The European Congress on Vocations

2. Gathered together in Rome, from 5 to 10 May 1997, for the Congress on Vocations to the Priesthood and to Consecrated Life in Europe,(¹) we entrusted to the Lord of the harvest the work of the Congress itself, and also the anxiety of the Church in Europe, at this difficult and demanding time, together with our gratitude to God who is the source of every consolation and author of every vocation.

Gathered together in Rome we have entrusted those whom God continues to call in our day to Mary, who is the ideal image of the creature called by the Creator. To Saints Peter and Paul and to all the saints and martyrs of this city and every city and Church of Europe, of past and present, we now entrust this document. May it express and communicate that richness which we received during the days of the Roman assembly, just as the martyrs and saints once witnessed to the love of the Eternal One.

In effect, the Congress was a moment of grace: the fraternal sharing, doctrinal deepening, the encounter of different charisms, the exchange of various experiences and difficulties present in the Churches of the East and the West have enriched each and every one. They have confirmed in each participant the will to continue to work with passion in the field of vocations, notwithstanding the dearth of results in some of the Churches of the old continent.