Akash Bashir, Who Died Protecting Catholic Worshippers in Pakistan, Named a Servant of God

Bashir died on March 15, 2015, when suicide bombers attacked St. John’s Catholic Church and Christ Church of the Church of Pakistan. By Reprint of article by Katie Yoder/CNA World and NCR        2 February 2022 Lahore, Pakistan — When a suicide bomber attempted to enter a Catholic church in Pakistan in 2015, a 20-year-old volunteer security guard blocked him.        “I will die but I will not let you go in,” he reportedly told the terrorist armed with explosives. The attacker then set off a bomb, immediately killing himself and the man now recognized as a candidate for canonization: Akash Bashir.        Because of his actions, the church — with more than 1,000 Catholics inside — was saved from a direct blast.        Bashir died on March 15, 2015, when suicide bombers attacked St. John’s Catholic Church and Christ Church of the Church of Pakistan. Located in Lahore, the churches stand in one of the country’s largest Christian neighborhoods.        Terrorist group Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan Jamaatul Ahrar (TTP-JA) later claimed the attacks that killed 17 people and injured more than 70, Vatican News reported.        Those numbers might...

Salesian Youth Movement launches “WYD DON BOSCO 23”

03 February 2022 (ANS – Lisbon) – In preparation for World Youth Day (WYD) 2023, which will take place in Lisbon, Portugal, the Salesian Youth Movement has launched “WYD DON BOSCO 23”, the organization responsible for the convocation and participation of young people from various Salesian circles around the world at WYD in Lisbon 2023. In inviting young people to live and experience WYD Lisbon 2023 according to Don Bosco’s charism, WYD DON BOSCO 23 also wants to accompany all the initiatives, dynamism and moments planned for the Day, as well as highlight, on a particular day, the “SYM Day”, all its youth and associative dimension. “WYD DON BOSCO 2023”, as a motto, comes from the combination of three elements: the acronym in English that refers to World Youth Day, with its meaningful similarity to the term “with” in English; St. John Bosco, commonly called “Don Bosco”, as the unifying force of the Salesian Family; and the date of the meeting. It wants to be a sort of brand that identifies the Salesian Youth Movement and that motivates young people to walk the path that awaits them as a pilgrimage, that strengthens their faith and is able to question others,...

Vatican launches #IamChurch campaign for persons with disabilities

VATICAN DICASTERY DISABILITY VATICAN The #IamChurch campaign for persons with disabilities begins from 6 December with a series of video testimonies of Christians living with disabilities. By Benedict Mayaki, SJ The Vatican’s Dicastery for Laity, Family and Life announced the launch on Monday of a campaign dedicated to persons living with disabilities. Tagged #IamChurch, the campaign, which begins on 6 December, will consist of five videos containing the testimonies of Christians living with disabilities from different parts of the world who recount their experience of faith and affirm, “I am Church!” “I am Church” through Baptism In his message to persons with disabilities on the occasion of the International Day dedicated to them, Pope Francis noted that Baptism gives each one of us, “without exclusion or discrimination, the possibility of exclaiming, ‘I am Church!'” Echoing the Pope’s words, the Dicastery for Laity, Family and Life launched the videos, which will be released weekly, with the aim of highlighting the contribution that persons with disabilities offer to the ecclesial community on a daily basis. The videos will illustrate the work of evangelization carried out by some young deaf persons in Mexico, of a monastery in France where several nuns with...

The DiBOSCo Coffee (and Chocolate) Project Gathering: MHCA 12/11/2021

RSVP TO ATTEND VIRTUALLY OR IN-PERSON: contact@donboscosalesianportal.org Mary Help of Christians Academy 659 Belmont Avenue North Haledon, NJ 07508 In brief, Di BOSCo began as a job-training project created by Mr. Phaisan, a Salesian Past Pupil in Thailand, as a way to give back for all he had received from the Salesians. When Mr. Peter Kovac, Slovakian Salesian Past Pupil and secretary of the SDB Past Pupil World Council, came to know of this project, he organized an alliance with Mr. Phaisan to grow Di BOSCo into a world-wide network of Past Pupil fair trade coffee and cocoa growers, processors, exporters, and café owners in Asia, Africa, Europe, and Latin America. Now Di BOSCo is ready to come to Canada and the US with the help of our Salesian Family members and friends. Peter will explain how this network came to be and how we can make it a reality for North America at this gathering. For whom is the gathering? Salesian Past Pupils of the SDB and FMAAll Salesian Family members and friendsIndividuals, Communities, Centers, ChaptersFamiliesThose who are curiousThose who love great-tasting coffee and chocolate and want to try it and maybe buy itThose who wish to support...

“Don Bosco Global Youth Film Festival”: The Party has Begun! – KNOW THE FACTS

18 November 2021 (ANS – Rome) – As for the New Year’s Eve, so too for the “Don Bosco Global Youth Film Festival”, the party advances to the rhythm of the sun and covers the planet’s various time zones to join young people from all over the world in a single voice of hope. In Oceania and in countries where the 18 November was the first to begin, screenings and events are already underway to celebrate and reward the creativity and commitment of the youth to this global Salesian film initiative. Over 270 locations are registered in 50 different countries across all continents, where the “Don Bosco Global Youth Film Festival” will be celebrated. These are schools, oratories, parishes and educational centers of various kinds, where giant screens or digital links have been set up to finally allow viewers to watch and admire the festival’s finalists. The size of the events are different – depending on the contexts in which the Salesians work and the different anti-contagion health security measures adopted by the national authorities. The common element will be the ingredients that will accompany the celebration, which are also typical of Salesian youth gatherings: cheerfulness, dances, songs, moments of fraternity...