Newsletter (Soft Blue design)
Author: ICC Office

The 10 Themes of the Synod*
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Companions on the Journey
Listening
Speaking Out
Celebration
Sharing Responsibility for our Common Mission
Dialogue in Church & Society
Ecumenism
Authority & Participation
Discerning & Deciding
Forming Ourselves in Synodality
*For the questions associated with each theme, go to : https://dphx.org/synod/#Foundation

OUR PARISH PROCESS
The 10 Themes have been grouped together according to natural connections. Mark your calendars to participate each month in 1 of 3 gatherings:
Journeying Together, Listening, & Celebrating (Themes 1, 2, & 4)
Sunday, Jan . 23: 9:30-10:30 or Wed., Jan 26: 10:30-11:30 or Wed., Jan 26: 6:30-7:30
Communication & Dialogue (Themes 3, 6, & 7)
Sunday, Feb. 13: 9:30-10:30 or Wed., Feb. 16: 10:30-11:30 or Wed., Feb. 16: 6:30-7:30
Called to Mission (Themes 5 & 8-10)
Sunday, Mar. 13: 9:30-10:30 or Wed., Mar. 16: 10:30-11:30 or Mar. 16: 6:30-7:30

It’s SYNOD Time!

On October 10, 2021, Pope Francis opened a three-year process in the Catholic Church called a Synod. Now, if you’re a Catholic who even knows what Synod is, you are probably thinking of a bunch of bishops getting together with the Pope in Rome, and thinking up something inspiring to tell the rest of the Church. In this Synod, though, Pope Francis had turned that model on it’s head, and called for a process that consults with ALL the Church! Over the next few months, parishes around the world will be holding “consultations,” opportunities for Catholics to reflect on their experience of Church, and where the Holy Spirit is calling us. These reflections, in turn, will go to the diocese, then to the U.S. Bishops, and eventually to the worldwide gathering of bishops st the Vatican in 2023. Be looking for our parish gatherings over the coming weeks, and take time to join us!

What is a Synod?

Since at least the 14th Century, the word synod has been primarily defined as “an ecclesiastic (Church) council.” The word, however, comes from the Greek synodus, a “coming together”. More literally, it can be defined from it’s roots syn (together) and hodos (journey). The synod Pope Francis is calling for is a “journeying together” on the same path in communion with one another. This theme of “Synodality” has been a prominent theme of Pope Francis’ pontificate: we journey together as Church, listening to the promptings of the Holy Spirit . Our mission, as a faith community, is to act upon what we’ve heard. The 2023 gathering in Rome, then, is not an end in itself; it will mark a continuation, as we continue journeying together as a Church.

Communion, Participation, and Mission

The Synod’s three themes of Communion, Participation, and Mission echo throughout the preparatory document provided by the Vatican. We are provided with 10 guiding themes (see box at left) for our journey, each theme providing a multitude of questions to “dive deeper” into how the Spirit is calling us. All these seek to answer the fundamental question of the Synodal process: “A synodal Church, in announcing the Gospel, ‘journeys together’: How is this ‘journeying together’ happening today in your particular Church? What steps does the Spirit invite us to take in order to grow in our journeying together?” (Synod Preparatory Document, 26).

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Pope Francis wants to hear from the Church. In preparation for the Synod 2023 (see the opposite page), we are holding three listening sessions, each based around specific themes. Parishes around the world (literally) are having similar gatherings, and collecting what people are saying about how we communicate as Church. All these collected reflections will be submitted for a gathering of bishops in Rome in 2023. We need YOU to participate in the process, so that as many voices in our parish as possible are heard. Please take the time to sign up for the first session TODAY, so that we may plan responsibly.

ALL LISTENING SESSIONS WILL BE IN PERSON IN THE COMMONS
Please sign up for ONE of these three options for Session 1:
Sunday, January 23: 9:30-10:30, OR
Wednesday, January 26: 10:30-11:30, OR
Wednesday, January 26: 6:30-7:30
Sign up in person at church or online at icchampton.org

IN PREPARATION FOR SESSION ONE, please reflect on the following questions:
In the Church and in society, we are side by side on the same road. In our local Church, who are the ones “journeying together”?
When we say: “our Church,” who do we mean? Who is part of it?
Who is asking us to journey together?
Who are our road companions, including those “outside” the Church?
What persons or groups are left on the margins of the Church/society, expressly or in fact?