Don Bosco wanted his Congregation to be profoundly missionary
T he11th of November is a powerful reminder about the missionary dimension of our Congregation. All
members of the Church, by baptism, are called upon to live her missionary dimension. This does not
exclude that some of the baptised (lay, consecrated, priests) may dedicate themselves to the mission-
ary activity of the Church. Indeed, our Salesian vocation places us at the heart of the Church (Const.6)
which is missionary by her very nature (Ad Gentes, 2).
At Valdocco Don Bosco’s ministry to young people was deeply permeated by the missionary dimension
as a dynamism that animated all his endeavours. He used the means of communication of his time to spread
the faith and make known the Congregation’s missionary activities . This missionary zeal – synthesised in Da
mihi Animas - was the animating force which undergirded all his initiatives: «He took no step, he said no
word, he took up no task that was not directed to the saving of the young... Truly the only concern of his
heart was for souls» (Don Rua). It is in this light, that immediately after the approval of the Constitutions
(1874), on 11 November 1875, he sent the first missionary expedition.
Don Bosco handed on to us this missionary ideal as a constitutive element of his spiritual and apostolic
heritage. Thus, the Special General Chapter had emphasised that the missionary dimension is an «essential
part of our charism» . To keep this missionary ardour alive it also insisted that «right from the very beginning
of their formation we should present to young Salesians the missionary ideal in an objective and attractive
manner, clearly demonstrating its value. We should spread the knowledge of and promote the missionary un-
dertakings of our Congregation; we should study the lives and the personalities of our great missionaries, and
above all we should cultivate the apostolic zeal and spirit of supernatural generosity which forms the founda-
tion of every missionary vocation» (SCG , 476).
The missionary dimension of the Salesian charism does not preclude but actually implies that there are
Salesians who have a specific vocation to be engaged in the missionary apostolate among those who have not
yet heard the Gospel and where the Church is not yet fully established (ad gentes), or where there is an
abandonment of the faith, outside their own homeland, cultural milieu and language group (ad exteros),
through a life-long commitment (ad vitam). A Salesian who feels called to be a missionary should seek, first
of all, the help of a spiritual guide to discern the call of God, purify and deepen his own motivations, ascer-
tain his qualities and attitudes in view of determining his basic suitability for Salesian missionary life . This is
the initial and most important step in the process of missionary discernment that will lead to the writing of
the letter offering oneself to the Rector Major to be a missionary which will conclude with the giving of the
missionary cross and missionary send off.
Members of the 143rd Salesian Missionary
Expedition
Fr. Alfred Maravilla, SDB
Missions Department
Salesian Missionary Intention
The animation of Project Europe
in all the 28 Provinces of Europe
That Project Europe may open new horizons and stir up new hopes to foster
the endogenous revitalisation of the Salesian charism in the continent.
In the last five years all the Provinces of Europe began the process to revitalise the
Salesian charism in Europe from within. Thus new horizons were opened for 6,300
confreres present in the continent. The Committee for Project Europe which meets
every six months and the Assembly of the Provincials of Europe which meets every two years - have identi-
fied two specific topics of this process. Besides the Salesian contribution for the new evangelisation of young
people it aims at more focused commitment for young migrants and their families in Europe. There are
about 40 million migrants in Europe (20 million came to Europe from other continents, 10 million moved
within the continent and about 10 million Gypsies - Roma) most of them are Christians.
