austraLasia

EAO Region, 26 March 2023 -- At the beginning of every year our provincial secretaries are busy with putting together the famous ‘FLASH’ - SDB statistics of confreres around the world, that come together to provide the broad picture of the regions or of the whole Congregation. Rater than just the ‘number’ of Salesians, there are 1400 personal vocation stories around the 12 provinces of the EAO region and 14,000 unfolding Salesian vocation stories around the world, if we also include our 426 novices and 118 Salesian bishops.

The overall picture of the EAO region on January 1, 2023 shows 183 canonical or other erected SDB communities around the 12 provinces and 23 countries of the region, while there is also one community mission entrusted to lay mission partners.

The total number of Salesians of Don Bosco (SDB) in the EAO region are 1,472 with 11 bishops: 206 Salesian Brothers, 333 candidates to the priesthood, 884 priests and 48 novices.

The Province with most SDBs (professed and novices) in the EAO region is VIE with 370 Salesians and the smallest is PGS with 44 Salesians. Among the 12 provinces only 4 show positive growth (FIS +1, MYM +4, PGS +1 and VIE +14) while the other 8 provinces have slightly diminished (AUL -4, CIN -1, FIN -8, GIA -4, INA -2, KOR -1, THA -3, TLS -1). Although the number of novices on 1st January 2023 is higher than last year (from 42 to 48 novices), this might be a simple call for better care of our vocation culture and journey with the young to assist them to discover God's dream for them.

Within the global Salesian Congregation, the EAO is the ‘most stable’ with 10.6% (=1424) of 13,412 professed members of the world community and with 11.2% of the 429 novices.

At the worldwide level, 21.5 % of professed Salesians live in the South Asia region (2884 SDBs and 125 novices), 18.4% in Mediterranean region (2,450 SDBs and 16 novices), 14.9% in the Central-North Europe region (2002 SDBs and 16 novices), 14% in the Africa-Madagascar region (1,882 SDBs and 161 novices), 10.9% in the Interamerica region (1,466 SDBs and 38 novices) and 8.3% in the America-South Cone region (1,114 SDBs and 32 novices).

That means that of the 420 SDB novices, 25 are being formed in Europe, 70 in the Americas, 161 in Africa and 173 in Asia.

The average age of EAO Salesians is 51, the third youngest after Africa-Madagascar (40) and South Asia (46). Within the EAO region the most ‘senior’ province is CIN where the average age is 67.1, followed by Japan at 63.9 and Australia at 63.8. TLS is the youngest at 38.9, followed by Myanmar at 39.6 and Indonesia at 42.1.

As regards the 'Salesian World Community' (2023.1.1), compared to the previous year:

SDB numbers are only slightly diminished compared to the previous year (-70)
SDB provinces: 91 (one more in Western Africa)
SDB candidates who have started pre-novitiate: 313
SDB novices who didn't make their first profession: 95
SDB first professions: 325 (Brothers 25, 'Clerics' 303)
SDB postnovices: 602 (547 ‘clerics’ and 55 Salesian brothers)
SDB practical trainees: 439
SDB theology students: 495
SDB new perpetual professions: 182 (15 Brothers, 167 clerics)
SDB newly ordained priests: 166
SDB specialization students: 328
SDB who left the Congregation: 196 (22 fewer than the previous year)
SDB who passed away: 254 (35 Brothers, 211 priests, 3 bishops and 8 clerics)
SDB: 9,280 priests, 25 permanent deacons, 115 bishops, 2675 'clerics' and 1,434 Salesian brothers, 429 novices