Posts Tagged synod
Pope Francis wants every Catholic to have a say. Why haven’t US Catholics heard about it? / National Catholic Reporter
Posted by Voice of the Faithful in Catholic Bishops, church reform, Clericalism, Future of the Church, Pope Francis, Synod of Bishops, Vatican, Voice of the Faithful on September 22, 2021
Success for bishops not focused on controlling power will be listening and honestly reporting the needs of the people.
National Catholic Reporter
“Pope Francis’ plan is for ordinary Catholics to have their say. It begins with the coming synod, which opens in Rome on Oct. 9 and in every diocese in the world on Oct. 17.
“The problem: No one seems to know about it. The bigger problem: U.S. bishops don’t seem to care.
“It’s called ‘For a Synodal Church: Communion, Participation, and Mission.’ While Francis truly wants all Catholics to pray and talk about the needs of today’s church, his plan depends on diocesan participation. As the U.S. bishops fulminate over which Catholic politician can receive Communion, they’ve done little to plan for the worldwide discussion on the needs of the church. They were asked to get organized last May. They haven’t.
“Here’s how things are supposed to work. Last May, Rome asked every bishop for the name of the person managing his diocesan synodal process. The bishop then is to open his local synod Oct. 17, collect input from parishes, and report to his national episcopal conference.
By Phyllis Zagano, Religion News Service, in National Catholic Reporter — Read more …
The Spirit in the Assembly: Preparing for the synod on synodality / Commonweal
Posted by Voice of the Faithful in Catholic Bishops, church reform, Future of the Church, Pope Francis, Synod of Bishops, Voice of the Faithful on September 17, 2021
“A global process set to mobilize millions and transform the world’s oldest and largest institution has so far registered as no more than a blip on the Catholic radar.”
Commonweal
“The most far-reaching event in the Catholic Church in my lifetime officially gets its start next month. It is Pope Francis’s boldest move yet, the historic shake-up that a Church brought low by sex-abuse scandals badly needs, and potentially the most transformative moment in Catholicism since the Second Vatican Council, which it seeks to embed permanently into the life of the Church. The two-year “synod on synodality,” launched in Rome on October 9 and in dioceses worldwide a week later, is set to mark Christianity forever.
“Yet who knows it is even happening? A global process set to mobilize millions and transform the world’s oldest and largest institution has so far registered as no more than a blip on the Catholic radar. Bishops briefed by Rome’s synod secretariat back in May have been mostly quiet about it, hiding behind cautious communiqués buried on websites, awaiting details, fearful of unleashing forces and expectations beyond their command.
“So we begin with a paradox. The path to the 2023 Synod in Rome, on the theme “For a Synodal Church: communion, participation and mission,” is designed to engage every diocese, every bishops’ conference, and every continental Church body. It will unleash the biggest popular consultation in history. It will require, as never before, the assembly of the People of God, in mass meetings at parishes and across dioceses around the world, who are being given “the ability to imagine a different future for the Church and her institutions, in keeping with the mission she has received,” in the words of the Preparatory Document released last week.”
By Austen Ivereigh, Commonweal — Read more …
Click here to read the Vatican news release announcing the 2023 Synod and to see list of links to Vatican and Voice of the Faithful resources to help understand the Synod.
A radical shift away from a church with inflexible laws / La Croix International in National Catholic Reporter
Posted by Voice of the Faithful in Catholic Bishops, church reform, Voice of the Faithful on August 30, 2021
“With the culmination of the Root and Branch Inclusive Synod in Bristol less than a month away, Sept. 5-12, there are early indications that the so-called ‘Bristol Text’ will be both deeply reflective and challenging to the current bishops’ position.
“The text will include brief, accessible statements on liturgical ministry, diversity, moral theology, and authority, backed by papers giving it historical and theological depth.
“Four international teams of distinguished theologians, jurists and thinkers, both lay and religious, have been meeting to consider the results of the synod’s year-long ‘journey of discernment.’
“Sources close to the process suggest that the Bristol Text will propose a radical shift away from a church that enshrines its teaching in inflexible laws, towards one that guides and enables the people of God to reflect for itself.”
By Jon Rosebank, La Croix International, in National Catholic Reporter — Read more …
Criticism of Pope Francis rooted in misunderstanding of Vatican II / National Catholic Reporter
Posted by Voice of the Faithful in Pope Francis, Voice of the Faithful on December 12, 2016
N.B.: This is part one of a three-part series discussing the theologies of the papacies of Pope Francis and Pope Paul VI. Links to parts two and three of the series are listed below.
The opposition to Pope Francis is unprecedented. There have been disagreements in the life of the church before: How could there not be? And, in recent times, we have even seen some cardinals voice disappointment or even disagreement with directives coming from Rome. For example, Belgian Cardinal Leo Joseph Suenens was not shy in voicing his concern about the manner in which the first synods of bishops after the Second Vatican Council were conducted. But claiming an apostolic exhortation is not magisterial? Publishing detailed challenges to the pope’s teaching? This is uncharted territory.
“I believe that the opposition to Francis is rooted in a flawed understanding of the post-conciliar era and, more specifically, where we are in the process of receiving the council. Francis, just last month, in an interview with Italian daily Avvenire, noted that it takes about 100 years to fully receive a council, and he is right. Some people thought that process was completed, and that they had mastered all the riddles of the Catholic faith in the post-conciliar age. They are very upset that their assumptions and some of their conclusions have been challenged.
“Last week marked the 51st anniversary of the close of Vatican II. In the past four years, we marked the opening of the council, commemorated the promulgation of key conciliar texts, held conferences to explore the meaning of the documents, and appropriately so, because Vatican II remains the most determinative event in the life of the Catholic church in our living memory.
By Michael Sean Winters, National Catholic Reporter — Click here to read the rest of this first article in Winters’ three-part series.
Click here to read the second article in this series, “Pope Paul VI’s greatness lies in his church leaderhsip after Vatican II.”
Click here to read the third article in this series, “Different popes, different personalities — and underlying continuity.”
Pope Francis reminds the synod that he has the last word / America
Posted by Voice of the Faithful in Voice of the Faithful on October 19, 2015
“‘The synod journey culminates in listening to the Bishop of Rome, (who is) called to speak authoritatively as ‘the Pastor and Teacher of all Christians,’ Pope Francis stated on October 17, on the eve of the final week of the synod on the family.
“In a keynote talk of the utmost importance delivered at the celebration for the 50th anniversary of the establishment of the synod of bishops, Francis spoke about ‘synodality in the church,’ the synod’s place within this, the relation between the synod and the Successor of Peter, and reminded the synod fathers that he has the last word.”
By Gerard O’Connell, America magazine — Click here to read the rest of this story.
Archbishop: Synod should reflect on possibly allowing female deacons / Catholic News Service
Posted by Voice of the Faithful in Synod of Bishops, Synod on the Family, Voice of the Faithful on October 6, 2015
Canadian Archbishop Paul-Andre Durocher of Gatineau, Quebec, said the synod should reflect on the possibility of allowing for female deacons as it seeks ways to open up more opportunities for women in church life.
“Where possible, qualified women should be given higher positions and decision-making authority within church structures and new opportunities in ministry, he told Catholic News Service Oct. 6.
“Discussing a number of proposals he offered the synod fathers to think about, he said, ‘I think we should really start looking seriously at the possibility of ordaining women deacons because the diaconate in the church’s tradition has been defined as not being ordered toward priesthood but toward ministry.’
“Currently, the Catholic Church permits only men to be ordained as deacons. Deacons can preach and preside at baptisms, funerals and weddings, but may not celebrate Mass or hear confessions.
By Carol Glatz, Catholic News Service, in National Catholic Reporter — Click here to read the rest of this story.
CNN Exclusive: Pope held private meeting with same-sex couple in U.S. / CNN
Posted by Voice of the Faithful in Pope Francis, Vatican, Voice of the Faithful on October 2, 2015
As we continue to assess the effects of Pope Francis’ first U.S. visit and look forward to the opening in a couple of days of the Bishops’ Synod on the Family. we get this interesting take on events from Daniel Burke at CNN.
The day before Pope Francis met anti-gay county clerk Kim Davis in Washington last week, he held a private meeting with a longtime friend from Argentina who has been in a same-sex relationship for 19 years.
“Yayo Grassi, an openly gay man, brought his partner, Iwan, as well (as) several other friends to the Vatican Embassy on September 23 for a brief visit with the Pope. A video of the meeting shows Grassi and Francis greeting each other with a warm hug.
“In an exclusive interview with CNN, Grassi declined to disclose details about the short visit, but said it was arranged personally by the Pope via email in the weeks ahead of Francis’ highly anticipated visit to the United States.
“‘Three weeks before the trip, he called me on the phone and said he would love to give me a hug,’ Grassi said.
“The meeting between Grassi and the Pope adds another intriguing twist to the strange aftermath of Francis’ first-ever trip to the United States. Since news broke on Tuesday (Sept. 29) of Francis’ meeting with Davis, conservatives have cheered the seemingly implicit endorsement, while liberals have questioned how much the Pope knew about her case.
“In a statement on Friday, the Vatican said that the meeting with Davis was not intended as a show of support for her cause and said “the only real audience granted by the Pope at the nunciature (embassy) was with one of his former students and his family.'”
By Daniel Burke, CNN Religion Editor — Click here to read the rest of this story.
National clergy group launches its own synod questionnaire / National Catholic Reporter
Posted by Voice of the Faithful in Catholic Bishops, Synod of Bishops, Synod on the Family, Voice of the Faithful on February 26, 2015
As U.S. dioceses continue their Vatican-ordered consultations for the upcoming Synod of Bishops on the family, a national clergy group has launched its own questionnaire in an effort to highlight the issues most pressing to priests.
“The Association of U.S. Catholic Priests sent a synod survey on Jan. 31 to its 1,000-plus members, asking each not to answer the 46 questions presented in the synod’s working document, the lineamenta, but instead to rank them in importance on a seven-point scale from ‘not important’ to ‘essential.’ Each question also offers comment space for priests to expand on those questions they deemed as essential.”
By Brian Roewe, National Catholic Reporter — Click here to read the rest of this story.
Also of interest is, “Strong Catholic Families offers simplified survey for family synod,” by Soli Salgado, National Catholic Reporter.
Voice of the Faithful
A lay movement for governance reform in the Roman Catholic Church, responding to the clergy sexual abuse scandal and supporting survivors.
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