NEW DELHI: 4th March 2005 -- The South Asia Region Team Visit has entered the crucial stage where participants meet in groups to 'envision the future'.  Each of the 12 Councils has also met separately with the Rector Major.

    The groups envisioning the future as a Region are spending four sessions taking up four clusters of issues: the primacy of God (led by Fr Joaquim D'Souza, Regional), the planning mentality (led by Fr Anthony Domenech, Youth Ministry Councillor), formation (Led by Fr Francis Cereda, Formation Councillor) and regional networking (led by Fr Francis Alencherry, Missions Councillor).

    The formation cluster is particularly focused on the Salesian Brother, on vocation promotion.  The networking under consideration in the fourth session is networking between provinces and at the wider regional level, in view of evangelisation.

    Meanwhile a range of other events and other visitors surrounds the central event of the Team Visit: the group of 20 INN prenovices with their formator have come and gone, on a journey there and back to their house which entailed some 40 hours of travelling by vehicle.  Fr Alencherry farewelled them this morning by celebrating Mass before their departure.  At the same time the Rector Major celebrated Mass for the Boarders at the School.

    Elsewhere in ANS one can read of yesterday's visit to the Gandhi Memorial.  The RM quoted Gandhi's Seven Social sins as still being a relevant list today.  Those '7 sins' (a useful website for follow-up is www.gandhisamardhi.org ) are: 1. Politics without principles 2. Wealth without work 3. Pleasure without conscience 4. Knowledge without character 5. Commerce without morality 6. Science without humanity 7. Worship without sacrifice.

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