Vatican City, 16 October, 2023 / 1:02 pm (ACI Africa).
As the Synod on Synodality hits the halfway mark for this year, the two Chinese bishops’ experience on the international religious stage is prematurely drawing to an end.
The Vatican confirmed Monday that the bishops from the People’s Republic of China are leaving ahead of the event’s conclusion, planning to return to their homeland early this week.
In answer to a question by CNA at the press briefing on Oct. 16, Paolo Ruffini, prefect of the Dicastery for Communication, said this was because of “pastoral needs in their diocese that require their presence.”
The attendance of the two prelates at the synod raised a series of questions of no minor importance.
Now entering its third and penultimate week, the synod will see a summary by the relator general — Jesuit Cardinal Jean-Claude Hollerich of Luxembourg — on Oct. 18, likely to be delivered live. This will be followed by the commission’s first meeting for drafting the summary report on Sunday, Oct. 22, as the Synod on “Communion, Mission, Participation” prepares for its final and decisive week.