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More open approach at synod can ease fear of manipulation, cardinal says
Greater emphasis on small-group discussions and incorporating that work into the synod's final draft document is helping alleviate any suspicion of the synod being manipulated, said one of the four synod presidents.
Church and society must learn from families, pope says at audience
Families bring needed values and a humanizing spirit to society and, when they mirror God's love for all, they teach the church how it should relate to all people, including the "imperfect," the pope said Oct. 7 during his weekly general audience.
Archbishop Chaput: Synod does include ‘lobbying’ in search of truth
Pope Francis told participants Oct. 6 "we should avoid thinking of each other as conspiring against one another, but to work for unity among the bishops," Archbishop Chaput told reporters at a synod press briefing at the Vatican Oct. 7.
South Carolina bishop asks for prayers, support for families affected by floods
Authorities said at least 14 people died and media reported that rescuers have had to pluck hundreds from swamped cars and flooded houses. Some residents remained in danger Oct. 6 from residual effects of saturated grounds that can unearth weakened trees and collapse roads.
Bishops, Vatican confirm Pope Francis will visit Mexico in 2016
Auxiliary Bishop Eugenio Lira Rugarcia of Puebla, conference secretary-general, told Catholic News Service that the pope would travel to Mexico next year, though dates and details were still to be determined.
Catholic, Lutheran leaders shaken by reports of harvesting of body parts from abortions
"Like millions of Americans, including those in the Roman Catholic Church and the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod, we have been shaken to the core by what we have witnessed: intact babies, at times still alive, having their body parts harvested as a commodity," the statement said.
Synod should consider allowing female deacons, says archbishop
Canadian Archbishop Paul-Andre Durocher said where possible, qualified women should be given decision-making authority within church structures and new opportunities in ministry.
Pope says ministry to divorced, remarried is not only topic for synod
Jesuit Father Federico Lombardi, Vatican spokesman, told reporters Oct. 6 that the pope took the microphone that morning to affirm again that "Catholic doctrine on marriage has not been touched or put into question."
California bishops disappointed by Catholic governor’s OK of suicide law
California’s bishops expressed disappointment with Gov. Jerry Brown’s Oct. 5 signing of a measure legalizing physician-assisted suicide in the state, saying the law “stands in direct contradiction to providing compassionate, quality care for those facing a terminal illness.”
Oregon archbishop calls for prayers for the grieving, others push for gun control
St. Joseph Parish in Roseburg hosted an emotional Mass the evening of Oct. 1 for 10 people who died in a shooting that morning at Umpqua Community College. Auxiliary Bishop Peter Smith traveled from Portland for the liturgy.