The second day of the Meeting of Bishops of the Amazon was described as the most significant of the entire event. Mauricio López, lay vice president of the Ecclesial Conference of the Amazon (CEAMA) and one of the leaders of the process, said that the day was “the heart of the meeting,” as it focused on spiritual conversation.
“The objective was to give space to the protagonist of this whole process, which will allow CEAMA to be relaunched, namely the Holy Spirit,” he explained, highlighting that the dynamic allowed for mutual listening between the bishops and discernment about CEAMA’s mission.
The work was structured into 12 groups, organized mainly by country and language. Five groups were made up of bishops from Brazil speaking Portuguese, four from Spanish-speaking countries, one in English with representatives from the Antilles, and two special groups made up of institutions that accompany CEAMA’s journey.
Diversity of voices in discernment
These spaces were attended by bodies such as the Dicastery for Integral Human Development, the episcopal conferences of the Amazonian countries, Caritas, the Pan-Amazonian Ecclesial Network (Repam), and universities in the United States, as well as foundations that have supported projects in the region.
According to López, the methodology of the day was developed in three stages: It was an attempt to start from the “I,” the fruit of personal prayer, to the “you,” in dialogue with others, and finally to the “we,” building together the specific fruits of discernment.
This process was valued as an exercise in synodality, where the movements of the Spirit were heard in each voice.
Inspiration from Cardinal Hummes and Pope Francis
The reflection was illuminated by the memory of Cardinal Claudio Hummes, whom López defined as “a prophet who marked the way for many of the Amazonian processes… and the call not to lose focus on the Synod for the Amazon.” His words, reproduced in a recording, were a reminder that discernment must avoid getting sidetracked by secondary issues and focus on the essential: “new paths for the Church and for an integral ecology.”
A recording of Pope Francis was also shared, calling for an “overflow of the Spirit” in the face of the complexity of the Amazonian conflicts. “Know that the conflict cannot be resolved with patches.”
This spiritual framework helped the groups to deepen their understanding of CEAMA’s mission and to recognize the centrality of its vocation as an organism of communion at the service of the peoples of the Amazon.
Contributions from the groups and open plenary
In the afternoon, the 12 group rapporteurs presented the fruits of the conversation in the Spirit. Subsequently, three members of the meeting highlighted the main points of convergence, and finally, an open plenary session was held, which was described as “very enriching.”
“Many were in line with recognizing CEAMA as an organization of communion, others invited it to communicate more strongly the message of what CEAMA is and wants to be, and others identified that CEAMA can be a profoundly important instrument for formation, for evangelization, but also for responding to issues of ministry and care for our common home,” explained López.
“Very much in line with the Amazon Synod, but as someone said today: we recognize that the Amazon Synod is still alive,” he shared.
The memory of the Amazonian martyrs
This special day also included a moment of spirituality dedicated to the martyrs of the Amazon, in particular Monsignor Alejandro Labaka and Sister Inés Arango: “in their self-sacrificing lives, in the generosity of a life given so that there might be more life for the peoples.”
The testimony of those who gave their lives for the defense of the peoples and the Common Home was present in the Conversation in the Spirit.
In this context, local experiences were shared that show the vitality of the synodal journey in the Amazon: the Vicariate of Water in Iquitos (Peru), the experience of the diocese of Georgetown (Guyana), and the extensive work of the vicariate of Inírida (Colombia), described as “an ecosystem of very interesting synodal processes.”
“Members of the same Church that is becoming more synodal”
The day ended with a sacramental gesture of baptismal renewal, a sign of the unity of the Church: “Our unity in the commitment to follow Jesus and we renew this sacrament to recognize that this is what unites us.”
“All members of the same Church that is becoming more synodal to the extent that it genuinely listens to the voices of the people, to the extent that it responds with its identity and its own sacramentality as Church to the cries and hopes of the peoples so that they may have life and life in abundance,” he concluded.