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Join our circle of advisors and representatives as an individual or as a representative of your reform group
"Alone, the pope cannot change the world. A pope for the people must have a people for the pope. This initiative gives us a means of being with Pope Francis."
Gaston Roberge, SJ, India
Worldwide Organizations
See the worldwide organizations who are speaking out to Pope Francis about the reform of our Church.
Petitions that have been signed over the years supporting similar reforms.
Catholic Church Reform Int'l - a Global Network of more than a hundred reform groups and individuals from 65 countries. If you would like to collaborate with us to continue on the path set by Vatican II, you have come to the right place. Welcome!
If there is to be any reform of any kind in the Catholic Church, it must begin with the people having a voice.
The need has never been greater than it is at this moment in time for the People of God to unite our voices so as to be strong enough to be heard in our Church. Our special advisor, Sr. Joan Chittister, reminds us: "Until we raise a common voice we will not only not be heard, we will not even be listened to in the light of larger issues and larger groups, all clamoring for attention."
The Pope is listening and eager to hear from all the people
Please read and share this article with your bishop or pastor: Pope to Begin Synodal Process With Mass in St. Peter’s Basilica | Catholic New York (cny.org).
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The article reports that the pope formally opened the synod process last Sunday and is urging the bishops of every diocese to open the process in his diocese this Sunday Oct. 17. Call your pastor or bishop and ask him what the plans are for initiating this synod in your diocese. Let him know that you want to be involved and willing to offer your help.How do we prepare for a synodal process? Start with the documents of Vatican II
[Written by Michael Sean Winters - Published by the NCR Online - October 1, 2021]
Nine days from now, Pope Francis will officially open a synodal process. As my colleague Brian Fraga reported on Wednesday, you wouldn't know much about it if you relied on the U.S. bishops' conference. They have sent no directives to the nation's bishops, no historical or theological reflections, no guidance, nada, niente. They have not amended their strategic priorities to reflect the start of this synodal process. And their last meeting was dedicated to figuring out how to justify a document on eucharistic coherence that no one needs and that Rome has indicated it does not want.
Why people are insisting that their voices be heard at the Synod
Next month, each diocese will be receiving a questionnaire from the Office of the Synod of Bishops inviting the people to voice their opinions and concerns about the future of the institutional Church. From October 2021 through April 2022, Pope Francis has called upon every diocese throughout the world for bishops and the people to engage in dialogue. The pope wants to hear from all the people - not only those who are engaged in regular Mass attendance but even those who've walked away from the institutional Church valuing their personal faith over so called "Church laws" and prescripts.
Read why so many others are signing the petition:
You may appreciate reading just a few of the comments from the hundreds of responses from the People of God explaining why so many are signing this petition to bishops and are contacting their bishops to ensure that there will be a synod held in their region of the world:
"I'm signing because I can no longer accept the Catholic Church as it has evolved. I now pray to Christ who began our Faith but did not include the manner in which it has evolved. I have learned that the Church that we know began to evolve at least 1,000 years later and was totally delivered by men who did not marry and did not include women." Dublin, Ireland
"The Church has strayed and needs to get back on mission and reflect its true role. We also owe it to those who have left and are leaving the Church in droves, particularly young people, and again become relevant to the times we live in, the needs we have, and the new understandings we have gained." John, Melbourne, Australia
"I believe all that is written in this petition from the depths of my being! We have lost so much that Vatican II enabled - and we desperately need to get it back before this patriarchal hierarchy smothers us all. We need to pray for those who stand in the way of Pope Francis’ efforts to bring us back much more closely to what Jesus had envisioned!" Mary, Cincinnati, Ohio, USA
"I am deeply committed to the Catholic Church because this is how I came to know God. Most of my heroes have been and are here. I love the Mass and Sacraments, but I think that we have to move beyond the present clericalism and learn to better hear Jesus and live the Gospels." Kathryn, Raleigh, N. Carolina
“I am signing because I believe in an evolutionary Church; that Jesus expects and guides us to change in order to grow. I believe our young people are underscoring this understanding.”
Harry, St Paul, Minnesota, USA
Sign the petition to Bishops in your own language
Sign this petition in your own language
Firme esta petición en su propio idioma
Unterschreibe diese Petition in deiner eigenen Sprache
Signez cette pétition dans votre langue
Assine esta petição em seu próprio idioma
Saini ombi hili kwa lugha yako mwenyewe
To ensure that there will be a synod in your region of the world, send a letter to your bishop, pastor, or priest also in your own language.
Pope Francis has called for a diocesan synod to be held in every diocese throughout the world beginning this coming October. This first step is scheduled to conclude by April 2022. Without encouragement from the People, some bishops will choose not to hold this synod in their diocese.
Below you will find a model letter in your own language that you are encouraged to use to help you formulate your own letter to your bishop, pastor, or priest. The purpose is to let the clergy know how important it is for the People of God to be included and listened to in these forthcoming diocesan synods.
model letter in Swahili / Kiswahili
Let's take advantage of the narrow window of opportunity Pope Francis has given us
For years, many of us have been working and praying for the reform of our Church. For the first time, there appears to be a real opportunity to bring about needed changes. Pope Francis has opened the door as wide as he possibly can inviting the people to speak out while all but forcing the bishops to listen to their people. Francis has given us a window of opportunity - but it is a narrow one. He has called for diocesan synods to be held in every diocese throughout the world from October 2021 to April 2022. Once that window closes, the chance for the people to have any influence will be over as the synodal process moves into phase two and three.
Join with people from around the world by signing this petition in your own language to ensure that we, the people, will be included in this all important synodal process. For the Spirit to be heard at these diocesan synods, the voices of the people must be well represented. Once you have signed it, please post it on your social media accounts and pass it on to all your circle of contacts. Ask your contacts to do the same.
One additional step you are encouraged to take: Use the model letter (shown below in your own language) to write to your own bishops and pastors letting them know how important it will be for them to include a good cross section of the lay people of God in your diocesan synod. Sign the petition now and pass it on to everyone you know, even those who've left the Church out of disappointment or frustration.
Sign the petition to Bishops in your own language
Sign this petition in your own language
Firme esta petición en su propio idioma
Unterschreibe diese Petition in deiner eigenen Sprache
Signez cette pétition dans votre langue
Assine esta petição em seu próprio idioma
Saini ombi hili kwa lugha yako mwenyewe
Send a letter to your own bishop, pastor, or priest in your own language
Pope Francis has called for a diocesan synod to be held in every diocese throughout the world beginning this coming October. This first step is scheduled to conclude by April 2022. Without encouragement from the People, some bishops will choose not to hold this synod in their diocese.
Below you will find a model letter in your own language that you are encouraged to use to help you formulate your own letter to your bishop, pastor, or priest. The purpose is to let the clergy know how important it is for the People of God to be included and listened to in these forthcoming diocesan synods.
Engaging the people in Pope Francis synods
To Bishops and Pastors in the Catholic Church:
Pope Francis has called for engagement of the whole People of God in walking, discerning, governing, and evangelizing together to make fruitful the Synod on Synodality soon to begin on the local level this fall. It is our hope that every diocese throughout the world will hold a synod (a gathering of bishops to listen to the voices of the laity) between October 2021 and April 2022.
The early church was a community of equals, governed by Christ’s “new commandment” that we love one another. The community came together in ‘house churches’ led by both men and women celebrating the Eucharist and keeping the faith alive. The current patriarchal and hierarchal Church patterned on monarchy, is not what Christ envisioned, for we are all one in Christ (Gal.3:28).
We call on the bishops and pastors of the Catholic Church to fully engage us, the people, in the forthcoming synodal process called by Pope Francis. Beginning at the diocesan level, we want our voices to be heard and included in all discussions continuing on to reach the national level and finally the universal synod in Rome in 2023.
Sign this petition
We are heartened by Pope Francis’s comments to the Italian bishops (May 24) that the Synod must have a “bottom-up” focus with the process beginning in small, local communities and parishes. He called for patience, allowing all to speak freely, giving space to “the wisdom of the People of God.”
We are eager to join with others in our local community to speak out in support of the changes we want and need in our Church. Even if some of us have left the Church in frustration or disappointment, we recognize that now is the time to tell you, our church leaders, what drove us away.
For the Spirit to be heard, the lay People of God must be well represented at these synods. We feel it is essential to include the following topics both (1) in the questionnaire soon to be released, and (2) in all synodal discussions at all levels.
How the Church can become more welcoming, forgiving, loving, and inclusive
- Women's role in Church ministry
- A path back to the Sacraments for the divorced and remarried
- Place of the LGBTQ community in the Church
- Role of Small Christian Communities (SCCs) in the official structure of the Church
- Lay people trained to administer in parishes and Small Christian Communities where it is anticipated that no priest will be available
- Should celibacy for priests be optional
- Transparency and accountability in the clerical sex abuse, financial crimes, and their use of power in the Church.
Additionally, we commit to sending a letter to our bishop or pastor to ensure that the views of the laity are well represented.