MONTREAL (LifeSiteNews) — The 2026 Canadian Catholic Bishops’ Plenary Assembly will see the Canadian Church leaders hear reflections on synodality from a Peruvian bishop who was appointed as an archbishop by Pope Leo XIV only weeks after he attended a Pachamama ritual.
In a letter to Pope Leo XIV dated September 21, 2026, President of the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops (CCCB) Most Rev. Pierre Goudreault, bishop of Sainte-Anne-de-la-Pocatière, noted how now-Archbishop Lizardo Estrada Herrera will give “reflections on synodality.”
“Our reflections on synodality will be enriched by the Most Reverend Lizardo Estrada Herrera, O.S.A., Secretary General of CELAM, who will share with us the experience of its implementation in Latin America,” wrote Goudreault.
Goudreault noted that Herrera’s keynote address will “offer a concrete point of reference, as we consider how synodality could be further strengthened in the Church in Canada.”
“We will also undertake, in a form new to our recent Plenary practice, a facilitated synodal-style reflection on the Conference itself. Beginning with the strengths we have received and wish to preserve, we will consider where its structures and services might be strengthened or adjusted so as to support more effectively our ministry as Bishops and our common responsibilities,” he added.
As reported by LifeSiteNews, Pope Leo XIV was criticized for appointing Bishop Herrera as an auxiliary bishop in Cusco, Peru, in August 2026. It was noted that Herrera attended a ritual offering to Pachamama.
Pope Leo is expected to visit Peru this November.
When it comes to the “synodality process,” which calls for an more “open” church and which many have warned will lead to the normalization of sin in the Church, Cardinal Raymond Burke noted that, “There is no definition of synodality. There’s no history of it in the Church.”
He went further, adding that “this whole synodality business must stop.”
“And there be a very serious study done of the whole matter, because we’re talking about the very life of the Church and we’re talking about the salvation of souls,” he said.
The Canadian Bishops Plenary Assembly is taking place in Montreal, Quebec, from September 21 to 25.
Besides Herrera’s talk, the bishops will have daily Mass, as well as 500th Anniversary celebrations of the Apparitions of Our Lady of Guadalupe, along with a Holy Hour “with Vespers for Victims and Survivors of Sexual Abuse.”