Synod secretariat’s shifting role shows growing influence

The Secretariat of the Synod of Bishops is organizing a meeting for presidents of bishops' conferences and Eastern Catholic patriarchs in Rome next month to discuss Amoris laetitia. Although the meeting is not a synod and the thematic framework was originally published by the Dicastery for the Laity, Family, and Life, the Secretariat is managing the preparations.

This involvement follows the Secretariat's organization of two extraordinary consistories held by Pope Leo. Previously, the Secretariat of State organized extraordinary consistories of the College of Cardinals, while special meetings, such as the 2019 meeting on the protection of minors, were managed by appointed committees of cardinals, bishops, and experts.