(ANS - Baku) - In the spirit of family and with great esteem the Salesians in Baku welcomed Pope Francis to their house on Sunday 2 October. After Mass in the Church of the Immaculate Conception the entire Salesian community in Baku, together with the Provincial from Slovakia, Fr Jozef Izold, sat at table with the Pope and his entourage. Four Daughters of Mary Help of Christians, including Sister Janka Kurkinova the Provincial from Slovakia, served the meal to Pope Francis.

(ANS - Baku) - The meaning of Pope Francis’s visit to the small Catholic community of Azerbaijan - just a few hundred people, with fewer than ten clergy – is to be found in the words he spoke on the plane during the return flight to the Vatican: "I went there for the Catholics in order to go to the periphery of the Catholic community (...). It is really a periphery. It is very small. I said that it reminded me of the small community of Jerusalem, the Church in the Upper Room, waiting for the Holy Spirit (...). As I said, the reality is best seen and better understood from the peripheries than from the centre."

(ANS - Baku) - The Salesian community in Baku is ready to welcome Pope Francis on Sunday 2 October during his visit to Azerbaijan. In the capital of the country some have already arrived to welcome him: Fr Jozef Izold, Superior of the Salesian Province of Slovakia, on which the Azeri community depends; and the Provincial of the Daughters of Mary Help of Christians from Slovakia, Sister Janka Kurkinova. The parish of Baku is full of joy during these final hours of preparation.

(ANS - Vatican City) – By way of conclusion of the pilgrimage to the Caucasus which began in Armenia on 24-26 June, Pope Francis will visit Georgia and Azerbaijan from 30 September to 2 October. The most significant events include: an ecumenical prayer for peace in the Chaldean Catholic Church in Tbilisi; the participation, for the first time, of an Orthodox delegation at the papal Mass in M. Meskhi stadium; and prayer for peace in Syria and Iraq. In Azerbaijan Pope Francis will celebrate Mass in the Church of the Immaculate Conception at the Salesian Centre.

(ANS - Turin) – Yesterday, in the Basilica of Mary Help of Christians, the Rector Major, Fr Ángel Fernández Artime, launched a strong appeal for a renewal of the missionary spirit in the style of Don Bosco. He was speaking to the 46 members of the 147th Salesian Missionary Expedition: "We are heirs of a tradition in our Salesian Family that is more than century old,” he said. “Be courageous heralds of the boundless mercy and generosity of God especially among the poor and needy."

(ANS - Turin) - There is one day every year at the end of September when the Salesian missionary heartbeat is felt in Turin.  It is the day when we celebrate the sending of the Salesian Missionary Expedition. That day is next Sunday 25 September and there will be a number of other significant events taking place around this great Salesian event.

(ANS - Lima) - Peru prepares to celebrate 125 years of Salesian presence in the country. Their presence was a result of the love of Don Bosco but did not commence officially until 28 September 1891. Many activities have been planned to celebrate the event.

(ANS - Rocchetta Tanaro) - Celebrations for the centenary of the death of Monsignor Fagnano in his hometown of Rocchetta Tanaro in the province of Asti came to a conclusion on Sunday 18 September with a solemn Eucharistic celebration at which the Councillor General for the Salesian Missions, Fr Guillermo Basañes, presided. Monsignor Giuseppe Fagnano (1844-1916) was for 33 years Prefect Apostolic of Southern Patagonia, Tierra del Fuego and the Malvinas Islands.

(ANS - Florence) - "Our goal with this seminar was to bring the subject to the table and to hear different points of view," says Lauretta Valente, President of CIOFS- FP, at the end of the 28th European Seminar held in Florence, 7-9 September. It was organized with the support of the association of category FORM on the so-called "dual system". The objective was fully achieved, with the participation in the Seminar of numerous influential people from the world of education, professional training, business and institutions.