For a Synodal Church: Communion, Participation, and Mission

“Every new step in the life of the Church is a return to the source. It is a renewed experience of the disciples’ encounter with the Risen One in the Upper Room on Easter evening.” These opening sentences are from the Final Document which concluded the Second Session of the XVI Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops.
​
​Since returning to Calgary from the Synod, I have been asked by many about my experience over these past two years. It has definitely been a privilege, a learning experience, and at times, a challenge, but above all, I have come to see that my participation has been an act of obedience. It has been a call by the Holy Spirit to pray, reflect, listen, and to enter into dialogue about the nature, identity and mission of the Church from my experience as the bishop of Calgary and as a successor of the apostles. ​

2024 Session of the Synod on Synodality. Photo credit: Synod.va

​The two sessions of the Synod brought together the Christifideles—lay women and men, bishops, priests, deacons, religious, ecumenical delegates, those from the Eastern and Orthodox Churches, and the Holy Father, Pope Francis—in a 'school of synodality.' The Holy Spirit, who is the protagonist of the Church was present, opening our hearts and minds to a conversion of relationships, processes, and bonds in the life of the Church in order to be formed as missionary disciples of Christ.

​It is important to note that there are questions and doubts in the minds of some Catholics about synodality. “In simple and concise terms, synodality is a path of spiritual renewal and structural reform that enables the Church to be more participatory and missionary”. (Final Document no. 28)

It embraces three distinct aspects of the life of the Church. First, synodality is to express the Church’s ordinary way of living and working. This modus vivendi et operandi is experienced through the community listening to the Word and celebrating the Eucharist, the brotherhood of communion, and the co-responsibility and participation of the whole People of God in its life and mission. Secondly, from a theological and canonical point of view, synodality denotes the potential conversion of the structures and ecclesial processes of the Church at an institutional level: local, regional and universal. Thirdly, it designates synodal events that involve the whole People of God at the local, regional and universal levels, presided over by the bishops in collegial communion with the Bishop of Rome to discern the way forward on particular questions, and to take decisions and directions with the aim of fulfilling its evangelizing mission. (ITC 70.a.b.c)

Synodality is also a spiritual disposition that originates from the action of the Holy Spirit within the Church that allows us to listen attentively to the Word of God, and to contemplate in silence the call to conversion of heart. It requires asceticism and discipline, humility and patience, and to accept with gratitude the gifts that we see in others. The fruits of this spirituality in the Church will be marked by a harmony and unity that is both personal and communal. The renewal of the Church is possible only in acknowledging that this grace is needed first and foremost in the life of the Church and our parishes.

As Pope Francis has noted, synodality can be a prophetic path for the world given the growing isolation of people and the culture of individualism in our society.  Through our parish communities we need to see that the relationships of family and those of the parish promote the charisms, vocations, and ministries that witness to the mission of the Church.

In the Diocese of Calgary as we continue on our path of renewal, it will ultimately reflect the principles of synodality in our local Church. This renewal is both personal and communal. It invites a conversion of heart in knowing that each person is called, that they matter and belong. It is a returning to the source and encountering the Risen Lord. Let us pray that this will be the fruits of the Synod and of our own Diocesan Renewal as we move forward.  

The Canadian Synod delegates. Photo credit: S+L Media

Vertical Divider

Written by Most Rev.  William T. McGrattan, Bishop of Calgary
---
​Nov 4, 2024