The report was aiming to be a reflection of the overall sense of the "mind of the house" and indicate some general pastoral directions, Indian Cardinal Oswald Gracias of Mumbai told reporters at a Vatican news conference.

Members of the Synod of Bishops on the family agree that Catholic families are the beating heart and busy hands of the church, but the tensions in the synod hall demonstrate that what they don't agree on is a vision of the church and its primary attitude to the world.As the Catholic Church marke

Archbishop Roberto Gonzàlez Nieves of San Juan is convinced the pope will have 'the freedom to follow up' on the questions that have emerged.

If you want to know what it’s like to be a player at the Synod of Bishops and in the extracurricular socializing where much of the work is done, you have to read the blog of Australian Archbishop Mark Coleridge.

The reforms to the annulment process introduced by Pope Francis serve only to avoid delays in cases where marriages are clearly not valid, two synod fathers said.Cardinal Lluis Martinez Sistach of Barcelona, Spain, and Cardinal Wilfrid F. Napier of Durban, South Africa, told journalists at a Vatican

While church doctrine must stay unchanged, an Australian archbishop expressed his hope that the Synod of Bishops will the lead the church to a genuine pastoral approach using a new language of mercy toward families, particularly those in difficult situations. Speaking at a Vatican news conferen