Posts Tagged synod of bishops
Synod releases document with new tone, calling for mercy, listening / National Catholic Reporter
Posted by Voice of the Faithful in Catholic Bishops, Synod of Bishops, Vatican, Voice of the Faithful on October 14, 2014
Taking a decidedly different tone than many church statements in recent years, the worldwide meeting of Catholic bishops on family issues has released a document calling for the church to listen more, to respect people in their various struggles, and to apply mercy much more widely.
“Summarizing the work of the continuing meeting, known as a synod, the document acknowledges bluntly that the strict application of church doctrine is no longer enough to support people in their quest for God.
“‘It is necessary to accept people in their concrete being, to know how to support their search, to encourage the wish for God and the will to feel fully part of the Church, also on the part of those who have experienced failure or find themselves in the most diverse situations,’ states the document, released Monday (Oct. 13) morning.”
By Joshua J. McElwee, National Catholic Reporter — Click here to read the rest of this story.
From bishops’ synods to bishops’ appointments, how much does Catholic lay input count?
Posted by Voice of the Faithful in Catholic Bishops, Synod of Bishops, Voice of the Faithful on October 9, 2014
As the extraordinary synod on the family plays out in Rome, and even before the synod through the Vatican questionnaire distributed worldwide at Pope Francis’ urging, lay input into Catholic Church issues has become increasingly visible.
Pope Francis has said that he expects bishops to pay increasing attention to lay voices and “real life experiences” to become effective pastors. But bishops typically are accustomed to speaking to other clerics and to specially selected lay voices. The “ordinary person” has few opportunities for direct input into Church matters.
Voice of the Faithful®, long an advocate for greater lay input into the governance and guidance of the Catholic Church, provides opportunities to generate direct access, especially in the realm of bishop selection itself. VOTF’s bishop selection project has made it possible for the ordinary Catholic to communicate directly with the U.S. apostolic nuncio, who forwards bishop candidates to the Vatican.
Voice of the Faithful® developed an Internet portal at www.votf.org/bishop to allow Catholics to provide input to the apostolic nuncio. Their input goes directly to the nuncio’s email box when they click Submit on the questionnaire. Current U.S. Apostolic Nuncio Archbishop Carlo M. Viganò has assured VOTF that all input reaching him from individual Catholics will be reviewed and that “serious observations may well be incorporated in the developed confidential process.”
The VOTF web portal allows Catholics to record their concerns and recommendations in three key areas: 1.) outstanding needs and opportunities in the diocese; 2.) candidates’ ideal qualities and qualifications; and 3.) priests who would be excellent candidates for their bishop.
Over the past two years, nearly 500 Catholics in nearly a dozen dioceses from New England to Alaska have submitted their comments through this portal or, in the case of Chicago, a related second survey. This process is one way to restore widespread lay input into the central question of who serves the faithful in a diocese as their bishop and to restore in the twenty-first century a lay-consultative process nearly as old as the Church itself.
Click here for additional information on the bishop selection process and its history.
Voice of the Faithful®: Voice of the Faithful® is a worldwide movement of faithful Roman Catholics working to support survivors of clergy sexual abuse, support priests of integrity and increase the laity’s role in governance and guidance of the Church. More information is at www.votf.org.
Married couples are stealing the show at synod / Crux
Posted by Voice of the Faithful in Synod of Bishops, Synod on the Family, Voice of the Faithful on October 7, 2014
Although the Oct. 5-19 Synod of Bishops on the family may be primarily a gathering of prelates, during the opening two days of the meeting it’s largely been the laity who have stolen the show.
“Since this is a summit on family issues, the synod invited 12 married couples from around the world to be among a group of what’s known as “auditors,” meaning people who take part in discussions but don’t get a vote.
“So far, however, the lack of voting rights hasn’t prevented these couples from making an impression.”
By John L. Allen, Jr., on Cruxnow.com — Click here to read the rest of this story.
Pope Francis calls for candor at meeting on family issues / The New York Times
Posted by Voice of the Faithful in Future of the Church, Pope Francis, Synod of Bishops, Synod on the Family, Voice of the Faithful on October 7, 2014
Setting the tone for a two-week meeting of Roman Catholic bishops, Pope Francis on Monday (Oct. 6) urged participants to speak openly and clearly, without fear of censure. He also called on the participants to listen to each other with humility and to respect differing opinions.”
By Jim Yardley, The New York Times — Click here to read the rest of this story
Pope tells bishops to be creative about families’ needs / Associated Press
Posted by Voice of the Faithful in Pope Francis, Synod of Bishops, Synod on the Family, Voice of the Faithful on October 6, 2014
We think you’ll recognize the source of these words from Pope Francis at the start of the Synod on the Family in Rome on Oct. 5:
Without elaborating, Francis lamented that ‘pastors lay intolerable burdens on the shoulders of others.’’ His homily Sunday spelled out the spirit he wants church leaders to bring to the synod.”
Quoted from Pope tells bishops to be creative about families’ needs, by Frances D’Emilio, Associated Press, in The Boston Globe.
Hard to determine what Synod on Family portends
Posted by Voice of the Faithful in church reform, Future of the Church, Synod on the Family, Vatican, Voice of the Faithful on October 3, 2014
Air of mystery clouds nearly every aspect of synod on the family
An unmistakable air of expectation mixed with uncertainty pervaded the atmosphere here as Pope Francis prepared to open in early October his global meeting of Catholic bishops to discuss issues of contemporary family life.
“As of now, nearly every aspect of how the event will unfold is unclear — from how delicate questions like divorce and remarriage will be handled, to how much discussion will be allowed, to even if it will be known who is speaking each day inside the closed-door Oct. 5-19 Synod of Bishops.”
By Joshua J. McElwee, National Catholic Reporter — Click here to read the rest of this story.
Vatican: Synod will be ‘original and innovative,’ but with limited public information
Days before the opening of a global meeting of bishops to address family life — an event that could be the signal moment of Pope Francis’ papacy — the Vatican stressed the ‘original and innovative’ nature of the meeting but faced tough questions about the pervasive opacity surrounding the event.
“Briefing reporters Friday (Oct. 3), the prelate who has mainly organized the meeting said it is being convened ‘to deal with a particularly urgent topic, with adequate direction to this moment, for the good of all the church.’”
By Joshua J. McElwee, National Catholic Reporter — Click here to read the rest of this story.
Upcoming Synod of Bishops is about more than just marriage and family / National Catholic Reporter
Posted by Voice of the Faithful in Catholic Bishops, Future of the Church, Synod of Bishops, Synod on the Family, Vatican, Voice of the Faithful on September 30, 2014
In this column, Global Pulse publisher Robert Mickens, who worked for 11 years for Vatican Radio and another decade as Rome correspondent for London’s The Tablet, wonders whether the Synod of Bishops on the Family (Oct. 5-9, 2014, in Rome) will lead to the episcopal collegiality and attention to the voice of the Catholic faithful that Vatican II promised.
When the Vatican held its first synod on the family in 1980, the Polish-born John Paul II — a man “from a far-away country” — had been pope for only two years. Curiously, next week’s gathering of bishops on the very same theme also comes quite early in a new pontificate. It is less than 19 months from the day a Jesuit from Argentina, “the end of the earth,” was elected bishop of Rome and took the name Francis.
“The nearly 35 years that have passed between these two international meetings of bishops span a bit more than two generations. And while there is a similarity in two non-Italian popes confronting issues related to marriage and the family early in their papal ministry, their approaches could not be more different.”
By Robert Mickens, National Catholic Reporter — Click here to read the rest of this column.
The Synod could use a woman’s touch / ucanews.com
Posted by Voice of the Faithful in Voice of the Faithful, Women in Catholic Church on September 25, 2014
The Extraordinary Synod for the Family that will be held in Rome next month has attracted more attention than any synod since their introduction following Vatican II …
“Though celibate males are a statistically insignificant portion of the human race and even of the Church, the synod for the family will consist of post-middle-age celibate males who, in the phrase jokingly used by clerics, ‘have no children to speak of.’ Those men do not live in families, and probably have not done so since adolescence. They do not know of what they will speak nor the implications of what they will decide.
“Even worse, the larger portion of the Church and the group most intimately involved in the life of families — women — will only be present as a few decorative elements.”
By Fr. William Grimm, ucanews.com — Click here to read the rest of this story.
A bishop’s plea for Synod on the Family and reaction to Pope’s sex abuse appointments
Posted by Voice of the Faithful in Clergy Sexual Abuse, Pope Francis, Synod of Bishops, Synod on the Family, Vatican, Voice of the Faithful on September 11, 2014
Here are two news stories following up on two we posted yesterday. The first is on a diocesan bishop’s plea for the Synod on the Family and the second is about reaction to the Pope’s new appointment to his sex-abuse commission and new chief sex-abuse prosecutor.
Belgian bishop urges real dialogue at Synod
Antwerp Bishop Johan Bonny has published a long letter on the upcoming Synod of Bishops urging the assembly to have the courage to bring the Church’s moral teachings more in line with the lived experience of the laity. ‘The Church must step away from its defensive, antithetical stance and seek anew the path of dialogue’ on moral issues, he wrote in the 22-page letter posted on his diocese’s website in five languages.” By Tom Heneghan, The Tablet — Click here to read the bishop’s entire letter, “Synod on the Family–Expectations of a diocesan bishop.”
Sex abuse survivors slam Pope Francis’ picks for crisis panels
Pope Francis’ decision to appoint two U.S. priests to key positions aimed at tackling the Vatican’s sex abuse crisis drew an angry response from abuse victims. In the shake-up the Rev. Robert Geisinger, a canon lawyer previously based in Chicago, was named chief prosecutor responsible for abuse cases. He replaces his U.S. colleague, the Rev. Robert Oliver, who was named to the Vatican’s anti-abuse commission, created by Francis last year.” By Josephine McKenna, Religion News Service
The makeup of Synod of Bishops on the Family is disappointing / National Catholic Reporter
Posted by Voice of the Faithful in church reform, Future of the Church, Pope Francis, Vatican on September 10, 2014
The list of those attending the Synod of Bishops on the family is a disappointment to those hoping for reform of the Curia and for those who hope that the laity will be heard at the synod.
“The appointment of 25 curial officials to the synod on the family is a sign that Pope Francis still does not understand what real reform of the Roman Curia requires. It makes me fear that when all is said and done, he may close or merge some offices, rearrange some responsibilities, but not really shake things up.”
By Thomas Reese, National Catholic Reporter — Click here to read the rest of this article.
Voice of the Faithful
A lay movement for governance reform in the Roman Catholic Church, responding to the clergy sexual abuse scandal and supporting survivors.
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