On October 9 and 10, Pope Francis will officially open the two-year period of preparation for the General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops, scheduled for October 2023 on the theme: For a synodal Church: communion, participation, mission.
The next 24 months will see the universal Church asked to reflect on “synodality”—a term of Greek origin, roughly meaning “common road.” The topic is a favorite of Pope Francis, who often invites us to “journey together” in the world. By doing so, the people of God can live in communion and participate in the mission of the Church.
The objective of a synodal Church is not a new concept. As a form of renewal, it was proposed by the Second Vatican Council and aims to entrust the mission of the Church into the hands of the faithful instead of leaving it solely to the Church leadership. The Book of the Acts of the Apostles, which Pope Francis describes as “the first and most important manual of ecclesiology,” describes a synodal Church in its conception, whose nature and functioning was participatory and decentralised.
Over the centuries, the Church has become rooted in to a false, top-down conception of its life and mission, over-emphasising its hierarchical structure. But now the vademecum or handbook to assist local dioceses and churches in the synodal process, released by the permanent secretariat for the synod of bishops, explains that the Covid-19 pandemic “has made the existing inequalities explode.”
Synodality proposes a revision of the ecclesiastical structure through a process of listening and dialogue. Introducing this process to the faithful of the diocese of Rome, Pope Francis called on them to ensure that “the poor, the homeless, young people addicted to drugs, everyone that society rejects, are part of the synod.” The Church needs to go out and invite people back in.
To do this, synodality calls for the narrowing of the gap between laity and clergy in the life of the Church. Perhaps this gap is more evident in places where the Church is affluent and the clergy act as decision-makers. In regions where services of the clergy are impossible, it has always been the lay-faithful who carried forward the faith. It is such heroic witnessing and participation of the ordinary faithful that still keeps the light of faith burning in many parts of Asia and Africa.
Synodality is a challenge and one that can make or break the Church as it begins with the process of listening. The onus is on the local churches or parishes and diocese to identify people who are often excluded from our table of discussions. It is important to go out in search of them and bring them to the table, not to bombard them with our theology and ecclesiology, but to listen to their concerns and grievances.
Jose CMF
