{"id":122796,"date":"2026-10-14T19:25:06","date_gmt":"2026-10-14T17:25:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ofmcap.org\/ix-cpo-riflessioni-sulla-missione-lautenticita-e-le-sfide-contemporanee\/"},"modified":"2026-10-14T19:28:23","modified_gmt":"2026-10-14T17:28:23","slug":"ix-cpo-riflessioni-sulla-missione-lautenticita-e-le-sfide-contemporanee","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ofmcap.org\/en\/ix-cpo-riflessioni-sulla-missione-lautenticita-e-le-sfide-contemporanee\/","title":{"rendered":"PCO IX: Reflections on Mission, Authenticity, and Contemporary Challenges"},"content":{"rendered":"

On the second day of the Plenary Council, the delegates discussed changes in contemporary society and the need for a more prophetic Church, drawing inspiration from the beauty of evangelization and the encounter between cultures.<\/strong><\/em><\/h4>\n

The Order\u2019s Plenary Council continues; its first week is devoted to the presentation of various reports designed to help delegates reflect on and discuss the mission, collaboration, and vision of the Fraternities of St. Lawrence. On the second day of the session, October 13, 2026, a series of distinguished speakers took the floor, offering valuable insights into the Church\u2019s mission and the challenges of the contemporary world.<\/p>\n

From Logistics to Mysticism: Cardinal Bustillo\u2019s Address<\/strong><\/h4>\n

Early in the morning, Cardinal Fran\u00e7ois-Xavier Bustillo, OFMConv, Bishop of Ajaccio (Corsica, France), addressed the gathering and issued a powerful call for authenticity and missionary courage. In a speech rich with literary and spiritual references\u2014ranging from Tolstoy to Voltaire to contemporary philosophers\u2014the cardinal called on the Church to move beyond bureaucratic \u201cmanagement\u201d and return to a prophetic \u201cvision,\u201d rediscovering a passion for the Gospel. He warned against the risk of leading \u201cconformist and formalistic\u201d lives, citing Tolstoy\u2019s The Death of Ivan Ilyich to emphasize that pastoral success or ecclesiastical status mean nothing if they lack \u201cshared truth, compassion, and inner strength.\u201d Indeed, a friar must not merely play a role but live out the authenticity of the Gospel. To do so, one must guard against spiritual amnesia\u2014that is, forgetting God\u2019s action\u2014as well as against lukewarmness, defined as \u201cthe peace of cemeteries\u201d and understood as a paralysis stemming from the fear of taking risks, and against spiritual anemia, that weariness which leads to stagnation. Furthermore, in sketching a picture of the modern world, he recalled that, despite apparent secularization, contemporary man continues to seek meaning and that \u201cthe world of faith is still alive.\u201d Christian spirituality thus becomes a response to modern anguish and to the emptiness experienced by \u201ctechnical and scientific\u201d humanity. The cardinal concluded his remarks by inviting the audience to move \u201cfrom logistics to mysticism\u201d and to explore new and creative paths, since \u201cthe mission requires the contribution of the imagination.\u201d.<\/p>\n

The Crisis of the Intelligence of Faith and the Anthropological Metamorphosis<\/strong><\/h4>\n

In the second part of the morning, Father Fabrizio Meroni of the Pontifical Institute for Foreign Missions delivered a forceful and critical presentation on the current state of the Church. Father Meroni described today\u2019s crisis not as a mere decline in numbers, but as a profound crisis of the intelligence of faith, and proposed radical reforms for the future. Reflecting on current challenges, he stated that the Church must confront the \u201canthropological metamorphosis\u201d caused by artificial intelligence (AI), technological virtuality, and what he termed \u201cfluid ideologies\u201d\u2014such as gender theory and animal-rights environmentalism\u2014which dematerialize reality and erase essential differences. Faced with humanized robots and abstract computerization, Christians are called to defend an \u201cincarnate intelligence\u201d and the ontological superiority of men and women. Father Meroni concluded his speech with a strong appeal, arguing that the Church must stop wasting time and money on \u201cbuildings for pastoral care, curias, and offices.\u201d Instead, the Church\u2019s financial resources should be managed by competent Christians to provide concrete support for families, healthcare, education, and employment.<\/p>\n

Testimonies from the Missions: Challenges Turn into Hope<\/strong><\/h5>\n

Following the intense presentations of the morning, the afternoon sessions focused on testimonies from friars serving in mission territories. The first to speak was Br. Odilo Mroso, from Tanzania, who shared a moving account of his missionary experience. His vocation, born of a strong childhood desire to become a priest, led him in 1998 to agree to go to South Africa, a country then known for its high crime rate. Although he faced initial difficulties related to learning a new language\u2014Zulu\u2014and adapting to an unfamiliar environment, his dedication and the warm welcome from the local community allowed him to integrate and carry out his ministry successfully.<\/p>\n

In the second session, Br. Prince Mathew Valiyakunnel offered a profound reflection on the missionary vocation, presenting a documentary on the work of the Capuchins of the Nirmala (Matha) Custody in Assam-Meghalaya, India. His central message was one of great hope: by facing sacrifices with humility, prayer, and patience, \u201cwhat was bitter becomes sweet again.\u201d The missionary, in fact, learns not to impose his own culture, but to listen, thus allowing a foreign land to become home and strangers to become family.<\/p>\n

\"2-<\/a>