Synod members send final message back to committee for changes

Published: 2005-10-21

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Members of the Synod of Bishops sent their final message back to committee, citing problems not only with word choice and translations, but also with substance on issues such as the status of divorced and civilly remarried Catholics. Cardinal Marc Ouellet of Quebec, chairman of the drafting committee, was scheduled to present the synod's message to the church during a midday press conference Oct. 21; instead he was spending the afternoon reworking the text. Father Giorgio Costantino, a synod briefing officer, told reporters that Cardinal Ouellet had presented a second draft of the message to the synod Oct. 21, but "many synod fathers intervened to make suggestions" for further changes. The first draft had elicited about 200 proposed amendments. The Vatican later announced that the message would be released Oct. 22. The synod, which began Oct. 2, was scheduled to conclude Oct. 23.

Copyright (c) 2005 Catholic News Service /U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops. The CNS news report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or otherwise distributed, including but not limited to such means as framing or any other digital copying or distribution method, in whole or in part without the prior written authority of Catholic News Service .