Pope Francis wants to hear from the whole Church about what is happening in local parishes. He and the bishops would like to know what individuals think we should all be doing to help make our parishes better. The way he has proposed doing this is a synodal process initiated in Rome in October of 2021. Synod means “journeying together” and it involves listening to the Holy Spirit and to each other in order to discern the path we are called to walk together. The synod “is intended to inspire people to dream about the Church we are called to be, to make people’s hopes flourish, to stimulate trust, to bind up wounds, to weave new and deeper relationships, to learn from one another, to build bridges, to enlighten minds, warm hearts, and restore strength to our hands for our common mission.”

As part of this journeying together we will be holding four meetings here at St. Paul’s in January, February and March of 2022 to try and answer the basic question “What is the Holy Spirit saying to our Church today?” The insights gathered from you will help St. Paul’s Parish Council better serve your needs and will also be reported back to our diocese and the Augustinian order where they may become part of larger sets of recommendations.

In the meantime, please be so kind as to fill out the Synod-related on-line survey by the end of the year. It will help us select four of the ten Synod meeting themes you find most important for our parish. The survey also asks for a bit of personal background, which we will use to present a picture of St. Paul’s in our report to the diocese and the Augustinians.

Please know that as a parish we will try to make this Synod process as inclusive as possible despite the pandemic, providing opportunities for everyone to participate in an environment they find most comfortable – be it on-line, in-person or in writing. We would appreciate it if you would reach out to other parishioners, even those who may feel estranged from the Catholic Church and encourage them to join our discussion in the New Year.

You can learn more about the Synod at https://www.synod.va/en.html

God Bless,

Saint Paul’s English Speaking Parish of Warsaw Synod meeting committee