(ANS – Turin) – After last July's survey of the Michael Rua Oratory, the Fourth Council Committee chaired by Vincenzo Camarda met again with the Director of the oratory, Fr Stefano Mondin, who spoke at the Palazzo Civico to present the project known as "Barriera oggi. The neighbourhood becomes a community", funded by a call for educating communities.
Rome, Italy - March 2024 – The Minister of Labor, Marina Elvira Calderone, immersed herself in the educational activity of the Salesian world on 25 March 2024 that is carried out through Vocational Training and working with youth problems at Borgo Ragazzi Don Bosco in Rome. This work involves both a Vocational Training Centre and a Reception Centre. A valuable morning of discussion and exchange, first with those responsible for the Centre and then with the national directorate of the"CNOS FAP" (Centro Nazionale Opere Salesiane – Formazione e Aggiornamento Professionale) Federation. Welcomed by Fr Daniele Merlini, Director of the work, while visiting the various environments the Minister spent time with several boys and girls in the workshops to learn about their experiences and encourage them in what they had undertaken, appreciating their work and describing the paths of Education and Vocational Training as the keystone for the Italian System. In an atmosphere of cordiality, a discussion was then held with Fr Giuliano Giacomazzi, General Director of the CNOS FAP, and with Paola Vacchina, president of "FORMA", an association that brings together the main Italian Training Bodies. The Minister expressed her strong appreciation for the entire world of Vocational Training, calling it the answer to the confusion of young people, a useful tool for their insertion into the world of work and life.
(ANS – Rome) – A river of foreign minors flows through Italy every year without practically anyone noticing. They disembark without parents on the island of Lampedusa, in the heart of the Mediterranean, or directly on the Sicilian coast; from there they begin the journey to the North, to the rest of Italy or Europe, and we lose track of them. In 2023, host communities filed 17,535 missing persons complaints. Huge and dramatic numbers: for 5,723 who were found safe and sound, 2 were recovered lifeless. And as many as 11,810 are missing at "roll call". No one knows quite what happened to them. To try to understand this, you can knock on the door of one of the many non-profit organisations trying to look after this, such as the Don Bosco centre in Naples.
(ANS – Rome) – Among the countless gifts of St John Bosco, Father, Teacher and Friend of the Young – who to save his boys was, when needed, a tightrope walker, teacher, writer, entrepreneur, player, playwright, master of arts and crafts... as well as a priest – there was also the ability to raise funds: few people like him were able to involve so many people and groups of all kinds to benefit his mission for young people at risk. Today his spiritual Sons follow in his footsteps in this too. And so, for example, one very popular Italian television broadcast, as a way of celebrating an important anniversary, has become an ally of the Salesians and their educational service for youngsters who have had less from life.
(ANS - Rome) - On Friday 22 March, the day on which the Borgo Ragazzi Don Bosco concluded its 75th anniversary celebrations, Cardinal Ángel Fernández Artime, Rector Major of the Salesians, Don Bosco's 10th successor, met with the boys and the entire community of the “Borgo Ragazzi Don Bosco”.
(ANS - Florence) - On Wednesday, March 20, 2024, immediately after the inaugural ceremony of the "Didacta Italia" trade fair, a discussion took place between the Minister of Education and Merit, Giuseppe Valditara, and Fr Giuliano Giacomazzi, the Director General of the Centro Nazionale Opere Salesiane - Formazione e Aggiornamento Professionale (CNOS-FAP: Salesian National Centre for Technical Training). The meeting, organized at the behest of Dr. Lorenzo Becattini, President of 'Firenze Fiere SPA', centered on various challenges facing schools and vocational training. These included topics such as the '4+2' reform and the experimentation of technical and vocational schools, the role of Artificial Intelligence, and the relevance of Don Bosco's educational proposal, which is the focus of this year's "Didacta Italia."
PHOTO GALLERY
INTERVIEWS
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Chile – Former Salesian student in the fight against Alzheimer's disease(ANS - Santiago) - Dr Nibaldo Inestrosa, graduate of the Salesian Institute in Valdivia and national prize of Natural Sciences winner, is a pioneer and expert in the study of Alzheimer's disease in the country. In this interview, he offers an insight into the current challenges, but not before reflecting on his formative experience at the Salesian Institute in Valdivia and how this influenced his interest in biology and science.
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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RMG - St. Francis de Sales Communicator: All for Love(ANS – Rome) - The figure of St. Francis de Sales, chosen by Don Bosco as an example of a communicator, teaches that communication is a matter of the heart. In his expression, "Everything in the Church is love: everything lives in love, for love, and of love," we understand his revolution in the way of communicating, and how communication becomes fruitful when it allows communion and the exchange of one's experiences in a path of accompaniment and collaboration in God's project.
MESSAGES OF THE RECTOR MAJOR
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WHAT A GIFT TIME IS!THE MESSAGE OF THE VICAR OF THE RECTOR MAJOR,
Fr Stefano Martoglio, SDBThe beginning of the new year is illuminated in our liturgy by the ancient formula with which the Israelite priests blessed the people: "May the Lord bless you, and keep you. May the Lord show His face to you, and have mercy on you. May the Lord turn His countenance to you, and give you peace."