Fifth Course for the Formation of Catholic Military Chaplains in International Humanitarian Law

Seventieth anniversary of the Geneva Conventions of 12 August 1949

From Tuesday 29 to Thursday 31 October 2019 the “Fifth Course for the Formation of Catholic Military Chaplains in International Humanitarian Law” will be held, organized by the Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development, in collaboration with the Congregation for Bishops and the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples, at the Institutum Patristicum Augustinianum in Rome.

The course, which has as its title “The deprivation of personal freedom in situations of armed conflict. The mission of the military chaplains”, forms part of the initiatives the Holy See undertook to carry out in the context of the 32nd International Conference of the Red Cross and Red Crescent in 2015. It aims to explore and deepen the mission of military chaplains in the protection of persons deprived of their liberty in the light of the current challenges of international humanitarian law, in the contexts of armed conflict, in situations of extreme personal vulnerability, and in cases of detention also perpetrated by non-state actors. This will be followed by plenary sessions (in the mornings) and sessions dedicated to group work in different languages (in the afternoons).

On 29 and 30 October, following the opening greetings by His Eminence Cardinal Marc Ouellet, P-S.S., prefect of the Congregation for Bishops, His Eminence Cardinal Peter K.A. Turkson, prefect of the Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development, and Cardinal Fernando Filoni, prefect of the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples, there will be interventions by delegates of the International Committee of the Red Cross, representatives of the United Nations, representatives of the armed forces and international organizations, ordinary soldiers from different parts of the world, and university professors. There will be around 130 participants, from 47 different countries.

On Thursday 31 October, at 11.00 a.m., an audience with the Holy Father will be held in the Apostolic Palace.

In the afternoon of the same day a round table will be held, chaired by His Eminence Cardinal Peter K.A. Turkson, prefect, and Msgr. Bruno Marie Duffé, secretary of the Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development, celebrating the “Seventieth anniversary of the Geneva Conventions of 12 August 1949”, to be attended by ambassadors accredited to the Holy See. The speakers will be Archbishop Paul Richard Gallagher, secretary for Relations with States; Mr. Denis Knobel, ambassador of Switzerland to the Holy See; Mr. Aloysius John, secretary general of Caritas Internationalis; and Mr. Didier Pfirter, commissioner of the 33rd International Conference of the Red Cross and Red Crescent.

The Eucharistic celebrations will be presided over by His Eminence Cardinal Marc Ouellet, P.S.S., on Tuesday 29 October at 6.30 p.m. in the Church of Santa Caterina da Siena in Magnanapoli; by Bishop Santo Marcianò, military ordinary in Italy, on Wednesday 30 October at 7.45 a.m. in the Church of Santo Spirito in Sassia; and by His Eminence Cardinal Secretary of State Pietro Parolin on Thursday 31 October at 7.45 a.m. in Saint Peter’s Basilica. Vespers will also be celebrated in the Chapel of the Pontifical Urban College on Wednesday 30 October at 6.45 p.m.