Cardinal Baldisseri Introduces The Synod On The Family
Vatican City, 3 October 2014 (VIS)– An interview was held this morning in the Holy See Press Office throughout which Cardinal Lorenzo Baldisseri, secretary general of the Synod of Bishops, outlined the structure of the Extraordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops on the Family, to be ushered in by the Pope during a solemn mass in St. Peter’s Basilica next Sunday.
The Cardinal explained that among the 191 Synod Fathers there will be 61 Cardinals, one Cardinal Patriarch, 7 Patriarchs, one significant archbishop, 67 metropolitan archbishops, 47 bishops, one auxiliary bishop, 1 priest and 6 spiritual. There will likewise be 16 experts, 38 auditors and 8 fraternal delegates. He likewise mentioned that since this assembly will consider the style of the family, special emphasis has been provided married couples, moms and dads and household heads, a total amount of 12 persons; there is also one couple within the group of professionals.
He went on to speak about the attributes of the upcoming Synod, which reveal the Holy Father’s wish to “carry out an innovative and initial Synodal course, structured in 2 phases: the present Extraordinary Assembly, on the theme ‘Pastoral difficulties to the family in the context of evangelisation’, and next year’s Ordinary Assembly, which will take as its style ‘The vocation and the objective of the family in the Church and in the contemporary world'”. Cardinal Baldisseri kept in mind that during the preparatory stage, “there resounded the voice of each child of God”, from bishops to lay faithful who had the ability to express their opinions with the questionnaire connected to the preparatory document dispersed by the Episcopal Conferences. “There is a great deal of responses is due on the one hand to the style of the Synod, which relates to the life of the community, families and people and mirrors the pastoral care that the bishops have constantly had in relation to the household. On the other hand, the breadth of the product that was sent lacks doubt a sign of the frankness and free-ness with which the appointment was carried out. This broad-ranging liberty of expression will likewise characterize the Synod Assembly, which will occur in an atmosphere of respect for each position, with mutual charity and with a really constructive technique”.
He continued, “other new elements will influence the organisation of the work of the Synod, and for that reason connect to the internal method of the Assembly. The Relatio ante disceptationem will consist of different novelties, and the Secretariat General asked the Synod papas to transmit their contributions in advance, showing the concern on which they intended to speak throughout the Assembly, appreciating the order of styles. These texts were considered throughout the preparing of the Relatio ante disceptationem, which proved helpful in organising the thematic agenda. In this method, the so-called Relatio becomes reference point which may be worked upon during the interventions in the Assembly”.
Second of all, during the argument in the Synod Hall, which will occur during the first week, beginning with the Second General Congregation, the thematic order developed following the Instrumentum laboris will be followed. Each general Congregation will open with the statement of the style by the head of state delegate, followed by an intervention by a couple of Auditors, who will offer the Synod Fathers their statement of family life, contributing to the enrichment of the debate on pastoral action.
During the “Relatio post disceptationem” provided at the end of the first week will supply the basis for the work of the second week by the so-called “little groups”, when the Fathers prepare the final file, the “Relatio Synodi”, to be sent to the Holy Father.
“There will likewise be novelties relating to the means of communication”, continued Cardinal Baldisseri. “Each day there will be a Briefing in the Holy See Press Office, with the collaboration of the Press Secretaries and the participation of numerous Synod Fathers. Journalism Office Bulletin will include info regarding the day’s work. Additionally, there will be a Twitter service to send quick summaries of the most vital news in real time.
“The work of the Synod Fathers will be accompanied by the prayer of the people of God”, concluded Cardinal Baldisseri. In Rome, in the Salus Populi Romani chapel in the Basilica of St. Mary Major, a bishop or a cardinal will commemorate a Holy Mass for the household. The presence of the relics of the Blessed couple Zelie and Louis Martin, and their daughter St. Therese of the Child Jesus, are substantial, as are those of the Blessed couple Luigi and Maria Beltrame Quattrocchi. Throughout the world, prayers will be provided in shrines, particularly those dedicated to the Holy Family, in monasteries, in communities of consecrated life, in dioceses and in parishes”.
