NEWS
(ANS – Tijuana) – A report on volunteer work at a global level reveals that “this has become a worldwide phenomenon”. But there is a typically Salesian element: “the majority of volunteers are young people” who spend their personal time “in solidarity and social activities of altruistic nature, without any form of payment, organised by public or private agencies”. During this summer 2016 some volunteers of the Spanish NGO “Jóvenes y Desarrollo” (Youth and Development) lived a unique experience in Mexico, serving in Tijuana, Ciudad Juárez and Huatabampo.
(ANS - Minas) – “Without a vocational culture, vocations cannot flourish”. This was once the categorical assertion of A. Cencini. But we may ask: What is the vocational culture? Undoubtedly, it does not come out of the blue. “Some conditions are necessary, a family atmosphere, a spiritual and apostolic environment that allows the question: What do you want me to do, O Lord?”. Because of this, the Salesian Province of Uruguay launched an innovative programme called “We shall go halves” and gave life to the vocational experience “Do you know how to whistle?”.
RMG – After over five months since the kidnapping of Fr. Uzhunnalil, we must keep praying and hoping
(ANS – Roma) – After over five months since his kidnapping, on March 4th in Aden, Yemen, the situation of the Salesian missionary Fr. Thomas Uzhunnalil is still enwrapped in uncertainty. As stated by Msgr. Paul Hinder, Apostolic Vicar of Southern Arabia, “we have no certain news. We only know that something is moving, but we have no certitude”.
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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Argentina – UNISAL Participates in the International Forum “Territories of the Future: South Atlantic and Antarctica”(ANS – Río Grande) – From February 19 to 21, the cities of Río Grande, Tolhuin, and Ushuaia hosted the International Forum “Territories of the Future: South Atlantic and Antarctica”, organized by the University Network for the Care of the Common Home (RUC) and the Municipality of Río Grande, with support from the National University of Tierra del Fuego (UNTDF). The event brought together universities from Argentina, Latin America, and the Caribbean to discuss sustainability and conservation in these regions, with the Salesian University of Argentina (UNISAL) playing an important role.
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.