We live in a fast-paced, noisy, and urgent world. In this dynamic where everything moves quickly and where personal fulfillment has become an almost obsessive goal, pausing to reflect, develop oneself, or cultivate one’s inner life over the years may seem at first glance like a waste of time, a luxury, or even a relic of the past. However, slowing down is not about delaying action, but rather ensuring that it has profound meaning.

On the anniversaries of the seminaries of Molfetta and Aversa, Pope Leo XIV wished to remind us that great life decisions and commitments do not arise from competition, merit testing, or a performance race. Rather, they stem from a freely chosen path that invites humility, sincere dialogue amidst the noise, and learning to “be present” before taking action.

A school of coexistence and emotional maturity

The time spent in seminary serves as a true school of human relations. No one walks the path alone. Living together with people from very different backgrounds and personalities requires moving beyond individualism, cultivating authentic community relationships, and learning to understand fraternity not as an abstract theory, but as a concrete, everyday friendship.

From retirement to the reality of the street

This period of silence and study is not meant to create an isolated refuge to protect anyone from reality. Its value lies in preparing us to return to the streets and connect with people’s real problems.

• Families  who strive daily to get ahead in a complex environment.

• Young people  who, at twenty years old, have to pack their bags to look for job opportunities outside their homeland.

• Elderly people living alone  and marginalized individuals who have lost their sense of purpose.

The time invested in listening, discerning, and allowing oneself to be formed without shortcuts is the indispensable condition to be able to accompany with empathy, truth, and closeness those who need it most in daily life.

• Communicative approach : The article is adapted for general journalistic reading in Spanish from Spain, maintaining absolute fidelity to the ideas and contextual quotes of the discourse without inventing data.

• Tone and register : It employs a informative and reflective register, highlighting the sociocultural value of the original text (the value of the pause, community life and attention to the human peripheries).

Full text of the speech:

ADDRESS OF THE HOLY FATHER LEO XIV

TO THE SEMINARIANS OF THE PONTIFICAL REGIONAL SEMINARY OF PUGLIA “PIUS XI” OF MOLFETTA

AND FROM THE BISHOPRIC SEMINARY OF AVERSA

Clementine Hall

Thursday, September 3, 2026

In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.

Peace be with you.

Dear brothers in the Episcopate,

priests, seminarians, family members:

First of all, I sincerely thank you for being here today.

You come from two different paths and two different lands, but this year your houses celebrate an anniversary together. In Molfetta you commemorate the first centenary of the new headquarters, commissioned by Pope Pius XI, after whom your seminary is named, while in Aversa you celebrate the tercentenary of the opening of the current headquarters.

In meeting with you, I wish to emphasize one dimension of your formation journey: your relationship with the One who has called you. Study, discipline, and the stages of the journey are important elements that must be kept in mind, but they are only truly meaningful if they are grounded in a relationship with God.

Saint Mark, in his Gospel, relates that Jesus “went up on a mountain, called to him those whom he wanted, and they came to him. He appointed twelve, whom he also named apostles, that they might be with him and that he might send them out to preach” (Mk 3:13-14).

In these few words, everything is already contained. By dwelling on this brief passage, we can glimpse an admirable synthesis of the experience, valid for every calling, for all those who wish to delve deeper into the truth of their own vocation. There is the mountain to climb, where one can reach Christ and, above all, where one can be with Him. The heart of the seminary experience is this: learning to be with the Master, the Lord Jesus.

The evangelist points out that the Lord “called those he wanted,” immediately highlighting God’s freedom, from which every vocation springs. There is no competition, no ranking, nor is it written that he chose the best: he chose those he wanted. In a world so preoccupied with celebrating personal fulfillment, it is truly important to reaffirm that none of you, none of us, are here because we deserved it, but only by the free choice of God the Father, a sign and pledge of a gratuitous love that always anticipates our needs and never disappoints.

My dearest seminarians, your very presence in the seminary is a sign of hope for the whole Church. Not a vague optimism, but the certainty that the Lord is always calling, in every age of history and in every place. Looking at each of you, I contemplate the wonder of God, who never tires of whispering to the hearts of young people the beauty of giving their lives for Him and for the Church.

Every vocation is born from an intimate dialogue with God, cultivated in silence and prayer, which often takes place “despite the sometimes deafening noise of the world” (Leo XIV,  Message for the 63rd World Day of Prayer for Vocations , March 16, 2026). It is there that everything is decided, and for this dialogue to occur, it is necessary to learn to be with Him.

You have many examples, but I believe that for all of you the venerable Bishop Don Tonino Bello shows with particular clarity what it means to be a priest and a bishop: not with words, but in every gesture and every decision, and bearing witness to it until the end.

That is why seminary life remains necessary, no less so today than ever before. In a world that is always in a hurry and views any prolonged pause with suspicion, one might think it is a luxury or an outdated institution, but this is not the case. Precisely because our time is fast-paced and noisy, we need a place and a stage of life in which we learn to be present, to discern, to allow ourselves to be formed without shortcuts. Seminary life is not a postponement of mission, but its very condition. It should not be underestimated.

In fact, after having heard the voice of the Lord, one must reach Him and climb the mountain, and this can sometimes be tiring, because one climbs on foot, sometimes short of breath, without yet seeing the summit.

The weariness of the spiritual life is sustained, however, by the beauty of fraternity and sharing in the mission. Indeed, on the mountain, Jesus does not call just one man, but twelve, from the most disparate and sometimes improbable personalities in our eyes. The Lord gathers them together, keeps them side by side, so that they may learn that the Church is lived together: it is not the property of any one of us, and we are all called to love and serve it as one body. You, who come from Molfetta, experience this in a particular way, since in the regional seminary, communion among the Churches of Puglia is not an ideal, but a concrete friendship born in these years that will accompany you as priests throughout your lives.

Because, just as “no pastor exists alone” (Leo XIV, Apostolic Letter  A Fidelity that Generates the Future , December 8, 2025, 15), neither can a seminarian conceive of a private path with the Lord: he must always feel and experience the beauty of ecclesial mediation. The seminary, therefore, rather than a place to acquire information, “should be a school of affections” ( ibid. , 12). And to you, dear formators, I ask that you be the first teachers of that care and fraternity which are manifested in authentic, personal, and communal relationships, made of truth and charity. One does not become a formator by chance: yours is a most delicate ministry for which one prepares with knowledge, patience, and love.

Then comes the final step: descending from the mountain, because the mountain is not a refuge. Jesus does not take the Twelve to the top to keep them safe, but so that, having experienced God, they can be sent out to share this new way of life with the world.

You will therefore be called to come down from the mountain to be sent to the people of your lands: to those families struggling to make ends meet, to the young people of twenty who pack their bags to find work, to the lonely elderly, to the marginalized, to those who have lost their sense of purpose. The priest is sent to everyone to proclaim to everyone the beauty of faith in Jesus Christ, the good news of our salvation. It is the salvation that has been given to us through Mary. Entrust yourselves to her as to the one who was the first to do what is now being asked of you. Ask Mary for the grace to learn to say your “yes” to the Lord Jesus every day.

My dearest seminarians, before we say goodbye, I want to thank you. Thank you, on behalf of the Church, for the “yes” you have said and continue to say every day: it is not easy, nor is it something taken for granted in today’s world, and the Church knows this well.

And I wish to express my special gratitude to the families present here. A vocation is never born without a suitable context, and often needs a home, parents who pray and who know when to let go. To you, dear families, my gratitude and that of the entire Church.

I greet and bless the deacons who will be ordained priests in a few days: I keep you in my personal prayers so that you may always be faithful, joyful, and courageous disciples of the Lord. We will pray for you, for all of you.

I bless you all from my heart, along with your bishops, your formators, your families, and those communities that await you and are already praying for you. Thank you.