The Catholic Church must continue discerning its future by listening to everyone, starting with the poorest and excluded, after the assembly of the Synod of Bishops closes its first session, participants said in a letter addressed to the “People of God.”

Welcoming people into the church and helping them enter a relationship with Jesus always involves a call to conversion, said Archbishop Timothy P. Broglio, president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops.

Pope Francis told members of the synod on synodality that they should respect and honor the faith of all baptized Catholics, including the women, trusting “the holy, faithful people of God” who continue to believe even when their pastors act like dictators.

Pope Francis again called for the release of hostages taken from Israel by Hamas militants and for allowing humanitarian aid into Gaza.

Catholic social teaching has widely been described as “the church’s best kept secret.” A recent report indicates that may still be the case, and that efforts to spread it may be thwarted by a reduction in diocesan positions dedicated to social action.

Amid wars around the world, particularly in Ukraine and the Holy Land, the Catholic Church needs to speak out on nonviolence as a necessary option for any hope of peace, said a representative of Pax Christi International, urging the pope to write an encyclical on nonviolence and just peace.

In a time of international tensions and domestic divisions, it is crucial for leaders to bridge the gap between political strategy and practical tactics, said centenarian statesman Henry A. Kissinger, who headlined the 78th dinner of the Alfred E. Smith Memorial Foundation Oct. 19.

God has a plan for everyone and for the church whose journeys and plans must align with his will, Cardinal Charles Bo told participants in the assembly of the Synod of Bishops.

The Sister of Charity of the Incarnate Word from Peru, who is serving in the Catholic parish in Gaza, recalled the pain of watching the funeral of Christians killed in an Oct. 19 blast at a Greek Orthodox church.

As members of the assembly of the Synod of Bishops return home, share the results of their work and prepare for the final synod assembly in 2024, they must be on guard against people who will want to make them take sides as if the synod were a political debate, said Dominican Father Timothy Radcliffe.