Baptised and sent: Pilgrims of the Synodal Pathway

Julieann Moran reflects on how walking together is shaping renewal in the Irish Church, as the Pre-Synodal Assembly in Kilkenny approaches

On Saturday, October 18, 2025, the Church in Ireland will gather in Kilkenny for a Pre-Synodal Assembly, an important moment on the road towards the National Synodal Assembly in 2026. Delegates from dioceses, religious communities, movements, and associations across the country will come together. This assembly builds on several years of prayer, listening and dialogue, beginning in March 2021 when the Irish Church embarked on its Synodal Pathway, and the later call of Pope Francis for a Universal Synod on the theme of Synodality.

Through prayer, listening, and Conversation in the Spirit, a picture has been emerging. At the heart of what we are discerning is the rediscovery of our baptismal calling”

The Pre-Synodal Assembly in Kilkenny represents the next step. It is not the final word, but a decisive moment of confirmation, when the voices of local communities are gathered together nationally. What emerges here will help shape the agenda and priorities of the first national assembly next year, ensuring that the process remains rooted in the lived faith of the People of God, the Pobal Dé.

When we began this Synodal Pathway in 2021, we set ourselves a simple yet profound question: ‘What does God want from the Church in Ireland at this time?’ Through prayer, listening, and Conversation in the Spirit, a picture has been emerging. At the heart of what we are discerning is the rediscovery of our baptismal calling. Baptism is the foundation of our dignity, the source of our unity, and the wellspring of our mission. It is through baptism that women and men, young and old, lay and ordained, are called to discipleship, which includes sharing responsibility for the life and witness of the Church. Seen through this lens, all that we have heard finds its coherence – the longing for welcome, the hunger for formation, the call to healing, the urgency of inclusion.

The voices we have listened to speak with both honesty and hope. We have heard a deep desire for belonging, especially among those who feel excluded or judged. We have heard the call to support families and young people, to empower women and lay people in leadership, to renew our liturgy, and to strengthen faith formation so that our communities may radiate the joy of the Gospel. Alongside these hopes, we have heard the pain of those wounded by the Church and the cry for accountability, reconciliation, and healing. We have also encountered tensions between invitation and expectation, tradition and renewal, continuity and change. These differences need not divide us but can draw us deeper into discernment so a harmonious consensus may emerge.

The priorities emerging from this process, outlined in the preparatory document for Kilkenny, are not isolated tasks but dimensions of one baptismal vocation. Together they point towards a Church that God is calling us to be; a Church of welcome and belonging, rooted in baptism, alive in mission, and open to the future that the Holy Spirit is preparing.

The Paradigm of Baptism

For me, what has become increasingly clear is that baptism is not simply one theme among many but the very heart of our pathway. From it flows our dignity, mission, and welcome. It gives coherence to all that we have heard: every charism, ministry, formation step, and act of service flows from the same grace. Baptism enables us to face tensions without fear, holding invitation and expectation, tradition and renewal together. Our Synodal Pathway is not about inventing something new but rediscovering what is already ours in Christ: walking together in discipleship and mission, trusting the Holy Spirit even when the road ahead is unclear.

Healing as an Explicit Priority

In reflecting on submissions from local gatherings in spring 2025, the National Synodal Team experienced a profound moment of silence that shaped its discernment. Out of that silence emerged with clarity and urgency the voices of survivors and victims of abuse. Healing, with all that it demands in terms of justice, accountability, and reconciliation, must be named explicitly as a priority for the Church in Ireland today. This is not simply one issue among many, but a Gospel imperative. Healing is not opposed to mission. It is mission. It is the way in which the Church can embody the compassion of Jesus Christ and allow trust to be rebuilt, step by step, with humility and courage.

Seven Emerging Priorities

The National Synodal Team proposes seven priorities in the next steps of the Irish Synodal Pathway. In presenting these priorities, the Team invites all members of the Church to approach them through the lens of baptism, which remains the foundational paradigm for understanding, energising, and sustaining the life and mission of the Church.

Belonging: fostering a Church of welcome, inclusion, and safety where each person finds a home in community and in Christ.

Co-responsibility and Lay Ministry: empowering all the baptised, women and men, to share responsibility for leadership and mission through new models of ministry and decision-making.

Family: supporting the domestic Church as the primary place of faith transmission and belonging, and strengthening its connection with parishes and schools.

Formation and Catechesis: deepening faith through lifelong formation that is Christ-centred, experiential, and equips the baptised for discipleship in today’s world. Rooted not only in learning but also in liturgy and sacramental life, so that prayer and worship become living sources of faith, understanding, and mission.

Healing: acknowledging wounds, especially those caused by abuse; committing to accountability, justice, and reconciliation; and ensuring safe spaces for survivors and all who carry pain.

Women: recognising and including women’s gifts, leadership, and co-responsibility at every level of Church life, as a matter of justice and credibility.

Youth: engaging young people with authenticity, offering them meaningful roles in leadership and mission, and listening to their hopes and challenges.

Taken together, these priorities sketch the contours of a renewed Church, one rooted in baptism and open to the Spirit’s promptings.

A Moment of Gratitude

As pilgrims on this journey of faith, we pause to reflect on the path we have travelled and the guidance we have received. We pause in gratitude for the witness of Pope Francis, whose prophetic call to synodality has shaped and inspired our pathway. His life and teaching remind us that the Church is most alive when it listens, accompanies, and embraces with compassion. As we give thanks for his legacy, we also look with hope to Pope Leo XIV, whose emphasis on peace, urging us to build bridges, live in dialogue, and embrace a “disarming peace” resonates deeply with our calling today. We also acknowledge with gratitude the Irish bishops, whose vision and courage in setting out on this Synodal Pathway have opened new possibilities for renewal and hope. Gratitude strengthens us for the road ahead, as pilgrims who walk together in faith and hope.

As we continue to walk this path together, may we be guided by Jesus Christ who calls us to be his people, strengthened by the Holy Spirit who leads us in truth, and may we be drawn ever closer to God our Father, source of all life and love.

Julieann Moran is General Secretary of the Irish Synodal Pathway.