Meet The Monitor’s correspondent in Rome for the Synod on Synodality
October 4, 2024 at 11:57 a.m.
My name is Elise Stankus, and I am a writer, student, and parishioner in the Diocese of Trenton. Earlier this year I began to serve as a freelance journalist with The Monitor and was fortunate enough to be commissioned by our diocesan news media to serve as a correspondent during the General Assembly of the Synod on Synodality in Rome.
This is the second consecutive year that I will have had the immense privilege to spend three weeks in Rome for the Synod gatherings. I am thrilled and honored to be able to share my experiences, hopes, and joys through The Monitor.
I have traveled to Rome to be a pilgrim, a voice and a witness to the Synodal process, which embraces a philosophy of listening and radical encounter in order to bring the Gospel to life in the modern world.
Pope John XXIII said "I want to open the windows of the Church so that we can see out and the people can see in." In the same way, the historic Synod on Synodality, initiated by Pope Francis in 2021, seeks to refresh the Catholic Church, fostering a community which welcomes, listens to, and embraces the entirety of the people of God.
This Synod is historic for a number of reasons, one of which is that laypeople are participating as voting members for the first time in the history of the Church. Men and women, young and old, laypeople and ordained–the Vatican is listening.
I have been involved in the Synodal process since Pope Francis initiated the Synod in 2021. I attended several listening sessions on my college campus, and shortly after joined a coalition of colleges devoted to uplifting the principles of Synodality. SCHEAP (Synodality in Catholic Higher Education in the Archdiocese of Philadelphia) seeks to engage young people in the Synodal process as well as in the Catholic Church as a whole, providing a space for students to share their experiences and have their voices heard.
In the fall of 2023, I had the opportunity to travel to Rome with a Young Adult Delegation. We met and prayed with voting delegates, participated in an ecumenical social justice conference, and attended public Synod events such as the opening Mass.
This year, I will be attending events such as the Penitential Service and Opening Mass, meeting and praying with delegates to discuss Synodality and women in ministry and helping to host a public prayer service and educational panel.
For the last week of my trip, I will be traveling with CENTERS, a group of college students from across the country experiencing the Synodal process firsthand. With this group I will be attending the Papal General Audience, having dinner with Synod delegates, touring notable churches throughout the city, and participating in a Synodal Teach-In with my fellow students.
My intention in sharing my reflections is to document this historic event, as well as to share my own experiences with my diocesan community in Trenton. Stay tuned!
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My name is Elise Stankus, and I am a writer, student, and parishioner in the Diocese of Trenton. Earlier this year I began to serve as a freelance journalist with The Monitor and was fortunate enough to be commissioned by our diocesan news media to serve as a correspondent during the General Assembly of the Synod on Synodality in Rome.
This is the second consecutive year that I will have had the immense privilege to spend three weeks in Rome for the Synod gatherings. I am thrilled and honored to be able to share my experiences, hopes, and joys through The Monitor.
I have traveled to Rome to be a pilgrim, a voice and a witness to the Synodal process, which embraces a philosophy of listening and radical encounter in order to bring the Gospel to life in the modern world.
Pope John XXIII said "I want to open the windows of the Church so that we can see out and the people can see in." In the same way, the historic Synod on Synodality, initiated by Pope Francis in 2021, seeks to refresh the Catholic Church, fostering a community which welcomes, listens to, and embraces the entirety of the people of God.
This Synod is historic for a number of reasons, one of which is that laypeople are participating as voting members for the first time in the history of the Church. Men and women, young and old, laypeople and ordained–the Vatican is listening.
I have been involved in the Synodal process since Pope Francis initiated the Synod in 2021. I attended several listening sessions on my college campus, and shortly after joined a coalition of colleges devoted to uplifting the principles of Synodality. SCHEAP (Synodality in Catholic Higher Education in the Archdiocese of Philadelphia) seeks to engage young people in the Synodal process as well as in the Catholic Church as a whole, providing a space for students to share their experiences and have their voices heard.
In the fall of 2023, I had the opportunity to travel to Rome with a Young Adult Delegation. We met and prayed with voting delegates, participated in an ecumenical social justice conference, and attended public Synod events such as the opening Mass.
This year, I will be attending events such as the Penitential Service and Opening Mass, meeting and praying with delegates to discuss Synodality and women in ministry and helping to host a public prayer service and educational panel.
For the last week of my trip, I will be traveling with CENTERS, a group of college students from across the country experiencing the Synodal process firsthand. With this group I will be attending the Papal General Audience, having dinner with Synod delegates, touring notable churches throughout the city, and participating in a Synodal Teach-In with my fellow students.
My intention in sharing my reflections is to document this historic event, as well as to share my own experiences with my diocesan community in Trenton. Stay tuned!