Rome (Italy). On 27 July 2022, the online meeting of the Provincial Coordinators of Youth Ministry of the Interprovincial Conference of Brazil (CIB) took place with the General Councilor for Youth Ministry, Sr. Runita Borja and Sr. Ivone Goulart Lopes, Sector collaborator.
The meeting began with a prayer led by Sr. Ivone Goulart, on the theme, “Mornese, land of prayer”.
Sr. Runita Borja then presented the Program for the 2022-2027 Six-year period of the FMA Institute, in the specific Sector of Youth Ministry, and concluded by referring to some words taken from Circular No. 1016:
“In the six-year period that has just begun, we wish to continue to live the style of discernment, to value the Circulars of Mother as the Magisterium of the Institute, the canonical and animation visits of the various Sectors, the journeys of the interprovincial Conferences, of the Provinces, and of the educating communities. We are aware that life flourishes locally and we wish to place every resource at the service of favoring its growth. The Program will be marked by evaluations aimed at the gradual assumption of the priority choices and the Deliberation of GC XXIV, which will guide the three-year Evaluations”.
Subsequently, each Province of Brazil was presented, starting with the description of the provincial reality as regards the animation of YM. Each Coordinator shared the organization, the animation of the Groups of the Salesian Youth Movement (SYM), of the Oratories, of the Social Works (Social Pastoral), of the Schools, of the Universities, the situation of indigenous pastoral care, of catechesis and of the catechists, of the parishes in which the FMA work. After the Pastoral planning of each Province, they also shared the new configuration of the Brazilian Provinces.
The Coordinators spoke about the challenges, concerns, and opportunities of this historical time of the 150th anniversary of the Foundation of the Institute and of the post-pandemic of Covid-19. They also discussed networking as FMA in the four Brazilian Provinces and in collaboration with the Salesians of Don Bosco through the Youth Ministry of the Salesian Brazil Network (RSB).
Sr. Nádia dos Santos Caetano, from the Province of O.L. of the Amazon (BRM), told of her participation in the “III meeting for the revitalization of YM in Brazil“, to which an adult responsible for the evangelization of young people and one or two young representatives of the youth groups of each Archdiocese were invited. The meeting was also attended by the national representatives of each youth reality (movements, youth ministries, new communities), a person in charge of each religious Congregation that works with young people, the National Coordination of each youth reality, the Bishops, and the priests responsible for young people in the regions of the Bishops’ Conference of Brazil (CNBB), the Coordinator of Regional Pastoral Care, the National Coordinators of some related pastoral activities.
In conclusion, Sr. Ivone Goulart reminded the participants that the evangelizing perspective must revolve around some indicators such as creativity, audacity, and discernment through which to look at what has been gained from this crisis, so that the “contagion of hope” may be cultivated and strengthened in the encounter with others and as a gift and a task, help to build the ‘new normal’ that is so desired. Sr. Ivone specified, “It is a time to learn, to be ‘cared for’ and to ‘care for’, making the experiences of closeness and relationship concrete responses of real impact, involving the Educational-Pastoral Communities through volunteering; occasional or periodic donations; projects for vulnerable children, psychological support, and the possibility of continuing their formation courses; the liturgy and catechesis; daily relationships in the style of gratuitousness”.
