from "What's Happening at St Antoninus- see continuation below:
PARISH PARTICIPATION IN SYNODAL PROCESS
This Sunday Fr Joseph is asking for a birthday gift of everyone’s participation in the Synodal process. The initial aspect of this will take place immediately after the 8am & 10 AM Masses.
We will keep this very simple so that the whole process on Sunday will take less than 15 minutes in this initial stage.
During the Easter season we will form small groups to discuss this further. There will be an opportunity for a related online survey which will be posted on the next newsletter.
Thank you. May we do everything for the glory of God and honor to our Blessed Mother.
More information inside on what this Synod is all about.
What is this Synod all about?
The word synod itself is Greek and literally means “a journey together.”
Synods are as old as the Church, and from the beginning were the chief way that the Holy Spirit guided the Catholic Church in making important decisions about faith and morals, and the Church Herself. In the early centuries of the Christianity especially, but at various times in later centuries as well, these universal synods or councils involved the bishops of the Church and addressed the most fundamental doctrinal, moral and ecclesial issues. These synods or councils were usually in response to some sort of crisis in the Church, particularly in terms of the truths of our faith not being properly taught in some circles.
Over time, with the most fundamental teachings of our faith being well established, synods became less common and when they occurred were concerned with the pastoral applications of those universal teachings. Recently synods have become more common and have focused on themes such as the family, the Eucharist, consecrated life, the role of the laity, youth, social justice, and the New Evangelization.
Theme of Synod 2023
This synod is a bit different from previous synods. It’s not so much about a “what” as a “how.” How are we journeying together as a Church? The preparatory document for the synod has phrased the fundamental question in this way:
A synodal Church, in announcing the Gospel, “journeys together.” How is this “journeying together” happening in your particular Church? What steps does the Spirit invite us to take in order to grow in our “journeying together?”
The role of all the faithful
We begin with our Catholic understanding of how the Holy Spirit works – that the Holy Spirit is active in unique ways in all members of the Church, be they pope, bishop, clergy, religious, or layperson. What is the Holy Spirit saying to us at this juncture of time? How does the Church as a whole discern the direction that the Holy Spirit is leading us?
The Diocesan Phase
The synod itself will meet in 2023. However, leading up to this event will be an extensive consultation process in all of the dioceses of the world. Now in this initial stage, parishes in the archdioceses will be holding listening gatherings with a wide range of people to share their experience of “journeying together.” We will be discerning where the Holy Spirit is leading us to grow in our “journeying together.” These gatherings are your opportunity to share your experience of “journeying together”, with the aim of helping in that discernment.
The destination of the input from the Diocesan Phase
The results of these listening gatherings will be compiled here in the Archdiocese, then forwarded to the Assembly of Western Catholic Bishops. The assembly will synthesize all of the reports from the various dioceses, then will forward it to the Secretariat of the Synod in Rome. This will help in the preparation of the working document for the actual synod proceedings in October 2023, which several bishops, representing all the bishops of the United States will attend.
The input and synthesis will also be shared across the Archdiocese in the spring of 2022.
From https://archgm.ca/synod-introduction/
