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A Synodal Prayer
I composed a prayer with synodal intentions which I thought I might reproduce here. This prayer is especially for the ‘local Churches’ in whichever diocese and whatever area or place we find ourselves within the broader Church. All of the quotations within the text of the prayer are taken directly from the Final Synthesis Report of the first session of the Synod of Bishops. I hope you might find it useful. Merciful Lord, thank You for the faith which acknowledges that this gift of the Synod is “a time of grace which encourages us” and which invites us to “a mode of being Church”. Give us the hope,…
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Cherish In Hope
Last night I had the pleasure of watching a live webinar organised by Liturgical Press, which featured Fr Timothy Radcliffe OP as one of the featured speakers. The webinar was about the experience of the Synod on Synodality and what has come from it so far, and thoughts on where it might lead to. The final Synthesis Report of the Synod was released last Saturday night in Italian, although the English-language translation took several more days to appear. The general reception to the Reports seems to have been broadly cool – for some, perhaps because it did not go far enough in what it offered or suggested; and for others,…
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A Sign of Contradiction
In his Gospel, Saint Luke gives us the account of the presentation of the baby Jesus in the Temple. The account is probably best remembered for the prophecy of Simeon, which the Church calls the ‘Nunc Dimitis’ and which it includes in the Office of Night Prayer, so that it is prayed every single night. His words are about a promise made by the Lord long ago, and being fulfilled that very day as Simeon takes the Child in his arms. It offers us a beautiful message of hope and of patient trust in the Lord, Who always keeps His word. Here, however, I wanted to focus on something which…
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The Moment of Truth
The Synod is drawing its final breaths before the formal close of the first Session, with a further Session due to take place one year from now. Already, the final opinions on what has taken place – and on where (if anywhere) it might lead – are beginning to come in. From the outset, many voices involved most closely in the Synod said clearly that this first Session was really about listening – about learning to listen and to reflect on what has been listened to, and to learn something from it. Listening was the keyword. As time went on, various commentators reminded us – because it seemed that we…
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Gathering In, Sending Out
One of the themes I have heard over and over in recent weeks, and from all sorts of sources, is the idea of ‘gathering’ – as a Church, we are ‘gathered’ by the Lord. And the very word itself is repeated again and again in Scripture, associated with all sorts of imagery to illustrate the meaning behind the word. Christ tells us that when we gather in His name, He is there among us (Mt.18); and John tells us the Lord gathers into one those who are scattered (Jn.11). The Psalmist (Ps.102) also speaks of nations and peoples gathering in order to serve the Lord. Deuteronomy tells of the Lord…
