4303_Take good care about your Confreres!

We loor for happy rectors who take care about their Confreres!: The Rector Major visits to Salesian Family in Viet Nam (4)

February 22, 2017

By Our Own Correspondent

HCM City, Vietnam, 22 February 2017 -- The ever first meeting of Fr. Angel with a group of rectors in our Region happen on the second day of his visit to Vietnam. During the first three years in his visit to AUL, PGS, THA, FIN, FIS, MYM a specific meeting of Rectors was never on the agenda on his animation visit.

Almost all rectors and priest in charge of the not-yet canonical presences gathered in the morning of the second day for a short conference and open forum, held in the auditorium of the Rinaldi Center of Studies in Xuan Hiep, HCM City.

The Rector Major asked the rectors basically two main attitudes and action: (1) Take care about the life of each entrusted confrere in their community and accompany each Salesian with loving kindness. (2) Contribute with honesty to build up the culture of communion in the provincial community, since without the local animation can't happen any animation at the provincial level.

As main resource for the talk Fr. Angel used as usual the collation of the Consultation report (2015), as fruit of contribution of majority of the VIE province confreres and also personal interaction with the Salesian confreres in the afternoon of the previous day. The successor of Don Bosco offered many concrete hints how to grow as rectors:

• Come together as often to share among rectors as possible, in spite of the 2000 km long geography of the province


• To be more concerned about the life than about the work of the confreres


• Foster more sharing, dialogue, speak about what we do and what we think


• Take special care about the many young confreres in formation, especially about the practical trainees


• Foster a missionary spirit of the confreres both in Vietnam and also for the ad gentes mission, even in temporary way.

The whole provincial council was present and actively involved in the dialogue. Second part of the meeting was an open forum about some concerns about the role and formation of the rectors. During past two years there are many more rectors meeting to help them in the spiritual and pastoral animation of their communities - from the spiritual guidance, planning, spiritual retreat up to the Youth Ministry framework of reference.

In the second half of the morning the Rector Major went to Ba Thon community to meet the 41 prenovices and novices gathered for a family meeting also open to their question. After lunch Fr. Angel re-entered the Provincial house for the afternoon meeting and Eucharist with 900 members of the Salesian Family and Friends of Don Bosco.