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Hundreds of delegates took a break from their discussions of synodality to visit the catacombs of St. Sebastian and St. Callistus located on Rome’s ancient Appian Way on Oct. 12.
Archbishop Andrew Nkea Fuanya of Bamenda, Cameroon, said at an Oct. 12 briefing that the Synod on Synodality is “a chance for the voice of Africa to be heard.”
Spokesman Paolo Ruffini told the media that while some have asked for further discernment on the Church’s teaching, others said there’s no need for it.
Like the synod assembly participants, the lunch guests were asked “what they expect from the Church,” Paolo Ruffini told journalists Oct. 11.
Synod on Synodality delegates elected this week the members of a commission who will supervise the drafting of a “synthesis report.”
“All are invited to be part of the Church,” Cardinal Jean-Claude Hollerich said at the start of the Oct. 9 general congregation.
The Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors has called on the synod to discuss sexual abuse this month.
Concerns linger about the potential for pressure groups to sway the synod’s course.
Congolese Cardinal Fridolin Ambongo Besungu described synodality as “a new way of being a Church.”
Facts, anecdotes, and analysis from the first week of the 16th Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops at the Vatican.
The Synod on Synodality’s official regulations no longer allow Synod delegates to share their personal interventions with the public.
During the first full day of work Oct. 5, participants met in small groups of about 12 people where they received a homework assignment.
The cardinal was speaking at a conference in Rome on Oct. 3 on the theme “the synodal Babel” to discuss the main points of contention raised by the synod.
Pointing synod delegates to texts by St. Basil on the Holy Spirit, the pope emphasized the importance of listening over speaking.
On its opening day, synod leaders also highlighted the many ways in which the current gathering breaks the mold of past Synods of Bishops.
Pope Francis opened the Synod on Synodality’s three-week assembly on Wednesday with a call to remember that the Church exists to bring Jesus to the world and should face today’s challenges with a gaze fixed on God rather than “political calculations or ideological battles.”
Six cardinals who are participating in this month’s Synod on Synodality — and five who are not — told CNA their ideas of and expectations for the assembly.
Five cardinals have sent a set of questions to Pope Francis to express their concerns and seek clarification on points of doctrine and discipline ahead of this week’s opening of the Synod on Synodality at the Vatican.
Cardinal Víctor Manuel Fernández predicts that “those who expect big changes” to come out of this month’s Synod of Bishops will be “disappointed.”
The theme of the event in the Paul VI Audience Hall will be “Let us learn from boys and girls.”