Synod 2009 Gets Going

Synod 2009 is upon us. The special Mass to launch the four-day deliberations will be celebrated this afternoon (Sunday 18) at the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception at 3.00 p.m.

Main celebrant will be Archbishop Edward Gilbert, who will also deliver the homily in which he is expected to exhort delegates to work diligently during their discussions to ensure the Church in Trinidad and Tobago charts a positive course for the future.

Parish priests are being encouraged to call on their parishioners to dedicate the remainder of this week to praying for the success of the synod, even though there may not be specific times allocated for this exercise.

The Synod Process Team, headed by Fr Allan Ventour, said last week was used to put all the finishing touches on the various elements which will go towards ensuring the success of the synod. There were daily meetings of the various committees and sub-committees which were deeply involved in the final preparations.

The full colour Synod brochure titled “Synod Journey – The Commissions’ Report 2003-2008”, can be downloaded from the Archdiocese’s website –www.rcpos.org. This document reports on the successes of the various mandates from the two previous Synods.

Preparing the final agenda

With 12 days to go before the third sitting of the Synod, the Synod Process Team is working feverishly to have everything in place for the start of sessions on Friday, January 23 at the Centre of Excellence at Macoya, Tunapuna. The Synod will take place over two weekends – Friday, January 23 and Saturday, January 24 and Friday, January 30 and Saturday, January 31.

One of the bigger events for the local Church, the Synod will be ushered in with a concelebrated Mass at the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception on Sunday, January 18 at 3.00 p.m. More than 1000 delegates and their parish priests are expected to attend. Archbishop Edward Gilbert will be the chief celebrant.

Over the next 10 days, the Process Team and its many sub-committees will work on the resolutions to be presented, finalise arrangements for parking and security, complete the list of delegates from the archdiocese’s 63 parishes and from the various religious orders and ecclesial communities, and consolidate catering arrangements. Overseas visitors are expected from St Lucia, Suriname and Guyana.

Also expected to be completed this week is the selection of moderators, and the final agenda for the four days. A site visit was made last Thursday to ensure that all would be in place for the start of the Synod.

A 20-minute Camsel (Catholic Media Services Ltd) documentary on the achievements of the various commissions since their inception, in 2003, will be shown on the opening day of the synod. A companion brochure to the documentary will be distributed and will also be available from the archdiocesan website.

Fr Ventour praises all involved

With Synod 2009 just a mere six weeks away, Fr Allan Ventour and his organising team are proceeding steadfastly to have everything in place for the start of proceedings at the Centre of Excellence, Macoya, Tunapuna on Friday January 23 2009.

Highest priority is now being given to refining the many resolutions which will be presented over the two weekends of the Synod.

The Synod Team has already reviewed these draft resolutions and last Thursday it was the turn of the priests of the Archdiocese to study them when they met in an all-day session at the Curepe Fatima Church Hall.

The Team will soon meet in an expanded session at Archbishop’s House in an effort to bring all together, including logistics and time frames.

Fr Ventour has expressed on many occasions his satisfaction with how the preparations were proceeding and has nothing but praise for all the people – including priests, religious and the ecclesial communities – who have been involved in this part of the Synod exercise.

On the financial side, the Synod budget team has been working assiduously to ensure that allocations are properly made. While the budget team would have had some funding from the special collection taken up in all churches of the Archdiocese three weeks ago, persons wishing to make either special or additional contributions to the Synod can send their donations to RC Archbishop/Synod, The Chancery, Archbishop’s House, Port of Spain. 

Resolutions under review

Preparations for Synod 2009 have swung into the homestretch and work is proceeding feverishly to ensure that everything is ready for the assembly, scheduled to take place at the Centre of Excellence, Macoya, beginning Friday, January 23.

Following the meetings and consultations held in the five vicariates and Tobago, the Synod Team has now received reports from all the vicariates and Tobago, including recommendations based on discussions at those meetings.

The team is also reviewing the resolutions, which have come from all the vicariates, with a view to refining them in readiness for presentation at the Synod.

However, even before the resolutions become final, there will still be opportunities for selected persons, including the clergy to assist in the refinement process.

Team Leader Fr Allan Ventour has voiced his pleasure at the way things have been going and in particular the response from the vicariate delegates and priests in so far as attendance and participation were concerned.

He also expressed satisfaction for the high standard of discourse during these meetings and for the enthusiasm and passion showed during the consultations.

Synod 2009 would also have been the focus of attention during a meeting of the Heads of Departments in the Church in Curepe last Thursday. Priests in the archdiocese will have their chance to weigh in on the Synod preparations when they meet on Thursday December 11.

Other components of Synod attracting the attention of the Team are finalising the budget for the event and ratifying the agenda for the two-weekend activity.

Although a special collection was made in all churches of the Archdiocese two weekends ago, persons wishing to make additional contributions can send their donations to RC Archbishop/Synod, the Chancery, Archbishop’s House, Port of Spain. 

Planning the agenda

The pre-synod vicariate meetings have all been completed and the Synod Team, headed by Fr Allan Ventour, has nothing but praise for the attendance, enthusiasm and general outcome of the process.

Fr Ventour said, “We have now completed all the vicariate meetings and while all can be described as successful, the presentation of the Eastern Vicariate, held last Saturday at the St Francis Church, Sangre Grande, was indeed an eye-opener, with its power point presentation and long list of studied resolutions.”

He also paid special tribute to the various parish priests for the work they had done in encouraging the delegates to attend the meetings.

Rita Portillo, another member of the team described the series of meetings as “demonstrating the depth of the delegates’ involvement in the process” and admitted that they “gave valuable contributions to the Mission Statement.”

Fr Ventour said he was pleased with the general attendance at the meetings and the enthusiasm with which they were approached. He said all these things augured well for a successful synod in January.

The next step along the road to Synod 2009 is the meeting of the priests scheduled for next week, at which time they will deliberate on the reports of the meetings, as well as have discussions on the proposed resolutions.

Meanwhile the Team is working feverishly on setting the agenda and organising the budget for the two-weekend Synod.

Last weekend a special collection was made in all parishes of the archdiocese. Those figures are still to be compiled. But in the meantime persons wishing to contribute financially can send their donations to RC Archbishop/Synod, the Chancery, Archbishop’s House, Port of Spain.

Appeal for donations and prayer

One faith; diverse people; one journey. That is the theme selected for Synod 2009 carded for the last two weekends in January at the Centre of Excellence in Macoya.

Preparations for the synod are moving along smoothly. The weekend meetings, which, over the past three weeks, have brought together parish priests and synod delegates, have been quite successful and well attended.

Delegates and priests from the Northern Vicariate were carded to meet at Fatima College, Saturday, November 15. The final meeting for delegates of the Eastern Vicariate will be held in Arima on November 22.

According to the Synod Team these meetings have generated frank and healthy discussions, setting the mood for a vibrant and fruitful synod.

The Synod Team , aware that it will not be cheap to organise such a mammoth event – more than 1000 are expected to attend the Synod, these 1000 persons will comprise delegates from the 60-odd parishes in the Archdiocese, representatives of ecclesial communities, priests and vicars – is making a plea for donations to help defray expenses.

On the feast of Christ the King, the last Sunday on the Church calendar, celebrated this year November 23, there will be a special collection that will go towards synod and synod implementation expenses. Donations can also be sent to RC Archbishop/Synod, the Chancery, Archbishop’s House, Port of Spain.

The Synod Team is also making an appeal for all the faithful to participate fully in the “Week of Prayer”, the week preceding the start of the Synod on January 24. Special prayers will be said at parish Masses, during Eucharistic adoration sessions, in Catholic schools and in homes around the country.

Roman Catholics are also being asked to say the Rosary every day in the week leading up to the Synod and the week during the two periods.

This year the Synod will begin with Holy Mass at the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in Port of Spain on Sunday, January 18 at 3.00 p.m. Archbishop Edward Gilbert will preside. This is to accommodate delegates from all over the country.

The Synod Team also reminds delegates and other participants to be mindful of the traffic situation which might affect their on-time arrival on the first day of synod on January 24.

Importance of the delegates

There will be around 850 delegates at Synod 2009. You the delegates are very important as you represent the 289,000 Catholics living in Trinidad and Tobago and on their behalf you will play a significant role in the formulation of the resolutions that will emerge from the third sitting of the Synod.

Some people have claimed that it would have been easier to get six to eight people to formulate a few resolutions. No doubt that is true. However, that would simply be the thoughts of a few persons. The rest of the local Church would be absent. The resolutions formulated by these six to eight persons and given to the church to guide it on the next three to five years would be nothing less than an imposition.

As good as the resolutions might be, they would not come from the 289,000 Catholics. So to ask them to study, accept and implement these resolutions would be very unfair because they were never part of any process. Their ideas, knowledge and experiences would not be considered. To ask them to buy into the resolutions would be difficult. There would be a feeling of disconnection.

The Church in Trinidad and Tobago has decided to take the cumbersome route of getting together delegates from the parishes, ecclesial communities, schools and the members of the clergy and the religious life. Yes, the Church is inviting you to be an integral part of the process that will eventually formulate the resolution that will guide it for the next three to five years.

This process began with the staging of the parish and vicariate assemblies in 2006 where three pastoral areas of responsibilities were considered – Family Life, Catechetics and Catholic Education.

In 2007 the other five areas – Stewardship, Social Justice, Evangelisation, Catholic Communication and Youth occupied our attention. You the delegates were actively involved in these processes, your knowledge, experience and involvement helped formulate the parish resolutions which later became the resolutions from the vicariates.

Now you are being asked to be part of the process which is the third sitting of the Synod. You will again help formulate resolutions that will be adopted as the way the Church will move forward over the next three to five years.

So delegates, the Synod Team is asking you to take your role seriously. You will be helping the Church as it tries to be alive and present in Trinidad and Tobago.

Getting Ready For the Process

As the Roman Catholic Church in Trinidad and Tobago moves towards the third sitting of its Synod next January, preparations are becoming more intense to ensure a successful Synod.

Close to 800 delegates, from parishes and religious communities all over the Archdiocese of Port of Spain, are expected to attend the Synod which is scheduled for the last two weekends in January 2009.

The special Synod committee, appointed by Archbishop Edward Gilbert, and headed by Fr Allan Ventour, is now engaged in putting in place strategies to emphasise the critical role of those attending the synod.

A fundamental requirement is that delegates must be committed to the process and to facilitating the ongoing dialogue between the small groups and communities, the larger parishes and the Vicariates and must be representative of all sections of the parish.

It is believed that such ongoing communication will sharpen discussions; clarify the formulation of proposals and strengthen the feeling of “ownership” of proposals by all parishioners who will later be responsible for implementing them in parishes and vicariates.

For the next few weeks meetings have been organised in all the vicariates so that no parish or group will be unaware of what is necessary when delegates meet over the four days to discuss ways and means to move the Church forward in the 21st century.