This journey has allowed the Church to read her own experiences and identify steps to live communion, realise participation, and promote the mission entrusted to her by Christ.
(Pope Francis)
The Synod on Synodality, initiated by Pope Francis in 2021 has been a pivotal discernment process for the Church and a renewed experience of encounter with the Risen One. Over a period of three years, the process brought together diverse voices to share their experiences, insights, and hopes for the Church’s future. The culmination of this global consultation took place last October in Rome where more than 350 delegates gathered in prayer to deepen the fruits of this discernment and offer the Holy Father recommendations for the Church’s future engagement with the world.
The Discerning Leadership had the privilege to serve this process through the active participation in the Synod of DL team members, faculty, alumni and extended network. The testimonies and highlights shared below serve as a testament to the transformative power of Synodality and the sacred work ahead in building a more inclusive missionary Church.
We pray that the Advent season be a moment for integrating and contemplating the rich fruits of the Synodal experience, as articulated in the Final Document and echoed by those who participated in the process. May the insights garnered from our collective journey take root in our hearts and communities and strengthen our commitment to this transformative path.
Testimonies from Members and Facilitators
David McCallum, Executive Director of the Discerning Leadership Team, Facilitator in the Synod
“When we take a step back from the times we’re living in and consider some of the most perplexing challenges we face in our wider society as well as the in the Church, it is hard not to see two issues in particular: 1) how authority is exercised and often abused at the expense of empowering people and expanding participation, and 2) how we find unity and coherence in communities that are so diverse, including in the Church. I mention these two major challenges because what I experienced in the past three years was the way that the Holy Spirit is drawing us as a Church to offer different responses, more creative solutions, than the problematic “ways of the world.” Where we see the rise of authoritarianism and in some cases, anarchy, in so many places, synodality calls us to observe and respect the dignity and the protagonism of each person, to foster co-responsibility for the mission of evangelization, and an effective, mutual relationship between the function of hierarchy and the inclusion of participation. At times, the dialogue and the discernment about this issue was, is, and will be fraught with tension because it involves power. However, it was a great consolation to witness how clergy, religious, and lay participants of so many distinct ranks within the Church engaged these questions openly and with a shared commitment to both the example of Jesus in the Gospels and the service of the Church’s mission. As lay women theologians, for instance, were able to take their three minutes to offer input alongside experienced Cardinals and bishops, and the third round of spiritual conversation unfolded, it was clear that everyone had something to learn from the others at the table. It became more clear that authority in the Church exists to promote engagement and participation, to make spaces and provide processes rather than to occupy places.
Where we find ourselves sometimes disoriented by the diversity of cultures, the various ways of understanding the Church, and the implications for this human diversity for the ways we live and minister, we know that the way of the world is often either to impose uniformity to manage differences, or to take a laissez faire approach that says “anything goes.” But in the Synod, it was inspiring to see how participants grappled with the question of how we might find union and communion with one another by taking a discerning approach that began with a theological and spiritual appreciation for diversity as a function of Creation, and the will of the Creator. We began by meditating on how the “other” was understood through Jesus’ perspective as the one who better embodied compassion, care, or true faith. We listened to one another’s stories of growing up in particular local churches and about what we cherish most about being Catholic disciples of Christ. In these ways, we found a harmony that includes our diversity, and becomes a foundation for our shared discernment.”
Sr Pat Murray, DL Board Member, Executive Secretary of the UISG, and Synod Member
“At the second session of the Synod on Synodality, we all felt much more at ease with one another, having established new friendships and knowing the importance of listening deeply to each voice. In his opening mediation Timothy Radcliffe said that profound listening required us to be patient, imaginative, intelligent and open-hearted. These words describe what I truly experienced during table conversations. Fr. Timothy’s reflections during the retreat focused on Resurrection themes: searching in the dark, the locked room, resurrection fishing and resurrection breakfast. These mediations captured our desires, anxieties, hopes and fears. They reminded us to become seekers and that like Mary Magdalen we would receive more than we searched for, if we were open to encounter the Lord. What I then experienced was a profound call to be a seeker, a searcher truly open to the rejuvenating Holy Spirit. I found myself growing in amazement at the new life that is already emerging in the Church as we the People of God begin a new missionary journey.”
Sandra Chaoul, Member of the Discerning Leadership Team and Synod Facilitator
“When seeing the photo of the 36 tables in Paul VI Hall in Rome, a priest said to me: “The kingdom of God is unfolding right before our eyes”. His comment accompanied me throughout the past year and resonated more strongly during this Second Synodal Assembly, as war back home weighed heavily on my heart. It was a call to a deeper witnessing, an act of trust in God’s grace, always at work even when it feels hidden from sight.
Throughout the month, glimmers of hope, laughter and sometimes tears were reminders of the gentle touch of the Spirit. Our conversations were not always easy or free of tension. The temptation to harden and disengage was real, so was the call to rediscover in the heart of that, the gift of walking together. Our commitment to listening and to learning to see one another as allies in a spiritual discernment journey offered a striking contrast to the violence and fear unfolding in real time and reported from the frontlines. Around the Synod tables, God was calling us to a new way of being Church and forming us as witnesses in a world longing for reconciliation. This was for me one of the central graces of our Synodal journey, a gift to the Church and the world.”
Paolo Foglizzo, Faculty in the Discerning Leadership Italian Program, and Synod Expert
“Among the many impressions, insights and emotions related to my participation in the Synod Assembly, two images in particular express what touched me most deeply.
The first, which has become famous, is that of the assembly at work, with participants gathered around round tables: men and women, priests, bishops, laity and consecrated persons, all on the same level, all engaged in discernment in view of a common goal. This image, so different from the traditional one of the pyramid, expresses the vision of the Church at the heart of the Synod, rooted in the common dignity of all the baptised, within which lies the diversity of vocations, charisms and ministries. At the tables, people are engaged in conversation in the Spirit, the one who bestows his gifts upon the faithful and creates harmony among them within the Church.
The second image I take away with me is that of the concluding moment: after approving the Final Document praying the Te Deum together, all the participants gathered around the Holy Father, thus placing themselves under the Risen One, represented by the wonderful sculpture in the Paul VI Hall. This, too, is an image of the Church, made up of men and women of every tribe, language, people and nation, a Church where there is room for everyone – tutti, tutti, tutti –, and where we can walk together, without erasing the many differences of which we are bearers.
The Synod showed that these images, and the vision of the Church they express, are not utopia, but a gift of the Lord to us today, if we are willing to receive it.”
Christina Kheng, Faculty in the Discerning Leadership Program, Member of the DL Accompaniment Network and Synod Facilitator
“As a facilitator, what I found most consoling was the good will and patience with which people engaged in the process and with one another. They were able to voice their disagreements respectfully, and showed a lot of commitment in working together towards an outcome that would help the Church move forward as a whole. I was also consoled that the people at the grassroots level were foremost on the participants’ minds and hearts throughout the assembly. They were the center of our conversations and final decisions. The tender love and care that the participants felt for the people they served were very evident. I realize that when we are able to share these experiences with one another even amidst conflicting viewpoints, that’s the beginning of synodality.”
Sr Maria Cimperman, Member of the DL Accompaniment Network, UISG staff and Synod Facilitator
I offer two insights about the Synod Assembly this year. I felt we were softer this year. Last year we were getting to know one another, learning how to share across a variety of ways of seeing, thinking, imagining. This year when we saw one another at the opening of retreat, there were many hugs and warm welcomes to one another. We were softer in how we listened, for we were better at listing to one another.
A second insight for me was that we came this year with a different readiness to discern “how to be a church in mission” in very practical ways, including in our local churches. The listening among us had deepened and the voice of each one made a difference in what moved at our tables.
Highlights from the Final Document
During the synodal journey, we have witnessed a fruitful convergence regarding the meaning of synodality that forms the basis of this Document. Synodality is the walking together of Christians with Christ and towards God’s Kingdom, in union with all humanity. Orientated towards mission, synodality involves gathering at all levels of the Church for mutual listening, dialogue, and communal discernment. It also involves reaching consensus as an expression of Christ rendering Himself present, He who is alive in the Spirit. Furthermore, it consists in reaching decisions according to differentiated co-responsibilities. Along these lines, we can understand better what it means to say that synodality is a constitutive dimension of the Church (ITC 1). 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 so that it can walk with every man and woman, radiating the light of Christ.
Synod Final Document, 28
You can read the document online, together with the accompanying note of the Holy Father, in Italian (original version of the Document), Portuguese and French. Working translations are also available in English and Spanish.
Approved by Pope Francis, the final document highlights the centrality of conversion in the relationships, processes and bonds within a Synodal Church. A more relational Church is seen as central for nurturing a true synodal identity, where listening, mutual trust, and discernment permeate the way authority is exercised and decisions are made. The document advocates for shared responsibility across diverse ministries and calls on ecclesial leaders to acknowledge and channel the gifts brought by all. Significant attention is given to the role of women and laity in ecclesial functions and consultations, ensuring that their experiences and voices are included in shaping the Church’s future.
What emerged throughout the entire synodal journey, and in every place and context, was the call for a Church with a greater capacity to nurture relationships: with the Lord, between men and women, in the family, in the local community, among social groups and religions, with all of creation. (Synod Final Document, 50)
The recommendations made by the Assembly mark a bold move toward a more decentralized and collaborative ecclesial structure. and promise to foster a more vibrant and spirit-led Church community. Synod members also emphasized the need for integral formation at all levels within the Church to support lay and consecrated people’s capacity to witness to the Gospel and embody the principles of Synodality in daily life.
Participants’ lived experience along the past years enabled them to recognize that Synodality is not a one-time listening exercise and does not come to an end with the conclusion of the Assembly. It is an ongoing process of conversion, discernment, and collaboration that will continue to shape our very way of being Church.
Short Animation Video exploring Synodality
As a way to make the Synodal way of proceeding more accessible to all, the School for Synodality has created a short animation video (What is Synodality?) that you can watch and circulate . You can also find more about the resources and formation programmes they develop in service of Synodality on their website: The School for Synodality – www.schoolforsynodality.org.uk.
