On the occasion of the 150th anniversary of the first Salesian missionary expedition launched by Don Bosco in 1875, on May 2–3 of this year, the International Conference of Studies titled "Salesian Missions: From the Apostolic Letter Maximum Illud (1919) to the Conciliar Decree Ad Gentes (1965)" will take place in Rome at the Pontifical Salesian University (Piazza dell'Ateneo Salesiano No. 1). This conference is promoted by the Salesian Historical Institute in collaboration with the same university.
Over two days, a large group of international scholars will present a forty-year overview of missionary action in “missionary lands,” carried out by Salesian priests and laypeople. They departed from their motherhouse in Turin-Valdocco to overseas countries with populations that had not yet encountered the Gospel.
Until 1919, despite having over 150 educational works overseas employing nearly 1,500 Salesians—aimed at forming "honest citizens and good Christians"—the ad gentes Salesian missions were relatively few: mainly in Latin America (two in Argentina, one in Ecuador (1895), two in Brazil, and one in Paraguay by 1919), excluding those in colonial territories, such as the small Heung Shan Mission north of Macau (China), the Tanjore Mission in India, Elisabethville Mission in the Belgian Congo, and Cape Town Mission in Africa. By 1965, these ad gentes missionary territories expanded to fifteen: seven in South America, seven in Asia, and one in Africa. There were two legal frameworks under which they operated: true missions entrusted directly by the Congregation of Propaganda Fide (such as Apostolic Vicariates, Apostolic Prefectures, and Prelatures nullius), and mission centers under the jurisdiction of others.
An official report from 1970 stated that “the missionary activity of the Salesians… occurs in parishes (about one hundred), residences (500), and stations with chapels and catechists (1,500). There are also schools for indigenous peoples (mainly day schools), hospitals, clinics, dispensaries, and shelters for the elderly. It is impossible to provide figures, not even approximate ones.” However, this report failed to mention the extensive apostolate of press in local languages, the founding of minor seminaries, theatrical and musical productions, and the training of lay catechists through special programs. To these, one could add significant ethnological, linguistic, historical, geographical, and meteorological contributions.
The conference will open on May 2 with official greetings from the Secretary of the Dicastery for the Evangelization of Peoples, mons. Fortunatus Nwachukwu, the new Rector Major of the Salesians, father Fabio Attard, and the Rector of the Pontifical Salesian University, prof. Andrea Bozzolo. The morning will continue with presentations on the historical and ecclesiastical context of missions in the early 20th century, an address on the theological-cultural issues underlying these missions, and a reflection on the first missions in Patagonia (1875–1919). In the afternoon and the early hours of May 3, presentations will focus on the missionary policy of the Salesian Central Government and missionary experiences in five countries: Ecuador, Brazil, India, the former Belgian Congo, and South Africa.
Also on May 3, the missionary theme will be explored from specific and highly interesting perspectives: missionary formation houses, missionary press, missionary filmmaking, missionary founders of congregations, missionary saints, and missionary museums. The conference will conclude with a look at the present and future missionary efforts of the Salesian Congregation and Family, led by the Central Counselor for Salesian Missions.