I personally hope the synod deals with these issues, but making these topics the principal focus of the synod would be a big mistake.

They certainly are not central to Pope Francis's mind, nor are they central to the "Instrumentum laboris," or working paper, that will guide the initial meetings of the synod.

For the "Instrumentum laboris" and Pope Francis, the priority issues are communion, participation and mission.

If the synod does not foster greater communion, participation and mission, then it will be a failure.

Pope Francis' hope is that the fruit of the next assembly will be that the Spirit inspires the church to walk together as the people of God in fidelity to the mission the Lord has entrusted to it.

Communion is central to who we are as church.

According to the "Instrumentum laboris," citing the Second Vatican Council, the church is a sign and instrument of union with God and the unity of all humanity. People should see this union with God and this human unity in the life of the church.

The church should be a preeminent way for people to attain this union. Fostering that communion is at the heart of what it means to be a synodal church.

If we forget that while we squabble over who can or cannot be a minister, then we miss the point.

Likewise, arguing over who can be a priest should not make us forget that we are all responsible for the church's mission in service of the gospel.

If we all accepted our responsibility for the church's mission, the clergy would be much less important to the church's life.

Our need for communion and our co-responsibility for the mission lead to questions about participation, governance and authority — where authority is service and decisions are made through discernment.

Participation and discernment are not simply for the synod; they are the lifeblood of every local church.

This is not to say the synod will ignore real problems in the world.

The "Intrumentum laboris" reports the particular situations experienced by the church in different parts of the world.

These include too many wars, the threat of climate change, as well as "exploitation, inequality and a throwaway culture, and the desire to resist the homogenizing pressure of cultural colonialism that crushes minorities." Added to this is "persecution to the point of martyrdom," as well as self-inflicted wounds of sexual abuse and the abuse of power, conscience and money in the church.

But these problems will not be solved by resolutions or documents, according to Francis, but through greater communion, co-responsibility in mission and increased participation in the life of the church.

In other words, even if I got what I wanted out of the synod — married priests and women priests — but the church became less a sign and instrument of union with God and the unity of all humanity, then the synod would not have achieved its goals.

If I got what I wanted, and the church remained clerical with a passive laity, then the synod would have been a failure.

If we continued as usual with just different people in charge, then we missed the revolution Pope Francis is calling for.

Progressives are thinking too small.

Through the synod, Francis is calling for a spiritual shake-up much greater than anyone can imagine.

He is not looking for a few thousand new clergy to keep the church going.

He wants a mass movement that makes the gospel alive in our time. On the other hand, conservative Catholics fear this movement will get out of control.

They want the Spirit to be under the thumb of hierarchy.

According to the "Instrumentum laboris," this revolution has already begun in the preparations for the synod:

"The first phase renewed our awareness that our identity and vocation is to become an increasingly synodal Church: walking together, that is, becoming synodal, is the way to truly become disciples and friends of that Master and Lord who said of himself: ‘I am the way' (Jn 14:6)."

The spiritual conversations that have occurred in parishes and dioceses around the world have already fostered communion and helped people become more aware of their responsibility for the mission of the church in service of the gospel.

The synodal church began growing at the grassroots and hopefully will bloom at the synod in Rome.

The hope is that the synod will "continue to animate the synodal process in the ordinary life of the church, identifying which pathways the Spirit invites us to walk along more decisively as one People of God," according to the "Instrumentum laboris."

Pope Francis is betting his papacy on the hope that these local ripples of synodality will combine into a tsunami that will transform the church so that it is truly a sign and instrument of communion with God and the unity of all humanity.

The church will become God's instrument for the transformation of the world.

• Thomas Reese SJ is a senior analyst at Religion News Service, and a former columnist at National Catholic Reporter, and a former editor-in-chief of the weekly Catholic magazine America.
• First published in RNS. Republished with permission.

Clerics, who believe they have all the answers and the power, tell the faithful what they can and cannot do.

On the other side are laity, who nod off in the pews and leave the heavy lifting to priests and religious.

The laity have never been asked to do anything but pray, pay and obey, so why bother?

That reality was sustainable, if not desirable, when there were lots of priests and religious and they were the most educated people in the parish.

Today, most parts of the world have an educated laity and so few priests and religious that the church is in serious decline.

Pope Francis has made a frontal attack on clericalism, telling bishops not to act like princes and telling priests to be more pastoral. With the Synod on Synodality, he is also calling the laity to step up and take ownership in the church.

In this process, it is especially important that the clergy listen to the laity, but it is also important that the laity listen to each other.

The U.S. bishops' report on the work so far — officially the "National Synthesis of the People of God in the United States of America for the Diocesan Phase of the 2021-2023 Synod" — released in September, summarizes 10 months of listening sessions in American parishes and dioceses.

Last month, I detailed in my column the enduring wounds that were exposed in the listening sessions.

They include "the enduring wounds caused by the clergy sexual abuse scandal, the pandemic, polarization, and marginalization have exposed a deep hunger for healing and the strong desire for communion, community, and a sense of belonging and being united."

But the listening sessions were not simply picking at old wounds.

They spoke of a longing for communion and participation in the church.

The laity is waking from its slumber and desires "to draw closer to God and each other through a deeper knowledge of Scripture, prayer, and sacramental celebrations, especially the Eucharist," the bishops wrote.

While there were different perspectives on what constitutes good liturgy, there was agreement on the need for "warmer hospitality, healing services, and more invigorating preaching by clergy."

According to the synthesis, "The most common desire named in the synodal consultations was to be a more welcoming Church where all members of the People of God can find accompaniment on the journey."

The participants in the sessions acknowledged the tension between walking with people while remaining faithful to the teachings of the church.

Yet "for many, the perception is that the blanket application of rules and policies is used as a means of wielding power or acting as a gatekeeper."

Quoting from the account of one consultation, the bishops' synthesis said, "People noted that the Church seems to prioritize doctrine over people, rules and regulations over lived reality."

That account could have been quoting Francis when it said, "People want the Church to be a home for the wounded and broken, not an institution for the perfect. They want the Church to meet people where they are, wherever they are, and walk with them rather than judging them; to build real relationships through care and authenticity, not superiority."

People needing to feel welcomed included, according to the synthesis, LGBTQ+ persons, who "believe they are condemned by Church teachings," and their families, who "feel torn between remaining in the church and supporting their loved ones."

Also divorced persons, "whether remarried or not, often feel unwelcome within the Church," according to the report.

"The annulment process is experienced as unduly burdensome and judgmental."

The divorced described "feeling like they are held to a higher standard while people who have committed other sins continue to receive communion."

Catholic people of colour "spoke of routine encounters with racism, both inside and outside the Church," the synthesis reports.

"Indigenous Catholics spoke of the generational trauma caused by racism and abuse in boarding schools."

The participants offered practical suggestions for creating more community across racial and ethnic lines.

"Providing forums for conversations on race, immigration, and loving openness to others is critical in allowing individuals to be heard and understood," was one.

Masses in different languages were mentioned, but some wondered how to share communion with all parishioners even when they celebrate separately.

"Practically all synodal consultations shared a deep ache in the wake of the departure of young people and viewed this as integrally connected to becoming a more welcoming Church," according to the report.

Young people "want the Church to speak out about issues that matter to them, especially justice, race, and climate change."

The young want to be seen not as the future of the church but as important now. They want to be given a significant voice in the present.

Finally, those taking part in the process felt the church needs to be more welcoming to women, suggesting "a variety of ways in which women could exercise leadership, including preaching and ordination as deacon or priest."

Participants "shared a deep appreciation for the powerful impact of women religious who have consistently led the way in carrying out the mission of the Church," the synthesis reports.

"There was a desire for stronger leadership, discernment, and decision-making roles for women — both lay and religious — in their parishes and communities."

Overall, the listening sessions showed no desire for a smaller, purer church.

Catholics do not seem to want to exclude the wounded or sinners. They prefer a welcoming community where all are called to communion and participation.

The people appear to be in line with Francis' desire for a welcoming church that travels together along the synodal path.

None of this will be surprising to anyone familiar with survey research on the Catholic laity.

What is new here is a papally endorsed process that allows the laity to surface their views in a public way.

The people are speaking.

Is anyone listening?

• Thomas Reese SJ is a senior analyst at Religion News Service, and a former columnist at National Catholic Reporter, and a former editor-in-chief of the weekly Catholic magazine America. First published in RNS. Republished with permission.

We belong to a community of saints and sinners who share the journey and support one another.

Our relationship with Christ is personal, but not private. It is in and through and with the community of his disciples.

What Jesus did for us by his life and death was a gift; it wasn't owed to us.

But gifts are not imposed; we have to receive them and make them our own.

It is the Holy Spirit who enables us to do this, in all the ways we live our faith.

This happens especially in the celebration of Eucharist: at the Last Supper Jesus told his disciples "do this in memory of me".

This isn't just remembering in our minds. Jesus was echoing the ancient Hebrew practice of commemorating the Passover.

That ritual gave the Jews of each succeeding generation a way of personally sharing in what happened at the Exodus.

That was a once-for-all event, but the freedom it brought was meant for those who came after as well. Eucharist is a memorial in that sense.

It gives Christians of succeeding generations a way of stepping forward to personally and more deeply participate in Jesus' Passover from death to life, and to share in the freedom and joy this gave him. "... God brought us to life with Christ... and raised us upwith him and gave us a place with him in heaven... (Ephesians 2:5, 6).

That is now who we are - through real union with Christ.Eucharist also makes us sharers in his mission: in receiving Holy Communion we receive Him whose body was ‘given up' for others, and blood (life) was ‘poured out' for others.

Our Amen expresses our commitment to being ‘for others' - being self-giving.

"Even when Eucharist is celebrated on the humble altar of a country church, it is always in someway celebrated on the altar of the world.It unites heaven and earth. It embraces and permeates all creation." (Pope John Paul II)

"In the Eucharist, the whole cosmos gives thanks to God. Indeed, the Eucharist is itself an act of cosmic love". (Pope Francis)

Gather us in, the lost and forsaken,
gather us in, the blind and the lame;
call to us now, and we shall awaken,
we shall arise at the sound of our name.

We are the young, our lives are a mystery.
We are the old who yearn for your face.
We have been sung throughout all of history,
called to be light to the whole human race. (GIA Publications Inc. Marty Haugen.)

• +Peter Cullinane was the first bishop of the Diocese of Palmerston North. Now retired he continues to be a respected writer and leader of retreats and is still busy at local, national, and international levels. Here he shares his reflections on sciences and Christian faith. To conclude the introduction of this series he quotes Albert Einstein, "Science without religion is lame; religion without science is blind."
• This is the eleventh in a series of chapters from his letter to senior students
• Image: Manawatu Standard

"Everyone should have a nice life," she tells a small audience at a Wellington bar. "Small actions, multiplied, can lead to big change," she says.

Laura, 25, outlines her pitch for RockEnrol, a movement to increase youth voter turnout.

The audience is a mix of smartphones and activists wearing knitted jumpers; committed environmentalists and social media addicts.

Laura talks about crowd-funding the campaign, getting musicians and artists on board, and convincing people that government is cool. "I grew up in the age of Paris Hilton and the Kardashians," she says, and government just isn't glam.

She describes RockEnrol as a "crowd-fuelled youth-led movement to try and build and activate political power for young people in Aotearoa".

"We use the cultural mediums that young people are already engaged in to try to make politics more relevant and resonant - so that's popular culture, music, events, art, things like that."

The idea is to hold events - gigs, house parties, festivals, a carnival - for which the price of admission is a promise to vote in September's election. They'll also be running marketing and education campaigns.

These measures are necessary because fewer than half of 18-29 year olds voted in the last election.Turnout has been declining in much of the world for decades.

New Zealand's numbers sit in about the middle of the OECD, so there's no crisis yet.

We're one of the easiest countries in the world to enrol to vote and cast your ballot. And yet, people are worried about what the decline means for our democracy. Continue reading.

Source: The Wireless

Image: NewsTalkZB