Dr Nicola Brady appointed chair of the synodal steering committee

The Irish Catholic Bishops’ Conference have announced the appointment of Dr Nicola Brady as chair of the synodal steering committee, which will help lead the way towards Ireland’s national synod.

The bishops said they decided to establish the synodal steering committee and a synodal task group to help move forward the synodal pathway process for Ireland in a statement after their summer 2021 general meeting.

The vice-chairs of the synodal steering committee are Andrew O’Callaghan and Bishop Brendan Leahy of Limerick. The full membership of the steering committee and of the synodal task group will be published as part of the official launch of the synodal pathway in the coming months.

Following her appointment Dr Brady said, “The synodal pathway is an important and hope-filled development in the life of the Catholic Church in Ireland and I am grateful for the opportunity to help guide and shape this work.”

Dr Brady is the general secretary of the Irish Council of Churches and joint secretary of the Irish Inter-Church Meeting where she facilitates relationship-building between Christian Churches on the island of Ireland and collaborative action on issues of shared concern to member Churches.

The bishops reported there have been 550 synodal pathway submissions so far, which were received over the past months as part of the initial phase of the synodal process.