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African theologians, priests, religious, and laity have embarked on a series of synodal conversations, describing their encounter ahead of the October session in Rome as a call to action for all the people of God in Africa to make their voices heard in the Synod on Synodality.
Plans are underway for a series of online conversations bringing together African theologians, priests and religious, as well as laity who seek to deepen the understanding of the Synthesis Report of the ongoing Synod on Synodality ahead of the October session in Rome.
The June 4–13 closed-door gathering of experts in theology, ecclesiology, and canon law is being held at the Jesuit general curia down the street from the Vatican.
One of the delegates representing Africa in the multi-year Synod on Synodality, which Pope Francis extended to 2024 has blamed the silence from the continent when the topic of the “mission” of digitality was being discussed during the 4-29 October 2023 session to the absence of African youths at the global gathering.
The leadership of the Symposium of Episcopal Conference of Africa and Madagascar (SECAM) has responded to the call of the first session of the XVI Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops to discern pastoral care towards persons in polygamous unions.
The four-day meeting, which is taking place from April 29 to May 2 at the Fraterna Domus retreat house in Sacrofano, Italy, is attended by about 300 priests.
Embracing the new way of being Church through Small Christian Communities (SCCs) and living out the spirit of “Ubuntu” are the two particular “cultural and community forces” that delegates representing the Church in Africa at the ongoing Synod on Synodality want integrated into the continental mission of the Church.
Delegates to represent the Church in Africa at the second session of the Synod on Synodality are meeting in Nairobi, Kenya, to “deepen” their insights about Synodality ahead of the 2-29 October 2024 session in Rome.
Catholic Prelates cannot adequately fulfill their Episcopal Ministry if they ignore the virtue of listening, Archbishop Gabriel Justice Yaw Anokye of Ghana’s Catholic Archdiocese of Kumasi has said.
A section of Church leaders have aligned themselves with modern day values in the name “contemporary culture” akin to paganism, Robert Cardinal Sarah has noted with concern.
Robert Cardinal Sarah has urged Catholic Bishops in Africa to be keen on defending the Catholic faith, voicing their opposition to defenders of “particular cultures” during the October 2024 session of the ongoing Synod on Synodality, which Pope Francis extended to 2024, with the first session, 4-29 October 2023, having concluded with a 42-page summary report.
Seminary Rectors and other formators in the nine member countries of the Inter-Regional Meeting of the Bishops of Southern Africa (IMBISA), who have been participating in a formation workshop in South Africa have recommended that formators “use the method of conversation in spirit to develop a culture of listening”.
The leadership of the Inter-Regional Meeting of the Bishops of Southern Africa (IMBISA) has partnered with the African Synodality Initiative (ASI) to gather Rectors and other formators in Seminaries in the nine-nation region for a three-day formation workshop organized under the theme, “A Synodal approach to Priestly formation”.
The Church is inviting her members to promote, through practice, the spirit of Synodality, journeying and carrying out the mission of Jesus Christ through a collaborative approach, a Rome-based member of the Congregation of the Holy Spirit under the protection of the Immaculate Heart of Mary (Spiritans/Holy Ghost Fathers) has said.
The Maltese cardinal stated in a recent interview that a female diaconate would not be a “revolution” but a “natural deepening of the Lord’s will.”
Initiatives towards training, engaging in dialogue, aiming for a common ground in decision-making processes, and the fostering of inclusive participation are some of the ways the spirit of Synodality can be fostered in families and among members of the new way of being Church in Africa, the Small Christian communities (SCCs), the Chairman of the Association of Member Episcopal Conferences in Eastern Africa (AMECEA) has said.
Church experts will meet in study groups to examine the question of women deacons and other key topics through June 2025.
The Eucharist is the centre of a synodal Church requiring the participation of all “by virtue of their common baptism”, the Archbishop of Sierra Leone’s Catholic Archdiocese of Freetown has said, and cautioned individuals and groups against monopolizing activities of Holy Mass.
Catholic Bishops in Nigeria have been briefed on what “should preoccupy” the people of God in the West African nation as the Church prepares for the second session of the Synod on Synodality, which has been scheduled to take place from 2-29 October 2024.
The Vatican announced Saturday that Pope Francis has launched synodal study groups to analyze key issues ahead of October’s Synod on Synodality assembly.