Johannesburg, South Africa - January 2022 - On Saturday 29 January the Salesian Youth Movement (SYM) of Johannesburg celebrated the feast of Don Bosco at the “Don Bosco” youth center in Walkerville. The young people watched the video of the Rector Major's Strenna 2022, on the theme “Do all for love, nothing by force”, and they reflected and debated together on how to make the Strenna concrete in daily life; subsequently, through representations, poems and songs, they showed their interpretation of the Strenna. Fr Lingoane Tlaile, Delegate for Youth Ministry of the South Africa Vice Province (AFM), then concluded by celebrating the Eucharist with the young people.
Jerusalem - January 2022 - On 31 January the Salesian Monastery of Ratisbonne celebrated the feast day of St. John Bosco. The celebration began with the Eucharist presided over by Bishop William Hanna Shomali, of the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem, who during his homily highlighted: “Don Bosco managed to radiate and preach the Gospel of joy. This joy is not something to be taken for granted! We have to fight to keep it.” Present at the celebration were Fr Emanuele Vezzoli, Vicar of the Salesian Province of the Middle East (MOR), Fr Stanislaus Swamikannu, Rector of the community of Ratisbonne, and over 170 people including members of religious communities, Salesian collaborators and young people.
(ANS - Turin) - "To Don Bosco, who wanted me here, every day I ask: 'What must I do to continue making the house of Mary Help of Christians, built by you with so much effort, beautiful and welcoming?'" This is one of the concerns of Fr Michele Viviano, a Sicilian born in 1962 and a priest since 1991, who has been Rector of the Basilica of Valdocco since last 1 September. Yesterday he celebrated his first feast day of Don Bosco in the Salesian Mother House, the place to which the entire Salesian Family spread in over 134 countries across the globe looks to as a charismatic point of reference.
(ANS - Turin) - As per tradition, yesterday, 31 January, for the Feast Day of Don Bosco, the archbishop of Turin, Msgr. Cesare Nosiglia, paid homage to the Salesian presence in the city by going to Valdocco and celebrating a Eucharist in the Basilica of Mary Help of Christians. “Today we celebrate the liturgical feast of St. John Bosco and we welcome his example and his educational action as a strong appeal to esteem young people capable of great things and to encourage them never to give up in the face of difficulties,” began the pastor at the helm of the Turin church.
(ANS – Turin) -On the Feast Day of Don Bosco, the Rector Major and 10th Successor of Don Bosco at the head of the Salesian Congregation, Fr Ángel Fernández Artime, delivers his message to young people.
My dear young people,
May my greeting reach each one of you with true affection and with all my heart from Valdocco, where we are celebrating the feast of our beloved Don Bosco, “Father and teacher of youth” - as St John Paul II declared.
I am writing this letter to you having just returned from praying for you in the Basilica before the Lord, before our Mother the Help of Christians, before Don Bosco, Mother Mazzarello and St Dominic Savio, the adolescent saint of the early years of the oratory here in Valdocco.
(ANS - Perugia) - The year that has just begun marks the first centenary of the presence of the Salesian Work in Perugia (1922-2022). This important anniversary will be commemorated by the Salesian Family with several events that shall take place throughout the year. The first coincides with the Eucharistic celebration in the Cathedral presided over by the Archbishop of Perugia-Città della Pieve and President of the Italian Episcopal Conference (CEI), Cardinal Gualtiero Bassetti, on the feast day of St John Bosco, today, 31 January, at 6 p.m. (UTC +1).
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.