The Diocese Synod Journey
The Synodal journey towards the XVI General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops (Synod of Bishops) has commenced at an auspicious time in the life of the Diocese of Broken Bay. At the time of the announcement of the Synod, the Diocese of Broken Bay had already started two other synodal processes: the Pastoral Mission development project (PM), and the Pastoral Discernment - Central Coast (PDCC), described in further detail below. Further, the Diocese regarded the announcement of the 2023 Synod of Bishops an opportunity to continue that journey started in 2017 in the lead-up to the Fifth Plenary Council of the Church in Australia. The Diocese of Broken Bay had one of the highest response rates for the Plenary Council.
The following paragraphs highlight unique aspects of each of the three recent synodal journeys.
Synod of Bishops 2023
After announcing the Synodal journey towards the Synod of Bishops, our Diocese recommended that the people of faith participate by responding to the online questionnaire through the ACBC, which was open from October 2021 until March 2022.
Diocesan Pastoral Mission
The PM journey was a diocesan synodal discernment process that centred on how we as a diocese can better evangelise. This process was undertaken to help the Diocesan Evangelisation team set relevant goals, objectives, and initiatives over the coming years to better support evangelisation in parishes and faith communities of the Diocese.
Pastoral Discernment Central Coast (PDCC)
The PDCC synodal journey focused on a particular region in the Diocese of Broken Bay, the Central Coast. The aim of this process was to identify the pastoral needs of the region using a process of consultation through all contexts of Catholic life; parish, school, CatholicCare etc.
Plenary Council
The Australian Bishops called for a Plenary Council to be held in 2020 with the theme: “Listen to what the Spirit is Saying.”
Synod on Youth
In 2017 the Diocese of Broken Bay lead a Diocesan process for the 2018 Synod of Bishops XV Ordinary Assembly: Young People, the Faith and Vocational Discernment.
The full synthesis is viewable below or can be downloaded by clicking here