More than 180 priests from Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, and Venezuela participated virtually on Wednesday, November 5, in the Meeting of Priests of the Amazon, convened by the Ecclesial Conference of the Amazon (CEAMA) as part of the listening process toward the definition of the Synodal Apostolic Priorities.
The meeting, held in multiple languages—with simultaneous interpretation in Spanish, Portuguese, and English—provided an opportunity to share experiences, challenges, and hopes for priestly ministry in the vast Amazonian territory. Alicia Covaleda (Consultant) and Marcelo Lemos (Executive Secretary) were in charge of technical and logistical coordination, facilitating group work, moderators, and rapporteurs to ensure the active participation of priests from different jurisdictions.
Cardinal Pedro Barreto, president of CEAMA, opened the meeting with a message of hope, recalling that the conference is the fruit of the Synod for the Amazon (2019) and a concrete sign of ecclesial communion. He also highlighted the fundamental role of priests as servants of the People of God in frontier contexts, and invited them to “keep alive the joy of the Gospel in the midst of difficulties and geographical isolation.”
During the meeting, key issues were addressed, such as the inculturated formation of the clergy, the promotion of the lay ministry, the spiritual and human accompaniment of priests, and the defense of indigenous peoples. The priests agreed on the need to strengthen priestly fraternity and collaboration with the laity, promoting a Church with an Amazonian and synodal face.
Hopes
Among the signs of hope shared, participants highlighted the growing role of the laity and indigenous communities, the emergence of native vocations, the ecological and missionary awareness growing at the grassroots level, and the synodality lived in communion between priests, religious, and Amazonian peoples. They also highlighted the value of formative experiences such as the Amazonian seminaries in Ecuador and Peru, which seek theological and pastoral formation rooted in the local reality.
Voices from the territory: realities and challenges
The priests identified structural difficulties such as the scarcity of economic resources, large geographical distances, limited connectivity, and the lack of systematic accompaniment. They also pointed out the urgent need for inculturated formation that responds to contemporary challenges, the shortage of Amazonian diocesan priests, the progressive loss of indigenous languages and cultures, and the physical and spiritual exhaustion of the clergy due to isolation and pastoral overload.
One of the most frequently mentioned challenges was the lack of knowledge about the mission and meaning of CEAMA in many territories. The participants proposed strengthening the processes of communication and accompaniment to the dioceses and vicariates in order to “make CEAMA felt from the grassroots,” overcoming fears and promoting a living understanding of its missionary identity.
Priorities for the common journey
Among the pastoral priorities identified, the following stand out:
- The formation of clergy with an Amazonian identity, sensitive to the cultures and languages of the peoples.
- The promotion of lay and community ministries that respond to the shortage of priests.
- The spiritual, human, and economic accompaniment of priests, especially the elderly and those living in isolated areas.
- The defense of Amazonian life and territories against extractive interests.
- The promotion of synodality and networking among jurisdictions, congregations, and local communities.
CEAMA committed to compiling and systematizing the contributions that emerged from the meeting as input for the next Assembly in March 2026, where the Synodal Apostolic Horizons will be defined.
This space for dialogue and communion reaffirmed the shared conviction that the mission in the Amazon requires an incarnate, fraternal, and prophetic Church, capable of listening to the cry of the peoples and the territory, walking together under the guidance of the Spirit.
