en-us BIS - Delegate Province Documents http://www.donboscoindia.com © Copyright 2005 All rights reserved Wed 25 Jul 2007 18:11:40 India Standard Time kjlouis@vsnl.net http://www.donboscoindia.com/english/images/toplogo1.gif http://www.donboscoindia.com/ 255 41 Visit http://www.donboscoindia.com http://donboscoindia.com/english/publicdocumentscenter.php? The Salesian history of India has been one of closeness to the poor. Among them, the poor youth have always taken the centre stage. This was true not only in educational institutions but also in social work initiatives. In the initial years, the numerous orphanages and boarding houses were their way of showing social concern. All the Provinces had orphanages and other similar houses for poor youth. (Courtesy: Don Bosco India Centenary Souvenir) http://donboscoindia.com/english/publicdocumentscenter.php? The Salesian Congregation�s commitment to the all-round development of peoples included also a highly qualified service to local languages and cultures. Such contribution was particularly notable in the context of tribal societies, especially in North-east India. Many such communities in the region, who accepted the Christian faith, were the first to be positively affected by this contribution of the Salesians, who were their pioneer missionaries. Special mention must be made of the deepening of tribal identity, inter tribal as well as intra tribal. At the same time, local cultures were enriched by an opening to other cultures and peoples, in the wider catholic context of the Church. Moreover, Salesian communities themselves, with their international composition, were a striking example of this. (Courtesy: Don Bosco India Centenary Souvenir) http://donboscoindia.com/english/publicdocumentscenter.php? When Don Bosco and his early Council decided to open a House in Genoa, they picked the men for this job. The economer was supposed to provide that team with the money needed for starting the work. Don Bosco asked the Salesian leading the group whether the economer had given him money. On hearing he had, he wanted to know the amount. It was not a large amount, but Don Bosco told that Salesian: "Do not go to Genoa with that much money. There is Divine Providence in Genoa as well." He took back a good amount of that money. The new work, like all our other works, had to depend on Divine Providence, not on money. (Courtesy: Don Bosco India Centenary Souvenir) http://donboscoindia.com/english/publicdocumentscenter.php? Our early missionaries were both energetic and enterprising in utilizing the various means of communication, especially the printed word, to further the goals of the mission and to promote the sense of unity and solidarity among the communities and the people. Their contribution to the growth and development of various indigenous languages in the North East is particularly remarkable. Today Salesian provinces in India have a large number of qualified personnel to work in this field. We have also a formidable network of institutions and structures at the service of communication. There is a greater awareness too of the need for coordination and networking among the different sectors of our activities and with other organizations in order to strengthen our pastoral presence in the media, where our Founder wanted to be always in the vanguard. As communicators of the good news to the young, we have immense possibilities awaiting us for the full realization of our task as educators and pastors who are also communicators. (Courtesy: DB India Centenary Souvenir) http://donboscoindia.com/english/publicdocumentscenter.php? A formidable network of services, as astounding for its variety and reach as for its impact! Look at the figures: 354 Street Presences, 100 Shelter Homes, 117 Children’s Homes, 233 Street Education Centres, 63 Vocational Training Centres, 29 Advocacy Units, 35 Missing Child Search Units, 26 24-Hour Childline Centres, and a host of other projects across 72 cities and towns – undeniably the most vigorous expression of Salesian India’s concern for the ‘Young at Risk’, the most neglected and vulnerable section of the country’s youth. The expression ‘Young at Risk’ (YaR) embraces children and young people whose safety, growth and development are put at risk through indifference and neglect on the part of parents as well as society. Generally, the term refers to runaway children, school dropouts, rag-pickers, street children, child workers, young drug addicts, orphans; those abandoned, abused or exploited; refugee-children, victims of war, violence and calamities. http://donboscoindia.com/english/publicdocumentscenter.php? Technical education is perhaps the most distinctive Salesian contribution to the youth of India, particularly the poorer among them. One of the very first initiatives the Salesians launched in India, soon after their arrival a hundred years ago, was an industrial school in Thanjavur, besides accepting an existing elementary school and orphanage. By taking the lead in the field of vocational training, they were not only opening up new vistas of opportunities for the youth of the region, but also showing the way to put a nation on the road to progress. Today, with over 120 institutes imparting technical training to over 23,000 youngsters across the country, the Salesians of Don Bosco are regarded as a leading non-governmental agency in the field of technical training in India. (Courtesy:DB Centenary Souvenir) http://donboscoindia.com/english/publicdocumentscenter.php? The century-long Salesian contribution to the Church in India, in spreading the Good News and establishing Catholic communities has been both significant and praiseworthy. The history of Salesian missions in the south and north of the country, pioneered by the 1906 and 1922 groups headed by Fr. George Tomatis and Fr. Louis Mathias respectively, is a saga of passion for Jesus and of compassion for the people - like the South American mission spearheaded by Fr. John Cagliero in Don Bosco�s day. The missionary exploits in India, masterminded by the sons of Don Bosco, are second to none in the annals of Church history, and we can be justly proud of what the Lord has achieved through our Congregation. (Courtesy: Don BoscoIndia Centenary Souvenir http://donboscoindia.com/english/publicdocumentscenter.php? Salesians have been in the forefront of Catechetical movement in India and have contributed in no small measure to the catechetical renewal in the Church in India. Several Salesians, qualified in Catechetics, are on the teaching faculties of seminaries and Institutes of Higher Studies in India and abroad. The Indian Catechetical Association (ICA), which came into being in 1996, was the initiative of Fr. Thomas Kalathuveetil SDB. Salesians have led the Association for a number of years. The ICA offers a forum for catechetical experts to share, reflect upon and study catechetical issues in India. It also fosters research and publication in Catechetics. (Courtesy: DB Centenary Souvenir) http://donboscoindia.com/english/publicdocumentscenter.php? What a truly splendid celebration! It was indeed a fitting conclusion to a hundred years of Salesian presence in India and fifty years in Sri Lanka. The presence of the IX Successor of Don Bosco, Very Reverend Father Pascual Chávez, with us from the 1st to the 9th February 2006, was for all of us an overwhelming experience of joy, of fraternity and of the Salesian family spirit. From Sri Lanka, to Chennai, to Tiruchy, to Bangalore, to Hyderabad – all the southern provinces saw, heard, touched the Rector Major, and were deeply impressed by his words and gestures. Those were memorable days that have left sweet memories in our minds, which will last for a long time to come. + SPCSA Bulletin N.15 http://donboscoindia.com/english/publicdocumentscenter.php? In the 365 days between 28 February 2005, when the Rector Major flagged off the centenary celebrations in New Delhi, and 27 February 2006, when the Government of India issued the Don Bosco Centenary commemorative stamp in Chennai (the last national-level centenary event), Salesians in South Asia witnessed some of the most memorable events in the annals of the Congregation in the region. It was indeed an year of grand celebrations, punctuated by programmes of varied nature – spiritual, intellectual, cultural and celebratory -- involving confreres in every province. These events and celebrations brought together confreres from the entire region of South Asia at various moments and in different locations, in the true Salesian spirit of joyful sharing and brotherly solidarity. + SPCSA Bulletin N.15