(ANS – Rome) – Louis (Luigi) Variara was born in Viarigi, in the province of Asti, on 15 January 1875, 150 years ago, to a deeply Christian family. His father Pietro had listened to Don Bosco in 1856, when he had come to the village to preach a mission. When Luigi was born, his father Pietro was forty-two years old and was married for the second time to Livia Bussa. Pietro had obtained his master's degree, loved music and singing and led parish functions as an organist and as director of the choir he founded. He was a highly esteemed and appreciated presence in the village of Viarigi. When Louis was born it was during a harsh winter and due to the circumstances of the birth, the midwife judged it prudent to baptise the newborn. Two days later the baptismal rites were completed.

(ANS – Abuja) – The Salesian presence in the Capital of Nigeria, Abuja, consists of several houses, where the Salesians work tirelessly to carry out the mission dreamed of by their Founder. These are authentically missionary and genuinely Salesian centres with humble origins, but full of life, where countless young people are educated and accompanied to become a leaven of hope in society.

(ANS – Vatican City) – Just two weeks after the solemn opening of the Ordinary Jubilee 2025, on 24 December, more than 545,532 pilgrims from all over the world have passed through the Holy Door at St Peter's Basilica in the Vatican.

(ANS – Turin) – The past year has been a significant year for the Museo Casa Don Bosco which has recorded a record turnout of over 40,000 visitors since its inauguration as a museum institution in October 2020.

(ANS – Rome) – At the beginning of the Holy Year 2025, it is significant to present the Dossier of the Salesian General Postulation as a strong invitation to renew the universal call to holiness in the sign of hope that does not disappoint, as Pope Francis urges: "to bring hope where it has been lost: where life is wounded, in betrayed expectations, in broken dreams, in failures that shatter the heart; in the fatigue of those who can no longer do it, in the bitter loneliness of those who feel defeated, in the suffering that digs into the soul; in the long and empty days of prisoners, in the narrow and cold rooms of the poor, in places desecrated by war and violence".