To open the day, Fr Marco Rossetti, SDB, lecturer in Sacred Scripture at the Faculty of Theology at the Crocetta, Turin, led a Lectio Divina on the passage of the Good Shepherd (Jn 10:11-16), guiding all those present to listen to the Lord through his Word.

In his address, the Salesian helped the participants realise that man’s love for God is nothing but a response to His love; he urged them to keep their gaze fixed on Him, to learn to love from Him; and he concluded by inviting them never to forget that final goal – both individual and communal – which Don Bosco always loved to emphasise: Paradise.

After a period devoted to individual and group reflection on the insights offered, the morning concluded with the Eucharistic celebration, during which Fr Fabio Attard, the Rector Major, emphasised the importance of humility in becoming apostles, believers and free to serve and renewed the invitation to deepen our understanding of the value and role of the Preventive System in the life of each individual and within every group.

The keynote address of the day, however, was delivered in the early afternoon by Fr Rossano Sala, Full Professor of Pastoral Theology and Youth Ministry at the Pontifical Salesian University (UPS) and Editor of the Note di Pastorale Giovanile  journal, entitled: “The Preventive System put to the test in the third millennium. The prophetic relevance of our educational and pastoral method”.

The analysis began with the observation that the contemporary world is undergoing profound transformations, where technological acceleration, the fragmentation of relationships, the weakening of traditional educational reference points and the emergence of new forms of youth vulnerability pose unprecedented challenges to those working in the field of education.

Even in the face of this scenario, Fr Sala observed that “there has never been a golden age where everything always went perfectly” and that every era has its own struggles. For this reason, he proposed a vision of the Preventive System as a living and dynamic proposal to be understood anew and reinterpreted in the current context.

His reflection emphasised that the strength of Don Bosco’s educational intuition does not lie primarily in the skilful interplay and generative balance of its three pillars: reason, religion and charity.

“The promotion of reason in the educational sphere is central to the Salesian pedagogical approach,” observed Fr Sala. “Ultimately, it is a matter of taking into account the resources of the person, which find in culture, knowledge and rationality a precious and central source.”

At the heart of the three pillars, the speaker noted, lies religion, because “without contact with the transcendent, we lack oxygen, and we remain trapped in an unbearable immanence which, ultimately, risks leading us to a desperate satiety”.

Finally, in an age “characterised by a tendency towards a pathological focus on ourselves” the call to loving kindness constitutes an impetus that is more necessary than ever for nurturing bonds “in the age of loneliness”, where young people are not seen as passive recipients of educational interventions, but as individuals to be accompanied on a journey of integral growth, founded on trust in the resources present in each person and on the conviction that every person holds within them possibilities for development that await recognition and appreciation.

Finally, the talk highlighted some key elements of the original Valdocco experience, recalling how the oratory was never conceived merely as a physical space or an educational project, but as an environment capable of fostering a sense of belonging, trust and growth.

The Preventive System, Fr Sala concluded,is therefore still today a true educational spirituality, capable of involving educators and young people in a shared journey of human and Christian maturation. His reflection thus invited us to look to the future with a proactive attitude: it is not merely a matter of preserving an inherited heritage, but of continually renewing it, so that it may continue to speak to new generations and answer their deepest questions.

The stimulating day was fittingly rounded off by various moments of shared fellowship among all, as well as times of communal prayer, the Goodnight by Mother Zoila Caal Cacao, Superior General of the Sisters of the Resurrection, and the devotional practice of the Novena to Mary Help of Christians.

{gallery}ICP – Consulta Mondiale FS – 2 – 2026{/gallery}