Turin, Italy- May 2023 - The special course for new Salesian missionaries, which began on May 7 in Rome, concluded on May 27 in Valdocco. Led by Fr. Alfred Maravilla, General Councilor for Missions, and the Missions Sector team, the course helped the 18 new missionaries reflect on their experiences. They all regarded the guided tour and reflection on the places related to the birth and development of the Salesian charism as the most moving experience. The last days spent in Valdocco allowed them to witness and experience fervent devotion to Mary Help of Christians.
(ANS – Messina) – Two intensive weeks (29 May – 1 June, and 26-30 June) will be held at the St Thomas Institute of Theology, Messina, which is attached to the Faculty of Theology at the Pontifical Salesian University (UPS) in Rome. They will be dedicated to formation of pastoral leaders, catechists and experts in the field of liturgical music, sacred art and religious tourism in various shrines. Led by Fr Antonino Romano, Director of the Giovanni Cravotto Centre for Religious Pedagogy, it will offer a comprehensive study programme and an excellent opportunity to develop synodal skills for local churches to strengthen basic skills in proclamation and catechesis.
(ANS - Rome) - Due to the 125th anniversary of Salesian presence in the city of Livorno, Rector Major, Fr. Ángel Fernández Artime, will visit the seaside city on the weekend of May 27-28, 2023. For the occasion, the Salesian parish, named after Don Bosco himself, has organized two days full of appointments and events, under the banner of Don Bosco's motto: "Happy in time and in eternity...."
(ANS - Turin) - A popular feast, in all senses: popular, because it was participated by all the people; because it was felt and lived with true transport; because it expressed a simple and genuine faith. This was the Feast of Mary Help of Christians 2023 in Valdocco, the epicenter of the Salesian charism and forge of devotion to Mary under the title of Help of Christians.
Turin, Italy - May 2023 - Within the Salesian Congregation's "Project Europe," the Salesian novices of Europe are experiencing their annual meeting (May 20-25), around the feast of Mary Help of Christians. They come from the novitiates of Colle Don Bosco (Italy - Special Circumscription Piedmont and Aosta Valley) and Kopiec (Poland-Wrocław). Participating in the big celebration in Valdocco allowed them to meet the Rector Major, Fr. Ángel Fernández Artime, who conversed with them for about two hours, offering some reflections and engaging in conversation with the novices. Among the topics discussed: faith as the foundation of the Salesian vocation; discernment to live as Salesians according to the lay or presbyteral form; awareness that new vocations present the characteristics of today's youth; and the youth apostolate lived in the categories of father, brother, and friend. In the preceding days, the young two novitiates gathered at Colle Don Bosco and, in an atmosphere of true fraternity, shared their knowledge of each other and the formation paths of their respective communities. Having arrived in Valdocco, they participated in the feast of the Help of Christians by offering their service, remembered all Salesian novices, and prayed for the gift of new vocations.
(ANS - Rome) - Salesian coadjutor, 30 years old, Vietnamese, and already active and operational in one of the most troubled countries on the globe, South Sudan: Br. Joseph Thuan Thien Truc Tran is the third missionary to tell ANS about himself among those who are taking the special orientation course these days for missionaries who have already arrived in their destination lands.
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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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."