https://episkopat.pl/doc/248733.W-Belgradzie-zakonczylo-sie-spotkanie-Sekretarzy-Generalnych
https://episkopat.pl/doc/248760.Belgrado-ha-ospitato-l-incontro-dei-Segretari-Generali-delle
The meeting opened on Sunday, 14 June, with the celebration of Holy Mass in the Cathedral of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary, presided over by H. Em. Card. Ladislav Nemet, Archbishop of Belgrade and Vice President of the CCEE.
The proceedings began on 15 June with the introductory greetings from Cardinal Nemet, from H.E. Msgr. Santo Rocco Gangemi, Apostolic Nuncio to Serbia, and by H.E. Msgr. Gintaras Grušas, Archbishop of Vilnius and President of the CCEE. In his address, the President of the CCEE drew inspiration from Pope Leo XIV’s encyclical Magnifica Humanitas as a framework for reflecting on the anthropological, cultural, pastoral, and spiritual aspects of priestly formation in Europe today. He emphasised that the Church in Europe needs truly human priests, close to people and capable of accompanying them through life’s challenges with the eyes of the Gospel, making tangible the nearness of Christ.
This was followed by a presentation of the local Church by H.E. Msgr. Mirko Štefković, Bishop of Zrenjanin and General Secretary of the International Bishops’ Conference of Saints Cyril and Methodius. The introduction to the work was entrusted to the General Secretary General of the CCEE, Msgr. Antonio Ammirati, who also presented the newly appointed General Secretaries from within the Conferences across Europe.
The first working session opened with a report by H.E. Msgr. Alfonso Amarante, C.Ss.R., Magnificent Rector of the Pontifical Lateran University, entitled: “The Beauty of the Priesthood at the Service of a Complex World”. Msgr. Amarante described contemporary Europe as an era of “cultural apocalypse” without eschaton, identifying certain features that directly affect ministry, such as interpretative illiteracy, the loss of the teacher–disciple relationship, and the pervasiveness of media and artificial intelligence, stressing that the crisis cannot be resolved through superficial measures. He then outlined four essential aspects of the presbyter, according to the magisterium of the last four Pontiffs: the priest in his union with Christ and the Eucharist, in his friendship with God and with others, in his pastoral closeness, and in his life of presbyteral fraternity. Finally, he pointed to three challenges: the relational identity of ordained ministry “with” and “among” the people; how to make seminaries “real places”; and inhabiting poverty as a true seminary for this era.
In the afternoon of that first day, the General Secretaries shared their own experiences and reflections on the meeting’s theme.
The day of 16 June focused on the theme “The Vocation to the Priesthood and Integral Formation: Crisis, Witness, Prayer”. Dr. Chiara D’Urbano, psychologist and psychotherapist, offered a reflection on “Psycho-Affective Formation for the Priesthood: Perspectives from the Human Sciences”. In her intervention, she highlighted the importance of safeguarding the priest as a real person in formation, not merely constructing a function, emphasising that a person’s balance and well-being depend on the acceptance and integration of psycho-affective dimensions, within an environment that provides security and welcomes fears. A solid and serene vocation requires the ability to live authentic relationships and to grow “through” limitations, not “against” them, within a context of fraternity and mutual support, which offer the presbyter a way of life that allows him to be “human among humans”.
Subsequently, Rev. Michele Gianola, Secretary of the CCEE Section for Vocations/EVS, provided a speech on the theme “Priestly Ministry: An Ongoing Journey of Formation”. Presenting various statistical data on the presbyterate in Europe in comparison with baptisms and marriages, Fr. Gianola combined numerical analysis, socio-cultural perception, and texts of the Ratio Nationalis, inviting to a conversion in how we view the numbers and a shift of paradigm. He stressed that priestly formation must be conceived as a single, uninterrupted arc that does not end with priestly ordination, nor should it be limited to updates and occasional events, but rather unfolds through ministry itself as a permanent path of formation, lived “shoulder to shoulder in mission,” in communion with the Bishop, in the fraternity of the presbyterate, in service to the People of God, and within an environment of authentic friendships.
The final day was devoted to reports by the Secretaries of the CCEE Commissions, who presented the main activities and initiatives carried out by the respective Sections of the Commissions over the past year. Contributions were made by Prof. Ernesto Diaco (Commission for Youth), Rev. Luis Okulik (Commission for Social Pastoral Care), as well as Rev. Mihails Volohovs (Commission for Evangelisation and Culture). The participants also received an update on the activities of COMECE presented by its General Secretary, Rev. Manuel Barrios Prieto.
The session concluded with interventions by the General Secretaries on the development of synodality at the national level, during which experiences, challenges, and best practices emerging from the synodal journey of local Churches in Europe were shared.
During the meeting, the General Secretaries expressed their closeness to the Ukrainian people following recent attacks that caused civilian casualties and damaged the Cathedral of the Dormition of the Kyiv Pechersk Lavra, renewing their appeal for “a disarmed and disarming peace”.
Alongside the working sessions, the programme included moments of prayer, liturgical celebrations, and a cultural visit to the historical and religious heritage of Belgrade.
The next Meeting of the General Secretaries of the European Bishops’ Conferences will take place in Sarajevo from 13 to 16 June 2027.
CCEE
