Pope says ‘family without synodality is dead’
Pope Francis attends the final day of the second session of the Synod on Synodality in the Vatican’s Paul VI Audience Hall on Oct. 26, 2024. He will formally close the synod with a Mass inside St. Peter’s Basilica on Sunday, Oct. 27. ROY LAGARDE/CBCP NEWS
By Roy Lagarde
October 26, 2024
VATICAN— As the synod nears to a close, Pope Francis has stressed the value of synodality even in the family.
In a brief video released by the Synod secretariat on Friday, he stressed the value of “dialogue” for maintaining healthy relationships.
“Sometimes, there may be clashes, but dialogue must always happen, always,” the pope said.
“A family that does not communicate is a dead family,” he added.
At his general audience last Wednesday, the 87-year-old pontiff spoke about the sacrament of marriage, highlighting the need for parental unity.
“How much do children need this unity—a father and mother together—parental unity, and how much they suffer when it is lacking! How much the children of separated parents suffer, how much they suffer!” he said.
In October 2023, the Philippine national synodal synthesis on family and life emphasized that just as the family is the seedbed for vocations to the lay apostolate, priestly ministry, and consecrated life, “synodality begins in the family.”
The report stated that strengthening family bonds is the first step in synodality, advocating for faith development, family-centered parish programs, and safe opportunities for youth to heal, grow, volunteer, and serve.
“The family is the cradle of synodality, where we first learn to stand on our feet and walk, to walk together and stand for what is right,” it said.
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