Church on the Way: Synod newsletter

Another newsletter from the Synod of Bishops. Not too many long words this time!

General Secretariat for the Synod of Bishops www.synod.va – media@synod.va View this email in your browser #newsletter n.8 – 20/2021 – Available also in FR – PT – ES – ITShareTweetForwardShare For a synodal Church:the contribution of Consecrated Life From 24 to 26 November, the Union of Superiors General (USG) – the international organisation of Superiors General of men’s Religious Institutes or Societies of Apostolic Life – will hold its 96th General Assembly focusing mainly on Consecrated Life and Synodality (see programme). As we await the results of their discussions, let us invoke the Spirit of the Lord to enlighten their work. Have a good synodal meeting! “Pray, reflect, discuss and share your experiences, insights and desires. Do it with the freedom of those who piace their trust in God and are thus able to overcome timidity, a sense of inferiority or worse stili, reproaches and complaints, Let it be done in all simplicity, moved by the Holy Spirit, avoiding arrogance, without presumption but always having a sense of co-responsibility”. (Letter of Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life, 23 July 2021) Synodal spirituality We continue our journey to discover the spirituality of the different religious families, associations and ecclesial movements. Today we invite you to discover the Salesian spirituality.  “Listening, sincere and open dialogue, discernment in the Holy Spirit, prayer, planning and shared formation can foster a journey “together” and the construction of an inclusive “we” in view of the mission.” The Synod in the world We continue to receive pictures, videos, … from all over the world showing the great creativity of our communities. Be inspired: come and see!“To ensure that the synodal church is not a mirage, but rather a dream to be realized, it is necessary to dream together, to pray together, and to work together ”. (From the letter of Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life, 23 July 2021)Directly from our brothers and sisters in India a nice video (only in English) which explain what is the Synod on Synodality.  Listening to people with disabilities. We need you!  We invite you to send materials and good practices for the involvement of people with disabilities in the synodal process to msecretary@synod.va  ListeningToAll #NobodyExcluded Feel like singing? By popular demand, we offer you the Hymn of the Synodal Way of India with the lyrics so that you too can sing … At the top of your lungs! The Goose Game: a teamwork Finally, the English version of the Goose Game proposed by the diocese of Palencia (Spain) is now available in French, Italian, Portuguese, and Dutch too thanks to all who have collaborated.  Click here to download the game . Pray for the Synod In order to support the synodal journey and ask for the Spirit’s assistance, together with the World Network of Prayers of the Pope and UISG, we have set up a website in 5 languages: Church on the Way. Pray for the Synod. From 2 November, you too can send your prayer. See how to do it…  Copyright  2021 General Secretariat for the Synod of Bishops, All rights reserved. Our mailing address is: General Secretariat for the Synod of Bishops Via della Conciliazione 34, Vatican City 00120, Vatican City State (Holy See) Add us to your address book Want to change how you receive these emails? You can update your preferences or unsubscribe from this list.

Advertisement

Startled mortality

FISC Dining Room, by CD.

Mealtimes are reassuring. We don’t want fire alarms to go off when we settle to enjoy food and conversation. We feel sure that God nurtures us, by providential patterns of life, including gentle involvement in thoughtfully prepared food. We can express our concern for the health and inner peace of those at the table, making the meal a time of creative bonding.

But dining rooms are also places where moments of confusion or excitement might leave their mark, and be remembered as a little vulnerable. Here in the Giles Lane Study Centre, Canterbury, the refectory has brought together a number of religious families: Franciscans and Redemptorists, Sisters of Mercy, Little Brothers and Sisters of Charles de Foucauld, Benedictines, Carmelites and others, generally for special feast day celebrations at Christmas or on the feast of St. Francis. Liturgical joyfulness beforehand spills over into the meal, raising spirits and stirring up kindly laughter.

The prayerful aspect has sometimes become more adventurous, around Eastertime, for instance. For some years, we had held a Christian ‘Passover Seder Meal’ in Holy Week, an echo of the Jewish celebration. One time, our community Guardian, who had diabetes, was reciting a prayer about the Exodus and the tumult of the Crossing of the Red Sea. He suddenly seemed to freeze, and repeated the same phrase three or four times consecutively. He had lapsed into a diabetic ‘hypo’, in danger of entering a coma. It was a very sobering development. But it fittingly highlighted our mortality.

CD.