From the outset, the tone of the meeting was one of collective gratitude. The presenters warmly thanked the translators and technicians, whose service made truly global participation possible, as well as the organising team, which accompanied and supported the entire course of the Days. This thanksgiving became shared applause, in the awareness that behind the visible event there is silent and competent work that makes communion possible.

Alongside gratitude, a strong sense of responsibility also emerged: what was experienced is not destined to remain a memory, but to be transformed into concrete life, in families, at work, in educational and pastoral communities, especially in the service of young people. Hence the invitation to ‘take out’ what has been heard and prayed for, so that it may become action and witness.

The Manifesto of the Days: a shared synthesis

The symbolic heart of the concluding moment was the presentation and reading of the final Manifesto, the fruit of the work of the team and the Secretariat, conceived as a tool of memory and renewal for the whole Salesian Family. It is a text that gathers and restores the journey lived in the light of the Strenna 2026, inspired by the Gospel passage of the wedding at Cana.

In the sign performed by Jesus at Cana, the participants recognised a living icon of the Salesian mission: accompanying life, safeguarding joy, believing that God continues to work his miracle in everyday life. The Manifesto retraced the four verbs proposed by the Rector Major – looking, listening, choosing, acting – as a spiritual and apostolic itinerary for the year.

To look with the attentive eyes of Mary, to recognise Cana in every place of mission; 
 to listen with the heart, placing Christ at the centre and cultivating an authentic spirituality;
to choose with determination the path of service, even in the face of ’empty jars’;
to act with faith, offering the new wine of the Gospel through courageous and shared experiences.

The text concluded with an invitation to leave Valdocco with hearts filled with the beauty of these days, accompanied by Jesus and Mary, to transform the world with the good wine of the Gospel.

A broader view: family, mission, future

The concluding moment was also an opportunity to present faces and stories that embody the richness of the Salesian Family: the appointment of Fr Luis Eugenio Vargas Isasa as spiritual animator of the Primary and World ADMA; the announcement of the 2027 Days of Spirituality, to be held from 21 to 24 January; the communication of resources available online to continue the journey throughout the year.

Particularly significant was the announcement of the 10th World Congress of Mary Help of Christians, which will take place from 9 to 12 February 2028 in Manila, Philippines, for the first time on the Asian continent. An invitation extended to the entire Salesian Family, welcomed with enthusiasm and entrusted to Mary’s protection with the prayer of a Hail Mary.

The greeting from the Salesian Family in Pakistan was also moving. They expressed their closeness and gratitude to the Rector Major with a simple and deeply symbolic gesture, recalling the testimony of the Servant of God Akash Bashir and the growth of the Salesian presence in contexts of great difficulty.

The Rector Major’s final words: a message for the journey ahead

The highlight of the closing ceremony was the final message by the Rector Major, Fr Fabio Attard, which was greeted with long applause. In his deep paternal words, he first renewed his thanks to the team and the participants, as a confrere and as Rector Major, emphasising the always positive value of these Days. He then addressed a special thought to those who followed the event through the media, recalling how the Days become a permanent resource for formation and spiritual life throughout the year.

Referring to the Manifesto and the Strenna, Fr Fabio reiterated the pedagogical and charismatic choice of the four verbs, designed to accompany all the groups of the Salesian Family on a journey of lectio divina and continuous discernment, so that the Word may always offer us ‘new wine‘.

Taking up each verb one by one, the Rector Major enriched them with a precise message:

• Look with empathy, without filters and without judgement, like Mary and like the servants at Cana, capable of grasping reality and its urgency.
• Listening and forming ourselves, not intellectually, but with the heart of Christ, in tune with the Gospel and the charism of Don Bosco, in a time of profound change.
• Choose generously, not out of voluntarism, but as a response to the divine beauty and goodness we have encountered and which transform us.
• Acting with faith, lived as a living relationship, the architecture of existence, the daily breath that guides every choice.

He also gave a strong reminder not to fall into defensive attitudes or sterile victimhood, but to live the Salesian charism as evangelical creativity, capable of seeing challenges as opportunities.

In conclusion, Fr Fabio entrusted everyone to Mary Help of Christians, inviting the assembly to pray and sing a final hymn to Don Bosco, as a sign of shared joy and a mission that continues.

The Days thus came to an end, not as a point of arrival, but as a new beginning, with the awareness that the good wine received now asks to be brought, poured and shared in the daily life of the whole Salesian Family.