General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops

In the Roman Catholic Church, the Synod of Bishops is an advisory body for the Pope. It is described in the Code of Canon Law (CIC) as "a group of bishops who have been chosen from different regions of the world and meet together at fixed times to foster closer unity between the Roman Pontiff and bishops, to assist the Roman Pontiff with their counsel in the preservation and growth of faith and morals and in the observance and strengthening of ecclesiastical discipline, and to consider questions pertaining to the activity of the Church in the world".

Of its nature, the Synod of Bishops is permanent, even when not in session. Periodically, it holds assemblies, which are either general, if called to consider matters directly concerning the universal Church, or special, if called for problems of a particular geographical area. The general assemblies are either ordinary (held at fixed intervals) or extraordinary (held to treat of some urgent matter).

As well as holding these periodic assemblies, the Synod of Bishops has a permanent secretariat which is headquartered in Rome but is not part of the Roman Curia. The Code of Canon Law's chapter on the Synod of Bishops comes after that on the Pope and the College of Bishops, and before that on the cardinals. In the Annuario Pontificio, information on it is given before that on episcopal conferences.

The idea of establishing a group of bishops to assist the Pope in governing the church emerged in 1959, when Cardinal Silvio Oddi proposed a permanent consultative body of bishops drawn from many parts of the world to discuss major concerns of the Church. The same year Cardinal Alfrink proposed a permanent council of specialized bishops to legislate for the Church in union with the Pope and the cardinals. In 1963, during the third session of the Second Vatican Council, Patriarch Maximos IV proposed that the church should be governed by the successors of Peter (the Pope) and of the apostles (the bishops), not by the Pope and the "Roman clergy" (the cardinals). Maximos proposed that the Council establish a rotating body of bishops in continuous residence in Rome to assist the Pope.

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