Below is Sr. Colleen Gibson’s recent article published in the National Catholic Reporter.
A few weeks ago, in the run-up to the opening of the second session of the synod on synodality, the Prayer of the Faithful in our parish offered an intention for the synod and its delegates. Together we prayed: “For the synod: that as delegates gather in Rome this week, they may carry with them the cares and concerns of the communities they represent — speaking freely, listening deeply and engaging prayerfully in their efforts to follow the Spirit’s guidance.”
After Mass, a parishioner stopped me in the church foyer. “Is that still going on?” they asked.
My face clearly revealed I didn’t know what they were talking about…
Today is Sunday, which is supposedly a day of rest. But we were excited to get up and go to Mass at the Jesuit English-speaking Oratory of St. Francis Xavier of Caravita.
Four of us were asked to take part in the liturgy. We foolishly thought that taking a taxi rather than walking a mile with the rest would get us there in plenty of time. We waited and ordered Ubers and taxis that never came. With twenty-five minutes to go, we ran to the church, pushing aside tourists packed around the Trevi Fountain and rushing into the church with one minute to spare. The priests were lined up and, without catching our breath, we were leading the procession!
On this day we found ourselves in the Saint Lawrence Basilica, built as a diaconiae (not to be confused by that word). A diaconiae started as a simple structure to serve the needs of the poor in the area. Over time it was developed and expanded to include an oratory where deacons could gather in prayer. To this day, this oratory contains the Easter Candle as well as the ambo for the proclamation of the Gospel. Eventually a sanctuary was added to the oratory. This three-part design of the oratory and the sanctuary is a graphic reminder of the deacon’s threefold ministry of the Word (oratory), Sacrament (sanctuary) and Charity (the nave). These three make up one sacred reality! Pope Francis resumed the ancient custom of entrusting a church to a Deacon…
Early in the morning we went to the Basilica of St. Mary Major.
The Basilica ties its origins to a miracle that occurred in the fourth century: a snowfall on August 5 in Rome—a sign revealed to Pope Liberius in a dream. To commemorate that event every year on that date a snowfall of white rose petals cascades down over the altar. It felt dreamlike to be here! We had a special opportunity to celebrate Mass in one of the side chapels. Our two priests presided with their backs to us, tucked into that side altar in a church with snowfalls, Bernini statues, marbled mosaics and a relic from the nativity crib!
In the afternoon, Discerning Deacons and CEAMA (Amazonian Ecclesial Conference) hosted a panel in Pope Pius XI Hall…
Our parishioner, Svea Fraser, is in Rome with the Discerning Deacons/CEAMA Pilgrims and will be sending us updates from their journey!
We gathered at the Migrant Statue Angels Unawares for a Visio Divina, a meditation inviting us to enter the lives and struggles of the 150 different people from different eras and parts of the world who are molded in bronze. It is truly a “visual prayer”: a prayer that is not just about migrants, but about all of us and the future of the human family. The Pope called it a reminder of the challenge of welcoming. Rising out of the center of the statue are two huge wings, a reference from Hebrews: “Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for thereby some have entertained angels unawares”…
Our parishioner, Svea Fraser, is in Rome with the Discerning Deacons/CEAMA Pilgrims and will be sending us updates from their journey!
The Discerning Deacons/CEAMA Pilgrims arrived over the past two days, 55 pilgrims representing five countries and both hemispheres! Even before we got here, we were filled with great joy when we learned about the private audience that Pope Francis held for nine women from our group, among them Casey Stanton, Sister Elizabeth Young and the women leaders from the Amazon. It was a surprising opportunity for them to speak personally and offer support for a synodal church and to pray for him. As one of the Spanish speakers relayed to me, she could feel the weight of his mission and felt his compassion and the weight of the papacy on his heart, and his knees!
On May 28, 2024, the USCCB released the National Synthesis for the Interim Stage which will, along with the contributions of episcopal conferences worldwide, form the basis of the work to be engaged by the Catholic Church until the Second Session of the XVI Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod in October 2024.
Below is the USCCB’s press release, which includes links to the document…
The second assembly of the Synod of Bishops on synodality will meet in Rome October 2-27 and will be preceded by several formal studies coordinated by the synod general secretariat working with various offices of the Roman Curia. The fall assembly will be preceded by a retreat for members September 30 – October 1, the Vatican said…
Join world-renowned speakers Timothy Radcliffe, OP, Sister Nathalie Becquart, XMCJ, Arturo Sosa, SJ, Phyllis Zagano, and Cardinal Jean-Claude Hollerich (among many more) for a Massive Online Course (MOOC) set to launch in March! All videos will be facilitated virtually during the month of March 2024 and will be offered at no cost to participants worldwide.
Mark your calendars for this exciting opportunity to continue on the synodal journey with people around the world while growing in mind and heart as we learn to listen more deeply to the work of the Holy Spirit in us and among us at this important moment in our church! More information available…
In the late afternoon of Saturday, October 28, 2023, the members of the XVI Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops adopted the “Synthesis Report of the 16th Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops.” The report, which summarizes discussions at the assembly of the Synod of Bishops, said the church may need more welcoming pastoral approaches, especially to people who feel excluded, but also acknowledged fears of betraying traditional church teachings and practices. Among the topics addressed in the report were clerical sexual abuse, women’s roles in the church, outreach to poor and the concept of “synodality” itself.
After the voting on the synthesis concluded, the pope said he wanted to remind everyone that “the protagonist of the synod is the Holy Spirit.” He briefly thanked the synod officers and joined members of the assembly in giving thanks to God…
“What just happened in Rome and what it means for us.”
On Sunday, November 5 from 12:30 – 2:00 pm, the Cathedral of the Holy Cross (1400 Washington Street, Boston, MA) will host a special conversation on the historic Synod on Synodality with Sebastian Gomes, Executive Editor for Audio and Video at America Magazine.
This event is free and includes a light lunch. To register, please visit…
Dear sisters, dear brothers,
As the proceedings of the first session of the 16th Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops draw to a close, we want to thank God with all of you for the beautiful and enriching experience we have lived. We lived this blessed time in profound communion with all of you. We were supported by your prayers, bearing with you your expectations, your questions, as well as your fears. As Pope Francis requested two years ago, a long process of listening and discernment was initiated, open to all the People of God, no one being excluded, to “journey together” under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, missionary disciples engaged in the following of Jesus Christ…
The voting delegates participating in the Synod on Synodality began work on Wednesday, October 18 on the fourth Module of the Assembly, the last one dedicated to examining the contents of the Instrumentum laboris.
The fourth Module deals with the themes of Section B3 of the Instrumentum laboris, the one dedicated to participation – “Participation, governance and authority. What processes, structures and institutions in a missionary synodal Church?”
Please join your prayers to theirs in the beautiful, exciting albeit exhausting work. Pray the Holy Spirit will inspire and guide their Conversations in the Spirit.
On Monday, October 9, the Synod’s General Rapporteur, Cardinal Jean-Claude Hollerich, reflected on the previous week’s work on Module A of the Instrumentum Laboris, and introduced Module B.
“In the first module, we reconnected with the experience of the ‘journeying together’ of the People of God over the past two years. We worked to bring the synodal Church into sharper focus as a comprehensive vision… We gained experience in using the methodology of Conversation in the Spirit and can thus feel more at ease in a way of walking together that we will continue to practice. Above all, we have begun to weave relationships and build bonds. We have begun to move from the ‘I’ to the ‘we’.”
Prior to the opening of the Synod on Synodality, voting delegates gathered at Fraterna Domus in Sacrofano for a three day retreat in spiritual preparation for the Synod. A series of meditations were prepared for the retreat by Rev. Timothy Radcliffe, O.P., a Dominican Friar and former Master of the Order of Preachers.
In the meditation titled “Friendship”, Fr. Radcliffe shared:
Preaching the gospel is never just communicating information. It is an act of friendship…
In a letter addressed to bishops and eparchs from all over the world, Cardinal Mario Grech, General Secretary of the Synod, invites the faithful from around the world to prayerfully participate in the General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops that opens in the Vatican this Wednesday, October 4.
The Cardinal reminds everyone that the Synodal Assembly is above all an event of prayer and listening that involves not only the members of the Assembly, but every baptized person. All of us are called to unite in prayer and invocation of the Holy Spirit to guide us in discerning what the Lord is asking of the Church today…
October 2023 will begin a process of communal discernment in a month-long Vatican assembly of Bishops, Cardinals, Priests, Consecrated, and Lay People representing the experiences of the whole People of God at the Synod on Synodality. Throughout this two year process, their guiding document will be the Instrumentum Laboris, a document which was compiled from the sharing of millions of Catholics worldwide participating in the Continental Stage of the Synod… For the first time in history, women (more than 50!) will be voting delegates of the Synod. A significant area of focus for the Synod will be the equal baptismal dignity of Women in the Church…
I commend to you Phoebe our sister, who is also a minister (diakonos) of the church at Cenchreae,
that you may receive her in the Lord in a manner worthy of the holy ones,
and help her in whatever she may need from you, for she has been a benefactor to many and to me as well.
-Romans 16:1,2
Enlarge the Space of Your Tent: Rethinking Women’s Participation is a Global Synod Gathering hosted at the Pastoral Center of the Archdiocese of Boston in Braintree on Saturday, September 23 from 2:00 – 5:00pm. Participants will be invited through the guidance of the Holy Spirit and the resources of the General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops to fruitfully contribute to Conversations in the Spirit. The event will include: a gathering and invitational liturgy, small group sharing, personal witnesses, fellowship, and a Vigil Mass celebrated by Father Richard Lennan.
FutureChurch Celebration of Mary Magdalene: “Rethinking Women’s Participation – Stories of Synodality Then and Now”
Thursday, July 20 from 7:00 – 8:30pm on Zoom
Jesus himself practiced synodality and sought to teach it to his disciples – both women and men – through example: teaching through parables; seeking out those on the periphery, whose voices had been ignored or silenced; placing each person he encountered on his path at the center of his ministry.
Perhaps the greatest ‘miss’ in the history of Synodality was when the other Apostles dismissed the witness of Mary Magdalene, who was commissioned by Jesus to “go and tell” the good news.
What is the Instrumentum laboris (IL)?
As the Latin word suggests, the IL is first and foremost a working tool for the participants in the work of the first session of the 16th Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops. In this sense, the IL does not suggest answers, but notes, articulates some insights that have emerged in the process, opens up questions and invites further study.
It is therefore also a document for the discernment of the participants in the October 2023 Assembly. In fact, unlike previous synods for which the IL was a document to be amended, improved, in order to arrive at a new document, the current IL is primarily aimed at and in support of the assembly’s methodology…
On June 20, the secretariat for the synod published the working document (known by its Latin title instrumentum laboris) for the first session of the General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops on synodality that will be held in the Vatican from October 4 to October 29, 2023. The second session will be held in October 2024.
Cardinal Grech described the working document as “the fruit of a synodal process” that started on Oct. 10, 2021, and “involved the whole church” in an exercise of listening to the people of God…
Last month, the Vatican announced that for the first time, lay people – including women – will serve as full members of the Synod of Bishops with voting rights, as part of a broader series of changes to the rules governing these papally convened summits. Under the previous norms, a synod was defined in canon law as a gathering of members, of which “the greater part are bishops” elected by their national bishops’ conference. Other members, usually bishops or male religious, were either appointed by the pope or by their religious institutes.
The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) and the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops (CCCB) have issued the North American Final Document for the Continental Stage of the 2021-2024 Synod: For a Synodal Church: Communion, Participation, and Mission (also available in Spanish and French.)
Begun in late 2022, the Continental Stage of the Synod was the second stage of the three-year process initiated by Pope Francis in October 2021. For the North American Continental Stage, the United States and Canada held twelve virtual assemblies: seven in English, three in Spanish, and two in French between December 2022 and January 2023. In total, 931 delegates and 146 bishops from Canada and the United States were appointed to participate in one of these twelve assemblies to share their reflections and responses…
On October 27, 2022, the Working Document for the Continental Stage – the fruit of the Syntheses resulting from the consultation of the People of God in the first phase of the synodal process – was released… The document, titled “Enlarge the Space of Your Tent” was produced by a team of 30 advisors who gathered in Frascati, Italy for two weeks in late-September and early October, the majority of whom were lay Catholics…
Please take some time to read the Working Document for the Continental Stage – you will find many of the major themes that were central in our own SJSP Collaborative Synod Synthesis Report are reflected in the document…
Becoming a Synodal Church: Issues and Challenges Sr. Nathalie Becquart, XMCJ Undersecretary for the General Secretariat of the Synod
Thursday, October 27 at 5:30pm to 7:00pm – Corcoran Commons, Heights Room, Chestnut Hill Campus – Attend in person or virtually
The Synod on Synodality is a transformative process in which all the baptized are protagonists and discern together the calls of the Holy Spirit, uniting as a listening Church of participation and co-responsibility…
In a surprise announcement after reciting the Angelus with thousands of pilgrims in St. Peter’s Square on October 6, Pope Francis has significantly lengthened the final Roman phase of the ongoing Synod on Synodality. It will now extend over two sessions from October 4-29, 2023, and in October 2024.
“I hope that this decision will favor the comprehension of synodality as a constitutive dimension of the church and help everyone to live it as a journey of brothers and sisters who witness to the joy of the Gospel,” the pope said when he broke the news.
“The fruits of the synodal process that has gone ahead are many, but in order for them to bear much fruit, we can’t hurry,” said Francis.
The 60th anniversary of the opening of the Second Vatican Council is a moment of particular grace also for the Synod, which represents a fruit of that ecumenical assembly, indeed one of its “most precious legacies” (Francis, Apostolic Constitution Episcopalis Communio, Sept. 15, 2018, 1). The Synodus Episoporum, in fact, was instituted by St. Paul VI at the beginning of the fourth and final period of the Council (Sept. 15, 1965), responding to requests made by many council fathers…
The synodal process currently underway, dedicated to “Synodality in the Life and Mission of the Church,” is also within the Council’s wake…
The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) recently issued the National Synthesis of the People of God in the United States of America. The synthesis marks the completion of the Diocesan Phase of the 2021-2023 Synod: For a Synodal Church: Communion, Participation, and Mission. As you know, last October, Pope Francis invited the global Catholic Church to reflect on walking together
Thank you to the many hundreds of people who engaged in the work of the Synod by sharing their faith, hopes, and dreams for the Church! We began our synodal journey in the fall of 2021, with the announcement that Pope Francis had called for a synod in the Church, with the theme: “For a Synodal Church: Communion, Participation and Mission.” During
Thank you to the many hundreds of people who engaged in the work of the Synod by sharing their faith, hopes, and dreams for the Church. We are now the synthesis phase, preparing to share the fruits of our listening sessions, online responses, and Question of the Week cards with the Archdiocese of Boston and with the Secretariat for the
If you haven’t had a chance yet, please take a moment to answer Pope Francis’ invitation to share your faith, hopes, and dreams for the Church as part of the 2021 – 2023 Synod on Synodality. You can share your thoughts here on our online portal through Sunday, June 5: Synodal Listening Session – Online Version In early summer, we will
We invite you to actively participate in our Synodal Intentional Listening Initiative by answering this week’s “Question of the Week”: Click here to submit your answers online. (If you missed any previous “Questions of the Week” you can answer those as well!) All are invited and encouraged to participate, and we urge you to share this invitation with people you
We are so grateful for every voice who participated in our in-person and virtual synodal listening sessions! Given the rising Covid numbers in our communities, we have made the decision to cancel our final in-person Listening Session, which was scheduled for Tuesday, May 17. If you have not yet had a chance to share your thoughts in an in-person or
We invite you to actively participate in our Synodal Intentional Listening Initiative by answering this week’s “Question of the Week”: The question can be answered on the cards provided in the churches and dropped in the boxes in the lobbies, or you can click here to submit your answers online. (If you missed any previous “Questions of the Week” you
We invite you to actively participate in our Synodal Intentional Listening Initiative by answering this week’s “Question of the Week”: The question can be answered on the cards provided in the churches and dropped in the boxes in the lobbies, or you can click here to submit your answers online. (If you missed any previous “Questions of the Week” you
“The Pope is listening, and wants to hear from you… and I am also listening, and want to hear from you…” Please come to a Listening Session! Thursday, May 5 at 7:00pm at St. Paul Parish Hall Thursday, May 12 at 7:00pm at St. John Powers Hall Saturday, May 14 at 5:00pm at St. Paul Parish Hall Sunday, May 15 at 3:00pm Virtual via
We invite you to actively participate in our Synodal Listening Initiative by answering this week’s ‘Question of the Week’: If I could change the Catholic Church in one way it would be… And this is why… The question can be answered on the cards provided in the churches and dropped in the boxes in the lobbies, or you can click here
Please join us at one of our Intentional Listening Sessions! Invite family, friends, neighbors – people of all ages and faith backgrounds. Pope Francis wants to hear from all of us – the whole Church! He is inviting all of us to share our joys, our sorrows, and our dreams for the Church. Registration is not required for the in-person listening sessions –
We invite you to actively participate in our Synodal Listening Initiative by answering this week’s ‘Question of the Week’: If you were having coffee with Pope Francis what would you say? The question can be answered on the cards provided in the churches and dropped in the boxes in the lobbies, or submitted online. (If you missed last week’s question
Late in the day on Easter Sunday, in anticipation of the Boston Marathon the next morning, these banners, prominently featuring the Synod logo, our website address, and the tagline “Feeling disconnected from the Church? We want to hear from you!”, were placed on the grounds of both parishes on very heavily-traveled Route 16 in Wellesley. Our goal is to invite
We invite you to actively participate in our Synodal Intentional Listening Initiative by answering this week’s “Question of the Week”: The question can be answered on the cards provided in the churches and dropped in the boxes in the lobbies, or you can click here to submit your answers online. Our schedule of in-person and virtual listening sessions here at the
Please join us this Thursday evening for the final night of our three-part Lenten Lecture Series focusing on Pope Francis’ book, “Let Us Dream: The Path to a Better Future.” Fr. Bryan Hehir will conclude the series by discussing Part Three – A Time to Act.
Those wishing to understand Pope Francis’ emphasis on synodality will find many revelations here – we encourage everyone to read this wonderful book and come to the lectures! (But it is not necessary to have read the book to benefit from the lecture – all are strongly encouraged to attend!)
Please join us for an interactive book discussion on Stories from the Shadows: Reflections of a Street Doctor, Dr. James O’Connell’s collection of stories and essays written during thirty years of caring for homeless persons in Boston through the Boston Healthcare for the Homeless Program (BHCHP), the recipient of this year’s Collaborative Lenten Gift. The evening will be facilitated by Deirdre Heilbron, R.N., parishioner and nurse with
The second of our three-part Lenten Lecture Series focusing on Pope Francis’ book, “Let Us Dream: The Path to a Better Future,” was held on Thursday, March 24. Kelly Meraw, Director of Collaborative Pastoral Care, shared her reflections on the second part of the book – Part Two: A Time to Choose. If you missed it, or would just like
This week in Synod news – a letter from Cardinal Mario Grech, Secretary General of the Synod of Bishops, and Archbishop Lazzaro You Heung sik, Prefect for the Congregation of the Clergy was published to all their brother priests regarding our Synodal journey. The letter reminded clergy of the rich tradition and habit of Synodality our Church shared in the
Please join us this Thursday evening, March 24 at 7:00pm in the St. Paul Parish Hall for Part Two of our three-part Lenten Lecture Series focusing on Pope Francis’ book, “Let Us Dream: The Path to a Better Future.” Kelly Meraw, Director of Collaborative Pastoral Care, will continue the series by breaking open Part Two – A Time to Choose.
“Young Catholics are giving the church a valuable lesson in the real meaning of Synodality. They have asked us in a thousand ways to walk alongside them — not behind them or ahead of them, but at their side. Not over them or under them, but on their level.” -Pope Francis Over 50 confirmation candidates participated in a Synodal Listening
Author Night with Dr. James J. O’Connell President and Founder,Boston Healthcare for the Homeless Program Wednesday, March 167:00pm St. John the Evangelist Church Please join us for a special evening with Dr. James J. O’Connell, author of Stories from the Shadows: Reflections of a Street Doctor, and president of Boston Healthcare for the Homeless Program (BHCHP). (BHCHP will be the
There are three key words used frequently when addressing Synodality (or “Journeying Together”): Communion, Participation and Mission. Here is what the Holy Father shares about these important pillars of synodality – 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
The first of our three-part Lenten Lecture Series focusing on Pope Francis’ book, “Let Us Dream: The Path to a Better Future,” was held on March 10. Sr. Evelyn Ronan, SND began the series by breaking open the first part of the book – “Part One: A Time to See”. If you missed it, or would just like to watch
Please join us this Thursday evening, March 10 at 7:00pm in the St. Paul Parish Hall for the first in our three-part Lenten Lecture Series focusing on Pope Francis’ book, “Let Us Dream: The Path to a Better Future,” written during the pandemic in collaboration with his biographer Austin Ivereigh. In a relaxed and conversational tone, Francis poignantly captures the
Dr. O’Connell is the President of Boston Healthcare for the Homeless Program, the recipient of this year’s Collaborative Lenten Gift. Dr. O’Connell’s collection of stories and essays, written during thirty years of caring for homeless persons in Boston, gently illuminates the humanity and raw courage of those who struggle to survive and find meaning and hope while living on the
This Lent, as we prepare to begin our synodal journey, we will dive deeply into Pope Francis’ recent book, Let Us Dream: The Path to a Better Future, written during the pandemic in collaboration with his biographer Austin Ivereigh. In a relaxed and conversational tone, Francis poignantly captures the ills of today’s world and suggests practical solutions for overcoming them, both personally and systemically.
Those wishing to understand Pope Francis’ emphasis on synodality will find many revelations here – we encourage everyone to read this wonderful book!
One significant step in our Church’s Synodal journey took place this week, when Pope Francis met virtually with college students at an historic event hosted by Loyola University, Chicago. The conversation was the result of hours of listening sessions between a larger group of 130 students- many with a wide range of life experiences and different areas of study. They represented 58
Pope Francis has called for a synod in the church – a “Synod on Synodality” – with the theme “For a Synodal Church: Communion, Participation and Mission.” On the weekend of February 26-27, our Collaborative bulletin was dedicated to introducing and explaining this “Synod on Synodality” and how it is unfolding here at our Collaborative. In addition, Fr. Jim and
“Dear brothers and sisters, let us have a good journey together! May we be pilgrims in love with the Gospel and open to the surprises of the Holy Spirit.”
While Synods are as old as the Church herself, this Synod on Synodality is unprecedented in so many ways. Our challenge as Catholics is to actively resist the temptation to see this Synod as something similar to anything we’ve experienced in our lifetimes. There are significant signs that this is a consultation of the entire people of God like no
Pope Francis has invited us into a dialogue. The Synod on Synodality is a three-year process of preserving the Church’s health and unity, growing its attentiveness to the Holy Spirit, and making a radical call to be a listening Church. Our Holy Father is asking all the People of God to engage in this question: What is the Holy Spirit calling
Interested in learning more about the global Synodal Journey? The General Secretariat for the Synod of Bishops offers a periodic newsletter with news from around the world with initiatives and celebrations related to the synodal process. The most recent newsletter gives importance to Ecumenism, in the context of the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity, this year with the theme: “We
News Release – 17 January 2022 For the forthcoming 2022 Week of Prayer for Christian Unity Cardinal Mario Grech and Cardinal Kurt Koch invite all Christians to pray for unity and to continue to journey together. In a joint letter sent on 28 October 2021 to all bishops responsible for ecumenism, Cardinal Koch, President of the Pontifical Council for Promoting
From the Pilot: As the global Church began its new liturgical year, a Mass celebrating the initiation of the “synodal way” took place at the Cathedral of the Holy Cross on Nov. 27, marking the official opening of the synodal year on the diocesan level. Cardinal Seán P. O’Malley was the main celebrant of the vigil Mass of the first
Cardinal Seán O’Malley, OFM Cap. will celebrate this special Advent Mass on November 27, 2021 at the Cathedral of the Holy Cross at 4:30PM – it will be broadcast and live-streamed on CatholicTV & CatholicTVLIVE.com (rebroadcast on Sunday at 11am and 8pm). The theme is “For a synodal Church: communion, participation and mission.” The consultative process in the
excerpt from TheBostonPilot.com …The Church has opened a synod process on the topic of synodality, with the theme “For a Synodal Church: Communion, Participation, and Mission.” The synod process, informally known as the “synod on synodality,” opened in Rome on the weekend of Oct. 9-10 and in particular churches on Oct. 17. An opening Mass will take place at the
The General Secretariat for the Synod of Bishops has extended the deadline for the first phase of the synodal process from April 2022 to August 15, 2022. From Vatican News: In order to “provide a greater opportunity for the people of God to have an authentic experience of listening and dialogue” during the recently launched synodal process, the General
Over the next several years, the Church around the world will be participating in a process called the Synod on Synodality. The Holy Father will be meeting with Bishops from across the globe in 2023 to discuss ways of improving the process by which the church on all levels is open to hearing the voices of people from all walks
Synod 2021-2023: “For a Synodal Church: Communion, Participation and Mission” Pope Francis has called for a synod in the church. The theme of this upcoming Synod is “For a Synodal Church: Communion, Participation and Mission.” The solemn opening of the Synod will take place in Rome on October 9-10, and in the particular Churches (the diocesan phase) on October 17.
Below is Sr. Colleen Gibson’s recent article published in the National Catholic Reporter. A few weeks ago, in the run-up to the opening of the second session of the synod on synodality, the Prayer of the Faithful in our parish offered an intention for the synod and its delegates. Together we prayed: “For the synod: that as delegates gather in Rome this week, they may carry with them the cares and concerns of the communities they represent — speaking freely, listening deeply and engaging prayerfully in their efforts to follow the Spirit’s guidance.” After Mass, a parishioner stopped me in the church foyer. “Is that still going on?” they asked. My face clearly revealed I didn’t know what they were talking about…
Today is Sunday, which is supposedly a day of rest. But we were excited to get up and go to Mass at the Jesuit English-speaking Oratory of St. Francis Xavier of Caravita. Four of us were asked to take part in the liturgy. We foolishly thought that taking a taxi rather than walking a mile with the rest would get us there in plenty of time. We waited and ordered Ubers and taxis that never came. With twenty-five minutes to go, we ran to the church, pushing aside tourists packed around the Trevi Fountain and rushing into the church with one minute to spare. The priests were lined up and, without catching our breath, we were leading the procession!
On this day we found ourselves in the Saint Lawrence Basilica, built as a diaconiae (not to be confused by that word). A diaconiae started as a simple structure to serve the needs of the poor in the area. Over time it was developed and expanded to include an oratory where deacons could gather in prayer. To this day, this oratory contains the Easter Candle as well as the ambo for the proclamation of the Gospel. Eventually a sanctuary was added to the oratory. This three-part design of the oratory and the sanctuary is a graphic reminder of the deacon’s threefold ministry of the Word (oratory), Sacrament (sanctuary) and Charity (the nave). These three make up one sacred reality! Pope Francis resumed the ancient custom of entrusting a church to a Deacon…
Early in the morning we went to the Basilica of St. Mary Major. The Basilica ties its origins to a miracle that occurred in the fourth century: a snowfall on August 5 in Rome—a sign revealed to Pope Liberius in a dream. To commemorate that event every year on that date a snowfall of white rose petals cascades down over the altar. It felt dreamlike to be here! We had a special opportunity to celebrate Mass in one of the side chapels. Our two priests presided with their backs to us, tucked into that side altar in a church with snowfalls, Bernini statues, marbled mosaics and a relic from the nativity crib! In the afternoon, Discerning Deacons and CEAMA (Amazonian Ecclesial Conference) hosted a panel in Pope Pius XI Hall…
Our parishioner, Svea Fraser, is in Rome with the Discerning Deacons/CEAMA Pilgrims and will be sending us updates from their journey!
Our parishioner, Svea Fraser, is in Rome with the Discerning Deacons/CEAMA Pilgrims and will be sending us updates from their journey!
On May 28, 2024, the USCCB released the National Synthesis for the Interim Stage which will, along with the contributions of episcopal conferences worldwide, form the basis of the work to be engaged by the Catholic Church until the Second Session of the XVI Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod in October 2024. Below is the USCCB’s press release, which includes links to the document…
The second assembly of the Synod of Bishops on synodality will meet in Rome October 2-27 and will be preceded by several formal studies coordinated by the synod general secretariat working with various offices of the Roman Curia. The fall assembly will be preceded by a retreat for members September 30 – October 1, the Vatican said…
Join world-renowned speakers Timothy Radcliffe, OP, Sister Nathalie Becquart, XMCJ, Arturo Sosa, SJ, Phyllis Zagano, and Cardinal Jean-Claude Hollerich (among many more) for a Massive Online Course (MOOC) set to launch in March! All videos will be facilitated virtually during the month of March 2024 and will be offered at no cost to participants worldwide. Mark your calendars for this exciting opportunity to continue on the synodal journey with people around the world while growing in mind and heart as we learn to listen more deeply to the work of the Holy Spirit in us and among us at this important moment in our church! More information available…
In the late afternoon of Saturday, October 28, 2023, the members of the XVI Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops adopted the “Synthesis Report of the 16th Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops.” The report, which summarizes discussions at the assembly of the Synod of Bishops, said the church may need more welcoming pastoral approaches, especially to people who feel excluded, but also acknowledged fears of betraying traditional church teachings and practices. Among the topics addressed in the report were clerical sexual abuse, women’s roles in the church, outreach to poor and the concept of “synodality” itself. After the voting on the synthesis concluded, the pope said he wanted to remind everyone that “the protagonist of the synod is the Holy Spirit.” He briefly thanked the synod officers and joined members of the assembly in giving thanks to God…
“What just happened in Rome and what it means for us.”
Dear sisters, dear brothers, As the proceedings of the first session of the 16th Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops draw to a close, we want to thank God with all of you for the beautiful and enriching experience we have lived. We lived this blessed time in profound communion with all of you. We were supported by your prayers, bearing with you your expectations, your questions, as well as your fears. As Pope Francis requested two years ago, a long process of listening and discernment was initiated, open to all the People of God, no one being excluded, to “journey together” under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, missionary disciples engaged in the following of Jesus Christ…
The voting delegates participating in the Synod on Synodality began work on Wednesday, October 18 on the fourth Module of the Assembly, the last one dedicated to examining the contents of the Instrumentum laboris. The fourth Module deals with the themes of Section B3 of the Instrumentum laboris, the one dedicated to participation – “Participation, governance and authority. What processes, structures and institutions in a missionary synodal Church?” Please join your prayers to theirs in the beautiful, exciting albeit exhausting work. Pray the Holy Spirit will inspire and guide their Conversations in the Spirit.
On Monday, October 9, the Synod’s General Rapporteur, Cardinal Jean-Claude Hollerich, reflected on the previous week’s work on Module A of the Instrumentum Laboris, and introduced Module B. “In the first module, we reconnected with the experience of the ‘journeying together’ of the People of God over the past two years. We worked to bring the synodal Church into sharper focus as a comprehensive vision… We gained experience in using the methodology of Conversation in the Spirit and can thus feel more at ease in a way of walking together that we will continue to practice. Above all, we have begun to weave relationships and build bonds. We have begun to move from the ‘I’ to the ‘we’.”
Prior to the opening of the Synod on Synodality, voting delegates gathered at Fraterna Domus in Sacrofano for a three day retreat in spiritual preparation for the Synod. A series of meditations were prepared for the retreat by Rev. Timothy Radcliffe, O.P., a Dominican Friar and former Master of the Order of Preachers.
In a letter addressed to bishops and eparchs from all over the world, Cardinal Mario Grech, General Secretary of the Synod, invites the faithful from around the world to prayerfully participate in the General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops that opens in the Vatican this Wednesday, October 4. The Cardinal reminds everyone that the Synodal Assembly is above all an event of prayer and listening that involves not only the members of the Assembly, but every baptized person. All of us are called to unite in prayer and invocation of the Holy Spirit to guide us in discerning what the Lord is asking of the Church today…
October 2023 will begin a process of communal discernment in a month-long Vatican assembly of Bishops, Cardinals, Priests, Consecrated, and Lay People representing the experiences of the whole People of God at the Synod on Synodality. Throughout this two year process, their guiding document will be the Instrumentum Laboris, a document which was compiled from the sharing of millions of Catholics worldwide participating in the Continental Stage of the Synod… For the first time in history, women (more than 50!) will be voting delegates of the Synod. A significant area of focus for the Synod will be the equal baptismal dignity of Women in the Church…
I commend to you Phoebe our sister, who is also a minister (diakonos) of the church at Cenchreae,
Enlarge the Space of Your Tent: Rethinking Women’s Participation is a Global Synod Gathering hosted at the Pastoral Center of the Archdiocese of Boston in Braintree on Saturday, September 23 from 2:00 – 5:00pm. Participants will be invited through the guidance of the Holy Spirit and the resources of the General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops to fruitfully contribute to Conversations in the Spirit. The event will include: a gathering and invitational liturgy, small group sharing, personal witnesses, fellowship, and a Vigil Mass celebrated by Father Richard Lennan.
FutureChurch Celebration of Mary Magdalene: “Rethinking Women’s Participation – Stories of Synodality Then and Now”
What is the Instrumentum laboris (IL)?
Last month, the Vatican announced that for the first time, lay people – including women – will serve as full members of the Synod of Bishops with voting rights, as part of a broader series of changes to the rules governing these papally convened summits. Under the previous norms, a synod was defined in canon law as a gathering of members, of which “the greater part are bishops” elected by their national bishops’ conference. Other members, usually bishops or male religious, were either appointed by the pope or by their religious institutes.
The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) and the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops (CCCB) have issued the North American Final Document for the Continental Stage of the 2021-2024 Synod: For a Synodal Church: Communion, Participation, and Mission (also available in Spanish and French.)
On October 27, 2022, the Working Document for the Continental Stage – the fruit of the Syntheses resulting from the consultation of the People of God in the first phase of the synodal process – was released… The document, titled “Enlarge the Space of Your Tent” was produced by a team of 30 advisors who gathered in Frascati, Italy for two weeks in late-September and early October, the majority of whom were lay Catholics… Please take some time to read the Working Document for the Continental Stage – you will find many of the major themes that were central in our own SJSP Collaborative Synod Synthesis Report are reflected in the document…
Becoming a Synodal Church: Issues and Challenges
In a surprise announcement after reciting the Angelus with thousands of pilgrims in St. Peter’s Square on October 6, Pope Francis has significantly lengthened the final Roman phase of the ongoing Synod on Synodality. It will now extend over two sessions from October 4-29, 2023, and in October 2024. “I hope that this decision will favor the comprehension of synodality as a constitutive dimension of the church and help everyone to live it as a journey of brothers and sisters who witness to the joy of the Gospel,” the pope said when he broke the news. “The fruits of the synodal process that has gone ahead are many, but in order for them to bear much fruit, we can’t hurry,” said Francis.
The 60th anniversary of the opening of the Second Vatican Council is a moment of particular grace also for the Synod, which represents a fruit of that ecumenical assembly, indeed one of its “most precious legacies” (Francis, Apostolic Constitution Episcopalis Communio, Sept. 15, 2018, 1). The Synodus Episoporum, in fact, was instituted by St. Paul VI at the beginning of the fourth and final period of the Council (Sept. 15, 1965), responding to requests made by many council fathers… The synodal process currently underway, dedicated to “Synodality in the Life and Mission of the Church,” is also within the Council’s wake…
Thank you to the many hundreds of people who engaged in the work of the Synod by sharing their faith, hopes, and dreams for the Church! We began our synodal journey in the fall of 2021, with the announcement that Pope Francis had called for a synod in the Church, with the theme: “For a Synodal Church: Communion, Participation and Mission.” During
We invite you to actively participate in our Synodal Intentional Listening Initiative by answering this week’s “Question of the Week”: Click here to submit your answers online. (If you missed any previous “Questions of the Week” you can answer those as well!) All are invited and encouraged to participate, and we urge you to share this invitation with people you
We are so grateful for every voice who participated in our in-person and virtual synodal listening sessions! Given the rising Covid numbers in our communities, we have made the decision to cancel our final in-person Listening Session, which was scheduled for Tuesday, May 17. If you have not yet had a chance to share your thoughts in an in-person or
We invite you to actively participate in our Synodal Intentional Listening Initiative by answering this week’s “Question of the Week”: The question can be answered on the cards provided in the churches and dropped in the boxes in the lobbies, or you can click here to submit your answers online. (If you missed any previous “Questions of the Week” you
We invite you to actively participate in our Synodal Intentional Listening Initiative by answering this week’s “Question of the Week”: The question can be answered on the cards provided in the churches and dropped in the boxes in the lobbies, or you can click here to submit your answers online. (If you missed any previous “Questions of the Week” you
“The Pope is listening, and wants to hear from you… and I am also listening, and want to hear from you…” Please come to a Listening Session! Thursday, May 5 at 7:00pm at St. Paul Parish Hall Thursday, May 12 at 7:00pm at St. John Powers Hall Saturday, May 14 at 5:00pm at St. Paul Parish Hall Sunday, May 15 at 3:00pm Virtual via
We invite you to actively participate in our Synodal Listening Initiative by answering this week’s ‘Question of the Week’: If I could change the Catholic Church in one way it would be… And this is why… The question can be answered on the cards provided in the churches and dropped in the boxes in the lobbies, or you can click here
Please join us at one of our Intentional Listening Sessions! Invite family, friends, neighbors – people of all ages and faith backgrounds. Pope Francis wants to hear from all of us – the whole Church! He is inviting all of us to share our joys, our sorrows, and our dreams for the Church. Registration is not required for the in-person listening sessions –
We invite you to actively participate in our Synodal Listening Initiative by answering this week’s ‘Question of the Week’: If you were having coffee with Pope Francis what would you say? The question can be answered on the cards provided in the churches and dropped in the boxes in the lobbies, or submitted online. (If you missed last week’s question
Late in the day on Easter Sunday, in anticipation of the Boston Marathon the next morning, these banners, prominently featuring the Synod logo, our website address, and the tagline “Feeling disconnected from the Church? We want to hear from you!”, were placed on the grounds of both parishes on very heavily-traveled Route 16 in Wellesley. Our goal is to invite
We invite you to actively participate in our Synodal Intentional Listening Initiative by answering this week’s “Question of the Week”: The question can be answered on the cards provided in the churches and dropped in the boxes in the lobbies, or you can click here to submit your answers online. Our schedule of in-person and virtual listening sessions here at the
Read the full post here: “Wellesley Catholic churches seek all voices and stories during Synod process”
Please join us this Thursday evening for the final night of our three-part Lenten Lecture Series focusing on Pope Francis’ book, “Let Us Dream: The Path to a Better Future.” Fr. Bryan Hehir will conclude the series by discussing Part Three – A Time to Act. Those wishing to understand Pope Francis’ emphasis on synodality will find many revelations here – we encourage everyone to read this wonderful book and come to the lectures! (But it is not necessary to have read the book to benefit from the lecture – all are strongly encouraged to attend!)
Please join us for an interactive book discussion on Stories from the Shadows: Reflections of a Street Doctor, Dr. James O’Connell’s collection of stories and essays written during thirty years of caring for homeless persons in Boston through the Boston Healthcare for the Homeless Program (BHCHP), the recipient of this year’s Collaborative Lenten Gift. The evening will be facilitated by Deirdre Heilbron, R.N., parishioner and nurse with
The second of our three-part Lenten Lecture Series focusing on Pope Francis’ book, “Let Us Dream: The Path to a Better Future,” was held on Thursday, March 24. Kelly Meraw, Director of Collaborative Pastoral Care, shared her reflections on the second part of the book – Part Two: A Time to Choose. If you missed it, or would just like
This week in Synod news – a letter from Cardinal Mario Grech, Secretary General of the Synod of Bishops, and Archbishop Lazzaro You Heung sik, Prefect for the Congregation of the Clergy was published to all their brother priests regarding our Synodal journey. The letter reminded clergy of the rich tradition and habit of Synodality our Church shared in the
Please join us this Thursday evening, March 24 at 7:00pm in the St. Paul Parish Hall for Part Two of our three-part Lenten Lecture Series focusing on Pope Francis’ book, “Let Us Dream: The Path to a Better Future.” Kelly Meraw, Director of Collaborative Pastoral Care, will continue the series by breaking open Part Two – A Time to Choose.
“Young Catholics are giving the church a valuable lesson in the real meaning of Synodality. They have asked us in a thousand ways to walk alongside them — not behind them or ahead of them, but at their side. Not over them or under them, but on their level.” -Pope Francis Over 50 confirmation candidates participated in a Synodal Listening
Author Night with Dr. James J. O’Connell President and Founder,Boston Healthcare for the Homeless Program Wednesday, March 167:00pm St. John the Evangelist Church Please join us for a special evening with Dr. James J. O’Connell, author of Stories from the Shadows: Reflections of a Street Doctor, and president of Boston Healthcare for the Homeless Program (BHCHP). (BHCHP will be the
There are three key words used frequently when addressing Synodality (or “Journeying Together”): Communion, Participation and Mission. Here is what the Holy Father shares about these important pillars of synodality – 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
The first of our three-part Lenten Lecture Series focusing on Pope Francis’ book, “Let Us Dream: The Path to a Better Future,” was held on March 10. Sr. Evelyn Ronan, SND began the series by breaking open the first part of the book – “Part One: A Time to See”. If you missed it, or would just like to watch
Please join us this Thursday evening, March 10 at 7:00pm in the St. Paul Parish Hall for the first in our three-part Lenten Lecture Series focusing on Pope Francis’ book, “Let Us Dream: The Path to a Better Future,” written during the pandemic in collaboration with his biographer Austin Ivereigh. In a relaxed and conversational tone, Francis poignantly captures the
Dr. O’Connell is the President of Boston Healthcare for the Homeless Program, the recipient of this year’s Collaborative Lenten Gift. Dr. O’Connell’s collection of stories and essays, written during thirty years of caring for homeless persons in Boston, gently illuminates the humanity and raw courage of those who struggle to survive and find meaning and hope while living on the
This Lent, as we prepare to begin our synodal journey, we will dive deeply into Pope Francis’ recent book, Let Us Dream: The Path to a Better Future, written during the pandemic in collaboration with his biographer Austin Ivereigh. In a relaxed and conversational tone, Francis poignantly captures the ills of today’s world and suggests practical solutions for overcoming them, both personally and systemically. Those wishing to understand Pope Francis’ emphasis on synodality will find many revelations here – we encourage everyone to read this wonderful book!
One significant step in our Church’s Synodal journey took place this week, when Pope Francis met virtually with college students at an historic event hosted by Loyola University, Chicago. The conversation was the result of hours of listening sessions between a larger group of 130 students- many with a wide range of life experiences and different areas of study. They represented 58
“Dear brothers and sisters, let us have a good journey together! May we be pilgrims in love with the Gospel and open to the surprises of the Holy Spirit.”
While Synods are as old as the Church herself, this Synod on Synodality is unprecedented in so many ways. Our challenge as Catholics is to actively resist the temptation to see this Synod as something similar to anything we’ve experienced in our lifetimes. There are significant signs that this is a consultation of the entire people of God like no
Interested in learning more about the global Synodal Journey? The General Secretariat for the Synod of Bishops offers a periodic newsletter with news from around the world with initiatives and celebrations related to the synodal process. The most recent newsletter gives importance to Ecumenism, in the context of the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity, this year with the theme: “We
News Release – 17 January 2022 For the forthcoming 2022 Week of Prayer for Christian Unity Cardinal Mario Grech and Cardinal Kurt Koch invite all Christians to pray for unity and to continue to journey together. In a joint letter sent on 28 October 2021 to all bishops responsible for ecumenism, Cardinal Koch, President of the Pontifical Council for Promoting
From the Pilot: As the global Church began its new liturgical year, a Mass celebrating the initiation of the “synodal way” took place at the Cathedral of the Holy Cross on Nov. 27, marking the official opening of the synodal year on the diocesan level. Cardinal Seán P. O’Malley was the main celebrant of the vigil Mass of the first
Cardinal Seán O’Malley, OFM Cap. will celebrate this special Advent Mass on November 27, 2021 at the Cathedral of the Holy Cross at 4:30PM – it will be broadcast and live-streamed on CatholicTV & CatholicTVLIVE.com (rebroadcast on Sunday at 11am and 8pm). The theme is “For a synodal Church: communion, participation and mission.” The consultative process in the
excerpt from TheBostonPilot.com …The Church has opened a synod process on the topic of synodality, with the theme “For a Synodal Church: Communion, Participation, and Mission.” The synod process, informally known as the “synod on synodality,” opened in Rome on the weekend of Oct. 9-10 and in particular churches on Oct. 17. An opening Mass will take place at the
The General Secretariat for the Synod of Bishops has extended the deadline for the first phase of the synodal process from April 2022 to August 15, 2022. From Vatican News: In order to “provide a greater opportunity for the people of God to have an authentic experience of listening and dialogue” during the recently launched synodal process, the General
Over the next several years, the Church around the world will be participating in a process called the Synod on Synodality. The Holy Father will be meeting with Bishops from across the globe in 2023 to discuss ways of improving the process by which the church on all levels is open to hearing the voices of people from all walks
Synod 2021-2023: “For a Synodal Church: Communion, Participation and Mission” Pope Francis has called for a synod in the church. The theme of this upcoming Synod is “For a Synodal Church: Communion, Participation and Mission.” The solemn opening of the Synod will take place in Rome on October 9-10, and in the particular Churches (the diocesan phase) on October 17.