Synod 2021 - 2023
For a synodal Church
communion | participation | mission
Synod on Synodality
All you need to know
‘Synod’ is a word used over the centuries, whose meaning draws on the deepest themes of our faith. It comes from two Greek words: ‘συν’ (with) and ‘όδός’ (path),
it indicates the path along which the People of God walk together.’
‘Synodality’ is the process of ‘journeying together’.
Pope Francis has affirmed that: “A synodal Church is a Church which listens…The faithful People, the College of Bishops, the Bishop of Rome: all listening to each other; and all listening to the Holy Spirit.”
“The purpose of this Synod… is intended to inspire people to dream about the Church we are called to be, to make people’s hopes flourish, to stimulate trust, to bind up wounds, to weave new and deeper relationships, to learn from one another, to build bridges, to enlighten minds, warm hearts, and restore strength to our hands for our common mission (PD, 32).
Thus the objective of this synodal process is not only a series of exercises that start and stop, but rather a journey of growing authentically towards the communion and mission that God calls the Church to live out in the third millennium.” (Vademecum for the Synod on Synodality 1.3)