synod of bishops

Did Bishops ‘Defeat’ Pope Francis in Vatican Synod?

In spite of sensational media claims that Pope Francis suffered a major “defeat” at the hands of conservative bishops during the recently concluded synod on the family, all evidence suggests that the Pope got exactly what he wanted: a frank debate on the situation of Christian families in the world today and how the Church can more effectively serve them.

Pope Francis (C) leads a mass for the opening of the synod on the family on October 4, 201

Pope Francis: No Change in Doctrine on Marriage

In a word intended to reassure conservatives, Pope Francis told the bishops gathered in the Vatican Synod on the family Tuesday that Church teaching on marriage is “still valid,” while also urging them to broaden their horizons, instead of focusing on internal questions such as Communion for the divorced and remarried.

ALBERTO PIZZOLI/AFP/Getty Images

Pope Francis: Lifelong Marriage Is Not ‘a Quaint Relic of the Past’ but ‘God’s Dream’ for Humanity

The Pope said that Christian marriage is a cure for much of the solitude experienced by men and women in our own day. Our world, he said is characterized by loneliness and paradoxes. Today we enjoy “many sophisticated means of entertainment, but a deep and growing interior emptiness; many pleasures, but few loves; many liberties, but little freedom.” People need the family, even if they don’t realize it, Francis said.

Pope Francis (C) leads a mass for the opening of the synod on the family on October 4, 201

Cardinal Blames Pope Francis for Ruinous Marriage Summit Report

When the hastily written interim report was read aloud before all the bishops gathered for the Vatican marriage summit last October, it was met with consternation and disapproval. At the time, it was generally assumed that Pope Francis had never seen the text, but now the Cardinal in charge of organizing the summit has claimed that the document was “seen and approved by the Pope.”

AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino