Is Cardinal Grech being naive or cynical? Does he take the faithful for fools? New members of Synodal elite to be announced.

Cardinal Grech: tensions are to be endured at World Synod

The Head of Synod Secretariat talks to Austrian journalists in Rome: "If we are a synodal Church, we will be in a stronger position to answer the questions that preoccupy men and women today" - Working Paper for Synod of Bishops in autumn comes from "whole Church"

Tensions or opposing views in the context of the World Synod for a more synodal Church must be accepted as part of the process and should not cause fear. Cardinal Mario Grech, head of the Synod Secretariat and thus one of the main organisers of the World Synod, said this at a meeting with Austrian journalists in Rome. "This means that we engage in a discussion in which we have different views," the Cardinal, who comes from Malta, said at the meeting, which was also attended by Cardinal Christoph Schönborn of Vienna. "What is important is that we have a goal and a common starting point, that we listen to the Word of God with the help of the Holy Spirit and want the good of the Church," Grech said.

Tensions also stimulated "reflection, more open dialogue", Grech expressed his conviction. The consultations within the framework of the World Synod, which began in autumn 2021 at local church level and continued at continental and now world church level, have also increased the pressure for church reforms and raised corresponding hopes among believers. "If the Synodal process creates or sustains hope among people, then that is a very great comfort for me," the Head of the Synod Secretariat said in this regard. It is the task of the Church to inspire hope - this is all the more true today, he said: "We live in a society, a world, in which hope is in danger."

At the same time, Grech emphasised, in connection with criticism of the media's view of the Synod so far, that the focus was not initially on topics such as the role of women or LGBTQ+. It is not a synod about women, but "the theme is a Synodal church in which there is more communion, more mission and more participation," the Cardinal said. All the baptised, women and men, should participate in this communion, mission and participation.

But the emphasis on a greater role for women has been "evident" in the deliberations so far, he said. "We have received the message that the Church should make more space for women. Both in the decision-making processes and in the decision-making processes." The goal is to become a more synodal church, Grech said, "Because if we are a synodal church, we will be in a stronger position to answer the questions that men and women are facing today - questions that we cannot answer alone. We have to walk the path together."

"We are not playing politics here. We have a great responsibility and we are trying to understand the will of God," Grech added. Without spirituality, he said, the Synod could not achieve its goals. One wants to move forward together, he said. Grech: "Unfortunately, we still use voting in the Synod. How I would love to see the day when we can reach conclusions by consensus. Some will tell me that this is wishful thinking or very difficult. But it can be a practice in the Church. Because in voting, there are the winners and the losers, the majority and the minority - and it's not true that the majority is always right."

Cathcon:  If it walks, talks and smells like politics, it is politics.  Politics is a game.....a rigged game.   

Working paper comes from "whole Church"

In the World Synod called by Pope Francis under the leitmotif "A Synodal Church: communion, participation, mission", the Church is taking an in-depth look at how it finds its decisions and what forms of participation there should be in the process. In two assemblies from 4 to 29 October 2023 and in 2024 in Rome, the World Synod of Bishops will deliberate on the results of the worldwide consultation and deliberation process.

Last week, those responsible for the Synod around Cardinal Grech and General Relator Cardinal Jean-Claude Hollerich presented the working paper (Instrumentum laboris) for the upcoming Synodal Assembly. It is not a document of the Holy See and merely originated on a desk in the Vatican, Grech affirmed in conversation with the group of journalists from Austria. "It is a document that comes from the whole Church, from the bottom up."

Cathcon: this is a lie and he knows it.  See my blog posts here about the microscopic participation. 

The working paper, which is 71 pages long in German, first sets out in two sections the characteristics and distinguishing features of a synodal Church and develops three priority questions which have emerged most strongly in the worldwide synodal phase on all continents and are now to be "presented for discernment" to the General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops. This is followed by 15 worksheets with concrete questions for the synodals to work on.

The paper poses questions for discussion and thus also refutes voices according to which the results of the Synod are already predetermined by Rome, Cardinal Grech explained. "Nothing is fixed, it is still a blank sheet of paper. It will be a task for the Synod Assembly to try to find some basic answers. Fortunately, we have not one but two assemblies."

For the first time, up to a quarter non-bishops

Among the approximately 370 participants of the World Synod of Bishops, up to a quarter of non-bishops, among them lay people, but also priests, deacons or religious, will for the first time be present and entitled to vote, Grech explained. Of course, it will still be a Synod of Bishops. 70 synod members are appointed by the Pope on the proposal of the various continental synods. At least half of them should be women. "I hope that people with disabilities will also be present," said Grech.

They will be joined by religious superiors, lay people from curia authorities and non-bishops whom the Pope may himself appoint directly as synod members. Names will be made public in the next two weeks, the Cardinal said.

Cathcon: the whole process is being run as an appointment system for modernist cronies.   Cathcon will be running profiles when the names are known.

See article on self-appointing synodal elite.

Circuli Minores "new"

Because of the large number of participants, the Synod will not meet in the Synod Hall as usual, but in the large audience hall in the Vatican. One change compared to previous Synods is the Working Groups, the so-called "Circuli Minores". To better facilitate conversation, participants will be seated at round tables of ten or eleven, with bishops and non-bishops mixed together. "We want to create more space so that people can feel comfortable and literally find space to breathe," Grech explained. Group speakers will each present results from the small groups to the whole assembly. "Then they go back to the Working Group. That is the rhythm of the meetings."

Times of silence and prayer are also central to the working method, he said. "The Synod is a liturgical celebration," Grech reminded. The Synod Assembly, which lasts about four weeks, also begins with a three-day spiritual retreat for participants at a location near Rome. At the request of Pope Francis, the English Dominican priest Timothy Radcliffe will provide initial impulses for the synodal assembly.

Father Radcliffe's presence in no way enhances confidence in the process.