As part of its visit to Rome, the Ecclesial Conference of the Amazon (CEAMA) held a valuable meeting with the Dicastery for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life, through Cardinal Ángel Fernández Artime, Pro-Prefect of the Dicastery.
The dialogue took place in an atmosphere of great closeness, gratitude, and shared hope, where the profound contribution of religious life to the Amazonian synodal process and to the building of a Church with an Amazonian, synodal, and intercultural face was recognized.
A consecrated life rooted in the peoples and the territory
During the meeting, the CEAMA delegation presented the progress of the ecclesial journey in the Amazon, highlighting the transformative power of consecrated women’s life in the territories.
Sister Laura Vicuña, on behalf of the Amazonian religious women, emphasized that “consecrated women have been a faithful, silent, and fruitful presence among the peoples, accompanying processes of life, education, health, and incarnate evangelization. From the indigenous and riverside communities, we continue to weave hope together with the families and native peoples.”
Cardinal Fernández Artime expressed his heartfelt gratitude for this testimony, emphasizing that consecrated life in the Amazon “inspires the entire universal Church to rediscover simplicity, closeness, and concrete commitment to the poorest and to creation.” He added that the Dicastery “looks with hope at the CEAMA process and recognizes in it a mature expression of synodality and shared mission.”
Intercongregationality and shared mission
The participants discussed at length the importance of intercongregationality as a distinctive feature of the mission in the Amazon. Religious communities, beyond their particular charisms, have learned to live in communion and complementarity, joining forces in pastoral, educational, and ecological projects.
Mauricio López, vice president of CEAMA, pointed out that “this way of living and working together expresses the newness of the Spirit that drives a Church that learns to discern communally, where all charisms are called to be at the service of life.”
For his part, Bishop Zenildo Lima, vice president of CEAMA, recalled that “consecrated life is a school of synodality; it teaches us to walk in fraternity and service, without protagonism, but in authentic communion with the people of God.”
A sign of hope for the whole Church
Cardinal Pedro Barreto, president of CEAMA, expressed his gratitude to the Dicastery for its constant support of the Amazonian ecclesial process, stating: “CEAMA is the fruit of the Spirit; it is an unprecedented expression of ecclesial communion that integrates consecrated life, the laity, bishops, priests, and indigenous peoples. To care for it is to care for a gift from God for the whole Church.“
Patricia Gualinga also highlighted the prophetic dimension of Amazonian religious women, noting that ”their presence among the most forgotten peoples, their simple way of living their faith, and their commitment to creation are a witness to the Gospel that illuminates the present and future of consecrated life.”
A gesture that speaks from the heart of the territory
The meeting concluded with a deeply symbolic gesture. CEAMA offered the Dicastery a gift representative of the Amazonian spirit: a handicraft from Cumare in the Department of Vichada (Colombia), as an expression of communion, gratitude, and shared hope.