Presentation of the Strenna for 2025

2.) We will walk this path anchored in Christian hope.

Christian hope does not disappoint, does not deceive, because it is based on the certainty that nothing and no one can ever separate us from the love of God. This certainty is recalled by the Apostle Paul (Romans 8: 35,37). Therefore, the word of God assures us that in the midst of darkness we perceive the light and acquire the strength that come from the Lord himself and his resurrection.

Certainly it is the path of life, of every life, and above all of the life of every Christian, a path that must be supported by special moments, special occasions, strong opportunities. These are necessary to nourish and strengthen the hope that leads us to meet the Lord and to live with true and full meaning.

Going on pilgrimage – something that we will experience in a thousand ways and in a thousand places with young people throughout the Jubilee year – is something common for those who want and need to leave their places of comfort, to abandon those places in which each of us has comfortably settled and which have perhaps even made us feel disenchanted, demotivated. Going on pilgrimage will require us to make an effort on many occasions, to be silent and choose to go to the essentials.

We will have to place ourselves in this attitude of availability, together with the young. This will do us much good and allow the Lord to encounter each of us when and where he sees fit, but always touching the most precious and deepest part of our heart, our spirit, our being. And we have to be available for the encounter at that point. We must not be afraid to “take risks” when it comes to encountering the Lord. He never disappoints, especially if we are clinging to him, anchored in him.

3.) There are many young people who dream with authentic hope

For us Salesians and all members of the Salesian Family, it would be impossible to talk about the life of Don Bosco, about him, without talking about his dreams. He kept his dreams in his mind and heart throughout his life, even after achieving them.

Inspired by Don Bosco’s dream and by what they are living and experiencing in our Salesian settings, young people will discover that their beautiful desires are the driving force that makes them capable of great things, and they will learn that every challenge can be overcome with courage and self-confidence. Young people have big dreams, but they must be encouraged to dream! And we educators have this task: to accompany them on the authentic path of life.

Young people have the right to dream of a better tomorrow. They have in their hands the possibility of being reborn and of always starting over, of studying and working, of building a future rich in humanity and hope.

The young people with whom we share our lives, those who are to be found in Salesian houses, in the houses of the entire Salesian Family, the young people who have dreams (some of which they share with us),[6] are the artisans of tomorrow, those who will shape the world with their young hands. They are the face of a humanity that advances and wants to improve: a humanity wounded by war, poverty and pain, but a humanity that has the face of charity and love; a humanity capable of getting up again and hoping, of getting up from the ground and starting to walk again; a humanity capable of welcoming and giving, without ever ceasing to smile and love.

The dream of Amar Gazel Hernández, 18, from San José, Costa Rica, could have as its title: Lost Stars.

Amar tells us: “If you had asked me six years ago what my life’s dream was, I would probably have replied that I dreamed of being a dancer, of wearing ballet shoes and dancing on stage. With the passage of time, however, and the changing circumstances of life, that dream took a back seat.

“Today, at seventeen [sic], I realize that my dream is still there, but the attention I give it is different; the reality is that today society asks too much of us, and on many occasions these dreams end up becoming frustrations, because we are faced with high expectations, high levels of stress, and requirements that end up being irrational.

“For me, dreaming is finding happiness in small things, in achieving goals however small they may be, in going against the demands of the world, because after all we are all ‘lost stars’ in the sky trying to achieve fullness and show their light. Finally, my answer to the question ‘what is my dream’ is: my dream is to achieve my goals, so that I can also give happiness to those around me. Thus I find not only the meaning of life, but also the satisfaction of being able to do what I want, the joy of knowing that I am moving forward, no matter how difficult it may be, and that every night my reason for life supported by hope and joy is made of those small conquests that make my loved ones proud. This is where my dreams have evolved: in the constant struggle to thrive, in the awareness of everything I have done to get here, but enjoying what the moment offers me. I cannot answer this question specifically because, like everyone, I am that ‘lost star’ in the immense sky that is still looking for its splendor, but that never stops working for what it wants and eagerly awaits what it could achieve on this journey called life.”

From the Ivory Coast, 18-year-old Anani Henry Joël Kouadio tells us that his dream could be called The Choice.

“My dream is to become a doctor. First of all, why this choice? I can say that all those who aspire to this kind of work do so to save lives. That’s the main idea that comes to mind. But for me personally the motivation is greater. Seeing people who are sick, who do not have the means to treat themselves and who die for lack of doctors, put this question to me as a Christian: ‘Why not be an instrument through which God heals and saves lives?’ What drives me is the fact that my father is a doctor, and at his side I feel more stimulated, more motivated, more interested. This makes me hope to be a part of the group who call themselves doctors. I would like to become a neurologist, a specialist in neurology. My great desire is to realize my dream according to the will of God, and Don Bosco’s example motivates me.”

Anita Marton is 24 years old. She is an Italian from Mogliano Veneto, and today she tells us about her dream that came true: she calls it All my life.

“I was in 11th grade, and we were studying Dante. The teacher was lazy and explained it without passion. All she did was to convey boredom and impatience, and we were learning to hate Dante.

“Teachers ‘leave a mark’ on the children in front of them, and if it is their moods rather than their loves that they bring to class, as D’Avenia says, these are what attach themselves to the thirsty souls in front of them and dull them. Instead, I wanted my classmates to discover beauty. At that moment I realized that this was my dream, the call I had to answer.

“Eight years have passed since that day, and after eight years this dream has come true. Today I am in a classroom teaching. I see these young people sitting in front of me, and I see myself in search of a dream toward which to point life’s compass. Who knows what desires dwell in their hearts? Who knows what hopes and fears? Here I am in front of these young people. They do not know that for all my life I have dreamed of being with them.”

From India, in Agartala in the state of Tripura, thirty-year-old Bipasha Hrangkhawl continues to realize her dream: A light along someone’s path.

Here are her words: “I dream of shining a better light on the lives of some disadvantaged people in this world, in any way I can. Growing up, I realized that there are many people in this world whose path is dark, hope is closed for them, the future is gloomy, and happiness is far away.

“Being luckier and with better opportunities, I realized that I could do my small part to help improve the lives of some people, at least a little. Charity begins at home, and only by doing small deeds will I eventually be able to realize my dream on a grander scale.

“I dream of a society of happy people who love their lives and who, despite differences, live together in love and peace. I dream of being a happy part of it, an effective tool to give meaning and purpose and at the same time to make this world a better place to live in: a light on the path of someone who calls me to action and discipline. I will walk in the light, in my enchanting path where God himself is my light that I will radiate along the way, so that the path others follow is lit up.”

Clarissa Budianto lives in Indonesia, in Asia-Oceania, more precisely in Jakarta. She is 26 years old and her dream is to become a true educator.

She says, “Hang your dreams as high as the sky! Dream as high as the sky. If you fall, you will fall among the stars – as Sukarno, the first President of Indonesia, said.

“My dream is to accompany young people when life becomes complex and difficult for them, to be by their side not because they depend on me, but because through me they may see hope in God and in humanity. I know what it’s like to be alone and confused. The desire to be there for others like me, to accompany them through their dreams and to face the complexity of life is what keeps me awake. What keeps me going are the surprises of the Holy Spirit on my life’s journey. It is these that remind me of the dream at times and also the small and significant rewards of life, while I continue to follow it.

“My dream is to be a kind, sincere, and capable educator, getting to know my students in depth, above all being a teacher able to help young minds find their dreams and achieve them.”

And then there is Daniel Flores, 28 years old, a Venezuelan originally from Caracas. He has a deep conviction: if you can dream it, you can do it.

Here are his words: “I come from Venezuela. Ever since I was a child, I dreamed of becoming a doctor. I studied in a Salesian school and the missionary experience fueled my dream of serving others. In 2016, one year after graduating in medicine, my family decided to emigrate to Chile due to the situation in my country. Despite the difficulties, I worked and studied at the same time; so in 2022 I graduated in general medicine and, thanks to the good grades obtained, I won a scholarship to pursue a specialization in pediatrics, which I am currently following. I practice my profession in a low-income area of Santiago, Chile, but I dream of returning to help the children of Venezuela, a dream that, little by little, is coming true, since with the help of friends from the University of Caracas, I am sending some supplies from Chile to support medical assistance days in the suburbs. I also plan, upon my return to Venezuela, to create a community pediatric care center.”

4.) Missionaries in the world. Missionaries of Life

As we have already pointed out, this Jubilee Holy Year runs parallel with something else that is at the origin of what the Family of Don Bosco is today in the world because – and let us restate this firmly and with certainty – none of us and none of the institutions that today form the great tree that is the Salesian Family, the Family of Don Bosco, would exist in the Church had the Holy Spirit not given rise to its missionary zeal from the beginning.

This jubilee year marks the 150th anniversary of the first missionary expedition to Argentina, launched by Don Bosco in 1875.

The celebration of this very important event in the Jubilee Holy Year 2025 therefore puts us in a favorable position to recognize, rethink, and relaunch:

• Recognize: we thank God for the gift of the missionary vocation that today allows the children of Don Bosco and his family to reach poor and abandoned young people in 136 countries.
• Rethink: because it is an opportunity to rethink and develop a renewed vision of Salesian missions in light of the new challenges and perspectives that have led to new missiological reflections.
• Relaunch: because we not only have a glorious story to remember and to be grateful for, but also a great story to do and still to write! We look to the future with missionary zeal and renewed enthusiasm to reach out to even more poor and abandoned young people, so that they can live with hope and with a true sense of life, a life in God.

Recognize, rethink, and relaunch: three verbs that revive and feed hope, urging us toward new missionary frontiers of the Congregation and the Salesian Family, especially to encounter the poorest and most marginalized young people.

Recognizing, rethinking, and relaunching are not verbs of facile optimism. They are actions rooted in faith in Jesus Christ, who is always with us even when we experience moments of worry and fear and difficulties that arise in the proclamation of the Gospel.

Recognizing, rethinking, and relaunching revive and nurture the hope that launches us toward new missionary frontiers. There are and always will be challenges and missionary difficulties, but, endowed with hope “filled with faith,” they will courageously urge us toward new socio-cultural, digital, and geographical frontiers, so that we ourselves become a small torch of hope for others, especially for the poorest and neediest young people; because today we are called above all to be true Missionaries of Life.

5.) A jubilee and missionary hope that translates into genuine results

Pope Francis, in the bull of indiction for the Jubilee 2025, tells us, “The signs of the times, which include the yearning of human hearts in need of God’s saving presence, ought to become signs of hope.”^[7] He invites the Church – and us as part of the Church – to live this 2025 Jubilee and missionary year by committing ourselves to becoming tangible signs of hope, signs that materialize in the following results to be pursued:^[8]

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