Pope Francis greets a group of women religious as he arrives for his general audience in Paul VI hall at the Vatican Aug. 7, 2019. (CNS photo/Yara Nardi, Reuters)
Editors’ note: This is the English translation of an open letter to Pope Francis by María Lía Zervino, the president of the World Union of Catholic Women’s Organisations. It is published here with the author’s permission.
Dear Pope Francis,
First of all, a big thank you
Thank you for having given yourself completely in these eight years. From the beginning, you have challenged us with pastoral conversion for the whole Church and you are the first to strive for it. The Second Vatican Council marked a historical event in the life of the Church and from your pontificate there will be a milestone in the intense and long process of implementation of the Council. For this, as we Argentines say, you have “put all the meat on the grill” (“give it all one’s got”).
Pope Francis on Saturday appointed a woman as an undersecretary to the Synod of Bishops for the first time, reported BBC. She was named to the position alongside Father Luis Marín de San Martin.
Sister Nathalie Becquart will have voting rights in the Synod of Bishops – an advisory body for the pope that debates major matters related to the Roman Catholic Church. Sister Becquart, who belongs to France, has worked as a consultant with the synod since 2019.
Becquart said that the appointment was a call to “serve the Universal Church”, reported
Vatican News. The main job is “to help and lead the preparation of the Synod, then the celebration, then the next stage of the implementation”, she said.