Church and Society Items of Interest to Schools


Photographer:

BR. BRIAN WALSH, CFC

CHURCH

EVANGELIZE YOUTH WITHIN THE MISSION OF THE CHURCH

(Essential Elements of an Edmund Rice Christian Brother Education) In October 2023 The Church is hold-ing a

Synod For a Synodal Church: Communion.

Participation and Mission.

During the Diocesan Phase in 2021-2022:

  • 700,000 participants
  • 30,000 opportunities to participate
  • 22,000 reports from: 178 Latin (Arch)Dioceses
  • 18 Eastern Catholic (Arch)Eparchies
  • 112 organizations

The broader themes that seemed more prevalent and are an invitation to an ongoing Style of Church Life: Communion, Participation and Mis-sion.

Enduring Wounds

  • Still unfolding effects of sex abuse crisis (Trust in the hierar-chy)
  • Loss of sense of community due to pandemic
  • Church is deeply divided by the political ideologies present in society. Perceived lack of unity amongst the Bishops
  • Marginalization:
    • Those made vulnerable by their
    • lack of social and/or economic power such as immigrant com- munities, ethnic minorities, the unborn and their mothers, homeless, disabled people
    • Women
    • Those who are marginalized because of circumstances in their lives are experienced as impediments to full participa tion in Church life: divorced, remarried without annulment, LGBTQ+

Enhancing Communion and Participation

  • Sacramental Life
  • A Welcoming Church
  • People want the Church to be a home for the wounded and broken, not an institution for the perfect
  • People noted that the Church seems to Prioritize doc-trine over people, rules and regulations over lived reality.
  • Synodal consultations ex-pressed concerns around racism
  • Practically all synodal con-sultations shared a deep ache in the wake of the departure of young people.

Ongoing Formation for Mis-sion

  • Another common hope that emerged from the synodal con-sultations was the desire for Life-long spiritual, pastoral and cate-chetical formation as disciples.
  • More opportunities for Bible study, in person and online courses, lectures, small group discussions, and convocations.
  • A hope for the Church to commit to strengthening communication.
  • CO-RESPONSIBILITY:
    • Some priests would need help with letting lay people take over parish tasks for which they seem convinced they have final responsibility and must therefore have the final word in all things.

During 2022-2023 is the Conti-nental Phase (Canada and the United States.)

Fall of 2022

  • Document from Rome for the process will be released

Late 2022 and early 2023

  • Regional Listening Sessions on the document from Rome

Late Winter 2023

  • Writing teams from both countries will develop the Continental Synthesis Continental Synthesis due to Rome in

March 2023

  • Document for October Synod to be rleased June 2023

(USCCB: National Synthesis of the Diocesan Phase in the USA for the 2021-2023 Synod)

Other News from ERCBNA