As Pope Francis officially opened the Extraordinary Synod on the family three weeks ago, he gave its participants just one rule: to speak honestly.
The synod that was “celebrated” from October 5 to October 19 brought together 253 participants — including 25 women — from different parts of the world. And it was indeed a moment of frank talk.
Synods, introduced in the present form since the Second Vatican Council, are periodic assemblies that bring together bishops and selected experts to discuss issues relevant to the contemporary Church.
There are two types of synods: Ordinary synods are regular assemblies for which the national or regional conferences of bishops elect representatives, and extraordinary synods, which are specifically convoked by the Pope — they have fewer members comprising heads of episcopal conferences.
At the just-concluded extraordinary synod, the third of its kind ever held, Kenya was represented by John Cardinal Njue. The synods have only a consultative mandate, and in the past decades they have largely been non-events.
However, Pope Francis has repeatedly said that the Church needs to be more collegial and transparent. “Fraternal and open discussions help develop theological and pastoral thinking,” Pope Francis had said a month prior to the synod. What some sections of the media reported as disagreement among Church leaders at the synod was nothing but a profound expression of that collegial atmosphere currently prevailing in the Catholic Church.
Already in the build-up to the synod there were open debates among some Church leaders. Cardinal Walter Kasper was proposing an agenda of mercy (see Sunday Nation of October 5). On the other end of the spectrum, there were some cardinals who were focused on an agenda of truth — in the definition of marriage and family, and in the Church’s approach to people in special situations such as homosexuality, divorce and remarriage.
Among the latter group were the American Cardinal Raymond Burke, the head of the highest tribunal at the Vatican, and Cardinal Gerard Mueller, the Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of Faith. In fact, the Australian Cardinal George Pell, the head of the Economic Affairs of the Holy See, thought that Kasper’s suggestions would be dangerous, creating false expectations among the faithful.
There were other Cardinals who sincerely sought the middle path. For instance, Cardinal Reinhard Marx of Munich appealed to his fellow leaders not to be carried away by particular issues, but to focus on general guidelines. As for the Pope himself, despite his conspicuous slant towards pastoral care, he seems to have come to the table with a collegiality agenda.
In any case, what we have witnessed in the past weeks is a revival of the days of the Second Vatican Council. Despite the struggles and “temptations” to hold extreme positions — as the Pope himself referred to, in the dynamics observed during the present synod, the Church has effectively integrated truth and mercy (John 1:17) in its teaching on, and the pastoral care of, the family.
The celebration of the synod itself had several other positive dimensions. One highlight was the presence of 13 married couples at the synodal assembly. They came from different continents and various walks of life. Most of them were involved in some form of ministry to families in the Church, notable among them were the representatives from the Focolare Movement — of Italian origin, and the Couples for Christ — originating in the Philippians. Both movements are now worldwide.
Almost every plenary session of the synod began with narratives from the couples. They shared their commitment to the truth of the teaching of the Church regarding marriage and family, but also brought to the attention of the clerics at the synod the struggles that accompany the commitment.
The couples appealed for mercy and greater sensitivity as they presented the participants with some uncomfortable truths. For example, Jeff and Alice Henzen of the Diocese of La Croce in the United States pointed out: “We know countless divorced adults who have joined other faith communities because they do not feel welcome in the Catholic Church.”
One of the major issues that raised many an eyebrow among well-informed Catholics as well as the members of the synod was that the tentative version of the synodal document was in the public domain before it was even put to final discussion and eventual voting. It is not yet clear whether the draft was officially released to the media, or if it was a leak. However, it was obvious that the discussion in the media during the second week of the synod put a lot of undue pressure on the members of the synod.
While the mainstream media was falsely enthusiastic at the beginning of the week, as the curtain was being drawn on the synod the media began to highlight the failure to obtain a two-thirds majority on two paragraphs of the proposed summary of the synod. It should be noted that the negative vote may not imply a downright opposition to the content. On the contrary, it could be that some bishops found the draft still too timid. In any case, in allowing the voting to be made public, the Pope has encouraged continued open discussion in the year ahead in order to arrive at a consensus by the end of the next synod to be held in a year’s time.
What are these controversial paragraphs saying, anyway?
Paragraph 54 of the document, which focuses on “the pastoral care of people with homosexual orientation”, clearly restates what the Church holds to be true on this matter, that there is no foundation whatsoever to justify, even remotely, same-sex unions as the plan of God for marriage and family. The second part of the paragraph goes on to add a line of mercy: “Nevertheless, men and women with homosexual tendencies must be accepted with respect and sensitivity. And every sign of unjust discrimination towards them is to be avoided.”
The second paragraph in question is concerning the possibility of participation in the Eucharist for people who are divorced and remarried. Here again, the document reiterates the truth about the fundamental relationship between participation in the Eucharist, communion with the Church community, and the indissolubility of marriage. It also includes a clause of mercy that in “some special situations and under strict conditions, especially when it comes to cases that are irreversible” inclusion at the Table of Lord could be considered.
Given these actual statements, it was not fair that the secular media should have focused on the lack of consensus over a previous version of these paragraphs, and not acknowledging the goodwill of the Church to be inclusive and merciful.
Being a consultative body, it is customary that the synod only presents a list of propositions to the Pope to be included in what is referred to as the “Post-Synodal Exhortation”, which will be issued by the Pope himself. In the case of the present extraordinary synod, the definitive document is likely to be issued after the sequel that will take place next October.
In general, the statement containing the summary of the synod, that is still available only in Italian, has a look of a document that provides a solid framework for further discussion on the pastoral care of the family.
The outline of the document follows an adapted rendering of the See-Judge-Act formula which, in the recent decades, has become more used in pastoral reflection in the Catholic Church. The method is also referred to as the Pastoral Cycle. In the present document, seeing or listening consisted in openly perceiving and understanding the prevailing situation regarding marriage and family life in the world today.
The stage of making judgement was led by the Scripture and the Tradition of the Church. And, finally, a way forward has been proposed in pastoral accompaniment of the faithful.
As a result, the relatio synodi, as the document is referred to in Latin, does not attempt to change the fundamental truths about the definition of marriage and family. It was not expected to do so. On the other hand, the document focuses on expressing a greater sense of care and empathy towards those in some form of difficulty in marriage. It further challenges young people to take their call to married life seriously, and the Church obliges itself in preparing the young people towards life-long commitment in marriage.
The closing speech of the Pope, for which he received a standing ovation, was sincere and serene, yet challenging.
He appreciated the open atmosphere that prevailed in the synodal assembly, and encouraged continued dialogue. He also warned them of extreme positions. He said: “Now we still have one year to mature, with true spiritual discernment, the proposed ideas and to find concrete solutions to so many difficulties and innumerable challenges that families must confront.”
For sure, in the coming months the debate is likely to become more heated, not only among the clergy but also among the faithful. It is also a challenging time for the Bishop of Rome (the Pope). Will he move towards mercy that wants to “bind the wounds without first treating them,” and ruin his own agenda of collegiality? And how will he take on board the truth camp despite their “temptation to hostile inflexibility”?
As a worthy disciple of St Ignatius — the founder of the Jesuits — the Pope is likely to keep himself in perfect balance between extremes in such a way that his teachings discern the will of God for the contemporary world.
