Homily for Memorial of Our Lady of Sorrows

Homily for the Memorial of
Our Lady of Sorrows

Sept. 15, 2026
Collect
Heb 5: 7-9
John 19: 25-27
Christian Brothers, St. Joseph’s Residence, N.R.

The Virgin of Seven Sorrows
(Absolon Stumme)

When Christ our Lord “was lifted high on the cross … his mother [stood] close by and shared his suffering.”  We pray that our sorrows and sufferings may participate in the Lord’s passion alongside her, and thus we “share in his resurrection” (Collect).

According to the Letter to the Hebrews, Christ wished ardently—“with loud cries and tears”—to be spared from his passion.  But Hebrews affirms that he was “saved from death” because of his reverence and his obedience to his Father (5:7-8).

Being “saved from death” refers to his resurrection.  Passing from bodily death into eternal life, “he was made perfect” (5:9); his human nature was perfected, defeating death.  His perfected humanity “became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him” (5:9).

“All” includes his mother, who first appears in the Gospels as a model of obedient discipleship (Luke 1:26-38) and perfects her obedience by accompanying him to Calvary.  There she stands close by and suffers with him as only a mother can (Collect).

When we hear Jesus entrust his bereaved mother to the beloved disciple, we find it tender that, as he’s dying, he sees to her care, entrusting her to his most cherished follower.  St. Bernard has a different take, finding this entrustment another source of pain for her.  He addresses her in a sermon:

        Were not those words: Woman, behold your Son, not more than a sword to you, truly piercing your heart, cutting through to the division between soul and spirit? What an exchange! John is given to you in place of Jesus, the servant in place of the Lord, the disciple in place of the master; the son of Zebedee replaces the Son of God, a mere man replaces God himself. How could these words not pierce your most loving heart, when the mere remembrance of them breaks ours, hearts of stone and iron though they are![1]

Mary & St. John's Journey to Ephesus
(German Hernandez Amores)

But how fortunate for us that we, also Christ’s beloved disciples, have been given his mother, a mother who knows our sufferings as intimately as she knew his and is prepared to stand with us, to lend us courage and patience that we may join our sorrows and pain to hers and to his, and to guide us thru her Son’s passion toward his resurrection—a resurrection she already shares because of her lifelong and complete reverence and obedience.

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[1] Sermo in dom. infra oct. Assumptionis, 14-15 (LOH 4:1402).

Evangelical Rest Interpreted by the Rector Major

Evangelical Rest as Interpreted by the Rector Major

(ANS – Turin – Sept. 14, 2026) – To set all the work on the right track, during the morning meditation on the first day of a meeting with 15 provincials, the Rector Major drew the attention of his confreres to the theme of gospel rest, in the light of the gospel passage in which Jesus invites his disciples, having returned from their mission, to withdraw to a quiet place with him to rest (Mark 6:30–32).

In analyzing this passage, Fr. Fabio Attard saw, first and foremost, an invitation to pause and recognize “a liberating truth: the work is His, not ours.” Faced with the suspicion, “never admitted, that if we stop everything will collapse,” rest is first and foremost an act of faith, which also reminds those in leadership roles within the Church that “the Lord is the true protagonist of the mission, and that we are servants, not masters, of the vineyard.”

Subsequently, the Rector Major emphasized Jesus’ invitation to withdraw “to a quiet place.” This movement, which is not so much physical as mental, serves to find that solitude which means having “the courage to be alone with oneself and with God, without the adrenaline of ministry, without the constant feedback from others which, more often than not, confirms us in our role and spares us from coming face to face with ourselves.”

Such solitude also entails risks, because in that silence, so often “hidden struggles, unhealed wounds, and the questions that our busyness allowed us to put off” emerge; but the danger of not having it is worse still: failing to hear God’s voice.

Continuing his reflection, Fr. Attard also noted the context of the gospel passage: the disciples were returning from their mission. This, too, is not merely a chronological detail, but an indication of a further point: “success, no less than hardship, can lead us away from what is essential.”

Jesus, therefore, invites the disciples to pause at the height of their human success: “not to dampen their enthusiasm, but to rediscover their center,” because the one thing that is necessary “is not one’s role, nor one’s projects, however good they may be: it is a living relationship with the Lord.”

Gospel-inspired rest is, then, that time in life when the seeds sown by man grow through the Lord’s work; it is the act by which one simultaneously challenges “the idol of productivity” and fulfills the prophetic surrender of those who know that “some fruits ripen only in silence and precisely when one has the courage to let God take over.”

The Rector Major’s analysis did not end with an examination of the characteristics and values of evangelical rest, but also looked at its effects: it “nourishes contemplation and strengthens discernment,” because it allows for the right detachment from worldly things and gives the courage for self-criticism, helping to recalibrate the compass of one’s actions, which at this point “knows where it comes from and toward Whom it is heading.”

The Rector Major concluded with a final remark delivered with clarifying certainty: “Gospel rest is not an escape from the mission, but a preparation for it.” The days at Valdocco will therefore not be an escape for the provincials, but a fruitful time of reflection, enabling them to return to their mission with greater heart and zeal, by virtue of “a purified gaze” – the fruit of the awareness that every human being, in God’s eyes, “before any role or title,” is His beloved child, “not because of their abilities, but by pure grace.”

Homily for 24th Sunday of Ordinary Time

Homily for the
24th Sunday of Ordinary Time  

Sept. 13, 2026
Matt 18: 21-35
Sir 27: 30—28: 7
Our Lady of the Assumption, Bronx
St. Francis Xavier, Bronx

The Unmerciful Servant
(Willem van Aelst)

How often must I forgive?” (Matt 18: 21).

2 themes stand out in today’s readings and the collect (opening prayer):  God’s great mercy and forgiveness.

When Peter asks Jesus how many times he must forgive someone who offends him, he proposes 7 times.  In the Bible, 7 is regarded as a perfect number.  Peter’s making a generous suggestion.

Not generous enuf, however, in Jesus’ estimation.  “The Lord is kind and merciful, rich in compassion.  He pardons all your iniquities” (Responsory; Ps 103:3).

If we tallied all our iniquities, all our wicked deeds, they’d be far more than 7.  The Lord doesn’t keep count and say to us, “Enuf already!  Get your act together before I ‘hand you over to the torturers’” (18:34).

Instead, our Savior commands us, “Unless you forgive your brother or sister from your heart,” you’ll be held fully to account for your debt, for all your wicked deeds.  It’s not a suggestion; it’s a command.  Mere words of forgiveness aren’t enuf; it must come from our hearts.

Forgiveness is hard.  We have a natural tendency to sulk and rub our wounds and look for revenge.

But Jesus himself gives us the example of mercy, not only in the parable we just heard in which a king freely pardons a servant who owes him, literally in the Gospel text, 10,000 talents (18:24), an impossible, incomprehensible debt—think the U.S. national debt; but also in his personal example.  From his cross, he prays to his Father, “Forgive them, for they don’t know what they’re doing” (Luke 23:34).  He even makes an excuse for those who condemned him, tortured him, and executed him:  “They don’t know what they’re doing.”

The world is full of the misery caused by vengeance.  One nation or clan or drug gang offends another, and they engage in a non-stop cycle of retaliation.  Politicians wield their power to pursue their opponents rather than to dispense justice.  Families are torn apart by grudges.

With wisdom, someone once said that the best way to destroy an enemy is to make him your friend.  Abraham Lincoln proposed to do that, saying in his 2d inaugural address as the Civil War was coming to its end: “With malice toward none, with charity for all, with firmness in the right as God gives us to see the right, let us strive on to finish the work we are in to bind up the nation’s wounds, to care for him who shall have borne the battle and for his widow and his orphan—to do all which may achieve and cherish a just and lasting peace among ourselves and with all nations.”  Perhaps our post-Civil War history would have been happier if Lincoln had lived and been able to bind up and heal those wounds.

More recently, after 27 years of harsh imprisonment, Nelson Mandela became president of South Africa and worked to bind the wounds of racial injustice rather than to avenge the wrongs done to millions of black and bi-racial South Africans.

We don’t have to be presidents or otherwise important people to forgive someone who’s offended us.  We only have to be ourselves; because all of us get offended—by someone at work, by a family member, by some crazy driver on the road.  The offense may be real, or it may be only in our own perception.  Either way, we can choose to be calm, to extend mercy; or to seethe with anger and give the perpetrator what he (or she) deserves—in our opinion.

Imagine if God treated us as we deserve.  We read in Sirach this morning:  “Could anyone nourish anger against another and expect healing from the Lord?  Could anyone refuse mercy to another like himself, yet seek pardon for his own sins?  If one who is but flesh cherishes wrath, who will forgive his sins?” (28:3-5).  In a little while, we’ll pray as Jesus taught us, “Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us.”  If we’re unwilling to forgive, then how will God treat us?

Yes, forgiveness is hard.  The 1st step, tho, is to recognize whatever hurt we’re feeling, then to ask the Lord to help us move toward forgiveness rather than resentment or retaliation.  We need the power of the Holy Spirit to act and speak as Jesus would have us do.  And then we need to pray for whoever has offended us.  Yes, turn them over to God!  In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus commands us to love our enemies and pray for those who persecute us; doing so makes us children of God, he says (Matt 5:44-45), and not children of the devil.

Children of the devil will meet the fate of the wicked servant in Jesus’ parable:  “In anger his master handed him over to the torturers until he should pay back the whole debt” (Matt 18:34).  Better that we should “serve God with all our hearts,” as the Collect prayed, and then “we may feel the working of his mercy.”  “Forgive your neighbor’s injustice,” Sirach advised; “then when you pray, your own sins will be forgiven” (Sir 28:2).

Fr. John Nazzaro Reflects on 9/11

Fr. John Nazzaro Reflects on 9/11

From Salesian News, weekly newsletter of the New Rochelle Province

Fr. John Nazzaro (left) and Fr. Jim Marra
when they were young Salesians at Camp Don Bosco, Newton, N.J.

(New Rochelle, N.Y. – September 10, 2026) – Twenty-five years have passed since  September 11, 2001, when a series of terrorist attacks shook America and the whole world, and which are still regarded as a watershed moment in human history. In the aftermath of that tragedy, Salesian Fr. John Nazzaro, now treasurer of the Eastern United States and Canada  Province (SUE), was called upon to assist and offer comfort to those affected: an experience that remains as vivid as ever in his mind and heart.

Even though 25 years have passed since 9/11, the days that followed that dreadful day still linger in my mind, heart, and soul. As time passes, we sometimes forget the loss of innocent lives and the courageous first responders who sacrificed so much with pride, dignity, and patriotism.

It is special to me because I shared being a chaplain at Ground Zero with my classmate, my best friend, and my brother, Fr. Jim Marra.

Fr. Jim called me the day after 9/11 and told me that Cardinal Egan of New York needed priests to volunteer at Ground Zero around the clock. Fr. Jim and I signed up for three 12-hour shifts, from 3:00 p.m. to 3:00 a.m. It was mandatory that two priests accompany each other as a source of support for what the ministry entailed. At that time, Fr. Jim was pastor at Corpus Christi Church in Port Chester, and I was director of Salesian High in New Rochelle.

Traveling to New York was difficult, and Mr. Louis Ruiz was able to drive us to Manhattan, where we were escorted to a hotel that housed the home base of FEMA.

At FEMA we were briefed about what we would encounter. We were taken by van through Battery Park, which was filled with people waving flags with patriotic signs and signs of gratitude for first responders. Once on site, we passed two priests who were leaving the site. One of them cried, and the other looked as though he were in shock.

We were fitted with oxygen masks and proceeded to the temporary morgue, which was a tent right in the middle of Ground Zero. The heat radiating as our feet was enough to melt your shoes, and the smell of sulfur was enough to gag you so if you didn’t have a mask on.

Our task was to bless the remains that were found and help the coroner ID the body part(s) and notify the Javits Center, which was used as a morgue since more remains were coming.

We blessed remains during those long hours, which seemed like an eternity. We consoled first responders who had lost brothers and sisters in law enforcement and the fire department.

We consoled each other, seeing, as Fr. Jim put it, “pure evil.” This was Fr. Jim’s hometown, and he was a proud New Yorker.

I share this with everyone after all these years because it was difficult to talk about it previously. But one thing I do remember is that my classmate, my best friend in the whole world, and my brother, Fr. Jim, shared this experience with me. It has been a bond through life and death since Fr. Jim passed away nine years ago.

To our young men in formation and young Salesians, I pray you will have a similar kind of friendship of trust, concern, and bond of love that can come only from Jesus and his Mother. I miss Jimmy terribly.

After a year, Fr. Jim and I received a letter from the government thanking us for our service. I was asked to write a chapter about our experiences for a book which became a best seller, but I refused the offer. Memories for me were for those who are not with us are in my heart; they are at peace. Lord, may they rest in your peace.

The Pit and signs with some of the names of the terrorists' victims
(February 24, 2005)

Sustainability, Partnerships, and New Challenges

Sustainability, Partnerships, and New Challenges

RASS looks ahead to 2030

(ANS – Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic – September 10, 2026) – Sustainability, collaboration, and the ability to forge new partnerships were the key themes of the 2d day of the 17th meeting of Salesian Social Works and Services of the Salesian Social Network of the Americas (RASS), dedicated to sustainability, partnerships, and the future—looking ahead to 2030. It was a day of discussion and formation that brought together representatives of Salesian social works and services from the Americas, with the aim of strengthening a network called upon to respond to new social challenges.

The day began with a time of prayer and spirituality led by the Ecuador Province, in memory of FMA St. Maria Troncatti. Following a review of the key moments from the previous day (which ANS didn’t report on), the discussions also touched upon the themes of migration and the integration of young people in vulnerable situations into the labor market, with a particular contribution from the delegation from Haiti.

The formation session was led by Angel Gudiña, coordinator of the Don Bosco Network, exploring the theme of sustainability in Salesian social works and collaboration with non-Salesian organizations. Sustainability was presented not merely as an economic issue, but also as the ability to build lasting and mutually beneficial relationships with a wide range of stakeholders: public institutions, businesses, 3d-sector organizations, the Church, the Salesian Family, and local communities.

Sustainability was addressed from a broad perspective, examining the relationship between feasibility, equity and sustainability. Models drawn from the business world and corporate social responsibility were presented, as were the 7 fundamental themes of social responsibility outlined in the ISO 26000 standard. Economic sustainability was described as a challenge that is simple to understand but complex to achieve, particularly for initiatives aimed at vulnerable populations.

The discussion continued with a round-table session attended by representatives from the business world, non-governmental organizations, and public institutions. Among the elements considered crucial for building lasting partnerships, trust, transparency, the ability to account for resources and, above all, the ability to demonstrate the impact of interventions in concrete terms emerged as key. The Salesians’ long experience working alongside vulnerable children and young people was also recognized, along with their ability to create safe environments and prevent situations of greater hardship.

There were also key challenges to address: reaching new territories and communities, strengthening work with migrants and young people experiencing homelessness, developing new programs, and raising the profile of the results of social initiatives, while remaining true to the Salesian mission and remaining open to changes in society.

In the afternoon, a participatory workshop looked directly toward 2030. RASS was described as a “well-structured,” “participatory,” “dynamic,” and “growing” network, capable of uniting organizations from different countries around a common mission. Future priorities identified included strengthening the network’s structure, securing its own resources, forging new alliances, and developing international volunteering.

Fr. Francesco Preite and Dr. Micaela Valentino also spoke during the day, addressing the work of the Salesians for Social [sic]. In particular, they discussed the Universal Civil Service program abroad as a potential area for collaboration with RASS. The initiative was presented as a formative experience in which young people take the lead in a mission open to the world. The proposal highlighted new prospects for international coordination, formation, and volunteer work.

The day concluded with the celebration of the Eucharist, led by the Uruguayan Province and presided over by Fr. Federico Salmeron (of the North Argentina Province). He emphasized that the Salesian mission can’t be lived out or carried out in isolation, as it springs from a Church called to walk in communion and to be a sign of God’s love among young people, especially the poorest and most vulnerable. Therefore, building alliances, collaborating, coordinating efforts between provinces, and remaining open to engaging with new social actors are essential ways of strengthening the mission of evangelization and education.

Fr. Michael Conway, director of Salesian Missions in New Rochelle, is one of the participants in the meeting.

Another Overnite Camp at Green Pond

Another Overnite Camp at Green Pond

The Lord gave us a terrific Labor Day weekend, and I took advantage of it to go camping in Harriman State Park on Sunday afternoon, Sept. 6 (after my noon Mass), into Monday morning.  I returned to one of Fr. Jim Mulloy’s and my favorite spots, a campsite high above Green Pond.  The elevation there is 1,110 feet.  I neglected to check the elevation at pond level—or at the parking lot on Kanawauke Road, by which I might have gauged the net gain in elevation on the hike in.

I reached the parking lot around 3:15 p.m.  It was just about full, and a day hiker pulled in right after me.  I think we got the last 2 convenient spaces.  Despite that, that chap and 2 women returning to the lot were the only people I saw that afternoon.

Ascending Island Pond Road

It’s a pretty easy hike, 45 minutes, from the lot to Green Pond by way of the White Bar Trail, Island Pond Rd., and either the Nurian or the Dunning trail.  However easy, since I hadn’t hiked in a while, my legs were ready to stop by the time I ascended the hill above the pond.

I was last in that area over a year ago when I passed by it to a site farther into the woods, off trail.  The site where Fr. Jim and I have camped multiple times (most recently in April 2023) looked like it hadn’t been used in weeks.  There was a bit of litter away from the main area (the fire pit and logs, above).  One bit was a large towel that was left on the grounds weeks or even months ago.  On Monday morning, I set it on the large rock at the fire pit to dry in the sun, then an hour later made a fire, put it by the fire, and eventually burned it.

Meanwhile—on reaching the site, first thing I did was pray Evening Prayer.  Then I put up my tent in the same spot I usually do (a nice mossy cushion beneath it).  To my chagrin, I found that after my last campout (with Bro. Lorenzo), I’d mixed up the tent flies.  I got the incorrect fly to do the job, however. 

Then it was time to prepare supper, already a little later than my confreres would have been eating at home.  I had freeze-dried mac and cheese, Crystal Lite, dried apricots, and a granola bar.  I gathered firewood, which was abundant, the site not having been used lately.  Most of it was small enuf that I didn’t have to cut it, but I did use my saw on a couple of larger pieces.

Red bear bag (left), tent (near center), backpack, fire pit

I hung the bear bag with the rest of my chow and the little bit of trash I’d generated.  I roamed a bit to take some photos, then laid the fire and lit it—not so much for warmth as for atmosphere.  I sat and read an issue of America for over an hour while also feeding the fire.  The insects were slightly pesky.

I retired after 9:00 p.m. and slept fitfully.  The only sounds were acorns falling from the trees prolifically and distant traffic (from the Thruway and possibly one of the roads cutting thru Harriman, Arden Valley and Kanawauke roads).

When I got up at 6:30 a.m., it was 53°--cool enuf for another layer of clothing.  I found a rock more or less flat and celebrated Mass.  After retrieving my food, I made breakfast:  oatmeal with freeze dried apples added, coffee, apricots, and mixed nuts.  Then Readings, Morning Prayer, some meditation, some more reading.  The sky was cloudless and the sun warm, but the area is well shaded.  I laid another fire in order to burn the ratty towel I mentioned above, and alternated between feeding the fire, reading America, and gradually breaking camp—all very relaxing and leisurely.

Green Pond from campsite

At 11:30 I brought out lunch (ham and cheese sandwich, Crystal Lite, apricots, granola bar), then finished packing up.  I doused the fire with a liter of water—and then didn’t have to carry any water in my pack; that’s always the heaviest item.  Even so, the pack must have weighd nearly 30 pounds (tent, sleeping bag, pad, hatchet, saw, cookware, rope, clothes, etc.).

Leaving Green Pond area on the Dunning Trail

At noon I departed, and 40 minutes later I was back at the parking lot.  I met one chap coming up Island Pond Road and saw 3 people way ahead of me returning to the lot.  But the lot was full, so evidently there were a lot of day hikers out on the various trails accessed from that lot.

I made a stop at the Marian Shrine on my way home; got home at 2:45 p.m.

On Tuesday I had an appointment with my dermatologist (happy to know that I use sunscreen and a hat); she found a tick in a spot not readily visible to me, removed it, and prescribed a dose of antibiotic as a preventive.

Photos: https://linkit.shutterfly.com/tx4-BZ

Homily for Thursday, Week 23 of Ordinary Time

Homily for Thursday
Week 23 of Ordinary Time

Sept. 10, 2026
1 Cor 8: 1-7, 11-13
Christian Brothers, St. Joseph’s Residence, N.R.

Students from the Salesian school in
Saragossa, Spain, form a large heart full of joy (ANS)

“Knowledge inflates with pride, but love builds up” (1 Cor 8: 1).

We’re familiar with Paul’s hymn to love in 1 Cor 13.  Here in ch. 8, he already gives us a hint of that.  He counsels his friends in the church at Corinth that love for their brothers and sisters is superior to their knowledge.

What knowledge?  That the pagan gods are nothing.  They don’t exist.  They’re phantoms of the Greek imagination.  So any sacrifice to them—to Zeus, Athena, or any of them—is offered to nothing; it’s not sacred; it’s meaningless.

But some Christians don’t grasp that knowledge.  They still think that eating meat that was supposedly consecrated to one of the gods ought not be consumed, whether purchased in the market or served at a pagan friend’s dinner.  In their eyes it would be sinful.

Those with knowledge know better.  But, Paul says, out of charity toward the sensitive consciences of their less knowledgeable brothers and sisters, they ought to refrain from eating such meat.  That’s love in practice.  That’s humility rather than knowledge inflated with pride.  Paul himself practices that restraint:  “If food causes my brother to sin, I will never eat meat again, so that I may not cause my brother to sin” (8:13).

Paul is telling us to be sensitive to the consciences of our fellow Christians.  In a time of so many diverse opinions and styles of worship, devotions, doing penance, and living the Gospel day by day, it’s still wise and prudent advice.  “Love builds up” our brothers and sisters.

Homily for Feast of Birth of Blessed Virgin Mary

Homily for the Feast of the
Birth of the Blessed Virgin Mary

Sept. 8, 2026
Rom 8: 28-30
Collect
Christian Brothers, St. Joseph Residence, N.R.

Madonna & Child with angels & saints (Ottaviano di Martino Nelli)

“Those who love God, who are called according to his purpose” (Rom 8: 28).

We celebrate the birth of the Blessed Virgin 9 months after we celebrate her immaculate conception.  Our celebration is about her, but even more it’s about “her Son, the dawning of salvation” (Collect).

St. Paul writes of God’s purpose, which is the salvation of the human race.  For that purpose he foreknew, predestined, and called a chosen woman.

In Mary’s immaculate conception we acknowledge that God justified her from the beginning of her existence.  The divine choice and justification are in light of the divine purpose.  God “conformed to the image of his Son” (Rom 8:29) her who would bear the Son “so that he might be the firstborn among many brothers” and sisters (8:29).  The 1st of the Lord Jesus’ many brothers and sisters, in a marvelous Christian paradox, is his mother.

“Those he justified he also glorified” (8:30).  He glorified her with the gift of the Holy Spirit thru whom she conceived her Son (Matt 1:20).  He glorified her by her Son’s giving her as a gift, from the cross, to his beloved disciple (John 19:26), thereby rendering all his disciples his brothers and sisters, and his mother our mother too.  He glorified her by assuming her into heaven when her earthly life was complete.

The birthday of our Blessed Lady becomes, in a sense then, also our birthday.  It foreshadows our birth by water and the Holy Spirit (cf. John 3:5), for we also have been called according to the divine purpose, called to be conformed to the image of the Son, predestined by God’s choice to be justified and glorified along with his mother, our mother.

Salesian Response to Nepal's Devastating Flood

Salesian Response to Nepal’s Devastating Flood

(ANS – Mugling, Nepal – September 7, 2026) – On August 26, a sudden surge in the Bhote Koshi River, on the border between Nepal and Tibet, triggered by the collapse of a glacial mass and an ice avalanche, caused a devastating flood in the districts of Rasuwa, Nuwakot, Dhading, and Chitwan. The force of the water, accompanied by mud and debris (with some waves reportedly reaching heights of 25 feet and more), swept through the town of Mugling, destroying entire villages, roads, and infrastructure. Faced with this emergency, the Salesians were quick to provide a concrete response.

The conditions in which they are operating are far from straightforward. Rescue workers, hampered by the destruction, continue to search for survivors. To date, the death toll stands at over 1,200; more than 4,200 people are still missing, according to the latest figures released by the Nepalese disaster management authority. Thousands of people have lost everything. The lack of safe water and adequate hygiene further increases the risk of disease and infection, particularly in places where displaced people are forced to live in overcrowded conditions. Two pupils from a Salesian school have lost their parents, and many other families are in the affected areas. Fortunately, the Salesian communities have not been directly affected.

The Salesian response

From the outset, the Salesians mobilized a team from the Nepal Don Bosco Society to tackle the emergency and coordinate aid for the displaced, beginning to collect food and relief supplies to store them in local collection centers and distribute them as quickly as possible. The team met with local authorities, secured the necessary coordination and approval for emergency response activities, carried out a rapid assessment of emergency needs and beneficiaries, and established a mechanism for delivering immediate assistance to the most vulnerable families.

Currently, the missionaries have managed to reach Bidur Town Hall in Nuwakot, but have been unable to continue on to Timure and Rasuwa due to a sudden rise in the river level, which has further damaged the already compromised road. For this reason, the army is organizing the distribution of relief supplies to inaccessible areas, using helicopters where road transport is no longer possible. The Salesians are working on a strategic and operational plan to coordinate emergency response, future reconstruction, and the socio-economic recovery of the affected area.

For further information, including on how to support the displaced population in the wake of this immense tragedy, please visit the “Missioni Don Bosco” website.