Synod to include pilgrimage for participants, prayer for migrants and refugees

By Christopher Wells

Synod organizers on Thursday released the calendar of events for the General Assembly of the Synod, which will be held at the Vatican from 4-29 October.

Among the notable features on the schedule will be a pilgrimage for participants, set for the afternoon of 12 October; details of the pilgrimage have yet to be determined.

On the evening of Thursday, 19 October, Pope Francis will lead a Prayer for Migrants and Refugees, which will take place in St Peter’s Square. And on Wednesday, 25 October, the Holy Father will preside at the recitation of the Holy Rosary in the Vatican Gardens.

The General Assembly of the Synod will open with a Solemn Mass in St. Peter's Square on 4 October.

The work of the Synod will then be carried out in four “modules” focusing on different aspects of synodality, with a final module dedicated to a Synthesis Report that will be produced with the approval of the Synod.

Each module will involve a presentation of the theme, followed by small group sessions that will report back to the General Assembly. A commission will produce the Synthesis Report, which will then be discussed and modified before being presented to the Synod for approval.

The final General Congregations of the General Assembly of the Synod will take place on Saturday, 28 October, when the Synthesis Report will be read and approved. A Solemn Mass in Saint Peter’s Basilica on Sunday, 29 October, will mark the conclusion of the General Assembly of the Synod.

During Thursday’s press conference, organizers also released an updated list of participants in the General Assembly. The changes to the list reflect changes due to death or illness, or to a change in official positions. The new list also includes two Bishops from the People’s Republic of China.

Some 464 people will take part in the General Assembly, including 365 voting members, of whom 54 are women.