Synodality

For the duration of the assembly Oct. 4-29 all the heads of Vatican dicasteries and hundreds of cardinals, archbishops, bishops, religious superiors, professors, students and parents were scheduled to be away from their homes and their desks.

The 364 members of the assembly of the Synod of Bishops and the 85 experts, facilitators and ecumenical delegates accompanying them began their work in earnest Oct. 5, meeting, sharing and praying in small groups.

As the Synod on Synodality opened Oct. 4 in Rome, among the most closely watched topics under discussion is the question of whether the Catholic Church can or will extend the permanent diaconate — restored after the Second Vatican Council — to women.

Members of the assembly of the Synod of Bishops are not gathered in Rome to implement a “plan of reformation” but to walk together as a church that discerns God’s will for the present moment, Pope Francis said at the assembly’s opening Mass.

Competing notions of authority and giving certain Christian truths preeminence over others can not only derail the assembly of the Synod of Bishops but, worse, cripple the church’s ability to share Christ with the world, Dominican Father Timothy Radcliffe told synod members.

– Many of the prelates Pope Francis will make cardinals Sept. 30 will be taking part in the synod on synodality or have been very active in its preparatory phases as leaders of their dioceses.