We Did the Will of God

“We did the will of God by animating the Congregation in the style of Don Bosco”

Rector Major Gives Last Good Night of His 6-year Term

(ANS – Rome – January 24) – On January 23, 2020, the general council of the Salesian Congregation met for the last time in its six-year term. At the conclusion of the meeting, Fr. Angel Fernandez Artime presided over the last Mass of this general council. “During this last celebration in Don Bosco’s rooms” [the rooms that the saint used during his last visits to Rome], he said, “it comes directly from my heart: to thank God for these six years of work in the service of God and young people.”

During the Mass, Don Bosco’s the 10th successor expressed all his emotion for the work done in these past six years: “We must be happy, joyful, and extremely grateful to God for the work we have done as departments animating the Salesian communities. We have been in the service of God.”

As the Salesian Constitutions state, the “general council collaborates with the Rector Major in the animation and government of the Congregation.” Therefore, in this term’s last Salesian Good Night to the community of the Salesian Generalate at the Sacred Heart Church, Fr. Fernandez wanted to thank all the general and regional councilors, as they contributed to “identifying and studying the problems that concern the common good of the Society, promoting fraternal union between the provinces, and making sure that the Congregation is increasingly effective in carrying out the Salesian mission in the world,” as is also specified in the Salesian Constitutions. The Rector Major thanked the staff of each of the departments “for their professional and service dedicated to the mission.”

In his Good Night the Rector Major then provided the details of the general council’s meetings of this winter session (December 2, 2019 - January 24, 2020).

The provincials of 15 provinces and vice provinces were appointed in. 27 provincial councilors and 120 directors of works were appointed; 3 houses were canonically erected, 3 new presences opened; the reports of 9 extraordinary visitations and 33 provincial chapters were studied.

“The journey of the Congregation has been a journey of fidelity to the Lord, to Don Bosco, to our charism, and to young people,” the Rector Major concluded. “We did God’s will by walking and animating the Congregation in the style of Don Bosco. This experience of animation leaves me with a very serene heart and a feeling of immense and profound gratitude for the work done by each of the councilors of the Salesian Central Office.”

Fr. Francesco Cereda, vicar of the RM (at left), and Fr. Tim Ploch, 

councilor for the Interamerica Region, concelebrating with Fr. Fernandez