NEWS
(ANS – New York) – The highly anticipated Grand Finale of the 3rd Edition of the Don Bosco Global Youth Film Festival (DBGYFF) unfolded with grandeur and global significance on October 18, 2024, at the Loreto Theatre, Sheen Center in New York City. This vibrant event marked the culmination of a transformative short film festival that brought together young filmmakers, international dignitaries, and audiences from around the world to celebrate the boundless creativity and vision of youth. More than just a showcase of cinematic excellence, the DBGYFF 2024 Grand Finale stood as a symbol of youth empowerment, collaboration, and the urgent need to address environmental challenges through the art of filmmaking.
(ANS – Rome) – On Saturday, 19 October 2024, in St Mark's Cathedral in Latina, Cardinal Ángel Fernández Artime, Rector Major Emeritus, conferred the Sacrament of Holy Orders for the first time, pronouncing the consecratory prayer and laying hands on a young Salesian from Livorno, Matteo Sassano, belonging to the Salesian Sacred Heart Circumscription of Central Italy (ICC).
(ANS - Naypyidaw) – Salesian missionaries in Myanmar were able to provide housing and nutrition to 350 boys who are boarding in Salesian communities thanks to donor funding from Salesian Missions, the U.S. development arm of the Salesians of Don Bosco. These boys are mainly from war-afflicted zones where there is very little education and safety. The Salesian communities supported include Nazareth, Thibaw, Hlaing Thar Yar and Mandalay.
PHOTO GALLERY
INTERVIEWS
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RMG – The missionaries of the 155th Salesian Missionary Expedition: Guy Roger Mutombo Mutshi, from the Vice-Province of Africa Congo Congo (ACC) to the Province of Southern Italy (IME)
(ANS – Rome) – The final word from the new Salesian missionaries comes from Congolese Guy Roger, a missionary in the Province of Southern Italy. "My plans and dreams for my missionary life are to live in communion of spirit and action with my Salesian brothers in IME for the salvation of poor and abandoned young people, according to the heart of Don Bosco and to the greater glory of God".
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 – Presentation of the volume "Giovanni Bosco, Predicazione"
(ANS – Rome) – Last Friday, 22 November 2024, at the UPS, the Salesian Historical Institute (ISS), in collaboration with the Don Bosco Study Centre (CSDB) at the Pontifical Salesian University (UPS) in Rome, presented the volume Giovanni Bosco, Predicazione. Introduzione, testi critici e note a cura di Aldo Giraudo e Massimo Schwarzel. (= ISS – Fonti, Prima Series, 18). Rome, 2024. The symposium involved numerous scholars who were able to illustrate the originality and specific value of this new text on St John Bosco.
SPECIAL REPORTS
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Ukraine – Youth Ministry in time of war: the gift of hope
(ANS - Donetsk) - Today we conclude the journey of Bishop Maksym Ryabukha, Bishop of the Greek-Catholic Exarchate of Donetsk, in search of what the sad experience of war in Ukraine can teach Youth Ministry in other countries living in peaceful contexts. In this final contribution, the Salesian prelate delivers the last and final gift that remains and that is always worth bearing fruit: the gift of hope.
MESSAGES OF THE RECTOR MAJOR
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THE ROSE PATH
THE MESSAGE OF THE VICAR OF THE RECTOR MAJOR,
Fr Stefano Martoglio, SDB"How lucky Don Bosco is! His path is forever strewn with roses! He hasn't a worry in the world. No troubles at all!" But they couldn't see the thorns that were piercing my poor legs.” Nevertheless, I kept going. Every life is interwoven with thorns and roses as in Don Bosco's famous “Dream of the Roses and Thorns.” Hope is the force that keeps us going despite the thorns.