Synod briefing - Day 16: Discernment on the final document
By Lorena Leonardi and Edoardo Giribaldi
The final days of the General Assembly of the Synod on Synodality are a time of discernment concerning the proposed Final Document, with participants proposing modi, or amendments to the draft text; while remaining attentive to what is happening in the world with the proposal of ‘a strong and clear no’ to war.
The work of the Synod participants was described, as usual, at the beginning of the daily synod press briefing by Dr Paolo Ruffini, the president of the General Assembly’s Commission for Information; and Sheila Pires, the Commission’s secretary.
The elaboration of modi
“The next few hours, this afternoon and tomorrow morning, will be dedicated to the elaboration by the small groups of the modi to the draft Final Document,” Ruffini explained. He noted that “at the end of the morning, the special secretary, Father Giacomo Costa, explained in detail the procedures of this new phase of work.”
In particular, Ruffini explained that the “modi” “are concrete proposals for modifications” to the text, whether by elimination, addition, or substitution.” Moreover, he said, the proposed amendments can be submitted either by individuals or by groups of Synod participants: Collective modi are those adopted in the language groups. Each proposed amended will be voted on separately by the full members of the Synod, with an absolute majority necessary for an amendment to be adopted.
The aim is to arrive at collective modifications that express the discernment of the group. Furthermore, Dr Ruffini continued, “the collective modi must be delivered by the end of tomorrow morning.
Each member can also send individual proposals to the General Secretariat of the Synod; however, the modi will naturally “carry more weight.”
Translations of the Document into Ukrainian and Chinese
Finally, Dr Ruffini pointed out “that the draft of the Final Document was written in Italian, as the official language, but was translated into as many languages as possible with unofficial translations. All this was done to facilitate the discernment of the various members.” He noted that Ukrainian and Chinese among the languages into which the text was translated, with the being “much appreciated” by the two Chinese bishops present at the Synod.
Young people's appeal ‘we want to walk with you’
Dr Pires reported that 343 synod members were present in the hall, for the General Congregation on Tuesday, which was also attended by Pope Francis.
After the small group meetings following the presentation of the draft Final Document on Monday, “this morning [Tuesday] all the free speeches focused on the draft document. The text was appreciated for its balance, depth, density and, at the same time, proposals were made.”
“There were 40 interventions on the various topics related to synodality addressed so far,” Pires noted, while specifying, “Among these was the topic of young people: with a request from one of the youngest members of the Synod who made an appeal to synod fathers and mothers in view of the post-Synod: ‘Please do not leave young people aside but walk with us; we want to walk with you.’’’
The various roles within the Church
“Other interventions,” Pires reported, “spoke of the role of women in the Church, reaffirming their fundamental importance; then the role of the laity, the Bishops’ Conferences, priests, consecrated life, and small Christian communities.”
The secretary of the Commission for Information concluded by pointing out that ongoing world news made its way into the Synod hall, with the invitation to the Church to reiterate “a strong and clear ‘No!’” to war: “We must continue to ask and implore an end to these conflicts,” was heard in the hall; “otherwise there will no longer be a human being alive who can read this Document.”
Imagining a new way of being Church
“We were convened not to solve particular problems but to imagine a new way of being Church,” said Cardinal Fridolin Ambongo Besungu, the first of the panelists to speak at Tuesday’s briefing. “The Synod did not deviate from the objective it had set itself, laying a foundation: starting from it, returning each one to his own house, as well as in the universal Church, we must apply this spirit of synodality to every problem that arises,” he said.
The Archbishop of Kinshasa expressed his satisfaction with the Synod as it draws to a close.
“Our country is still considered a missionary land, our Church was until recently a missionary one, and it must adapt to the reality of the socio-cultural context,” he said, so “the convocation to the synod was seized as a kairós,” a moment of grace, and an opportunity to “see together how to imagine a new way of being Church.”
Now that synodality is emerging in the Church, Cardinal Ambongo assured journalists that in Africa, the Church, “together with our African brothers and sisters, will try tto enter into this new dynamic, how to be a Catholic Church differently.”
Africa, fertile ground for synodality
Archbishop Andrew Nkea Fuanya, of Bamenda, Cameroon, then took the floor, commenting on the African contribution to the Synod, starting with grassroots communities and catechists.
Synodality, he said, is “an eschatological sign for all of us,” who come from different parts of the world with different ideas.
He expressed the hope that synod participants would return to their home not only as people who have passively received synodality, but as active ambassadors,” for synodality, which, he continued, “I believe is really the future.”
In the context of Africa, where “the churches are full” the problem is “how to keep them” full, he stressed, adding, “We will do it through synodality.”
The Archbishop went on to highlight the fundamental role played by catechists, especially women, who comprise about half of the total number of catechists.
“Africa is a special place for synodality,” so much so, he concluded, that “in small communities we manage to solve problems and have peace.”
Re-inculturising Catholicism in the age of post-secularisation
Speaking of the post-secularisation situation in Germany, the Bishop of Essen, Franz-Josef Overbeck, emphasised the need for the Catholic Church to be re-inculturated.
“After many years in which one was either Catholic or Protestant, now out of almost 84 million inhabitants, half are without faith, without religion and also without an idea of who God is,” he said, “while the other half is almost equally divided between Catholics and Protestants, with the presence of more than four million Muslims.” Although new small communities are working, there is a need to “evangelise anew” and at the same time “give a new answer on the role of women in the Church.”
In this state of post-secularisation, in which the Church lives “in tension between structure on the one hand and a new spirituality on the other,” synodality is “a path that we have already been living in for years,” the Bishop continued, adding that a synodal approach has already been developed after the abuse scandal in Germany.
Asia, a living faith in dialogue
Father Clarence Sandanaraj Davedassan, director of the Catholic Research Centre in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, spoke about the experience of living synodality ad intra, within the Church; and ad extra, with others.
Apart from the Philippines and Timor Leste, he explained, Asia is a continent where Catholics are a minority.
While the faith is very much alive, he said, “this does not mean that secularisation and other problems are not present.”
If, he continued, “the public space for the expression of faith seems to be getting smaller and smaller” in many places, not least due to political and religious extremism, in such a context “one must seek harmony by engaging in dialogue.”
In such context, he insisted, dialogue “is not an option” but rather “a matter of survival. It is not a novelty but a necessity and is part of the experience we live daily within a pluralist culture.”
Synodality, he continued, is “at the foundation of all this” and is being lived everywhere, starting with the family, and it continues to bear fruit.
Thus, he said, the challenge in Asia involves learning to do theology “from the perspective of living with others” and learning to evangelise “where faith cannot be expressed in a public way.”
Finally, Fr Davedassan spoke about the phenomenon of migration, which has led many Asians to live in other parts of the world: “They are the new missionaries, because when they leave they are not just looking for an income but they take their faith with them.” he concluded, “And I know that in many places in the world they animate the Churches, contributing to keeping the faith alive.”
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