and believers.