New Bishops gather in Rome for formation course
147 newly appointed bishops from five continents attend a formation course in Rome from 2–10 September, organized by the Dicastery for Bishops and the Dicastery for Evangelisation. The course covers episcopal ministry, liturgy, mission, safeguarding, abuse handling, Church governance, canon law, interreligious dialogue, new religious movements, priestly formation and clergy challenges. Sessions feature addresses by Cardinal Arthur Roche, Cardinal Claudio Gugerotti, Archbishop Vittorio Viola, Archbishop Luis Javier Argüello García, Archbishop Thibault Verny, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Cardinal José Tolentino de Mendonça, Cardinal Angelo De Donatis, Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle and Archbishop Fortunatus Nwachukwu. The program culminates in an audience with Pope Leo XIV for the participants.
26 days ago
The Vatican’s annual formation course for newly appointed bishops is bringing 147 bishops from five continents to Rome from September 2–10, 2026. The program combines spiritual formation, practical instruction, liturgical celebrations, safeguarding, pastoral ministry, canon law, governance, and preparation for an audience with Pope Leo XIV. 1
The course is organized jointly by the Dicastery for Bishops and the Dicastery for Evangelization. Ninety-eight bishops are participating in the Dicastery for Bishops’ program, titled In Christ, Custodians of Magnifica Humanitas in Times of Transformation, while 49 bishops serving missionary territories are attending the Dicastery for Evangelization’s course, Servants of Communion in the Church. 1
The annual program has been part of the Church’s calendar since 2000, when it was launched by Pope John Paul II. It is intended to help new bishops exchange experiences across different cultural and ecclesial contexts while gaining practical guidance for governing local Churches. 1 2
Participants come from countries across Africa, Asia, Oceania, and Latin America, including Algeria, Bangladesh, Cameroon, Colombia, Ethiopia, Ghana, India, Indonesia, Kenya, Myanmar, Papua New Guinea, Peru, the Philippines, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Vietnam, Zimbabwe, and others. 1 2
The Dicastery for Bishops’ course addresses episcopal ministry, liturgy, the mission of the bishop in family and society, cultural change, the internal forum, safeguarding minors, abuse prevention, and the handling of abuse cases. It also covers the Holy See’s role in a globalized world and its efforts to promote peace. 1
Cardinal Arthur Roche opened the course, while Cardinal Claudio Gugerotti is scheduled to address episcopal ministry and Archbishop Vittorio Viola to speak about liturgy. Archbishop Thibault Verny, president of the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors, is leading the safeguarding session.
Cardinal José Tolentino de Mendonça is addressing contemporary cultural change. Cardinal Angelo De Donatis is presenting the norms, theology, and limits surrounding the Church’s internal forum and the absolute seal of sacramental confession. 1
The 49 bishops serving territories under the Dicastery for Evangelization are meeting at the Pontifical Missionary College of St. Peter the Apostle. Their sessions focus on the Church’s mission territories, clergy discipline, consecrated life, financial administration, associations of the faithful, and pastoral challenges specific to missionary Churches. 1
Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle and Archbishop Fortunatus Nwachukwu are among the speakers. The program includes discussion of tribalism, caste discrimination, racism, and exclusionary regionalism, alongside the relationship between faith and inculturation. 1
Other sessions address interreligious dialogue, continuity and renewal in the liturgy, sects and new religious movements, and the administration of Church property. Cardinal George Jacob Koovakad, Archbishop Aurelio García Macías, and Cardinal Kurt Koch are scheduled to contribute to these discussions. 1
The missionary-track bishops are also studying the juridical aspects of episcopal governance, including diocesan structures, collaboration, ecclesiastical tribunals, and cases involving delicta graviora, the Church’s most serious crimes. 1
The broader program includes financial transparency, priestly formation, pastoral accompaniment, the formation of lay faithful, and the management of crises involving clergy. Sessions are being led by officials including Archbishop Anthony Randazzo, Archbishop John Joseph Kennedy, Archbishop Dario Gervasi, and Dr. Gabriella Gambino. 1 2
Sunday, September 6, is designated as a day of rest, with participants offered the opportunity to make a pilgrimage to Assisi during the Jubilee Year marking the 800th anniversary of St. Francis’ death. 1
The two groups will reunite on September 7 at the Pontifical Urbaniana University. Cardinal Michael Czerny is scheduled to present Pope Leo XIV’s encyclical Magnifica Humanitas, followed by reflections from Cardinal Mario Grech and Cardinal Roberto Repole on synodal ecclesiology. 1
On September 8, the bishops will attend Mass at the Basilica of St. Mary Major for the Feast of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Subsequent sessions will cover priestly formation and the missionary relationship between local Churches and the Holy See. 1
The final instructional sessions include crisis management within the clergy and the responsibility of Churches to safeguard minors and vulnerable adults. Msgr. Peter Beer and Jesuit Father Hans Zollner of the Pontifical Gregorian University are among the experts taking part. 1
The course will conclude on September 10 with Mass in St. Peter’s Basilica and the veneration of the relics of the Apostle Peter, presided over by Cardinal Mauro Gambetti. The bishops will then meet Pope Leo XIV in an audience marking the conclusion of the formation program.
Examine episcopal formation’s impact on safeguarding and liturgical renewal
Episcopal formation affects safeguarding and liturgical renewal primarily by shaping how bishops exercise vigilance, accountability, pastoral governance, and theological judgment. The supplied sources strongly support this relationship for liturgical renewal, while they support safeguarding more indirectly; they do not provide detailed abuse-prevention protocols or empirical evidence of reduced abuse.
Permanent formation equips bishops to respond to changing pastoral and social challenges rather than relying solely on the knowledge acquired at ordination. Pastores gregis calls for continuing study, dialogue with experts, and exchange with clergy, religious, and lay people, especially on significant issues. Such formation can strengthen safeguarding by helping bishops recognize risk, listen credibly to victims, cooperate with competent professionals, and develop diocesan practices that protect vulnerable people.
Formation also has an ethical and spiritual dimension. Bishops are expected to “safeguard with vigilant love” what has been entrusted to them, and their ministry must be supported by a holy life and moral authority. This implies that safeguarding is not merely an administrative obligation. It requires personal integrity, humility, willingness to receive correction, and the courage to place the safety of persons above institutional reputation.
However, formation alone cannot guarantee safe governance. The cited material does not establish that episcopal courses, spiritual exercises, or liturgical training by themselves prevent abuse or ensure proper reporting and disciplinary action. Effective safeguarding additionally requires transparent procedures, independent investigation, clear responsibilities, professional expertise, and meaningful accountability. Those concrete mechanisms remain unresolved in the supplied sources.
The connection between formation and liturgical renewal is much more explicit. Episcopal formation enables bishops to act as teachers, sanctifiers, and pastors who ensure that worship is dignified, faithful, and pastorally fruitful. Bishops are charged with overseeing the sacraments and protecting the faithful from celebrations left to improvisation or chance.
Renewal, in this framework, does not mean continual invention. It means recovering the liturgy’s theological meaning and enabling full, conscious, active, and fruitful participation. Pastores gregis therefore links renewal with authentic understanding, observance of liturgical norms, timely correction of abuses, and the elimination of arbitrary changes. Similarly, Ecclesia in Europa states that genuine renewal depends not on arbitrary actions but on a deeper awareness of the mystery celebrated.
Formation must therefore be both intellectual and practical. Pope Francis distinguishes formation for the liturgy from formation by the liturgy: study is necessary, but ministers must also acquire lived familiarity with prayer and worship. Recent guidance calls for a liturgical-sapiential formation of ordained ministers—one joining theological curriculum to the lived experience of seminaries—and for corresponding formation of the laity through Sunday worship, feasts, and sacramental preparation.
The bishop’s own liturgical practice has a diocesan multiplier effect. Episcopal celebrations should model order, simplicity, beauty, appropriate ministries, faithful music, and genuine participation for the whole local Church. Formation can thus influence not only what bishops know but also what clergy and parishes learn by observing them.
Safeguarding and liturgical renewal converge in three areas:
The relationship is also reciprocal. A culture that values reverence, truth, participation, and the dignity of each person can support safeguarding. But liturgical beauty or doctrinal competence must never be mistaken for evidence that governance is safe. Safeguarding requires institutional accountability as well as spiritual formation.
In sum, episcopal formation is a necessary condition for responsible leadership: it can cultivate the vigilance, humility, theological depth, and pastoral competence needed for safeguarding and liturgical renewal. Yet the evidence supplied supports a direct account of liturgical formation and only an indirect account of safeguarding; concrete protection of vulnerable persons depends additionally on enforceable procedures and accountable structures.