(Phyllis Zagano – La Croix)
On June 20, 2023, the Holy See published the Synod Working Document on Synodality. The document, described by Cardinal Mario Grech, general secretary of the General Secretary of the Synod, as “the fruit of many studies by many local Churches, a journey we have all learned by walking together and wondering about the meaning of this experience”, it will guide the first of two synodal meetings in October 2023. What the women’s synod work, and the whole process of the women’s ordination, and the whole progress so far. economic?
Deacon ministry and synodality
During the Middle Ages, the diaconate became increasingly ceremonial, and by the 12th century, the diaconate was primarily a step on the path to the priesthood. Coincidentally, the Church's charitable works have dwindled, even as the need for charity has increased.
With varying degrees of formality, many men and women have responded to these needs, as leaders, religious, hermits, novices, university students and schoolchildren... The ensuing centuries received more responses, but calls to restore the diaconate as a permanent vocation did not receive support at the Council of Trent. Meanwhile, the renewal of active monastic life (as opposed to monastic life) began to develop. Religious men and women undertake the works of charity normally carried out by the diaconal ministries, the word of God and charity, especially taking care of those on the margins of society.
Today, very few of the world's 1.3 billion Catholics know what "synodality" means. The founding of religious orders and institutes of apostolic life, however, may offer the clearest explanation of "synodalism". In response to the pastoral needs of the Church, the founder convened a small group of men or women to study the local needs of the inhabitants of the area, such as education, doctrine, social needs, or all of these... They prayed, discussed, and discerned how best to live the Gospel message in their time and place.
That is the process that Pope Francis invites the whole Church to begin on October 17, 2021. By August 2022, 112 (out of 114 titles) bishops' conferences of countries have submitted the results of their synodal discussions on Rome. At the end of September, a 26-member multilingual group reviewed these issues along with reports from the offices, the USG and the UISG (the organization of the major superiors of religious orders and institutes of men and women), in consultation with lay associations assembled by the Dicastery. Laity and the "Digital Synod" to draw up the Document in the Continental Phase. Published in English, French, Italian, Portuguese and Spanish by the end of October 2022,
What did this elaborate work showcase? From the outset, it was clear that the people of God viewed clericalism as a major obstacle to coherence, evangelization, and participation in the life and work of the Church. Diocesan, regional, national and continental reports address clericalism in one form or another, often citing the scourge of clerical sexual abuse and the inadequate response of the church at all levels as reasons for general discouragement and skepticism in the synodal process and for the Church itself.
Other topics include transparency in all Church affairs, clerical formation and lay ministry. The inclusion of women in the leadership of the Church, especially those in need of ordination, has been and is a point of discussion. In response, the Document for the Continental Phase mentioned women in the diaconate, but did not mention the ordination of women to the priesthood.
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