Pontifical Representatives at the Vatican for triennial meeting

By Vatican News

In a statement issued Tuesday evening, the Holy See Press Office announced that the triennial meeting of the Pontifical Representatives, called for by Pope Francis, will take place from 7 to 10 September. The statement also gives details of the program for the four-day encounter:

“On Wednesday 7 at 8:00 the meeting will begin with the Eucharistic Concelebration presided by Cardinal Parolin at the Choir Chapel in Saint Peter's Basilica. The first day, dedicated to meetings with the superiors of the Secretariat of State and some heads of the Roman Curia, will conclude with a meeting with the Diplomatic Corps accredited to the Holy See.

“On Thursday 8 at 9:00, the Papal Representatives will be received in audience by the Pope in the Apostolic Palace. Afterwards the meetings will continue, and in the evening, at 19:00, the Representatives will participate in solemn Vespers in the Sistine Chapel.

“The day of Friday will be dedicated to work in groups subdivided by continent, while on Saturday 10, after the Eucharistic Concelebration, presided over by the Pope at Casa Santa Marta at 7:30, followed by meetings and work, the session will conclude in the late morning, at 12 noon, with a spiritual meditation led by Archbishop Angelo Acerbi, Apostolic Nuncio.”

The communiqué from the Vatican Press Office notes that “the meeting, presided over by the Cardinal Secretary of State, will be attended by the superiors of the Secretariat of State, 91 Apostolic Nuncios, and six Permanent Observers without episcopal status. Five Pontifical Representatives will not be able to attend due to health reasons or other impediments.”

The text also specifies that “in the Holy See's diplomatic service, in addition to the aforementioned Pontifical Representatives, there are currently 167 collaborators in the diplomatic role working at the Nunciatures or in the Secretariat of State, while four alumni of the Pontifical Ecclesiastical Academy, having completed their training, are involved in the missionary year abroad desired by Pope Francis.”