Christian faith 'not a museum to look at and save'

Pope Francis told a key Roman Catholic meeting on family issues the Church should not be a hidebound “museum of memories” but have the courage to change if that was what God wanted.

The three-week meeting of bishops from the around the world, known as a synod, will discuss ways to defend the traditional family and making life-long marriage more appealing to young people while seeking common ground with disaffected Catholics such as homosexual people and the divorced.

The gathering, attended by some 300 bishops, delegates, observers, and 18 married couples, has been preceded by intense jockeying between conservatives and liberals on a number of issues.

In his address to open the first working session, the Pope said the bishops should not just talk but try to hear what God wanted for the Church of 1.2bn members and to listen to differing opinions among themselves.

He urged the bishops to humbly empty themselves of conventions and prejudices to listen to their brother bishops.

They should not “point fingers at the others to judge them” or feel superior to those with different ideas.

In a nod to conservatives, he called for courage that “does not let itself be intimidated by the seductions of the world” and passing fads.

However, in a passage that appeared to be directed at unbending traditionalists, he said the bishops should also beware of the “hardening of some hearts, which despite good intentions, keep people away from God”.

Pope Francis tells bishops at Vatican for meeting on family to dismiss personal "prejudices" http://t.co/LwHFfGQBFH pic.twitter.com/6Sz0lswwT6

— New York Times World (@nytimesworld) October 5, 2015

He said Christian faith was “not a museum to look at and save” but should be a source of inspiration. He called on the bishops to have “courage to bring life and not make our Christian life a museum of memories”.

The bishops, meeting behind closed doors, will submit reports to the Pope.

He may use these to write his own document, Apostolic Exhortation, on family issues.

The meeting is the final follow-up to a meeting held a year ago.

That gathering was marked by stormy differences between conservatives and liberals on how much the Church should approach the question of homosexual Catholics.

The immediate run-up has been dominated by gay rights issues.

On the eve of the gathering, the Vatican dismissed a Polish priest from his Holy See job after he came out as gay and called for changes in teachings against homosexual activity.

Conservative Catholics held a conference in Rome just before the synod started on how homosexuals can live by Church rules that they should be chaste.

Activists held another demanding full acceptance of active gay people in the Church.

In its explanation of the firing of the monsignor on Saturday, the Vatican said his very public coming out was intended to put undue media pressure on the synod.