Benedict XVI: at the Synod, we spoke as pastors

While most of the attention this week was in relation to the announcement about the Anglican Church, the Synod of African Bishops was also taking place in Rome. Here is a talk by Pope Benedict XVI after a meal.

"The term Church - Family of God is no longer just a concept or an idea: it is a living experience of these weeks.

We really were the Family of God are gathered here.

The theme itself was not an easy challenge, with two dangers.

With the help of the Lord, we have done a good job.

This theme: reconciliation, justice and peace certainly implies a strong political dimension but it is clear that reconciliation, justice and peace are not possible without a profound purification of the heart, without a renewal of thought, a metanoia - without the new creation that must come from the encounter with God."