All meetings of the Catholic Church’s leaders, from the Council of Jerusalem in 50 AD to the Amazon Synod in 2019 to the Second Vatican Council in 1962, which adapted the church to the modern world, have a common feature : They have made decisions, they have always been men. This Wednesday the Pope opened the first synod in which women will have a voice and voice. It is also the first time that laypeople can vote. For observers, this is the most important synod that Bergoglio has convened in the ten years of his pontificate.
Francis opened with a Mass the gathering that will bring together bishops and faithful from around the world in Rome this month to discuss important issues for Catholicism. In theory, the goal is for church leaders and laypeople to discuss how they can work together for the good of the church. In practice, they will discuss numerous topics, some of which are particularly controversial for Christians, such as the celibacy of priests, the role of women in the Church and their access to the diaconate, the blessing of LGTBIQ+ couples or communion for divorcees marry again. “It’s something really important for the church,” Pope Francis said. The coordinator of theologians participating in the synod, Dario Vitali, summarized in an interview with the religious newspaper Avvenire that the aim of the gathering will be to “illuminate the Church in a new light.”
Even before the meetings began, there was criticism from the conservative scene. Cardinal Gerhard Müller criticized the participation of lay people in the meeting and denounced “a hostile takeover” of the church by people “who believe that doctrine is like the program of a political party that can be changed with votes.” He approaches the meetings with the intention of “resisting” his positions in order to prevent “the end of the Catholic Church.”
This synod is exceptional because it will last several years, because of the number of topics to be discussed and because of the ambitious goal of including all the baptized. In 2021, meetings began between the ecclesial communities of the different countries and reports were drawn up containing the topics they considered important; In October, bishops and other lay and religious representatives from various continents will meet in Rome to debate it. They will then return to their respective dioceses to continue discussions until they meet again for the final assembly in October next year. This creates a document containing a series of considerations or suggestions, which the Pope can convert into an official document if he wishes and which is therefore binding on Christians.
Many observers believe that the mere fact that Francis has brought the bishops into face-to-face dialogue with his “flock” of believers represents an important change. However, the church has made it clear that this does not mean that it will be democratized, but rather that the diversity of voices will “enrich” the pope’s view of the institution. A total of 365 people will be entitled to vote in the assembly, around 75% of whom are bishops. For the first time in the history of the church, 70 lay people – chosen by Francis from 140 candidates – will be eligible to vote, 54 of them women.
Among other notable participants, nun Nathalie Becquart, the first woman to serve as undersecretary of the synod’s general secretariat, hopes to achieve a greater presence of women in the church’s decision-making bodies. James Martin, a Jesuit priest known as a great advocate for the LGTBIQ+ community and for whom he calls for greater inclusivity in the church, has indicated that he hopes to be “one of the voices for LGTBIQ+ people” in the synod .
The fact that these issues are on the table has excited progressives and unsettled conservatives. Five traditionalist cardinals have called on the pope to ratify Catholic teachings on homosexuality and the ordination of women “so that the faithful do not become confused and fall into error.”
It is not yet clear whether the synod will lead to concrete changes in the practices of the Catholic Church, but it is the first time that all the issues that in recent years have divided the conservative wing from the progressive wing closer to Pope Francis, separated is explicitly discussed. . Nor is it possible to predict how a synthesis can be found between such different positions.
The big unstated point of this synod is that it could be the last that Francis organized and therefore could be the synod that summarizes his political and doctrinal legacy. Bergoglio called on Wednesday that the synod should serve to make the church once again a place of welcome and blessing, where “the doors are open to everyone, everyone, everyone.”
Subscribe to continue reading
Read without limits