The Final Report: “For a Synodal Church”
The Conversion of Bonds (aka place and connection)
Once again, the numbers included in my reflection below tie to the paragraph number in the Final Report: For a Synodal Church - Communion, Participation and Mission.
The subtitle of this section is “An Abundant Catch.” The net cast to the other side of the boat yielded an abundant catch. Now it needed to be hauled in. All the disciples work together to accomplish this. Each has their own task but works in concert with others. This is synodality in action - united in mission of preaching the Gospel while still offering space for all peoples and cultures. (109)
So much of this section inspires me and I hope it will inspire the Church.
The Parish . . . a place that is real and welcoming - a home . . .
“Place” is not just a geographic location, but a way of belonging, a network of relationships, and a dynamic culture. Technology and globalization have blurred traditional boundaries, and present new obstacles as well as new opportunities to communion. The Church is called to help rebuild community life, valuing still-useful structures, but adding new forms of pastoral action and concrete processes of care. In this way, we become a much-needed welcoming face in a place and time that cries out for that. (111)
Holy Spirit, give us ears to hear!
Although the Church must dedicate resources to the digital environment, “place” is still a real and actual setting in which we come to experience our humanity. Here the web of relationships is established. Here the Church expresses its sacramentality and carries out its mission. (114)
Holy Spirit, give us ears to hear!
Church is called to be a “home,” not a closed space to be defended at all costs, but a place that offers the possibility of welcome, hospitality and inclusion. Our commitment, supported by the Spirit, is to ensure that the Church is perceived as a welcoming home, a sacrament of encounter and salvation, a school of communion for all the sons and daughters of God. (115) AMEN!
Holy Spirit, give us ears to hear!
. . . a home that equips people for mission
While the local diocese, presided over and shepherded by its bishop, is the fundamental unit of organization, the parish is a privileged place of relationships, welcome and discernment of mission. People gather there from different generations, professions, geographical origins, social classes and statuses. By accompanying and forming parishioners, the parish equips people for mission. (117)
Parish ministries and associations often bring the gospel to diverse audiences - hospitals, prisons, homes for the elderly, refugee and youth centers, shelters for the homeless and those affected by violence, as well as centers for education and social connection. (118) By walking together and exchanging our gifts, we are a sign of the love and the mercy of God.
. . . a home that aspires to be a prophetic voice
The Church, both at the local level and as a unified body, aspires to be a prophetic network of relationships that promotes a culture of encounter, social justice, inclusion of the marginalized, communion among peoples, and care for the earth, our common home. Each must grow and share its resources in a spirit of solidarity, without paternalism or subordination, with respect for diversity and promoting reciprocity. By doing this we give witness to the unity of the Church. (121)
Holy Spirit, give us ears to hear!
A synodal Church commits itself to walk this path alongside the believers of other religions and peoples of other beliefs wherever it lives. Brothers and sisters all, we aim to work in a spirit of mutual aid and activity to build a world of justice, peace and solidarity. (123)
But . . .
As much as the first half of this section – Conversion of Bonds - inspires me, the second half challenges me and, I believe, will challenge the Church. Real changes and reforms in the exercise of Church authority are beginning to be discussed here.
In this section, the Church is presented, not as a monolith - a seamless, indivisible, unchanging, impersonal structure - but as a living organization. A living organization made up of regional bishops’ conferences, united in doctrine under the headship of the Pope, but able to adapt local Church practices to meet cultural needs. The Pope presides over the Church as a whole, ensuring doctrine is adhered to, but allowing the pace and substance of approved changes to move forward at the Bishops’ Conference’s discretion.
This feels like new ground to me; a bit scary, but also, I think, necessary. A Church that recognizes that there are real differences in culture and context from one part of the world to another, is a Church that can more authentically and effectively accompany people on their journey of faith.
One Church, Many Contexts
Although we are one, holy, apostolic Catholic Church, the particularity and context of each local church must be recognized and appreciated. A synodal style allows local churches to move at different paces. This can be an expression of legitimate diversity and an opportunity for mutual enrichment. (124)
Holy Spirit, give us ears to hear!
Bishops Conferences foster communion with the universal Church while responding more effectively to the needs of their continents. Sound decentralization leaves to the bishops the authority to resolve issues that they are familiar with that do not affect the Church’s unity of doctrine, discipline and communion in their capacity as teachers. (134)
The Bishop of Rome (aka the Pope) is the Foundation of the Church’s unity. He presides over the communion of the Church and safeguards legitimate differences. He calls and presides over synods, which are the legitimate way the Church grows and changes. He safeguards the deposit of the faith and morals, ensuring all synodal processes are geared toward unity and witness. (131)
The Synod of Bishops is a place where synodality and collegiality are most clearly practiced. No longer an event, but a process, it fosters the essential relationship between the People of God, the college of bishops, and the Pope, each according to their proper function, and manifested in the Synodal Assembly. This is a deepening of the identity of the Church involving all of the faithful, discerned by bishops and presided over by the pope. (136)
Holy Spirit, give us ears to hear!
Concrete actions to be taken:
Synodal conversion calls for each person to enlarge the space of their heart, where bonds are formed and each person’s personal relationship with Jesus and the Church are grounded. (110)
The Episcopal Conferences are the fundamental tool for creating bonds, sharing experiences and best practices among the Churches, and for adapting Christian Life and the expression of faith to different cultures.
The Synod Assembly proposes . . . (125)
a. the current range and limits of Episcopal authority ordained by canon law and theology be studied;
b. the bishops’ domain of doctrinal and disciplinary competence be specified;
c. reforms to these processes and norms be identified;
d. all dioceses be included in bishops’ conferences; and
e. we understand how binding decisions made by Bishops Conferences impose obligations on individual bishops within conferences.
3. The Synod Assembly recommends a theological and canonical study whose task would be to identify those matters that should be addressed to the Pope, and those that could be addressed to the bishops and their groupings of churches. (134)
Dear Holy Spirit - As much as the first half of this section inspires me, the second half challenges me. I feel like we have entered onto shaky ground here - at least regarding the ways that the Pope and Bishops divide their roles and authority. All of this seems very complicated, and well above my paygrade.
Still, the first part of this section - about the Church as home, as community, as teacher, and as prophetic voice - speaks to all that I hope for the Church! Grant the Church, in the words of that famous prayer . . . the serenity to accept the things we cannot (and should not) change, the courage to change the things we can (and should), and the wisdom to know the difference. AMEN
Very well done....again!