(ANS – Vatican City) – On the occasion of the feast of Saint Francis de Sales, Patron of Journalists, the Holy See Press Office has published the Holy Father’s Message for the 58th World Day of Social Communications which this year will be celebrated, in many countries, on 12 May 2024. The theme chosen this year by Pope Francis, already announced on 29 September 2023, is topical: “Artificial intelligence and wisdom of the heart: for fully human communication”.
(ANS – Vatican City) – Pope Francis writes a letter to young people to accompany a new edition of the YOUCAT, or “Youth Catechism of the Catholic Church”, and invites them to find the secret to a joyful life in living with and for Christ.
(ANS – Vatican City) – The work for the next session of the Synod on Synodality continues with the appointment of some Consultors by the Pope. The Holy See Press Office announced on Wednesday 10 January that the Holy Father has appointed five Consultors to the General Secretariat of the Synod, including Salesian Archbishop Timothy John Costelloe, Metropolitan Archbishop of Perth, Australia.
(ANS – Vatican City) – Recorded on Saturday, 16 December 2023, the Christmas Concert in the Vatican at the Auditorium of Conciliation will air on Monday, 25 December on Channel 5 in the early evening. The artists, presented by Federica Panicucci, launched an appeal to support a project of the Missioni Don Bosco Salesian Mission Office in Turin that offers girls living on the street in Freetown, Sierra Leone, an educational path of recovery and social inclusion.
(ANS - Vatican City) - In a key moment for higher education, Catholic universities are seeking to strengthen their pastoral care programs with new methods and a restored focus on the cultural challenges of today. This led to a significant meeting in Rome on the noon of November 22, 2023, organized by the Dicastery for Culture and Education of the Holy See, that brought together Catholic University network coordinators and authorities responsible for university pastoral to strengthen cooperation as well as create opportunities for dialogue concerning Catholic education.
Vatican City, Vatican - November 2023 - The WYD Lisbon 2023 delegation, made up of some 800 volunteers from the Local Organising Committee and the WYD Lisbon 2023 Foundation, was received by Pope Francis on 30 November in the Paul VI Hall at the Vatican. Pope Francis said about World Youth Day: "I remember the meeting in Lisbon with great emotion, and also as a memory: simple people, who did everything they could". Pope Francis recalled and reaffirmed the message he gave to millions of young people in Lisbon, that the Church is a place for everyone. "Continue to dream together, continue to involve in successive waves new fellow dreamers of a society made up of all and with respect for each one. I repeat this and I am happy to see that so many are already echoing me: 'everyone, everyone!'" he asked his listeners.
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.