Donate
Two years after Pope Francis invited Catholics to walk together on a synodal path, offering every member of the Church the right to make their views known, we stand on the threshold of the first of two big meetings in Rome on the theme ‘For a Synodal Church: Communion, Participation, Mission’. There has been intense speculation as to what will happen when the Synod of Bishops gathers for almost all of October – historically, for the first time, with non-Bishop voting members. You can read about the latest stage of the Synod and the meeting in Rome here.
For the first time, the Synod Office in Rome has produced a comprehensive process which encompasses the stated aim of the Holy Father that the Church in today’s world should have a vision of missionary communion orientated to evangelisation. The Synod is an invitation for us, as Catholics, to ‘walk together’ - every member of the Church has the right to speak, and the obligation to allow those charged with the work of discernment the freedom to do so.
Diocesan and national organisational reports were submitted to the Bishops’ Conference just before Holy Week 2022. Since then, the National Synthesis Team has been working on producing the “National Synthesis” – reflecting on the reports received, discerning the main themes that have emerged from the listening conversations, and collating them together to give a picture of the synodal process in England and Wales:
Synod: National Synthesis – England and Wales
Bishops’ Reflection on the Synodal National Synthesis
The process began in the Particular (or Local) Church and then moved to the Bishops’ Conference. From there, discernment took place in the Regional Area – for England and Wales, it was steered by the European Council of Bishops’ Conferences (CCEE) – before moving to the Universal Church with the Synod Gathering of Bishops in 2023.
You can read more on the Bishops’ Conference Synodal Process page. You can also download a printable PDF of this information. In addition, we have answered some Frequently Asked Questions on the Synodal Process and suggested approaches to the Synodal Pathway.
The Synod, which presents itself as a real 'synodal time' was opened by Pope Francis over the weekend of 9-10 October 2021 and subsequently in the individual dioceses by their respective bishops, on 17 October. The synodal journey has three phases:
Diocesan Phase (Local) - October 2021 – April 2022
Every member of the faithful was invited to participate in the diocesan consultation. This phase ended locally with a pre-synodal assembly: the culminating moment of diocesan discernment.
National Phase
A period of discernment then took place for bishops gathered in an assembly (Episcopal Conference). They listened to what the Spirit had inspired in the churches entrusted to them. A ‘synthesis’ was produced and sent to the General Secretariat for the Synod of Bishops along with the contributions of each of the local churches. Read the National Synthesis for England and Wales.
The National Synthesis Team was responsible for collating and organising the Synod submissions received from the Dioceses of England and Wales as well as national Catholic organisations and other bodies to produce a National Synthesis for Rome.
Continental Phase
September 2022 – March 2023
This involved the task of discussing the text of the first Working Document from a European perspective. The Continental Assembly took place in Prague from 5-12 February 2023. You can download the interventions from the delegates from England and Wales.
Synod of Bishops (Rome) - October 2023
The synodal journey will culminate with two gatherings in Rome. The first is the celebration of the XVI Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops on the theme: “For a Synodal Church: Communion, Participation and Mission”. #Synod2023
In the short film below, Fr Chris Thomas, General Secretary of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of England and Wales, and Father Jan Nowotnik, Director of Mission, discuss the process and explain this invitation to communion, participation and mission.
