From Oct. 4 to Oct. 28, the first phase of the Synod on Synodality will take place in Rome. It will reconvene in October 2024 for the second phase.
A synod is not a new creation for our Church. Synods were held in the early Church and after the Second Vatican Council; the modern popes since Pope Saint Paul VI in 1965 have convoked 16 synods on a variety of topics such as the Sacrament of Penance, the priesthood, the family, young people and others. Those synods concluded by issuing reports, which provided information about the topic considered during the synod. The reports presented to the Pope were for his information about the state of the Universal Church. They were summaries of the topic under consideration at the synod. This information assisted the Holy Father in his role as the Universal Pastor of the Church. The topic of this synod is synodality.
The word synod means walking together. It is about a journey. The journey of the Church. The journey of the People of God. A journey guided by the Holy Spirit. Only bishops participated in former synods. In this synod, 70 members of the lay faithful, including women, will participate as voting members.
Worldwide consultations throughout the whole Church preceded the upcoming October synod. They involved a long process of listening to people from all over the world and gathering information from their concerns. You may remember the questionnaire that your parish distributed. Perhaps you participated in one of the listening sessions. A diocesan session followed the parish sessions. Then, a regional (for us the dioceses of New Jersey and Pennsylvania) session met. A national report from the United States was developed from the regional reports and finally, a continental (Canada and the USA) report was submitted to Rome. Out of those reports from around the world, the Instrumentum Laboris (working instrument) was developed, and it will guide the discussions of the members of the synod. There are three themes in the working document – communion, mission and participation. A series of questions will be the base of the discussions and discernment that follow each theme.
This synod is an opportunity for our Church to listen to what the Holy Spirit is saying through the members of the Church. Its focus is the mission of the Church and how that mission is fulfilled throughout the world. There will be a broad range of presenters, followed by dialogue among the members of the synod. The participants in the synod will consider the priorities that emerge during the synod sessions. Cardinal Mario Grech, the secretary general of the synod, recently said, “I realize more and more that the synodal process is a spiritual fact. The Pope always says, the protagonist is the Holy Spirit.”
At the conclusion of the synod, a document will be drafted with the goal of consensus. The members of the synod will vote upon it, and then it goes to the Pope. Either the Holy Father supports or he may choose not to support the conclusions. In October 2024, the Synod on Synodality will resume and continue.
The Lord promised to be with His Church always, and Peter is its Rock, the source of our Unity as One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church. During this October, please pray for the members of the synod and for our Church.
Most Reverend Dennis J. Sullivan, D.D.
Bishop of Camden