Bulletins, Newsletters, and Flocknotes

Resignation and Appointment of the Bishop of Kpalimé (Togo)

The Holy Father has accepted the resignation from the pastoral governance of the Diocese of Kpalimé (Togo) submitted by H.E. Msgr. Benoît Comlan Messan Alowonou.

The Holy Father has appointed the Rev. Edmond Yawo Amekuse as Bishop of the Diocese of Kpalimé (Togo). He is a priest of the same Diocese, until now Secretary General of the Université Catholique de l’Afrique de l’Ouest of Ouagadougou (Burkina Faso).

 

Curriculum Vitae

H.E. Msgr. Edmond Yawo Amekuse was born on 16 November 1967 in Agou-Akoumahou, in the Diocese of Kpalimé. He studied Philosophy and Theology at the Saint Jean-Pual II Major Seminary in Lomé.

He was ordained a priest for the Diocese of Kpalimé on 28 December 1996.

He has held the following positions and pursued further studies: Parochial Vicar of the Saint-Esprit   Cathedral in Kpalimé (1996–1999); Religion Teacher at the Polyvalent College of Kpalimé (1996–1999); Bachelor's degree in Theology at the Institut Catholique Missionnaire d’Abidja , Côte d'Ivoire (1999–2000); Studies in Interreligious Dialogue at the PISAI , in Rome (2000–2001); Doctorate in Liturgy from the Pontificio Ateneo Sant’ Anselmo , Rome (2001–2008); Professor of Liturgy at the Saint Jean-Paul II Major Seminary in Lomé (2008–2023);

Chaplain (2008–2016) and Secretary General (2013–2019) of the l’ Université Catholique de l’Afrique de l’Ouest - Universitaire au Togo ; Formator at the Saint Jean-Paul II Major Seminary in Lomé (2020–2023); Since 2023, Secretary General of the Université Catholique de l’Afrique de l’Ouest of Ouagadougou, Burkina-Faso.

This morning, the Holy Father Leo XIV received in Audience:

H. E. Msgr. Ettore Balestrero, Titular Archbishop of Vittoriana, Permanent Observer of the Holy See to the United Nations Office and Specialized Agencies in Geneva; to the World Trade Organization; Representative of the Holy See to the International Organization for Migration.

This morning, in the Paul VI Audience Hall, the Extraordinary Consistory started, bringing together the College of Cardinals with His Holiness Pope Leo XIV. The proceedings of the Extraordinary Consistory will be taking place over the course of two days, 26 and 27 June 2026.

The following is the address delivered by the Pope to the Cardinals in attendance:

[  DE   -  EN   -  ES   -  FR   -  IT   -  PL  ]

Dear brother Cardinals,

I welcome you and thank you most sincerely for having once again accepted my invitation.  Your presence demonstrates the concern for the whole Church that we all share in our service to the People of God and to the mission entrusted to us by the Lord.

At the Consistory last January, I expressed a simple wish: that these meetings might help us to learn ever more to “work together in the service of the Church” and to continue “a dialogue that assists me in serving the mission of the whole Church.” These were not merely introductory words. I continue to believe that this is one of the most important responsibilities entrusted to the College of Cardinals. We too, like the whole Church, learn as we walk forward. Communion is never a result that is achieved once and for all: it remains a daily conversion, which takes shape in prayer, and through concrete actions, relationships of trust, and a willingness to listen to one another.

In recent months, I have had the opportunity to recall on several occasions that we are called to be builders of Christ’s communion, a communion that takes shape in a synodal Church in which everyone cooperates in the same mission, each according to their own charism and ministry.

As I said to the Roman Curia, this communion “is built not so much through words and documents as through concrete gestures and attitudes that ought to appear in our daily lives, including in our work” ( Address to the Roman Curia for the Exchange of Christmas Greetings , 22 December 2025). We are not guardians of particular interests, but “disciples and witnesses of the Kingdom of God, called in Christ to be leaven of universal fraternity” ( ibid. ).

For this reason, I desired that our work together here focus on four themes that are deeply interconnected.

First of all, we are invited to contemplate the world in which the Church is called to proclaim the Gospel. Before asking ourselves what to do, we must pause to consider reality, looking at it through the eyes of faith and allowing ourselves to be challenged by listening to our brothers and sisters. As I recalled a few weeks ago: “Jesus travels the streets, crosses the squares and visits our neighborhoods, dwelling in the settings of our daily lives. He is a God who is close to us, who walks with his people, the Lord of history” ( Homily in “Plaza de Cibeles , ”  Madrid , 7 June 2026). Today, the Lord continues to go before us in history, and the Church is called first and foremost to recognize his presence.

Next, we shall reflect together on the culture of power and the civilization of love. Many of you come from lands marked by war, violence, and social or religious polarization. Yet none of us are immune to the many forms of conflict, oppression, and division that afflict our societies today. For this reason, the discernment that we are called to undertake concerns us all and challenges the Church’s mission in every context. The Encyclical  Magnifica Humanitas  offers us some valuable insights for understanding our times. I am particularly keen to hear how these pages resonate within your particular Churches, what questions they raise, what perspectives they open up, and what steps they suggest. An encyclical, in fact, continues its journey when it is received, interpreted, and embodied in the concrete life of the Churches.

The third session will then explore  Magnifica Humanitas  in greater depth, examining the contribution that the Church can make to building up the common good. We live in an age in which the temptation towards fragmentation is growing and particular interests all too easily prevail. The Church’s social teaching reminds us that the common good does not arise spontaneously, but requires shared responsibility. For the Church, this takes on a very specific form: a synodal style at the service of the mission of the Kingdom. The Encyclical  Magnifica Humanitas  recalls this in paragraph 86 , adding that this requires attention to the way in which decisions are made and responsibilities exercised, through transparency, evaluation, and shared responsibility. 

Finally, we will devote a session to the process of implementing the Synod. This final session will not introduce a new theme, but bring together and connect what we have shared in the previous sessions. In the face of the wounds of the world, the building up of the common good, and the mission of the Church, synodality points to a way forward: listening, discerning, and taking responsibility together for the choices that the Lord entrusts to us. Synodality is not, first and foremost, a set of procedures; as I have said on several occasions, synodality is an attitude, an openness, a willingness to understand. At times it has been interpreted as a diminishment of authority. In reality, it helps us to understand more deeply the meaning of authority itself, which exists to safeguard communion, to foster the participation of all, and to guide the Church’s common journey.

These four sessions find their unity in the missionary perspective, which we shared at the last Consistory and which I referred to in my letter this past April. We are not here, first and foremost, to reflect on the internal life of the Church.

All the themes we will address — our view of the world, peace, the common good, and synodality — converge on a single question: how can we help our Churches today to proclaim the Gospel with greater fidelity, freedom, and credibility? Mission is not merely one of the Church’s many tasks. It is her very reason for existing and thus, it also becomes the criterion that guides our discernment. When we learn to listen to one another, to share responsibilities, and to recognize the action of the Spirit in the various Churches, we are not merely improving the way we work: we are becoming a Church that is better able to engage with the men and women of our time and to bear witness to them of the joy of the Gospel.

For this reason, I wish to ask you for your help. The ministry which the Lord has entrusted to me cannot be carried out alone. It requires your experience, your pastoral wisdom, and your knowledge of the Churches and of the peoples entrusted to you. I am counting on you to help me discern what the Spirit is saying to the Church today. I need your support: strong, explicit, and public. I need to feel sustained by you, as by brothers.

I therefore ask you to accompany me not only during these days of work, but also in the daily service to the communion of the universal Church. Help me to listen to what is emerging in the Churches, to recognize the signs of hope that often grow in silence, but also to not ignore the struggles, misunderstandings, and resistance that can slow down our journey. I need your freedom, your frankness, and your loyalty. Sincere advice is always an act of communion.

I also ask you to uphold, each within your own Church and in your own ministry, this style of ecclesial discernment. I know that it requires patience and sometimes raises questions. Nevertheless, I am convinced that the Lord is teaching us a more evangelical way of living out together the responsibility he has entrusted to us. The credibility of our witness and the fruitfulness of our mission depend on this.

I therefore wish to encourage you to engage wholeheartedly in the group work we are undertaking. I am well aware that, for many of us, this is not the usual way of conducting a Consistory. Yet this too is part of the journey along which the Lord is leading us. Naturally, there will still be space for personal contributions and, as always, everyone is free to send me their observations or confidential reflections. But I ask you to enter into this ecclesial exercise with trust. We too learn synodality by practicing it; we learn together to grow in communion. I thank you in advance for your willingness, for your interior freedom, and for your love for the Church.

Let us entrust these days to the Holy Spirit, that he may make us docile to his voice and grant us the grace to seek together what best serves the Gospel and the good of the People of God.

Thank you.

At 7:30 this morning, in Saint Peter's Basilica, His Holiness Pope Leo XIV presided over the Holy Mass with the Cardinals gathered for the Extraordinary Consistory from 26 to 27 June 2026.

During the Eucharistic Celebration, after the proclamation of the Holy Gospel, the Pope delivered the following homily:

[  AR   -  DE   -  EN   -  ES   -  FR   -  IT   -  PL   -  PT  ]

Dear brothers,

We have gathered around the altar of the Lord, at the tomb of Saint Peter, to begin this Consistory. From every corner of the world, we have come to celebrate this Eucharist. Let us offer to God our lives and the communities and peoples we hold dear, as well as our pastoral projects and experiences with all their joys and sorrows.

This diversity of emotions and thoughts now comes together and finds its luminous center in Christ, who himself addresses us, saying: “I am the true vine” ( Jn  15:1). Through Jesus, grace and truth flow into our lives (cf.  Jn  1:17), renewing us from within. These divine gifts are also the life-giving nourishment of the Consistory that we inaugurate today. The Gospel itself prepares the ground for it to bear fruit: “Remain in me, and I in you” ( Jn  15:4). On the one hand, then, the Master warns us that “apart from me you can do nothing” (v. 5), and on the other, he wants his disciples to bear “much fruit” (v. 8). Much fruit indeed, for God’s grace does not produce stunted growth in those who receive it, but rather a flourishing progress. Indeed, the eternal Word became man so that all might “have life, and have it abundantly” ( Jn  10:10). Having begun in faith, this life is strengthened even through the trial of pruning, because it is cultivated by the Father’s attentive care.

As we ask God to grant us strength and wisdom, it is significant that our Consistory takes place on the eve of the Solemnity of the holy Apostles Peter and Paul. Let us pause, then, to commemorate these two pillars of the Roman Catholic Church, the two missionary martyrs whose preaching became one with their lives, to the point of becoming part of Sacred Scripture.

As we listen today to Saint Paul’s words to the Corinthians, we can see how beautifully they harmonize with those of the Gospel. Indeed, the various charisms, ministries and ecclesial activities are like branches of the one vine — that is, of the same Lord (cf.  1 Cor  12:4-6), who pours out the Holy Spirit upon his Church. Corresponding to this organic unity is the standard that makes all forms of service in the Church good and fruitful, namely the standard of the common good (cf. v. 7).

Dear friends, to guide our discernment during these days, I would like to draw some insights from the word of God we have just heard.

First, the example of Saints Peter and Paul encourages us to share in the true  freedom of faith . In fact, it is precisely our relationship with the Lord Jesus that frees us from sin and fear. As he calls us to follow him, he himself sends us out into the world as successors of the Apostles. Therefore, proclaiming the Gospel, celebrating the sacraments, and dedicating ourselves to the Lord’s flock are realized and bear fruit to the extent that we believe in him, the Good Shepherd. Faith is that virtue — never to be taken for granted — that gives life to the Church, for it is the grace that nourishes the branches of the one vine. The living Church is the Church that believes through the gift of the Holy Spirit poured into our hearts. And this Church bears much fruit. Thus, just as divine grace precedes human freedom, the Church’s faith precedes our own and calls for a fervent witness. This mission has Christ as its beginning and end. In the words of the psalmist, “Tell of his salvation from day to day; declare his glory among the nations” ( Ps  96:2–3).

Second, we ask for  the gift of peace in unity . Even as we invite all peoples to the faith in which we are truly free, international tensions and conflicts seriously wound the human family. At the same time, the Church and the world are not lacking initiatives and experiences that call for respect for human dignity, justice, the rule of law and simply for what is human. Indeed, there are many such examples. This is a source of hope, for it attests to the beauty of the work of God, who created us in his image and likeness as a sign of his glory in the world. Whenever this sign is wounded, we are all wounded. Whenever it is corrupted, we all suffer. Whenever it is destroyed, we all feel torn apart. Therefore, war is never worthy of humanity, and it is never blessed by God, because, even if we are equipped with high-tech weapons, the Creator has endowed us with intelligence and free will to resolve conflicts as human beings and not as beasts. That the unity of the human family takes precedence over individual peoples and states is not merely a biological fact; it is an ethical principle. Peace is a duty of justice because we are one human family, a  magnifica humanitas  that finds its head and redeemer in Christ.

As we reflect on the Encyclical that I promulgated on 15 May last, we must persevere along the path outlined by  Saint Paul VI , for when he “coined the phrase ‘the civilization of love,’ the world was in the midst of the Cold War, an arms race and severe economic instability. In that context, the Church proposed an alternative path to that of ideological opposition between systems, and envisioned a social order in which justice and charity are intertwined” (Encyclical Letter  Magnifica Humanitas , 186. Cf. Saint Paul VI,  Regina Caeli , 17 May 1970). Indeed, this is how Christian witness becomes prophecy, evangelization and service for a new world, as well as a cultural and social project that promotes integral human development. As she proclaims the Gospel, amid both joys and persecutions, the Church is never partial, since she is for everyone, and to each she addresses the same message of conversion and salvation.

Third, today and always, let us savor  harmony through obedience  — that is, a listening that recognizes the gift of the Word made flesh for us. Through such listening, the Holy Spirit guides us, pointing out pastoral challenges and opportunities, purifying our intentions and correcting whatever strays from our shared path. The implementation of the Synod, to which we are committed, invites everyone to move forward in unity of faith, in promoting peace, and in obedience to Jesus, the living Word. In this light, “today’s vast and rapid cultural changes demand that we constantly seek ways of expressing unchanging truths in a language which brings out their abiding newness” (Pope Francis, Apostolic Exhortation  Evangelii Gaudium , 41). The one Word made flesh is in fact expressed in all languages: Christ who died and rose again is the true vine, which bears fruit through all the cultures that Christians transform from within. Thus, as the ideologies of the world wither away, the Holy Spirit makes fraternal harmony, charity and missionary zeal flourish in the Church.

Our working together in a collegial way embodies the synodality in which all the baptized participate in the unity of the People of God. Synodality and collegiality are, in fact, forms of Christian fraternity, which binds us together as the baptized and as bishops. Therefore, in helping me in the exercise of the Petrine ministry, you will find in me one who asks, not commands. Moreover, the authority of primacy belongs to the one who listens and only then leads, to the one who learns and only then teaches, always following the one and only Teacher. May the intercession of the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul accompany us on this enthralling journey.

 



 

This morning, at the Vatican Apostolic Palace, the Holy Father, Pope Leo XIV, received in audience the leaders of the Italian Swimming Federation and the participants in the International Swimming Championships (the 62nd Sette Colli Trophy).

The following is the greeting that the Pope addressed to those present during the meeting:

[ EN -  ES   -  IT  ]

In the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Peace be with you!

Dear brothers and sisters, good morning and welcome!

It is with joy that I meet all of you, leaders of the Italian Swimming Federation, athletes, and members of the delegations participating in the International Swimming Competition – the 62nd Sette Colli Trophy.

Sport is a medicine for both body and spirit, when it is practiced well. It integrates the different dimensions of the human person and directs them toward very important values such as commitment, solidarity, and honesty. In sporting activities, especially at the competitive level, human beings exercise their willpower, but they do so to the extent that they are motivated. And here the quality of an athlete becomes evident: it is revealed by the quality of his or her motivations.

Sport is also an opportunity for spiritual growth. Swimming, in this regard, has something special about it. Indeed, we practise it while being immersed in an element - water - that surrounds us. This symbolically recalls an aspect that has been part of us since our mother's womb: to live means learning to move in harmony with others and with the environment around us. For us Christians, moreover, water is a symbol of Baptism and of new life in Christ.

There is, however, another reason why I am glad of your presence. All of you, coming from different countries, have gathered here, inspired by the same passion and the same values, beyond every difference of language, nationality, and culture. This reality, typical of international sporting events, offers a sign of hope, a sign of the world we desire; it contributes to peaceful encounters among peoples and to fraternity.

Therefore, I encourage you to continue practicing and spreading the values of sport. The years of athletic competition pass, but those values remain! I entrust you to the intercession of Pier Giorgio Frassati - a young sportsman who loved the mountains dearly - and with all my heart I bless all of you and your loved ones. Thank you!