The Assembly of the Confederation of India which consists of the (V) Provincial Councils of the three Units of India. The Assembly of the Confederation met in Kochi in Kerala in India from the 15th to the 16th of June 2026. Fr Rogério Gomes, C.Ss.R. Superior General celebrated the opening Eucharist on the 15th morning as he called on the confreres to respond to the signs of the times proclaiming the Good News of plentiful redemption in the context of the world in which we live in need of the message of justice, peace and integrity of creation. He called on the Assembly of the Confederation to be courageous in opening new paths for mission in India and even beyond. He also highlighted the call to leadership for mission as we celebrate the year dedicated to mission in the Congregation. The two General Consultors for Asia Oceania were present, Fr. Jospeh Ivel Mendanha, C.Ss.R. and Fr. Paul Vinh, C.Ss.R, and so also Fr. Yoakim Ndelo, C.Ss.R., the Conference Coordinator of Asia Oceania.
The Assembly began with the welcome by Fr. Poly K, C.Ss.R. Provincial of Liguori and then the passing of minutes of the previous Assembly along with the Report presented by Fr. Edward Joseph, C.Ss.R., Provincial of the Bangalore Province. The Assembly then took up the presentation of the reports of the various secretariats and commissions of the Confederation: Apostolate, Formation, Finance, RYVM, Partnership for Mission and Media. Further sharing took place on the Finance Policy, Statutes of the Confederation, the Ratio Formationis, the Handbook/Manual and the Syllabus for Common Formation for the Confederation. The day ended with the Provincial Council of the Bangalore Province meeting with Fr. General and the General Consultors.
The Second day began with morning prayer and Eucharist presided over by Fr. Ivel who spoke about the call to reconciliation as part of the service of leadership in the light of the Gospel of the day. Taken up for sharing and discussion were topics regarding Joint Mission of the Confederation, a presentation from Archbishop Bashar Wardha from the Archdiocese of Erbil in Iraq with an invitation to restart the Redemptorist mission in Iraq in Erbil, the passing of the Ratio Formationis of the Confederation, and a few of the documents of the Confederation together with possible meetings, retreats, common long term and short term projects of the Confederation moving forward.
The Assembly concluded with an evaluation of the working of the Confederation and of the Assembly itself. Fr. Ivel congratulated the members of the Assembly of the Confederation for the remarkable decisive steps taken as a Confederation with regard to structures for mission. Fr. Edward thanked Fr. General and the Consultors and the Conference Coordinator for their presence, support, animation of the Congregation and the Confederation as a whole. Fr. General in his concluding remarks expressed his gratitude to each of the confreres for their availability, hospitality, commitment, and generosity for mission in India and the Congregation as a whole. He stressed the importance of Mission as the essence of our vocation that calls us constantly to respond to the mission and the cry of the most abandoned. He praised the Confederation that it is moving in the right direction of mission, and he called on the Confederation to consolidate the structures present. He had a word of encouragement and exhortation for leadership today in the context of the 3 councils and calling on them to move forward in service for the mission and to build on what has already been laid out.
The Assembly ended with a vote of thanks and prayer and blessing from Fr. Rogério Gomes.
Fr. Joseph Ivel Mendanha, C.Ss.R.
General Consultor
