From July 1–4, 2025, the second-level Missionary Animators’ School (Szkoła Animatorów Misyjnych, SAM) took place at the “Dobre Miejsce” retreat house in Warsaw. The event was organized by the Pontifical Mission Societies in Poland and brought together 37 participants from 17 dioceses – animators, catechists, pastoral workers, and lay people eager to deepen their missionary formation and share their experiences. This year’s edition of SAM was themed around four continents – Africa, Asia, the Americas, and Europe – with each day of formation inspired by one of them. The program included daily prayer, thematic workshops, and meetings with missionaries. Participants engaged in various activities, including sessions on missionary animation, film workshops, Eucharistic adoration, and presentations on initiatives such as AdoMiS (Adopt a Missionary Seminarian) and the “Missionary Bouquet” (donations for missions instead of flowers). The program also included a trip to the Blessed Mother Elżbieta Róża Czacka Museum and a visit to the Center for Blind Children in Laski near Warsaw. Evening gatherings fostered community-building, featuring creative workshops, a bonfire, singing, and joyful time spent with missionaries from Tanzania and Argentina. The school concluded with a Holy Mass with missionary commissioning and the awarding of certificates. “We wanted the animators not only to gain knowledge, but above all, to experience the missionary spirit of the Church. Each day was an opportunity to encounter living witnesses of faith,” emphasized Fr. Maciej Będziński, National Director of the Pontifical Mission Societies. “The formation of animators is a concrete inspiration for action – in the parish, school, family, or community. Mission begins where the heart opens to another person,” added Sr. Monika Juszka, RMI, National Secretary of the Pontifical Society of the Holy Childhood. The words of participants confirm the fruitfulness of the meeting:
“Each day was a dose of faith and energy,” said Aneta from the Diocese of Legnica.
“I felt that I can be a missionary right where I am,” shared Tomasz from the Diocese of Koszalin-Kołobrzeg.
“We’re returning with minds full of ideas and a desire to act,” summed up the animators from the Diocese of Gliwice.The Missionary Animators’ School has been active in Poland since 1997 and has formed over 1,500 animators. Its idea was born in Bolivia and continues today as a vibrant initiative supporting the Church’s missionary commitment both in Poland and around the world.
MK/PMS/Poland
