The Pontiff has also insisted on the need for formation without «shortcuts» and has rejected the idea that the seminary could be considered «a luxury» or «an outdated institution.»
Leo XIV made these remarks during the audience granted in the Vatican Apostolic Palace to the seminarians of the Pontifical Regional Seminary of Apulia «Pius XI,» in Molfetta, and of the Episcopal Seminary of Aversa, both in Italy.
In his address, the Pope placed the relationship with God at the center of priestly formation, highlighted fraternity and the ecclesial dimension of vocation, and recalled that the seminary prepares the future priest to be sent to families, young people, the elderly, the marginalized, and those who «have lost the meaning of existence.»
Below is the complete address of Pope Leo XIV:
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 and family members:
First of all, I thank you wholeheartedly for your presence here today.
You come from two different paths and two different lands, but this year your houses are celebrating an anniversary together. In Molfetta you commemorate the first centenary of the new seat, desired by Pope Pius XI, whose name your seminary bears, while in Aversa you celebrate the tercentenary of the opening of the current seat.
In meeting you, I wish to highlight one dimension of your formative journey: the relationship with the One who has called you. Study, discipline and the stages of the journey are important elements that must be kept very much in mind, but they only have value if they are grounded in the relationship with God.
Saint Mark, in his Gospel, recounts that Jesus «went up the mountain, called to him those whom he desired, and they came to him. And he appointed twelve, whom he also named apostles, to be with him and to be sent out to proclaim the message» (Mk 3:13-14).
In these few words everything is already contained. Stopping at this brief pericope we can discover an admirable synthesis of the experience valid for all who have been called, for all who wish to deepen the truth of their vocation. There is the mountain to be climbed, where one reaches Christ and, above all, where one remains with Him. The heart of the seminary experience is all here: learning to be with the Master, the Lord Jesus.
The evangelist relates that the Lord «called those whom he desired» and immediately highlights the freedom of God, from which every vocation flows. There is no competition, there is no ranking, nor is it written that he chose the best: he chose those he desired. In a world that strives so much to celebrate personal self-realization, it is truly important to reaffirm that none of you and none of us is here because we have deserved it, but only by a free choice of God the Father, a sign and pledge of a gratuitous love that always precedes us and never disappoints.
Dear seminarians, your very presence in the seminary is a sign of hope for the whole Church. Not of a vague optimism, but of the certainty that the Lord always calls, in every age of history and in every place. Looking at each one 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 of 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 LXIII World Day of Prayer for Vocations, March 16, 2026). It is there that everything is decided, and for that dialogue to take place 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 to be a bishop: not with words, but in every gesture and every decision, and bearing witness to it to the end.
That is why the time of the seminary remains necessary today no less than yesterday. In a world that is in a hurry and that looks with suspicion at every prolonged pause, one might think that it is a luxury or an outdated institution, but it is not so. Precisely because our time is fast and noisy, a place and a stage of life are needed in which one learns to remain, to discern, to allow oneself to be formed without shortcuts. The seminary is not a postponement of the mission, but its condition. Do not underestimate it.
After having heard the voice of the Lord, one must indeed reach Him and climb the mountain, and this at times can be tiring, because one climbs on foot, at some moments with shortness of breath, without yet seeing the summit.
However, the effort of the spiritual life is sustained by the beauty of fraternity and of sharing the mission. Indeed, on the mountain Jesus does not call a single man, but twelve, of very different and sometimes improbable personalities in our eyes. The Lord gathers them, keeps them together, so that they may learn that the Church is lived together: it is not the property of any 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, for in the regional seminary the communion among the Churches of Apulia is not an ideal, but a concrete friendship that is born during these years and that will accompany you as presbyters 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 a private path with the Lord: he must always feel and experience the beauty of ecclesial mediation. The seminary, therefore, even before being a place where knowledge is acquired, «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 that fraternity which are manifested in authentic, personal and communal relationships, made of truth and charity. One does not improvise as a formator: yours is a most delicate ministry for which one must prepare with knowledge, patience and love.
There remains the last step: that in which one descends from the mountain, because the mountain is not a refuge. Jesus does not take the Twelve up high to put them in safety, but so that, after having experienced God, they may be sent to communicate to the world this newness of life.
You will therefore be called to come down from the mountain to be sent to the people of your lands: to those families who move forward with difficulty, to the young people who at twenty pack their bags to look for work, to the elderly who are alone, to the marginalized, to those who have lost the meaning of existence. The priest is sent to all to proclaim to all 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 asked of you today. Ask Mary for the grace to learn to say your «yes» to the Lord Jesus every day.
Dear seminarians, before we say goodbye I want to thank you. Thank you, in the name of the Church, for the «yes» you have pronounced and which you pronounce again every day: it is not easy nor can it be taken for granted in today’s world, and the Church knows this well.
And I wish to express particular thanks to the families present here. A vocation never arises without an appropriate context and often needs a home, parents who pray and who know how to let go. To you, dear families, my thanks and those of the whole Church.
I greet and bless the deacons who will be ordained priests in a few days: I carry you in my personal prayer, that you may always be faithful, joyful and courageous disciples of the Lord. We will pray for you, all of us.
I bless you all from the heart, together with your bishops, your formators, your families and those communities that await you and who already pray for you. Thank you.