(ZENIT News / Rome, 09.30.2024).- “For a shared mission” is the prayer intention chosen by Pope Francis for the month of October – a theme linked to the upcoming General Assembly of the Synod, about which Pope Francis reflects in his message entrusted to the Pope’s Worldwide Prayer Network. He asks every Christian – laity, priests, religious – “to walk together, taking the path of synodality,” explaining that “we are co-responsible in mission, we participate and we live in the communion of the Church.”
The video accompanying his words was produced under the banner of synodality as well: the images were produced by the Diocese of Brooklyn, with the help of DeSales Media, the collaboration of the General Secretary of the Synod itself, and the support of Fondazione Pro Rete Mondiale di Preghiera del Papa.
Working together
Whether someone is a “bus driver,” a “farmer,” or a “fisher,” Pope Francis underlines that the mission is the same: “to witness with one’s own life,” “everyone contributing what they know how to do best.” We work together in this co-responsibility, regardless of each person’s vocation. “Priests are not the bosses of the laity, but their pastors. Jesus called us, one and others – not one above others, or one on one side and others on another side, but complementing each other,” he explains at the beginning of his message. He then adds a little later, “the laity, the baptized are in the Church, in their own home, and need to take care of it. So do we priests and consecrated persons.”
A Shared Mission
The images accompanying Pope Francis’s message specifically portray the wealth of the holy people of God (Lumen Gentium, 12): the different ministers inside and outside the parishes, the distinct charisms, moments of life in common. The production of this video, on the part of the Diocese of Brooklyn, with the participation of a group of professional lay religious communicators, is an example of shared mission. “I’m so pleased to have DeSales Media selected to work on the October Pope’s video project. Through our partnership with DeSales Media, we have highlighted the contributions of the laity in our diocese and challenged the faithful to create a bold, joyful, and welcoming community of faith and service,“ said Bishop Robert J. Brennan, Bishop of Brooklyn. DeSales Media, a communications and media ministry in the Diocese of Brooklyn, partnered with the Pope’s Worldwide Prayer Network to produce Pope Francis’s October message of shared responsibility. “Our team strives to live out our shared mission every day. As communications professionals, we have been called to put our talents and experience to work in the service of the Church,” said Dominic Ambrosio, Director of Programming and Production for DeSales Media. “We hope that our efforts producing this video will inspire others to share their talents and faith further.”
Synodality as lifestyle
In his address for the 50th anniversary of the Synod of Bishops, Pope Francis expressed that “It is precisely this path of synodality which God expects of the Church of the third millennium.” This approach requires mutual listening and close collaboration among all the members of the Church. This is why in his prayer intention, the Pope invites us to pray that “the Church continue to sustain a synodal lifestyle in every way, as a sign of co-responsibility, promoting the participation, communion and mission shared by priests, religious and laity.”
A common call
Father Frédéric Fornos S.J., International Director of the Pope’s Worldwide Prayer Network, reflects: “This month of October 2024 marks a crucial moment with the celebration of the Synodal Assembly in Rome, the culmination of a journey begun three years ago and laden with expectations, desires and hopes. In the midst of the spiritual battle that will inevitably be present, it is a time to listen to what the Spirit of the Lord is saying to the Church. In The Pope’s Video, Pope Francis emphasizes what is essential: ‘We are co-responsible in mission.’ This approach, as the Pope points out, should be natural since all of us are baptized in Christ. Nevertheless, the fact that it took three years to become aware of this necessity reflects the challenges that faces the Church in its journey toward true synodality.
“As the Holy Father has recalled several times, ‘there will be no Synod without prayer.’ Only prayer can transform hearts attached to human traditions and selfish interests so that the Church will be more faithful to the Gospel. In this crucial month, the Pope invites us to unite ourselves in prayer for the Synod, so that it might be a true moment of encounter, mutual listening and communitarian discernment, guided by the Holy Spirit.”
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