Togo – The Apostolic Nuncio to Benin and Togo visits the ISDB in Lomé

The distinguished guest was welcomed in the joyful atmosphere that characterises Salesian houses. After the welcome and tour of the Institute’s premises, Archbishop Rubén Darío was taken to the large Mary Help of Christians hall, where he met the students. He immediately said that he had come ‘on behalf of the Holy Father to greet and congratulate you on your work.’ He then expressed to the students his great joy at being among them. During this moment of exchange, he also questioned them about the situation that today’s youth are going through, namely one of ‘mental deforestation in which young people no longer make efforts towards productivity, reflection, creativity and prefer to take refuge in easy things, with tools such as Artificial Intelligence.’ He invited them to escape ‘the trap of ease, of daily scrolling, which does not leave enough room for reflection.’ Finally, he invited the students to ‘row against the tide to be true witnesses of Christ in this fluid world.’

The second part of his visit was a meeting with the administrative and teaching staff of the ISDB. This exchange provided an opportunity to address the challenges of education in the world and, above all, the importance that the Church attaches to education. The Apostolic Nuncio made this appeal to the teachers: ‘You have a very important job in your hands, because young people are here and they are asking for good, quality formation to become good Christians and upright citizens.’ He appreciated the facilities and thanked the entire educational community for the quality of the formation provided at ISDB. With regard to the quality of formation, he cited as an example the Faculty of Communication of the Pontifical Salesian University, presented as one of the benchmarks in terms of formation in communication.

The visit concluded with the celebration of the Eucharist presided over by Archbishop Rubén Darío Ruiz Mainardi and concelebrated by a dozen priests. During his homily, the Nuncio reiterated the resolutions that every student must adopt in order to become a model for this fluid society. He concluded his visit by visiting the Salesian postnovitiate community. This pastoral visit by the Apostolic Nuncio to the Don Bosco Higher Institute in Lomé was a source of blessing and motivation for the entire educational community to continue working for the good of young people.