(ANS - Turin) - The meeting of the Rector Major, Fr Ángel Fernández Artime, with the Salesian Provincials who have reached the midway point of their six-year term of animation and government is currently under way in Turin. The meeting, which began last Sunday, September 23rd, and ends Monday, October 1st, sees the participation, in addition to the Rector Major, of his Vicar, Fr Francesco Cereda, and of 8 Provincials at their mid-term. They are:
(ANS - Rome) – "Let us humanize, evangelize, educate and be courageous in challenges and proposals because the Church invites us today to be forward-looking on young people." With these words, transmitted through a video message, the Rector Major, Fr Àngel Fernández Artime, indicated the high road to participants of the International Congress "Youth and Life Choices: Educational Perspectives", which ended yesterday, Sunday 23 September, at the Salesian Pontifical University of Rome.
Rome, Italy - September 2018 – At Salesian Headquarters in Rome, on Thursday 20 September, the Rector Major, Fr Ángel Fernández Artime led a training session for the 24 new missionaries attending the course of preparation for the 149th Salesian Missionary Expedition. The course is guided and animated by Fr Guillermo Basañes, General Councilor for the Missions, Fr Gianni Rolandi and Fr Martin Lasarte.
(ANS - Tijuana) - The Rector Major, Fr Ángel Fernández Artime, was again in Mexico and in the Mexico-Guadalajara Province. He arrived there on the afternoon of Sunday 9 September and left for Rome on the afternoon of Monday 10.
(ANS – Montreal) – “When we first heard that the Rector Major would not be able to visit the USA, we were saddened for our confreres and the Salesian Family. When we heard that the Rector Major would be coming to Montreal, we were filled with joy”. These have been the feelings of the Salesians in Canada welcoming Fr Ángel Fernández Artime.
(ANS – Toronto) – Fr. Ángel Fernández Artime, SDB, met with representatives of the Salesian Family in the greater Toronto area on Thursday, September 6, at St. Benedict Church in Etobicoke, Ont. The Rector Major spoke in Spanish; Fr. Tim Ploch, General Councillor for the Interamerica Region of the Salesians, was the translator. After a warm greeting, Fr. Angel asked the groups present to introduce themselves. There were SDBs, FMAs, Salesian Cooperators from Toronto and Montreal, DBVs, ADMA, young leaders from the Salesian Youth Movement and the past pupils from Canada, Hong Kong, India, Kenya, El Salvador, and Sicily, Becchi, and other parts of Italy.
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 BORORO
THE 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.