In 2017, Pope Francis announced that the Church would focus its next synod on a remote part of the planet—almost at the end of the world.
POPE FRANCIS
I decided to convene a special assembly of the synod of bishops for the Pan-Amazonian region.
The synod took place in October 2019 in Rome. And several proposals came out of it. Some of them Pope Francis outlined in his apostolic exhortation, “Dear Amazonia.” Years later, many of these initiatives have been carried out, while others are still being studied or have been put on hold for various reasons.
WHAT HAS BEEN DONE SINCE?
AN ORGANIZATION FOR THE AMAZON
At the Synod, it became clear that the dioceses of the Amazon region needed to promote a coordinated, more active pastoral approach, capable of adapting to the specific needs of the indigenous peoples, as the Pope had requested. Thus, the CEAMA institution was born.
ABP. OMAR DE JESÚS MEJÍA
Diocese of Florencia, Colombia
What do we want? First, to evangelize. That is our task. But we also want to get to know more personally the native peoples, the farmers and those who live in the different corners of the Amazon—in the cities, countryside and reservations.
Pope Francis canonically approved CEAMA in 2021 and, in 2023, they held their first in-person assembly.
A ROVING RED MISSIONARY
The Amazon stretches across more than 3 million square miles, includes 9 countries and is home to numerous nomadic indigenous populations. For various reasons, these groups do not live in the same place all the time. Therefore, in his exhortation, Pope Francis called for a pastoral ministry carried out by missionaries who can move throughout the territory.
While such missionaries have always existed, the Synod called for the creation of a network to strengthen the bonds between them, exchange experiences and promote joint projects. This has now become a reality. In 2023, the network had a meeting with about 50 missionaries in attendance.
A CATHOLIC UNIVERSITY IN THE AMAZON
This was one of the biggest goals of the Synod: to create a Catholic university in the Amazon. The objective was to give the indigenous peoples the opportunity to have an academic formation, taking their culture into account. It also provided an opportunity to bring teachers closer to the reality of the aboriginal people.
As a result, the Pontifical Catholic University of Ecuador opened a branch in the Amazon in 2021. There, two of the four degrees it offers are Interpreter of Amazonian Languages and Agricultural Engineering.
WHAT PROPOSALS ARE STILL UNDER CONSIDERATION?
FEMALE DIACONATE
The female diaconate was another question that arose during the Amazonian Synod.
BP. ERWIN KRÄUTLER
Bishop Emeritus of Xingu, Brasil
We talk about valuing the role of women, but how? We have to go further. We have to propose something concrete. I think and dream about the female diaconate. Why not?
The proposal was included in the final document of the Synod. Although Pope Francis does not mention it in his final exhortation, he did set up several commissions to study it. And at the most recent synod focused on synodality, the female diaconate was once again discussed.
WHICH PROPOSALS HAVE BEEN REJECTED?
ORDINATION OF MARRIED MEN
The possibility of ordaining married men provoked different reactions in the Synod. The issue revolved around the lack of vocations and the shortage of priests to administer the sacraments in this region.
CARD. CLÁUDIO HUMMES
General Relator of the Synod on the Amazon
There is a lack of human resources, especially ordained ministers. There is such a lack of ordained ministers that 70 to 80% of the communities in the interior of the Amazon, which is Brazilian, have very, very little sacramental life—apart from baptism and marriage.
Yet, the Pope has stressed that this shortage is not the problem. He pointed out the influx of indigenous people entering the seminaries.
POPE FRANCIS
It is a real social injustice that indigenous people are not allowed to enter the seminary and join the priesthood.
Pope Francis also pointed out that many priests from the Amazon live abroad. In Colombia, for example, there were more than 1,000 in the United States and Europe.
In 2023, the Pope emphasized to a group of Colombians that the ordination of married men is not the solution.
ABP. OMAR DE JESÚS MEJÍA
Diocese of Florencia, Colombia
He says: this is not the problem. And I can say he gave me—or gave us, the bishops of the Amazon, the pastoral project.
Specifically, Pope Francis gave them four keys for the pastoral care of the Amazon. They are training the indigenous peoples to be catechists, ordaining permanent deacons to dedicate themselves to the community, instilling in the priests a missionary spirit so they are not afraid to go to the Amazon and, at the institutional level, having greater collaboration among the bishops of the dioceses.
CA
TR: KG
