Synod elects new members to Ordinary Council

By Vatican News

On Wednesday, during the 15th General Congregation of the Synod of Bishops, delegates elected new members of the Ordinary Council of the General Secretariat of the Synod.

Pope Francis has made a modification to the current Instruction governing the work of the Assembly, increasing the total number of members to 17, according to a statement issued by the Synod Secretariat.

Of these, twelve were elected in the afternoon from among the diocesan/eparchial or equivalent bishops who are part of the Assembly: 1 from the Eastern Catholic Churches, 1 from Oceania and 2 each from North America, from Latin America, Europe, Africa, and Asia.

In addition to these, the Pope will appoint 4 members, as well as, when the time comes, the head of the Dicastery of the Roman Curia responsible for the theme of the next Synod.

As stated in the Apostolic Constitution Episcopal communion (n. 24, 1-3), the Ordinary Council of the General Secretariat is responsible for preparing and implementing the Ordinary General Assembly.

The members of the Ordinary Council begin their mandate at the end of the Ordinary General Assembly which elected them, they are members of the following Ordinary General Assembly and their mandate ends with the dissolution of this Assembly.

Chaired by the Holy Father, the Council is an essential element of the General Secretariat.

The new Ordinary Council will play a key role both in the implementation of this synodal process on synodality and in the preparation of the next Synod.

Cardinal Mario Grech, wishing the newly elected members good luck in their work, also expressed his gratitude to the outgoing members for their valuable collaboration in carrying out the current synodal process.

The elected members are:

EASTERN CATHOLIC CHURCHES
His Beatitude Youssef ABSI, Patriarch of Antioch of the Greek-Melkites, Head of the Synod of the Greek-Melkite-Catholic Church

FROM OCEANIA
His Excellency Mgr. Timothy John COSTELLOE, SDB, Archbishop of Perth (Australia)

FROM NORTH AMERICA
His Excellency Mgr. Daniel Ernest FLORES, Bishop of Brownsville (United States of America)
His Excellency Mgr. Alain FAUBERT, bishop of Valleyfield (Canada)

FROM LATIN AMERICA
His Eminence the Very Reverend Card. Luis José RUEDA APARICIO, Archbishop of Bogotá (Colombia)
His Excellency Mgr. José Luis AZUAJE AYALA, archbishop of Maracaibo (Venezuela)

FROM EUROPE
His Eminence Cardinal Jean-Marc AVELINE, Archbishop of Marseille (France)
His Excellency Mgr Gintaras GRUŠAS, Archbishop of Vilnius (Lithuania)

FROM AFRICA
Cardinal Dieudonné NZAPALAINGA, CSSp., Archbishop of Bangui (Central African Republic)
SEMgr. Andrew FUANYA NKEA, Archbishop of Bamenda (Cameroon)

FROM ASIA
His Eminence Cardinal Filipe Neri António Sebastião DO ROSÁRIO FERRÃO, Archbishop of Goa and Damão (India)
His Excellency Mgr. Pablo Virgilio S. DAVID, bishop of Kalookan (Philippines)

To this list, Pope Francis will name 4 other members.

The members who will end their mandate at the sixteenth assembly are:
His Beatitude Ignace Youssif III YOUNAN, Patriarch of Antioch of the Syrians, Head of the Synod of the Syriac Catholic Church (Lebanon)
Cardinal Christoph SCHÖNBORN, OP, Archbishop of Vienna (Austria)
Cardinal Oswald GRACIAS, Archbishop of Bombay, President of the Episcopal Conference (India)
Cardinal Gérald Cyprien LACROIX, ISPX, Archbishop of Quebec, (Canada)
Cardinal Charles Maung BO, SDB, Archbishop of Yangon (Myanmar)
Cardinal Daniel Fernando STURLA BERHOUET, SDB, Archbishop of Montevideo (Uruguay)
Cardinal Dieudonné NZAPALAINGA, CSSp., Archbishop of Bangui (Central African Republic)
Cardinal Sérgio da ROCHA, Archbishop of Brasilia (Brazil)
Cardinal Joseph William TOBIN, C.SS.R., Archbishop of Newark (United States of America)
Cardinal Juan José OMELLA OMELLA, Archbishop of Barcelona (Spain)
Cardinal Joseph COUTTS, Archbishop of Karachi (Pakistan)
Cardinal Matteo Maria ZUPPI, Archbishop of Bologna (Italy)
HE Mgr Gabriel MBILINGI, CSSp., Archbishop of Lubango (Angola)
HE Mgr Anthony Colin FISHER, OP, Archbishop of Sydney (Australia)
HE Mgr Jaime CALDERÓN CALDERÓN, Bishop of Tapachula (Mexico)
HE Mons. Andrew FUANYA NKEA, Archbishop of Bamenda (Cameroon)