Bangkok: More than fifty bishops and Church leaders from across Asia gathered in Samphran, a western suburb of Bangkok, from September 22 to 26, for a seminar designed to deepen the practice of synodality in preparation for the 2026 Federation of Asian Bishops’ Conferences (FABC) Plenary Assembly in Bali.
The seminar, hosted at Baan Phuwan Pastoral Training Center, formally opened on September 23 with Mass celebrated by Archbishop Anthony Weradet Chaiseri, Vice President of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Thailand. He explained that the meeting sought to help bishops study and internalize the Synod’s Final Document, reflect on its meaning for their dioceses, and explore practical ways to strengthen synodality across Asia.
Archbishop Chaiseri noted that the event also revisited the Bangkok Document of 2022, issued during the FABC’s 50th anniversary, which has become a cornerstone of Asia’s engagement with the global synodal process. “The purpose was not only to analyze documents,” he said, “but to discern how we can bring them to life in the local Churches.”
The approach combined lectures, prayerful reflection, and small-group sharing modeled after the Synod of Bishops in Rome. Participants stressed that Asia’s spiritual traditions of silence, attentive listening, and consensus closely resonate with the global method of Conversation in the Spirit.
Nine discussion groups worked intensively on three major themes:
Bridging Documents: exploring how the Synod’s Final Document connects with the Bangkok Document and its vision for Asia.
Reception in Asia: assessing how dioceses across the continent have engaged with the synodal journey so far.
Transparency and Accountability: emphasizing the need for openness in governance and leadership within a synodal Church.
Through these sessions, bishops highlighted the importance of building structures of participation and fostering a spirit of co-responsibility among clergy, religious, and lay faithful.
The Bangkok seminar comes at a critical juncture as the global Church moves into the implementation phase of the Synod, following the publication of the Final Document in November 2024 and the release of a practical framework by Cardinal Mario Grech in March 2025.
Running until 2028, this framework calls for bishops worldwide to establish clear pastoral goals and timelines while promoting broad participation. This includes clergy, parish communities, young people, marginalized groups, skeptics of the synodal process, as well as institutions such as Catholic schools, hospitals, prisons, religious communities, lay movements, and digital platforms.
For Archbishop Chaiseri, the Bangkok meeting reflects Asia’s growing commitment to walk together as a synodal Church while remaining firmly united with the universal Church under the leadership of Pope Leo XIV.
“These meetings,” he emphasized, “reveal a deepening desire among Asian Churches to strengthen communion, embrace transparency, and move forward with courage on the path of synodality. The journey is not only administrative but spiritual rooted in listening, discernment, and walking in closer unity with the Universal Church.”
The seminar also serves as a stepping stone toward the next FABC Plenary Assembly, scheduled for Bali in 2026, where bishops are expected to consolidate their reflections and propose concrete strategies for embedding synodality into the daily life of Asian Catholic communities.
As the Church in Asia continues to face challenges of diversity, poverty, and rapid social change, the bishops’ collective commitment to synodality signals a renewed hope: a Church more participatory, transparent, and united in its mission to serve Christ in the continent’s varied contexts.