SAME is coming back!
Members of SYM Malta start preparations for the next Animators Encounter
On Saturday 25th November, a group of young people met at Savio College to start the initial preparations for the third edition of SAME, scheduled to be held on the 19th of March 2018.
SAME (Salesian Animators Malta Encounter) is a special event held for all the young that occupy an animating role within one of the Salesian realities in Malta. It is meant both as a formative moment wherein the young are invited to reflect upon and deepen a certain aspect of Salesian spirituality, but also as a moment of unity for the youth of the Maltese delegation. Previous editions of SAME have been held in 2014 and 2015, as well as a special edition during the visit of Don Bosco’s relics in the summer of 2015.
The core team is comprised of representatives from the three oratories, the Savio Animators, Savio Athletics Club, SPYS and others. More details about this event will be coming up soon. In the meantime, mark the 19th March on your calendar!
"Communication is about people."
General Councillor for social communications visits the Maltese Delegation
Between the 24th and the 26th of November, the Maltese Salesian Delegation was honoured to welcome and host Father Filiberto Gonzalez, the General Councillor for Social Communications of the entire congregation. Fr. Filiberto had the opportunity to visit the Salesian communities, as well as the various pastoral realities of the delegation.
On Saturday morning, several key people from across the delegation with regards to social communications met Fr. Filiberto for a special meeting and discussion at St. Patrick’s, wherein they presented the various facets of social communications in our Salesian realities: BOSCOcrew, the ‘Teatru Salesjan’, The PR and Marketing teams of our three oratories, the Salesian Press, the Maltese version of the Salesian Bulletin ‘Ħajja Salesjana’ and the ‘Librerija Tagħlim Nisrani’.
In his reaction, Fr. Filiberto encouraged and lauded the efforts of all present and reminded them that communication is but a servant to the mission itself. We should be careful not to confuse communication with the various media through which it is expressed. “This is not communication,” he insisted, holding a smartphone in his hand, adding that communication is ultimately about people, not technology and that looking into the eyes of other people in face-to-face conversations is what builds relationships. “That is what communication is all about,” emphasised Fr. Filiberto. He concluded by saying that the first means of communication is our lifestyle and that only through authenticity, a clear mission and a real presence can effective communication occur.
The encounter also served for the official launch of the new website for the Salesians in Malta, www.salesiansmalta.org, a much needed update and revamp of the delegation’s presence online.
The General Councilor also met with the confreres at St. Patrick’s on Saturday evening. In a brief presentation, the guest shared his ideas about a biblical anthropological vision of communication with Christ at its centre. The meeting was followed by a moment of prayer and supper.
The Maltese Delegation heartily thanks Fr. Filiberto for his presence and his insight during this visit.
