austraLasia #2366

Congrats - and not only to Mumbai!

LOS ANGELES, MADRID and BUDAPEST: 23rd February 2009: Congrats not only to Mumbai!  I write this the morning after the Oscars, something that the whole world already knows about, so little news there.  But writing this from Madrid 'the morning after' - the morning after watching 'Slumdog' in fact, instead of the Oscars, in the company of one of the now famous director's former teachers, confreres from 5 continents, and having just entered one fifth of the Hungarian province's members into the austraLasia list at their request - well, it all sort of came together, and all needs a little explanation.

Why Madrid? The World Consultative Council for Social Communications in the Salesian spheres of activity is meeting these days at Carabanchel in Madrid. It involves confreres from every continent.  The complete gorup of members would be around 30 but they never all meet at the same time.  Usually about half come together, depending on location, timing and so many other factors.  This time we are 18 all up, and has now become the pattern for international meetings of this kind closely involveing the Salesian mission, at least two of the 'Departments for the Mission' Councillors are involved, two of the three.  Fr Filiberto Gonzalaz and Fr Vaclav Klement. So yes, several from India, including one from Mumbai are present.

And where does 'Slumdog' fit in?  Fr Tony Bailey from GBR, proudly announced that Danny Boyle was one of his students many years back, so yes, Danny Boyle happens to now join the list of illustrious past pupils of Salesian College Thornleigh, Bolton.

And why Hungary?  If you want one place where 'Project Europe' is no novelty and has been in action for quite some time, then Hungary is your place - and one fifth of the province have just joined the austraLasia list. This 'fifth' are all English speakers and come from both Vietnam and India.  Fr Van Hecke, the Provincial - and no mean english speaker himself - is encouraging as much support for these missionaries as possible. austraLasia is only a small element of that support - it will be followed by more substantial efforts to provide these confreres with reading material and other contacts which help bolster their sense of belonging to their regions of origin and the wider Salesian world.
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