For immediate release • Download the full release HERE
We are gladdened by the release of the national synthesis outlining the common themes raised in the Synod listening sessions. Our joy is a companion of our ongoing concern for our Church, that we may continue to listen to each other and accept the challenges of change.
As Bishop Daniel E. Flores said in releasing the document from the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, “The synthesis is, among other things, an expression of the common joys, hopes, and wounds the bishops have heard and are hearing from the wider body of the Church.”
We members and leaders of the Association of U.S. Catholic Priests are encouraged to find the report shares concerns we have been addressing since our beginnings: a welcoming Church, the role of women, Catholic social teaching, racism, ministry to and with the LGBTQ community, improved education and formation of seminary students for the priesthood, and the heartbreaking divisions in our Church and society.
Although not addressed in the synthesis, we would emphasize other major issues facing the Church: creation care for our common home, an end to the death penalty and renewed witness to Gospel Non-violence.
We are heartened by the release of the synthesis and the acknowledgment of the bishops that this phase of the synod must lead to action.
We continue to offer our support for our bishops and for all who continue to participate in this new way of being Church.
Rev. Greg Barras, Leadership Chair, AUSCP gregmbarras@gmail.com
Rev. Stephen P. Newton, CSC, AUSCP Executive Director auscpexdir@gmail.com