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February 12, 2020 Celebrate some sacraments, organize the community, but the priesthood is another thing. Pope Francis asks for a "specific and courageous response" to face the "precarious presence" of the Church in the Amazon, especially in the "most remote and most hidden communities". So space for the laity "for the celebration of some sacraments" but the priest remains the only one who can celebrate the Eucharist and absolve in the confessional.

In the apostolic exhortation "Querida Amazonia" the Pope speaks of a "holiness with Amazonian features", but does not open up to the priestly ordination of the viri probati. "The pastoral care of the Church has a precarious presence in the Amazon, due in part to the immense territorial extension with many places that are difficult to access, to the great cultural diversity, to the serious social problems, as well as to the choice of some peoples to isolate themselves", he notes, "This cannot leave us indifferent and requires a specific and courageous response from the Church".

In particular "it is necessary to ensure that ministeriality is configured in such a way as to be at the service of a greater frequency of the celebration of the Eucharist, even in the most remote and hidden communities". But "at the same time there is a need for ministers who can understand Amazonian sensitivity and cultures from within". As for the figure of the priest, his function is not a "monolithic exercise" and "acquires various shades in different places on earth". At this point, "what cannot be delegated" exists and must be clarified. It is an "exclusive character received in the Order" which "empowers him only to preside over the Eucharist. This is his specific, main and non-delegable function". Attention, this is the essence of being a priest, and not the idea of ​​being the head of the community. The priest "pours out grace above all when he celebrates the Eucharist, the source and summit of all Christian life. This is his great power, which can only be received in the sacrament of the priestly order".