Secretary-general of Synod previews October session

October 03, 2014

Cardinal Lorenzo Baldisseri reminded reporters that the Synod of Bishops is meeting to discuss the family—not just the question of divorce—during a briefing on October 3.

Cardinal Baldisseri, the secretary-general of the Synod of Bishops, said that the question of pastoral care for the family is “a particularly urgent topic” today, at “a historical moment of change.” He remarked that the Synod’s discussion is oriented particularly toward the family in the context of evangelization, noting that Pope Francis has called for “a Church that is increasingly open and missionary.”

The cardinal briefed reporters thoroughly on the details of the Synod. There will be 191 prelates participating in the discussions, including 61 cardinals, seven patriarchs, and one major archbishop. There will also be 16 experts, 38 auditors, and 8 fraternal delegates from other Christian communities. Since the subject is the family, the Synod will give special importance to the witness of married couples as well.

Cardinal Baldisseri said that responses to the questionnaire that was circulated among the world’s bishops in preparation for the Synod meeting have produced a wide variety of topics for discussion. He said that “the breadth of the material that was submitted is without doubt an indication of the frankness and freeness with which the consultation was carried out.” But he downplayed expectations for sharp disputes during the meeting, saying that he expected the conversation to combine “mutual charity with a genuinely constructive approach.”

The Synod meeting will follow a different pattern from those of previous meetings, the cardinal said. In the past, the Synod fathers were given an opportunity to speak on any topic. This the Synod secretariat has asked bishops to indicate what topic they want to address, so that each day’s discussions can be organized around particular issues.

Cardinal Baldisseri reminded reporters that the October meeting of the Synod is an extraordinary session, intended primarily as preparation for the regular session that will follow next year. The extraordinary session will open on Sunday, October 5, with a solemn Mass celebrated by Pope Francis; it will conclude on October 19 with the beatification of Pope Paul VI, who set up the Synod of Bishops. The Synod discussions will lead to the release of a papal document on the family.

During the October meetings, the secretary-general of the Synod announced, there will be daily news briefings by the Vatican press office, attended by some of the Synod participants. Brief summaries of the day’s most important messages will be carried on Twitter.

Cardinal Baldisseri emphasized the importance of the prayers that will accompany the Synod’s deliberations. Each day, a bishop of cardinal will celebrate Mass in the Salus Populi Romani chapel of the basilica of St. Mary Major. (Pope Francis has visited that chapel to pray privately on several occasions, especially before and after his pastoral visits abroad.) The relics of two beatified couples, Blessed Luigi and Maria Beltrame Quattrocchi and Blessed Zelie and Louis Martin, will be present for veneration, along with the relics of the latter couple’s daughter, St. Therese of Lisieux. Cardinal Baldisseri pointed out that Pope Francis has called upon all the faithful of the Catholic world to pray for the work of the Synod.

 

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Further information:

• Cardinal Baldisseri on the Synod on the Family (VIS)
• Synod on Family convened to discuss a “particularly urgent” topic for good of Church (Vatican Radio)