Bishop O’Connell has asked us to pray for success and inspiration for the Synod of Bishops gathered in Rome. The first session of the Synod will be held at the Vatican on October 4-29, 2023, and the second session is scheduled to be held in October 2024.

More than 100 of our parishioners gathered in small groups in early 2022 to provide input and comments for this Synod, a process that took place throughout the entire world and involved hundreds of thousands of Catholics. The final report from our own Diocese of Trenton can be found here, and the discussion document that the Synod will be using to guide its deliberations is here. The working document centers on the main themes of the Synod – communion, participation, and mission – and these three main priorities are then explored in greater detail through a series of fifteen worksheets aimed at supporting the discernment of possible next steps for the Church.

The voting members of the Synod include both bishops from around the world and a number of non-bishop members. The representatives of the United States are:

• Bishop Daniel E. Flores of Brownsville, Texas
• Cardinal Timothy M. Dolan, Archdiocese of New York
• Archbishop Timothy P. Broglio, Archdiocese for the Military Services, USA, and President of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops
• Bishop Robert E. Barron, Diocese of Winona-Rochester
• Bishop Kevin C. Rhoades, Diocese of Fort Wayne-South Bend
• Archbishop William C. Skurla, Byzantine Catholic Archeparchy of Pittsburgh
• Cardinal Blase J. Cupich, Archdiocese of Chicago
• Archbishop Paul D. Etienne, Archdiocese of Seattle
• Cardinal Wilton D. Gregory, Archdiocese of Washington
• Cardinal Robert W. McElroy, Diocese of San Diego
• Cardinal Seán P. O’Malley, OFM Cap, Archdiocese of Boston
• Cardinal Joseph W. Tobin, CSsR, Archdiocese of Newark
• Rev. James Martin, S.J.
• Cynthia Bailey Manns, D.Min, Adult Learning Director at Saint Joan of Arc Catholic Community in Minneapolis
• Richard Coll, executive director of the Department of Justice, Peace, and Human Development at the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops
• Rev. Ivan Montelongo, priest of the Diocese of El Paso
• Wyatt Olivas, a student at the University of Wyoming in Laramie, Wyoming
• Julia Osęka, an international student from Poland attending St. Joseph’s University in Philadelphia
• Sr. Leticia Salazar, ODN, Chancellor of the Diocese of San Bernardino

Prayer for the Synod – English

We stand before You, Holy Spirit,
as we gather together in Your name.
With You alone to guide us,
make Yourself at home in our hearts.
Teach us the way we must go
and how we are to pursue it.
We are weak and sinful.
do not let us promote disorder.
Do not let ignorance
lead us down the wrong path
nor partiality influence our actions.
Let us find in You our unity so that we
may journey together to eternal life
and not stray from the way of truth
and what is right.
All this we ask of You, who are at work
in every place and time, in the
communion of the Father and the Son,
forever and ever. Amen.

Oración para el Sínodo – Spanish

Estamos ante ti, Espíritu Santo,
reunidos en tu nombre.
Tú que eres nuestro verdadero consejero:
ven a nosotros,
apóyanos,
entra en nuestros corazones.
Enséñanos el camino,
muéstranos cómo alcanzar la meta.
Impide que perdamos
el rumbo como personas
débiles y pecadoras.
No permitas que
la ignorancia nos lleve por falsos caminos.
Concédenos el don del discernimiento,
para que no dejemos que nuestras acciones se guíen
por perjuicios y falsas consideraciones.
Condúcenos a la unidad en ti,
para que no nos desviemos del camino de la verdad y la justicia,
sino que en nuestro peregrinaje terrenal nos esforzemos por alcanzar la
vida eterna.
Esto te lo pedimos a ti,
que obras en todo tiempo y lugar,
en comunión con el Padre y el Hijo
por los siglos de los siglos. Amén.