Announcement of Voting Members to the Synod
On 10 July 2023, the Holy See announced the appointment of more than 450 participants to the Synod, including – for the first time – voting members from religious men and women and lay people from around the world.
Of the voting members appointed, more than a quarter are non-bishops, and there are 54 women, a first in the history of the Synod.
We are advised that the list of attendees at the Synod is not yet complete, and that further people will be appointed as nonvoting members, including experts and representatives of non-Catholic Christian communities. However, the number of voting members has been finalised.
Oceania Participants
From Oceania, there were 10 non-bishop members appointed as voting members:
- Manuel Beazley (New Zealand)
- Dr Trudy Dantis (Australia)
- John Lochowiak (Australia)
- Fr Denis Nacorda (New Zealand)
- Kelly Paget (Australia)
- Sr Mary Angela Perez RSM (Pacific)
- Fr Sijeesh Pullenkunnel (Syro-Malabar Eparchy)
- Dr Susan Sela (Pacific)
- Grace Wrakia (Papua New Guinea/Solomon Islands)
- Professor Renee Kohler-Ryan (Australia)
These will join the following bishop members from Oceania:
- Bishop Shane Mackinlay (Australia)
- Archbishop Patrick O’Regan (Australia)
- Archbishop Paul Martin SM (New Zealand)
- Bishop Dariusz Kaluza MSF (Papua New Guinea/Solomon Islands)
- Bishop Paul Donoghue SM (CEPAC [Pacific])
A further three Australian bishops will attend the Synod representing the Church in other roles. Archbishop Timothy Costelloe SDB will serve as one of the nine delegated Synod presidents, Archbishop Anthony Fisher OP will participate as a member of the Council of the Synod of Bishops, and Bishop Anthony Randazzo, as current President of the FCBCO (Federation of Catholic Bishops Conferences of Oceania), will attend along with the other presidents of continental episcopal conferences.
There have also been five experts and facilitators appointed from Oceania:
- Dr Sandie Cornish
- Br Ian Cribb SJ
- Adjunct Professor Susan Pascoe
- Fr Asaeli Raass
- Fr Ormond Rush
More information about the Oceania representatives is available here: https://bit.ly/synodreps
The full list of participants in the Synod is available here, but at the time of writing, this was only available in Italian:
https://www.synod.va/en/news/list-of-the-participants-to-the-xvi-general-ordinary-assembly-of.html
Ecumenical Prayer Vigil
Churches worldwide are being encouraged to participate in the upcoming Together Prayer Vigil on the eve of the Synod.
Please see below a bulletin notice which can be included in diocesan and parish newsletters to encourage groups to hold their own local vigil:
ECUMENICAL PRAYER VIGIL: Catholic communities around the world have been invited to host an ecumenical prayer vigil on the weekend of September 30-October 1 in solidarity with a major international gathering in Rome ahead of the first session of the Synod on Synodality. Fifteen people from Australia will be participating in the Synod, and they have asked for the Catholic community’s prayers as they prepare for their important task. A prayer vigil would be a great way to respond to their request, and to gather with Christian sisters and brothers in our shared faith. Find out more and register your vigil at: https://together2023.net/
Prayer Resources
As we come closer to the first assembly of the Synod, the national team is working to provide you with prayer resources and bulletin notices. We will endeavour to send these to you as they become available, but they will also be published on the website. Previous resources can also be found here:
https://catholic.org.au/synodalchurch
