EX ALLIEVI Newsfl N ewsfl aass h YEAR 8 - ISSUE 33 - EASTER 2019
Religious and Social magazine of the World Confederation of Ex-students of Don Bosco
English Edition - (translations: Veronica Messano)
Happy Easter!
THE VOICE OF THE RECTOR MAJOR The holy spirit is still at work St. Francis Xavier and Don Bosco, two great missionaries yesterday and today
Just a short while ago I was in Goa, India, where I saw how amid the palm trees and the fine sand of the sea there rise up cathedrals and churches built during the 16th and 17th centuries. One of these shrines is the Basilica of the Good Jesus, which has become a site for pilgrimages, especially for Christians but also for believers of other religions, because here lie the remains of St. Francis Xavier, the missionary from Navarre who evangelized the Far East and was a disciple of St. Ignatius of Loyola, the founder of the Jesuits. Even though St. Francis Xavier died in China in 1552, his remains rest in this most beautiful basilica situated next to the cathedral and to the church of St. Francis of Assisi. This place in which his mortal remains rest was erected between 1594 and 1605.
His body is conserved there. Its incorruptibility was the miracle for which St. Francis Xavier was canonized in 1622.
Accompanied by other Salesians and some lay persons, I had the privilege of celebrating Holy Mass on the altar at the tomb of this great and holy Jesuit missionary. I asked to celebrate the Mass in honor of St. John Bosco to beg him to intercede for us. Why did I do this?
The main reason is because Don Bosco is another great missionary. It was a very simple Mass, beautiful, and profound. Through the intercession of St. Francis Xavier and Don Bosco, I presented to the Lord the Salesian mission throughout the whole world and our great care and concern for youngsters and young adults everywhere, especially the poorest. ÂŤMy sons and daughters will go for meÂť
Somebody might ask why I speak of Don Bosco as a great missionary since he never went as a missionary ad gentes. Don Bosco sent his sons, his Salesians, to the missions, but he himself never went as a missionary to foreign lands. We know this for certain, but it is, nonetheless, very inaccurate. The information I offer you here now suffices when speaking of the great missionary heart of Don Bosco.
2
EX ALLIEVI Newsflash - Easter 2019
When Don Bosco died on January 31, 1888, the Salesians were 754 in number; what is impressive is that Don Bosco had already sent 153 – 20% of his sons – as missionaries to South America. Now, tell me that this is not a response to a true missionary passion – that very same passion which he himself had declared various times in his letters: that he wanted to be a missionary, but it would be his sons who would go. While in Goa, I gave thanks to the Lord for this missionary miracle. The Holy Spirit has guided and accompanied the entire mission of evangelization throughout all Asia from the first Franciscan, Dominican, and Jesuit missionaries just as he has done for Don Bosco’s sons and daughters. In India today there are 2,786 Salesians of Don Bosco and several thousand consecrated religious sisters of various congregations (the Daughters of Mary Help of Christians, the Missionary Sisters of Mary Help of Christians, the Catechist Sisters of Mary Immaculate Help of Christians, etc.). This is all a true grace. “In Goa, one experiences and feels that the centuries do not distance us from what is essential and most authentic in life or from that evangelization which continues most wonderfully today”.
After that beautiful Mass, that very same morning I was able to meet face-to-face some of my brother Salesians who accompany the children they have rescued from the streets. We spent a glorious morning with a group of 40 young boys of differing ages, ranging from 10 to 15 years old. Their eyes shine with a special light. These young men feel at home. They go to school, where they receive formation and an education that will give them all the opportunities for their future. They sing magnificently. They smile. We greeted each other and – of course – we took our photo, and they even learned how to say “Hola y hasta la vista”! Finally, I thought that 170 years ago the boys in Valdocco, Turin, lived just like this with our beloved Don Bosco. Today, his missionary heart does exactly the same for these boys and girls around the world through his sons and daughters who are living as though in another Valdocco and another Mornese.
Today with the grace of communion that exists between the Church already in Paradise, the Church Triumphant, and us, the Church Militant, our holy missionaries St. Francis Xavier and Don Bosco continue to bless the mission and, together with the Lord, give life to these people and to these boys and girls in beautiful Goa, too. Here one experiences and feels that the centuries do not distance us from what is essential and most authentic in life or from that evangelization which continues most wonderfully today.
During this month dedicated to our Mother, I ask Mary Help of Christians to continue to accompany the mission in the Name of the Lord throughout the world. May our Salesian Family continue to be as faithful to the mission today as they have always been until now.
May the Lord bless you and the Help of Christians accompany you. With affection,
Don Ángel Fernández Artime Rettor Maggiore
EX ALLIEVI Newsflash - Easter 2019
3
GREETINGS FROM THE PRESIDENT Dear Past Pupils and Friends of Don Bosco,
It is a great pleasure to have opportunity to communicate with you through our Newsflash. It is one of the most viewed and shared communication channel which we use among us worldwide.
First of all, I would like to share with you some great news about the upcoming year 2020. It will be the year of 150th anniversary of our association as we remember our foundation day on the 24th of June 1870, when the first group of past pupils from Valdocco led by Carlo Gastini, came to mark the celebration of Don Bosco feastday. Because of this special anniversary, the World Presidency has decided to pronounce the year 2020 as the Jubilee year for past pupils and friends of Don Bosco.
We would like to invite you to join for the preparations and the celebration that will be held next year. There will be more communication on this topic during this year and meetings and activities on international and worldwide level besides your national and local ones.
I encourage you to contemplate this upcoming blessed year and to reflect on what we have become as an association and the identity of being a past pupil and friend of Don Bosco in the last 150 years. At the same time, we are all invited to think and dream of what does it mean to be a past pupil and friend of Don Bosco of the 21st century and what past pupils and friends of Don Bosco we want to be for the next 150 years. As this year will be the preparation for this anniversary, also 2019 year is an anniversary itself. In 1919, we also mark the anniversary when for the first time the world organisation of Past Pupils was established as a Confederation of different national federations under a World President and Presidency. Again, it is an opportunity to celebrate for all of us. And to reflect as well. How should the relations between the National Federations and the World Confederation? What can we give to each other? What do we need from each other? I myself am thinking on this level of our relationships in order to improve on communication, in content and we create better animation to be able to realise the dreams of Don Bosco today.
Please do not forget to reflect on all the thoughts mentioned above in the light of our spirituality and faith as well. Especially this time which is close to Easter. A time for us not to think only about the outside world, about our work and projects but to also reflect in the interior of ourselves. We need to balance our efforts in order to create values for others and to reach heaven with Don Bosco. Let the time of Easter be a reminder for all of us of the sacrifice of God for all humanity so we can have an everlasting life. We can also reflect on the different sacrifices in Don Bosco as he gave his whole life, health and heart to us – his sons and daughters.
We, each of us, bring our own sacrifices everyday. In the light of God on the cross and the empty grave, our sacrifices and suffering may receive a different meaning and impact.
As you are about to read in this edition of Newsflash, you can find examples of selfless love and sacrifice for others as we had been taught from Don Bosco. I encourage you not only to be inspired from the following pages but also to get involved and be part of our future. 4
EX ALLIEVI Newsflash - Easter 2019
Easter of Don Bosco Rome, Italy - 85 years ago, on a day like today, 1 April 1934, Don Bosco was declared a saint by Pope Pius XI.
«The infallible successor of St. Peter, by solemnly whispering the words, then pronounced this formula - writes Fr Eugenio Ceria - we decree and define that Blessed Giovanni Bosco is a saint and we register him in the number of saints». Fr. Pietro Ricaldone, Rector Major, writes in a message: «Vatican City, 1st April, at a quarter past ten. Alleluia! The Vicar of Christ has just proclaimed Don Bosco a saint. May he bless Turin, Italy and the world».
Share your best practices with us so we can share them with the whole world to inspire and delight all past pupils and friends around the world.
As we grow in our presence and impact, while we build our network of past pupils and friends with whom we want to share, we need to always try to improve on our outcomes. Step by step we have established our team of translators for which we are looking for new members. We would like to find a translator to and from the German language so we will be able to share and publish from and to German language as well. If it is you or you know someone who is willing to offer his or her skills and gifts to the service of all of us, feel free to contact us via our website. More on the call for translator and contact details you can find here: http://www.exallievi.org/documents/career/ I wish you blessed Easter time full of joy of resurrected Jesus and great time of reading this very new volume of Newsflash. In Don Bosco
Michal Hort President EX ALLIEVI Newsflash - Easter 2019
5
WORLD DELEGATE We are an Easter people and Alleluia is our song My dear past pupil friends,
Peace be with you! I wish everyone of you and your families a Very Happy Easter. May the Risen Christ bless every one of you and fill your hearts and homes with HIS peace, joy, optimism and serenity.
We, the past pupils of Don Bosco, are called to experience the spirit and joy of Easter which is central to our Salesian charism. Going back to our roots, ~ the Pinardi shed in Valdocco, Turin, was bought on Easter Sunday. ~ Don Bosco dedicated the first chapel in Valdocco to the Risen Christ. ~ He was canonized on 1 April 1934, Easter Sunday. Don Bosco’s spirit, life and mission, the Salesian history and the Salesian constitutions are filled with the spirit of Joy and Optimism.
As sons and daughters of Don Bosco, let the words of St. Augustine become our own today: «We are an Easter people and Alleluia is our song». It means that we are people whose faith is rooted in the Resurrection. Indeed, the resurrection of Jesus Christ is the centre of our faith. Apostle Paul told the Corinthians, «If Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless, and so is your faith» (1Cor 15:17).
The good news of Easter is that Jesus Christ not only rose on that first Easter Sunday morning, but that he is gloriously alive among us even today. The crucifixion and burial were real, but they were not the end of him. Basically, there are two fundamental ways in which we can experience this: 1) personal experience of moving from darkness to light, from superficiality to self-awareness, from apathy and indifference to commitment and service;
2) community experience of moving from suspicion to respect and from self-centredness to other-centredness and cherishing solidarity with everyone.
6
EX ALLIEVI Newsflash - Easter 2019
In practical terms, then, ‘Easter people’ means:
~ Deep-rooting our faith on the sacrifice of the Cross and the victory of Easter; ~ Knowing that the Church is the Body of Christ; ~ Meeting the Risen Lord and renewing our hope at the altar of the Word and the Eucharist; ~ Sharing our hope outwardly and becoming a source of joy and redemption for those around, particularly for those who experience disbelief and despair; ~ Being people of peace, spreading the light, peace of the Risen Lord wherever we go; ~ Worshiping joyfully and showing gratitude to God by giving generously; ~ Approaching our own death and that of loved ones, remembering the promise of Resurrection; ~ Seeking the things that are above… not things that are on earth” (Col 3:1-3).
In 1986, giving the Angelus message in Adelaide, Australia, Saint Pope John Paul II, said:
«We are not looking for a shallow joy but rather a joy that comes from faith, a joy that grows through unselfish love, a joy that respects the fundamental duty of love of neighbour, without which it would be unbecoming to speak of Joy. We realize that joy is demanding; it demands unselfishness; it demands a readiness to say with Mary: “Be it done unto me according to thy word”».
The resurrection of Jesus puts our life into the right perspective. The Easter refrain Alleluia is a Hebrew word with layers of meaning – jubilation and victory, hope and courage, glory and honour, blessing and joy. May we all build up our personal lives, our family life and develop the past pupil units on this strong conviction that suffering is not in vain, that death is not the end of everything. May our precious lives be filled with peace, joy and happiness and become instruments of Joy and Peace around. Fr. Jayapalan Raphael Sdb World Delegate, Rome 21 April, Easter Sunday
EX ALLIEVI Newsflash - Easter 2019
7
EDITORIAL A boost of joy, for good and for good Dear Friends
Don Bosco is a saint who used intelligence with cleverness,asking young people to exploit their talents well. For DonBosco What gives more flavour to life is the feast, the happiness, the good. As a boy imitates and exceeds thej ugglers, as a student he founded the "Society of joy". San Domenico Savio, to a lone companion who has just come to Valdocco, says: ÂŤWe make holiness to be very cheerful and to do our duty wellÂť.
When we were young and fresh of journalistic passion, wewere taught few but safe rules: tell the facts keeping themseparate from the opinions, do not blindly trust the informersand check the news before publishing them. On these ruleswe have built a life and maybe a career.
Little by little, however, we have seen this profession slippingin the pressappochism, in the easiness, in that vague anddangerous terrain in which we first study the effect that can make a news and then pass, if ever, to verify it. Thus, the negative is shouted and commented, while the good is kept quiet and forgotten. Often The decisive answer is that the good news does not make headlines. Today as yesterday,readers are not conquered by the words that amaze, but bythe examples that stun. It only Makes the news evil, almostnever good.
In our opinion, the mass media are not meant to teach living but to help people understand the reality in which they live. InThis context we consider "ALUMNI Newsflash" an alternative Magazine because, in synergy with the Salesian Press Agency"ANS", it allows readers to feel represented and involved. Do we only Publish positive facts? Yes, because we want tocommunicate the other aspect of our society, swarming withpeople committed to transforming the Gospel into life andwanting to modify the community in the light of the socialdoctrine of the Church.
The initiative of a teacher of a Salesian Middle School in Italy,who decided every day to post, on the bulletin board under the porch of the Oratory, a paper with the heading "BBN":Bank of Good News. To want to give a boost of cheerfulness,for good and for good. Giving one's time and thinking is how unique everyone can giveto others; It represents what we can no longer have back. It is agift inscribed in eternity. Happy Easter of Resurrection!
8
EX ALLIEVI Newsflash - Easter 2019
Pierluigi Lazzarini
2019 S TRENNA
"So that my joy may be in you" (Jn 15,11)
Holiness for you too
I.- GOD CALLS US TO HOLINESS It is evident that Pope Francis wants to focus attention in his Exhortation on what is essential in our Christian life, helping us to have a broad outlook, without falling into the temptation of losing sight of the end in view. This is why the Pope tries to help us by addressing to us a call to holiness embodied in the current context, with the risks, challenges and beautiful opportunities that God offers in the journey of life, so that “My joy may be in you” (Jn 15: 11). 1. Sacred Scripture invites us to be holy: “Be perfect as your heavenly Father is perfect” (Mt 5: 48), and “Be holy, because I [the Lord] am holy” (Lev 11: 44).
Holiness is a gift, a mandate and a task. Holiness is for everyone because it corresponds to God’s fundamental plan for us. To become saints is not to become alienated from oneself or to move away from one’s own brothers and sisters, but to live one’s life to the full in an intense (and sometimes difficult) experience of communion.
Jesus. Some characteristics of the life of Jesus, which are close-by, concrete, beautiful, exciting for everyone, about which people may never think or think very little.
II. A CALL TO HOLINESS FOR EVERYONE 3. Over the centuries, many men and women have lived holiness, but only a few have been declared saints. There are many examples.
What is important is to be holy, not to be declared as such. The canonised saints are like the façade of a church; but the church contains many precious treasures inside, which however remain invisible. The Strenna invites us to discover and to develop a thirst and nostalgia for this inner, less visible part.
4. “Next-door holiness” and the universal call to holiness: St Francis de Sales, Don Bosco; the Second Vatican Council; Jan Tyranowski and Karol Wojtyła at the school of Don Bosco. III. DON BOSCO WANTS HIS YOUNG PEOPLE HAPPY IN THIS WORLD AND IN THE NEXT 5. In the beginning of his Letter from Rome, written on 10th May 1884, Don Bosco wrote to his young people: «I have only one wish, to see you happy both in this world and in the next».
At the end of his earthly life, these words summed up the heart of his message to young people of every age and of the
2. A close-by God who reveals himself in Christ: “Apart from me you can do nothing” (Jn 15: 5); “I have set you an example that you also should do as I have done to you” (Jn 13: 15).
Holiness is not a theory of moral perfection, but a life that conforms to that of EX ALLIEVI Newsflash - Easter 2019
9
2019 S TRENNA
whole world. He wants them to be happy, as a goal dreamt about by every young person, today, tomorrow, throughout time. Not only that. “In eternity is found that extra that only Jesus and his proposal of happiness, i.e. holiness, can offer. It is the answer to the deep thirst for ‘forever’ that burns in every young person”. The world, the society of all nations, cannot propose this “forever” and eternal happiness, but only God can.
For Don Bosco all this was very clear. His last words to young people were, «Tell my boys that I wait for them all in Paradise». In this sense, we understand the “Da mihi animas, cetera tolle”.
IV. JESUS IS THE HAPPINESS THAT YOU, DEAR YOUNG PEOPLE, ARE LOOKING FOR 6. This was the great challenge by St John Paul II at the Prayer Vigil of the Fifteenth WYD (2000 Rome, Tor Vergata) when he told the young people of the world, «It is Jesus in fact that you seek when you dream of happiness; he is waiting for you when nothing else you find satisfies you; he is the beauty to which you are so attracted; it is he who provokes you with that thirst for fullness that will not let you settle for compromise; it is he who urges you to shed the masks of a false life; it is he who reads in your hearts your most genuine choices, the choices that others try to stifle. It is Jesus who stirs in you the desire to do something great with your lives, the will to follow an ideal, the refusal to allow yourselves to be grounded down by mediocrity, the courage to commit yourselves humbly and patiently to improving yourselves and society, making the world more human and more fraternal».
10
EX ALLIEVI Newsflash - Easter 2019
V. «I FEEL WITHIN ME A DESIRE AND A NEED OF BECOMING HOLY» (Dominic Savio) 7. Salesian texts on holiness: ~ In the Constitutions of the SDB, FMA, Salesian Co-operators, and many groups of the Salesian Family. ~ Various calls to holiness in the Magisterium of the Congregation (SDB). ~ Some points on which Salesian spirituality has a lot to say: • Holiness is the flowering of human aspects. Where there is a saint, one can see a true man or woman. (Cf. Fr Rinaldi to the VDB: be true women, with a touch of femininity, etc.) • Holiness and community: to become holy together. • Saints-with: saints for the young, but above all saints with the young. In a certain sense, it is quite logical that Dominic Savio is the first one who was canonised after Don Bosco, that is to say, the fruits of the holiness of the Salesians are young saints, and the holiness of the young is a signal pointing back to the holiness of the members of the Salesian Family. • Holiness and wounded families; sanctity and personal limits (Francesco Convertini, Ignazio Stuchlý, etc.); holiness stemming from biographical, historical, social limits... There is no personal, biographical or historical condition that can block holiness. • Youth holiness... young saints and the youthfulness of the saints (cf. n. 214 Instrumentum Laboris of the next Synod).
VI. HOLINESS LIVED IN THE SALESIAN CHARISM 8. The message of sanctity on the way to being recognised helps us to re-read and integrate the Salesian charism.
~ Missionary dimension: missionaries in the strict sense; missionaries who “returned” to their home country (Stuchlý); people who had been proposed to become missionaries, but who chose to stay back (Zeman)... ~ Sanctity of the Salesian bishops ~ Holiness with an explicit Marian flavour (many beautiful figures of FMA, and also T. Zeman, Stuchlý, Lustosa, etc.) ~ Holiness with a foundation charism... ~ Holiness of the Salesian Brothers (Zatti, Srugi, Sandor, etc.) ~ The message of the martyrs in the years before and after the bicentenary (Sandor, Zeman, Fr Rodolfo and Bororo Simao, Comini...) ~ The dimension of self-offering as a victim as incarnation of the “cetera tolle”. Augustus Chartorywski, Andrew Beltrami, Aloysius Variara, Ann Mary Lozano, Laura Vicuña, Alexandrina Maria da Costa, etc.
This dimension is expressed in many ways: • physical suffering, forced immobility • separation or removal from community dynamics • lack of understanding by the superiors (Variara, Zeman, Della Torre, etc.) • the impossibility of implementing their own projects due to external constraints (Vicuña, Lozano...) or health (Zatti, etc.) • a legacy of suffering from one’s family of origin (Laura Vicuña, Braga, Stuchlý who tragically lost his father, etc.) • the explicit participation in and conformation to the sufferings of Christ (Alexandrina, Vera Grita, etc.) • Salesian holiness and contemplation... (Continue in the next issue)
R EGIONS
Argentina
The Past Pupils of America are with Pope Francis (ANS - Buenos Aires)
The Federations of the Past Pupils, men and women, of Don Bosco and of the Past Pupils of the Daughters of Mary Help of Christians (FMA) of the American continent have drawn up and signed a document expressing their support for the pontificate of Francis, who enthuses them for the Synod of Bishops on Youth, the WYD in Panama, and the forthcoming antipedophilia summit. «We live in a unique and unrepeatable ecclesial context for young people», they say.
The Salesian charism, 131 years after the "birth to Heaven" of Don Bosco, finds its continuity in Pope Francis. This process is claimed by the lay men and women of the Salesian world in the American continent, through a document in which they bring together the Rector Major, responsible for the world's second largest male congregation, and the first Latin American Pope in history, with Salesian roots and then ordained priest in the Society of Jesus.
dium affirms", continue the Past Pupils of Paraguay, Argentina, Bolivia, Peru, Puerto Rico, Dominican Republic, Cuba, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Haiti, Canada, Chile, Uruguay and USA. The Past Pupils, male and female, of the two institutes of the Salesian Family believe that the recent Synod, "of undoubted Salesian flavor" and the "effective and affective" presence, took note of the desire of young people to be heard and accompanied while they circulated along the modern "motorways of life" at speeds that often do not allow them to pay great attention "to others."
For the Federations of Past Pupils of Don Bosco and of the Daughters of Mary
Help of Christians of America «we are not adrift: we navigate under the guidance of Mary Help of Christians, with empty pockets, far from the temptations of the devil, without sensationalism or superficiality».
For this reason they ask the Salesians to become «driving generators of trends in the current digital age, curating our dear charism in every detail». And to deepen the empathy with young people the necessity of accompanying "the generations of Millennials and Z" is underscored and emphasized. By Lucas Schaerer
Source: La Stampa
Don Bosco's work developed in Argentina, the first country on the first continent outside Europe to be reached; in these "arid societies", say the laity of Salesian circles, "has taught us to serve others and to generate processes, rather than just occupy spaces, as the Evangelii Gau-
EX ALLIEVI Newsflash - Easter 2019
11
G IUBILEO
DEGLI
E XALLIEVI / E
Letter / Invitation of the President from the World Confederation
24 June 2020 150 years of our Association
Dear President and members of National Presidency of Past Pupils,
I am writing to you with joy in my heart about the celebration of the 150th anniversary of our Association. On the 24.06.1870, when the first group of past pupils visited Don Bosco to mark his namesday and to thank him for the invaluable gift of education and friendship, the story of past pupils started. From the famous gift of coffee cups – „tazzine“ now after almost 150 years we are called to reflect the past, to enjoy the present and to plan for future challenges.
I would like to invite all past pupils from around the world to get prepared and to celebrate this special anniversary. For the occasion of 150th anniversary in 2020, the World Presidency of Past Pupils decided to announce a Jubilee Year of Past Pupils of Don Bosco. The Jubilee Yearwill start on the day of the anniversary itself on the 24.06.2020 in Torino – Italy with our actual Don Bosco the Rector Major of the Salesian Family, during the celebration of the Namesday of Don Bosco.
The Jubilee Year is meant to be year of reflection, celebration and planning. We want to give our thanks to Don Bosco and our mother Mary Help of Christians for all blessings we have received in the last 150 years. We would like to bring and present what we have and what we are to the Salesian Family, the Church and to the World. New initiatives, projects and ideas will be shared and presented. At the same time, 150th anniversary is very important moment for us to re-think our identity and set standards and answer the question: What does it mean to be a past pupil of Don Bosco in the 21st century? What kind of Association we want to be for next 150 years in order to grow, to build better networks, to bring new projects and to be salt of the earth and light of the world of today?
The Jubilee Year will end at the World Assembly of Past Pupils which is scheduled for 2021, where we would like to bring all the results and outputs of the Jubilee Year and put it together in a manifesto on the past pupils of Don Bosco in 21st century. I encourage you, my dear friends, to start your preparation for this extraordinary and blessed time of our Anniversary.
12
EX ALLIEVI Newsflash - Easter 2019
G IUBILEO
DEGLI
E XALLIEVI / E
Pinardi Chapel in Valdocco
I encourage you to prepare your own national and local activities and celebrations. At the same time, I invite you to be part of the international celebrations on various opportunities, to join the world movement of past pupils and to let know about our joy and gratitude which we have in our hearts. Now even more than 150 years ago. The whole year of 2019 will be among other activities, an important time of preparation for upcoming celebrations.
The World Presidency will be sharing with you new suggestions, proposals and ideas, and we will be asking you for your opinions and your ideas as well. We would like to reflect on the identity and mission of past pupil of today and for that process we would like to invite you all. To create results, motivate each other and to bring all of this to life.
We want to reflect on the scheme which we call 3P of past pupils‘ identity and mission – Personal, Professional and Pastoral. All these parts of our life bring different needs, challenges and approaches for us as past pupils, and futhermore as members of the Salesian Family, which see in the youth, specially the most needy, a special destinatary of our attention and actions. Let´s rethink it at personal, local, national but also worldwide level. We, as a world presidency, will inform you soon about next steps in the issue of upcoming Jubilee year and we will provide all necessary also in all of our official languages.
Dear friends, I am very happy we are living in such times, that we witness the fruits of the dreams of Don Bosco, when we ourselves can be and become this fruit. As our story started with coffee cups, they need to be filled with our love, gratitude and undying will to be good Christians and honest citizens. In don Bosco Michal Hort
EX ALLIEVI Newsflash - Easter 2019
13
I NITIATIVES
Italy
1 Expo Lombriasco 2019 AgriCultura International Fair Youth between present and future a
Meeting between Salesian Agrotechnical Schools of the world
The first edition of "Expo Lombriasco 2019 - AgriCultura International Fair" was born in the land of Don Bosco, with the force of enthusiasm, a meeting of Salesian Agrotechnical Schools in the world.
An event, conceived and organized by the Salesian Agrotechnic School of Lombriasco (TO) and by the Plaza Argentina Association, which will take place in the institute next October, with the theme "innovation, sustainability and social agriculture".
A unique event that will allow Salesian Agrofood Schools all over the world to meet and get to know each other and discuss different topics (cultural, educational, spiritual, scientific, technical and socio-economic opportunities), in order to generate an international network of young farmers in the spirit of Don Bosco, they can contribute to a sustainable future of agriculture, respecting the nature
14
EX ALLIEVI Newsflash - Easter 2019
of the earth and of peoples, as the Holy Father himself indicated in the encyclical letter "Laudato Si".
ÂŤNothing in this world should be indifferent to usÂť (Pope Bergoglio).
The aim of the first edition of "Expo Lombriasco 2019" is to involve schools from more continents, working to overcome all the difficulties (travel and logistics) that, especially for the poorest countries, can determine the impossibility to participate.
I NITIATIVES
"Rete I.S.A. - M.G.: Education and development in agriculture, for the Youth World" With a group of agricultural entrepreneurs of the Monferrato Asti area and inspired by the theme of ExpoMilan 2015 "Feeding the planet, energy for Life" and theBicentenary of the birth of St. John Bosco, son of this monferrina land and its deepest values And generous, we foundourselves sharing an international Forum with representatives of some Agricultural Schools of Don Bosco inthe world, carrying a professional training course of Higherlevel and University. The Salesian leaders of theMissionary Museum Colle Don Bosco by Don Egidio Deianaand now the Salesian Agrotechnical School of Lombriasco with the Director Don Marco Casanova, the association PlazaArgentina-AT in Daniel Ormeno coordinated our journey(As a referrer and coordinator of the operational path of the"Solidarity of Don Bosco: young people in agriculture", in dialogue with the Sale-
sian Agrotechnical Schools in theworld), representatives of UniAstiss (Dott. Francesco ScalfariUniversity Cultural Reference for Asti and Monferrato), theChamber of Commerce of Asti, the Municipality ofCastelnuovo Don Bosco and above all a group ofentrepreneurs of the agricultural sector dear to the traditions of Don Bosco.
There were then added subjects of value between the academic world as the University of Turin DISAFA (contactDr. Vittorino Novello) and the University of Eastern Piedmont(contact Dr. Enrico Ercole), the Institute of AgricultureGiovanni Penna of Asti (Contact the Prof. Renato Parisio);From the scientific research world The CREA of Asti (contactDr. Emilia Garzia Moruno) and the team Scattol ' 8 srl for the innovation in agriculture. The knowledge of our activities and the
EX ALLIEVI Newsflash - Easter 2019
15
I NITIATIVES
formative sensibilityof each one has led to elaborate and propose a collaborativeproject that we believe can be useful to the AgriculturalWorld Monferrino, Italian and to the Countries where itoperates the educational Mission of Don Bosco, Especiallythrough training Schools in Oenology, Agriculture, farming,Processing and Catering. La creazione di This group proposes:
1. To offer opportunities for training internships, in ourworkplace and culture, to young people, students andpractitioners. For The educational reality Monferrina offersthe availability of UniAstiss, the University of Torino DISAFA,the University of Piemonte Orientale, the Institute ofAgrarian Pen of Asti, the research Body CREA di Asti; For theSalesian reality are available the Universities of Brazil,Argentina And the High Schools of Agronomy of Chile, Mexico, Peru,Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Philippines, Ghana, France,Albania, Ireland, Belgium. 2.To offer young students the possibility of cultural exchanges,aimed at improving
16
EX ALLIEVI Newsflash - Easter 2019
the different professions required inAgriculture, in dialogue with the themes of biodiversity,biotechnology and resource sustainability (transformationProject Sausages started last year in the Salesian AgriculturalSchool of Linares in Chile and that, shortly, of the productionof fresh cheeses in Argentina and Chile).
3.To promote the interchange of knowledge (interns, visitors,tourists) and to foster the trade exchange betweenproducers in the work of Don Bosco and producersMonferrini, aimed at opening commercial opportunities toother producer centres, in spirit of knowledge andcooperation; Overcoming competitions. (Journey of 27students of the Salesian Agrarian School of Lombriasco atthe Salesian Agricultural Schools of Cordoba and Mendoza inArgentina and 9 students from the same School ofLombriasco at the Salesian Agricultural School in Ressins,France; experiences started As part of the school-workalternation.
In Autumn 2017 We received the Salesian Agricultural Schoolof Ressins-France at
I NITIATIVES
the School of Lombriasco and theInstitute of Agriculture G. Penna of Asti; In October 2018 thevisit of the students EAS Cologne Vignaud Cordoba-Argentina. Ongoing Projects are between the CREA Instituteof Asti and the INTA of Mendoza together with the Universityof Torino DISAFA and UNCuyo for the oenological sector.
4.To put us on hand for projects of youth employment inagriculture. Open to the novelties of cooperation, social anddomestic agriculture.
5.To make us available to the youth training in the catering,the welcome and the hospitality, so that the young peoplecan know where the procedures of the representativeagricultural products are cultivated, which they will use inthe kitchen, and for the promotion of Quality and the touristvalue of the territory. To coordinate and to make reference in the operational pathof this proposal are the Salesian Agricultural School ofLombriasco, the Association Plaza Argentina, theuniversities, the research Institutions
and the School ofAgriculture G. Penna of Asti. It Is a proposal that we like toshare with the Institutions and local Authorities (which fromthe outset have become available to indicate among theirassociates a place where to make experience of "training onjob" to students), with representatives of other Countriessensitive to Don Bosco's educational project for the good ofyouth and open to international collaboration.
From the Hill, where Don Bosco was born, to the planningand the activation of the experiences together with theSalesian Agrarian School of Lombriasco, which has aremarkable presence in Piedmont and Valle d'aosta throughthe formidable network of its Past Pupils, the Association Plaza Argentina for the connections with the Salesian AgriculturalSchools in the world and together with all the components of this network, we invite you to walk with us to give an opportunity to the young people to bring them closer to the Earth every time. Daniel Ormeno
EX ALLIEVI Newsflash - Easter 2019
17
N EWS
Peru
Recognition and commemoration of Fr Luis Fassio
Ayacucho, Peru - January 2019
With a gesture of gratitude and admiration, some past pupils of the Don Bosco Institute of Ayacucho joined together to pay tribute to the founder and director of the institute for ten years, Salesian Fr Luis Fassio. For this reason, on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of his death, the grand theater of the college was dedicated to him.
Also, the past pupils recalled the importance of the presence of Fr Fassius among hundreds of young people, and said: ÂŤWe are his children; he was, for us, teacher and guideÂť.
India
Visit of Salesian Cardinal Charles Maung Bo
Kolkata, India - March 2019
A group of Salesian past pupils coordinated the visit of the Salesian Cardinal Charles Maung Bo, Archbishop of Yangon, Myanmar, on 7 and 8 March in Kolkata. Cardinal Bo, who arrived in the city for family reasons, also met his former Provincials and Salesians in the Calcutta Province (INC), and the archbishop of Calcutta, Msgr. Thomas D'Souza. He also visited the historic Marian shrine of Bandel, together with his brother and his family. On 7 March, Cardinal Bo also met Fr Sebastian Alencheril and Fr Thomas Polackal, former INC Provincials, and the current Provincial, Fr Nirmol Gomes, with the provincial council. Also, he was the guest of honor of the "Intercultural Poetry and Performance Library" on the occasion of the International Women's Day. 18
EX ALLIEVI Newsflash - Easter 2019
N EWS
For Better Development and Communication
Japan
The Brand New Leaflet and Website of Don Bosco Past Pupils Japan Tokyo, Japan, 28 February 2019
The Japan Federation of Don Bosco Alumni, chaired by President Mr Hiroshi Yoshida (the Honorary Advisor of the Osaka Seiko Gakuin Alumni Association) has just released its official leaflet and website this February for the first time since it was founded in 2015.
The leaflet and website both contain an introduction to the DB Alumni, the Salesian Schools and its Alumni Associations in Japan, the Promise and Prayer of the Past
Pupil (Japanese Version), and the request for donations.
Of course, on the website, you can watch the latest important news of the Japanese and World Federation and Salesian Family.
The leaflet is now being distributed to students at the graduation ceremonies of each Salesian School with a Don Bosco Past Pupil pin badge made in its Japanese version. The brand-new leaflet and website are ex-
pected to contribute to the development of the Japan Federation, and are also expected to help past pupils get to know and link with one another over their mother schools. The Website URL: https://exdb.jp/
大川 千寿 (OKAWA, Chihiro) is the Secretary of EXDB Japan. a Member of the Social Communication Team of SDB Japan Province, and Associate Professor of Faculty of Law, Kanagawa University. Chihiro Okawa, EXDB
EX ALLIEVI Newsflash - Easter 2019
19
N EWS
Timor-Leste
Fifth Congress of Don Bosco Past Pupils Federation
From December 21st to 23rd, the National Federation of Don Bosco Past Pupils of Timor-Leste organized its V Congress to elect the new leadership and its structure for the period 20182023. The event was attended by 115 people, coming from 9 local associations, and Fr Apolinรกrio Neto, Superior of the Vice Province of Timor-Leste (TLS). Fuiloro, Timor Leste, 24 December 2018
The National Federation of DB Past Pupils in Timor-Leste held its 5th Congress to elect new leadership and its structure for the National Federation period of 20182023 in Fuiloro, Lautem.
The congress took place over three days from 21-23 December 2018, involving 115 participants from 9 local Associations (Centres) namely: Dili, Maliana, Baucau, Fatumaca, Venilale, Laga, Quelicai, Fuiloro and Lospalos.
The official opening began with Eucharist on the first day, followed by revision of congress regulations led by Mr Gregorio Ferreira da Silva as the President of the organizing committee and his team.
20
EX ALLIEVI Newsflash - Easter 2019
To ensure the congress runs succesfully the forum nominated 3 delegates to the presidency: Mr Gualdino da Silva (Dili as Chair), Mrs. Maria Ligia (Fuiloro as ViceChair) and Mr Mateus Ferreira (Dili as Secretary).
Another team was the electoral committee, composed of: Mr Acacio Guterres (Secretary General for the National Federation), Mr Augusto Ximenes (President of Baucau Association) and Fr Mario do Rosario, SDB (National Delegate DB Past Pupils).
During the Congress there were three presentations:
1. TLS Provincial, Fr Apolinario Ornai Neto, SDB on the mission of past pupils and
N EWS
Rector Major's message, 2. Youth Ministry Delegate, Fr Joรฃo da Costa Boavida, SDB on what past pupils can do for the young and poor, 3. Councilor GEX (Youthful Past Pupils) Asia-Oceania, Mr Alberto Alves Piedade on report on animation in the EAO region as well as the World Confederation Priorities to encourage new leadership to adopt and work together to achieve expected outcomes. The revision of the Statutes took place and one article was added to create the Vice-President for Youth, among other amendments. Then the electoral committee presented 3 sets of candidates for President and VicePresident for Youth approved by the TLS Provincial.
The following were candidates: Mr Agustinho Gonรงalves & Mr Venancio Freitas; Mr Alexandre Freitas & Mr Azevedo Marรงal and Mr Agustinho Gonรงalved & Mr Al-
berto Piedade. Mr. Alexandre Freitas and Mr. Azevedo Marรงal were elected as the President of the National Federation (NFDBPP) Timor Leste and Vice-President for Youth for the period of 2018-2023. The new leadership presented their 7 pointprograms based on the World Confederation 7 priorities.
The closing ceremony was marked by the formal installation of the new leadership during the celebration of the Eucharist for the 4th Sunday of Advent, celebrated of Fr. Apolinario Ornai Neto, SDB.
NB: We congratulate the TLS Don Bosco Alumni: their path looks like a good model for other Past Pupil Federations. It looks like the TIMOR LESTE Federation is heading towards greater progress and more programs to help lots of poor youngsters. Alberto Piedade
EX ALLIEVI Newsflash - Easter 2019
21
N EWS
Philippines
Bringing young people to the 7th Art: the Fifth Don Bosco Film Festival
(ANS - Makati City)
Last February 23, dozens of young people and film enthusiasts participated in the awards ceremony of the fifth edition of the Don Bosco Film Festival (DBFF) promoted by the Salesian Province "St John Bosco" of the North Philippines.
The event took place at the Joy Center of the Don Bosco Technical Institute in Makati City. Emceed by Fr Juvelan Samia, SDB, and Deacon Jerome Quinto, SDB, both mem-
22
EX ALLIEVI Newsflash - Easter 2019
bers of the FIN Province Commission for Social Communications, this year's edition saw the number of Salesian films increase even further with the first-time participation of the houses of Batulao, of the Salesian parish in Santa Rosa, Laguna, and of the "Don Bosco Academy" in Bacolor, Pampanga. After the national anthem, there was the welcome of CS Delegate Fr Bernard Nolasco, and a musical-based prayer performed by the "Coro di Don Bosco" – an all-male choir of St. John Bosco Parish,
N EWS
Makati City, during the intermission. The Filipino director Kip Oebanda, a past pupil of Don Bosco and member of the DBFF Board of Judges, was the keynote speaker.
Mr. Oebanda urged the young Salesian students present to use their God-given talent and their passion for cinema to produce useful stories that can truly serve the good interest of society. «As a filmmaker», he said, «you have a great responsibility to use this tool to serve the genuine values of life».
After the screening of a short video that retraced the previous editions of the DBFF, the awards ceremony began in the respective categories, which included both technical and artistic prizes in the sections: short advertisement, documentaries and short films.
In addition, two special prizes were awarded for the work most voted by the public and for the film chosen by the local Salesian publisher.
Started in 2015, on the occasion of the Bi-
EX ALLIEVI Newsflash - Easter 2019
23
N EWS
centenary of the birth of Don Bosco, the DBFF continues to grow year after year in consideration of the local society and sponsors.
Currently, students from any institute (school, oratory, educational centre, vocational training centre...) of the Salesians, the Daughters of Mary Help of Christians and the Sisters of the Charity of Jesus from all over the country can participate. This last edition, launched during the year
24
EX ALLIEVI Newsflash - Easter 2019
that the Church of the Philippines dedicated in particular to clergy and consecrated persons, had as its theme the Gospel passage: "Come and See" (Jn 1:46) and challenged young people to tell true stories of religious who lived the Salesian charism and transmitted God's love to the neediest young people.
So the DBFF gets also to motivate young people to become observers and narrators of the reality that surrounds them.
N EWS
EX ALLIEVI Newsflash - Easter 2019
25
N EWS
Pakistan
Don Bosco Festival in Lahore Lahore, Pakistan - 31 January 2019
The Salesian community of the "Don Bosco Technical and Youth Center" in Lahore celebrated the feast of St. John Bosco.
The event was presided over by Msgr. Sebastian Shaw, archbishop of Lahore, in the presence of important representatives of the Pakistani government, directors of the technical institutes of Lahore, the parish priest of Youhanabad, the director of the diocesan seminary, religious, past pupils, teachers, students, families and friends. After the Eucharist the artistic program was held, with the representation of the dream of the nine years, a presentation of the work done by the Salesians since their foundation, dances and representations prepared by the students and the professors.
A special part of the evening was a significant homage made by past pupils in honor of the Salesian Fr Pietro Zago, who died on December 28, 2017, founder of the two Salesian works in Pakistan.
Fr Pietro Zago
Of his nearly 83 years of life, Fr Zago spent 62 as a missionary. He served the young of India, Indonesia, East Timor, the Philippines, Papua New Guinea, and finally Pakistan, where he spent the last 18 years of his life and founded the two centers currently present in the countrymn, namely Quetta and Lahore. He also actively contributed to the support of refugees and the poor and to the reconstruction of the villages damaged in the 2005 earthquake and the 2010 floods. 26
EX ALLIEVI Newsflash - Easter 2019
N EWS
Thailand
Past Pupils Association accompanies Buddhist students in their spiritual practices Hua Hin, Thailand - March 2019
From 9 to 23 March, 66 Buddhist students from the Salesian school Saeng Thong in Hat Yai, Thailand, follow the path of spiritual practices that will lead them to monastic ordination. To accompany them on this path of purification, which takes place in the Buddhist temple of Hat Yai, are the young of the Past Pupils Association. This Association, which collaborates with the educative pastoral community and with the school administration, organized the entire event.
In the schools and in the Salesian Family of Hat Yai, most of the Salesian students and past pupils are in fact Buddhists.
EX ALLIEVI Newsflash - Easter 2019
27
N EWS
Malta
Formation program to become mentors
Sliema, Malta - April 2019
As part of the Erasmus+ program, funded by the European Union, called "Mentorpower", the Don Bosco Federation of Past Pupils and the Friends of Don Bosco Malta organized a training program to become mentors for young people who are homeless or lack family support. The course was attended by 30 people from Italy, Slovakia, Malta and Ireland, who gathered from March 27 to April 1.
The project "Erasmus+ MentorPower Project" aims to build a strategic partnership and collaboration to deepen the ability to protect young people according to the Salesian charism. Next summer, the Maltese Past Pupils will open a new house called "Residence Marvelli", for young people who need housing support.
28
EX ALLIEVI Newsflash - Easter 2019
N EWS
Brazil
Celebrating ten years medical students offer missionary voluntary service
(ANS - Meruri) - Medical students of the Faculty of Medical Sciences of Santos, State of São Paulo, completed the 10th expedition of the Academic Project of Assistance to Indigenous Peoples (PAAPI) from 15 to 25 January. First established in 2009 with the aim of providing basic health care, collecting data on home visits and promoting preventive medicine, the project brought together, in this edition, 34 volunteers to promote health and solidarity in the villages of Meruri (Bororo culture) and Sangradouro (Xavante culture). The project is independent and funded by the students themselves, with revenues generated by promotions and events.
Accompanied by Dr. Marcella Rolim, Salesian past pupil, the future doctors set up a clinic in the villages to take care of the population and talk to them about general health care and personal hygiene. About 7,000 medicines and 600 hygiene kits were delivered by volunteers to the two villages. Pregnant women and children also received vitamins and the doctor examined people who were experiencing specific problems.
«We made house visits, in which we created a medical history and did physical examinations to all those who recieved us; we asked them what and how they felt, if they
had any pain, their personal clinical history, measured their pressure and recorded the blood sugar of diabetics and those who had diabetes-like symptoms. We held conferences in the Salesian mission on diseases such as hypertension and diabetes, depression and alcoholism. Every day we also played with the children and offered a snack, after which they brushed their teeth with the hygiene kits we brought», said the student Dr. Cindy Buchmann, who coordinates the project with her colleagues Silvana Nardi, Bruna Bossi, Julie Kinoshita and Maria Eduarda Bormann. The entire organization before the trip was organized by students Natália Santana and Rafaela Saragiotto. This year, for the first time, Dr. Rolim took part in the project as a specialized doctor. She had already gone on a missionary expedition in 2014, as a medical student,
in her fourth year of studies. «I learned about the project thanks to faculty friends and I fell in love with it. When I arrived in the villages, I had another surprise: to be welcomed in a Salesian Mission! A happy coincidence, because I had studied my whole life in a Salesian school and I was happy to be able to give back all the teachings and values that helped me in my formation and allowed me to get where I am today». According to the student Daniela Saad, the students leave with the mission of transmitting knowledge to the indigenous peoples, but it is they who take home a lesson in life. «PAAPI gives us ten days to help the indigenous people of Mato Grosso in the best possible way, but the truth is that these few days are already enough to make us learn to give more value to our lives. What a lesson in life, gratitude and emotion!», she exclaimed.
EX ALLIEVI Newsflash - Easter 2019
29
N EWS
Slovakia
Past Pupils travelled the world together
In autumn 2018, during the sixth edition of the most favourite Past Pupils event, the Past Pupils and their families set out for an adventurous trip around the world. At the Weekend of Intense Experiences, they took part in entertainment, sports, relaxation and spiritual activities. 140 participants - of which nearly 30 Past Pupils’ families, 70 children, several individuals, Salesians, a representative of the Salesian Collaborators and a special guest met again after two years at the traditional place in Castá - Papiernicka. Don Tadeusz Rozmus, Salesian from Poland, Regional Councilor for Central and Northern Europe, arrived from Rome.
The theme of the weekend was the Journey Around the World. Couples performed different tasks on a marital journey, reflecting on their traveller's dreams and checking their knowledge, finally completing their journey at a romantic date.
Children learned about countries in the introductory short scene by animators and in creative workshops. Among other things, they also had a try on a catapult 30
EX ALLIEVI Newsflash - Easter 2019
and tried shooting arrows from a bow, like on the American prairie. They demonstrated their masks, which represented not only different countries, at the evening masquerade.
A lecture full of advice from Blessed Anka and Don Titus, adoration before the Blessed Sacrament and everyday Holy Mass made the spirit stronger.
Another part of the weekend was the General Assembly. GA passed a new wording of the articles of association and elected new members of the Executive Committee of the Association.
Fifteenth centre of Past Pupils established in Prešov, 59 new members joined their ranks More and more residents of Prešov, Slovakia, started to identify themselves with the slogan “give out of gratitude”. The gratitude for the Salesian guidance resulted in a new Past Pupils Centre that was established in Prešov on December 8th, 2018, on the feast of the Immaculate Conception. Fifty-nine new members joined the Past Pupils. Having received the decrees from the hands of the Past Pupils President, Robert Mruk, the newly admitted Past Pupils prayed together the prayer of the Past Pupil with great joy.
N EWS
The admission took place in a family atmosphere; Salesians, as well as Salesian collaborators and representatives of ADMA from Prešov attended the ceremony. Currently, the Past Pupils of Prešov work with Salesians as animators in clubs, as football coaches, special Communion distributors, church service musicians; they participate in Fathers’ Prayers and in Fathers with Children weekends. They help at various special events of the Salesian Centre.
Give Smile collection helps those in need in Slovakia and mission in Ecuador Social assistance in Past Pupils practice means happy smiles, feelings of being deeply touched, but above all, reducing material poverty and providing financial assistance. The Advent Give Smile collec-
tion (in Slovak Darujme úsmev), which the Association of Past Pupils and Friends of Don Bosco in Slovakia organize each year, helped more than 50 families and more than 100 children in crisis centres before Christmas. They collected more than EUR 7500 in total for the purposes of the collection in Slovakia and for the mission in Ecuador. The project, which Past Pupils created in appreciation of everything that they received and from the desire to share with those who need it, helped people in more than 10 cities in Slovakia.
The aid was dispatched to charity centres, a daily care centre for disabled people, a crisis centre and Salesian homes operated by FMA sisters. FMA sisters, VDB and the Slovak Catholic Charity informed the Association about
those in need. The Past Pupils Secretariat made a list of specific needs from which the Past Pupils chose the eligible ones. Clothes, shoes, toys, food, cosmetics, appliances; all this is urgent aid which the Past Pupils provided to those in need, and thus tried to make their Christmas more pleasant and improve the demanding and modest living conditions. They used the financial donations to purchase the remaining necessities, but primarily washing machines and other appliances. What is unique about the Past Pupils donations are gifts of various kinds packed in shoeboxes, which have traditionally been trying to conjure a smile on children’s faces under the Christmas tree. This year, almost 200 of them were collected.
For the first time, the collection was concentrated in two towns - in Bratislava and Prešov. Priority is aid for people in Slovakia, but this is not the first time that the collection opened its doors to helping abroad, where other members of the Salesian family operate.
An accompanying project of the collection was Smile for Ecuador, financial donation for the mission in Ecuador, led by the Salesian Anton Odrobi ák. A generous amount of EUR 4500 goes to Ecuador. A sum of EUR 3000 was collected at the fund-raising concert and on the bank account set up for the collection.
The exclusive chocolate brand Lyra owned by the chocolatier Karol Stýblo and Tomáš Letavay, both active past pupils, supported the Smile for Ecuador with the remaining amount of EUR 1500. The company cooperates with native Ecuador producers of cocoa, but they also started an education project of farmers in South America. Simona Hrabošová
EX ALLIEVI Newsflash - Easter 2019
31
N EWS
Slovenia
Don Bosco Festival in Ljubljana Rakovnik Ljubljana, Slovenia - 31 January 2019
For the feast of Don Bosco the Salesians of the Salesian Province of Slovenia (SLO) gathered for a meeting and a spiritual retreat in the mother house of Ljubljana Rakovnik. The Salesian trainee Vimos Svarc presented the contents of the congress of the European Salesian Brothers in Barcelona.
Then the shrine of Mary Help of Christians was filled by the students and teachers of the Salesian institute "St. Francis de Sales" in Želimlje, by past pupils and friends of Don Bosco for the solemn Mass presided by the archbishop of Ljubljana and president of the Slovenian Episcopal Conference, mgr. Stanislav Zore, OFM.
32
EX ALLIEVI Newsflash - Easter 2019
N EWS
Italy
Salvatore Russo, the longest-known past pupil in Italy
Riesi, Italy - January 2019 «Riesi is the city of the Salesian past pupil of Italy par excellence, since all parishes, except one, are managed by Salesian priests and therefore here the fragrance of Don Bosco can be felt in every corner», said the director of the magazine "Voci Fraterne", official organ of the Past Pupils of Italy, dott. Valerio Martorana, intervened in the triduum of preparation for the feast of Don Bosco in presenting the past pupils to the city. «We are the result of that education received in the courtyard of the oratory, in the school, in the parish and today to witness the validity and effectiveness of the message of our Father, Master and Friend is Salvatore Russo, who turns 100, a century of life at the service of the community», continued Martorana.
Salvatore Russo is the longest-lived former pupil in Italy and was also deported to the Stramlagger XA concentration camp in Germany; in 2017 he was awarded with the Medal of Honor by the President of the Republic. The First Citizen of Riesi, Salvatore Chiantia, has symbolically surrendered to Mr. Russo his tricolor band naming him "mayor for a day".
The liturgical celebration ended with the renewal of the promise of the Past Pupils, led by the President of the Local Union, Salvatore Giambarresi. Source: Seguo News
EX ALLIEVI Newsflash - Easter 2019
33
N EWS
Italy
Italian citizenship for a Polish past pupil of UPS
Rome, Italy – January 2019 Italian citizenship was conferred on Dr Lukasz Polanski on 8 January. Originally from Poland, he is a former pupil of the Salesian Liceo at Lubin and then of the Communication Faculty of the Pontifical Salesian University in Rome where he gained his degree in 2004. Over those years, in a purely voluntary capacity, he took on the task of assistant in the Study Hall of the specialised library at the Don Bosco Centre of Studies, and was responsible for the first web site, its contents and graphics of that Centre; he took on a similar role at the Vatican in the Holy See's Committee for Historical Sciences, where Salesian Professor Fr Cosimo Semeraro, SDB was the then secretary. He also collaborated with the “International Colloquiums of the Salesian Family”, run by Fr Karl Oerder, SDB, and brought together the first archival and computerised organisation of the collection of letters of Venerable Fr Vincent Cimatti, SDB. Dr Polanski works for the National Research Council (CNR) in Rome and for the moment is currently working at the University of Johannesburg in South Africa.
Italy
Corruption explained to the young of "Don Bosco Ranchibile"
Palermo, Italy - January 2019 On 29 January at the Salesian Institute "Don Bosco Ranchibile" there was a conference / debate, moderated by the journalist dr. Roberto Puglisi, on the theme of the fight against corruption, which was attended by the students of the fifth year and the past pupils of the Institute. The event was attended by Francesco Caringella, President of the V jurisdictional section of the Council of State, former magistrate of the "Mani Pulite – Clean Hands" investigation, which held a "lectio magistralis" inspired by his book, written with Raffaele Cantone, entitled "Corruption explained to the children who care about the future of their country". The participation of young people was numerous, and through their targeted interventions they were able to learn that they are the ones to pay the most serious consequences of corruption. The event was also attended by the Dean of the Institute, Prof. Nicola Filippone, Fr Angelo Astuti, Professor of Mathematics of several generations of students of Don Bosco Ranchibile, and the past pupil Leonardo D'Acquisto, Professor of the Faculty of Engineering at the University of Palermo.
34
EX ALLIEVI Newsflash - Easter 2019
S OLIDARITY
“What a joy to see all the computers turned on!”
Sudan
(ANS – El Obeid)
As has been the case in other years, past pupils from the Don Bosco Centre in Seoul have rallied to help Salesian vocational centres elsewhere, this time in Khartoum and El Obeid, Sudan. Working closely with Mr Lin Chanwoo, a past pupil from Batch 7, Br Marino Bois, SDB, spent 7 weeks in Sudan at these vocational training centres, repairing machines, helping the teacher find an easy way to make tools.
They opened a classroom sponsored by the past pupils from the Seoul Don Bosco Centre, with 15 computers to teach CAD (Computer-Aided Design). Br Bois had to give lessons to the teachers
EX ALLIEVI Newsflash - Easter 2019
35
S OLIDARITY
and prepare them to teach the students.
A Korean woman sponsored a classroom with 20 computers to teach the boys how to use the keyboard to type in English and Arabic, and the basic functions of the most commonly used programs.
«What a joy it was to see all the computers turned on together!» said Br Bois.
The missionary activity, supported by the Salesian past pupils, has grown each year, and as a result, last year the Salesians were able to provide two new lathes.
These were the only two new machines they had received since their school began. The school was founded by Salesians Fa-
36
EX ALLIEVI Newsflash - Easter 2019
ther Vincenzo Donati, and the Comino Brothers, Jim and Andrew.
Due to lack of funds they could only purchase second-hand machines.
As time passed, the old machines got older and developed many problems.
So every bit of help from outside was and is really welcome! On the way back, the group stopped over for one week at the St Joseph's vocational training centre in Khartoum.
«I was there in 1991–1992, and there too the school only had a small budget, and we could only buy second-hand machines. After we recruited 20 young people, I taught them for four months, then Br Jim
S OLIDARITY
Comino took my place. In collaboration with Fr Vincenzo Donati, he developed the school until it was taking in 300 students. They also had a request from the local police to also teach the boys from the prison.
the majority wanted to return to their homeland. Recruiting new teachers with the knowhow to teach practical subjects was not an easy problem and is not completely solved.
Recently, the school situation became difficult.
«We will try to see what we can do since we have still some of our budget left over. If we are called upon again and if it is the will of God, we are ready...».
That very morning, two military trucks arrived at the school full of boys and policeman as well who were willing to learn the skills offered in the special courses prepared for them», said Br Bois.
Most of the teachers had been formed in the school, many of them recruited from the refugee camps, and all from what is now South Sudan. When the South declared independence,
A young Indian missionary is working hard to bring the school back to the level of former times, starting with the welding section, where almost all the machines, after 25 years, are almost unusable.
By Bro. Marino Bois, SDB
Source: AustraLasia
EX ALLIEVI Newsflash - Easter 2019
37
S OLIDARITY
Italy
Hadidi: from Morocco to businessman via Salesian education
(ANS - Bra)
A case of fully successful integration, where the education and vocational training offered by Salesians played a fundamental role: the story of Hadidi Lakbir, 30, now married and father of a child. 25 years ago he arrived in Italy from Morocco to join his father who worked for a local business. But today it is Hadidi himself who has become an entrepreneur.
It is now 10 years since Hadidi has started and owns "Omh - Soluzioni Tecnologiche" in the town of Cavallerleone, a company with which he put himself at the service of the mechanical production companies in the provinces of Cuneo and Turin. He is a past pupil of the Vocational Training Center (CFP) of Bra and, filled with emotion, he told his story during the awarding of diplomas to the students of Salesian
38
EX ALLIEVI Newsflash - Easter 2019
CFPs in the province of Cuneo, on 4 February. «I joined my family in Sommariva Bosco about 25 years ago. My father, who had arrived from Morocco, was working at a company in Ceresole d'Alba when we reached him in Piedmont. I remember with pleasure the elementary schools, with the teachers who helped us a lot. I also remember with gratitude the Salesians of Bra who educated me, even if I am of a different religion from the Christian one, and they trained me as a technician».
Hadidi has been working on his own for almost 10 years and for this reason he is grateful to the Salesians: «They have helped me a lot in my role as an entrepreneur. My technical and human formation was guided during the three years I attended the Salesian Institute “San Domenico Savio” of Bra». His testimony has highlighted the quality
S OLIDARITY
of an integral and comprehensive formation - in technical skills, as well as in values: «I have learned a lot from the Salesians in Bra, both from a professional and a human standpoint. I'm of foreign origin, but thanks to this education I managed to fit perfectly in the production sector in which I have been operating for many years». During the ceremony for the awarding of diplomas to the young students of Salesian CFPs, Hadidi received a prize from the General Director of the CNOS-FAP of Piedmont.
He then concluded by addressing the students who have attended the very same workshops, a few years later. «I wish all the students present to find their way to work as I did», he concluded. «I thank the Salesians of Bra again for what they have».
Source: Cuneo Cronaca
EX ALLIEVI Newsflash - Easter 2019
39
S OLIDARITY
Ecuador
Don Bosco and a twentieth of February... Dr. Fredi Leonidas Portilla Farfan is an past pupil of the agricultural School of Cuenca (Ecuador) and teaches at the Polytechnic University Salesiana. «I am not a poet, but an agronomist who likes to write about the Salesians and the current working experience; Especially of the continual blessings received by God and his mother, Mary Help of Christians». He has published a group of poems in a book titled "Flechados Humanos, Flechados Salesianos" (Human arrows, Salesian arrows), Abya Yala, editorial of Ecuador.
Who from so much walking, walked quickly, which summer sparrow of ash in ash, looking for souls, from town to town, catching hearts for the eternal sky.
Today I felt your spirit loitering in the corridors, floating above the workshops, offices and the chapel, while a gentle breeze shook the seedlings, and a bright sun welcomed you.
They say that the Saint has come! Says Doña María, That it is not the saint but his relics !, Don Enrique corrects, Be that as it may, Don Bosco is here, and that's what counts! And for what have they brought, is there a problem? That you do not find out anything !, refutes a
40
EX ALLIEVI Newsflash - Easter 2019
laughing secretary, which is the bicentennial of his birth, of obligatory celebration, for all those who collaborate in his work and revere his career, Today at the Polytechnic there will be chocolate, music and comedy!
Oh, I see, the good man replies: Then it's a holiday! It will be necessary to go to mass first, as in good times, then to the theater to laugh a while, and then to play in the yard, for afternoon sharing candies from the same dish.
Those were other times! Says a professor who was almost a priest, Today there will be a procession, prayers and a sermon, that nobody doubts, and then a film session: the life of the Saint
and enough! that the miracle comes later, everyone waits at home.
Oh I see! Insist the good worker, anyway I will pray with respect, that just in case, this year I'm dying, Don Bosco saves me the sky, and if I'm still alive, health reaches me to work every day, because the Polytechnic is my oratory, my house, my patio and my joy. "We are Don Bosco who walks", many voices continue to sing, while I reflect the fact told to the beat of the experience, this february twenty, for some unnoticed, Stay Don Bosco, like the Christ, to relieve the afflicted hearts! Dr. Fredi Portilla Farfán
A NNIVERSARIES
Spain
Opening of 125th anniversary celebrations of Salesian presence in Vigo Vigo, Spain - January 2019
On 30 and 31 January the opening of the celebrations for the 125th anniversary of the Salesian presence in the city took place in Vigo.
On 30 January there was a cultural event at the Salesian cinema theater on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of its completion.
On this occasion, Joaquín Nieto, Director of the Salesian Institute "Maria Auxiliadora" of Vigo, summarized the history of the Salesian presence in the city, with the participation of the internationally renowned pianist Brais González, a past pupil, and of Manuel Reigosa, Rector of the University of Vigo.
On 31 January in the church of Mary Help of Christians of "Ronda Don Bosco", Msgr. Jesús Fernández, auxiliary bishop of Santiago de Compostela, presided at the Eucharistic celebration, concelebrated by various Salesian priests of the city, animated by the 125-year-old choir, as well as significant readings and gestures by people belonging to all the Salesian realities of Vigo.
EX ALLIEVI Newsflash - Easter 2019
41
A NNIVERSARIES
Chile
Launch of activities for centenary of Salesian "Monseñor Fagnano" Secondary School (ANS - Puerto Natales)
The official launch of the activities related to the centenary of the Salesian high school "Monseñor Fagnano" in Puerto Natales took place in the school library on the morning of 19 March. The activity coordinator, María Vásquez, announced that on March 22 there would be the inauguration ceremony of the centenary activities at the city's Sports Center.
The activities to celebrate this centenary will be many and different throughout the year.
On April 1, in the high school, a special Salesian "good morning" will be offered on the institution's founding act.
42
EX ALLIEVI Newsflash - Easter 2019
A new edition of the "Campo Bosco" will be held on 6 April. In May, the high school will participate in the anniversary of Puerto Natales. On June 6, there will be the appointment of "Cuentacuentos", an educational event for children.
In July, the 3rd Family Festival will be held, in addition to the Salesian camps of Villa Feliz, a special edition of the centenary. The Salesian week will take place from 12 to 16 August.
On 13 September, the Salesians will participate in the parade of national holidays and organize an evening of "cuecatón" (typical Chilean dance), which aims to bring together 100 pairs of traditional
A NNIVERSARIES
dancers. On October 17, the meeting of the 22 Directors of the country's Salesian schools will be held in Puerto Natales, and on this occasion the song in honor of the centenary will be presented.
The following day the Eucharist will be celebrated and a Salesian parade will also take place with delegations of Salesian students from Punta Arenas, the band of past pupils and the band of the Don Bosco Institute.
On October 19, the anniversary gala dinner is scheduled. From Monday 28 to Thursday 31, there will be the Salesian Olympics "Centenary of the Salesian High School Monseñor Fagnano" with sports delegations from all over Chile.
On October 30, there will be a procession to the cemetery to remember the Salesians who've passed away and served at the institute.
On the occasion of the launch of the activities, the logo and the official anthem of the centenary were also presented; it was created by the graphic designer and past pupil Andrés Díaz.. The logo represents the mountain peaks of the Paine, accompanied by a cross, as a sign of evangelization and of the three fundamental pillars of the Salesian Preventive System.
The hymn was prepared by Rodrigo Santana, a Salesian past pupil and professor at the Don Bosco Institute in Punta Arenas.
EX ALLIEVI Newsflash - Easter 2019
43
H ISTORY
Brazil
1954 "Time Capsule" opened in old Salesian school (ANS - Campinas)
January 31, for the feast of Don Bosco, was a day of great expectations at the social center "São João Bosco" of Campinas for the past pupils of the semi-boarding house "São João", together with directors and staff of the social center "São João Bosco", who met for the opening of a "time capsule" - a bottle inserted in the pedestal of a bust of Don Bosco – which had been sealed in 1954.
The historical artefact was a sort of local legend: the "São João" boarding house was founded in 1909 and offered its school services and meals to generations of stu-
44
EX ALLIEVI Newsflash - Easter 2019
dents of different social classes until 1994, when the center was converted into a center for social assistance.
It had always been said that a "time capsule" was kept in the bust of Don Bosco, but there were no official records or data capable of confirming this tale.
Then, on the afternoon of January 31st, the past pupils of the "São João", together with the members of the current social center "São João Bosco", gathered to start the commemorations for the 110th anniversary of the center (festivities culminating next June) and proposed to find out what was inside the "time capsule".
H ISTORY
Thus, after the celebration of the Eucharist, the current Director of the social center, Fr Orivaldo Voltolini, and the former Director of the "São João", opened the cavity where the time capsule was located.
Angélica Barbosa, historian and coordinator of the work, and Luís Monteiro, restorer of the institute's patrimony, led the different phases of the procedure, ensuring that the documents and the objects were treated with all the due and necessary care. In the end, the capsule was extracted; inside: a glass bottle full of historical docu-
ments of the institution, a copy of the newspaper Diário do Povo of 17 March 1954, and a photographic film roll.
Also inside: messages from students, a note from the Spanish Mint, a scapular, objects of everyday school life, an oratory card, a register with student grades, a description of the center at the time, and the names of the director of the boarding house, the mayor of the city and even the Pope in office in 1954. With the "time capsule", part of the Salesian history of Campinas and its service to the education of young people has come to light.
EX ALLIEVI Newsflash - Easter 2019
45
H ONEST CITIZENS AND
Philippines
GOOD
C HRISTIANS
Saints in shirt sleeves p. Eli Cruz, SDB
A psychologist, Jerome Bruner, once said: ÂŤAdults who do not use narration are losing a powerful allyÂť.
I collected stories of young people who lived and learned from the school of Don Bosco, the "Father and Master of Youth". Through their stories, we have access to their spirits. Through their spirits we capture the concerns and projects that make life meaningful for young people.
I chose the young people of Don Bosco because I wish to honor St. Dominic Savio, who died a teenager saint, the archetype of youthful heroism and holiness. Just as St. John Bosco is the adult saint who has inspired many other young people to show the world that age is not a barrier to living heroic and holy lives.
I chose three young people from the Don Bosco Technical College in the Town of Mandaluyong (Philippines), whose ordinary lives were filled with extraordinary spiritual and moral content: Joseph Sigmund Ocasion, Dorilag Chiminello and Roderick Flores. This memory is dedicated to all young people who can live for a greater purpose than theirs and embrace a wider world than their...
46
EX ALLIEVI Newsflash - Easter 2019
H ONEST CITIZENS AND
GOOD
C HRISTIANS
Joseph Sigmund Ocasion In the image of the dying Christ Born on 14 October 1976, the parents enrolled him in the Don Bosco of Mandaluyong to earn him a good dose of discipline, since he sometimes quarts with the three sisters.
The Salian Institute is rewarded in religion as lovable people; He also enrolled in the "Club Amici di Domenico Savio" and the "Peer Ministry Group". In 1992 the family moved to Canada and Rico Laurente, friend and classmate, recalls: "Great intelligence coupled with logic. Sieg is a Filipino always ready to help others, especially in mathematics». Good basketball champion while attending high school is offered to Sigmund a place in Duke, but only accepts if his friend Rico is also included. Rico Datinginoo, schoolmate in high school in Toronto, reveals to Sigmund's mother: «Tita, we have nicknamed your son" Lolo "(grandfather) because he loved to give
advice and mediate in the group». Again Rico Laurente: «Sieg, endowed with a strong Catholic formation, found it difficult to discuss religious convictions. Believing in God did not accept those who tried to convince him otherwise».
On February 22, 2000, Sigmund accuses a severe stomach ache; For the doctor, it's all about kidney calculus. But the pain continues. On 10 March, he was diagnosed with colon cancer. Five days after the surgery does not produce a positive outcome. The Salian Don Occhio is called to administer the anointing of the sick.
During the days of hospitalization, Sigmund becomes very popular in the hospital; He is loved by everyone and considered a "special boy". Every day he receives Holy Communion. Strong faith makes him believe that God must have a very specific purpose to motivate that
suffering. On June 14, 2000, in the Salesian newsletter of Canada, Don Joseph Occhio writes: «From today for a whole month I will offer the daily Mass for the rest of the soul of Joseph Sigmund Ocasion. Educated by the Salesians in the Philippines, then transferred with the family here to us, in Canada. Three months ago, at the age of 23, he discovered that he had terminal cancer.
I have the privilege of being near him to death. I mention it because it represented a shining success of our Salesian spirituality. His serenity, courage and peace made me think of San Domenico Savio. I saw in Sigmund the serene face of Christ in the Holy Shroud».
EX ALLIEVI Newsflash - Easter 2019
47
H ONEST CITIZENS AND
GOOD
C HRISTIANS
Spain
Salesian presence at 33rd edition of Goya Awards
(ANS - Seville)
The gala evening of the 33rd edition of the Goya Awards, held in Seville on Saturday 2 February, was full of "Salesian" aspects.
We cannot but mention that Campeones and El Reino were the evening's two triumphant films, but names like Raúl de la Fuente and Jesús Vidal are indicative of a significant Salesian presence in this young and modern communicative world. Director Raúl de la Fuente and producer Amaia Remírez won their second Goya Award on Saturday, with Un día más con
48
EX ALLIEVI Newsflash - Easter 2019
vida, a feature film inspired by the novel by Polish journalist Ryszard Kapuscinski.
Raúl de la Fuente is the director of many productions produced all over the world by "Misiones Salesianas", the Salesian Mission Office in Madrid.
In recent years he has traveled around the world with the operators of "Misiones Salesianas" and thanks to him it has been possible to make Salesian work among the most disadvantaged young people known to many people. In addition to Un día más con vida, a few
months ago he directed and presented the documentary Love, which denounces child prostitution in Sierra Leone.
Love was then presented in numerous institutional offices, Salesian works and centers all over the world to make people everywhere know and learn about Salesian projects in favor of minors in danger and of abandoned girls.
Previously, in recent years, the director worked with the Salesian Missions in productions such as Hijos de Haití (Children of Haiti), No estoy en venta (They are not for sale), Yo no soy bruja (I am not a
H ONEST CITIZENS AND
GOOD
C HRISTIANS
witch), 30,000 and Diamantes en Lixeira (Diamonds in Lixeira), and Alto el Fuego (Cease Fire).
In this 33rd edition of the Goya Awards, a Chilean Salesian past pupil, Jesús Vidal, was also awarded.
«Three words came to mind: inclusion, diversity and visibility».
He is the first visually impaired to win a Goya Award for an interpretation in a film, in this case as "Actor Revelation" in the film Campeones.
EX ALLIEVI Newsflash - Easter 2019
49
H ONEST CITIZENS AND
GOOD
C HRISTIANS
Great Britain
Support Center named Sean Devereux
Wandsworth, Great Britain - January 2019
Opening January 15 at the "St. John Bosco College" of Wandsworth, London, was the"Devereux Center", a center offering specialist support to students with autism and mental problems.
Maureen Devereux (pictured together with director Paul Dunne) was present at the inauguration ceremony.
The Center was named "Devereux" in honor of her son Sean, a Salesian past pupil, teacher and volunteer, murdered in Kismayo, Somalia, in January 1993, at the age of 28, while working for UNICEF. Sean is an important role model and a source of inspiration for the Salesian Family.
50
EX ALLIEVI Newsflash - Easter 2019
H ONEST CITIZENS AND
Sean Devereux (25 November 1964 - 2 January 1993) was an English Salesian missionary and aid worker murdered in Kismayo, Somalia in 1993 while working for UNICEF. He has since become an important role model for the aid-working vocation, particularly among Christians.
briefly finding himself imprisoned after pleading for the release of a student drafted into the army as a child-soldier.
He was educated at Salesian College, Farnborough and the University of Birmingham, obtaining his honours degree in Sports, Science, and Geography, and then training as a teacher at the University of Exeter. He became a popular master of Physical Education at the Salesian School in Chertsey, Surrey, teaching for two academic years before departing to take up missionary work in Africa.
He then began working with UNICEF in Somalia, where he was assigned to organise relief for the starving, particularly children, in Kismayo, the stronghold of one of many warlords.
Sean Devereux died at the age of 28. Sean Devereux was the only son of Dermot Devereux, a British Airways cabin steward from Wexford, Ireland, and his wife Maureen, a nurse from Cork. He grew up in Yateley, Hampshire.
He arrived in Liberia in February 1989 and began work with the Salesian community at St. Francis School in Tappita District,
GOOD
C HRISTIANS
In his second year, escalating violence during the Liberian Civil War had forced the closing of the school and Devereux joined the UN refugee agency, where on one occasion he was beaten by soldiers after confronting one of them for attempting to steal food meant for refugees. Ultimately he was ordered out of the country in September 1992 and Devereux duly left for a brief stint in Sierra Leone.
After only four months in the country, Devereux was fatally shot in the back of the head by a lone hired gunman while walking near the UNICEF compound on Saturday, 2 January 1993. His assassination came on the eve of the visit to Mogadishu by UN Secretary General Boutros Boutros-Ghali.
EX ALLIEVI Newsflash - Easter 2019
51
H ONEST CITIZENS AND
Great Britain
GOOD
C HRISTIANS
From the street to “Don Bosco Ashalayam” and finally, Bollywood
(ANS – London) – Rajdeep, an Indian boy who spent many years at the “Don Bosco Ashalayam” Salesian centre for youth at risk in Kolkata, left there last year to join a rugby school.
Recently, he was selected by a Bollywood film director to play a role in “Jungle Cry”, a film based on the true story of the Indian Under 14 rugby team known as the “Jungle Crows” who won the Londonbased international school Rugby tournament, “Touraid” in 2007. Rajdeep is among 13 boys chosen from among more than 500 aspiring film actors.
The “Jungle Crows” club was made up of tribal boys trained by Indian coach Rudraksha Jena, from the “Kalinga” Institute of Social Sciences (played by Abhay Deol in the film, one of the greatest Bollywood stars), and by Paul Walsh OBE, a British diplomat who gave up his carrier to teach
52
EX ALLIEVI Newsflash - Easter 2019
rugby to disadvantaged minors. Rajdeep came to Great Britain in December 2018, more precisely to Wales, to do the shooting in three different rugby stadiums.
On this occasion he explained that his stay at “Don Bosco Ashalayam” had helped him so much in public speaking – something that was obviously a decisive factor in his selection – and he was very grateful to the Salesians in Kolkata for this.
The young rugby player and actor also told how he and his two brothers and been rescued by a Salesian, Fr Mathew, at the Howrah railway station. In fact, although their father was still alive, he had been unable to maintain and educate them, and had it not been for the Salesians they would have spent their lives on the street.
Shortly before returning to India it was
also possible for Rajdeep, together with another boy who had stayed at “Don Bosco Ashalayam”, to meet the British woman who had funded their education through an overseas program during their time at the home for youth at risk in Kolkata.
«It was a wonderful encounter and a dream come true for Rajdeep», said Fr Andrew Ebrahim.
On their return to the hotel, Fr Ebrahim, who had coordinated all the movements, also succeeded in bringing the two boys to the Salesian community at Chertsey, and both of them were very happy to get to know and be able to personally thank people involved for years in helping youngsters like them to be able to be given attention and opportunities. Fr Andrew Ebrahim Source: Salesians UK
H ONEST CITIZENS AND
GOOD
C HRISTIANS
Pakistan
The memory of Akash Bashir, Salesian Past Pupil, 4 years after his death
(ANS - Lahore) - Four years have passed since that 15 March 2015, the day when the young Akash Bashir, Salesian Past Pupil, sacrificed himself to prevent a suicide bomber from provoking a massacre in the church of St John in Youhannabad, the Christian neighourhood of Lahore, Pakistan. Akash Bashir was 18 years old, had studied at the Don Bosco Technical Institute in Lahore and had become a security volunteer. That tragic March 15, like every Sunday, he was on duty. He was specifically charged with overseeing security at the entrance to the church of St John. While on duty, he received news that the Church of Christ, an Anglican church located 500 meters away, had been attacked by several armed men. Akash tried to secure the area in front of the church of St John, when he saw a man running towards the building - a terrorist, intent on more carnage.
Akash faced him, trying to block him. The man threatened Akash, declaring he had a bomb with him, but the young man did not let himself be intimidated. He hugged the terrorist to keep him from entering the church.
The bomber blew himself up, causing about twenty deaths, including Akash himself. The victims would have been many more, had the Salesian Past Pupil not sacrificed his life.
«The history of the Church is strongly marked by many women and by many men who with their faith, with their charity and with their lives have been like lighthouses that have illuminated and continue to illuminate many generations over time», writes the Rector Major, Fr Ángel Fernández Artime, in the Strenna 2019. For the Christians of Youhannabad, Akash, with his great faith, is exactly this: a li-
ghthouse, an example to follow.
On his tomb, as Fr Francis Gulzar, pastor of the church of St John, has said, many go to pray and ask for intercession. His courageous act still inspires Pakistan's Catholics today in their daily journey and motivates them not to be discouraged by the many challenges they still face.
For this reason, Fr Francis Gulzar, who is also Vicar General of the Archdiocese of Lahore, in January 2017, sent a letter to the archbishop, Msgr. Francis Shaw, «to formally request to start the official procedure to declare Akash Bashir Martyr, to honor his sacrifice for his community in the parish of Yauhanabad». «The Christian community of Youhanabad is proud of its young hero, Akash Bashir, reads the letter, and asks His Excellency to transmit our request to the Holy Father and to the relevant Congregation for the cause of martyrdom». EX ALLIEVI Newsflash - Easter 2019
53
W ORLD S TATUTE
Statute of the World Confederation PrĂŚit ac tuetur / Guide and Protect Us Roma, 5 december 2015
Chapter VIII Decisions
Art. 30 - Voting in the Presidency and in the Confederal Executive Council
a) All current members of the Confederal Executive Council and the Confederal Presidency have the right, on an equal basis, to express their opinions and to vote.
b) Decisions are passed by a simply majority (½ + 1) of those present. If half the members are not present, no decision can be taken, unless by written authorisation.
c) Voting by written authorisation (proxy) is permitted and valid with full rights. The proxy holder must be a member of the Confederal Presidency. d) Each member can hold only 1 written proxy.
e) In case of an equal number of votes, the World President will have the casting vote.
f) The World Confederal Delegate and the Delegate of the Rector Major for the Salesian Family have voting rights.
54
EX ALLIEVI Newsflash - Easter 2019
g) Co-opted members, invited persons, specialists or experts, do not have voting rights.
h) The exercising of voting rights must guarantee the anonymity of the person entitled to the said right.
Art. 31 - Voting in the General World Assembly a) The following have voting rights:
~ The President of each National Federation has 1 vote.
~ The President of each National Federation in which there are one or more Provincial Federations, has 1 vote of every 3 or fraction of this: - 1 vote: if there are 1 to 3 Provincial Federations
- 2 votes: if there are 4 to 6 Provincial Federationsi
- 3 votes: if there are 7 to 9 Provincial Federationsi
- 4 votes: if there are 10 or more Provincial Federations.
~ The President of a Provincial Federation where there is no National Federation has 1 vote.
~ Each member of the Confederal Presidency has 1 voteo.
W ORLD S TATUTE
b) Proxy given to another member
~ Voting by proxy given to another member of the same organization is permitted. More than 1 proxy to the same member is not allowed. A proxy, signed by the plenipotentiary and by the person who authorises the proxy, specifying their identity and position, may be given to a member of its own Federation or to another person with voting rights from another Federation in the same regional area.
~ Exception may be made for Regional Councillors of the region who must be authorised by the Provincial.
c) Conditions for exercising voting rights
Conditions for exercising voting rights: subject to exception, any National Federation or Provincial Federation that has not made payment of its annual membership fee on regular basis shall not be permitted to exercise any voting rights.
(Continue in the next issue)
EX ALLIEVI Newsflash - Easter 2019
55
EX ALLIEVI Newsflash
Religious and Social magazine of the World Confederation of Ex-students of Don Bosco
Director and Editor EX ALLIEVI Newsflash Opera Salesiana Teresa Gerini Via Tiburtina, 994 - 00156 Roma (Italia) tel. (+39) 06.409.003 Internet: www.exallievi.org E-mail: newsflash@exallievi.org
General House Salesian headquarters Via Marsala, 42 - 00185 Roma (Italia) tel. (+39) 06.656.121 Centralino Fax (+39) 06.656.12.556 Internet: www.sdb.org E-mail: rmg@sdb.org
Direction and Editorial Coordination Pierluigi Lazzarini (pierluigi.2208@tiscali.it)
NUMBER OF OUR ACCOUNTS
Editorial Secretary Veronica Messano
Name: Confederation of Past Pupils of Don Bosco Bank: Lombard Bank Malta p.l.c. Address: Balzan, Malta IBAN: MT 08 LBMA 0500 0000 0000 0144 0520 986 SWIFT Code: LBMAMTMT Bank Account Number: 01440520986
Collaborators of this issue Don Ángel Fernández Artime sdb, Michal Hort, don Jayapalan Raphael sdb, don Marino Bois sdb, Emanuela Carnevale, don Eli Cruz sdb, don Andrew Ebrahim sdb, Fredi Portilla Farfàn, Vito Gentili, Simona Hrabošová, Chihiro Okawa, Daniel Ormeno, Alberto Piedade, Gian Francesco Romano, Lucas Schaerer
Photography and Images Archivio Ag. ANS, AustraLasia, Cuneo Cronaca, La Stampa, Salesians UK, Seguo News
The quarterly magazine (Italian, English, Spanish, French and Portuguese) is available on the official website www.exallievi.org in these deadlines: DECEMBER 25 (Holy Christmas); EASTER OF RESURRECTION; JUNE 24 (birth of former students); OCTOBER 5 (Blessed Alberto
Marvelli)
Translations
Ag. ANS - Editorial board
Ag. ANS - Nisaury Ventura
Ag. ANS - Editorial board
Ag. ANS - Nisaury Ventura
Buona Pasqua!
¡Feliz Pascua!
Joyeuses Pâques!
Feliz Páscoa!
ITALIAN EDITION
SPANISH EDITION
FRENCH EDITION
PORTUGUESE EDITION