Synod Secretariat Releases Roadmap for Church Assemblies Leading to 2028 Vatican Gathering

The General Secretariat of the Synod has released a new document outlining the stages, criteria, and tools that will guide local Churches worldwide toward the Ecclesial Assembly scheduled for October 2028 at the Vatican, according to Vatican News.

Published on May 20, the document, Towards the 2027–2028 Assemblies: Stages, Criteria, and Tools in Preparation for the 2027–2028 Assemblies, provides a framework for dioceses, bishops’ conferences, and continental Church bodies to continue implementing the outcomes of the Synod on Synodality (2021–2024). Vatican News reported that the process aims to help local Churches evaluate and deepen synodal life while preparing for the 2028 global assembly.

The journey is organized around four key stages: “remembering,” “interpreting,” “orienting,” and “celebrating.”

According to Vatican News, the first phase, “remembering,” will take place during the first half of 2027, when dioceses and eparchies will review their experience of implementing the Synod’s Final Document and prepare narrative reports and letters to other Churches.

The second phase, “interpreting,” scheduled for the latter half of 2027, will involve national and regional bishops’ conferences preparing theological and pastoral reflections. Continental assemblies will follow in early 2028 during the “orienting” phase, identifying common priorities and future directions.

The process will culminate in October 2028 with the Ecclesial Assembly in the Vatican, bringing together representatives from across the global Church with the Holy Father. Vatican News emphasized that the gathering is intended not as the end of the process but as a moment of discernment, evaluation, and renewed missionary commitment.

Cardinal Mario Grech, Secretary General of the Synod, said the assemblies are not “sociological consultations” or administrative exercises but moments of “shared discernment and thanksgiving,” according to Vatican News. He stressed that synodality must increasingly become an ordinary way of Church life and mission.

The document also calls for broad participation, including clergy, religious, lay faithful, youth, and people living in situations of fragility or marginalization, ensuring representation across generations and cultures.

Materials from diocesan, national, and continental assemblies will be submitted to the Synod Secretariat through April 2028 in preparation for the Vatican gathering.