From August 17 to 20, 2025, in Bogotá – Colombia, the Meeting of Bishops of the Amazon, convened by theEcclesial Conference of the Amazon (CEAMA) this event will bring together pastors from across the Amazon region for a space of discernment, communion, and renewal of pastoral commitment to the peoples and territories of this vast biocultural region.
For Dom Neri José Tondello, Bishop of Juína – Brazil and one of the voices that has faithfully accompanied the Amazonian synodal process, this meeting represents much more than an episcopal meeting: it is an opportunity to“to resume the Church’s dialogue with the responsibility it has for the care of our Common Home”.
Almost six years after the Synod for the Amazon (2019), Dom Neri sees this space as a privileged moment to deepen an integral conversion:“a synodal, ecological, cultural and pastoral conversion”In his testimony, he emphasizes the need to critically review the history of evangelization in the region, recognizing that, while there was a missionary desire, there were also experiences of colonization that must be healed through a path of reconciliation and commitment.
A Church that listens, that mixes, that walks with the people
The bishop shares his hope that the Bogotá meeting will be a“strong and firm resumption of the synodal process”, an opportunity to renew the unity of the Church in the Amazon with joint pastoral strategies, deeply inculturated and committed to the lives of indigenous peoples.
“What inspires me most about the Amazonian Church is the resilience of Indigenous peoples, their historic patience, their capacity for organization, and their clarity about their rights. Despite being abandoned by authorities and the Church itself at various times, they remain steadfast, know what they want, and pursue it with humility and strategy.”
Dom Neri insists that inspiration for ecclesial renewal must come from below, from the resilience and wisdom of the Amazonian peoples, inviting the Church to mingle, to listen, and to be touched by that life that springs from the roots.
CEAMA: a fruit of the Synod that must be strengthened
With conviction, the Bishop of Juína affirms that he hopes that the August meeting will revitalize the main fruit of the Synod: the creation of the Ecclesial Conference of the Amazon, an unprecedented event that involves lay people, youth, women and community leaders in ecclesial life.
“I hope we will return vigorously to this and build a common project based on CEAMA. May the Church be incarnated, consider the context of our reality, and walk with all the peoples of the Amazon.”
This meeting will undoubtedly be a historic occasion to renew the path of aChurch with an Amazonian face, synodal and prophetic, which listens, learns and acts together with the peoples and with the Common House.