Thank you to all those who have participated in the consultation process for the Melbourne Synod.
Through regional meetings, parish gatherings, consultations with retired priests of the Archdiocese, priests in active ministry, and community organisations, we have come together to reflect prayerfully on the Synod themes for discernment:
Formation and ParticipationMissionary LeadershipYoung Discipleship
We are grateful to the National Centre for Pastoral Research for their careful analysis of the consultation data. This work is now being prepared for the Synod Writing Groups.
Throughout September, the Synod working document (Instrumentum Laboris) will be developed and refined. The document will then be made available for further feedback during October. The working document is a guide for discussion and discernment, and captures what has been heard throughout the consultation process. It will help Synod members focus on the key questions, priorities, and opportunities facing the Church in its mission and future direction.
Prepared through prayerful analysis and discernment of the feedback received, the document brings together the principal themes, insights, and questions that have emerged. It will serve as an important resource for discussion and discernment during the Synod Assembly from 4-6 December 2026.
The Synod Commission has also been progressing the member selection process. Attendance at the Synod is guided by Canon §463 and includes clergy, religious and lay representatives. A number of members will participate by virtue of their office, including the auxiliary bishops, the vicar general, episcopal vicars, members of the council of priests, and the rectors of major seminaries.
The Synod will also include parish priests, representatives of ministries and pastoral bodies, and members freely appointed by the Archbishop of Melbourne. In addition, 60 lay members, comprising 15 representatives from each region, will be selected. Parishes have been actively engaged in nominating candidates for these positions. Priests have participated in the nomination of priest members, while nominations are also being received for religious sisters and brothers, as well as deacons.
A liturgy and prayer group has also been formed and is preparing the prayers and liturgical celebrations that will guide Synod members in their discernment throughout the Synod process.
Together, these members will reflect the breadth and diversity of the Archdiocese as they gather for prayer, discernment and consultation during the Synod.