Synod on the Family

The Latest

Pope Francis greets Archbishop Charles Chaput of Philadelphia at the General Audience in St. Peter's Square, June 24, 2015.

Archbishop Chaput: Pope Francis shows continuity on divorce, remarriage

Jul 7, 2016

Pope Francis’ teaching on divorce-and-remarriage and the sacraments represents Catholic tradition and shows the way forward for engaging those who... Read more

Pope Francis on flight to Mexico Feb. 12, 2016.

Pope: Media missed the real family crisis in covering Communion, remarriage

Apr 16, 2016

Pope Francis has said that the family is in crisis, and that is a much bigger issue than Communion for... Read more

Pope Francis in an in-flight press conference Jan. 18, 2015.

Full Text of Pope Francis' in-flight interview from Lesbos to Rome

Apr 16, 2016

Pope Francis on Saturday spoke with journalists about his visit with refugees at Lesbos and about the family crisis.  Read more

Pope Francis greets a family at a prayer vigil for the Synod on the Family, Oct. 3, 2015.

US bishops: don't rush in reading, interpreting Pope's 'love letter' to families

Apr 8, 2016

By Adelaide Mena

The United States bishops are welcoming Pope Francis’s new apostolic exhortation, Amoris laetitia, praising the Pope’s call for careful encouragement... Read more

Pope Francis at the Divine Mercy Vigil in St. Peter's Square, April 2, 2016.

No doctrine change from Pope Francis – but a call for better pastoral care

Apr 8, 2016

Catholics who have divorced-and-remarried need the fullness of Church teaching. They also need a wise pastoral and community response to... Read more

Opening session of the Synod of Bishops, Oct. 6, 2014.

Pope Francis' post-synod doc to be released April 8

Mar 31, 2016

By Elise Harris

The Vatican announced Thursday that Pope Francis’ highly anticipated post-synodal apostolic exhortation on the gifts and challenges of family life... Read more

Pope Francis at the General Audience, April 27, 2013.

Pope Francis will speak on the synod soon. But the spin has already begun.

Mar 23, 2016

By Andrea Gagliarducci

The war of interpretations has begun over Pope Francis’ yet-to-be-published post-synodal exhortation. And this war is taking place in the... Read more

A view of the facade of St. Peter's Basilica from the Vatican's Apostolic Palace, Feb. 14, 2015.

Vatican official: Pope's post-synod doc will be released in March

Jan 27, 2016

Pope Francis' apostolic exhortation on family life following last year's synod will be published in March, says Archbishop Vincenzo Paglia,... Read more

'The Name of God is Mercy' book debut at the Augustinianum on Jan. 12, 2016.

What Pope Francis' book could tell us about the upcoming synod doc

Jan 13, 2016

By Elise Harris

As things are picking up around the Vatican in the new year, anticipation is buzzing over the release of Pope... Read more

Extraordinary assembly of the Synod of Bishops on the Family. Oct. 2014.

Here's what the US bishops were most impressed with at the Synod

Nov 17, 2015

By Matt Hadro

Most bishops at the recent Synod on the Family agreed that the Church should minister to married couples long after... Read more

Pope Francis greets Archbishop Charles Chaput of Philadelphia at the General Audience in St. Peter's Square, June 24, 2015.

A caution from Archbishop Chaput: dishonest mercy helps no one

Nov 17, 2015

True mercy and trust in the transformative power of God’s grace are key to helping divorced-and-remarried Catholics, Archbishop Charles Chaput... Read more

Archbishop Joseph Kurtz speaks at a press conference in Philadelphia during Pope Francis' visit on September 26, 2015.

Archbishop Kurtz on the best thing to come out of the synod

Nov 16, 2015

By Matt Hadro

Families helping families – this may have been one of the greatest “fruits” to come from the Synod on the... Read more

Pope Francis at the Vatican on April 3, 2014.

Report on Pope Francis and divorce 'in no way reliable,' Vatican says

Nov 2, 2015

A Vatican spokesman entirely rejected the reliability of Italian journalist Antonio Scalfari’s report suggesting that Pope Francis said all divorced... Read more

Bishop Robert Barron, auxiliary bishop of Los Angeles.

Bishop Robert Barron to academics: debate Ross Douthat, don't dodge him

Oct 31, 2015

Bishop Robert Barron has weighed in amid a media controversy after the Synod on the Family, saying some academic critics... Read more

Pope Francis presides at the closing Mass for the Vatican's synod on the family Oct. 25, 2015.

Walk alongside your people, Pope Francis tells bishops at synod's close

Oct 25, 2015

By Ann Schneible

Pope Francis Sunday officially brought the Synod on the Family to a close at Mass in St. Peter’s, warning against... Read more

Pope Francis in the Synod Hall in the Vaitcan on Oct. 21, 2015.

Final synod document strongly backs Church teaching, beauty of family life

Oct 24, 2015

By Elise Harris

With a two-thirds majority vote, the more than 200 bishops gathered for the Vatican's synod on the family supported Church... Read more

Pope Francis at the Wednesday General Audience in St. Peter's Square on June 24, 2015.

Pope Francis: Synod was about affirming family, indissoluble marriage

Oct 24, 2015

At the conclusion of the 2015 Synod on the Family, Pope Francis emphasized that the gathering had been about recognizing... Read more

Gay Catholic to Synod: Please protect teaching on homosexuality

Oct 23, 2015

By Ann Schneible

With the pastoral care of homosexual persons on the agenda of the Synod on the Family, one man with same-sex... Read more

The problem of porn – are bishops talking about it?

Oct 23, 2015

By Elise Harris

It hasn't gotten a lot of media coverage so far, but the rampant affects of pornography on families worldwide has... Read more

Pope John Paul II circa 1991.

The saint and the synod – John Paul II’s legacy still seen in Church teaching

Oct 22, 2015

Though it has been more than 10 years since the death of Pope John Paul II, the saint’s impact can... Read more