On September 30 an ecumenical prayer vigil will take place in St. Peter’s Square as part of the Church’s ongoing Synod on Synodality. The vigil, organized by the Taizé Community, will – as Pope Francis described it – “entrust to God the work of the 16th Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops,” set to take place in two sessions from October 4 through 29, 2023, and in October 2024.   

Therefore, on January 23, synod and ecumenical representatives from various ecclesial communities held a press conference in Rome, speaking informatively about the prayer vigil. 

In addition to Cardinal Jean-Claude Hollerich, relator general of the synod, the representative of the Armenian Apostolic Church to the Holy See, and Archbishop Khajag Barsamian, also spoke, as did the director of the Anglican Center, Archbishop Ian Ernest, and Frère Alois Löser, prior of the ecumenical community of Taizé. The president of the Conference of European Churches, Christian Krieger, joined via videolink from Paris. 

Ecumenism and synodality belong together, the participants of the press conference stressed. 

Rudolf Gehrig 

EWTN Vatican 

Cardinal Hollerich, you emphasized that synodality and ecumenism are related. You said that the Catholic Church can learn a lot from other denominations. What exactly do Catholics need to learn from others and vice versa, what can others learn from the Catholic Church?  

Cardinal Jean-Claude Hollerich 

Relator General of the Synod 

What others can learn from the Catholic Church you have to ask other people… it is not my point to answer that part of the question. 

The mutual learning process brings us closer together. There is no plan. People always think that there is are plans. No, there are no plans. There is a listening to the Holy Spirit as the Holy Spirit expresses himself in the life of people in his Church.