Welcome to the Diocese of Superior’s dedicated page for the Synod on Synodality taking place across the globe from 2021 to 2023.
Pope Francis has called for a Synod of the world’s bishops to discuss the idea of synodality. This synod is to take place in 2023. Prior to that gathering, Pope Francis has asked that diocesan churches (2021-2022) and national bishops conferences (2022-2023) gather to discuss synodality and ways of more deeply embracing the Church’s mission of evangelization.
What is synodality?
The idea of synodality is an ancient one, dating back to the early Church. According to the International Theological Commission, synodality is:
“the specific modus vivendi et operandi [way of living and operating] of the Church, the People of God, which reveals and gives substance to her being as communion when all her members journey together, gather in assembly and take an active part in her evangelizing mission.”
If you would like to learn more about the idea of synodality, please click this link to a whole document on it on the Vatican’s website .
Simply, this means that all of the baptized comprise the Church and are responsible for her mission. This synod is being called to look into how this is being lived out fruitfully and how the Holy Spirit might be calling us to be even more fruitful.
What are we doing to participate as a diocese?
In the Diocese of Superior we will be responding to the Pope’s call by holding gatherings for prayer and discussion at our parish clusters in January and February of 2022 and also opening up a portal for direct participation on our website.
Following the gatherings at the parish clusters, representatives from all of the clusters will gather together with Bishop Powers and other diocesan leaders to synthesize the feedback from the parishes and prepare our diocesan report which will be submitted to the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops.