Sharing the Christmas Joy with youth in need
Manila - Legazpi - Cebu - Poipet - Sihanoukville - Thailand -FIN - FIS - Cambodia... 23 December 2019 -- There are many different ways of offering meaningful Christmas Celebrations in our EAO provinces and delegations. To share the gifts and the Christmas joy with the young people in need is probably one of the best ways to meet Jesus living in our children and young people.
It has already been a long Salesian missionary tradition to write a 'Christmas Missionary Letter' to the home-country (like Br. Roberto or Fr. John in Cambodia), sharing the life of Don Bosco's beneficiaries while requesting benefactors to continue their generosity to the children in Poipet or the victims of the flash flood in Sihanoukville (Cambodia).
Another very concrete expression of a Christ-like open heart in Manila is to reach out to the victims of the recent super-typhoon 'Kammuri' in Legazpi, Bicol region of the Luzon island in the Philippines (FIN). One full school bus with many goods gathered by the Don Bosco Mandaluyong EPC and other Don Bosco settings in Manila reached Legazpi just on the eve of the Christmas celebration to express the warm heart of other Bosconians.
Also our 'scholars' - as the children and students are called in the Philippines who receive a Don Bosco scholarship through many different benefactor networks - have their joyful Christmas celebration in the Lourdes Parish in Cebu (Archdiocesan shrine of Our Lady of Lourdes, FIS province). No fewer than 340 scholars gathered together for a wonderful Academy, a cultural and religious event, and brought back home large bundles of sweet and interesting gifts.
The celebration of the Christmas Fair in Salesian schools in Thailand is an opportunity to tell the story of Jesus' love to students, teachers, parents and villagers in the area where the school is located. Students stage the birth of Jesus, building a nativity scene. Salesian schools, such as Sarasit Phitthayalai School, Ban Pong District, Ratchaburi Province, Hua Hin Wittayalai School and Saengthong Wittaya School, Hat Yai have organized a Christmas Fair which brings happiness to the communities around the school grounds and is open to thousands of outsiders to participate in the Christmas fair. The event is held annually to become a celebration for everyone in the community, even if they are not Christian (Catholics make up only 0.56% of the population which is 95% Buddhist, including in Salesians schools). It is good news for Thai people to know Jesus.
Many similar good 'traditions' are going on in many of our communities, schools, oratories, parishes and Salesian family groups around the Region. Indeed God has chosen to share his Love especially with the most needy...
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