austraLasia #2271


"The greatest treasure we have in the Province is one another": memorable celebration in AUL

MELBOURNE: 5th October 2008 -- Saturday October 4th, 'Rupertswood' (Sunbury), the Australia-Pacific Province mother house, offered e memorable moment of celebration and remembrance and a support to confront the future with courage and Don Bosco's charism.
    Fr Ian Murdoch, a world authority on Don Bosco and his times, has preached all the retreats to the Salesians in Australia and the Pacific. He has reached out, too, to confreres in Samoa and Fiji. It was on Saturday 4th October that he concluded his final retreat to some 40 Salesians.
    The day had been declared 'Province Day' and coincided happily with the feast of St Francis of Assissi, the name day of the Provincial, Fr Francis Moloney.  This year the Salesians celebrated in a special way by returning to their roots, the 'mother house' at 'Rupertswood', Victoria, Australia.
    More than 60 Salesians were present for the concelebrated Mass in the College Chapel where many Salesians made their first vows, and where some were ordained to the Priesthood. Fr Moloney spoke of St Francis of Assissi's life-long attempt to "put on Christ", remarking that a stigmata indicates a total assimilation of the life-style of Jesus, concluded by the Cross and Resurrection. He asked that all "put on Christ" in difficult times, as Don Bosco asked, especially as followers of Christ the Good Shepherd, caring for those most in need.
    The Mass concluded with a walk to the Salesian cemetery where all present were asked to say a prayer for one or more of the deceased Salesians who had impacted on their lives. There were some moving prayers uttered by young and old. The group walked back across the beautifully redesigned courtyard of the College, called the Amann Courtyard, after Bro. Ludwig Amann who laboured all his life on the farm at 'Rupertswood'. The courtyard is dedicated to the "men of '27", who founded the Salesian presence at 'Rupertswood'.
    The day concluded with a festive meal in the recently restored magnificent dining room of the 'Rupertswood Mansion'. During the course of the meal, Fr Peter Rankin spoke to honour all the Salesians celebrating 25, 40, 50 and beyond years of profession or ordination. This was a day when the Province members all recognised, as Fr Provincial had insisted, that "the greatest treasure we have in the Province is one another".
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 AustraLasia is an email service for the Salesian Family of Asia Pacific.  It also functions as an agency for ANS based in Rome.  For queries please contact admin@bosconet.aust.com . Use Bosconet-wiki to be interactive. RSS feeds - just go to Bosconet, click on austraLasia 2008 in the sidebar. You will see the RSS orange icon in your browser address bar - add it from there.  Avail yourself of the Salesian Digital Library at http://sdl.sdb.org

Title: australasia 2271
Subject and key words: EAO Provinces AUL province day
Date (year): 2008
ID: 2000-2099|2271