(ANS – Rome) – Waiting is growing in the Salesian world for the renewal this year of an ancient rite, always rich in value, started by Don Bosco and never interrupted in the history of the Congregation: the sending of the Salesian Missionary Expedition. The event, which will be repeated for the 155th time, is scheduled for 29 September, and will be presided over by Fr Stefano Martoglio, Vicar of the Rector Major and leader of the Congregation until the election of the next Rector Major in the 29th General Chapter. The celebration will take place in the Basilica of Mary Help of Christians in Turin, starting at 12:30 (UTC+2).
(ANS – Rome) – Don Bosco was a great lover of Our Lady and the "thread" of her strong and discreet presence as a mother, teacher and helper, never failed for each of her children. It is therefore not surprising that so much Salesian holiness is also interwoven with very deep bonds with Mary: every Servant of God, every Blessed and Saint of the Salesian Family has a special, sometimes all-encompassing bond with her, as it was for Fr Silvio Galli, SDB, or Sister Antonietta Böhm, FMA. This 2024 is also marked by two anniversaries directly connected to some figures of Salesian holiness: those of the Shrine of Mary Help of Christians in Raknovik, Ljubljana, consecrated on 8 September 1924, and that of the arrival in 1924 of the Salesians at the national Marian Shrine in Šaštín, Slovakia, dedicated to Our Lady of Sorrows.
(ANS – Rome) – With just over two weeks to go until the Extraordinary World Assembly of Past Pupils, scheduled for 2-6 October at the Salesian Mother House in Valdocco, Turin the World Delegate for the Past Pupils of the Salesians of Don Bosco, Salesian Brother Dominic Duc Nam Nguyen, has sent them a brief video-message.
(ANS – Rome) – At the end of the International “Shaping Tomorrow” Communication Conference (Rome, 1-7 August 2024), the General Councillor for Social Communication, Fr Gildasio Mendes, publicly presented his most recent two literary works, both dedicated to Don Bosco and motivated by the bicentenary of the latter’s famous Dream at Nine Years of Age. They are As seeing him who is invisible and Parallels 15 and 20. Today he shows us in detail the meaning and perspectives of the two books.
(ANS – Rome) – Cardinal Ángel Fernández Artime conducted the funeral, on Thursday 12 September 2024 at the Salesian Basilica of the Sacred Heart of Jesus in Rome, of Fr Alain Anne Robert Pinet, a 65-year-old Belgian Salesian, with 44 years of religious profession and 34 years of priesthood. The Salesian, who died after a long illness on the evening of Tuesday 10th, had resided in the Salesian Headquarters community for just over a year, and had arrived there in order to be cured, after many years of missionary life in the Salesian presences of the Chinese Province.
(ANS – Rome) – The 29th General Chapter (GC29) Pre-Chapter Juridical Commission (GC29) met in Rom from 1 to 10 September 2024. The Chapter is scheduled in Valdocco, Turin from 16 February to 12 April 2025, based on the theme "Passionate about Jesus Christ, dedicated to young people". Involved in the Commission are the Secretary of the General Council, Fr Guido Garino,; Fr Giorgio Degiorgi (Piedmont and Valle d 'Aosta Special Circumscription – ICP); Fr Kevin Mwandha (Pontifical Salesian University – UPS Vice-Province); Fr Arockiam Stalin Dhanaraj (Chennai Province India – INM); and Fr David Albornoz Pavisic (Province of Chile – CIL). The work was coordinated by the Procurator General of the Salesian Congregation, Fr Pier Fausto Frisoli.
PHOTO GALLERY
INTERVIEWS
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RMG – The missionaries of the 155th Salesian Missionary Expedition: Angelot Dorisse Herimampionona Rakotonirina, from Madagascar (MDG) to the Albania-Kosovo-Montenegro (IME) Delegation(ANS – Rome) – Angelot, from Madagascar, is a new missionary in Europe, active in the new Delegation of Albania, Kosovo and Montenegro, belonging to the Province of Southern Italy (IME). Regarding his plans, he says: "My dream and my project in my mission are nothing more than the project of Christ through Don Bosco: the salvation of souls".
EDITORIAL
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Myanmar – Tragedy of Innocent Children in the midst of Armed Conflicts(ANS – Naypyidaw) - Myanmar finds itself immersed in profound grief and anguish as innocent lives, particularly those of children, continue to be mercilessly lost in the enduring armed conflicts. Families are left devastated by the tragic loss of their loved ones while the relentless violence shows no signs of abating. This week, a heartfelt plea from Myanmar reached our community, shedding light on the heart-wrenching death of a young girl Juliet in a military airstrike, prompting a unified call for prayers and action.
EVENTS
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Italy – The chapel of the relics at the Basilica of Mary Help of Christians in Turin celebrates 90 years and celebrates them with an exhibition on the Shroud(ANS – Turin) – Again this year, on 14 September, on the occasion of the liturgical feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross and the day of the Opening of the Crypt, the Shrine of Mary Help of Christians in Turin hosted an evening dedicated to the Shroud, as part of the "Culture in the Basilica" exhibition, entitled "The Shroud: witness of great love".
SPECIAL REPORTS
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United States – Int’l Day for the Eradication of Poverty: Salesian Missions highlights life-changing programs that aid poor youth(ANS – New Rochelle) - Salesian Missions, the U.S. development arm of the Salesians of Don Bosco, joins humanitarian organizations and countries around the globe in honoring the International Day for the Eradication of Poverty held on Oct. 17 each year. This year marks the 30th anniversary of the International Day for the Eradication of Poverty and the 35th anniversary of the World Day to Overcome Extreme Poverty.
MESSAGES OF THE RECTOR MAJOR
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OUR ANNUAL GIFTTHE MESSAGE OF THE VICAR OF THE RECTOR MAJOR,
Fr Stefano Martoglio, SDBTraditionally as a Salesian Family, we receive the Strenna every year - a gift at the beginning of the year. I hold it dear to look inside this gift with these few lines so as to welcome it as it deserves, without losing anything of the freshness of the gift.