Pope Leo XIV says "the Church desires: to be a sign of unity...a safe haven that generates and protects life“ - "in Christ who tells us..."I have loved you” to Amazonian Bishops FULL TEXT
Pope Leo XIV sent a video message on Tuesday to the 6th Assembly of the Ecclesial Conference of the Amazonia (CEAMA), taking place in Bogota, Colombia.
FULL TEXT of Pope Leo XIV:
The peace of the Lord be with you!
With joy I address all of you, dear pastors, consecrated men and women, lay faithful, participants of the Sixth Ecclesial Conference of the Amazon, gathered in Bogotá. You are experiencing a privileged time of listening to the Holy Spirit to discern the path for the communities rooted in that region.
As part of their preparation, which has been accompanied by prayer, they wanted to share with me some of the steps they have taken, as well as the challenges they face. They shared with me the suffering and hopes of the region's inhabitants, as well as the growing deterioration of their natural environment. To all those suffering in this situation, I would like to express my solidarity.
For this reason, I am pleased that the Assembly has among its objectives the formulation of the Synodal Pastoral Horizons , which could be a useful instrument to guide the proclamation "of a God who infinitely loves every human being, who has fully manifested that love in Christ" (Francis, Post-Synodal Apostolic Exhortation Querida Amazonia , 64).
I also know that you will be holding the election of the presidency for the period 2026 to 2030, whose task, among others, will be to continue encouraging the implementation of the Synod for the Amazon and also to prepare the contributions of your experience for the Ecclesial Assembly in Rome, scheduled for 2028. Rest assured that I am accompanying you through my prayers in this important step.
With the desire to open new paths in the Church's mission in that beloved land, they have chosen a biblical text to inspire their reflections: “See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?” ( Isaiah 43:19). It is true, something new is being born; it is still fragile, but it is already underway, perhaps imperceptible, but like the seed of the shihuahuaco tree , the “giant of the jungle,” which grows remarkably slowly, yet becomes capable of living for more than a thousand years, a colossus tens of meters tall with a broad canopy, which is a safe haven for eagles, toucans, macaws, tamarins, sakis, and squirrels, becoming an ecosystem in itself. This can help us understand, dear brothers and sisters, what the Church desires: to be a sign of unity in diversity and a safe haven that generates and protects life.
The promising and hopeful future announced by the prophet Isaiah reaches its fullness in the passage from Revelation, which speaks to us of a new heaven and a new earth, because God “makes all things new” (cf. Rev 21:5). I invite you, therefore, to work with the confidence of a faith rooted in Christ who tells us repeatedly, “I have loved you” ( Rev 3:9), because it is precisely this divine-human love of Jesus that transforms us into new men and women. This love, contemplated in prayer, sends us forth to respond with generosity and courage in our mission.
In this sense, if we want to belong to Christ—the true “giant of the forest” and “Firstborn of all creation” ( Col 1:15)—we are called to be “the Church of the Beatitudes, a Church that makes room for the little ones and walks poor with the poor” (Apostolic Exhortation Dilexi te , 21).
Certainly, the current context demands an appropriate response to the numerous social, environmental, cultural, and ecclesial challenges that persist in the Amazon, threatened by situations of abuse and exploitation. In this context, the passionflower, whose distinctive shape powerfully alludes to the Passion of Christ and which you have chosen as the symbol of the Assembly, represents the prophetic role of the Church and all its members, each according to their mission: to proclaim the kerygma and the new life in Christ, to accompany those who suffer, to safeguard creation and respect life in all its forms, especially human life.
Another objective of the Ecclesial Conference, which is celebrating its fifth anniversary, is to outline a Church with an “Amazonian face,” a desire expressed by the Synod of Bishops at the Special Assembly for the Pan-Amazon Region. This task is carried out with the conviction that, “through the inculturation of the faith, the Church is enriched with new expressions and values, manifesting and celebrating ever more effectively the mystery of Christ, uniting faith more closely with life and thus contributing to a fuller catholicity, not only geographically but also culturally” ( Aparecida Document , 479).
Dear brothers and sisters, inculturation is a difficult but necessary path. “It is necessary to accept with courage the newness of the Spirit, who is always capable of creating something new from the inexhaustible treasure of Jesus Christ” (cf. Querida Amazonia , 69). Therefore, I encourage you, pastors and faithful, to continue together in strengthening the identity of missionary disciples in the Amazon. Keep sowing in the furrow that has been watered even with the blood of so many men and women who have gone before you, and who, united to the Passion of Christ, have become the root of a “giant tree” growing in the Amazon.
Entrusting the fruits of this Ecclesial Assembly to the special intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of the Creator, I wholeheartedly impart to you the Apostolic Blessing.
And may the blessing of Almighty God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, descend upon you and remain with you always. Amen.
https://press.vatican.va/content/salastampa/it/bollettino/pubblico/2026/03/17/0212/00400.html
The peace of the Lord be with you!
With joy I address all of you, dear pastors, consecrated men and women, lay faithful, participants of the Sixth Ecclesial Conference of the Amazon, gathered in Bogotá. You are experiencing a privileged time of listening to the Holy Spirit to discern the path for the communities rooted in that region.
As part of their preparation, which has been accompanied by prayer, they wanted to share with me some of the steps they have taken, as well as the challenges they face. They shared with me the suffering and hopes of the region's inhabitants, as well as the growing deterioration of their natural environment. To all those suffering in this situation, I would like to express my solidarity.
For this reason, I am pleased that the Assembly has among its objectives the formulation of the Synodal Pastoral Horizons , which could be a useful instrument to guide the proclamation "of a God who infinitely loves every human being, who has fully manifested that love in Christ" (Francis, Post-Synodal Apostolic Exhortation Querida Amazonia , 64).
I also know that you will be holding the election of the presidency for the period 2026 to 2030, whose task, among others, will be to continue encouraging the implementation of the Synod for the Amazon and also to prepare the contributions of your experience for the Ecclesial Assembly in Rome, scheduled for 2028. Rest assured that I am accompanying you through my prayers in this important step.
With the desire to open new paths in the Church's mission in that beloved land, they have chosen a biblical text to inspire their reflections: “See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?” ( Isaiah 43:19). It is true, something new is being born; it is still fragile, but it is already underway, perhaps imperceptible, but like the seed of the shihuahuaco tree , the “giant of the jungle,” which grows remarkably slowly, yet becomes capable of living for more than a thousand years, a colossus tens of meters tall with a broad canopy, which is a safe haven for eagles, toucans, macaws, tamarins, sakis, and squirrels, becoming an ecosystem in itself. This can help us understand, dear brothers and sisters, what the Church desires: to be a sign of unity in diversity and a safe haven that generates and protects life.
The promising and hopeful future announced by the prophet Isaiah reaches its fullness in the passage from Revelation, which speaks to us of a new heaven and a new earth, because God “makes all things new” (cf. Rev 21:5). I invite you, therefore, to work with the confidence of a faith rooted in Christ who tells us repeatedly, “I have loved you” ( Rev 3:9), because it is precisely this divine-human love of Jesus that transforms us into new men and women. This love, contemplated in prayer, sends us forth to respond with generosity and courage in our mission.
In this sense, if we want to belong to Christ—the true “giant of the forest” and “Firstborn of all creation” ( Col 1:15)—we are called to be “the Church of the Beatitudes, a Church that makes room for the little ones and walks poor with the poor” (Apostolic Exhortation Dilexi te , 21).
Certainly, the current context demands an appropriate response to the numerous social, environmental, cultural, and ecclesial challenges that persist in the Amazon, threatened by situations of abuse and exploitation. In this context, the passionflower, whose distinctive shape powerfully alludes to the Passion of Christ and which you have chosen as the symbol of the Assembly, represents the prophetic role of the Church and all its members, each according to their mission: to proclaim the kerygma and the new life in Christ, to accompany those who suffer, to safeguard creation and respect life in all its forms, especially human life.
Another objective of the Ecclesial Conference, which is celebrating its fifth anniversary, is to outline a Church with an “Amazonian face,” a desire expressed by the Synod of Bishops at the Special Assembly for the Pan-Amazon Region. This task is carried out with the conviction that, “through the inculturation of the faith, the Church is enriched with new expressions and values, manifesting and celebrating ever more effectively the mystery of Christ, uniting faith more closely with life and thus contributing to a fuller catholicity, not only geographically but also culturally” ( Aparecida Document , 479).
Dear brothers and sisters, inculturation is a difficult but necessary path. “It is necessary to accept with courage the newness of the Spirit, who is always capable of creating something new from the inexhaustible treasure of Jesus Christ” (cf. Querida Amazonia , 69). Therefore, I encourage you, pastors and faithful, to continue together in strengthening the identity of missionary disciples in the Amazon. Keep sowing in the furrow that has been watered even with the blood of so many men and women who have gone before you, and who, united to the Passion of Christ, have become the root of a “giant tree” growing in the Amazon.
Entrusting the fruits of this Ecclesial Assembly to the special intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of the Creator, I wholeheartedly impart to you the Apostolic Blessing.
And may the blessing of Almighty God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, descend upon you and remain with you always. Amen.
https://press.vatican.va/content/salastampa/it/bollettino/pubblico/2026/03/17/0212/00400.html
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