Denver Catholic

2 SEPTEMBER 2022 | DENVER CATHOLIC W hen I reflect on my experience of the Archdiocesan Synod, Jesus is active in healing his people and empower- ing us for mission. He calls us closer to himself, to deeper intimacy with him, and he renews his Church, even if fewer people in the broader soci- ety are accepting his love. Pope Benedict XVI famously said in a 1969 speech he gave as a priest, "From the crisis of today the Church of tomorrow will emerge." In his view, the Church is going to become both smaller and purer. Since he gave that speech over 50 years ago, it has been discussed a good deal. Pope Francis even recently expressed his agree- ment during an April 2022 meeting with the Jesuits of Malta. "Pope Benedict," he said, "was a prophet of this Church of the future, a Church that will become smaller, lose many privileges, be more humble and authentic and find energy for the essential." Anyone paying attention to cultural trends can see that things are becoming more hostile for people of faith, but we should not let that dis- courage us. We should instead do what the early Church did and draw closer to Jesus. As a part of this journey with Christ, I would like to share with you the fruits of our Archdiocesan Synod Process, so that we can rejoice in his works among us and walk together along his path for the archdiocese. One of the themes that stood out during the listening sessions and in my prayer was the need for healing within the Body of Christ. There are many things that inflict wounds on us today and we must bring these into the light and to Christ for healing. Jesus wants to heal us. Truly clear and common themes arose at the gatherings held at almost 90 of our parishes, demonstrating that the Holy Spirit was speak- ing in the communal prayer of the people of the whole Archdiocese of Denver. Two themes that emerged at the parish level and were echoed at the archdiocesan level were unity and healing. The effects of this were on display in our large Archdiocesan Synod Divine intimacy heals divisions and empowers BY ARCHBISHOP SAMUEL J. AQUILA Follow Archbishop Aquila on Social media: | ARCH B I S H O P ' S CO LU M N

• Cover