Staff reporter Prominent theologian and author Rev. Dr Vivian Boland OP has warned that the synodal process the Church is embarking upon may focus too much on “organisation and management”. Speaking to The Irish Catholic newspaper Dr Boland said it would be useful for the synodal process to consider the entirety of the Church rather…
Deacon Frank Browne asks: Is the decline in priestly vocations a wakeup call to take the synodal pathway seriously? I have fond memories of student life in Clonliffe College, the Dublin Diocesan seminary in the early 1980s. There was hardly a vacant room with over 100 students. Most of my class were just out of school.…
Pope to meet students as part of synodal process Highlighting the importance of a Church that truly listens, Pope Francis will participate in a virtual meeting hosted by Loyola University in Chicago with students from North, Central and South America. The February 24 virtual meeting, titled ‘Building Bridges: A Synodal Encounter between Pope Francis and…
Catholic bishops in the Holy Land invited their Orthodox counterparts to contribute to the consultation process leading to the 2023 Synod on Synodality. In a letter dated January 24, the Assembly of Catholic Ordinaries of the Holy Land (ACOHL) explained that Catholics in the region were taking part in the local stage of a two-year synodal path launched by…
The director of the Loyola Institute Dr Michael Kirwan said it’s “really important” that people have confidence in their grasp of theology if the Irish synodal process is to be fruitful. Dr Kirwan, who is a professor in systematic and pastoral theology, told The Irish Catholic people are being asked “to have an enormous level…
Staff reporter A new website, synod.ie has been launched to support engagement with the national synodal pathway for the Church in Ireland. The website provides information about the synodal pathway and the timeline for the work, as well as making available a variety of resources to support engagement. Welcoming the publication of the website and resources Primate of…
No amount of talking and listening to each other will help the Church if those talking are uninformed or misinformed about matters of faith and morals, writes Dr John Murray No doubt the Church needs to improve its internal and external communication. And the synodal process, at diocesan, national, and global level might help to…
One of Ireland’s most-senior prelates has insisted that the planned synod gathering on the future of Catholicism must be open to all voices if it is to bring meaningful reform to the Church here. Archbishop Francis Duffy warned that the process would only be worthwhile if Church leaders can reach out to those who are…
Tuam’s new archbishop Dr Francis Duffy is looking forward to taking up his role, he tells Ruadhán Jones The tasks facing any new Irish bishop or archbishop are likely to be similar; declining vocations, a shrinking Church and a global pandemic. But despite the challenges, Archbishop Francis Duffy is looking forward to getting started, hoping…
The synodal journey is a “pathway not a runway” and will not give an “instant solution”, Archbishop Francis Duffy said during his homily for his installation Mass as Archbishop of Tuam. Archbishop Duffy was installed in the Cathedral of the Assumption, Tuam on Sunday, January 9, taking the reins from Archbishop Michael Neary who served…
Chai Brady