Fellow Catholics have been asked by the Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis to recite the Prayer for the Synod and join upcoming monthly meetings.    

“As we enter into 2022, we enter into the Year of the Synod! Prayer warriors are needed to take us to the finish line,” the Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis said on Facebook. “Pray – attend the Pray for the Synod monthly events and pray the Prayer for the Synod. This week, we invite you to reflect on the first focus area: forming missionary disciples who know Jesus’s love and respond to his call.”

Last October, Pope Francis stated that the “synod on synodality,” also known as the “Synod 2021-2023: For a Synodal Church,” a process that can take up to two years that details the increase of the existing “Synod of Bishops,” according to The Conversation.

The Conversation reports that globally, bishops are asked to connect  “with monks, nuns, parishioners and lay people to bring more openness and transparency to the Church” with hopes to band together next year and discuss how to move ahead as a church that “journeys together.”

“Synod” is embedded in the Greek word meaning “coming together” or “traveling together,” according to The Conversation.

The Synodal tradition started with some of the earliest Christian leaders, who banded together to talk and pray about concerns that impacted the church and in the 16th century. Fewer meetings were taking place, and an objective of the Second Vatican Council (1962-1965) was established to again highlight the impact bishops have as leaders, according to The Conversation.

The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops states this is the prayer for the Synod: “We stand before You, Holy Spirit, as we gather together in Your name. With You alone to guide us, make Yourself at home in our hearts; teach us the way we must go and how we are to pursue it. We are weak and sinful; do not let us promote disorder.  Do not let ignorance lead us down the wrong path nor partiality influence our actions. Let us find in You our unity so that we may journey together to eternal life and not stray from the way of truth and what is right. All this we ask of You, who are at work in every place and time, in the communion of the Father and the Son, forever and ever. Amen.”