A few days before the Meeting of Bishops of the Amazon, to be held August 17-20 at the CELAM headquarters, Cardinal Pedro Barreto, president of CEAMA, shared a profound reflection on the historical and pastoral journey of the Church in this territory, as well as the importance of the ongoing synodal process.
The Cardinal recalled that the Church’s presence in the Amazon dates back more than 500 years, a journey marked by light and shadow, but always characterized by a dynamic of listening: to God, to the indigenous peoples, and to all those who, moved by the Spirit, have worked for an incarnate evangelization. “Although it was not called synodal, it has been a journey together from the beginning,” he emphasized.
From Medellín to Santarém: milestones of a commitment
In his historical review, he highlighted the influence of the Second Vatican Council and its reception in Latin America through the Second Episcopal Conference in Medellín (1968), where the preferential option for the poor was affirmed, later reaffirmed by Pope Benedict XVI in Aparecida (2007).
In the Amazon region, he pointed to two key milestones: the meeting of bishops in Iquitos (1971), where an Amazonian episcopal conference was proposed for the first time, and the meeting in Santarém (1972), which reinforced that vision. “These were the foundations of what we are living today in the Church in the Amazon,” he said.
CEAMA: the fruit of a synodal process
Cardinal Barreto recalled that the Ecclesial Conference of the Amazon (CEAMA), created by Pope Francis five years ago, is the direct fruit of the Synod for the Amazon and the extensive listening process carried out by REPAM in 45 territorial assemblies. That dialogue, he said, became a fundamental input for the Synod’s working document in 2019.
A historic meeting in Bogotá
Regarding the upcoming meeting, he reported that about 90 Amazonian bishops, out of a total of 105 ecclesiastical jurisdictions in the territory, will gather in Bogotá. They will be accompanied by the Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development, Cardinal Michael Czerny, and various institutions committed to a Church with an Amazonian face.
“Pope Francis dreamed of a Church that listens, participates, discerns, and strongly takes on the mission of evangelization in this beloved territory. Now, with Pope Leo XIV, we are experiencing the novelty of continuing on that path,“ he said.
The Cardinal concluded his message with a call to live this third phase of the synodal process with hope: ”We want to build together a Church that listens, participates, and proclaims the Gospel with vigor in the Amazon.”