# Synod of Amazonico. The drama of drug trafficking and the call for ecological conversion

Vatican News – Vatican City

The tragedy of drug trafficking and its aftermath: this was one of the speeches this afternoon in the Synod Hall during the 6th General Congregation. In some areas of the Panamanian region, coca cultivation has increased from 12,000 to 23,000 hectares, with devastating effects due to increased crime and changes in the natural balance of the territory. which is becoming more and more deserted. The construction of hydropower plants, which involves deforestation of vast biodiversity-rich environmental reserves, as well as authorized fires destroying millions of hectares of land, have a very strong impact on the environment of some regions, altering thus the ecosystem. This is why a call for ecological conversion is needed: the church, they say in the room, must be a prophetic voice so that the theme of integral ecology can enter into the world. agenda of international organizations.

Inculturation and evangelization

In the other interventions of the Synod Fathers, we reflected once again on the balance between inculturation and evangelization and invited to look at the eloquent example of Jesus. In reality, the Incarnation itself is the greatest sign of inculturation, for the Word of God supposed that human nature became visible in his love. And this is the task of the Church, called to incarnate in the concrete life of the people, as the missionaries in the Amazon did.

Missionary Synod

In one of the interventions in particular, the idea was expressed that the Amazon would become a permanent laboratory for missionary synodality, both for the benefit of the inhabitants of the region and for the good of the Church. It also emphasizes the importance of interculturality and the enhancement of cultures and indigenous populations, whose worldview facilitates the management of the common house.

The difficulty of the vocation and the path of viri probati

Always on the subject of evangelization, we speak of the difficulty of priestly and religious vocations and we stop in the way of viri probati: this, as indicated in an intervention, would weaken the desire of the priests to leave. from one continent to another and also from one diocese to another. Indeed, the priest is not "of the community" but "of the Church" and, as such, can be "for any community". Another intervention emphasizes that it is not so much the ministries of the sacred that are necessary as the deacons of the faith. He then reiterated the need for greater and better training of priests and reminded the evaluation, far from clericalism, of the responsibilities of the laity.

Popular piety

Another intervention focuses on the question of popular piety, an aspect of evangelization in which we can not remain indifferent: it is a fundamental characteristic of the peoples of the Amazon and, therefore, we must take care of it, like a treasure in the school. Jesus Christ shines. Hence the idea that manifestations of popular piety are increasingly accompanied, promoted and valued by the Church.

Theology of creation

The Synod Hall also deals with the theology of creation, in which the Word of God resides for humanity. Hence the Fathers' reflection on the importance of a greater dialogue between this theology and the positive sciences, because to forget the creation would be to forget the Creator himself. The question of the defense of the rights of the peoples originating from the Amazon also has its place: the dialogue with them, one says in the room, is important and makes it possible to appreciate them as worthy interlocutors endowed with the capacity of self-determination. Particular attention should also be given to the pastoral care of indigenous youth, divided between traditional and western knowledge.

The role of women in the Church and in society

The 6th Congregation also includes listeners, fraternal delegates and special guests: they are particularly invited to promote the role of women, to strengthen their leadership within the family, society and the Church. The woman is the guardian of life, the evangelizer, the craftsman of hope – as they say in the room – is the gentle breeze of God, the maternal and merciful face of the l 39; ;Church. It is therefore important to recognize the style of proclamation of the Gospel made by Amazonian women, often silent, but very participatory in society. And it is necessary to strengthen – he says again – a gender synodality in the Church.

Interfaith and ecumenical dialogue

The synodal class also reflects on the importance of interreligious dialogue, which emphasizes trust, the perception of differences as an opportunity, far from religious colonization and close to listening and the awareness of otherness . Ecumenical dialogue is discussed below, highlighting the importance of a common path for the protection of the rights of indigenous peoples often victims of violence and Amazonian territories destroyed by predatory extraction methods or by venereal cultures venereal cultures. A common proclamation of the Gospel can be a way to fight these horrific crimes. Christians, he adds, can not remain silent in the face of the violence and injustices suffered by the Amazon and its peoples: to proclaim the love of God in the most remote corners of the region means to denounce all forms of oppression on the beauty of Creation.

Amazon, a specific place that concerns everyone

The Amazon is a concrete place, "he adds," where there are many global challenges of our time, challenges that affect everyone. "The suffering of the Amazonian people is in fact due to an "imperial" way of life in which this life is seen as a commodity and inequalities eventually grow stronger, but indigenous peoples can help understand the interconnectedness of things: global cooperation is possible and urgent.

The example of the pope

At the beginning of the freedom of expression, the pope also wanted to contribute to the re-reading of the path taken so far, highlighting what had most impressed him of what he had heard. Francisco, who opened the day praying for the "Jewish brothers" on the day of Yom Kippur, at the end of the Congregation, also recalled in his prayer the victims of the attack on the synagogue of Halle in Germany.