Bishop Solis: Participate and be heard during the diocesan phase of the synod

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On Oct. 17, our Diocese of Salt Lake City celebrated the Holy Mass at the Cathedral of the Madeleine joining the Catholic Churches throughout the world in a synodal process called by Pope Francis. Present at the Mass were clergy, religious, diocesan and parish leaders, and laity, including representatives from the various cultural groups. Our Holy Father said that the “synod” or “synodality” as reflected in Scripture means “journeying together” or “walking together” on the same road in the way of the Lord as the People of God, joined together in Christ to encounter or dialogue, to listen to the Holy Spirit, and to discern.

To highlight the synodal character of the Church, Pope Francis is engaging all the people of God: the bishops, priests, deacons, religious and the laity. The synod process has three phases: diocesan, national and international, capped off by a synodal meeting in Rome. The diocesan phase is the first part of a multistep process of consultations at the local, national, and regional levels. This process runs until early August, leading up to the 16th ordinary assembly of the World Synod of Bishops in October 2023.

We will launch the diocesan synodal phase on the weekend of Nov. 14 with a celebration of the Holy Mass in all our parishes and missions. Fr. John Evans, pastor of St. Thomas More Parish and president of the Presbyteral Council, is appointed as the diocesan and episcopal (USCCB) contact person or liaison between the diocese and parishes/missions, together with a team consisting of the deans, members of the Priests Council and lay parish representatives. The listening sessions will be facilitated on the local level, and the Diocesan Preparatory Team will be available to answer questions and help the local leaders in their planning.  After the responses are gathered, the team will organize the input from the listening sessions to prepare the diocese’s formal response to the United States Catholic Conference of Bishops and submit it.

The theme of the synodal process is threefold: “participation, communion and mission.” It is not a planning meeting nor a platform for agendas but rather a time of prayerful listening, reflection and discernment, reaching out to those who currently participate in the Church’s life as well as those who do not, and even those of other faith persuasions. This includes meetings in our parishes and missions with focus on listening to and consulting the people of God.

All the people of God throughout our diocese are invited to participate, to share their reflections as to what the Holy Spirit wants to say to the Church, “whether we, the Church, embodies the way of God, who travels the path of history and shares in the life of humanity,” as well as our relationship with Jesus Christ, our communion with him in his Church, and how we participate in his mission, or in God’s plan for us.

I encourage the people of God to participate and to be heard. Let us open our hearts and our ears to God and to one another in a new way, to draw closer and go deeper in our relationship with our Lord and in communion with one another. Pope Francis wishes everyone “a good journey together, to be pilgrims in love with the Gospel and open to the surprises of the Spirit.”