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CELAM celebrates 70 years with a telegram from Pope Leo XIV
The bishops of Latin America and the Caribbean gather for the 40th Ordinary General Assembly of CELAM, marking 70 years since the first General Conference of the Episcopate was held in Rio de Janeiro in 1955. May 31, 2025
The bishops of Latin America and the Caribbean have gathered for the 40th Ordinary General Assembly of CELAM
By Sebastián Sansón FerrariIn a spirit of gratitude, living memory, and renewed commitment, the bishops of Latin America and the Caribbean have gathered for the 40th Ordinary General Assembly of the Latin American and Caribbean Episcopal Council (CELAM), marking 70 years since the first General Conference of the Episcopate, held in Rio de Janeiro in 1955.
To commemorate this occasion, Pope Leo XIV sent a telegram to Cardinal Jaime Spengler, Archbishop of Porto Alegre and president of CELAM, warmly greeting the Council and emphasizing the continuing importance of ecclesial communion.
The Pope's message summarizes the role CELAM has played in the life of the Church on the American continents: an expression of episcopal collegiality, an instrument of pastoral coordination, and a driving force for evangelization in diverse and often painful contexts.
'I join you all in giving thanks to the Lord,' the Holy Father states, 'for this joyful anniversary, which reminds us how the Latin American and Caribbean Episcopal Council is a sign of collegiality […] at the service of the holy and faithful People of God who journey on that beloved continent.'
A direct message
The message does not shy away from the painful reality facing Latin America where 'a great number of men and women are suffering tribulation and poverty caused by ongoing crises at both the continental and global levels.'
In the face of these challenges, the Pope encourages the bishops not to lose sight of the centrality of the Risen Christ, who 'protects and guides the Church, rekindling hope within her.' His call is clear: go out and meet those who dwell in the peripheries, wounded by injustice, and proclaim to them the Gospel with 'the joy that springs from a personal encounter with Him.'
Both witness and participant
Since its foundation seven decades ago, CELAM has been both witness to and participant in crucial ecclesial conferences: Medellín in 1968, Puebla in 1979, Santo Domingo in 1992, and Aparecida in 2007. Each of these was an expression of communal discernment in light of the signs of the times. Today, in the era of synodality, this path takes on new dimensions and new challenges.
From Bogotá, Colombia—where CELAM is headquartered—the assembly not only looked back on its past, but projected itself forward with a missionary spirit. As Pope Leo noted, the aim is to 'seek, in true and effective communion, pastoral initiatives that offer solutions grounded in the criteria of Sacred Scripture, Tradition, and the Magisterium.'
At the close of his telegram, the Pope entrusts the bishops to the intercession of Our Lady of Guadalupe, mother of the peoples of the Americas. He asks them to pray for him and imparts his apostolic blessing as a 'pledge of abundant heavenly gifts.'--Vatican News
