According to Article 136 of the Salesian Constitutions, “the General Councilor for Youth Ministry animates and guides Salesian educational and apostolic action in its various expressions, ensuring that youth remain the priority and that the Preventive System serves as the inspiration. He assists Provinces in developing their pastoral projects so that, faithful to Don Bosco’s spirit, they respond to the needs of the times and places.”
Fr. Rafael Bejarano Rivera, a Salesian from the "San Luis Bertrán" Province of Colombia-Medellín (COM), was born on December 1, 1977, in Buga, Colombia. He is the second of three children of Carlos Humberto Bejarano and Dioselina Rivera.
After studying at the "San Juan Bosco" Institute in Cali, he began his Salesian formation in the pre-novitiate in Rionegro (1995) and continued with his novitiate in La Ceja (1996), where he made his first religious profession on January 24, 1997. He later professed perpetual vows on January 12, 2003, in Medellín and was ordained a priest on December 2, 2006, in Cali.
He completed his philosophical and theological formation at the Pontifical Bolivarian University in Medellín and the Pontifical Javeriana University in Bogotá. Additionally, he earned a master’s degree in “Social Enterprise Administration for Innovation and Local Development” and is currently pursuing a Ph.D. in International Cooperation for Development at the Pontifical Comillas University in Madrid.
Throughout his ministry, Fr. Bejarano has held various roles:
- Pastoral Coordinator at the "Hogar Jesús Adolescente" center in Buenaventura (2005)
- Vicce Rector and Pastoral Coordinator at the "Don Bosco" Social Center in Barranquilla (2007)
- Provincial Delegate for Youth Ministry in COM (2010)
- Rector of the "Ciudad Don Bosco" social work in Medellín (2013-2015, 2016-2018)
- Provincial Councilor in COM for three consecutive terms (2013-2019)
- Rector of the "San Juan Bosco" Institute in Dosquebradas (2019)
Since 2020, he has been collaborating in the Youth Ministry Sector at the Salesian Generalate in Rome, where he has primarily worked on coordinating Salesian Social Works and Services.
