The Senate press release announced on October 21 that Cardinal Hollelich had presented a draft of the final document to the General Assembly of the Senate.
(Vatican News Network)A draft of the Senate’s final document was distributed to all participants on 21 October. Paolo Ruffini, Prefect of the Dicastery for Communications and Chairman of the Information Committee of the Synod of Bishops, said at a regular press conference that day: “We have entered a critical phase.”
Prayer time and activities with colleagues
On the previous day, the 20th, Pope Francis presided over the Mass in St. Peter’s Square and canonized 14 new saints. Ruffini noted that the members of the Senate were very happy. This important canonization ceremony was held during the visit of our companions and at the same time as the World Mission Day.
In addition, on the evening of the 20th, researchers in the digital field held an online gathering. This is part of the Church’s “listening” initiative, which the Working Paper emphasizes.
At 5pm on Friday the 25th, the “Comrades in Sports” event will be held at the San Galito Building in Rome. The organizers are the Vatican Athletes Association and the Ministry of Culture and Education of the Holy See. Several participants from the Senate have signed up to participate in dialogue with athletes at the event, which will focus on peace and mutual service. The latter include refugees, Paralympic and Olympic athletes.
Presentation of the final draft of a document
Sheila Pires, Secretary of the Information Committee, gave a brief overview of Monday’s activities, noting that “we have now reached the last week of the Synod of Bishops with the theme of solidarity”.
The day will begin with Mass in St. Peter’s Basilica. In his homily, Cardinal Mario Grech emphasized that the Synod should be seen as a new beginning, with the aim of preaching the word of God to everyone.
After that, 351 members attended the general meeting. Participants first listened to Father Timothy Radcliffe’s view on freedom and responsibility, and then they listened to Cardinal Jean-Claude Hollerich’s introduction to the final draft of the document.
Ms Pires said the final draft document was only a “tentative draft”. The reason for the need for strict secrecy is not lack of transparency, but the need for a good atmosphere to hold a discussion.
Each participant received a version that was the result of a collaborative effort. Ms. Pires pointed out that the version “is not just the result of discussions at the conference, but also benefits from a rich process that draws on all the work done by colleagues at different stages of their journey over the past few years.”
In addition, “special speakers and experts worked hard, listened carefully to the lectures, and reviewed team reports.” Theologians, on the other hand, contribute “a lot to documents and forums”.
Group discussion in the afternoon
That evening, participants were to “engage in a real exchange of grace” in small groups and, as Cardinal Grech urged, “share challenges and dreams, as well as changes inside and new dynamics that emerged while reading the manuscript. ” “It’s a new way to experience the withdrawal experience that people may not be familiar with,” said Ms. Pires.
Therefore, participants will take Monday the 21st to pray, reflect, and share the final document. In addition, Ms. Pérez also revealed that the participants prayed at the end of the morning meeting for Father Marcelo Pérez, a Jesuit who was killed the day before. The priest had just finished celebrating mass in his parish before he met with an accident.
Cardinal Zuppi: Dialogue is the foundation of the Church itself
Immediately after, Cardinal Matteo Zuppi, President of the Italian Bishops’ Conference, Father Timothy Peter Joseph Radcliffe, Spiritual Counselor of the World Bishops’ Conference, Sister Nathalie Becquart, Deputy Secretary-General The Conference of the Church, and the Byzantine Catholic Rite Bishop Manuel Nin Güell, Vicar Apostol, spoke at successive press conferences.
Cardinal Zuppi reflected on the experience of dialogue throughout the Synod, which he called “the foundation, not the tool, of the Church itself”. He pointed out that the discussions between participants at the same table and what happened to each other during the process always had a spiritual aspect.
Father Radcliffe: There must be a vision of heaven in the last document
At the press conference, Father Radcliffe reflected on the ongoing renewal journey of the Church, which he said would be reflected in the final document. The superintendent emphasized that documents should not be a place for making decisions or attractive statements.
Despite social decline, war, and the difficult times the world is going through, the Church’s special mission is to be a sign of Christ, a sign of peace, always in co -communion with Christ.
Through this Synod, new ways of birthing the Church are emerging, with the final document presenting a view of the Kingdom of God as Jesus preached it in parables.
Sister Becar: Fellowship and the Ecumenical Movement
Regarding the state of partnership among representatives of other Christian churches, Sister Bekar, assistant secretary of the Church Synod, shared her views.
The nun is a member of the Senate Commission on the Ecumenical movement. The Synod of Bishops gives us a new vision for the Church, she said. The nun also mentioned the scene in which the Pope was sitting among the attendants and listening, and the image of the attendants of the Christian Church praying in union in commemoration of the martyrdom of St. Peter.
This opens a new stage in ecumenical relations and Christian unity, as the Synod proposes a new understanding of the primacy of the Pope, the joint leadership of bishops and the entire People of God.
Eastern Catholics in Greece
Bishop Nin, Apostolic Vicar of the Greek Catholic Byzantine Rite, said that the Synod of Bishops provides an opportunity for a deeper understanding.
The Apostolic Vicariate was founded about a century ago by many Greek refugees who fled to Athens after the Greco-Turkish War. Vicar Apostol has two parishes, seven priests and three communities: Greek Catholics, Ukrainian Catholics and Chaldean Catholics. The Caritas group of the Apostolic Vicariate also works with Orthodox Christians and Muslims, and the Vicariate also has a foundation that cares for people with autism.
Bishop Ning pointed out that the Vicar Apostol in Greece is an Eastern rite church within the Catholic tradition, and that not everyone pays attention to it. The Synod provides an opportunity to understand the role of the Eastern Rite Catholic Churches, which have the same liturgy, theology, spirituality and ecclesiastical discipline as their main Orthodox churches.
Clarification from the Minister of Education
On October 21, 2024, Cardinal Fernández, Superior General of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, emphasized at the General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops that the Pope felt that now was not the time to address to the issue of women in the diaconate. . However, the role of women within the church was the focus at the end of the press conference.
Mr. Radcliffe urged people not to focus only on ordination, but also to take into account the high position that women have enjoyed throughout history as doctors of the Church. If we reduce everything to prescriptive dimensions, we run the risk of entering a very clerical mindset.
Sister Becar confirmed that women already hold high-level positions within the Church, such as rectors of Catholic universities, directors of institutions such as Caritas, or directors of units under the bishops’ conference. The nun explained that there are many ways to encourage female leadership, and many bishops are now appointing women as diocesan vicars, giving them management positions.
Sister Bekar also pointed out that there are still social and cultural barriers because the Church is part of society. For example, she found in discussions with Anglican bishops that although women can be ordained in the church, the contributions of men are often seen as more important than the contributions of women.
Therefore, it is important that there is a real conversion of the mind, and this takes time. Sister Bekar points out that our inherent beliefs come not only from the church but from the society in which we live.
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2024-10-22 09:28:00
