Vatican City, Oct 11, 2023 / 15:40 pm
Participants in the Synod on Synodality have asked “for greater discernment on the teaching of the Church on the subject of sexuality,” a Vatican spokesman said at a press briefing today.
The revelation seems to be at odds with synod organizers’ repeated insistence that the monthlong assembly will not take up doctrinal questions but will instead focus on how the Church can better listen to its members.
The discussion of sexual doctrine came during the synod members’ work in the morning session, shared Paolo Ruffini, the president of the synod’s communications commission. During that session, participants focused on the theme of “mercy and truth.” The theme includes a controversial question on “what concrete steps are needed to welcome those who feel excluded from the Church today because of their status or sexuality.”
Ruffini said that while some asked for further discernment on the Church’s sexual teaching, others “said there’s no need for this further discernment.”