Synod 2021-2023
Pope Francis has called for a Synod of the world-wide Catholic Church to commence in October 2021 and culminating with a General Assembly of all the Bishops in October 2023. The whole Catholic Church worldwide is to engage in a process of discernment under the guidance of the Holy Spirit. It involves everyone in the Church – clergy, religious, and lay Catholics, each participating according to the gifts and charisms of their vocation
The overall theme is ‘For a Synodal Church: Communion, Participation, Mission’.
In our Archdiocese, Archbishop John Wilson is inviting everyone to respond to the invitation of Pope Francis and take part in the initial diocesan listening phase of the Synod. Each local parish is asked to host a meeting, or series of meetings, where conversations about the Church’s mission in the life of the parish and the diocese can be prayerfully examined; and where the will of the Lord can be discerned, as we seek to grow in faith and number.
Journeying Together
Communion
By His gracious will, God gathers us together as diverse peoples of one faith, through the covenant that he offers to his people. The communion we share finds its deepest roots in the love and unity of the Trinity. It is Christ who reconciles us to the Father and unites us with each other in the Holy Spirit.
Together, we are inspired by listening to the Word of God, through the living Tradition of the Church, and grounded in the sensus fidei that we share. We all have a role to play in discerning and living out God’s call for his people.
Participation
A call for the involvement of all who belong to the People of God – laity, consecrated and ordained – to engage in the exercise of deep and respectful listening to one another. This listening creates space for us to hear the Holy Spirit together, and guides our aspirations for the Church of the Third Millennium.
Participation is based on the fact that all the faithful are qualified and are called to serve one another through the gifts they have each received from the Holy Spirit.
In a synodal Church the whole community, in the free and rich diversity of its members, is called together to pray, listen, analyse, dialogue, discern and offer advice on making pastoral decisions which correspond as closely as possible to God’s will (ICT, Syn., 67-68). Genuine efforts must be made to ensure the inclusion of those at the margins or who feel excluded.
Mission
The Church exists to evangelise. We can never be centred on ourselves. Our mission is to witness the love of God in the midst of the whole human family. This Synodal Process has a deep missionary dimension to it. It is intended to enable the Church to better witness to the Gospel,
especially with those who live on the spiritual, social, economic, political, geographical, and existential peripheries of our world. In this way, synodality is a path by which the Church can more fruitfully fulfil her mission of evangelisation in the world, as a leaven at the service of the coming of God’s kingdom
What is the Synod?
The Synod is a participative and inclusive process of listening and discerning that offers everyone—within and beyond the worshipping Catholic community—the opportunity to express themselves, to be heard and to contribute to how the People of God can better ‘journey together’.
It is intended to inspire people to dream about the Church we are called to be, to learn from one another, to realise the gifts in each and every person, to bind up wounds, to renew relationships and build bridges, to warm hearts and restore strength for our common mission.
Documents to help the 'Journeying Together' Process
Synod Prayers
Synodal Resources 1
Synodal Resources 2
Synodal Resources 3
Synodal Resources 4
What we/the Church have been asked to do?
Each local parish is asked to host a meeting, or series of meetings to answer these questions.
Please record key points from your conversations based on the questions below. In group discussions as far as possible please use the words which were actually used by the speaker.
These questions are particularly about the Catholic Church and especially how the local Church journeys together, proclaiming the Gospel and showing love to the world.
We need to send the answers to the diocese by 26th November.
You can download the form HERE and complete it and send it to Murielle at ass_murielle@hotmail.com
Parish Updates
Address to Parish Members
October 2021