By Benedetta Capelli
“The fundamental question is how to renew pastoral ministry with vigor and make families increasingly active participants in the life and mission of the Church.”
Gabriella Gambino, Undersecretary of the Dicastery for Laity, Family and Life, explained the meaning of Pope Leo XIV’s meeting with the heads of the Eastern Churches and the presidents of Bishops’ Conferences, entitled “Ten years after Amoris laetitia: proclaiming the Gospel with families today,” taking place on Oct 7-14 in the Paul VI Audience Hall.
At a press conference held on Oct 2 at the Holy See Press Office, details were presented of the initiative desired by the Pope: a closed-door meeting with 187 participants. Of these, 115 come from Bishops’ Conferences, represented by 111 presidents and four delegates.
Fourteen are Cardinals who are presidents of Bishops’ Conferences, two are representatives of Bishops without Bishops’ Conferences, 15 come from the sui iuris Eastern Catholic Churches, 22 are guests invited by the Pope, 11 are responsible for the event’s organization, and an equal number of couples and families are taking part.
The identities of the latter, 22 people from the five continents, have not been disclosed out of respect for their stories and to ensure greater freedom.
Listening and discernment
It is not a Synod, explained Jesuit Father Giacomo Costa, consultant to the General Secretariat of the Synod and responsible for the methodology during next week’s meeting, nor is it a continuation of a Synod. Rather, he said, it is an occasion to listen to the voice of the Church at a time of great change.
Gambino highlighted the need for a journey marked by listening and discernment, arising from the needs expressed in recent years by Bishops during ad limina visits, as well as from concern “about the difficulties encountered in pastoral work and the challenges that families face in their relationships and daily lives.”
The data presented, moreover, reflect an important cultural transformation currently under way. In Poland, for example, the number of religious marriages celebrated over the past five years has fallen by 45 percent. In Australia, between 1970 and 2024, the figure fell from 88 percent to 16 percent.
“These are signs which, despite the diversity of contexts,” the Undersecretary said, “point to the urgency of accompanying the choice to marry and of providing more decisive support for the transmission of the faith within the family.”
Pastoral approach
She stressed the importance of a pastoral approach that should begin well before marriage and accompany people throughout their lives, especially in times of crisis.
For this reason, the five themes announced last July are being developed in light of the changes affecting families: the reality of families today, marked by both beauty and challenges; young people and the discovery of the vocation to marriage; the first years of marriage; accompaniment and support in complex situations; and, finally, Christian families as protagonists of the Church’s mission.
These points were also highlighted in the presentation by Orietta Rachele Grazioli, professor of Canon and Comparative Family Law at the Pontifical John Paul II Theological Institute for the Sciences of Marriage and Family and vice-coordinator of the experts during the meeting in the Vatican.
She also highlighted the creativity shown by many families in recent years in the contexts where they live and work, “with the gifts of grace received in the sacrament of marriage.”
According to Dr Grazioli, listening and discernment, key words for the meeting are also the two paths that will guide the experts called upon to contribute their specific expertise.
“If we were to speak of a hope,” she concluded, “it would be to tie together all those threads that listening and mutual dialogue will create, so that each local context represented can take a step forward on the journey of supporting the family, the salt of the earth.”
Prayer as part of the method
This approach, centred on dialogue and exchange, will be reflected in the structure of the days. On Oct 7, Pope Leo XIV will introduce the proceedings following a meditation by Dominican Sister Helen Alford, President of the Pontifical Academy of Social Sciences.
A time of prayer, Father Costa explained, is “part of the method” being applied. “It is not enough,” he said, “to gather information and compare positions; we must prepare ourselves to listen to the Word, to others and to what the Spirit can bring forth through dialogue.”
During the five thematic days, families, Bishops and experts will take turns speaking. In the working groups, moments of speaking, listening and silence will alternate.
Through the sharing of each person’s experience, reflection on what has been heard from others, and the shared consideration of what has emerged, the participants will identify points of convergence, but also differences, tensions, open questions and possible steps forward.
“We will not seek to eliminate differences in order to reach a consensus: even a difference that is better understood,” Fr Costa said, “can be a fruit of listening.”
This will be followed by a brief report back to the Assembly, leading to further discussion in plenary dialogue.
A report, not a final document
Thus, the speakers explained, what ultimately will emerge during the days of the meeting will be gathered in a report which “is not a new Final Document” intended to replace the Apostolic Exhortation signed by Pope Francis in 2016 at the conclusion of the two Synods on the family — the Extraordinary Synod of 2014 and the Ordinary Synod of 2015.
Rather, they noted, it will be a synthesis prepared by a Commission, which will then be discussed by the Assembly and sent to the Pope.
They said the results will be made available to the press, which will be updated through several briefings on the progress of the meeting.
The presenters concluded by stating that ten years after Amoris laetitia, the commitment of the Churches is therefore to better understand how families can continue to be places of evangelization “despite the wars that have changed them, the migrations that have separated them, and the health crises that have affected them.”
The speakers ultimately suggested that the commitment from the Vatican is to open new paths, born of listening and discernment, to proclaim the Gospel to families and with families today. – Vatican News
