In the historic center of Toulon, the cathedral is packed on this sunny Sunday in the Var.
“
Today is a day of jubilation
,” intones the assembly as the long line of priests enters Notre-Dame-de-la-Seds Cathedral.
Four seminarians were ordained this January 21, one to the priesthood, the others to the diaconate - the first degree in the course of a future priest.
They are Kevin, from Ireland, Richard and Reinaldo from Paraguay and Thomas Nguyen, from Vietnam.
A promotion like the mosaic of the diocese of Fréjus-Toulon, which, under the governance of Bishop Dominique Rey, has opened up to multiple spiritualities.
The reception of religious communities of all obediences, from the most innovative to the most traditional, some of which are suspected of sectarian aberrations, was precisely the main trigger for the “
audit
” carried out by Rome in 2021. Considering the deep crisis, Saint -Headquarters then suspended all ordinations
sine die
.
This Sunday afternoon, however, the celebration, presided over by the “
coadjutor
” bishop appointed by Rome, Mgr François Touvet, marks a sign of hope.
“
We are reaching the end of the test.
It is a door that opens so that from now on the diocese can move forward
,” said Mgr Rey ahead of the ceremony.
The building with some 800 seats is overflowing with faithful.
Nuns are sitting on the ground, young people in basketball shoes are watching with all their eyes, leaning against the pillars, next to scouts and people from Toulon in moccasins.
Hope
In this diocese which breathes in unison, the faithful were “
all in apnea for two years
”, confirms Maëlys, 28 years old.
This faithful particularly remembers this first mass of the coadjutor bishop, at the end of November.
When Mgr Touvet announced, at the end of the celebration, that ordinations would resume, thunderous applause resounded for several minutes in the building.
A very strong moment according to the faithful present.
"
It was very moving.
People were crying
,” says a sixty-year-old.
Mgr Touvet was himself marked by this moment.
Obviously, he arrived in a diocese with a soul and great cohesion.
“
I measured the expectations of the faithful at that moment,”
he confided to Le
Figaro
.
All the Christian people expressed their joy
.”
Prostration is the moment when seminarians lie face down while the congregation chants the Litany of the Saints.
Gwendoline Mengasson / diocese of Fréjus-Toulon
In order to sweep away any idea of tension between the two prelates, the coadjutor addressed his first words of the ceremony to his “
brother Dominique
”.
“
Thank you Dominique for your trust
,” he insisted.
While he was responsible for presiding over these ordinations - Order of Rome, François Touvet let his counterpart deliver the homily.
“
Your joy today is shared by our entire diocese
,” said Mgr Rey to the newly ordained.
“
After two years of waiting, your ordination is a great jubilation.
THANKS
".
Monsignor Rey delivered the homily, while coadjutor Monsignor Touvet presided over the ceremony.
Gwendoline Mengasson / diocese of Fréjus-Toulon
Injustice
In Toulon, the placing under supervision of the diocese by the Holy See was experienced by the laity as an injustice, an incomprehension.
“
At least they could have allowed the seminarians to complete their course in another diocese instead of suspending everything
,” laments an assistant.
“
I'm not sure that everything is settled
,” slips another, a member of the choir. “
It's all still a little vague.
There are things they want to resolve internally… we stay outside
,” declares a Polynesian mother, wearing leggings and fleece, standing at the back of the cathedral with her children.
The promise of upcoming ordinations
Mgr Touvet, who arrived from Champagne, claims to have received a very good welcome in Toulon.
The coadjutor took on the thorny issue of ordinations, his “
priority
”.
For two months he has been going through, like a marathon, meetings with the seminaries and priests of the diocese, of which he is called to take over the reins when Mgr Rey reaches the age limit of 75 years.
The bishop already affirms it: this ceremony is only the beginning, and other ordinations will take place during the year.
Because other seminarians are waiting their turn: ten in total were to be ordained for the year 2022 alone. For these, the bishop said he needed “
still time
” for “
necessary discernment
”.
The rector of the seminary, Father Benoit Moradei, specifies that there are “no
objections to the applications in question
”, “
just work to meet communities and people
”, he explains to Le
Figaro
.
Monsignor François Touvet, previously assigned to the diocese of Châlons-en-Champagne, laughed as he confided to us: “
In 8 years, I have only ordained one priest, and I find a queue here. .. This year promises to be a catch-up session!
".