(ANS - Capriglio) - Last Friday, Nov. 25, at 9 p.m. local time (UTC+1), in memory of the Venerable Margherita Occhiena, mother of St. John Bosco, a Mass was celebrated at the parish "San Martino" in Capriglio, thus commemorating the 166th anniversary of her dies natalis in her hometown. Margaret Occhiena, known as Mamma Margaret, died in Turin, at the Valdocco Oratory, on Nov. 25, 1856, and was declared Venerable on Oct. 23, 2006.
Rome, Italy - The Presidents of the Federations of the Past Pupils of Don Bosco on the European continent met on Saturday, November 26, for the purpose of making known the state of the federations in which they operate and to plan an in-person meeting. Convened by Valerio Martorana, a member of the Presidency of the World Confederation of Past Pupils of Don Bosco and Regional for Europe and the Middle East, the meeting, which was conducted online, began with words of welcome from Valerio Martorana, the World President of Past Pupils, Bryan Magro, the General Secretary Peter Kovac, and the Regional of Young Past Pupils for Europe and the Middle East, Alessandro Pensabene. Mr. Dominic Nuc Nguyen, World Delegate of the Past Pupils, in his speech stressed that "it is important to walk together." Following this, the Presidents of the attending Federations spoke: Diego Aragon, Spain President; Giovanni Costanza, President for Italy; Celso Nogueira, Portugal President; Bryan Magro, President for Malta; Robert Mruk, President of Slovakia; Marton Csany, President for Hungary; and Marc Titiaux, South Belgium President. Finally, the World President of Past Pupils shared, "The challenge we have as Past Pupils and friends of Don Bosco is to acknowledge that we must change to respond to today's reality. We must learn from our past, discern the present, and form the future. We will begin to walk together to renew our organization and become an active and relevant movement in today's world. In its strategic plan, the Presidency has proposed that an Extraordinary World Assembly be held in 2024 to define our vision for today and update our bylaws. I invite everyone to participate in this journey so that together we can meet the challenge and confirm our relevance and contribution to the society we live in today." The participants, after presenting their activities, agreed to meet in attendance on 23 June 2023 in Turin-Valdocco.
Turin, Italy - November 2022 - About two hundred secondary school students gathered at the Valdocco Oratory for SYM Day. A much-wished for opportunity for the students to get together with other young people from their house, but also with other peers they met at camps last summer and beyond. The special guest of this edition was the Paralympic champion in the 100 m freestyle, Antonio Fantin, who shared his testimony and good wishes to everyone in the Teatro Grande Valdocco, and then devoted a moment to those who wished to ask him questions and curiosities. The day then continued in cheerfulness with games, dances, and a time for confessions, divided into the two-year/triennium, concluding with the celebration of Mass together. All organized by the animators who with dedication managed to give the young people a beautiful and full day.
Source: salesianipiemonte.info
(ANS - Rome) - An international conference on Francis de Sales, organized by the Institute of Spiritual Theology of the Salesian Pontifical University (UPS), concluded in Rome on Sunday, November 20. 200 participants, who came from four continents, gathered to reflect for three days on the spirituality and legacy of the bishop of Geneva. Among the participants were members representing 13 Salesian-inspired institutes.
(ANS - Padua) - An entire section of the two study days of the Italy for Argentina University Consortium (CUIA) was dedicated to the figure and work of Fr. Alberto M. De Agostini, Salesian, the great missionary-explorer of southern Patagonia and Tierra del Fuego. The event was held on 17-18 November 2022 in the brand-new auditorium of the University of Padua and was included among the events celebrating the 800th anniversary of the founding of the Paduan university itself.
(ANS - Messina) - A conference of theological-spiritual studies on the figure of the Servant of God Monsignor Giuseppe Cognata, SDB (1885-1972), Bishop of Bova and Founder of the Salesian Oblates of the Sacred Heart (SOSC), IX group of the Salesian Family, will be held for the first time on Nov. 24 and 25, 2022, at the "St. Thomas" Theological Institute of Messina.
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.