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The following is an excerpt from the Archdiocese of Denver Synodal Process Executive Report. You can read the report in full at synod.archden.org. 5 DENVER CATHOLIC | SEPTEMBER 2022 modern age. Thus, these times are apostolic for we find ourselves, in many respects, locked in a time that resem- bles various moments in our Church's history including the primitive Church: a church composed of 12 apostles, 72 disciples, and a few hundred followers living in a hos- tile environment with little to nothing in terms of human power and resources. 2 Yet, the fire of their love for Christ and the fire of the Holy Spirit burned deeply in their hearts and it allowed them to set the entire world on fire. In an apostolic time, the heart of apostolic mission is to gain a genuine conversion of mind and vision through a bold and new proclamation of the saving message of the Gospel, which has the power to transform our minds to behold a sacramental vision of the world. 3 This new cultural situation required us to listen to the Holy Spirit for his inspiration, so that we can be equipped to live and share the Gospel that gives our lives purpose and meaning. This, however, would require a transformation of mind, vision, and practice for our archdiocese, for our parishes, and for all followers of Jesus Christ. From this realization and through prayer, we received from the Lord profound clarity on why we exist as a Church, captured in the fol- lowing statement written by Archbishop Aquila and his leadership team: The Archdiocese of Denver exists so that in Jesus Christ all might be rescued and have abundant life, for the glory of the Father. With this beautiful clarity, we turned our attention to discerning how we would carry out this work which God had begun to set aflame in our hearts. The invitation to enter this synodal process locally, coming from the Holy Father at the time that it did, was our answer. It became clear to Archbishop Aquila, as he prayed with his lead- ership team and the guiding documents of the synod process, that the Lord was providing this opportunity as a way to accelerate the work he was beginning to do. 4 Thus, the synodal process was our response to this invitation from the Lord to engage the people of God in the Archdi- ocese of Denver in a process of formation and listening across our parishes and in a diocesan-wide gathering to regain clarity on the mission the Lord has given to his Church and to listen collectively for where and how he was inviting us to extend that mission today in this new apostolic age. Archbishop Aquila, placing our synodal process under the protection of Our Lady of Guadalupe, proceeded to commission a Synod Team composed of men and women from various races, nationalities, and vocations as repre- sentatives of the Church of northern Colorado to prepare for and carry out our synodal process. ⊲ 1 Synod Preparatory Document, I. The Call to Journey Together, #4 2 Reflection on apostolic mission derived from discernment with the text, From Christendom to Apostolic Mission: Pastoral Strategies for an Apostolic Age, University of Mary Press. 2020. 3 Ibid. 4 Archbishop Samuel Aquila. November 19, 2021. Synod Can Accelerate Our Missionary Move. https://denvercatholic.org/ synod-can-accelerate-our-missionary-move/