Selected from different regions and international Catholic movements active around the world, 20 young people will advise the Vatican on topics related to the pastoral care of young people as well as other issues.
Synod of Bishops
Catholics cannot have a clear view of the biggest issues impacting the Church if they do not listen to the perspectives of Catholics who come from different countries or cultures or have different life experiences than they do, said Bishop Daniel E. Flores of Brownsville, Texas.
The Synod of Bishops on synodality does not aim only at bridging the gap between factions within the Catholic Church, but it also must grapple with the immense diversity of its 1.3 billion members spanning across cultures and countries, a spiritual adviser to the synod said.
The Catholic Church can only teach the faithful if it is an institution that listens, but that does not mean it should take to heart every opinion uttered, according to the head of the church’s synod.
As preparations continue for the second assembly of the Synod of Bishops on synodality, enthusiasm for greater involvement in the life and mission of the church is accompanied by “confusion, worry or anxiety” on the part of some Catholics, the secretary-general of the synod said.
The Catholic Church’s current Synod of Bishops should not be a “parliament for demanding rights,” but a “journey in accordance with the Spirit,” Pope Francis said. The synod, which seeks to gather input from all baptized Catholics on building a listening church, is not “an occasion for following wherever the wind is blowing, but the opportunity to submit to the breath of the Spirit,” he said.