Sunday, April 13, 2014

More information on the 9th General Synod for the Archdiocese of New Orleans

Archbishop Aymond to open Ninth General Synod of the Archdiocese of New Orleans on Tuesday



Archbishop Aymond calls upcoming synod "historic" and an exciting time for the local Church.
 
On April 15, Archbishop Gregory Aymond will convoke the Ninth General Synod of the Archdiocese of New Orleans with a small ceremony at the end of the Chrism Mass.  This will officially begin an 18-month process of listening and discernment to create a plan for how the local Catholic Church will minister for the next three to five years.
"The purpose of the synod is to prayerfully discern God's vision and priorities for our local church for the next several years," Archbishop Aymond said. "And, the key words here are 'prayerfully discern.' What we are discerning is not our vision and priorities, but what is God's vision for us to accomplish in our ministry over the next several years."
All Catholics in the Archdiocese of New Orleans are invited to participate in the synod through a series of consultative sessions to be held throughout the archdiocese in June and August.  A complete listing of those dates and times will be available online at http://synod.arch-no.org beginning April 14.  Archbishop Aymond will attend all 16 consultative sessions and offer the opening prayer and a few introductory remarks.
"After that I will close my mouth and open my heart and my ears," Archbishop Aymond said. "I will be there to listen attentively to what people are saying, without giving any response. They will be answering the questions, what is the Catholic Church in the Archdiocese of New Orleans doing well, what are we not doing well and what could we be doing better in service to and leadership for God's people?"
"I'm very excited about the synod, even though it will be a lot of work and meetings – not only the public meetings but literally hundreds of other meetings by the various committees," said the archbishop. "But I think it's exciting when you take time to look at the blessings of the present and move toward a lively, faith-filled and exciting future. This is not only a historic moment for the archdiocese but a moment that will encourage us in faith, teach us more about the new evangelization and help us to grow as an archdiocese, spiritually and in terms of witness."

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