Pope Francis on Oct. 2 opened the final session of a closely watched Vatican summit on the future of Catholicism, encouraging participants not to use the monthlong meeting to push individual agendas, but to seek unity in diversity in the church so “each person feels welcomed.”
“Let us be careful not to see our contributions as points to defend at all costs or agendas to be imposed,” Francis said during his homily for the opening Mass of the synod on synodality.
“Otherwise we will end up locking ourselves into dialogues among the deaf, where participants seek to advance their own causes or agendas without listening to others and, above all, without listening to the voice of the Lord,” he continued.
Throughout the Oct. 2-27 synod, some 400 delegates from all over the world will meet here in Rome to bring to a close a yearslong consultation process Francis launched in 2021. It invited Catholics from around the world to have their say in how the church might become more inclusive and better at listening to all its members.
Millions of Catholics responded, and at last year’s first session of the synod, the delegates — representing a wide array of views and backgrounds — engaged in intense and sometimes heated discussions on several contentious issues facing the church. They addressed issues including clergy abuse, the role of women in ministry, inclusion of LGBTQ Catholics and other questions surrounding church authority.
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With thanks to National Catholic Reporter (NCR) and Christopher White, where this article originally appeared.