Baan Phu Waan (The Sower's House), the magnificent Pastoral Training Centre of the Bangkok Archdiocese, is host to the Asian Continental Assembly on Synodality, from February 24 to February 26, 2023.
The participating delegates consist of representatives of 17 Conferences of Bishops and 2 Synods of Bishops, representing the 29 countries that constitute the Federation of Asian Bishops' Conferences (FABC).
Discerning together on this Synodal journey are 6 cardinals, 5 archbishops, 18 bishops, 28 priests, 4 sisters and 19 lay persons.
A draft framework, an open-ended working paper, has been drawn up to help the delegates journey together through prayer to discern, discuss and deliberate.
Over the next three days the delegates will share their experience of Joy, of Walking Together, the Experience of Wounds, and the Call to Embrace New Pathways.
They will also focus on the tensions that plague Asia in Living Synodality, Decision-Making, Priestly Vocations, Youth, Poor, Religious Conflicts and Clericalism.
The Opening Mass in the morning on February 24, titled the Mass of the Holy Spirit, will be presided over by Archbishop Tarcisio Isao Kikuchi, SVD, Archbishop of Tokyo, Japan and Secretary General of the FABC.
This will be followed by an orientation introducing the delegates to the topics of deliberation and discernment. The draft of the final document will also be shared for the participants to express their thoughts.
Despite the challenges, the Synodal journey has been considered a moment of grace and healing for the church.
While Christianity remains a very small minority in most parts of Asia, the largest and most populated continent, the Church in Asia is blessed with diverse cultures, languages, ethnicities and traditions, which adds richness and bring joy to the life of the Church.
Though the systems of beliefs, values and symbols differ from place to place, the interconnectedness of the human community draws Asian people together.
The Asian value of being relational - with God, self, neighbour, and the cosmos – shared by all religions and faith traditions of Asia, brings with it the unity of the people of Asia.
The continental assembly hopes to journey together as Christians amidst all the peoples of the vast and diverse continent of Asia.
The image of the ‘church as tent’ projects it to be a place of refuge open and accessible to all in a spirit of inclusivity. Most importantly, in the tent, there is room for everyone; no one is excluded, for it is a home to everyone. In this process, Catholic Church in Asia is particularly committed to serve the needs of those who feel 'left out' and rekindle a sense of belonging and sharing.
The tent is, above all, a place of encounter with God and one another, thanks to the incarnation of Jesus Christ, who pitched his tent amidst humanity. Today God can pitch His tent wherever the Spirit of God blows, including places of violence, unrest, and suffering.
The Synodal process has brought about a global awareness of the importance of walking together as a communion of communities.
Radio Veritas Asia (RVA), a media platform of the Catholic Church, aims to share Christ. RVA started in 1969 as a continental Catholic radio station to serve Asian countries in their respective local language, thus earning the tag “the Voice of Asian Christianity.” Responding to the emerging context, RVA embraced media platforms to connect with the global Asian audience via its 21 language websites and various social media platforms.
Latest News
