Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Vatican City (Agenzia Fides) - Among the seminaries directly dependent on the Dicastery for Evangelization (Section for First Evangelization and the New Particular Churches), the Bigard Memorial Seminary in the Nigerian diocese of Enugu is the one with the largest number of seminarians. Currently, more than 700 seminarians study at the seminary, named after Jeanne Bigard, foundress of the Pontifical Society of St. Peter the Apostle. In a video, the seminarians and formators of the seminary, together with the Rector, Father Albert Ikpenwa, share their experiences of study, community prayer, and preparation for the priesthood, which celebrated the 100th anniversary of its foundation in 2024 (see Fides, 21/11/2024). Father Guy Bognon (PSS), Secretary General of the Pontifical Society of St. Peter the Apostle, presented the Nigerian seminary (also through a video projection) during Pope Leo XIV's International Meeting with priests, formators, seminarians, and vocational guides, which took place on Thursday, June 26, on the occasion of the priestly Jubilee, in Via della Conciliazione Auditorium in Rome.
The Dicastery for Evangelization, through the Pontifical Society of St. Peter the Apostle, supports the formation of the local clergy and thus diocesan and interdiocesan seminaries in Africa, Asia, Oceania, and the Apostolic Vicariates of Latin America. Last year, 778 seminaries were supported, which welcomed 82,859 candidates. The training of formators also plays an important role among the activities in support of these seminaries. "Each academic semester," Father Bognon explained during the meeting, "the Dicastery invites a group of formators to Rome for a special course, focused not so much on the intellect but on the heart, with the goal of establishing coherence between faith and daily life. Such training courses are also organized locally in the countries. The participants are happy and strengthened afterward." The work of the Dicastery for Evangelization aims at serious discernment and solid formation, especially in places where vocations are plentiful. In the video documentation of the Bigard Memorial Seminary, the testimonies of the seminarians alternate with those of the formators, highlighting the diversity of aspects of formation - spiritual, academic, pastoral, and human - and the constant accompaniment of the formators along the way. (EG) (Agenzia Fides, 5/7/2025)
