with Mission Day Celebration in Port Moresby
Nearly 90 members of the Salesian Family gather at DBTI to reflect on the theme ‘Heart Open, Mission Alive’ on a day of historic significance for the PGS Vice-Province
PORT MORESBY, JUNE 13, 2026: On a date that holds deep historical resonance for the Catholic missionary presence in Papua New Guinea, the Salesian Vice-Province of Papua New Guinea-Solomon Islands (PGS) gathered on Saturday to observe Salesian Mission Day (SMD) 2026. The event, themed “Heart Open, Mission Alive,” drew close to 90 members of the wider Salesian Family to the Mary Help of Christians Conference Hall at Don Bosco Technological Institute (DBTI), Port Moresby.
The occasion carried an added layer of significance: June 13 marked the 46th anniversary of the arrival of the first Salesians in Papua New Guinea—a milestone that lent the day’s proceedings a quality of gratitude as much as forward-looking resolve.
In keeping with the contemplative spirit of the day, the Mission Group and its coordinator, Ms. Rica Ravilla, guided those assembled through Taizé prayer songs and a period of spiritual reflection—a quiet but purposeful overture that invited participants to gather themselves inwardly before the programme began in earnest.
Provincial Superior Anchors the Day with Twin Keynotes
Fr. Shoji Mathew, SDB, formally welcomed the assembled Salesian Family, urging participants to move beyond reflection into concrete action—to translate the day’s theme into practical resolutions. .
The intellectual and spiritual heart of the event lay in two keynote addresses delivered by Fr. Gregorio Bicomong, SDB, the Provincial Superior of PGS province. His first talk unpacked the Strenna—the annual message of the Rector Major that sets the pastoral direction for the global Salesian movement.
His second address turned to history closer to home, recounting the pioneering work of the Salesians in Kerema and Araimiri in the Gulf Province—among the congregation’s earliest and most demanding missions in the country.
A Renewed Commitment
Salesian Mission Day 2026 concluded with participants leaving the conference hall with a renewed sense of purpose. The day had served its intended function—not merely as commemoration, but as a call to sustained action. As the theme declared: hearts open, the mission alive.
