While very many synod fathers warmly welcomed and appreciated the midway report presented by the Relator General Cardinal Peter Erdo on Oct 13 a significant number expressed serious objections to parts of that interim text both in terms of content and style That text sought to summarize the ri

A new wind is blowing at the extraordinary synod of bishops on the family nbsp A wind that is bringing back lsquo the spirit rsquo and even lsquo the letter rsquo of the Second Vatican Council several synod fathers said nbsp It rsquo s a wind that reveals a clear desire for the Church to dia

As the synod on the family reached the midway stage on a positive note Pope Francis took the unprecedented and highly significant decision to add six highly qualified synod fathers to the team that will write its Final Report nbsp That decision could prove to be a game changer At almost all of th

One of the Vatican rsquo s top canon lawyers at the Synod of Bishops on the Family says the current process for the annulment of marriages in the Catholic Church could be streamlined and expanded to the benefit of very many people whose marriages have broken down This could be one of the positive f

Not since the Second Vatican Council has a gathering of representatives of the world’s Catholic bishops sparked such interest and controversy as the Extraordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops on the Family, which opened in the Vatican on Oct. 5. While the agenda is very wide,

House arrest of former nuncio sends tremors through the Vatican establishment.

Tensions between student demonstrators and authorities in Beijing rose as protests continued for broader democratic rights in Hong Kong in October. On Oct. 3 protesters accused police of allowing pro-government “thugs” to assault them in the city’s Mong Kok district.“Nothing

The synod has just begun but there are already early signs that many aspects of church teaching and praxis are coming under scrutiny with demands for change including a change in the language it uses Seventy synod fathers spoke in the first 24 hours raising many issues including the need for the

In a major break with past praxis almost 50 years after Paul VI first established the synod of bishops Pope Francis has given the synod fathers the key elements for synodality something akin to a bill of rights that creates a climate of freedom He did so at the start of the synod rsquo s first pl

ldquo Synod Assemblies are not meant to discuss beautiful and clever ideas or to see who is more intelligent rdquo Pope Francis told the 191 synod fathers from all continents gathered with him in St Peter rsquo s Basilica as they concelebrated mass on Sunday morning October 5 for the opening o