Pope Francis

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https://www.vaticannews.va/en/pope-francis/mass-casa-santa-marta/2018-10/pope-francis-homily-daily-mass-hypocritical-christians.html

Pope at Santa Marta: Hypocritical Christians behave like pagans
05 October 2018, 12:42

The homily of Pope Francis during the Mass at Casa Santa Marta  (Vatican Media)
Pope Francis, in his homily at the daily Mass at Casa Santa Marta, reflects on the hypocrisy of the “just,” who treat their Christianity “like a social habit.” They do not bring Jesus into their daily life, and so they cast him from their hearts. When we act like that, the Pope says, “we are Christians, but we are living like pagans!”
By Alessandro Di Bussolo

We who are born in a Christian society risk living out our Christianity as “a social habit,” in a purely formal manner, with the “hypocrisy of the just,” who are afraid to allow themselves to love. And when Mass is over, we leave Jesus in the Church; He does come with us when we return home, or in our daily lives. Woe to us! When we do this, we cast Jesus from our hearts: “We are Christians, but we live as pagans.”

Pope Francis was commenting on the day’s Gospel, from St Luke, in which Jesus rebukes the people of Bethsaida, Chorazin, and Capernaum, who refused to believe in Him despite having seen the miracles He performed.  In his homily at the morning Mass at Casa Santa Marta, the Holy Father called on all of us to make an examination of conscience.
 

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Synod 2018

https://cruxnow.com/synod-of-bishops-on-youth/2018/10/05/synod-doesnt-waste-time-taking-up-abuse-lgbt-issues-and-migration/

Synod doesn’t waste time taking up abuse, LGBT issues and migration
Christopher White   Oct 5, 2018

ROME — One day after Pope Francis kicked off this month’s Vatican summit on young people by warning against a temptation to focus on “abstract ideologies” detached from the realities of young people, concrete topics ranging from sex abuse, LGBT issues, migration, and technology took center stage on Thursday.

Nearly 300 individuals are on hand for the Synod of Bishops, which is centered on the theme of “Young People, Faith, and Vocational Discernment.” The approximately 50 delegates that spoke on the first day didn’t waste time identifying what are expected to be some of the hottest topics in the month ahead.

Confronting the “Crime and Sin” of Sex Abuse

Bishop Frank Caggiano of Bridgeport did not mince words, confronting the issue of sexual abuse in his opening salvo at his first Synod.
 

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Synod 2018

https://www.americamagazine.org/faith/2018/10/05/synod-2018-day-2-church-needs-preferential-option-young-people

Synod 2018 Day 2: the church needs a “preferential option for young people”
Gerard O’Connell   October 05, 2018

Concern for migrants and refugees took center stage at the Synod of Bishops on young people that is being held in the Vatican, Oct. 3 to 28, according to several participants.

Three distinct concerns were expressed in the first two days of the synod on “young people, the faith and vocational discernment” by synod fathers coming from three very different situations. All were related to the plight of the movement of millions of migrants and refugees, the vast majority of whom are young people, which Pope Francis has called “the greatest humanitarian crisis of our day.”

The first concern was expressed by synod fathers from those countries where the young migrants originate in the Middle East, Africa, Latin America and parts of Asia, setting off for foreign lands and leaving their home countries depleted of young people. Paolo Ruffini, the head of Vatican communications, reminded journalists in a briefing after the third session on Oct. 5 that “two-thirds of the world’s young people live in Africa, Asia, Oceania and Latin America.”
 

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Synod 2018

https://zenit.org/articles/111550/

Synod2018: Pope and Youth in Paul VI Hall Experience 
October 06, 2018 20:00

Pope Francis and the Synod Fathers made a “journey into the world of youth” on the fourth day of the Synod of Bishops, October 6, 2018: they spent two hours led by young people in Paul VI Hall at the Vatican.

“We are in the Synod, we participate in the work,” affirmed the young participants, who were about 7000. They expressed to the pope their questions, touching on life, political commitment, employment, individualism, loneliness, social networks, young people far from the Church … and handed over these questions that will serve the Synod Fathers for further work.

During this festive evening full of emotions, songs, choreography, and humor, the Pope encouraged them: “Make your way, be on the way, look at the horizon and not the mirror … do not sit on the couch as retirees at 24 “.
 
https://www.vaticannews.va/en/pope/news/2018-10/pope-to-young-people-coherence-and-concreteness-are-the-keywords.html
Pope responds to Young People: Coherence and Concreteness are the keywords
06 October 2018, 20:56

Video at the link below--
https://www.youtube.com/user/vatican

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Synod 2018

http://www.ncregister.com/blog/edward-pentin/youth-synod-1st-week-wide-variety-of-topics-discussed-concerns-about-transp

Oct. 6, 2018
Youth Synod 1st Week: Wide Variety of Topics Discussed, Concerns About Transparency

Challenges ranging from migration to absence of fatherhood have been addressed, but the decision not to release detailed information may point to a “surprise” at the end of the synod.
Edward Pentin

As the Synod on Youth comes to the end of its first week, many of the challenges facing young people have already been discussed, but precise details about the proceedings are scarce as heavy restrictions continue to be placed on public access to information.

The media is given daily verbal summaries of what has been talked about in the synod hall, but each synod father is not identified, unless they publicly circulate their interventions, which they are free to do. No printed summaries of the interventions are issued at media briefings and, unlike in previous synods, individual language briefings are briefly given ad hoc in the press hall rather than in individual rooms as in the past.

Pope Francis spoke briefly in the free discussion on Thursday, but news of this only trickled out later, and the media was not given a summary or text of what he said.
 

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https://www.vaticannews.va/en/vatican-city/news/2018-10/vatican-breaks-silence-cardinal-mccarrick.html

Holy See Press Office issues statement on ex-cardinal McCarrick case
06 October 2018, 15:18

Ex-Cardinal Theodore McCarrick
Pope Francis instructs the Holy See Press Office to release the following statement concerning the Vatican's response to allegations of sexual misconduct on the part of former cardinal Theodore McCarrick. Here is the full text of the press statement:

After the publication of the accusations regarding the conduct of Archbishop Theodore Edgar McCarrick, the Holy Father Pope Francis, aware of and concerned by the confusion that these accusations are causing in the conscience of the faithful, has established that the following be communicated:

In September 2017, the Archdiocese of New York notified the Holy See that a man had accused former Cardinal McCarrick of having abused him in the 1970s. The Holy Father ordered a thorough preliminary investigation into this, which was carried out by the Archdiocese of New York, at the conclusion of which the relative documentation was forwarded to the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. In the meantime, because grave indications emerged during the course of the investigation, the Holy Father accepted the resignation of Archbishop McCarrick from the College of Cardinals, prohibiting him by order from exercising public ministry, and obliging him to lead a life of prayer and penance.
 
http://www.ncregister.com/blog/edward-pentin/pope-francis-orders-new-thorough-study-of-archbishop-mccarrick
Oct. 6, 2018
Pope Francis Orders New, ‘Thorough Study’ of Archbishop McCarrick
In a statement, the Vatican says it is conscious that the new investigation may reveal choices not “consonant with a contemporary approach to such issues.”
Edward Pentin

https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/pope-francis-orders-review-of-vatican-mccarrick-files-96682
Pope Francis orders review of Vatican McCarrick files
by JD Flynn
Vatican City, Oct 6, 2018 / 08:09 am (CNA).- The Vatican announced Saturday that it would review its files pertaining to allegations of sexual misconduct on the part of Archbishop Theodore McCarrick, who has been accused in recent months of serially sexually abusing two teenage boys, and of sexually coercing and assaulting priests and seminarians during decades of ministry as a bishop.
 

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http://www.usccb.org/prayer-and-worship/prayers-and-devotions/the-popes-monthly-intention.cfm

The Pope's Monthly Intentions for 2018

October

Evangelization – The Mission of Religious
That consecrated religious men and women may bestir themselves, and be present among the poor, the marginalized, and those who have no voice.

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https://www.vaticannews.va/en/pope/news/2018-10/pope-angelus-the-beauty-of-marriage.html

Pope Angelus: The beauty of marriage
07 October 2018, 12:32

Pope Francis during the Angelus in St Peter's Square
Pope Francis during his Angelus address speaks of the beauty and dignity of marriage between a man and a woman and stresses the Church's closeness to those experiencing broken relationships.

In his Angelus address from St Peter’s Square, Pope Francis took inspiration from Sunday's Gospel which recounts Jesus' words on marriage. The Pope described how the Pharisees provoked Jesus by asking him if it was lawful for a husband to repudiate his wife, as provided for by the law of Moses.  Jesus replies by saying, "Because of the harshness of your heart he - that is, the ancient legislator - wrote this norm for you". That is to say, it is a concession that serves to plug the gaps produced by our selfishness, but does not correspond to the original intention of the Creator.” Jesus, continued Pope Francis, tells the Pharisees that, “in the Creator's original plan, there is no man who marries a woman and, if things do not go well, he repudiates her. No. There is instead a man and woman called to know each other, to complete each other, to help each other in marriage.”
 
https://zenit.org/articles/angelus-address-on-the-indissolubility-of-marriage-as-the-creators-original-intention/
Angelus Address: On the Indissolubility of Marriage as the Creator’s Original Intention
October 07, 2018 14:57•

Video at the link below--
https://www.youtube.com/user/vatican

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https://www.vaticannews.va/en/vatican-city/news/2018-10/letter-ouellet-vigano-mccarrick-sexual-abuse-united-states.html

Open letter by Card. Marc Ouellet on recent accusations against the Holy See
07 October 2018, 13:41

Cardinal Marc Ouellet, Prefect of the Congregation for Bishops  (Vatican Media)
Cardinal Marc Ouellet writes to "his fellow brother", Archbishop Carlo Maria Viganò, responding to his accusations according to his own personal knowledge and documents in the archive of the Congregation for Bishops, and asks him to return to full communion with the Successor of Peter

Today, the Holy See's Press Office published an Open Letter by Cardinal Marc Ouellet, Prefect of the Congregation for Bishops, regarding recent accusations against the Holy See. We provide a working translation into English from the Italian translation of the original French.

Dear fellow brother, Carlo Maria Viganò,

In your last message to the media in which you denounce Pope Francis and the Roman Curia, you urged me to tell the truth about the facts which you interpret as endemic corruption that has invaded the Church’s hierarchy even up to the highest levels. With due pontifical permission, I offer here my personal testimony, as the Prefect of the Congregation for Bishops, regarding the events concerning the Archbishop Emeritus of Washington, DC, Theodore McCarrick, and his presumed links with Pope Francis, which constitute the subject of your sensational public denunciation, as well as your demand that the Holy Father resign. I write this testimony based on my personal contacts and on archival documents of the aforementioned Congregation, which are currently the subject of a study in order to shed light on this sad case.

First of all, allow me to say to you with complete sincerity, by virtue of the good collaborative relationship that existed between us when you were the Nuncio in Washington, that your current position appears incomprehensible and extremely deplorable to me, not only because of the confusion that it sows in the People of God, but also because your public accusations seriously damage the reputation of the Successors of the Apostles. I remember the time in which I once enjoyed your esteem and confidence, but I realize that I stand to lose the dignity you recognized in me for the sole fact of having remained faithful to the guidelines of the Holy Father in the service that he entrusted to me in the Church.

Is not communion with the Successor of Peter the expression of our obedience to Christ who chose him and who supports him by His grace? My interpretation of Amoris Laetitia, which you criticize, is written out of this fidelity to the living tradition, of which Francis has given us an example through the recent modification of the Catechism of the Catholic Church regarding the question of the death penalty.

Let us get down to the facts. You say that you informed Pope Francis on 23 June 2013 on the McCarrick case during the audience he granted to you, along with the many other pontifical representatives whom he then met for the first time on that day. I imagine the enormous quantity of verbal and written information that he would have gathered on that occasion about many persons and situations. I strongly doubt that McCarrick was of interest to him to the point that you believed him to be, since at the moment he was an 82-year-old Archbishop Emeritus who had been without an appointment for seven years. In addition, the written brief prepared for you by the Congregation for Bishops at the beginning of your service in 2011, said nothing about McCarrick other than what I told you in person about his situation as an emeritus Bishop who was supposed to obey certain conditions and restrictions due to the rumors surrounding his past behavior.
 

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http://whispersintheloggia.blogspot.com/2018/10/hatman-strikes-back-in-open-letter-to.html

Sunday, October 07, 2018
"Hatman" Strikes Back – In Open Letter to Viganò, Ouellet Rips Ex-Nuncio's Claims... and Motive

Six weeks after Archbishop Carlo Maria Viganò unleashed his "nuclear" accusations that Pope Francis and a host of other key Vatican and US figures had abetted the public profile of Archbishop Theodore McCarrick amid claims of adult misconduct by the now ex-cardinal, the Vatican's key response to date has emerged – and in equally spectacular, blistering form.

A day after the Holy See announced an internal investigation of its archives on the factors that enabled McCarrick's rise through the hierarchy, this Sunday morning brought the release of a stunning open letter to the retired Nuncio in which the prefect of the Congregation for Bishops, Canadian Cardinal Marc Ouellet, accused Viganò of – among other things – "calumny and defamation," "bitterness and delusions," and an "open and scandalous rebellion" which, he wrote, "cannot come from God’s Spirit": in other words, implying a demonic motive to the diplomat's assault on Francis. (Above, Ouellet is seen attempting a stroll with the now-Pope in the days leading up to the 2013 Conclave.)

A favorite of Benedict XVI – who tapped him in 2010 to run the Vatican's "Hat Shop," which recommends candidates for appointment to the Pope across the developed world (and, in general, oversees all aspects of the life and ministry of bishops) – Ouellet had been accused of "surrender" by Viganò in a late September addendum to his initial August "testimony," with the latter citing the cardinal's embrace of an opening to the possible reception of the Eucharist by civilly remarried couples in the wake of Amoris Laetitia.

While that particular charge gave Ouellet ample grist to work with in today's reply, the Quebecois prelate nonetheless confirmed – albeit to a degree – a central claim of Viganò's first "j'accuse," writing that, in years past, McCarrick "had been strongly advised not to travel and not to appear in public, so as not to provoke additional rumors in his regard," but that the warning did not rise to the level of "sanctions" as "at that time, unlike today, there was not sufficient proof of his alleged guilt" of misconduct and harassment toward seminarians and young priests. (As a fact-check, the Holy See had been contemporaneously informed of the confidential 2005 and 2007 settlements with current and former clerics on these allegations. While both were only publicly revealed upon McCarrick's removal from ministry in June, the first suit can now be seen as the rationale behind why the disgraced prelate's 2006 retirement as archbishop of Washington was quietly fast-tracked, having been completed within a year of his 75th birthday.)

With the tenor of the Vatican response turned on a dime over this weekend, as an added critical piece to the fresh dynamic, Cindy Wooden – the Rome bureau-chief of the USCCB-owned Catholic News Service – reported yesterday that the lead officers of the US bench, Houston's Cardinal Daniel DiNardo and LA's Archbishop José Gomez, are to be received by Francis tomorrow (Monday, 8 October) for their second audience within a month, the first of which stoked no shortage of frustration on the US side.

The conference president and vice-president are already in Rome as elected members of this month's Synod on Young People.
 
https://cruxnow.com/vatican/2018/10/07/vaticans-bishops-czar-says-papal-accuser-guilty-of-political-frame-job/
Vatican’s bishops czar says papal accuser guilty of ‘political frame-job’
Elise Harris and John L. Allen Jr.
Oct 7, 2018

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https://www.vaticannews.va/en/pope-francis/mass-casa-santa-marta/2018-10/pope-francis-mass.html

Pope Mass: True Christians not afraid to get their hands dirty
08 October 2018, 11:37

Pope during Mass at the Casa Santa Marta
During morning Mass at the Casa Santa Marta, Pope Francis urges lay people and pastors to reflect on what it means to be Christian, calling on them to be "open" to God's surprises, drawing close to those in need.

An invitation to be " earnest Christians ", Christians who "are not afraid to get their hands dirty, their clothes, when they draw near", Christians "open to surprises" and who, like Jesus, "pay for others" . Those were Pope Francis’ words during his homily at the morning Mass at the Casa Santa Marta. Taking inspiration from today's Gospel from Luke, the Pontiff reflected on the "six characters" of the parable told by Jesus to the Doctor of the Law who, to put him "to the test", asks him: "Who is my neighbour?". Then he lists the bandits, the wounded, the priest, the Levite, the Samaritan and the innkeeper.

Do not pass by: stop, have compassion, help
 

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Synod 2018

Synod: Sexual abuse and role of women are in focus
08 October 2018, 16:57

Briefing day 5 Synod of Bishops on Youth
Three participants at the Synod of Bishops on Youth attended the daily press briefing and addressed the two issues of the sexual abuse of minors and the role of women in the Church.
Russell Pollitt SJ

Three participants at the Synod of Bishops on Youth attended the daily press briefing. These included Maltese Archbishop Charles Scicluna, auxiliary bishop of Lyon, France, Emmanuel Gobilliard and Italian author Mr Thomas Leoncini. After offering their impressions of the Synod, two issues were addressed: the sexual abuse of minors and the role of women in the Church.

Participants impressions of the Synod

Archbishop Scicluna opened the briefing by saying that he was touched by the very vocal presence of 30 young people at the Synod who, at times, reacted vociferously to what they heard. He said that this gives the bishops a good indication of what is expected of them. Bishop Gobillard said that the young people reminded the bishops that they are part of the Church and showed them the “pathway” to preach the Gospel more authentically. Mr Leoncini said that Pope Francis was, for many young people, the greatest leader amongst leaders and that they really felt listened to and accompanied by him. He said that the Synod has shown him that the Church is not fearful to ask questions that seek radical answers.
 

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https://www.vaticannews.va/en/pope-francis/mass-casa-santa-marta/2018-10/pope-francis-homily-daily-mass-mary-marta-contemplation-service.html

Pope at Santa Marta: The true Christian is in love with the Lord
09 October 2018, 12:22

Pope Francis celebrates Mass at Casa Santa Marta  (Vatican Media)
The main figures in Tuesday’s Gospel—Mary and Martha—teach us how the Christian life must be lived: in love with the Lord. That is Pope Francis’ message in the homily at the daily Mass at Casa Santa Marta, as he invites us to reflect both on the way we work and on the time we dedicate to contemplation.
By Gabriella Ceraso

In order not to go astray in our life as Christians, the key is to be “in love” with the Lord, and to be inspired by Him in our actions. This was the case with St Paul the Apostle, who describes the Christian life in the reading from the Letter to the Galatians. There must be a balance between “contemplation and service,” two qualities which are illustrated in the day’s Gospel from St Luke, which is centred on the figures of Martha and Mary, the sisters of Lazarus of Bethania, who welcomed Jesus into their home as a guest.

Busy Christians, without the peace of the Lord

By their actions, Pope Francis explained, these two sisters, “teach us how we should go forward in the Christian life.” Mary “listened to the Lord,” while Martha was “distracted,” because she was occupied with service.” The Pope described Martha as one of the “strong” women, capable even of rebuking the Lord for not being present at the death of her brother Lazarus. She knew how to put herself forward, and so was courageous. Yet she lacked “contemplation,” and was incapable of “losing time gazing upon the Lord”:
 

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https://www.vaticannews.va/en/pope/news/2018-10/south-korea-visit-pope-francis-message-north-korea.html

S. Korean president to meet Pope with message from N. Korea
09 October 2018, 13:12

President Moon Jae-in of South Korea.  (ANSA)
Pope Francis will receive South Korean President Moon Jae-in in the Vatican on 18 October, Greg Burke, the director of the Holy See’s Press Office said in a brief statement on Tuesday.   

He also said that the previous day, Wednesday October 17, Vatican Secretary of State, Cardinal Pietro Parolin will preside over a “Mass for Peace” on the Korean Peninsula in Rome’s St. Peter’s Basilica, in which President Moon will participate.

Meanwhile, Kim Eui-kyum, the spokesman of the South Korean President, while announcing the official visit of Moon to Pope Francis, specified that the president will also carry a message from North Korean leader Kim Jong-un to the Pope.  The spokesman shared a part of Kim’s message saying that if the Pope visits Pyongyang he would accord him a warm welcome.
 

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Synod 2018

https://www.vaticannews.va/en/church/news/2018-10/synod-youth-2018-press-briefing-tuesday-pollitt.html

Synod: Listening, conversion and the role of women
09 October 2018, 16:57

Tuesday's press conference on the Synod of Bishops
Listening, conversion and the role of women emerge as themes from the Synod of Bishops on Youth at the daily press briefing.
By Russell Pollitt, SJ

Despite the varying situations and contexts of young people across the world their basic aspirations are the same. They want to be taken seriously, listened to, allowed to contribute and they want us to trust them, Cardinal Oswald Gracias from India said.

Listening

“Listening is key in the Synod process,” said French Sister Nathalie Becquart. The first stage of the Synod, she explained, has been about listening to the sociological situation of young people but also listening to how God is acting now. Cardinal Gracias said that the bishops started listening in the Synod preparation. During that phase the Synod committee received over 100 thousand answers to the questionnaire that was sent out.

Canadian Cardinal Gerald Cyprien La Croix explained how, in the small groups and in the Synod assembly, young people shared ideas. He said that there were powerful mutual exchanges. He explained how new process of listening to inputs and then taking a silent pause was helpful because it gave participants time to reflect on what they heard.

Cardinal Gracias said that he was really struck, when listening to young people share, that there was a strong call from across the world for the Church to ensure that liturgies were done better. He explained how the first part of the Synod has been focussed on lots of sociological data. In the second part of the process they will analyse this data and then, in the third part, look at appropriate pastoral responses and programmes.
 

[grace-land]

synod 2018

https://cruxnow.com/synod-of-bishops-on-youth/2018/10/09/bishops-emphasize-abuse-crisis-but-point-to-wider-range-of-issues/

Bishops emphasize abuse crisis, but point to wider range of issues
Crux Staff   Oct 9, 2018

ROME - As an Oct. 3-28 Synod of Bishops in Rome enters its second week, reports were released Tuesday from small working groups that provide the first real x-ray into how this gathering of prelates and other participants from around the world pondering young people, faith and vocational discernment is thinking.

Judging by the results, the child sexual abuse scandals in Catholicism are a major preoccupation, but hardly the only one.

Migration, the ambivalent realities of a digital world, the presentation of the Church’s teaching on sexuality, women, the difficulties of conveying the faith in a secular world, and many matters beyond also appear to be on the bishops’ minds.

The following are Crux summaries of the small group reports by language. More will be added as they’re ready for publication.

English

A common theme among nearly every English language group was that of sex abuse, with the expressed desire that the crisis that is currently overshadowing the Church not be “skimmed over tangentially in a few short sentences,” but rather the synod should offer an honest reckoning with “the shattered trust, the trauma and lifelong suffering of survivors; the catastrophic failures in case management; the continued silence and denial by some of these awful crimes and sins.”

At least one English language group believes the final document of the synod could establish the groundwork for a February 2019 meeting Pope Francis has convened in Rome to address the issue of sexual abuse with the head of every bishops’ conference from around the world.

Another recurring theme was how to address the concrete realities of young people today - on both a pastoral level and the outcome document itself. One proposal was made for the communications committee of the Synod to release a weekly progress report, no longer than 400 words and to be accompanied by a photo.

Recommendations were also made that the pope “road test” a condensed version of his anticipated apostolic exhortation, or the exhortation itself, with a sample group of young people from around the world.

“Perhaps if this is successful, all major church documents could be presented with such youth friendly characteristics,” the group recommended.

Also of concern was the fact that, since many young people will not read the full exhortation, to include with it an interactive study guide with video summaries or introductions by the pope.

In terms of questions of doctrine, multiple groups concurred that the “Christological perspective” should be stronger in the final document and that the relational nature of Christianity be highlighted as many young people are most compelled by it.

While one group specifically stated that the outcome document offer a more explicit case for chastity, another group emphasized that the Church is at its “best with young people by avoiding a moralistic or polemical approach - as if we had all the ‘ready- made’ answers - but instead accompanying young people in a climate of joy and adventure of discovery.”

Other recommendations included a specific section on the desire young people have for friendship (apart from romantic relationships) and the challenges of the digital age - including a specific mention of “sexting” - while also being aware that many of the challenges discussed to date are too Western in their focus.

German
 

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Synod 2018

https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/bishop-barron-gives-insight-into-youth-synod-process-46025

Bishop Barron gives insight into youth synod process

Bishop Robert Barron. Photo courtesy of DeChant-Hughes Public Relations.

Vatican City, Oct 9, 2018 / 06:16 am (CNA/EWTN News).- From his perspective inside the Vatican’s youth synod, Bishop Robert Barron, auxiliary bishop of Los Angeles, told CNA that participating bishops have real opportunities - through the unique process used during the meeting - to shape the final document produced by the meeting.

While the synod’s final document requires final approval from Pope Francis, Barron said the 266 bishop delegates to the synod will shape its structure and content.

“I think we all have a chance to make our voices heard,” he said.

Barron was elected last week as the relatore – a kind of reporter– for one of the synod’s English-language working groups. In this role, he is responsible for tracking his group’s conversation, and presenting a summary report, called a “relatio,” to the entire synod assembly.

As a relatore, Barron also oversees the amendment process through which members of his group can propose changes to the structure or content of the synod’s working document. 

On the morning of Oct. 9, Barron and the relatori from the other 13 working groups gave short talks in the synod hall, reporting what their group discussed the previous few days. Barron told CNA Oct. 8 that the process has “been an interesting part of the synod work.”

The reports are forwarded to the members of a writing group, expected to be be elected Oct. 9. That group will compose the synod’s final document, on the theme of young people, faith, and vocational discernment.

The writing group receives “all the amendments, they’ll hear the reports, and then taking all that data, they’ll adjust the document accordingly,” Barron said. Finally, the Synod Fathers will “vote on it at the very end. But this is the whole process by which the document comes to be.”
 

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Synod 2018

https://zenit.org/articles/synod2018-young-people-discussion-groups-offer-reports-full-text/

Synod2018: Young People Discussion Groups Offer Reports (Full Text)
14 ‘Break-Out’ Groups Offers Insights for a Stronger Church
October 09, 2018 17:42•ZENIT Staff•Synod18

On the morning of October 9, 2018, during the 5th General Congregation of the XV Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops on young people, the Reports of the 14 Minor Circles were presented in the Hall to reflect on the first part of the Instrumentum Laboris light of the contributions that emerged during the debate held in the previous General Congregations.

The full text of the reports, provided by the Vatican, follow:
 

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Synod 2018

https://www.ncronline.org/news/accountability/synod-english-groups-abuse-crisis-undermines-church-practically-every-way

Synod English groups: Abuse crisis undermines church 'in practically every way'
Oct 9, 2018
by Joshua J. McElwee
 
The Vatican released the groups' written reports Oct. 9, and has provided the names of the groups' leaders and secretaries. In a break from previous synods, the Vatican has not released a list of the full membership of the groups.

The secretary of Gracias' group is Irish Archbishop Eamon Martin. According to a list of the working groups' members obtained by NCR, others in that group include British Cardinal Vincent Nichols, Australian Archbishop Anthony Fisher, and Bishop Frank Caggiano of Bridgeport, Connecticut.

The second of the English groups to address the abuse crisis is led by Galveston-Houston Cardinal Daniel DiNardo. That group said the scandal "has undermined the work of the Church in practically every way, precisely because it has compromised our credibility."

"A Church that cannot be trusted is simply incapable of reaching out to young people in an effective way," it said.

The secretary of DiNardo's group is Los Angeles Auxiliary Bishop Robert Barron. Its members include South African Cardinal Wilfrid Napier, Maltese Archbishop Charles Scicluna, Philippines Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle, and Los Angeles Archbishop Jose Gomez.

The group led by Chicago Cardinal Blase Cupich proposes that the synod craft a message to the young people of the world — "inspirational and missionary in character" — to be initially drafted by a group of two synod members and two of the young people attending the gathering as auditors.

That group also asks Pope Francis to consider writing an "interactive" apostolic exhortation after the synod, with questions directed at young people to facilitate sharing of ideas in small groups, and use of QR or quick response codes that would direct people to online chat rooms and videos with messages from the pontiff.

The secretary of Cupich's group is Australian Auxiliary Bishop Mark Edwards. It also includes Australian Archbishop Peter Comensoli and Philadelphia Archbishop Charles Chaput.

Cupich's group said they also spent time considering different forms of family life, including "non-ideal groupings from the Christian perspective."
 

[grace-land]

Synod 2018

https://www.americamagazine.org/faith/2018/10/09/synod-2018-day-6-young-people-arent-just-spectators-theyre-part-parade

Synod 2018 Day 6: Young people aren’t just spectators, ‘they’re part of the parade’
Gerard O’Connell
October 09, 2018

The synod on young people has completed the first part of its work, and participants are in high spirits, according to Sister Nathalie Becquart (France) and three cardinals—Oswald Gracias (India), Gerald Lacroix (Canada) and Desiré Tsarahazana (Madagascar)—who spoke at a Vatican press conference on Oct. 9.

The 14 small working groups, into which participants are divided according to language, have ended their discussion and submitted their reports on the first part of the working document (known as the “Instrumentum Laboris”), on the theme “Recognizing: the church listens to reality.”

“We must listen to young people and trust them.”

The Vatican has released the texts of all the groups in the original languages in which they were presented: four English, three French, three Italian, two Spanish, one German and one Portuguese. Participants will now return to the plenary session for interventions on Part II of the working document, “Interpreting: faith and vocational discernment,” and later break up again into working groups. The English language working groups are being chaired by four cardinals elected by participants in the group, including U.S. cardinals Blase Cupich and Daniel DiNardo.
 
http://www.catholicnews.com/services/englishnews/2015/synod-groups-deliberate-on-how-to-support-accompany-families.cfm
Synod groups deliberate on how to support, accompany families
By Junno Arocho Esteves Catholic News Service
10.22.2015 10:35 AM ET