Synod 2021 opens in Vatican

The Catholic Church community’s eyes are on the Synod 2021, which recently opened. The Synod is a convention of bishops to discuss matters of the church and seek advice from the Pope. 　

Pope Francis formally opened the Synod of Bishops on Oct. 10 (local time) with a solemn Mass in St Peter’s Basilica. “Let us not soundproof our hearts; let us not remain barricaded in our certainties,” he said. Instead, “Let us listen to one another.” When we follow Jesus in listening with the heart, “people feel they are being heard, not judged; they feel free to recount their own experiences and their spiritual journey.”

The mass was attended by 3,000 believers from different continents including seminary students, bishops, cardinals and priests. The mass was the largest in scale held at the Vatican since the outbreak of the pandemic.

Some view that the synod this year may be the threshold of reform in the Catholic church, given the timing and the pope’s age, which is 85. A key area for reform is to come up with a fundamental solution to prevent sexual abuse of children by priests. This is an issue where conservatives and liberals alike have achieved a consensus and work together to come up with an aligned solution. Declarations may be made on how to deal with climate change and fighting poverty.


Gab-Sik Kim dunanworld@donga.com