Pope Leo gathers bishops for review of ‘Amoris Laetitia’

Pope Leo XIV gathered bishops from around the world at the Vatican Oct. 7 for an eight-day, closed-door review examining how his predecessor’s pastoral teaching on marriage and family life has been applied over the past decade.

The gathering marks the 10th anniversary of Amoris Laetitia, Pope Francis’ apostolic exhortation on love in the family, which draws on two synods to address married love, raising children, and accompanying families in difficult circumstances.

Nearly 200 participants are meeting Oct. 7–14 in the Vatican’s Paul VI Audience Hall to discuss the initiatives developed in response to the exhortation and the challenges faced in carrying them out, Vatican News reported Oct. 7.

“I hope that, through the many stories you bring from your Churches and from different cultural contexts, a shared narrative of these ten years may gradually take shape, one marked by joy and hope, and that will enable us to face honestly the trials and difficulties that remain,” Pope Leo said in his opening address.

Vatican News said the program includes plenary sessions, group work, and prayer. The Holy Father asked participants to preserve “discretion and confidentiality” during the discussions, whose findings will be gathered in a summary report, according to the outlet.

Speakers at the meeting include Cardinal Kevin Farrell, prefect of the Dicastery for Laity, Family and Life, and Cardinal Mario Grech, secretary general of the Synod, both of whom addressed the Oct. 8 sessions.

Cardinal Farrell said the day’s goal was to “reflect together, in light of the Gospel, on the cultural, economic and social context in which family ministry takes place,” Vatican News reported.

In his opening address, the Holy Father asked bishops to consider whether their communities remain close to families experiencing hardship. 

“What kind of Church, then, do people encounter precisely when they are most fragile? Do our communities help them discover that they still have a place, a responsibility and gifts to offer? Can the truth we proclaim be encountered through the patience, closeness and mercy of our pastoral presence? How can we announce to them the fullness of the Gospel’s teaching about the family?” he asked.

The Holy Father also reflected on how the bishops should approach their work together.

“Listening to one another, allowing what we hear to resonate within us, and remaining attentive to the promptings of the Holy Spirit can awaken the pastoral creativity we need in the face of new questions,” he said.

Pope Leo closed his address with a prayer for the work ahead.

He said, “May the Lord give us the freedom to listen to one another, the wisdom to recognize His work among His people, and the courage to follow where He leads us, so that, each day, the Gospel may become ever more fully good news for families throughout the world.”