God presents Eve to Adam. Mosaic in the Cathedral of Monreale, Italy (near Palermo). “The universal fact about marriage is not that all human persons are called to it — but rather that all human persons are called to come forth from it” By Mary Ellen Stanford At a press briefing during the Synod, [...]
On OCtober 20, 2015, toward the end of the Synod of Bishops, Metropolitan Hilarion Alfeyev of Moscow, shown here as participants were leaving the Synod Hall, delivered a powerful address (excerpts below) Excerpts of the address by Russian Orthodox Metropolitan Hilarion to the Catholic Synod of Bishops on the Family, October 20, 2015 [...]
Demonstrators protesting a same-sex marriage bill outside the parliament building in London on June 3, 2013. The House of Lords was debating a bill to allow two people of the same gender to marry in England and Wales. The House of Commons approved the bill in May 2013 (CNS photo/Toby Melville, Reuters) The anthropology [...]
Francis leaving the Synod Hall on its final working day, October 24. Thoughtful remarks and reflections expressed by four participants and one astute observer, in various contexts during the October 4-25 Synod on the Family “The most merciful thing is to tell the truth in love…” Excerpts from the Introductory Talk Given by [...]
Reflections on the Synod After the conclusion of the October Bishops’ Synod on the Family (October 4-25), reactions to the events and controversies associated with it and its final, 94-paragraph document, the relatio, largely fell, not unpredictably, along “conservative” and “progressive” lines. But in both camps there was considerable uncertainty. Many “progressives” seemed to feel they [...]
October 24, 2015, Saturday — Three Less Unanimous Paragraphs (with Vote Total "While insisting on God’s love for homosexual persons and the obligation to respect their dignity, the report also insisted homosexual unions could not be recognized as marriages and denounced as 'totally unacceptable' governments or international organizations making recognition of 'marriage’ between persons of the [...]
October 24, 2015, Saturday — The Pope's Final Discourse Today At eh end of the Synod, Pope Francis gave a final discourse in the presence of 265 bishops attending the final session, which ended just a few minutes ago. The press conference to sum up the final document and the 94 propositions that were approved is [...]
October 24, 2015, Saturday — Final Synod Document Approved The Bishops' Synod on the Family has ended. The final document has been approved. All 94 points have been approved by more than a 2/3 majority. A final closing discourse by Pope Francis received enthusiastic applause. In the next hour, the final document will be published, incuding [...]
October 23, 2015, Friday — From Russia to Rome "The word mother can be traced back cleanly to Proto-Indo-European, as can father, brother and sister -- it appears in cognate form in languages like Sanskrit, Greek, Latin, and so forth, and it may go back further." —Discussion of the origin of the word "mother" on an [...]
October 19, 2015, Thursday — The Best Talk at the Synod "My father was a Christian political leader, who was imprisoned by the communists for 17 years. My parents were engaged to marry, but their wedding took place 17 years later. My mother waited all those years for my father, although she didn’t even know if [...]
