Philippines – Fr Maravilla begins Extraordinary Visitation to Northern Philippine Province (FIN)

11 February 2022

(ANS - Makati City) - After the required quarantine, Fr Alfred Maravilla, General Councilor for the Missions, began his Extraordinary Visitation to the "St John Bosco" Province of the Northern Philippines (FIN). On Tuesday 8 February he had an online meeting with all the rectors of the houses in the Province. The following day he met - in person - all the coordinators of the provincial commissions to better understand the organization and the Salesian Educational-Pastoral Plan (PEPS) of the Province. Yesterday, February 10, he had a face-to-face meeting with the members of the Provincial Council to understand the priorities and challenges of the Province.

Although originally from the Philippines, Fr Maravilla left for Papua New Guinea as a missionary more than 30 years ago. These initial meetings, therefore, are important for the visitor to gain a basic knowledge of the FIN Province before visiting the individual houses.

The FIN Province was born in 1952, founded by Salesian missionaries from China and India. Today it consists of 25 houses. The Salesian presence in Indonesia (currently developed as an INA Vice Province) and the presences in Papua New Guinea and the Solomon Islands (currently organized in the PGS Vice Province) arose from this Province. In 2017 the Rector Major, Fr Ángel Fernández Artime, entrusted the new missionary presence in Malaysia to the FIN Province. Last year two FIN priests made themselves available to the Rector Major as members of the last 152nd Salesian Missionary Expedition; and the hope is that the Extraordinary Visitation will keep alive the missionary enthusiasm and missionary generosity of this Province.

The Extraordinary Visitation that Fr Maravilla is conducting in the Northern Philippines on behalf of the Rector Major will end on 24 May, the Feast of Mary Help of Christians, in the National Shrine dedicated to her in Parañaque. Planned on that occasion is the pontifical coronation, by the Apostolic Nuncio, of the first statue of the Help of Christians brought to the Philippines, exactly 100 years ago, in 1922, by the then Apostolic Nuncio, the Salesian Msgr. Guglielmo Piani.

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