Scottish Catholic Observer

“You have to say what you feel the Lord tells you to say, without concerns of human respect and without fear,” the Pope instructed the bishops at the start of their meeting.

One of the most discussed topics ahead of the synod has been the eligibility of divorced and civilly remarried Catholics to receive Communion in light of Catholic teaching on the subject.

During his homily at yesterday’s opening Mass for the synod, Pope Francis urged the synod participants to listen to the Lord’s call to ‘care for the family’ which is ‘an integral part of His loving plan for humanity.’

The Holy Father said that bishops’ synods were not ‘meant to discuss beautiful and clever ideas’ but to ‘better nurture and tend to the Lord’s vineyard.’

Nearly 200 cardinals, bishops and priests gathered for the synod. During the synod meeting, which runs until October 19, participants—including Archbishop Philip Tartaglia of Glasgow—are expected to discuss a range of ‘pastoral challenges of the family’ in preparation for a larger world synod in October 2015.

“In order for the family to proceed well, with faith and hope it needs to be nourished by the Word of God,” the Pope said to crowds gathered for his weekly Angelus address yesterday.

Pope Francis also spoke about the need for pastoral solutions suited to the present day in St Peter’s Square on Saturday during a prayer vigil for the synod.

“We must lend an ear to the rhythm of our time and perceive the odour of people today, that we might be imbued with their joys and hopes, their sadness and anxiety: at that point we will be able credibly to propose the good news on the family,” he said on Saturday.

The vigil featured the spoken testimonies of three Italian families, including a couple with two children who were separated for six years before reuniting.

Prior to the synod, on Friday Pope Francis met the Council of European Episcopal Conferences, which held its Plenary Assembly in Rome last week on the theme Family and the Future of Europe. The Holy Father told them that meeting provided ‘an important opportunity to reflect together on how to value the family as a valuable resource for pastoral renewal.’

The Pope encouraged the bishops to place a high priority on pastoral care for families and told them that that clergy and families needed to work together to make congregations a ‘family of families’ offering married couples with or without children support—including those who experience problems or break ups.

Only the opening session of the synod is being broadcast and a final written message will be published. Press conferences are scheduled throughout. During previous synods, the Vatican published written of summaries prepared remarks in the closed-door meetings and provided daily briefings about the general themes discussed. This time around, however, in an apparent effort to encourage frank discussion, no written summaries are scheduled to be provided.

Pic: Bishop arriving for the opening Mass of the synod yesterday.