Synodality and Catholicism as a set of communicating vessels

By Massimo Faggioli | United States

Pope Francis launched the “synodal process” at the beginning of October in Rome and, two months later, Catholics in his native Latin America have been to join the initiative in a serious and organized way.Bishops, priests, men and women religious, and the lay faithful gathered from November 21-28 at the Shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe in suburban Mexico City for the first-ever “Ecclesial assembly of Latin America and the Caribbean”.This unprecedented gathering was organized by the Latin American Episcopal Council (CELAM) with its 22 national bishops’ conferences and the Latin American Confederation of Religious Men and Women (CLAR).
The event took place in two phases.The first phase consisted in listening sessions throughout the region, while the second phase was the actual assembly itself.
Roughly 100 representatives from across Latin America and the Caribbean gathered for the assembly,a reduced number due to the COVID-19 pandemic. But more than 900 others participated virtually.