Cardinal Mario Grech, Secretary General of the Synod of Bishops since 2020, addressed the US bishops in a 14-minute video message.

The theme of the XVI Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops is For a synodal church: communion, participation, and mission. The synod began in Rome on October 9 and in local dioceses on October 17. The diocesan phase will conclude in August 2022, and the entire synod concludes in Rome in October 2023.