Yangon, Myanmar – August 2024 – In the afternoon of 24 August, 38 new members of ADMA made their solemn promise to Mary Help of Christians, in the presence of Fr Bosco Nyi Nyi, MYM Superior, in the Church of the Child Jesus, in Yangon, Myanmar. In the morning, at 9 o'clock, the Superior had also held a conference on the spirituality of ADMA. Subsequently, there were moments of silent personal prayer, meditation, confession, Eucharistic adoration and the rosary, as organised by the head of the Salesian Family Commission, Fr John Gam Seng, SDB. The Congregation was very happy to attend the ceremony. At the moment there are already 99 members of ADMA in Myanmar.
(ANS – San Giovanni Rotondo) – From 30 August to 1 September, the Youth Pastoral Conference of the Province of Southern Italy will mark the beginning of the new pastoral year 2024-25, which will be inspired by the SYM Proposal "Awaited by his love. Joyful in Hope" and to the upcoming Church and Salesian events such as the Jubilee and the 150th anniversary of the first Salesian mission.
(ANS – Bahía Blanca) – Salesian Father Oscar Lozano, General Coordinator of the Salesian Institutions of Higher Education (IUS), made a significant visit to the Salesian House of Higher Education in Bahía Blanca, Argentina, made up of the communities of the John XXIII Higher Institute and the Salesian University.
(ANS – Fatima) – The 9th International Congress of Mary Help of Christians will be held in Fatima, Portugal, from 29 August to 1 September 2024. The theme chosen for this edition of the Congress, "I will give you a Teacher", is a clear reference to the Dream at Nine Years of Age, whose Bicentennial the Salesian Family is celebrating this year.
Pattaya, Thailand – August 2024 – Every year, the Catholic Education Council of Thailand, which brings together Catholic schools and those run by religious and lay people, organises a seminar, now in its 53rd edition. For 2024, the theme chosen was: "Walking with young people on a new path". The event took place from 18 to 21 August at the Asia Hotel in Pattaya, in the province of Chonburi, and was attended by several representatives of the various groups of the Salesian Family of Thailand. In particular, on the final day, the Salesians took part in the Best Practices session. Fr Boonlert Paneetatthayasai, Superior of the Province of Thailand (THA), focused on the Preventive System, while Mrs Wiramon Buadaeng, representative of the Mary Help of Christians School in Sam Phran, presented her work on "Building the skills of students", which is the result of the application of the Salesian Preventive System in schools. This talk received great attention from the participants in the seminar. Don Bosco's educational methods, in fact, are still modern and can be applied in the formation of today's young people.
Manila, Philippines - August 2024 - Salesians in the Northern Philippines Province (FIN) gathered on 26 August at the Don Bosco School of Theology in Bicutan for the first retreat of the Pastoral Year 2024-2025. The meeting focused on the preparation for the Jubilee Year 2025 and began with a prayer led by Fr Andrew Wong, INA Supoerior, followed by the Mass celebrated by Fr Gerardo Martin, FIN Provincial. During the Mass, the new members of the Province were presented, including missionaries, newly professed Salesians and those who will stop for studies. The Salesians who are candidates for the ministries of Acolyte and Reader then delivered their letters to Fr Martin. The retreat ended with a community sharing on the state of personal and community prayer life, marking a unified beginning of the new pastoral year.
PHOTO GALLERY
INTERVIEWS
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RMG – Fr Gildasio Mendes, General Councillor for Social Communication, talks about his two new books on Don Bosco(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.
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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RMG – 100 years of Salesian holiness in the shadow of Mary: 8 September 2024 in Slovenia and Slovakia(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.
MESSAGES OF THE RECTOR MAJOR
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On WINGS of HOPETHE MESSAGE OF THE VICAR OF THE RECTOR MAJOR, Father Stefano Martoglio
While continuing my service as Vicar in the coming months, quietly, very simply, and completely in continuity, I’ll replace the Rector Major in leading the Congregation to the General Chapter, the 29th, in February 2025.