(ANS – Turin) – In a spirit of enthusiasm and fraternity, the 44th Salesian Family Spirituality Days (SFSD) began on the afternoon of Thursday, January 15, 2026, in the Teatro Grande at Valdocco in Turin. Representatives of the many groups that make up the Salesian Family gathered around Fr. Fabio Attard, the 11th Successor of Don Bosco, to listen to his reflections on the deeper meaning and implications of authentic discipleship of Jesus in the style of Don Bosco, in keeping with the motto of the Strenna he released: “Do whatever he tells you. Believers, free to serve.”
After opening performances featuring several very young participants, the host of the event, Fr. Leonardo Mancini, Superior of the Italy–Piedmont and Valle d’Aosta (ICP) Circumscription, welcomed those present. “My hope is that we receive these SFSD 2026 as a renewed opportunity to grow in faith—understood as listening to God, in His Word, in young people, and in history—and that our listening may constantly be transformed into free and joyful service, into the Gospel lived,” the Salesian said in his opening remarks.
The two presenters, Roberto and Silvia, then introduced Fr. Joan Lluís Playà, Central Delegate of the Rector Major for the Salesian Family. Along with practical introductory information, he offered his greeting, first recalling the richness of the past year: “How many events in recent months! The General Chapter of the Salesians, the election of Fr. Fabio Attard, the farewell to Pope Francis and the election of Pope Leo XIV, the Jubilee events, the canonization of Maria Troncatti, the 150th anniversary of the First Salesian Missionary Expedition…”
Looking ahead to the days about to begin and to the episode of the Wedding at Cana that inspired the Strenna motto, he added, “May contemplation of Mary and the gesture of Jesus awaken our deepest being, as it did for the disciples who ‘believed in Him.’”
Following a moment of prayer and the invocation of the Holy Spirit and Mary upon these SFSDs, the program continued with the screening of the Rector Major’s Strenna video. In the darkened theater, hundreds of animators from the various Salesian Family groups watched attentively, gathering initial insights and inspiration. Shortly afterward, as the central moment of this first day, the Rector Major himself took the floor, entering into a frank and open dialogue with those present and explaining his Strenna message in depth.
In his address, Fr. Attard spoke about the origins of this Strenna, which he described as a natural continuation of the previous one. If 2025 for the Salesian Family—together with the whole Church in its Jubilee Year—was marked by hope, and if Christian hope is not a feeling “but a person, Jesus Christ,” then, he explained, it was natural to propose the next step: trusting that Person, believing in Him, and ultimately seeking and listening more to His voice and His will than to one’s own.
For this reason, he stressed a clear methodology for putting the Strenna into practice: making use not only of the video, but also of the written text that has been prepared and distributed, and returning to it several times throughout the year, courageously engaging the questions and proposals for action that conclude each of the four sections of the message.
For more than an hour, Fr. Attard made himself available to answer questions that had been collected in advance on a wide range of topics: “What can we learn from the first Salesian missionaries? How can we improve our listening to God today? How should the Salesian Family respond to today’s challenges? How can we ensure that pastoral and educational activities are not merely human plans and projects, but the fruit of truly listening to God’s will? How are the lay and consecrated dimensions articulated today in the shared Salesian mission?”
With his customary clarity and the effectiveness of his vivid language, the Rector Major encouraged everyone not to look for ready-made solutions to contemporary challenges, but instead to adopt Mary’s attitude at Cana—the same attitude that inspired all of Don Bosco’s pastoral action and was carried forward by his missionaries. “What would Don Bosco do today? Are we looking at reality in the light of the Word, or are we merely observing it from a distance?” These were among the challenging questions left by Don Bosco’s 11th Successor, who concluded by renewing the invitation to cultivate a constant relationship with God as the first and fundamental step in every action.
Following the session in the theater, Mass was celebrated in the Basilica of Mary Help of Christians. In his homily, the Rector Major reflected on the Gospel of the day—the healing of the leper (Mk 1:40–45)—recalling that true healing comes from the courage to believe that God desires our good. By touching the excluded man, Jesus overturns the logic of purity: He does not contaminate Himself, but rather “allows Himself to be contaminated” by compassion. Fr. Attard also noted that the experience of the healed leper is not a private one, since the Lord sends him back to the priest and the community. In the same way, grace, education, and accompaniment lead to ecclesial and social reintegration.
In conclusion, Fr. Attard urged the Salesian Family to live out four essential steps—believing, touching, reintegrating, and giving glory to God—seeing themselves as purified lepers and simple instruments, so that every young person may experience being a beloved child of the Church.