1 – A Favorable Time
This ongoing formation stage represents a particularly significant moment for the Institute, as it is part of our current journey of reflection on mission. It is a sign of responsibility and charismatic maturity, touching the very heart of our identity.
Indeed, it challenges us to reflect on who we are today as Comboni missionaries, what face of the Church and the Gospel we are called to witness, and how we are to live out mission in today’s context—with its unique resources and challenges.
As the General Council, we believe this process can become a true time of grace, provided it is embraced as an opportunity—approached with openness to being questioned and even challenged, and with willingness to consider change.
This journey requires time and patience: it does not offer immediate answers or automatic results, but lays solid foundations for the future of the Comboni mission. It marks a significant step in the life of the Institute, engaging us personally, communally, and structurally, and also prepares us for the 2028 General Chapter.
This path arises from a clear awareness: the context of mission has profoundly changed; the people to whom we are sent have changed; and we ourselves—as missionaries and as an Institute—have changed as well. Reflecting on mission thus means pausing, listening, and discerning together what the Spirit is asking of us today.
2 – Everything Depends on Our Willingness to Walk Together
Renewal processes do not succeed if they remain individual endeavors. This ongoing formation journey seeks to be a shared path, grounded in attitudes of listening, openness, and a concrete commitment to shared responsibility. Without such willingness, even the most thoughtful proposals risk remaining sterile.
3 – Ongoing Formation Is Essential
This ongoing formation is not something “extra” added onto mission; rather, it is an essential dimension of missionary fidelity. It helps us reinterpret our experiences, confront present-day challenges, and avoid falling into routine, fatigue, or self-referentiality.
4 – Reflecting on Mission to Renew It
This journey calls us to examine how we live mission today—with what attitudes, passion, and creativity. Ongoing formation keeps alive the prophetic dimension of the Comboni charism and helps us move beyond nostalgia for the past toward a creative fidelity capable of renewal.
5 – Activating Processes, Not Organizing Activities
Everyone shares the responsibility to inspire and be inspired, to motivate and be motivated, to accompany and be accompanied. It is vital to create spaces for listening, dialogue, and discernment within each circumscription and to foster an atmosphere of trust that enables authentic communal journeying.
6 – A Request for Collaboration
We ask for your concrete support in this reflective process. Each circumscription is invited to embody it according to its own context and possibilities. The General Secretariat for Mission stands ready to collaborate and welcomes contributions, suggestions, and proposals.
7 – Conclusion
Let us embrace this season as a gift, not a burden. Ongoing formation is an act of love for mission. Only by walking together will we continue to proclaim the Gospel with joy and credibility.
Fr. Luigi Codianni
Superior General
