Pope Francis has officially appointed Mons. Mario Grech, Bishop Emeritus of Gozo, as Secretary General of the Synod of Bishops. The news was broadcast in the Bulletin of the Vatican Press Room today at 12.00pm.

He is succeeding Em.Cardinal Lorenzo Baldisseri, who has served in this capacity since 21st of September 2013 and during which four Synods were held, including three with Bishop Grech as Bishop of Gozo and President of the Maltese Episcopal Conference.

It was on October 2, 2019 that Pope Francis announced that he was appointing Mons. Mario Grech, then Bishop of Gozo, as General Secretary of the Synod of Bishops.

The main task of the Secretary-General of the Synod of Bishops, with his office in The Vatican, is to be the Head of this important Department on behalf of the Pope, who is the President.

The Secretary General, nominated by the Pope himself, directs the work of the General Secretariat, chairs the meetings in the absence of the Pope, and writes deeds; nominates the Officers of the Secretariat, who depend on it; and communicates to the Pope all matters relating to the activity of the Secretariat.

He plays an important role in the preparatory phase of the Synod Assembly, where he publishes the required documents and compile the results of the ecclesial consultation; convenes the Presinodal Meetings; appoints and chairs the Preparatory Commission; communicate and publish the Pope’s nomination for President Delegate, General Rapporteur and Special Secretary of each Assembly; submit to the Pope the list of elected Members; communicate and publish the names of the Synod Fathers confirmed or nominated by the Pope; after hearing the Rapporteur General and the Special Secretary, nominate the Experts and Auditors, and if necessary also the Special Guest; publish the names of Fraternal Delegates from Churches and Communities Ecclesiastics who are not yet in full union with the Catholic Church; passes to the Fathers Synodal Documents relating to the Synodal Assembly; take care of the elaboration and publication of the Rules of Procedure of the Synod Assembly.

In the celebratory phase of the Synod Assembly, the Secretary-General has a duty to maintain an initial relationship, to set out the tasks of the pre-part-stage phase and to demonstrate the procedures to be followed. be adopted during the Assembly; prepare and communicate the timing of tasks, while distribute according to an appropriate criterion the General Congregations and the Sessions of the Circles Minors; determine the order and maximum duration of the interventions of the Synod Fathers during the General Congregations; form the Minor Circles and their distribution; gives communications to inform on various aspects of a procedure; sees to it, during the work, respected standards; see to it that members can actively participate and that tasks are carried out properly; takes care of keeping the records in the dedicated archives.

In the implementation phase of the Synod Assembly, the Secretary-General’s job is to collaborate with the Head of the Department of the Roman Curia competent for the theme of the Synod to promote implementation and chair the Commission for implementation.

In a short speech on this occasion in the presence of the Pope, Mons. Grech expressed gratitude and admiration to his predecessor Cardinal Baldisseri, and expressed his desire to follow in his footsteps, having had the opportunity to participate in three of the four Synods he organised.

Meanwhile, Mons. Anton Teuma, Bishop of Gozo, together with the Archpriests and Parish Priests Gozitans gathered together for a Seminar, are sending this message of congratulations to Bishop Grech: “With feelings of joy and thanksgiving to God, we bring the news of the Pope’s appointment Francis of Mons. Bishop Mario Grech as Secretary General of the Synod. The Synod is an event in which Bishops gather to discuss topics important to the life of the Church. In the day in which we commemorate the establishment of our Diocese of Gozo, we pray to God for the Pope and for the Bishop who will assist in such an important mission in universal leadership.”

In his first Pastoral Letter as Bishop of Gozo, Bishop Anton Teuma had thanked Mons. Grech “who in your person will take part of the Gozitan Church in the heart of the Universal Church “, and in a letter of congratulations written to him a few days ago, defined his new ministry in the Synod Secretariat as one of the “leaders of the Church.”

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