[12] Later that month, Archbishop Lorenzo Baldisseri, Secretary General of the Synod of Bishops, sent a questionnaire[13][14] to episcopal conferences around the globe asking them to distribute it "immediately as widely as possible to deaneries and parishes so that input from local sources can be received.

"[15] The document, which includes 39 questions on 9 topic areas touching on themes such as contraception, same-sex unions, cohabitation by unwed couples, and marriage and divorce, marked "the first time the church's central hierarchy has asked for such input from grass-roots Catholics.

"[15] Responses were received from the synods of the Eastern Catholic Churches sui iuris, the episcopal conferences, the departments of the Roman Curia, and the Union of Superiors General.

[16] In addition, over 800 other organizations,[16] including parishes, movements, groups, ecclesial associations, families, and both Catholic and non-Catholic academic institutions, also sent responses, which were categorized as observations.

"[16] There were 253 participants in the synod, including 114 presidents of bishops' conferences, 13 heads of Eastern Catholic Churches sui iuris, 25 heads of the dicasteries of the Roman Curia, nine members of the Ordinary Council for the Secretariat, the Secretary General of the synod, the Undersecretary, three male religious elected by the Union of Superiors General, 26 members appointed by Pope Francis, eight fraternal delegates, 38 auditors including 13 married couples, and 16 experts.

American journalist John L. Allen Jr. described the synod as "divided" with "a vigorous debate"[21] between a "moderate-to-progressive camp" that was pushing for more welcoming language and "conservatives worried about blurring church teaching.

"[28] One of the lay couples to speak were the Australians Ron and Mavis Pirola, who addressed the synod on contemporary family life, saying that it was their desire to have sex with each other that brought them together and kept them together in spite of problems.

"[21] After the speech, Cardinal Timothy Dolan pulled aside Archbishop Sviatoslav Shevchuk, head of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, and taped a segment for his radio show that criticized the comments.

[36] This interim report was supposed to summarize the more than 265 speeches and written position papers given by the participants up until that point and to serve as a basis for detailed discussion in smaller language groups with a view to preparing a final text to be voted on afterwards.

[38] The "lead author" of the interim report was not Erdő but Forte, described as "one of the more noted theological minds in the Italian hierarchy"[36] and "known for pushing the pastoral envelope on dealing with people in 'irregular' unions while staying true to Catholic doctrine.

[22] Among other reasons, the document was controversial as a mention of the law of gradualness was perceived to be employed in a sense that had been rejected by Pope John Paul II in 1981 and by the Pontifical Council for the Family in 1997.

"[43] It added that the Church ought to recognize the value of same-sex relationships: "Without denying the moral problems connected to homosexual unions it has to be noted that there are cases in which mutual aid to the point of sacrifice constitutes a precious support in the life of the partners.

[4] The issue of allowing divorced and remarried Catholics to receive the Eucharist was discussed "with much passion," "kept the attention of numerous speakers during the Synod," and "required a lot of energy.

"[22] In the months leading up to the synod, a speech given by Cardinal Walter Kasper was leaked to the press in which he suggested that "after a period of penance" Catholics who had divorced and remarried could be admitted to the sacraments of reconciliation and then Communion.

[47] Cardinal George Pell predicted that the synod would "not be giving in to the secular agenda," with reference to the question of Holy Communion for those in irregular marriage situations.

Of the bishops at the synod, 41 publicly expressed concern, noting the absence of the word "sin" and of the "gospel of the family" and the presence of various sentences open to misinterpretation.

[50] Gądecki, speaking in Polish on Vatican Radio, said that many of the synod fathers saw the text as "strongly ideologized, because it considered more the sociological than the theological side," but above all because "some of its theses seemed to devastate the magisterium of the Church.

James Martin stated in America that the language used "represents a revolutionary change in how the church addresses the LGBT community," pointing to the document's lack of use of phrases such as "intrinsically disordered.

"[43] The attitude change on homosexuality signaled by the interim report was welcomed by gay groups such as DignityUSA, who said that the "positive language" used "is more affirming and will give many people hope.

"[55] Archbishop Zbigņevs Stankevičs echoed Gądecki, saying that to face the strong ideological attack waged today against the family, the synod must apply the Church's teaching afresh to the situation, but not by "losing our Catholic identity and without renouncing the truth about marriage.

"[50] The midterm report left people with many questions, said Archbishop Joseph Edward Kurtz, who added "we didn't want to leave the synod with that lack of clarity."

[19] The papally-appointed drafting committee was originally composed of Erdő, Ravasi, Wuerl, Fernandez, Aguiar Retes, Bishop Peter Woo-il Kang, and Father Adolfo Nicolas Pachon, S.J.

[62] The final report served as the working paper for the larger synod of about 250 members that would take place on 4-25 October 2015[16] on the "vocation and mission of the family in the church and the modern world.

[60] The report in paragraph 56 declared altogether unacceptable the application of pressure exercised by, for example, international organizations that make legalization of same-sex marriage a condition of financial assistance.

"[57] This was a change from the interim report's statement that homosexuals have gifts to offer the Church,[57] and repeated Catholic teaching that "every sign of unjust discrimination in their regard should be avoided.

[5] In his closing speech, Pope Francis told the bishops that the Church needs to "chart a middle course between 'hostile rigidity' and a 'false sense of mercy'.”[22] It was said that he was "striving mightily to hold the [conservative and progressive] camps together.

"[65] Historian of religions Odon Vallet, commenting in the French daily 20 Minutes, said that the rejection of the language in the interim report signaled a failure of Pope Francis to advance "progressive" views that would make him think hard before trying to do the same at the 2015 synod.