On 18 June 2026, Pope Leo XIV received the participants of the 99th Plenary Assembly of ROACO (the Reunion of Aid Agencies for the Oriental Churches) in the Clementine Hall of the Apostolic Palace.
ROACO brings together Catholic agencies, including CNEWA, represented by President Msgr. Peter Vaccari, and Dr. Adriana Bara, National Director of CNEWA Canada, that support the Eastern Catholic Churches in the Middle East, Eastern Europe, India, East Africa and other regions where these ancient Christian communities continue to witness to the Gospel, often in extremely difficult circumstances.
This year’s meeting took place during a meaningful visit of the CNEWA Canada staff to Rome for three days, as part of the celebration of CNEWA’s 100th anniversary in service to the Church. During their time in Rome, the staff visited the Dicastery for the Eastern Churches, the CNEWA office in Rome, and attended a Mass offered by Msgr. Peter Vaccari at the Church of the Holy Spirit.
This year’s ROACO meeting focused on the formation of clergy and monks in Eastern seminaries and colleges. In his address, Pope Leo XIV praised this theme, reminding participants that supporting the Eastern Churches means more than providing material assistance. It also means helping them grow in their identity, their spiritual life and their mission of evangelization. “Supporting a Church,” the Holy Father said, “does not mean merely providing it with material means of subsistence, but also helping it to grow in its identity and in its ability to evangelize.”
“The Christian East can only be preserved if it is understood.”
Pope Leo XIV
The Pope spoke with deep appreciation of the richness of the Eastern Catholic Churches, describing the Church as “united, yet not uniform.” The Christian East, he said, preserves liturgies, theological traditions, spiritual treasures and forms of prayer that enrich the entire Catholic Church. “The Christian East can only be preserved if it is understood,” Pope Leo XIV said. “To lose that understanding is to impoverish the Church.” For this reason, the Pope emphasized the importance of formation: forming priests, monks, seminarians and future leaders who can carry forward the faith, traditions and spiritual heritage of their Churches. He also reminded ROACO members that charitable work must be rooted in prayer, the sacraments and a living faith.
In the second part of his address, Pope Leo XIV turned to the suffering of Eastern Christians, especially in the Middle East. He denounced the tragedy of war and the instability it creates, saying that war “does not solve problems but creates tragedies.”
In one of the most powerful moments of his speech, the Holy Father contrasted the work of aid agencies and benefactors with the actions of those who fuel conflict: “While you generate life, they sow death; while you reach out to your brother, they seek enemies to crush; while you create dialogue, they seek monologues; while you open paths of hope, they lock people into fear; while you build the future, they destroy the present.”
“While you generate life, they sow death.”
Pope Leo XIV
Pope Leo XIV described instability as a “plague” born of war — one that continues to drain the life of Eastern Christian communities. He spoke of countries where jobs are precarious, wages are irregular, health care is fragile and education is uncertain. Such conditions, he said, weigh especially on families, children, young people, the elderly and the sick, forcing many to leave their homelands.
The Holy Father appealed to consciences and called for wise and responsible decisions to prevent war and instability. These tragedies, he reminded the world, are not inevitable; they are the result of human choices and therefore carry moral responsibility.
At the conclusion of his address, Pope Leo XIV thanked ROACO members and their many donors who continue, in the name of the Gospel, to respond to suffering with charity, hope and concrete assistance.
For CNEWA Canada, the Pope’s words are both an encouragement and a mission. Through the generosity of our benefactors, we continue to support the Eastern Churches, their clergy, religious communities, seminarians, families and vulnerable communities who remain signs of faith and hope in places marked by war, poverty and uncertainty.
In a world where many sow death, CNEWA’s mission is to help generate life — through prayer, solidarity and love in action.
