(ANS – Vatican City) – Ten years have passed since 13 March 2013, the day Jorge Mario Bergoglio was elected to the See of Peter. Pope Francis' pontificate has been marked by a passion for evangelisation and a constant journey to reform the Church to make her more missionary. A decade during which time has taken on two different dimensions: the progressive one, to initiate processes, and the circular one, to go out to meet others and return enriched in thought and heart.
(ANS – Vatican City) – We publish Pope Francis' preface to the volume "More Women's Leadership for a Better World: Caring as the Engine for Our Common Home," edited by Anna Maria Tarantola, published by "Vita e Pensiero." The text is the result of joint research of the Centesimus Annus Pro Pontifice Foundation and the Strategic Alliance of Catholic Research Universities (Sacru).
(ANS - Kinshasa) - A few days have passed since Pope Francis' visit to the Democratic Republic of Congo, a trip that has renewed the Congolese Church and society by strengthening it in its desire for peace and progress. But the challenges to overcome are still all on the ground, especially in North Kivu Province, where, caught between war and violence, there are still thousands of people displaced and in need of everything, people to whom the Salesians are trying, with the means at their disposal, to provide answers and support.
(ANS - Kinshasa) - The young people’s warm embrace of Francis in Kinshasa's Martyrs' Stadium opened the third day of the 40th apostolic journey to the Democratic Republic of Congo, Thursday, Feb. 2, 2023. It was a celebration marked by music, choirs, acclamations in a packed Martyrs' Stadium in Kinshasa. Many hands raised to the sky acclaimed the Bishop of Rome in the crowded stadium: over 65 thousand people were present, including many young people belonging to the Salesian Family. A meeting also marked by the Pope's strong appeal not to give in to corruption and to choose the good, without "letting oneself be swallowed up by the swamp of evil."
(ANS - Turin) - Sharing life with the poor, day by day, in villages where there is often no water or light, far from the big cities: this is the precise choice - within which the education of children and young people is obviously grafted - made by the approximately 100 Salesians who live in a dozen communities in the Democratic Republic of Congo. "And we expect to be reinforced in our mission exhibition and vocation by the visit of Pope Francis. Reinforced by a Pope who has his feet on the ground and his heart in heaven. Reinforced by the witness of a man who brings good, who has a sensitivity for the poor that is evangelical, it is the Gospel!" says peremptorily Fr. Daniel Antunez, 63, president of "Missioni Don Bosco."
(ANS - Kinshasa) - The 40th apostolic journey of Pope Francis began yesterday, 31 January 2023, with destinations in the Democratic Republic of Congo and South Sudan. Thousands of people, from the sidewalks or from the roofs of houses, welcomed the Pope as he moved around the capital of the Democratic Republic of Congo. And the Holy Father did not fail to show them his affection: “Dear Congolese women and men, your country is truly a diamond of Creation; but you, all of you, are infinitely more precious than any goods that springs from this fertile ground!” he said during the meeting with the authorities, with civil society and with the diplomatic corps in the garden of the Palace of the Nation.
PHOTO GALLERY
INTERVIEWS
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Italy – Cultivating friendship with God. Interview with Fr Marco Panero, SDB, author of "In the Tent of Meeting"
(ANS – Rome) – Today we are interviewing Fr Marco Panero, Salesian, professor of Moral Philosophy at the Pontifical Salesian University and Councillor of the Apostolic Penitentiary. His volume of meditations is in the bookstores and is particularly suitable for this time of Lent, with the intriguing title: "In the tent of meeting. Meditations on spiritual life " (Edizioni Ancora, 2023 – ISBN 978-88-514-2783-2).
EDITORIAL
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“Speaking with the Heart”: A great Antidote for the Ills of today’s world
‘Revolutionize the world with your kindness, by speaking with your heart’, is the dream that Pope Francis envisions for humanity through his 57th World Communication Day message, that falls on this Ascension Sunday, 21st May 2023. ‘Speak with your heart in truth and charity’, and this is the best antidote that can cure the ills of today’s society.
EVENTS
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Italy – "Labs To Future": the final event of the "Labs To Learn" project in Valdocco
(ANS – Turin) – The final event of the "Labs to Learn" project was held on Tuesday, 5 March 2024, entitled "Labs To Future: The path – The results – The challenges" . The project was selected by the "Con i Bambini" social enterprise within the framework of the Foundation for the Fight against Child Educational Poverty and came into being with the intention of combating early school leaving and preventing educational poverty, increasing the number of young people with difficulties who fulfil their school obligation, access higher education and/or job placement, and opening the way for personal growth according to their inclinations and aspirations.
SPECIAL REPORTS
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United States – INT’L WOMEN’S DAY: Salesian programs focus on inclusion for girls and women
(ANS – New Rochelle) - Salesian Missions, the U.S. development arm of the Salesians of Don Bosco, joins humanitarian organizations and countries around the globe in celebrating International Women’s Day on March 8. The day honors the economic, political and social achievements of women while focusing the world’s attention on areas requiring further action.
MESSAGES OF THE RECTOR MAJOR
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CHEERFUL AND SERENE EVEN THOUGH LIVING IN A WHEELCHAIR
The Message of the Rector Major, Cardinal Angel Fernandez Artime, SDB
Encounters on Epiphany with amazing people who have good hearts and luminous faith