VATICAN - The Pope asks for a year of missionary commitment to the priests candidates for the diplomatic service of the Holy See

Monday, 17 February 2020

Vatican City (Agenzia Fides) - The Holy Father Francis has asked to integrate a year of missionary commitment in a diocese of particular Churches in the training curriculums of the priests candidates for the diplomatic service of the Holy See, in order to train them in apostolic zeal to go to the border territories, outside of their diocese of origin. The Holy Father's letter to His Exc. Mgr. Joseph Marino, President of the Pontifical Ecclesiastical Academy, was made known today by the Vatican Press Office with this request.
In order to face the growing challenges for the Church and for the world positively, "future diplomats of the Holy See must acquire, in addition to the solid priestly and pastoral formation, and the specific formation offered by this Academy, also a personal mission experience outside their own Diocese of origin, sharing with the missionary Churches a period of journey together with their community, participating in their daily evangelizing activity".
The Pope therefore asked Archbishop Marino "to enrich the academic training curriculum with a year dedicated entirely to missionary service in the particular Churches around the world", in close collaboration with the Secretariat of State and with the Pontifical Representatives. "The missionary experience that we want to promote - the Holy Father explains - will be useful not only to young academics, but also to the individual Churches with which they will collaborate and, I hope, will arouse in other priests of the universal Church the desire to make themselves available to carry out a period of missionary service outside their own Diocese". (SL) (Agenzia Fides, 17/2/2020)


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