(ANS – Huancayo) – On Wednesday, 30 August, in the gym of the Santa Rosa Salesian Institute there was a moment of gratitude, joy and hope: the Mass of thanksgiving for the 100 years of Salesian presence in Huancayo.
(ANS – Lisbon) – Song, dance, testimonies, a showcase of talent and faith took to the stage at World Youth Day in Lisbon on Friday afternoon for the first ever festival of Catholic digital influencers. Emotions were still running high after the encounter in the Edward VII Park where hundreds of thousands of pilgrims had just prayed the Way of the Cross with Pope Francis. Now, in the Parque de los Cristonautas, in the presence of Cardinal Oscar Maradiaga, young Catholic digital influencers gathered to discuss the future of Catholic communications, the need to “keep up with the times” and to take advantage of digital media to spread the joy of the Gospel.
(ANS – Madrid) – "I am still that little boy from Luanco, where I really feel at home among my people and my compatriots. It is essential in life not to forget our roots.” Fr Ángel Fernández Artime, who will be created cardinal in the consistory on 30 September, always speaks with a natural feeling of warmth. The 10th Successor of Don Bosco spoke about his recent appointment as Cardinal and other relevant topics in an interview granted to the La Lanterna program of the Spanish Episcopal Conference radio station Cadena COPE.
From 30 September next the Sacred College will be made up of 243 cardinals, among whom Pope Francis has also listed the Rector Major, Fr Ángel Fernández Artime. This means there will be 11 i Salesians who are members of the College of Cardinals.
(Rome, July 14, 2023) – Following the unexpected announcement by Pope Francis of the appointment of Fr Ángel Fernández Artime, Rector Major of the Salesian Congregation, as Cardinal, the Rector Major himself has written a letter to Salesians and the Salesian Family, sharing what the future foresees for governance of the Congregation.
Fr Á.F. Artime began by stressing that the news was completely "unexpected" for him, and that he welcomed it as a "gift that Pope Francis has given us as a Salesian Congregation and as the Family of Don Bosco".
“How much the Pope loves us!!!” the Rector Major writes.
Pope Francis himself, recounts the 10th Successor of Don Bosco, summoned Fr Á.F. Artime to the Vatican on Tuesday 11 July, for an appointment that he wanted, with fatherly attention, "to agree on the necessary timing of my service as Rector Major, for the good of the Congregation."
At the end of the conversation with the Rector Major, the Holy Father, who “was attentive, warm and a profound admirer of Don Bosco's charism and particularly affectionate”, has decided that Fr Á.F. Artime continue his service as Rector Major and Cardinal at the same time, for one year. He will then convene a General Chapter – the Congregation’s 29th – to be held in February 2025,during which a new Rector Major will be elected. He will offer his resignation from governance of the Congregation on 31 July 2024. From that point on his Vicar, Fr Stefano Martoglio, will assume governance of the Congregation ad interim, and it will be he who presides at GC29.
The Rector Major states in his communique that when his resignation becomes effective, he will take up the task entrusted to him by the Holy Father, a task he is not yet aware of. And he asks the Salesians and the Salesian Family to intensify their prayers for the Pope and also for himself "faced with the prospect of this new service in the Church which, as a son of Don Bosco, I accept in obedience, without having sought it, nor wanted it.”
The complete letter of the Rector Major is available at the bottom of the page (on ANS website) in Italian, English, Spanish (Spain), Latin American Spanish, French and Portuguese.
(ANS – Rome) – Following the unexpected announcement by Pope Francis of the appointment of Fr Ángel Fernández Artime, Rector Major of the Salesian Congregation, as Cardinal, the Rector Major himself has written a letter to Salesians and the Salesian Family, sharing what the future foresees for governance of the Congregation.
PHOTO GALLERY
INTERVIEWS
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Italy – A Salesian on the front line of the war in Ukraine: "Being close counts, words come later"(ANS - Rome) - As he tells with a gentleness that does not seem to come from horror, he is "resting a little bit" in Rome these days. Fr Oleh Ladnyuk is a Ukrainian Salesian priest who is a military chaplain at the front, among the soldiers who fight in defence of their country and among the civilians who for over two years have seen their lives wiped out. He brings humanitarian aid where the missiles fall and from those places he helps with the evacuation of young people and adults - so far at least 500 people, but there are probably many more. These days the Salesian – who carries out his ministry in Dnipro and teaches History in a state school in the city – is in Rome to take part with two other priests and a dozen lay people from his country in the "Accompanying when Trauma Hits" course hosted by the Pontifical Salesian University in collaboration with the Faculty of Educational Sciences, with the DON BOSCO NEL MONDO Foundation and the Don Bosco Network. A project that aims to provide theoretical and methodological tools to deal with the traumas caused by war.
EDITORIAL
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Myanmar – Tragedy of Innocent Children in the midst of Armed Conflicts(ANS – Naypyidaw) - Myanmar finds itself immersed in profound grief and anguish as innocent lives, particularly those of children, continue to be mercilessly lost in the enduring armed conflicts. Families are left devastated by the tragic loss of their loved ones while the relentless violence shows no signs of abating. This week, a heartfelt plea from Myanmar reached our community, shedding light on the heart-wrenching death of a young girl Juliet in a military airstrike, prompting a unified call for prayers and action.
EVENTS
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Italy – "Education and culture of safeguarding in sport. Towards the establishment of protection and prevention models": PGS conference with UPS(ANS – Rome) – The synergy between the Salesian Youth Sports Centres (PGS) and the Pontifical Salesian University (UPS) in Rome gave rise to the conference on "Education and culture of safeguarding in sport. Towards the establishment of models of protection and prevention", which will take place on 13 April, from 9:00 a.m. to 12:45 p.m., at the UPS facilities in Rome.
SPECIAL REPORTS
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United States – INT’L DAY FOR STREET CHILDREN: Salesian Missions highlights programs that provide shelter and support(ANS – New Rochelle) – Salesian Missions, the U.S. development arm of the Salesians of Don Bosco, joins humanitarian and international organizations around the globe in highlighting the plight of homeless children on the International Day for Street Children. The day provides organizations and the millions of street children in countries worldwide with an opportunity to have their voices heard while ensuring that their rights are not ignored.
MESSAGES OF THE RECTOR MAJOR
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I’M A SALESIAN AND I’M A BOROROTHE MESSAGE OF THE RECTOR MAJOR, Fr Ángel Fernández Artime, SDB
Diary of a Happy and Blessed Missionary Day
Dear friends , I’m writing to you from Meruri in the state of Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil. I write this greeting almost as if it were a journalistic report, because it has been only 24 hours since I arrived in the middle of this Brazilian state.