The Rector Major of the Salesians, Fr Pascual Chávez, is inviting all the members of the Salesian Family to unite in the initiative promoted by the Global Network of Religions for Children to celebrate the “World Day of Prayer and Action for Children and Youth” which is celebrated tomorrow, 20 November.
Since 2008 this organisation has associated itself with the Universal Children’s Day established by the United Nations in 1989 on the occasion of the approval of the Convention on Children’s Rights adding to the international message of the UNO a specifically spiritual and inter-religious dimension.
The Rector Major’s invitation to the members of the Salesian Family to unite in this venture follows on from his other interventions: the appeal at the Campidoglio in Rome in 2002 “Before it is too late let us save the children, the future of the world”; the Strenna for 2008 “Let us educate with the heart of Don Bosco, to develop to their full potential the lives of the young, especially the poorest and most disadvantaged, promoting their rights; and the International Congress “The Preventive System and Human Rights” in January 2009.
In the letter – available on the sdb.org site and in the Service section of ANS – Fr Chávez issues his invitation to the Salesian Family, in the conviction that “only if religious leaders and all of us join together in our efforts will it be possible to respond adequately to the dramatic and massive violations to the dignity and to the fundamental rights of children in the world.”
Fr Chávez attaches to his letter the “Inter-religious Prayer for Children” – also found in the ANS Service – with the invitation to say it on Saturday 20 November in order to “send a strong message to the whole world of mission and commitment.”
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