As the first session of the Synod on Synodality in Rome draws to a close, the members have released a Letter to the People of God. The letter is the first of two documents expected from the synod before it concludes its business in Rome on Oct. 29.

Most modern constitutional states today describe themselves as republics. Such republics sound as though they have a lot in common with Catholic social teaching. They do.

“Recognizing the divergences is unitive,” a bishop member of the synod told me. “It can provide healing.”

In a new letter to the People of God, the synod participants emphasized the importance of continued discernment for the Church's future.

This week on “Jesuitical,” Zac and Ashley discuss a, if not the, big question hanging over the synod: Can it change church teaching?

What message does it send to women when the first synod to include them as full, voting members opts to forgo an actual vote in favor of approval by applause?