- The work ahead of us is to discern a new ecclesial model for the 3rd millennium. The agent of change is the Holy Spirit.
- Our work in the parishes is to pray, to listen, to analyze, to advise.
- Together we must take a reading of the signs of the times; look at the places of pain, the breakup of families, the mental health trials of youth, the difficulty of belonging to institutions. Who are the people being ignored in our parishes, left out, and discarded?
- We must all look out on the world around us with eyes of compassion. In Latin America, when Pope Francis was Archbishop of Buenos Aires, people saw clearly in a synodal process how the Church needed to change in order to effectively offer the Gospel in the modern context. People were overwhelmed by the challenges and divisions, but with the Holy Spirit a transformation occurred. Latin America is now a dynamic source of inspiration for the universal Church. They have a new dynamic missionary vigor.
- Pope Francis has in mind more than a program or a survey. He wants to share with the world the experience of Latin America. His great search is to discern what the Holy Spirit is asking of the Church today. He is calling forth the people of God to look at the world and name reality for what it really is so that we can evangelize the whole human family.
- A synod is not a parliament, it is a walking together to see together the new path forward, with everyone, for everyone in building a united world. The Holy Spirit is the prime guide of this synodal process. It is not conservatives and liberals battling it out. We discuss ideas in universities but we discern situations in our Church.
- The New ecclesial model for the Church will elevate the role of the laity in leadership and evangelization – and address the present shortage of priests.
Fr. Harry Clarke
We have setup a page on our website to provide you with general information about the Synod as well as meeting minutes, and how to attend, either in-person or online.