(ANS – Rome) – A new number of the Acts of the General Council, n. 413, will be published shortly. The Rector Major will review in depth the theme of the 27th General Chapter; the Regulator, Fr. Francis Cereda, will present the guidelines for starting  the preparations for the principal assembly of the Congregation and of the Provincial Chapters. The prayer which will accompany the course and the celebration of the GC27 is the same one prescribed for the preparation of the Bicentenary of the birth of Don Bosco.

Right from the announcement of the theme of the GC27, the reaction of the Salesian world  has been very positive. Many Provincials echoed the official communication with letters sent to the confreres and to members of the Salesian Family, inviting them to a communion of intention and prayer. The Rector Major has received many messages expressing appreciation for the choice of theme.

In the next number of the Acts of the General Council, Fr.  Chávez will comment in depth and great exactitude on the theme of the GC2, offering a range of personal and community reflection. The text, which is under translation, will facilitate a Salesian understanding   of the witness of gospel radicalism.              

The prayer, which is being sent to the Congregation in general, to accompany the preparation and celebration of the General Chapter, is the same one proposed for the triennium in preparation for the bicentenary of Don Bosco.  The choice was motivated by the fact that the GC 27  comes in almost at the peak of the celebration of the bicentenary and will doubtlessly mark the starting point of a new period in the history of the Congregation.

This prayer, suggested  for the end of evening prayer, will bracket the Salesian’s day,  which traditionally starts with the prayer of entrustment to Mary Help of Christians.

Fr. Francis Cereda, who for the second time has received the mandate of Regulator of the General Council, is making ready the guidelines needed to start the process of preparation for the GC27 in each of the Provinces, with particular reference to local communities and Provincial Chapters.  

The circular letter of the Rector Major and the Guidelines prepared by the Regulator, along with the Technical Commission of the GC27, besides being published in the next number of the AGC, will be available in the first part of May in the appropriate section of sdb.org dedicated to the GC27. We are trying to offer as soon as possible working material so that the Provinces can prepare the confreres, communities and their own Provincial Chapters, can involve young people and lay people and that we create a cultural and spiritual movement inspired by the theme of the GC27.  Don Cereda affirms – “We are alsmost two months ahead in comparison with the GC26, when the letter of the Rector Major for the convocationand the Guidelines  for the preparations for the GC25 were published in the month of July.

Prayer to Don Bosco

Saint John Bosco,
Father and Teacher of youth,
docile to the gifts of the Spirit and open to the reality of your times
you were for the  young, especially the little ones and the poor,
 a sign of the love and the special care of God.

Be our guide as we walk the path of friendship with the Lord Jesus,
so that we may discover in Him and in his Gospel
the meaning of our lives
and the source of true happiness.

Help us to respond with generosity
to the vocation we have received from God,
so that in daily life we may be
builders of communion,
and may collaborate with enthusiasm,
and in communion with the whole Church, 
in creating a civilisation of love.

Obtain for us the grace of perseverance
in living a high standard of Christian life,
according to the spirit of the beatitudes;
and grant that, guided by Mary Help of Christians,
we may one day be with you
in the great family of heaven. Amen

Published 13/04/2012