Being Missionaries Everywhere: The Transparency of the Lord’s Presence – Circular No. 1057

Rome (Italy). The Superior General of the Institute of the Daughters of Mary Help of Christians, Mother Chiara Cazzuola, at the opening of Circular No. 1057, wishes all the Sisters a blessed preparation for the Lord’s Easter, accompanied by the “certainty that, whatever happens in history, we are always in His hands and in His heart.” It is a certainty that, as she points out, “sustains our hope and our trust for a better future, for the advent of an authentic and lasting peace, of serene coexistence among peoples, and of a universal brotherhood possible only through openness to the Father, of whom we are all children.”

She then explains the title of the Circular, inspired by the theme of the 2026 World Feast of Gratitude as well as by the mandate entrusted by Pope Leo XIV to the delegation of young Peruvians present at the Youth Jubilee, “Be missionaries wherever you go; be a transparency of the Lord’s presence”,  a mandate that closely touches the FMA, who are “called by vocation to be missionaries, showing everyone the face of Christ who loves and gives of Himself, and invites us to place ourselves gratuitously at the service of others in our daily lives.”

On the Way to the General Chapter XXV, one month after the issuance of Circular no. 1056 In preparation for General Chapter XXV, Mother expresses her hope that, even though the translation work into various languages ​​is not yet entirely complete, the document is already in the hands of all, and that every Province has begun organizing the work to prepare for living out this great Institute event together: “a significant time of discernment, reflection, and orientation for a communal search for the will of God” (C 135). In this regard, she invites everyone starting immediately, to engage in that “precious, indispensable” collaboration which is realized, first and foremost, “through serene and responsible participation in the study, in deepening, and in sharing” the contents set forth in this Circular of Convocation.

Furthermore, she urges us to “intensify prayer, invoking the light of the Holy Spirit upon us, upon contemporary history, and above all, upon our own lives, upon our FMA communities, and upon our educating communities,” and to renew our belonging to the Lord and to engage with His call, answering the question: “What do You desire, Lord, of me, of our community, of our Province, and of the Institute, in this particularly complex historical moment, undoubtedly marked by suffering for many reasons, yet also full of hope for the good that is growing, despite the wars, violence, and conflicts we find ourselves facing?”

“Blessed are you…” With the prophetic power of the charism, Missionaries of Communion Together with the Young, is the theme of GC XXV. It stands in continuity with the journey undertaken during the current six-year term, “which still sees us engaged in a careful reading of reality, particularly in relation to youth, synodality, generativity, missionary spirit, and peace” inserted within the journey of the Church and in communion with the teachings of the Pontiffs.

Mother Chiara further frames the objective of the upcoming Chapter- Rekindle the missionary passion characteristic of our charismatic identity – within the context of the preparations for the celebration of the 150th anniversary of the First Missionary Departure of the FMA to Uruguay, illuminated by the extraordinary event of grace lived on 19 October 2025, with the Canonization of Saint Maria Troncatti, “a constant and compelling invitation to ‘go out’ toward new and uncharted frontiers, with missionary creativity and boldness, in order to collaborate, through the education and evangelization of the younger generations, in the building of the Kingdom of God in the present day.”

The very same missionary impulse that animated the First Missionary Departure, “prepared for and lived in Mornese with particular enthusiasm, as the fruit of the missionary ardor instilled by Don Bosco and Mother Mazzarello in the new religious Family (cf. C 1),” and which can be traced in historical sources, “continues to animate the courage, choices, lifestyle, and atmosphere of the communities of the Daughters of Mary Help of Christians, from generation to generation.”

A time to give thanks

Mother views the World Feast of Gratitude 2026, which the Institute is preparing to celebrate, as “a great opportunity to express the joy of being Daughters of Mary Help of Christians; to feel ourselves a living part of a religious Family that belongs ‘entirely to Mary’; and to walk together with all those who share the educational mission with renewed passion.”

Reflecting on the formative value that Don Bosco and Mother Mazzarello attributed to this annual event with the aim of “educating young people to recognize the signs of God’s presence through people and situations, and to learn to give thanks for what is received each day,”  she therefore emphasizes that the Feast of Gratitude is a “propitious time” to pause and to recognize, appreciate and rejoice in the “many gifts that the Creator continues to offer us.”

She further highlights that “Educating ourselves and educating others to gratitude, is not something to be taken for granted,” and that in our daily lives, “we rarely realize that we receive far more than we give. The attitude of gratitude adds color to our existence; it stems from an awareness of what we receive, conserving the memory of it, and revitalizes our relationships, first of all with God, and then with those who do us good. It is a virtue that cannot be improvised, nor is it spontaneous.”

Gratitude is, therefore, a “precious gift” that opens one to the needs of others and transforms the very nature of one’s love, rendering it “ready to overcome every form of egocentric self-absorption.” For the Daughters of Mary Help of Christians, community life is the place where “every day we can practice recognizing that we are a gift to one another, living out an authentic family spirit, the creative strength of the hearts of Don Bosco and Mother Mazzarello, within a sincere fraternity that calls for the commitment of all and the valuing of each individual’s gift (cf. C 50).”

Signs and expressions of God’s foreseeing love

In the final section of the Circular, Mother Chiara explains the decision to celebrate the Feast of World Gratitude in Ecuador, in “Sacred Heart” Province, in order to pay tribute to the holiness of Sister Maria Troncatti, “who lived ardently as a missionary in the land that became her ‘homeland of the heart,’ until her very last breath.”

For this reason, celebrating the Feast of Gratitude in the places where she lived “means rediscovering, within her rich and adventurous missionary life, her attitude to discern God’s interventions in history, and to look upon life with trust, focusing on its positive aspects in order to discover every sign of goodness present. She reminds us that there is always something we can do to improve reality.”

The example, so concrete and timely, of Saint Maria Troncatti, who teaches us “to roll up our sleeves with readiness to make our contribution,” becomes for the FMA a matter of urgency, especially in this time of conflict, in which the smallest and the poorest are the ones most affected, “to share her patient and courageous commitment to be mothers, missionaries, and artisans of peace and reconciliation.”

Mother thanks the Provincial, Sister Lupe Judith Erazo Arce, and the Sisters of Sacred Heart Province of Ecuador for their choice of theme- “Be missionaries everywhere“—”which aligns very well with the preparatory journey leading up to the 150th anniversary of the First Missionary Departure,” and the Vicar General, Sister María del Rosario García Ribas, “for having conveyed to the Institute the proposal developed by the Province of Ecuador, accompanying her letter with clear guidelines and instructions.”

The Circular concludes by wishing a holy and serene Easter to all the FMA and their respective families– and, on behalf of the Institute, to the Rector Major, Fr. Fabio Attard; to the SDB General Council and all the Confreres; to the members of the Salesian Family; and to all those engaged with us in the educational mission.

She also addresses the young people, wishing them “to welcome the joyful proclamation of Easter with an open heart; to cultivate the desire to encounter the Risen Jesus, because this encounter transforms our existence and illuminates our affections, desires, and thoughts” (cf. Pope Leo XIV, Homily for the Jubilee of Youth, Tor Vergata, 3 August 2025).

Mother Chiara concludes by urging all FMA, in response to the Pope’s heartfelt appeals, to continue “to pray and to offer our concrete contribution so that wars may cease, adequate paths for respectful and constructive dialogue may be found, and the horizon of a true and lasting peace for all humanity may finally open up.”

Circolare n° 1057