Tonight on Inside the Synod – Cardinal Christoph Schönborn of Vienna and Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle of Manila share their experiences and provide context as bishops prepare the final summary document for the Synod on the Family. ...read more

Tonight on Inside the Synod the work of the small language groups is underway as bishops discuss the midterm report and work towards next week’s summary document. Sebastian Gomes brings us the latest from today’s press briefing and Catholic journalists weigh in on their responsibility when it comes to disseminating the message of the synod. ...read more

On Tuesday October 7, during the Synod on the Family, Pope Francis called Cardinals to a special consistory that will address the crisis facing Christians in the Middle East. All the patriarchs of the Middle East and the heads of the Eastern Churches have been invited to attend the consistory, which will take place at ...read more

Pope Paul VI greets the crowd as he visits the Verano cemetery in Rome in 1973. Pope Francis will beatify Pope Paul Oct. 19 during the closing Mass of the extraordinary Synod of Bishops on the Family. (CNS photo/Giancarlo Giuliani, Catholic Press Photo) To learn more about the Church’s role in the modern world, watch ...read more

Tonight on Inside the Synod: Cardinal Sodano makes a special announcement about the Church’s response to the Middle East, a summary of the major themes developing at the Synod, and a special sit-down with Cardinal Pell, Prefect of the Secretariat for the Economy. ...read more

Tonight during the premiere episode of Inside the Synod meet the international team of S+L producers who will host our  2014 coverage from inside the Synod on the Family.  This year, we’re pleased to bring you coverage in French, English and Chinese as we keep you up-to-date with the  latest developments. You can look forward ...read more

Regardless of background, ethnicity or faith tradition, almost everyone in our society today would argue that education is important.  We all acknowledge that becoming an “educated” person is worthwhile.  We spend a huge portion of our earnings and savings (or all of them and more!) on achieving that goal.  But, what does it mean to ...read more

Proclaiming the Word: Part Four Last time we looked at why a homily must be scriptural, pastoral, catechetical and liturgical and that there should be one key message (focus) and one suggestion as to how we can respond to that message (function). These are great suggestions for organizing your text. However, no matter what, the ...read more

Last time  I wrote about what makes a good homily and what is an image of a preacher.  At the preaching conference, most of the presenters dedicated their talks to how a homilist should prepare. “Prepare the homilist; not the homily” was a phrase used by Cardinal Thomas Collins of Toronto during the keynote opening ...read more

As I wrote last Sunday, last week I attended a preaching conference as part of St. Augustine’s Seminary 100th anniversary events. It was a who’s who in preaching, with all the talks by homiletics experts from all over North America. I think about homilies all the time. Not so much because I have to prepare ...read more