NEWS
(ANS – Rome) – As is the case every year, the Missions Sector has prepared a map that graphically helps to visualise the destinations of new Salesian missionaries in the world, starting at the end of this month as part of the 155th Salesian Missionary Expedition. This 155th expedition includes 27 Salesians: 5 priests, 2 coadjutors, 1 deacon and 19 students.
(ANS – Dakar) – Fr Alfred Maravilla, General Councillor for the Missions, has been on an Animation Visit to Senegal from 28 August to 1 September. During his visit he spent time at the communities of Thies and Dakar, was able to preside at the Eucharist in the two Salesian parishes and meet with the Parish Pastoral Councils and some members of the Educative and Pastoral Communities. In addition, he also had the opportunity to greet the members of the Association of Mary Help of Christians in the North West Africa Province (AON), who were holding their first Provincial Congress in Rufisque, about 30 km from Dakar.
(ANS – Rome) – Fr. Dr. George Thadathil, the former Principal of Salesian College Siliguri and Sonada, has been appointed global head of Instituto Universitario Salesiano (Salesian Higher Education Institutions) based in Rome. The Vicar of the Rector, Major Fr. Stefano Martoglio, announced the appointment in an official communication released in Kolkata Salesian Provincial’s Circular on September 1.
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.