(ANS – Urnieta) – The Extraordinary Visitation by Fr Fabio Attard to Spain’s St James the Greater Province (SSM) has continued in March. In recent days he visited the Salesian houses of Logroño, Pamplona, Urnieta, Donostia, Azkoitia and Madrid-Estrecho, meeting with the Salesian Family, lay people with positions of responsibility in the different sections, parish councils, Salesian family groups and young people from Salesian schools and youth centers. In Pamplona, he also met the Archbishop of Pamplona and Tudela, who has just begun his service for the diocese.
(ANS – Madrid) – The Third National Day of Salesian Educational Sport was held at the headquarters Spain’s St James the Greater Province (SSM) in Atocha, Madrid, on Saturday, 16 March 2024.
Burgos, Spain – March 2024 – "For a better world" was the motto of the second edition of the Intermediate Vocational Training Competition, held on 20 March at the Salesian Padre Aramburu Work in Burgos. The jury, composed mainly of entrepreneurs from Burgos, highlighted the quality of the projects and presentations. Fifty participants, including young people, teachers and entrepreneurs, shared a morning of intense work to present the projects carried out by the boys and girls of the Salesian centres of Saint James the Greater Province (SSM). The "Water Use" installation created by the students of the first middle grade of the electricians course of the Salesians of Pamplona won the competition, followed by the "Bomba-Mecate" project of the Ciudad de los Muchachos in Madrid. The other projects presented were "Electronics with style" and "Electrical panels" by "P. Aramburu", "QR Bracciali" Pamplona; and "Smart Chair" by the Salesians in Aranjuez. Isabel Alonso of the Federation of Business Associations (FAE, in Spanish) of Burgos said that "participating in this competition is a source of pride because at FAE we promote Vocational Training and believe it is necessary for the business community. We like that boys and girls in Vocational Training see the applicability of their qualifications in the world of work. And these research and development ideas are fantastic!"
To learn more about the competition projects, visit the website: https://www.salesianos.es/certamenfpgm/
Valladolid, Spain - March 2024 - Fr. Fabio Attard's Extraordinary Visit to the Salesian Province of Spain "St. James the Greater" (SSM) resumed in March. From March 2nd to 5th, he visited the Salesian house in Valladolid, where he shared personal experiences, emphasizing the importance of listening, unity, and collective growth. Alongside conveying greetings from the Rector Major, Fr. Attard underscored the significance of pastoral charity and pedagogical intelligence in Salesian work. Through engaging discussions, he prompted reflections on the challenges of today's society, stressing the need for committed individuals who embody acceptance, respect, and closeness in daily life. Actively participating in various Salesian sectors and community activities, Fr. Attard's optimistic demeanor provided a revitalizing energy, affirming the fundamental importance of their work for young people and society.
(ANS – Madrid) – The tenth edition of the Salesian Communication Days was held on Thursday 29 February and Friday 1 March 2024 at the Salesian house of Atocha, in Madrid. It was entitled "Artificial Intelligence. Keys and challenges of a new frontier", a theme that aroused great interest among the hundreds of participants, shedding light on how it is possible to advance in this new communication paradigm from the Salesian point of view, at the service of education and the "Good News" of the Gospel.
Astudillo, Spain – February 2024 – A total of 23 young people from all over Castile and León, participated, on 24 and 25 February, in a meeting called "EQUATOR GO!", organised as part of the European youth participation project "Our voice at home: the door to Europe", in which the Federation of Salesian Youth Centres in Castile and León collaborated with "Aspaym CyL" and with the support of the Youth Council of the Autonomous Community. “EQUATOR GO!” took place in Astudillo, coinciding with the Annual Assembly of the Federation of Youth Centres. The objective was to educate young people on European values and, at the same time, to get to know the European Union better, learning to build opportunities and work as a team. It was, therefore, an intense weekend, in which the city of Astudillo, in the midst of the celebrations in honour of Saint Matthias, became the epicentre of enthusiasm, participation and Salesian charism.
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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Latin America – Strengthening Vocational and Educational Commitment Today: 30 Years of the Salesian School in Latin America(ANS) – Since the first meeting in Cumbayá (Ecuador), 30 years ago, educational processes on the continent have found a collaborative epicentre which has given rise to the Salesian School in (Latin) America – ESA, in Spanish – as a forum for reflection and a common path. Many Salesians of Don Bosco (SDB), Daughters of Mary Help of Christians (FMA) and other groups of the Salesian Family (SF) have enriched this synodal journey, focusing on young people and their integral development. What are today's demands of us in the educational field? How are we building the Salesian School of the future? Can we further strengthen this great Salesian educational network in America? Some FMAs and Salesians who were at the first meeting in 1994, share their experience and their vision of how this journey has allowed a growth in the understanding of the youth reality, in the strategic decisions within the Provinces themselves and in the challenges that emerge for Salesian education.
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.