Gerald Archibald

Pope Francis has initiated an intensive two-year project that could, if it succeeds, be the most significant and historical reform initiative of his papacy. This refers to his initiative to hold a synod throughout the entire Church. One writer says, if Francis can pull this off, it will be one of the greatest reforms ever accomplished in the history of the Catholic church (Flannery). Others say they wish him the best, but it is a very risky project when one analyzes the way it appears to be set up.

By way of introduction, while I have read dozens of relevant articles about the call for a Synodal Church, I would like to say this column will draw heavily from three major sources:

1. “Speak Boldly, Listen Carefully” written by Austen Ivereigh, Commonweal Magazine, Oct 21, 2021 (Besides being a contributor to Commonweal, Austen was the deputy editor of The Tablet and is a Fellow in Contemporary Church History obtained from Oxford University, England)

2. “Can the National Synod of the Irish Church be a Success? – Thoughts on the Synodal Pathway” by Tony Flannery, CSsR (Redemptorist Congregation) found on his blog of Oct 29, 2021. He is a co-founder of the Association of Catholic Priests in Ireland and has written several popular books on Church matters including “A Question of Conscience” and “From the Outside-Rethinking Church Doctrine.”

3. “Former Irish President Mary McAleese ramps up criticism of Pope Francis” by Sarah MacDonald, Sept 14, 2021, included in a feature series in the National Catholic Reporter called a “Synod on Synodality”. Ms. McAleese is a Catholic, and after her presidency, obtained a doctorate in Canon Law from the Gregorian University in Rome.

This edition of ICN offers various perspectives of what a synodal church can mean. In my research, I have concluded that a synodal church is one that is based on meaningful genuine consultation with all the faithful. If successful, it promises a church that turns the present hierarchical structure on its head. Instead of an authoritarian ‘top down’ approach, it promises to be a collaborative Church. As Pope Francis said in his Oct 10, 2021, homily outlining his vision for this new approach: “we need a different church…we need to look each other in the eye and listen to each other”. He quoted a famous and ancient maxim, “what affects everyone should be discussed and approved by all.”

At this time, however, it is difficult to say what will be covered in this universal endeavour. Authority, governance and decision making seem to be major themes in the early discussions regarding this synodal process. But to be clear, Francis does not want a church run in a parliamentary form of governance – that of taking votes to decide outcomes of deliberations. He feels vote-taking is divisive.

He wants discernment leading to consensus, in as much as that is possible…and, to achieve discernment and consensus, the discussions must be grounded in prayer and in confidence that the Holy Spirit will lead the process. Perhaps an example of Francis’ idea of discernment-consensus would help understand this synodal approach better.

Francis convened a synod on the Amazon two years ago, specifically addressing the acute shortage of priests in that part of the world. He personally was advocating the ordination of married men who led exemplary lives and who were respected by their communities. While most of the bishops agreed with this initiative, a minority were strongly opposed. Because there was no consensus, Francis abandoned this dream of his at the time. He felt ‘vote taking’ would lead to divisiveness.

The Vatican has sent out an instructional booklet to all dioceses and archdioceses in the world, outlining a process to be followed in a two-year synodal process, culminating in October 2023. It apparently outlines a process to be followed in each parish and diocese where key topics will be discussed and recorded.

These results will then be collated and summarized by the Conference of Catholic Bishops in each country. These summaries will then be discussed by the bishops of each continent, and then summarized again. Finally these summaries will then be discussed/studied by representatives of bishops around the world in October, 2023. At least one report will be issued after the bishops review and complete their own summary of all the reports submitted from around the world.

One of the themes of the papacy of Francis, is that the church must rid itself of clericalism. This process of becoming a synodal type of church based solidly on the prayerful collaborations with the laity is also clearly designed to address the evils of clericalism. To remind us again what clericalism is, Ivereigh says “Clericalism is the idolatry of clergy, the worship of the institution, and the abuse of power.”

If successful, clericalism will be laid bare through the synodal process. Parishioners (laity) are fundamental to the healthy functioning of the Church. Francis, in his opening homily, firmly states that the church has an “obligation” to assure participation of the laity in the process.

The preparatory document sent out to the bishops states: “The purpose of the synod is not to produce more documents. Rather, it is intended to inspire people to dream about the church we are called to be, to make people’s hopes flourish, to stimulate trust, to bind up wounds, to weave new and deeper relationships, to learn from one another, to build bridges, to enlighten minds, warm hearts and restore strength to our hands for our common mission.”

This whole venture is wildly optimistic. I, as much as anyone, hope to the heavens that the synod will achieve these lofty objectives. Not to cast cold water on the process, but it is important to point out there are respectable and credible writers and theologians who are worried about the limitations that may be imposed upon the consultation process.

There are some who bluntly state that certain items will be ‘off the table.’ Here, they are referring to doctrines. Will the ordination of women be prohibited from the agenda? Will sexuality, including gay sexuality and premarital sex be prohibited from discussion? What about the notion of Mortal sin? Can divorced Catholics receive communion?

What constitutes doctrine anyway? Are the Precepts of the Church doctrines? Is the Catholic Catechism a document of doctrines? What about the huge code of canon law? Are all these doctrines? it could be that some doctrines will be allowed to be discussed and reported on, while others may not. If so, who would do the choosing and why?

So, these skeptics are suggesting that, unless everything that comes up in discussion will be honoured, there is a good chance the synodal objectives will fail. Further to the topics that will be allowed to be discussed, writers and theologians are nervous that the bishops will sanitize the findings when they prepare their summary reports at key stages of the synodal process.

There is not a lot of confidence in how bishops may be objective in this process, with some writers stating the bishops have lost much credibility citing the on-going sexual abuse crisis and how it was handled-among other issues. If sanitizing the feedback received from the laity occurs, it will be disastrous for the Church. I believe more harm than good will be the result if this happens!

Finally, those proponents of Vatican II are generally very dissatisfied with how the Church seemed to abandon its promises and vision. For example, Mary McAleese bluntly states: “The real space that is being opened up is not by Pope Francis, but by the great educated laity now asking questions all these years after Vatican II as to why the promises, the hopes and visions of Vatican II have all disappeared into a dead end.”

The thinking behind this statement, I believe, comes from the belief that the answers to most of the potential topics that may be discussed throughout the synod, have already been discussed and answered in the Vatican II documents. If this is true, why would Catholics hope for different results from the synodal process?

So, challenges certainly face this initiative. But, as Catholics, we must have hope and believe that the Holy Spirit is intimately involved in this endeavour. If any reader of this column wishes an invigorated and promising future for our Church, this is the time to search out ways to get involved – sooner rather than later, as the first phase (consultation/discern-ment) has already begun.

Many feel the Church has been dismissive of the laity over the past several decades. Let’s hope this exercise on congeniality throughout the Church will reverse this trend!

Feedback is appreciated: archibaldjerry@gmail.com.