Salesian Missions Highlights Programs for Women and Girls

For International Women’s Day, Salesian Missions highlights programs that educate and empower women and girls

Photo © Salesian Missions

(ANS – New Rochelle, N.Y. – March 6, 2026) – Salesian Missions of New Rochelle joined humanitarian organizations and countries around the globe in celebrating International Women’s Day on March 8. The day honors the economic, political, and social achievements of women while focusing the world’s attention on areas requiring further action.

This year’s theme #GivetoGain encourages a mindset of generosity and collaboration. According to the International Women’s Day website, the theme “emphasizes the power of reciprocity and support. When people, organizations, and communities give generously, opportunities and support for women increase. Giving is not a subtraction, it’s intentional multiplication. When women thrive, we all rise. Whether through donations, knowledge, resources, infrastructure, visibility, advocacy, education, training, mentoring, or time, contributing to women’s advancement helps create a more supportive and interconnected world.” 

Fr. Michael Conway, director of Salesian Missions, explained, “Salesian missionaries living and working in more than 130 countries are focused on empowering young women and girls with targeted programs. These programs provide opportunities for education and training that lead to livable wage employment. The goal is to empower young women so they are able to make good life choices for themselves, have hope for the future, and achieve their dreams.” 

In honor of International Women’s Day, Salesian Missions is proud to share Salesian programs around the globe that educate and empower girls and women. 

ECUADOR

The Maria Auxiliadora Formation Center in Ecuador held training initiatives for women in Esmeraldas who face unemployment, lack of resources, gender violence, and abandonment, or who are heads of household. The training was taught by 3 lay professionals and included 12 courses over 6 employment sectors. 

A Salesian explained: “Providing this training has allowed women to gain the skills needed for employment. Some are able to find jobs after the training while others start a small business of their own. Most important, they are able to earn an income to become self-sufficient.” 

The center was launched 10 years ago in the San Rafael Valley, in the province of Esmeraldas, with the collaboration of the Salesian Ecuador Project and the Salesian San Juan Bosco Community in Esmeraldas. The mission was to support vulnerable populations in a place marked by violence, drug trafficking, poverty, and lack of opportunities. 

INDIA

Don Bosco Nava Nirman, located in Muniguda, India, provided scholarships for 32 girls thanks to donor funding from Salesian Missions. The school was developed in 2010 after the Kandhamal violence in the region in 2008. One of the greatest contributions Salesians make in the region is through their education, especially for youths who are poor and marginalized.

A Salesian noted: “We have been concentrating on the education of girls and young women, which is an urgent need in this area. Generally, girls are marginalized by the parents as well as the society at large as they are not seen as potential earners in the workplace. Our entry into the education of the girls is in a way an attempt to transform this general perception. Today, thru support provided to us, we are able to educate many girls through our scholarship program.” 

Donor funding helped to offset the cost for hostel fees, as well as academic fees and book purchases. Although the school received funds for 26 scholarships, it was able to make scholarships available for additional children. In total, 32 children received financial support for their education.

MALAWI

Don Bosco High School, located in Nkhotakota, Malawi, has improved living conditions for 80 young girls thanks to donor funding from Salesian Missions. The project funding was used to purchase 5 buildings as well as the adjacent land. The new area was also fenced for safety.

3 houses were renovated and adequately equipped. One house and another building were taken down because they were not in good condition. 7 toilets and 14 showers were constructed, as well as a stand for two 5,000-liter water tanks. Water and electricity were also connected.

A Salesian explained: “The main objective of the project was to create better safety and living conditions for the school girls. This was achieved, and as a result, the girls punctuality improved because of the availability of more showers, toilets, and water.” 

Jenallah Mkandawire is a teacher at the school. Before the project, she noted that the living conditions were not adequate for the girls. She explained: “Now the girls are on time and have adequate water for washing their clothes and sanitary needs. Since they have more places to wash themselves and to wash their clothes, the general hygiene of school has improved.” ,

SIERRA LEONE

Don Bosco Fambul, located in Freetown, Sierra Leone and one of the country’s leading child-welfare organizations, supports young women who have been victims of the sex trade by providing them with training in hotel, catering, tailoring, or hairdressing disciplines, or formal education. Recently, 35 school pupils and 50 skills-training students received financial aid, food, and clothing through support from donors including Medicor Foundation, Jugend Eine Welt, and the City of Vienna. 

Every beneficiary received a bag of rice to help meet her nutritional needs, a cash contribution to support daily expenses, and a packet of assorted clothing items to enhance her comfort and dignity. This support is crucial in improving the overall well-being of the youths and enabling them to thrive in their respective environments. 

Don Bosco Fambul also facilitates the Mobil Project, designed to identify areas where children living on the streets and girls involved in commercial sex work face significant risks. The project’s primary mission is to recruit youths in need into the program, provide them with rehabilitation and support, and reintegrate them into society as empowered individuals. In the 2024-2025 academic year, the Mobil Project proudly supported 55 students in grades ranging from primary and senior secondary school. The students received school bags, learning materials, and financial aid to cover their school fees and other associated expenses.

A Salesian said: “This crucial support ensures that these students can concentrate on their education without the burden of financial challenges. This remarkable achievement would not have been possible without the generous contributions of our incredible donors. Their unwavering support is making a lasting impact, transforming lives, and paving the way for a brighter future for these children. We thank them for being a part of this journey.”

Homily for Tuesday, Week 3 of Lent

Homily for Tuesday
3d Week of Lent

March 10, 2026
Ps 25: 4-9
Dan 3: 25, 34-43
Matt 18: 21-35                           
Christian Brothers, St. Joseph’s Residence, N.R.

3 youths in the fiery furnace
(Catacomb of St. Priscilla)

“Remember your mercies, O Lord” (Psalm Response).

The book of Daniel presents to us the plea for forgiveness and for the Lord’s kindness flowing from one of the 3 young men in Nebuchadnezzar’s fiery furnace.  The youths have been faithful to the Lord, which is why they’re in the furnace, but Israel hasn’t been faithful.  So Azariah prays that the people be delivered from punishment.

Jesus’ parable also involves pleas for mercy; not for complete forgiveness but for temperance:  “Be patient with me, and I’ll pay you back in full” (Matt 18:26,29).  These pleas are Jesus’ response to Peter’s inquiry about forgiving someone who’s sinned against him (18:21), no doubt seeking some limit on forbearance.  Also no doubt, Peter speaks for most of us.

The responsorial psalm captures well Jesus’ message; we ask the Lord for that mercy he customarily bestows:  “Remember that your compassion, O Lord, and your kindness are from of old” (Ps 25:6).

Most likely, no one here holds a long grudge against one of his brothers.  I suppose it’s possible, theoretically, someone might yet hold some old resentment against a superior.  In the nature of religious life, sometimes obedience or just daily life will irk us, fairly or unfairly.  Even as we desire to be treated kindly by our brothers and our superiors—and the Lord—we must be kind and patient with those superiors of yore and our present companions.

Ordinary daily life demands of us patience and mercy, all the time.  Brothers sometimes annoy us, sometimes persistently.  There’s the brother who sniffles constantly instead of blowing his  nose; the brother whose prayer is always a syllable or 2 behind everyone else’s; the brother who’s grouchy for no particular reason; the brother who can’t remember anything no matter how often he’s reminded.

May the Lord “teach the humble his way” (Ps 25:9), teach us compassion, patience, and forgiveness.

 

Homily for 3d Sunday of Lent

Homily for the
3d Sunday of Lent

March 8, 2026
John 4: 5-42
St. Francis Xavier, Bronx
Our Lady of the Assumption, Bronx

“You would have asked him, and he would have given you living water” (John 4: 10).

Today and for the next 2 Sunday, we break from St. Matthew’s Gospel to take up 3 important (and long) stories from St. John which have to do with water, light, and life.  They’re preparing the Church’s catechumens for Baptism and preparing the rest of us to renew our baptismal commitment to follow Jesus.

In John 4, Jesus and his disciples are hiking from Judea to Galilee and, unusual for Jews, they take the direct road thru Samaria.  As John explains, “The Jews use nothing in common with Samaritans” (4:9).  The 2 peoples were bitter enemies.

But Jesus has chosen this route deliberately, and they arrive at Jacob’s well around noon, tired, dusty, thirsty, and hungry.  While the disciples go into town to buy food, Jesus waits at the well.  Jacob, also called Israel, was the father of 12 sons, the ancestors of the 12 tribes of Israel.  He’d dug this well, and probably others, to water his flocks as they roamed over the land some 16 centuries B.C.  This well is a sacred and symbolic spot.

Jesus is waiting there for someone, someone who has no idea that she has an appointment with the Son of God.  The woman who comes to draw water is a social outcast, even among her own people.  That’s why she comes alone in the heat of noon to fetch the water she needs for the day, instead of coming early in the morning with the other women of the town.

But for Jesus, she’s no outcast.  No one is cast out by Jesus—not Samaritans, not sinners.  And this woman is a sinner, as we learn, having gone thru husbands like changing her wardrobe; and now she’s cohabiting with a man.  She’s unnamed, like many of the people whom Jesus saves in the gospels.  Anonymous, she stands in for all of us.

Jesus has a gift to offer her.  He indicates to her that he’s thirsty:  “Give me a drink” (4:7), one of 2 times in the gospels when he makes such a request.  The other time is when he’s dying on the cross and says, “I’m thirsty” (John 19:28).

But he isn’t really after water.  He seeks faith, seeks to establish a living relationship between believers and God the Father.  He offers the woman the gift of “living water.”  This is one of the plays on words that St. John likes.  The Greek word John uses, ζϖν, can mean “fresh” or “flowing,” like water from a spring or a moving brook, or “having life.”  Jesus goes on to distinguish between the water the woman is drawing from the well and “the water I shall give, becoming in a person a spring of water welling up to eternal life” (4:14).

That water is the water of Baptism.  In the preceding chapter, Jesus had spoken with Nicodemus and told him that one must be born again of water and the Spirit (3:5).  Jesus’ living water is the Holy Spirit, which he’s come to give to believers so that they may have life and may offer God authentic worship, worship in Spirit and truth (4:23).

Such worship is not place-dependent—neither in the temple at Jerusalem nor the temple the Samaritans had built on Mt. Gerizim in their own country.  It may be offered wherever someone filled with the Spirit of God may be, and it may be offered by any person regardless of national origin, race, language, or gender.  The Spirit that Jesus offers is for sinners—like this woman at the well, like the 12 apostles, like all of us here today.

He bestowed the Holy Spirit on us at Baptism, making us children of God.  He renewed that gift at Confirmation, and he renews it every time we humbly bring our sorry, sinful selves to the sacrament of Reconciliation.  In that sacrament, Christ’s minister forgives our sins, pronouncing, “God the Father of mercies, thru the death and resurrection of his Son, has reconciled the world to himself and poured forth the Holy Spirit for the forgiveness of sins,” continuing with the words of absolution.  If we worship the Father in Spirit and truth, we know that we are, truthfully, sinners, and we confess our sins truthfully to Christ (thru his minister in the confessional), and he truly forgives them and refreshes the living water of grace in our souls.  “The water I shall give will become in that soul a spring of water welling up to eternal life.”

Salesian-Funded Gym Transforms Youth Outreach in Chad

New Salesian-Funded Gym Transforms Youth Outreach in Koumra

(ANS – Koumra, Chad – February 24, 2026) – More than 1,000 disadvantaged youths in rural Koumra, Chad, are benefiting from a newly constructed gym funded by Salesian Missions of New Rochelle. Built to support education and youth center activities, the facility primarily serves vulnerable children and young women. Koumra, a key agricultural center in southern Chad, faces chronic infrastructure gaps, energy shortages, and limited access to basic services. The project was overseen by the Daughters of Mary Help of Christians (Salesian Sisters), who manage the local youth center. Previously, activities were disrupted by extreme heat and heavy rains due to lack of shelter. The new gym now provides a safe venue for sports, training, cultural programs, and community events. Youth leaders say the space strengthens outreach and inclusion efforts. It also offers a secure environment for large gatherings and formative activities. In a region marked by poverty and gender inequality, the initiative promotes dignity and opportunity. The project represents a significant investment in the holistic development of young people in Koumra.

Lay Leaders Renew Mission at L.A. Religious Ed Conference

Lay Leaders Renew Mission at Los Angeles Religious Ed Conference

(ANS – Los Angeles – March 2, 2026) – More than 700 catechists gathered in Los Angeles for a conference on the theme “Returning to the Source,” led by Juan Carlos Montenegro, executive director of the Salesian Family Youth Center, focusing on renewing lay leadership thru a living encounter with God. Emphasizing the theme, Montenegro reminded participants that every ministry begins not with programs but with prayer and a personal relationship with Christ. Thru moments of silence, reflection, and a guided meditation exercise, catechists were invited to rediscover their identity as authentic witnesses and educators of the young. The meeting highlighted the essential role of lay leaders as co-responsible partners in the Salesian mission, called to embody Don Bosco’s Preventive System in today’s complex social realities. Stressing interior depth and spiritual clarity as foundations for effective pastoral service, the gathering reaffirmed that the vitality of the Salesian charism in the United States depends on leaders rooted in faith, committed to evangelization, and dedicated to accompanying young people with hope and loving-kindness.

Open Doors & International Support in the Middle East

Open Doors & International Support for the Most Vulnerable

Salesian Commitment in the New Phase of Emergency

(ANS – March 6, 2026) – The military operation launched on February 28 by the United States and Israel in Iran quickly spread to other countries in the region, involving Lebanon, Syria, and the Holy Land as well. Thousands of families are fleeing the bombings, leaving everything behind. The Salesians active in these countries have once again opened their doors to welcome the suffering population, while Salesian organizations from around the world are mobilizing to gather and channel relief aid.

The Commitment of Missioni Don Bosco

“Concern, suffering and disorientation are the emotions I perceived while listening to the voices of my confreres—Fr. Simon from Beirut, Fr. Emanuele from Jerusalem, and Fr. Pier from Aleppo—who are currently in this terrible theater of war,” testified Fr. Luca Barone, president of Missioni Don Bosco in Turin. “They are the voices of those who deeply love their people, who have become one with those lands where Salesian houses are now becoming refuges for those fleeing, shelters where people can receive food and medicine, homes where they can be welcomed, and places of prayer where they can find faith and consolation. I responded to my confreres that Missioni Don Bosco is here to give voice to them.”

The Situation in the Different Territories

In the Holy Land, schools in Nazareth and Bethlehem have been closed and the population has been forced to seek refuge. In Damascus, Syria, fragments of rockets falling in the area of Jaramana caused explosions, leading to the precautionary closure of the Salesian center. In Lebanon, raids struck Beirut, the Bekaa Valley, and several areas in the north and south. Numerous victims and injured people have already been reported, along with tens of thousands of newly displaced persons, adding to an already precarious humanitarian situation. The activities of the two schools, the Don Bosco Technique and the Angels of Peace, have been suspended.

Immediate Assistance to the Displaced in Lebanon

In Lebanon, from the very first hours the Salesians intervened to provide initial shelter in the houses that remained open, offering help to the displaced, to those who lost their homes, and to those searching for a safe place. As happened during the 2024 war, the Salesian house of El Houssoun has already welcomed about 116 displaced people, including 2 newborns, a mother who has just given birth, and 12 elderly persons. Many of these families arrived after a 16-hour journey covering 68 miles because of the enormous traffic congestion caused by the mass exodus of people fleeing the bombings.

The Needs of Families and Children

At present, this group also includes 45 children who fled during the night from the southern regions. Almost all the displaced have arrived without clothes or personal belongings in a place where winter temperatures drop to about 37°F. “We must guarantee the basic conditions for all these people—warm clothing, food, and water—and this is what we are focusing on,” explained Joe Attalla, director of the Don Bosco work in Lebanon. The families reached the Salesian center exhausted and with very few personal items; therefore the priority was to ensure dignified conditions from the very beginning.

Classrooms Transformed into Emergency Shelters

“The classrooms of the center were quickly transformed into welcoming spaces with mattresses, blankets, and basic humanitarian aid kits, but we need help. The displaced need food, blankets, warm clothes, and essential goods, especially for children and the elderly,” testified the coordinators of this emergency response.

International Solidarity and Emergency Aid Campaign

In this context, Missioni Don Bosco immediately launched a specific campaign to gather resources in order to provide immediate assistance to displaced people, offer psychological support to the most fragile, and sustain the Salesians working on the ground so that they can face this new emergency in the best possible way.

For more information, visit: www.missionidonbosco.org.

Homily for Friday, Week 2 of Lent

Homily for Friday
2d Week of Lent

March 6, 2026
Gen 37: 3-4, 12-13, 17-28
Matt 21: 33-46
Provincial House, New Rochelle

Joseph Sold into Slavery by His Brothers
(Damiano Mascagni)

Today’s readings are strangely juxtaposed.  We think readily of the patriarch Joseph compared with St. Joseph, especially because of their dreams, but young Joseph’s dreams are just passed over in today’s reading (Gen 37:5-11); and because both saved their people with a journey to Egypt.

Instead, today Joseph is likened to Jesus.  Joseph’s father “loved him best” (37:4), and Jesus was the Father’s beloved Son.  Both Joseph and Jesus aroused the hostility of those who should have been closest to them.  St. John tells us that Jesus came to his own, and they received him not (John 1:11); Joseph’s own betrayed him and sold him out (Gen 37:20-28).

Yet God accomplished salvation thru the suffering of both.  And both Joseph and Jesus readily forgave those who harmed them.

For his own mysterious reasons, God has called us to be his instruments of salvation—hardly in the same way as Joseph saved his family or Jesus saves us all.  But we believe God will do what he intends in us in spite of any opposition if we humbly let him use us and will produce good fruit (Matt 21:43).

Working to Ensure Aid ASAP

“We Are Working to Ensure Aid Arrives as Soon as Possible”

(ANS - March 4, 2026) – “The Middle East is facing a new and dramatic phase of emergency,” explains Fr. Simon Zakerian, provincial of the Salesian province of the Middle East (MOR). Once again, the civilian population in the countries of the region will be the hardest hit, especially the most vulnerable, such as women and children. “Following the attacks, our schools in Palestine, Israel, and Lebanon have once again had to close to ensure the safety of young people,” Fr. Zakerian adds.

Lebanon: Escalating Tensions and Mass Displacement

In Lebanon, amid growing regional tensions and the involvement of various actors linked to the conflict revolving around Iran, the attacks are causing thousands of displacements and worsening an already fragile humanitarian situation. The incursion of Israeli forces into the country has further heightened tensions, in a scenario that strongly recalls October 2024. The south of the country, particularly the Nabatiyyeh region, has experienced intense bombardments in recent hours, forcing numerous families to flee their homes overnite in search of safety.

Salesian Centers Open Their Doors

In response, the Salesians have reopened their doors to shelter displaced families. At the Don Bosco – El Houssoun center in Jbeil, Lebanon, about 18 miles north of Beirut, around 120 people from approximately 30 families are already being hosted, including about 50 children and 10 elderly individuals in vulnerable conditions. “We are certain that in the coming hours and days this number will increase,” they add with concern. “We must guarantee basic necessities for all these people—warm clothing, food, water—and this is what we are focusing on,” they state from Lebanon. Many families arrived after 16 hours of travel to cover just 68 miles, due to massive traffic jams caused by the exodus of people fleeing the bombings. Classrooms at the center were quickly transformed into reception spaces with mattresses, blankets, and basic humanitarian aid kits, while Salesians, staff, and volunteers organize assistance for the families.

Concerns in the West Bank

“We are also worried about the lack of fuel in the West Bank, as many families have no way to heat their homes or cook, including our own communities, such as the one in Cremisan,” explains the Salesian provincial.

A Network Ready to Respond

“Once again, we find ourselves facing a complicated situation, but our entire network—Salesians, staff members, volunteers—is ready to help communities in Lebanon, Palestine, and Israel as quickly as possible,” concludes Fr. Zakerian. For this reason, Misiones Salesianas, the Salesian Mission Office in Madrid, Spain, is already working together with the Salesians in the Middle East and the Salesian solidarity network to organize the necessary aid. It once again appeals to all citizens to channel their solidarity toward those in need. “It is not only about giving a blanket or bread, but about bringing hope to those who are now living in such a difficult situation,” emphasizes Fr. Luis Manuel Moral, director of Misiones Salesianas.

An Appeal for Peace

“Furthermore,” he concludes, “we join the words of Pope Leo XIV, who calls on us to ‘seek a way to stop the spiral of violence before it becomes an irreparable abyss,’ and we urge all parties to lay down their weapons and threats and to seek lasting peace through dialog.”

For further information, visit: www.misionessalesianas.org 

Homily for Thursday, Week 2 of Lent

Homily for Thursday
2d Week of Lent

March 5, 2026
Jer 17: 5-10
Collect
Christian Brothers, St. Joseph Residence, N.R.

St. Augustine (Philippe de Champaigne)

Jeremiah speaks of the mysteries of the human heart.  It’s beyond understanding except to the Lord.  Often we don’t understand even our own hearts (Jer 17:9-10).

So we pray today that the Lord direct our hearts to himself.  We ask him to fire us with the Spirit (Collect), that Spirit who descended on the 120 disciples gathered in the upper room, fearful but prayerful (Acts 1:15; 2:3-4), strengthening their faith and turning them into effective preachers (Collect) and fearless followers of the Lord.

We pray the Lord to keep us steadfast in our adherence to himself (Collect), in bringing our Christian and religious vocations to perfection, which means to union with him.  St. Augustine reminds us that our hearts are restless until they rest in the Lord who created them for himself.  May the Holy Spirit’s fire purge selfishness from our hearts and fuse them into a more perfect union with the heart of Christ.

Live Jesus in our hearts!

Salesian Historical Institute Holds 3 Meetings

Salesian Historical Institute Holds 3 Important Meetings

(ANS – Rome – March 2, 2026) – Over the weekend of February 27–28, three significant meetings of the Salesian Historical Institute (ISS) took place at the Pontifical Salesian University in Rome: the executive council, the Editorial Board of Ricerche Storiche Salesiane (RSS-“Salesian Historical Research”), and the ISS Assembly.

The meetings opened with a moment of prayer and the approval of the minutes from the previous sessions (November 14–15, 2025). Among the 1st items addressed was the update of the institutional website, iss-acssa.org, with particular reference to the publication of the 10th volume of the Epistolario of St. John Bosco. A review was then proposed of the events organized by the ISS in recent months, with special attention to the recent publication of Paolo Pieraccini’s volume Salesians in the Holy Land: from the “Opera Don Belloni” to the British Mandate (1863–1920) (= ISS – Studies, 35), published by LAS in 2025. Dedicated to institutional and political-diplomatic issues, educational and pastoral activity, and questions of national identity within the context of the Salesian presence in the Holy Land, the work represents a significant contribution to contemporary Salesian historiography.

Editorial Planning and Future Publications
Considerable space was devoted to editorial planning. Among the publications currently in preparation are: the volume edited by Francesco Motto, Presentation of the Ten Volumes of the Epistolario of Giovanni Bosco (= ISS – Studies, 38), which gathers the proceedings of the 2 study days held in Rome (January 28, 2025) and Turin (April 2, 2025); the volume edited by Hendry Dominic and Francesco Motto, Salesian Missions: From the Apostolic Letter Maximum Illud (1919) to the Conciliar Decree Ad Gentes (1965) (= ISS – Studies, 39), containing the proceedings of the international conference held in May 2025; and the work edited by Stanisław Zimniak, Salesian Missions in the World: Proceedings of the Five Continental Seminars (= ACSSA – Studies, 12), scheduled for publication in 2026/2027.

Research Proposals and Institutional Developments
The council also examined several research proposals from external scholars: Prof. Angelo Dibisceglia’s project on the history of the Salesian Cooperators (1876–2000); Ms. Maria Nicoletti’s proposal for a critical edition of the correspondence of vicar apostolic Bp. John Cagliero (1884–1904); the biographical profile of the missionary in India José Luis Carreño Etxeandia, presented by Fr. Ivo Coelho; and the proposal for a study evening, to be scheduled between November and December 2026, on the occasion of the 150th anniversary of the foundation of the Pious Union of Salesian Cooperators.

In preparation for 2027, reflection began on what the ISS might offer for the 150th anniversary of the publication of Don Bosco’s work on the Preventive System. Discussions also covered the editorial plan for the period 2026–2029, the revision of the ISS Statute and Regulations, and the establishment of a commission tasked with reviewing the Institute’s scientific project. Other topics included the definition of editorial norms for the critical edition of Salesian sources; the situation of the ISS–Don Bosco Library; the inventory of the ISS and ACSSA archives; and updates on ACSSA’s activities. The next meetings were scheduled for May 22–23, 2026.

Editorial Board of Ricerche Storiche Salesiane
Following this, the editorial board of RSS met. Materials for the 2026 issues were presented (which will give space to research on the Salesian Cooperators), as well as for the 2027 issues (focused on the Preventive System and the missions of the Daughters of Mary Help of Christians), and planning for 2028 was initiated. The participants also discussed the volumes to be reviewed and the updating of the bibliographical repertory, inviting members to inform the editor-in-chief promptly about new publications to be included.

Commitment to Continuity in Historical Research
The meetings confirmed that, despite serious challenges related to the current staffing situation, the ISS is firmly determined to carry forward its planned work and to ensure continuity in Salesian historical research and in the critical promotion of sources, within an increasingly international and interdisciplinary perspective.

Fr. Stanisław Zimniak
ISS Coordinating Secretary

Homily for Commemoration of St. Katherine Drexel

St. Katherine Drexel
Tuesday, Week 2 of Lent

March 3, 2026
Is 1: 10, 16-20
Collect
Matt 23: 1-12

Isaiah addresses the leaders of the kingdom of Judah by comparing their wickedness with that of Sodom and Gomorrah (Is 1:10).  Even as he does so, he offers hope that they might “put away” their evil deeds (1:16), which he identifies as failures to care for the most vulnerable members of society, widows and orphans (1:17); and hope that such a change of heart and of action might obtain for them a radical cleansing from God (1:18).  Compliance will lead to prosperity:  “you shall eat the good things of the land” (1:19); but failure will bring disaster:  “the sword shall consume you” (1:20).

Today we commemorate a holy woman who didn’t need a radical conversion.  Her blessed parents had left her and her sisters not only a humongous fortune—about $15 million, which today would equal more than $400 million—but also left them an unusual sensitivity to the poor.  That sensitivity induced Katherine Drexel to beseech Pope Leo XIII to do something for “justice among the poor and oppressed” native peoples of North America, and when challenged by Leo to undertake that apostolate herself, to embrace the challenge wholeheartedly—and not only for Indians but also for that other oppressed American population, blacks (Collect).  She took to heart Christ’s declaration, “You are all brothers” (Matt 23:8).

Katherine and her religious sisters also took to heart Christ’s assertion that we have “but one master” (23:10), drawing their inspiration and spiritual power from the Holy Eucharist.

We’re in the final year of a period of Eucharistic revival in this country.  Our bishops realized that we need that.  Perhaps it’s not coincidental that in this same period they’re also becoming more insistent on “redressing the wrongs” in our society (Is 1:16), reminding the princes in our society, and all of us, that “the instruction of our God” (Is 1:10), “the message of the Gospel” (Collect), includes “work for justice among the poor and oppressed,” and that our “undivided love” (Collect) includes both our Lord Jesus and all our brothers and sisters.  Without justice, there will be no prosperity.

“Undivided love” begins right here among ourselves—Christian brothers and our staff—and is powered by our Eucharistic Master.

 

March Message of the Rector Major

THE MESSAGE OF THE RECTOR MAJOR

Fr. Fabio Attard, SDB

Educating to Mercy

The Pharisee & the Publican
(James Tissot)

For us as educators and evangelizers, the parable of the Pharisee and the tax collector (Luke 18:9-14) isn’t simply a moral tale about pride and humility, but a profound revelation about how God encounters us and how we’re called to pass on this transformative experience.

Faith as a call to a relationship of mercy.

When the Pharisee goes up to the temple, he brings with him an image of God constructed to his own measure: a God who records merits and demerits, who rewards the righteous and condemns sinners. His prayer is a comparison with others: “I thank you that I am not like other people.” An authentic relationship is missing. There’s only smugness, self-complacency.

The tax collector, on the contrary, enters the temple aware of his own unworthiness. His “O God, have mercy on me, a sinner” isn’t despair, but the courageous opening to a possible relationship precisely because it’s founded on mercy. He senses what the Pharisee missed: God isn’t a judge but a Father who awaits the return of his prodigal children. For us educators, this distinction is foundational. How many times, unconsciously, do we transmit an image of God closer to that of the Pharisee – a God who inspects, sits in judgment, and rewards or punishes based on our spiritual “performance”?

Education to the Faith fosters an encounter with Mercy, an experience where we discover that we’re loved; indeed, we’re beloved children even in our fragility. To evangelize means to introduce people into this merciful relationship. God doesn’t wait for us to be perfect in order to love us; rather, the richness of his love is made manifest precisely through our poverty. This is the good news that we must announce: a relationship that transforms from within.

A relationship that begins with humility of heart.

The tax collector’s humility is the condition that makes an encounter with God possible. Standing “at a distance” and “not even daring to lift his eyes to Heaven” shows that he recognizes the infinite disproportion between God’s holiness and his own wretchedness, and also trusts that this Holy God bends down toward those who recognize their neediness. In contrast, the Pharisee’s prayer is full of “I”: “I fast,” “I tithe.” He has built his religious identity on self-affirmation, on comparison with others, on demonstrating his own works. He feels he’s already full, has already “made it,” and is already righteous.

In the field of education and evangelization, humility of heart is the ability to recognize that one is constantly in need of salvation, never taking one’s relationship with God for granted, and remaining open to the gift of his grace. It’s the attitude of those who know that the Christian life isn’t a possession acquired once and for all but a daily journey in which we allow ourselves to be molded by Divine Mercy. As educators, we’re called to be the first to bear witness to this humility, recognizing our limitations, our weaknesses, and our continuous need for conversion. Only in this way do we become credible and create spaces in which others can also take off their own masks and present themselves to God as they are.

To be sinners, loved and forgiven.

The conclusion of the parable is perturbing: “This man, unlike the other, went home justified.” The tax collector, who had nothing to offer but his own misery, receives everything. The Pharisee, who had so much to show off, remains in his sterile illusion. God doesn’t justify those who consider themselves righteous, but those who acknowledge themselves to be sinners. He doesn’t fill those who are full, but those who are empty. He doesn’t have an encounter with those who don’t feel they need it, but with those who implore healing. This is the paradox of the Gospel: even though we’re sinners, we’re saved because God’s Mercy is greater.

In religious education today, this parable shows us that when we acknowledge sin, we open ourselves to his transforming grace. Sin doesn’t crush us.

Being sinners who are loved and forgiven doesn’t equate to a status of inferiority, but to the proper condition of the Christian. It’s this identity which allows us to live in freedom, without pretending to be perfect, without hiding our failures, without building façades of respectability. It’s the awareness that the foundation of our life lies not in what we’ve done, but in what God has done and continues to do for us.

Witnesses to God’s Mercy, experienced personally.

The tax collector who returns home justified inevitably becomes a witness. He can’t remain silent about the experience of having been welcomed, forgiven, and uplifted. His life will speak of the Mercy that transformed him. This is where true evangelization takes place. We don’t pronounce abstract theories about God’s mercy, but we bear witness to a personal experience. We speak of a forgiveness we’ve received, of a Love that sought for and found us, of a relationship that gave meaning to our existence.

For those who work in the field of education and evangelization, this means, first and foremost, the need to cultivate one’s spiritual life as a living experience of this Mercy. Before being “masters” – teachers – we must be disciples; before teaching, we must learn; before giving, we must receive. The credibility of our message is measured by the truth of our experience. Furthermore, it means creating educational contexts in which people can have this same experience – not environments of judgment, but of welcome; not places where one must demonstrate merit, but spaces where one can acknowledge one’s fragility; not structures where religious skills are acquired, but communities where one experiences the tenderness of God.

The parable of the Pharisee and the tax collector reminds us that education to the Faith is essentially an introduction to a relationship: with a God who loves us with merciful love, who always awaits us, who always forgives us, who makes our poverty the place of his encounter with us.

Salesian Works: True Reference Points for Ukraine's People

Salesian Works: True Reference Points for Ukraine’s People

(ANS – Kyiv, Ukraine – February 25, 2026) – Since Russia invaded on February 24 four years ago, Ukraine has known no respite, continuing to suffer serious damage to its energy infrastructure due to bombing. Power stations, substations, and transmission networks are regularly hit, causing prolonged blackouts that can last many hours or even days. With winter, power cuts become a real humanitarian emergency: without electricity, heating, hot water and light disappear. The most vulnerable – children, the elderly, and the chronically ill – pay the highest price.

In this context, Salesian works have become constant points of reference for the entire population. The Daughters of Mary Help of Christians and the Salesians of Don Bosco in the country have transformed houses and youth centers into places of welcome where displaced families are housed, hot meals are distributed, schools are kept open, and psychological support and prayer are offered. In many cities, Salesian facilities have become the only place where a minimum of stability and support can be found.

The only source of energy available is often a single generator, which can operate only if there’s fuel. Relying on a generator is clearly essential for activities such as cooking and distributing meals, charging phones and medical devices, providing evening lighting, and storing medicines at a controlled temperature. When the tank is empty, everything stops: lights, kitchens, water pumps, even oxygen concentrators.

Thru an online campaign by the Salesian Missionary Center in Warsaw, Salesian works are raising funds to purchase diesel and petrol, cover transport costs to the most affected areas, and build up emergency reserves.

The distribution of aid will be flexible and adapted to the current situation in different regions of the country, based on the intensity of power outages.

Contributing to the purchase of fuel means guaranteeing that every contribution is transformed into real energy: energy that heats, illuminates, and saves lives.

• hours of light and heat in the middle of winter,
• continuity of educational and welfare activities,
• minimum conditions of hygiene and safety,
• hope and concrete support for those who live in daily uncertainty.

“We continue to support the SDB and FMA communities in Ukraine,” writes the Missionary Center, “so that they can provide electricity, heat, and safety where they are most needed today.”

More information about the project and how to help is available on the website misjesalezjanie.pl, accessible via this link.

Homily for 2d Sunday of Lent

Homily for the
2d Sunday of Lent

March 1, 2026
Matt 17: 1-9
Our Lady of the Assumption, Bronx
St. Francis Xavier, Bronx

The Transfiguration
(Carl Bloch)

“He was transfigured before them; his face shone like the sun and his clothes became white as light” (Matt 17: 2).

Last Sunday’s gospel recounted how Jesus was tempted by the devil.  We met Jesus in his humanity, dealing with the loneliness of the desert, fasting from food, tempted by pleasure, pride, and power.  Jesus was and is very like us—except that he completely rejected sin.

Today’s gospel shows us the other half of Jesus, so to speak.  He’s not only human; he’s also divine.  We get a glimpse of his glory, but it’s not a private glory.  He’s not alone; Moses and Elijah, the great saints of Israel, are his companions, basking in his glory.

Glorious Jesus hasn’t left his humanity behind.  “Don’t tell the vision to anyone until the Son of Man has been raised from the dead” (17:9).  It’s not God who will die on Calvary, but a flesh and blood man like us.

If Jesus as man turned away Satan’s temptations and showed us flesh and blood folks that it’s possible for us to say “no” to the Evil One, Jesus transfigured so gloriously before the eyes of his 3 close friends shows us our future destiny.  We’re not gods, but if we do as the voice from the cloud—his Father’s voice—commands, if we “listen to him” (17:5), then Jesus’ glory is promised also to us.  Moses and Elijah—and by implication all who are faithful to the Law and the prophets—already share in Jesus’ glory.

And we will, too, not held back by our human nature, the same human nature that Jesus has, the same human nature of Moses and Elijah.  Glory like the sun is our destiny, the purpose for which God created us.  The old catechism that Catholics my age learned taught us that God made us to know him, to love him, and to serve him in this world and to be happy with him forever in the next world.  St. Thomas Aquinas tells us “that Jesus, at the Transfiguration, began to shine with the radiance of heaven so as to entrance us with the prospect of our own beautiful transfiguration.”[1]

St. Paul expresses a similar thought:  “Christ Jesus destroyed death and brought life and immortality to light thru the Gospel” (2 Tim 1:10).  We portray the saints with halos around their heads; they’re filled with Christ’s divine light.  Their faces, like his, shine like the sun.  If we listen to Jesus, that glory will be ours, too.

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[1] Robert Barron, “The Strange Light,” in The Word on Fire Bible: The Gospels (Park Ridge, Ill., 2020), p. 107.

Statistics of Salesian Congregation as of 12/31/25

Statistics of the Salesian Congregation as of December 31, 2025

Updated picture of the SDB presence in the world

(ANS – Rome – February 26, 2026) – The general secretariat of the Salesian Congregation, led by Fr. Guido Garino, has compiled statistical data on the the Congregation at the end of 2025. The information, based on data contained in the “Flash reports” provided by the 93 secretaries of the Salesian provinces and vice provinces around the world, collected through the portal portal.sdb.org, offers a detailed picture of the Salesian presence in the 138 countries where the Salesian Family operates.

The Congregation’s personnel

As of December 31, 2025, there were a total of 13,444 professed Salesians, to which 114 bishops were added, for a total of 13,558 sons of Don Bosco. They include 9,116 priests (67.81%), followed by clerics or seminarians (2,654; 19.74%), coadjutor brothers (1,276; 9.49%), novices (384; 2.86%), and permanent deacons (14; 0.10%).

The number of members fell slightly from 2024 (-96); deaths and departures (233 and 264, respectively) surpassed admissions (398 novices and 3 re-admissions).

Young vocations: a figure to reflect on

The data relating to the new generations deserves particular attention. The 384 novices at the end of 2025 represent the future of the Congregation. Of those who started during the year, only 18 left, while 4 novices from 2024 obtained an extension of their novitiate. The personnel in formation also includes 423 prenovices, 939 postnovices, 492 practical trainees, 757 theology students, and 373 university students.

During the year, 364 first professions, 209 perpetual vows, and 151 priestly ordinations were celebrated: tangible signs of a formation journey that continues to bear fruit, despite demographic challenges.

Salesian houses around the world

The total number of Salesian houses amounts to 1,850, of which 1,598 are canonically erected with a resident Salesian community and 119 are not canonically erected but have a Salesian presence. The rules on the composition of houses require at least 4 confreres with perpetual vows for canonically open houses and no fewer than 3 for those that are not canonically open.

The geography of the Salesian presence

The geographical distribution sees India in first place with 2,742 professed members, followed by Italy (1,704), Poland (755), Spain (725), and Brazil (566). These 5 countries together represent over 45% of the entire Congregation.

Methodological details and interpretation of numbers

The 2025 data also include some corrections to the 2024 Flash, due to the regularization of pending situations and the integration of documents received during the year. The complete data have been processed and collected divided by province, country, and Salesian region.

“These statistics are not just impersonal numbers and figures: they are indicators of the life and dynamism that the Congregation continues to experience 166 years after its foundation,” commented Fr. Garino. “These data represent and express, in the way that numbers can, all the various dimensions in which the Salesian presence has taken root in the world, becoming a traveling companion to countless people and tracing a path of light that, thanks to God, shows no sign of stopping.”