(ANS - Zhytomyr) - "In the subway stations there are small children, little more than a year old, who have been living there for weeks, as do older people... To whoever asks for help, we try to respond in every possible way." Sister Iryna Ismaiłova, a nun who collaborates with Salesian Bishop Vitalij Kryvytskyi, bishop of the diocese of Kyiv-Zhytomyr, in the management of the aid, recounts the terrible everyday life of the war in Ukraine.
(ANS - Bangkok) - The day of the Rector Major, Fr Ángel Fernández Artime, in Thailand took place as scheduled. Today, May 6, 2022, the last day before the beginning of the Spiritual Exercises with the Provincial Councils of the Region of East Asia-Oceania, the 10th Successor of Don Bosco participated in a series of significant appointments that led him to know and retrace the history of the Salesian presence and the Salesian Family in the country.
(ANS - San Juan) - With the participation of the Provincial of the "St. John Bosco" Province of the Antilles (ANT), Fr José Pastor Ramírez, the President of the Puerto Rican Episcopal Conference, Mons. Rubén González Medina, Bishop of Ponce, and many other prominent authorities and national figures, the Salesians of ANT celebrated 75 years of presence in Puerto Rico, during a solemn Mass of thanksgiving at the Shrine of Mary Help of Christians of Cantera, in San Juan.
(ANS - Vatican City) - The Holy See Press Office announced today that the Holy Father Pope Francis has nominated Fr. Nirmol Vincent Gomes, SDB, as Bishop of the Diocese of Krishnagar, India, who is currently the Vicar of the Novitiate in Dhajea, Darjeeling, belonging to the Province of Calcutta - India (INC).
(ANS - Kabwe) - The rich program of appointments of the Rector Major in Zambia, within the framework of his Animation Visit to the "Mary Help of Christians" Vice-Province of Zambia-Malawi-Zimbabwe-Namibia (ZMB) included another important moment yesterday: the Mass of Thanksgiving for the 40 years of Salesian presence in the country, the landing point for the subsequent birth of the Vice-Province. "It was not us who did good and beautiful things during this time: it was God who guided the development of the Salesian presence in these four countries. We, we have only given our small contribution. Today, therefore, is a day to thank God for what He has accomplished, through this plan of His, for the good of all," noted Fr Ángel Fernández Artime in the homily of the celebration.
(ANS - Kabwe) - The day that the Rector Major, Fr Ángel Fernández Artime, spent yesterday, 26th April, in Kabwe, as part of his Animation Visit to the "Mary Help of Christians" Vice-Province of Zambia-Malawi-Zimbabwe-Namibia (ZMB), continued as it had begun, in fraternity, listening, fatherly animation and Salesian joy. The young people, the novices, the Salesian Bishop of Kabwe, Mons. Clement Mulenga, and the Salesian Cooperators were the privileged interlocutors with whom the 10th Successor of Don Bosco interacted.
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.