REFINING THE POPE FRANCIS PAPACY AND BRING CLARITY TO THE FAITH AND MORALS OF THE CHURCH: HOW WILL POPE LEO REFINE SYNODALITY?

Let me start by saying I love the Vatican II words “conciliar” and “subsidiarity”. I know what these mean on the macro and micro aspects of Church life.

In my entire 45 years of being a priest. I have supported pastoral councils, finance councils and the myriad of committees I have experienced or created to assist me and the parish in helping us to be taught, governed and sanctified by our bishop and his helpers the priests.

I appreciate subsidiarity. Decisions should be left to the lowest level, when possible and desirable, like a pastor deciding what form of the Mass to celebrate in his parish, how he will advertise it in his bulletin and what options he will use at Mass which are in the Roman Missal and its General Introduction, like intinction to offer the Precious Blood rather than drinking from the common chalice. I had one bishop ask me not to use that option. I asked him if he had any prohibitions on which Penitential Act I should use at Mass. He did not like by comeback. 

I loved input on administrative issues we face in parishes and dioceses from financial to organization. As a pastor, I have always had a Director of Administration that managed the parish office, building projects, contracts and the like. I stayed out of that, for my sanity and to keep to what I should be doing as a priest.

I was proud of our Stewardship Committees which encourage everyone sharing their “time, talent and treasure” with the Church and larger community. In fact, I am most proud of that.

The word I dislike, because it still has not been completely defined as the Roman Catholic Church develops it, is Synodality.

Did I say I dislike the word? 

The reason is that I find it “sick” in how it has thus far been expressed or reported. It sounds like to me a discussion group where people air their differences with the Catholic Faith and her morals and want to push the Pope to create a different Church like liberal Protestantism has become, especially the Anglican Communion.

If what I have heard or read about our synodal process had led bishops, priests, deacons and laity to go deeper into what the Catholic Church believes, teaches and proclaims, to be revealed by God and how to create a good apologetic to lead Catholics and the world to the True Faith and Faith’s Good Works, I would love synodality even with all the lay input the current synodality method is using, even round table discussion, which i don’t completely care for. 

My clairvoyance will be that Pope Leo will clarify synodality, continue to invite a variety of people to be involved in synods but make clear the Catholic role of bishops to teach, rule and sanctify the Church in a hierarchical fashion. 

He will focus on making clear Catholicism and her outgoing mission to evangelize her own and the world with the truth, the splendor of truth as St. Pope John Paul understood it!