Fr. Clarence Devadass

Existing traditions of community cooperation and strong lay leadership are providing important foundations for synodality in Indonesia, said Fr. Antonius Purwono, SCJ, head of the Department of Documentation and Information of the Indonesian Bishops’ Conference (KWI), representing Southeast Asia.

Bishops are more likely to embrace synodality by experiencing a genuinely synodal process than by receiving another document explaining its principles, said Pablo Virgilio Cardinal David, Vice President of the Federation of Asian Bishops’ Conferences (FABC).

 “Do I have your permission to change my car tires?”

Cardinal Pablo Virgilio David, Chairman of the FABC Commission for Synodality, urged members of National Synod Teams from across Asia to allow the synodal process to transform not only Church structures and pastoral practices but also the way they see, listen and accompany others.

National synodal teams from across Asia began a three-day meeting on September 1 at the Baan Phu Waan Pastoral Training Center in Bangkok, with a call to deepen listening, strengthen participation and prepare local Churches for the next phase of the synodal journey.

As the 12th Plenary Assembly of the Federation of Asian Bishops' Conferences (FABC) came to a close, Fr. Clarence Devadass, associate secretary of the FABC and executive secretary of its Office for Synodality, posed the question that shaped the gathering's final days: "Where do we go from here?"

The greatest challenge posed by artificial intelligence is the ability to discern truth from falsehood, Fr. Clarence Devadass, associate secretary general of the Federation of Asian Bishops' Conferences (FABC) and executive secretary of its Office for Synodality, said at the closing press conference of the FABC's 12th Plenary Assembly.

Artificial intelligence should be embraced as a tool for mission rather than feared as a threat, Cardinal Pablo Virgilio David, vice president of the Federation of Asian Bishops' Conferences (FABC), said at the closing press conference of the 12th FABC Plenary Assembly in Jakarta.

Synodal conversion has meaning only if it leads the Church outward in mission, Cardinal Pablo Virgilio David, vice president of the Federation of Asian Bishops' Conferences (FABC), said as the 12th FABC Plenary Assembly concluded in Jakarta.

Delegates to the 12th Plenary Assembly of the Federation of Asian Bishops' Conferences (FABC) spent their final working session on July 25 reviewing two key documents that will shape the Assembly's legacy: the Message to the Peoples of Asia and the framework for a Synodality Vademecum.

Synodality will take root in Asia only when it is embraced not as another pastoral initiative but as a way of life that transforms how the Church lives, listens, and carries out its mission.

We hope this synodal spirituality will continue to grow in parishes, dioceses, and throughout the Church in Asia. Through synodality, we learn to become a Church that journeys and grows together.

Delegates at the 12th Plenary Assembly of the Federation of Asian Bishops' Conferences (FABC) entered a new phase of synodal discernment on July 23 as they took part in the assembly's first Table Conversations, a key methodology designed to help shape the future mission of the Church in Asia.

Delivering an insightful session on “Transparency and Accountability for a Synodal Church in Asia” on September 24, the second day of the ongoing FABC Bishops’ Seminar in Thailand, Fr. Clarence Devadass emphasized that transparency and accountability are vital to building a truly synodal Church.