VATICAN INFORMATION SERVICE
YEAR XXII - # 172
DATE 05-10-2015

Summary:
- First General Congregation: the Synod is the Church that walks together to
see
reality with the eyes of faith, says the Pope
- "The man who falls or who errs must be understood and loved"
- Society is not strong without the family
- Prayer Vigil for the Synod - the Church can light up the darkness of humanity
- The Pope receives volunteers from the Food Bank and again denounces food
waste
- Mass for the Vatican Gendarmerie Corps
- Statement by the Director of the Holy See Press Office
- Audiences
- Other Pontifical Acts

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 First General Congregation: the Synod is the Church that walks together to see
reality with the eyes of faith, says the Pope
 Vatican City, 5 October 2015 (VIS) - This morning at 9 a.m. the 14th Ordinary
General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops dedicated to "The vocation and mission
of the family in the Church and the contemporary world" commenced in the
Vatican. In the presence of the Holy Father, the first to speak was the
Honduran
Cardinal Oscar Andres Rodriguez Maradiaga, who presented to the Synod Fathers a
brief meditation summarising the intentions and spirit of the Assembly.
 "Brothers, who come from the four corners of the world summoned by Peter,
moved
by the love of Jesus and the Mother Church", he began. "St. Paul invites us,
indeed, to joy. The joy of the gospel that Pope Francisco tirelessly proclaims
worldwide. But as he himself has told us, the greatest risk in the world today,
with its multiple and overwhelming consumption, is an individualistic sorrow
that springs from the comfortable and covetous heart, the feeble search for
superficial pleasures, the isolated consciousness. Sometimes it saddens us to
hear how the world has focused on this Synod as if we came together as two
opposing sides to defend entrenched positions. Therefore, with Jesus Christ joy
is always born and reborn'".
 "But let us take heart", he continued. "We are not a Church in danger of
extinction or indeed far less. Neither is the family, although it is threatened
and opposed. Nor do we come to mourn or lament the difficulties. Psalm 26 tells
us: 'Be brave, take heart. Hope in the Lord'. Let us all have one mind: let us
all seek the unanimity that comes from dialogue, not ideas defended at all
costs. St. Paul reminds us to have same sentiments as Christ. Live in peace: as
Evangelii Gaudium tells us, dialogue contributes to peace, because the Church
proclaims the 'Gospel of peace'. To proclaim Jesus Christ, Who is peace in
person, the Mother Church encourages us to be instruments of peace and credible
witnesses of a reconciled life. It is time to know how to plan a culture that
favours dialogue and the pursuit of consensus and agreements as a form of
encounter. We are not in need of a project of few and for the few, or an
enlightened or minority that appropriates a collective sentiment".
 "Therefore, we wish to begin the Synod in peace", he concluded. "It is not the
peace of the world, made of compromises and commitments that frequently are not
fulfilled. It is the peace of Christ, peace with ourselves. And the conclusion
is clear: 'The God of love and peace will be with you'. So we can say, 'Stay
with us, Lord', not because the day is ending, but rather because it is
beginning. A new day for the families of the world, believers or not, families
tired of the uncertainties and doubts sown by various ideologies such as
deconstruction, cultural and social contradictions, fragility and loneliness.
Abide with us Lord, so that this Synod indicate a path of joy and hope for all
families".
 The Holy Father than introduced the work of the first day, explaining that
"the
Synod is not a convention or a locutory; it is not a parliament or a senate,
where an accord is sought. The Synod, instead, is an ecclesial expression, that
is, the Church who walks together to read reality with the eyes of faith, and
which therefore does not represent a museum to be looked at or even to be
protected, but is rather a living source from which the Church slakes her
thirst
so as to slake the thirst and enlighten the deposit of life".
 The Synod is, furthermore, "a protected space where the Church can experience
the action of the Holy Spirit. In the Synod the Spirit speaks through the
language of all those who let themselves be guided by God, Who always surprises
us, by God Who shows to the smallest among us what He hides from the wise and
the intelligent, by God Who created the law and the Sabbath for man and not
vice
versa, by God Who leaves his ninety-nine sheep to seek the one lost sheep, by
God Who is always greater than our logic and our calculations. However, let us
remember that the Synod may be a space for the action of the Holy Spirit only
if
we participants clothe ourselves in apostolic courage, evangelical humility and
trustful prayer".
 "Apostolic courage so that we do not let ourselves be afraid neither before
the
seductions of the world, that tend to extinguish in the heart of men the light
of the truth, substituting it will small temporary lights, neither before the
hardening of some hearts that, in spite of good intentions, distance people
from
God", underlined the Pope.
 "Evangelical humility so that we empty ourselves of our own conventions and
prejudices in order to listen to our brother Bishops and to fill ourselves with
God. Humility that leads us not to point a finger at others to judge them, but
rather to offer them a hand to help them up without ever feeling superior to
them".
 "Trustful prayer is the action of the heart when it opens to God, when it
calms
our mood so we hear the gentle voice of God that speaks in the silence. Without
listening to God, all of our words will remain words alone, that nether satisfy
nor serve. Without allowing ourselves to be guided by the Holy Spirit, all our
decisions will be mere decorations that instead of exalting the Gospel, cover
or
conceal it".
 "Dear brothers", concluded Francis, "as I said, the Synod is not a parliament
where, in order to reach a consensus or a common accord we resort to
negotiation, pacts or compromise; the only method of the Synod is to open
itself
to the Holy Spirit with apostolic courage, with evangelical courage and with
trustful prayer so that He may guide us, enlighten us and let us put before our
eyes not our own personal views, but our faith in God, fidelity to the
Magisterium, the good of the Church and the salus animarum".
 The president delegate, the cardinal archbishop of Paris Andre Vingt-Trois,
then commented that the Pope's decision to convoke two sessions of the Synod of
Bishops on the mission of the family in the contemporary world has been
fruitful
and that the episcopate has borne witness to this. The particular Churches have
made efforts to contribute to the work by answering to the questionnaire that
informed the Instrumentum Laboris. "Our Synod is led by the Church". The
cardinal also mentioned the Motu Proprio Mitis Iudex Dominus Iesus, with which
the Holy Father has reformed the canonical procedures regarding the declaration
of nullity of marriage, which offers valuable direction on the spirit according
to which this phase of the Synod should unfold. "Without casting doubt on the
sacramental tradition of our Church, nor its doctrine on the indissolubility of
marriage, you invite us to share our pastoral experiences and to open the paths
of mercy by which the Lord calls all those who wish to and are able to enter
into a space for conversion with a view to forgiveness".
 Cardinal Lorenzo Baldisseri, general secretary of the Synod, explained the
working methods of the Synod of Bishops in this extraordinary assembly,
including the time available for interventions by the Synod Fathers and the
greater space accorded to the Circuli Minori to foster more intense debate, as
well as the importance conceded to the contributions by couples and the
relationships between the Synod and the media.
 Finally, the general rapporteur, the cardinal archbishop of Ezs
ergom-Budapest,
Peter Erdo, illustrated the first part of the Instrumentum Laboris, which
begins
by listening to the challenges to the family, placing them in the contemporary
socio-cultural context, and its anthropological change, characterised by a
"flight from institutions" leading to institutional instability and the
predominance of individualism and subjectivism. He then spoke about the
discernment of the family vocation, the divine pedagogy of the family and
indissolubility as a gift and a task, mentioning the family in the Magisterium
of the Church and its missionary dimension, as well as "wounded" families,
placing them in the context of mercy and truth. The cardinal touched upon the
theme of the evangelising dimension of the family and ecclesial accompaniment
of
family units, as well as the issue of reproductive responsibility and the
challenges of education.
 "Listening to the Word of God, our response must show the sincere and
fraternal
attention to the needs of our contemporaries, to transmit to them the
liberating
truth and to be witnesses of our greatest mercy. To face today's challenges to
the family. The Church must convert and become more alive, more personal, and
more community-based, also at the levels of the parish and the small community.
It would appear that a community reawakening is already in process in many
areas. So that it might be more general and increasingly profound, we ask that
the light of the Holy Spirit show us also the concrete steps we need to take.
In
this way, the vocation and the mission of the family in the Church and the
contemporary world, the theme of this Synod, would appear in the serene and
concrete light that enables us to grow in hope and trust in God's mercy; in
that
mercy to which Pope Francis wished to dedicate an extraordinary Jubilee. Let us
thank the Holy Father for this decision of hope and entrust our work to the
Holy
Family of Nazareth".

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 "The man who falls or who errs must be understood and loved"
 Vatican City, 4 October 2015 (VIS) - Today the Holy Father presided at the
opening Mass of the Synod of Bishops on "The vocation and mission of the family
in the Church and the contemporary world". In his homily, the bishop of Rome
commented on the Biblical texts of this 27th Sunday of Ordinary Time, noting
that they focus on "three themes: solitude, love between man and woman, and the
family".
 Regarding solitude, he spoke of Adam's dominion over all the other creatures
in
the Garden of Eden, "a sign of his dominion, his clear and undisputed power".
Nonetheless, "he felt alone, because 'there was not found a helper fit for
him'". Loneliness, said the Pope, "is experienced by countless men and women in

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 * Origin: Sursum Corda! BBS=Huntsville AL=bbs.sursum-corda.com (1:396/45)