Among the many appointments, of note: Jan. 24, on the feast day of St. Francis de Sales, patron of journalists and the Salesian Congregation, Fr. Pier Fausto Frisoli, Procurator General of the Salesian Congregation, will be present; after the 6 p.m. celebration, Fr. Frisoli shall illustrate Pope Francis' apostolic letter "Totum amoris est," written on the occasion of the fourth centenary of the death of St. Francis de Sales.
Dedicated to the Salesian Family is the appointment on Jan. 26 with the Postulator for the Causes of Saints of the Salesian Family Fr. Pierluigi Cameroni, who at 7 p.m. will lead the meeting titled "The Beauty of the Gospel according to the Salesian Charism"; on Jan. 27, at 7 p.m., the Rector Magnificus of the Salesian Pontifical University (UPS), Fr. Andrea Bozzolo, will meet with university students on the theme "Faith and Culture, a Call to Freedom." A Eucharistic celebration shall precede both events.
On Sunday, January 29 at 11:00 a.m. the Holy See's Secretary of State, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, celebrates the Eucharist in the basilica. The Prefect of Rome Bruno Frattasi, the Mayor of Rome, Roberto Gualtieri, and the President of the VII City Hall, Francesco Laddaga, have been invited for the occasion. In the afternoon, a Concert by the Band of the Carabinieri Corps will be held in the Basilica at 4:30 pm. Cardinal Cristobàl Lopez Romero, a Salesian, archbishop of Rabat in Morocco, will then preside over the 6:30 p.m. celebration.
On Jan. 31, the day of the solemnity, all the school children will gather in the Basilica, and in the afternoon Cardinal Robert Sarah, after the 6 p.m. celebration, will preside over the procession with the distinguished relics of St. John Bosco and St. Dominic Savio.
On Feb. 3, this long cavalcade of events will conclude at 7:30 p.m. with a moment of cultural discussion at the Cinema Teatro Don Bosco (Via Publio Valerio 63), where the film "Brado" will be screened; this will be followed by the actor Kim Rossi Stuart and Fr. Fabio Rosini, Director of the Vocations Service of the Diocese of Rome, commenting on the film in the auditorium, moderated by Gigi De Palo, national president of the Forum of Family Associations. The event is part of the "CineMeet" film festival.