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By: Michael M. Canaris<\/p>\n
As the two-year global synod process begins, this special time in the Catholic Church demands that we pay attention and read the signs of our times, <\/em>as called for by the Second Vatican Council. <\/em>Pope Francis has asked the entire church, even across denominational \u201cborders,\u201d to help him navigate a path forward in passing Christ\u2019s message on to the next and every generation.\u00a0This requires work and collaboration on the part of the whole (and holy) community.<\/p>\n We learn in the Acts of the Apostles, Chapter 11 that the followers of Jesus were first called Christians in Antioch, in the Roman province of Syria.\u00a0However, this took some time to spread along with the nascent religion across the ancient world, and so the first generations of believers called themselves followers of \u201cThe Way.\u201d\u00a0Thus, the synodal roots to our Church run deep, as the word synod literally means \u201ctraveling together on the way\u201d in Greek (syn + hodos).\u00a0We often see the pope use a related Spanish phrase: \u201ccaminando juntos<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n Saint John Chrysostom \u2013 a preacher so rhetorically effective that his\u00a0nickname that comes down to us in history literally means\u00a0\u201cgolden-tongued\u201d \u2013 once\u00a0even went so far as to say that church and synod can in fact be used interchangeably.<\/p>\n If one wants to learn more about Pope Francis\u2019 vision of this process and how it colors his entire ecclesiology, some important resources may help:<\/p>\n The first is his programmatic homily<\/a> given Oct. 17, 2015, at the ceremony celebrating the 50th anniversary of the modern synod of bishops created by Pope Paul VI. Many theologians see that speech, along with \u201cEvangelii Gaudium<\/a>,\u201d as a roadmap for understanding the goals of the Francis agenda from its earliest formulations.<\/p>\n In that homily, Pope Francis expresses his desire for what he calls an \u201cinverted pyramid\u201d ecclesiology.\u00a0He says that in the church founded by Christ, with special reference to the washing of the feet found in John\u2019s Gospel, \u201cthe top is located beneath the base.\u201d Thus, he upends the familiar power structures with the pope at the top, the clergy serving to carry out his mission as dutiful foot soldiers or franchise managers, and the vastly most numerous segment of the Church \u2013 the believing laity \u2013 left mainly to \u201cpay, pray and obey.\u201d<\/p>\n Instead he says the bishops, cardinals and pope are themselves \u201cministers,\u201d which comes from \u201cminus\u201d the Latin word for \u201cless.\u201d Interestingly enough, its polar opposite leads to the word magisterium, from \u201cmagis\u201d meaning \u201cmore,\u201d albeit through a circuitous etymological route.\u00a0Christians cannot bifurcate these two realities, pitting one against the other. Yet, the institutionalism that would put the clergy somehow \u201cabove\u201d the people of God is critiqued constantly by Pope Francis\u2019 condemnation of clericalism and triumphalism.<\/p>\n The second indispensable reflection<\/a> on the topic was given to the faithful of the diocese of Rome on Sept. 18, 2021.\u00a0This rather lengthy exhortation calls the Body of Christ across differences in charism and state in life to recognize ever more fully the \u201cinfallible sensus fidei in credendo.<\/em>\u201d\u00a0This means emphasizing that each of the baptized have a \u201csense of the faith,\u201d and that anyone in a shepherding role is called to walk \u201cin front, in between, and behind\u201d the flock.\u00a0 Only in this way can the sensus fidei<\/em> give \u201ceveryone a share in the dignity of the prophetic office of Christ, so that they can discern the paths of the Gospel in the present time.\u201d<\/p>\n It is in this text that we get Francis\u2019 rejection of a parliamentarian approach to collective discernment, where one side must either absorb or obliterate the other.\u00a0Instead, the question and response that must interrogate our lives is as follows: \u201cIf I am a Christian, if I believe in Christ, how do I give that gift to others?\u00a0God\u2019s universal saving will is offered to history, to all humanity, through the incarnation of his Son, so that all men and women can become his children, brothers and sisters among themselves, thanks to the mediation of the Church.\u00a0This is how reconciliation is accomplished between God and humanity, that unity of the whole human family, of which the Church is a sign and instrument.\u201d<\/p>\n The last reference shedding light on Pope Francis\u2019 vision for the synod was given on Oct. 9, 2021, mere hours before the 59th\u00a0anniversary of the opening of Vatican II, from which this whole process and event cannot be dissociated. It\u2019s here<\/a> that he quotes the French conciliar theologian Yves Congar in saying \u201cthere is no need to create\u00a0another\u00a0<\/em>Church, but rather to create a\u00a0different\u00a0<\/em>Church.\u201d\u00a0Pope Francis traces three potential risks for the synod and the renewed church he hopes to develop through its processes of candid discussion and collective discernment: formalism, intellectualism and complacency.\u00a0All three would result in an undercutting and distorting of the culture of encounter and theology of proximity that should result from active listening and honest storytelling (in that order) as we journey the road of ecclesial belonging together.<\/p>\n He prays for and with all of us at the conclusion: \u201cCome, Holy Spirit!\u00a0You inspire new tongues and place words of life on our lips: keep us from becoming a \u2018museum Church,\u2019 beautiful but mute, with much past and little future.\u00a0Come among us, so that in this synodal experience we will not lose our enthusiasm, dilute the power of prophecy, or descend into useless and unproductive discussions.\u00a0Come, Spirit of love, open our hearts to hear your voice!\u00a0Come, Spirit of holiness, renew the holy People of God!\u00a0Come, Creator Spirit, renew the face of the earth!\u201d<\/p>\n Our events at Loyola University Chicago in collaboration with the Pontifical Commission for Latin America are geared toward contributing to this collective spiritual renewal.\u00a0 We are immensely grateful that so many students in our network are going to be able to speak to their experiences frankly and openly to one another and to others in positions of influential service in the church, even including the Servant of the Servants of God himself, Pope Francis.<\/p>\n *This piece is adapted from one that ran in the Catholic Star Herald Newspaper, Oct. 21, 2021.<\/p>\n To learn more about the Feb. 24 event and to register for the livestream of this historic encounter, visit the event website: Building Bridges: A Synodal Encounter between Pope francis and University Students.<\/a>\u201d<\/p>\n Michael Canaris, PhD is an Associate Professor with the Institute for Pastoral Studies at Loyola University Chicago.\u00a0 Further bio and publication information can be found here<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" By: Michael M. Canaris As the two-year global synod process begins, this special time in the Catholic Church demands that we pay attention and read the signs of our times, as called for by the Second Vatican Council. Pope Francis has asked the entire church, even across denominational \u201cborders,\u201d to help him navigate a path read more