(ANS – Turin) – Expectation in the Valdocco courtyard, at the Salesian Mother House, for the unveliing of the monument to Carlo Gastini, which will take place at 6 pm (UTC+2) today, Friday 4 October 2024. The bronze high relief, sculpted by Mauro Baldessari, was something all Past Pupils around the world wanted. Through their donations they wanted to express their gratitude to the Father, Teacher and Friend of all young people around the world, Saint John Bosco.
(ANS – Turin) – "It is with great warmth that I welcome you to Valdocco, the place where our history began, a sacred space where we gather to dream and anchor hope in our journey alongside young people": Bryan Magro, President of the Confederation, began with these words to officially announce the opening of the Extraordinary World General Assembly of the Past Pupils of Don Bosco, scheduled from 2 to 6 October 2024 in Valdocco, Turin on the theme: "Walking together: changing to continue".
Pordenone, Italy - September 2024 - On Saturday 28th September, at the Don Bosco College in Pordenone, a solemn celebration took place in which Antonino Mazara, SDB, and Sister Federica Zof, FMA, made their Perpetual Profession, promising to consecrate their lives definitively to God and to the service of the Salesian mission. The guiding phrase of the celebration, taken from the Gospel of Matthew, was "Give them something to eat" (Mt 14:16), an invitation to make themselves bread broken for their neighbour, in the logic of gift and service. The celebration was attended by some 600 people from all over the Triveneto region, testifying to an atmosphere of joy and fraternity. The rite was presided over by Fr Silvio Zanchetta, Superior of the Province of North-East Italy (INE), who, during his homily, emphasized the importance of friendship and the gift of self. The celebration then continued into the evening with a valuable show on the life of Don Bosco staged by the young people of the Chioggia Oratory.
(ANS – Rome) – From the historical social vocation of the Faculty of Social Communication Sciences (FSC) at the Pontifical Salesian University (UPS), the advanced formation course known as "Non Profit Social Comm - Social communication for non-profit organisations: strategies and tools" has materialised. This is a one-year Level I Master's Degree, aimed on the one hand at enabling the knowledge and technical skills useful for enhancing and promoting the communication of Third Sector Entities (ETS) and on the other at updating those who wish to work or who already work in this field.
(ANS – Ortona) – Saturday 28 September 2024 saw the beginning of a year of celebrations for the 40th anniversary of the “APS Soggiorno Proposta”, an association for social promotion founded in Ortona by Salesian Fr Luigi Giovannoni. The “A landing place for new paths” conference officially began the celebratory events, offering room for reflection and testimony on the values that have guided the association for four decades.
(ANS - Turin) - The Extraordinary General World General Assembly of the World Confederation of Past Pupils of Don Bosco, the fifth largest group in order of membership of the Salesian Family, as well as the largest in the world, begins today, Wednesday 2nd October 2024, in Turin-Valdocco. For five days, until next Sunday, 6th October, the representatives of the different federations scattered in all five continents are called to make a path of authentic renewal, under the banner of the EGWA motto: ‘Walking together: change to continue’.
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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India – INS youth solemnise Don Bosco’s Feast Day with ‘Ka Sur Kynud S-3’ Grand Finale
(ANS – Shillong) – The Youth of St John Paul II, Shillong Province, celebrated the Feast Day of St. John Bosco with the Grand Finale of “Ka Sur Kynud, Season 3.” Organised by Don Bosco Media Network Television, the Social Communication Department of the Province, at Don Bosco Youth Centre, Laitumkhrah, Shillong, this two-month-long singing competition, which imitates the global singing competition The Voice, concluded on 31 January 2025, coinciding with the Solemnity of St John Bosco.
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 SERVANTS
THE 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.