The word “synod” means “to walk together.” As explained by Sr. Natalie Becquart, General Secretariat of the Synod, walking together on the path of synodality is “the call of God for the Church in the third millennium.”
Walking together as a Church means that we let the Holy Spirit guide us wherever He wills. As a Church, we must embrace the horizons that sprawl before us, being open to “the God of surprises,” as Pope Francis is so fond of saying.
However, Francis is also very clear that synodality means walking with Peter and under Peter. That’s the reason why loving the pope is paramount in achieving this goal.
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For years, we have been studying, defending, and writing about the current pope and developing platforms to help spread awareness about the pope and his papacy. For this reason, we sympathize with the goals and objectives of the Love Our Pope Movement (LOPM) and how important it is for such a grassroots movement to exist.
By loving the Pope, we wish to spread this love throughout the Church, as a lay couple committed to having filial devotion to the Pope, praying for the Vicar of Christ and educating others on Church teaching.
Just like St. Paul says, the Church has many members, each one contributing to the general good according to their God-given talents and skills. That is what we aim at doing every day. But this diversity exists in unity, and the guarantor of unity is the pope.
With immense joy, we accepted the invitation from the lead convenor of LOPM, Dr. Jose Mario Bautista Maximiano, to join the LOPM as a couple conveners from Portugal. It is a great honor for us to be a part of such a worthy project, inspired by Pope Francis’ call for a more synodal church. Through LOPM International, we hope to help each other rekindle the flame of filial love that Catholics must have for the sweet Vicar of Christ on earth.
We invite others to join so we can offer this spiritual bouquet. May the Holy Spirit guide us so that this initiative bears many good fruits.
We conclude with the encouraging words of Sr. Natalie Becquart, XMCJ, Undersecretary of the General Secretariat of the Synod of Bishops (Vatican):
“Love Our Pope Movement International is a strong support for the synodal journey of our Church and our Holy Father, Pope Francis. Through prayers, sacrifice, and acts of mercy, LOPM International is a spiritual network that serves as a leaven, mobilizing people for the renewal that the Holy Spirit is bringing about here and now.
“I am pleased to join in this effort to become a prayerful, listening Church following Christ by walking together as brothers and sisters all across the world.
“Let us ask the Holy Spirit to make this time a new Pentecost for the Church and for all of humanity, which God calls us to love and serve. Let us pray for the Holy Father and for all God’s children, especially those most in need.”
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Catholic couple, Dr. Pedro Gabriel and Claire Domingues, founders of The City and the World website. Pedro is an award-winning writer of apologetics books and an Internet journalist. Claire is an Cybersecurity/IT specialist who develops online platforms promoting the pope and his message.
