“For we do not have a high priest
who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses,
but one who has similarly been tested in every way,
yet without sin.”
Sadly, one of the best kept secrets in the Church in the United States is the beginning of a phenomenal process, called by Pope Francis in Rome, to reimagine the essence of who we are as a Church. Not since the great Second Vatican Council in the early 1960’s, has the Church attempted such a thorough reexamination of ‘who’ and ‘what’ she is. The nearly three-year process called the Synod on the Synod, is presently taking place in Rome and invites every local Church or Diocese to become engaged in this graced moment of renewal.
Pope St. Paul VI who concluded the Council in 1965, wished that the grace that brought reform and renewal to our Church, not remain a one-time experience. It is for that reason that he mandated periodic gathering of Bishops or Synods, that would bring together the collective wisdom of these successors of the apostles to address contemporary challenges that the Church would face in the coming years. It would be through the Synod of Bishops that the grace of the Council would be extended in time.
The Greek word synodos literally means a walking or coming together. We are never a Church in isolation but always a Church together with our sisters and brothers in Christ. The Second Vatican Council rediscovered the important concept of collaboration of all God’s Holy People in the mission and ministry of Christ. While we often say that the Church is not a democracy, it is first and foremost a communion of all the Baptized. That communion exists to image to our world the Christ who has not abandoned us but, in the words of the Letter to the Hebrews today is our high priest who, indeed, is able to sympathize with us because he himself has been tested in every way, yet without sin.
While we so often image the Church as the hierarchy of Pope, Bishops and Priests who are there to teach the patrimony of belief, we must never forget that an equally important role of the Church is to listen. In the memorable opening words of the Conciliar document “The Church in the Modern World:” The joys and hopes, the grief and anguish of the people of our time, especially of those who are poor or afflicted, are the joys and hopes, the grief and anguish of the followers of Christ as well.
The Synod on the Synod then, will explore the many ways in which, as a listening Church, we can accompany God’s people in their pilgrim journey to encounter the Father. Unfortunately, the toxic climate of the present moment that is rife with ideological and partisan factions claiming ‘the Truth’ of the Gospel invites a conversion of heart. Historically, so often we have been a Church quick to judge and condemn rather than anxious to listen and encounter with a loving and merciful heart.
At the conclusion of his homily at the opening Mass for the Synod on the Synod, Pope Francis has left us with these memorable words. May they be a guide for us in this pilgrimage together:
Dear brothers and sisters, let us have a good journey together! May we be pilgrims in love with the Gospel and open to the surprises of the Holy Spirit. Let us not miss out on the grace-filled opportunities born of encounter, listening and discernment. In the joyful conviction that, even as we seek the Lord, he always comes with his love to meet us first.