The Synod is far from over

A few weeks ago, in the run-up to the opening of the second session of the Synod on synodality, the Prayer of the Faithful in our parish offered an intention for the Synod and its delegates. Together we pray: “For the Synod: that as delegates gather in Rome this week, they may carry with them the cares and concerns of the communities they represent – ​​speaking freely, listening deeply, and prayerfully engaging in their efforts to follow the guidance of the Spirit. “

After Mass, a parishioner stopped me in the church lobby. “Is this still happening?” they asked.

My face clearly revealed that I didn’t know what they were talking about.

“The synod,” they replied. “I thought this happened last year.”

I paused for a moment to consider how best to respond. Despite all the listening sessions we held, the events we hosted, the language of synodality we integrated into our liturgy, and the practices we included in our parish processes, this person clearly missed the memo: The Synod is far from above.

In many places, synodality was slow to take hold, if the concept or practice was introduced in the first place. In our parishioner’s case, however, the added year left them confused.

As the second session of the Synod on Synodality completes its second week, what has become abundantly clear is that what was once outlined as a two-year process will in fact take a lifetime. In short, synodality is not going anywhere.

What the Synod on synodality made clear is that we are called to be a missionary Church rooted in synodality. With its intensive listening, committed encounter, and community care, synodality promises a radical return to the principles of faith and discernment that are so fundamental to who we are and who we are called to be as a Church. Cultivating a culture of synodality is full of promise, though not without the growing pains that come with allowing our hearts and minds to be reformed by the Spirit.

For those in tune with developments in the Vatican and the global Church, the flurry of activity surrounding this second session of the Synod points to the pain and promise of synodality in action.

Coming into this session, speculation and urgent appeals arose. The well-founded fear that critical issues – including women and their role in the Church, the pastoral need to restore the ordained ministry of women as deacons, and the dignity and ministry of the LGBTQ+ community – could somehow be eliminated, has raised screams for inclusion. In response, interviews, articles, online prayer services and in-person meetings highlighted the importance of these issues. Some commentators, such as Jesuit Father Thomas Reese, have urged the Synod to set its own agenda. This would mean deviating from the prescribed plan for the second session, which seeks to define how to be a missional church rather than address these cutting-edge issues.

One must ask, however, how the church can fulfill its missionary calling without carefully engaging in prayerful discernment around these key issues and marginalized populations. How can the questions that have arisen repeatedly in continental phase reports and feedback from church groups be set aside at this critical moment if we are to embrace the deep listening and sincere response so critical to synodality?

The answers to such questions are not clear. We cannot be completely certain that these issues have been resolved as discussions take place behind closed doors. What we can be sure of at the beginning of the second session is that the appeals to the Holy Spirit continued.

From the opening retreat days to the penitential prayer service held on October 1st and through to the opening Mass on October 2nd, a Spirit-filled call for freedom from fear and honest dialogue was made. As Pope Francis prayed in the opening liturgy of this session: “Let us walk together, let us listen to the Lord, let us let ourselves be guided by the breath of the Spirit”. This is the way forward: to walk humbly with each other and with our God so that trust and dialogue can be built.

In the days since Pope Francis prayed these words, the second session has descended into the sacred space and silence of such dialogue. Beyond the gaze of spectators, delegates are doing the hard work of synodality. While curiosity (or even cynicism) may tempt us to wonder what is going on in the Synod room, all we can really be sure of (and pray for) is that everyone present is speaking honestly, praying sincerely, and listening deeply. as they seek to follow God’s will.

This is the hope of all synodal conversations: that they are based on sincere engagement, committed listening, and complete and absolute dependence on the work of the Holy Spirit.

As we seek to embrace the synodal path, we must recognize that synodality is anything but static. Freedom and flexibility are part of the synodal path. Listening hearts must be open to change; they must allow themselves to be transformed by the Spirit, to ebb and flow as prayerful dialogue guides the course. Our part as people of faith is to be attentive to the stirrings of the Spirit—not just in our own hearts and lives, but in the life of the broader community and the life of the church.

This may or may not mean that everything I think should happen will happen. In fact, by the nature of the communal discernment at the heart of synodality, we know that this will not happen. Instead, we must allow ourselves to let go of what is “ours” individually to meet the communal needs and desires of the larger body.

We trust that this is what is happening in the Synod room as we hold vigil outside. We pray that delegates will speak candidly, carrying communities with them and fostering community among themselves. Without a doubt, the Spirit is agitated. We must trust that what the Spirit desires for the church and all of God’s people will not be denied.

Does this mean that everything will be resolved when the second session of the Synod on synodality ends on October 27? Of course.

October 27th will probably leave us with more questions than answers. Some will be disappointed by what was once seen as a movement of great hope and promise. Some will say we should never have had any hope. Some will confess that their synodal hearts are broken. With a synodal spirit, we must maintain all these feelings. We must offer our needs and desires, anxieties and anticipations, sorrows and hopes to God. And we must support each other, with the certainty that the synodal path is not a path of tectonic shifts, but of a joint journey, step by step, towards community change.

With this in mind, we need to decide to see that October 27th is not an end, but a step on the synodal path. We’ve come this far together; Dialogues were opened and, with them, hearts and minds too. Women and men, lay people and clergy, young and old from all over the world stood side by side as delegates. This is monumental.

Our task now is to ensure that the work started at this synodal moment is not limited to a select group or a specific space. With patience and practice, we must continue these conversations. We must listen to each other with attention and affection. We must welcome the Spirit into our midst and reform our structures to allow all voices to be heard. We must continue to practice the skills of synodality and the discipline of synodal listening. Only then will we feel the freedom that the Spirit brings, embracing the transformative power of the Gospel and discovering what it truly means to be the synodal Church we are called to be, now and forever.