Recife (Brazil). On November 16-18, 2018, the 23rd Salesian Youth Festival took place at Sacred Heart School in Recife with the participation of about 1,000 young people coming from all the SDB and FMA Salesian works in Northeast Brazil.
The Salesian Youth Festival is organized each year by the Youth Pastoral Team of the Northeast Brazil Salesian Province. Coming from diverse places and realities, the young people spent three days with the objective of sharing life and Salesian spirituality in joy and fraternity, participating in celebrations, theatrical shows and choreographies, playing music, singing, and praying.
The theme of the Festival is “Salesian Youth Protagonists”, inspired by the Bishops Synod 2018 that expressed the pastoral solicitude of the Church for the young, committing itself to accompany the young on their life journey. Through a process of discernment, the young discover their life plan and accomplish it with joy, opening themselves to the encounter with God and with others, and actively participating in the building of the Church and of society. The aim of vocational discernment is to discover with joy one’s vocation, whether it is to consecrated life or married life or a professional life.
Youth protagonism is the distinguishing sign of Salesian education. “Salesian Youth Spirituality” motivates the construction of the Salesian Youth Movement.
The dream of Don Bosco was always to love the young, especially marginalized youth: “I promised God that to my last breath all would be for my poor young people. For you I study, for you I work, for you I live. For you I am even ready to give my life”.
The Festival is the fruit of the commitment of the entire Northeast Salesian Province, of the Province Youth Pastoral Team, which also gathered Salesian trainees, consultants, and collaborators of the Salesian Youth Movement.
