Church governance is not about command and control. It’s about who we are and who we aspire to be as a Christian community, as the body of Christ. Since 2013, Pope Francis has been teaching this lesson in all that he does and says. Lately he’s been saying synodality just about every time he opens his mouth.

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- The Vatican has issued the preparatory document and a "handbook" for dioceses as part of the global church's preparation for the 2023 assembly of the Synod of Bishops, discussing the theme, "For a synodal church: communion, participation and mission."

VATICAN CITY -- After issuing revised guidelines for preparing for the next world Synod of Bishops, leaders of the synod's general secretariat held online meetings with the presidents and general secretaries of national and regional bishops' conferences.

VATICAN CITY -- Approving the revision of the entire process of the Synod of Bishops, Pope Francis has asked that it begin with serious, widespread consultations with laypeople on the diocesan level.

VATICAN CITY -- Xaviere Missionary Sister Nathalie Becquart will not be the first woman undersecretary of a major Vatican office, but she will be the first woman with a right to vote at a meeting of the Synod of Bishops.

VATICAN CITY -- Pope Francis has appointed Bishop Mario Grech of Gozo, Malta, as pro-secretary-general of the Synod of Bishops, the Vatican said.

VATICAN CITY - Within the universal Christian vocation of serving God and serving others, God handcrafts a specific calling for each person, a vocation that fits his or her personality and abilities, Pope Francis said.

From the Pope on down, sentiment is growing to more fully integrate women into the everyday life of the male-dominated Church. So far, though, it’s been a lot of talk and too little action. Events at this month’s Synod of Bishops on youth illustrate that point.

VATICAN – Just because some young people disagree with Catholic moral teaching, including in the area of sexuality, does not mean the church's teachings are unclear or should change, Cardinal Robert Sarah told the Synod of Bishops.

VATICAN – Archbishop Jose Luis Escobar Alas of San Salvador asked Pope Francis to proclaim St. Oscar Romero the church's first Latin American "doctor of the church."

VATICAN – At a Synod of Bishops where "cultural shift," "epochal change" and "massive challenge" are almost buzz phrases, Archbishop Jean-Claude Hollerich of Luxembourg said, "I'm very optimistic."

ROME (CNS) -- The days of making "weak excuses" in response to the sexual abuse crisis are over, said German Cardinal Reinhard Marx of Munich and Freising.

VATICAN – The Synod of Bishops increasingly should be a structure for listening to the Catholic faithful, demonstrating a local bishop's concern for the entire church and a means of expressing all the bishops' unity with the pope, Pope Francis said.

PUERTO MALDONADO, Peru – On a Sunday night in early July, four men – two of them indigenous – were brutally murdered in Assis, a tiny Brazilian town on the border with Peru.

VATICAN CITY – As his delegates to preside over sessions of the Synod of Bishops in October, Pope Francis has chosen four cardinals from countries where young people are facing special challenges.