Salesian Family at Synod of Bishops

The Salesian Family at the Synod of Bishops

(ANS – Vatican City – July 10, 2023) – The list of participants at the 16th Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops was presented on Friday, July 7, by the Holy See Press Office. The first session will be held in the Vatican from October 4 to 29, 2023.

Among the participants there are several Salesians and members of the Salesian Family, called to give their contribution in terms of reflection, discernment ,and proposal on the theme “For a synodal Church: communion, participation and mission.”

There are 378 members with the right to vote on the list: those appointed ex officio, that is, because of their function, such as the heads of the dicasteries of the Holy See and the Patriarchs; those elected by the episcopal conferences or by the synods of the Eastern Catholic Churches and then ratified by the Holy Father; and those directly appointed by the Holy Father.

In addition, the Pope chose 70 faithful who are not bishops from a list of 140 people proposed by continental organizations: priests, deacons, lay men and women, consecrated men and women have been identified to guarantee a variety – in terms of charisms, vocations, ecclesial experience, age, country of origin, or by virtue of their participation in various capacities in the synodal process. Half of these appointees are men and half are women.

“We tried to include a representation of all the people of God,” said Cardinal Mario Grech, secretary general of the Synod, during the press conference.

Finally, people who do not have the right to vote will also participate in the assembly: 8 special invitees and 75 other participants. These are experts – people with various specific competencies – to which some facilitators are added for the first time. The experts will cooperate with the special secretaries on the basis of their expertise, and the facilitators will have the task of facilitating exchange in working groups (smaller gatherings).

There is a significant involvement, in terms of quantity and competence, of Salesians and more generally of the Salesian Family. In fact, the synodal assembly is informed of the presence of:

–       Archbishop Timothy John Costelloe, archbishop of Perth, Australia, among the presiding delegates of the Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod;

–       Cardinal Cristóbal Lopez Romero, archbishop of Rabat, Morocco, representing the Episcopal Conference of North Africa;

–       Cardinal Virgilio Do Carmo Da Silva, archbishop of Dili, representing the Episcopal Conference of East Timor.

–       Bishop Aliaksandr Yasheuski, auxiliary bishop of Minsk-Mohilev, representing the Bishops Conference of Belarus;

–       Cardinal Charles Maung Bo, as president of the Federation of Asian Bishops' Conferences, and member of the Ordinary Council of the Synod of Bishops;

–       Bishop Stefan Oster, bishop of Passau, Germany, a pontifical appointment;

–       Cardinal Oscar Andres Rodríguez Maradiaga, archbishop emeritus of Tegucicalpa, Honduras, a pontifical appointment;

–       Cardinal Daniel Fernando Sturla Berhouet, archbishop of Montevideo, Uruguay, as a member of the Ordinary Council of the Synod of Bishops;

–       Fr. Andrea Bozzolo, rector magnificus of the Pontifical Salesian University (UPS), among the experts and facilitators;

–       Sr. Yvonne Reungoat, mother general emerita of the Salesian Sisters, among the experts and facilitators.

The entire Salesian Family is called to accompany the Synod with individual and community concern and prayer.

More information is available on the website: www.synod.va