I read and eventually tried to synthesize everything that had been submitted.

In the process, I gained a deeper understanding of synodality as well as a sense of the tasks and challenges that face us in the church.

Bishop Robert McElroy recently made a persuasive case in America for the need to carry the work of the synod into the future and to guard against viewing it as a closed-end process.

My experience confirms his intuition.

We face an immense formational task that involves helping the church to claim its reality as a people on the road together, rooted in the Gospel and inspired to carry that Gospel into the world.

One way to understand synodal formation is to note, as I did in the course of reading our archdiocesan-wide feedback, what seemed to be missing.

This via negativa can open up a positive way to understand the tasks and challenges ahead of us. Let me share three significant deficits that I noted and which can, in fact, point us in positive directions.

In so many ways, the synodal process that is deeply embedded in our history has also become unfamiliar to us.

An exercise in prayer

In our consultation, most people had not accurately or fully grasped the path of synodality as Pope Francis had presented it.

For so many respondents, the synod consultation was about figuring things out or sharing a personal opinion about how things ought to be, or some form of need-based planning.

The Holy Father's hope for the synodal process aligned things much differently.

For Pope Francis, everything about the synodal path begins in prayer.

Out of their prayer, believers encounter each other.

In their encounters, they are summoned to listen deeply to each other.

And finally, in their listening, they discover where the Holy Spirit might be prompting them to move.

The essential elements are

• prayer,
• encounter,
• listening and
• discernment.

This process is a clear reflection of the way the early church gathered and organized itself, as we know from the Acts of the Apostles, and of the very best moments of the life of the church throughout her history.

But in so many ways, the synodal process that is deeply embedded in our history has also become unfamiliar to us. The gravitational pull seems directed to figuring things out, sharing opinions or doing need-based planning. Clearly, the formational task is to help the church retrieve that synodal spirit that marks her earliest beginnings and her best moments.

This growing and unfolding formation replicates the beginnings of the church as chronicled in the Acts of the Apostles.

From the church, not to the church

As I studied the synod responses, I also discovered another anomaly that future synodal formation will need to address.

As people offered their comments with true sincerity and, sometimes, with great passion, their way of speaking gave me pause.

At a certain point, I realized that so many of the respondents were speaking more to the church rather than from the church.

In other words, they commented on the church as if it were an object outside of them.

This is in sharp contrast to what Pope Francis has in mind.

We are the subjects, the actors and—in his words—the protagonists in this process.

In other words, we are the church. And in a synodal context, then, we speak from the church.

All this means much more than quibbling over prepositions.

From a formational perspective, it involves carefully cultivating an internalized sense of identity with the church.

After studying the synod responses and reflecting on them, I can more clearly see the need the people of God have for synodal formation.

Looking outward

The third and final deficit that I found in the responses was something that Pope Francis has called "ecclesial introversion;" a sticky attachment to the internal life of the church and its structural-institutional organization.

The whole point of synodality is to be "on the road together" in mission, going outside of ourselves.

So many comments in the responses spoke to recommended changes in church life or, even more accurately, within church life.

The sense of outward mission was generally faint.

Formation for mission, an ever-expansive sense of our purpose in the world, needs to take hold of our communities of faith. Continue reading

The diocesan documents were synthesised at a national meeting held in Wellington in June.

The introduction to the national document says participants throughout the country "spoke positively and with love about the place the Church has in their lives.

"They want the Church to be a life-giving and active presence in the world, an outward-looking servant Church; a welcoming, inclusive and transformative presence for individuals and communities.

"They see the synodal process itself being as important as the outcome, because in listening to one another the Holy Spirit is present," the introduction says.

However, this experience was not universal.

"For some people, especially those participating as individuals rather than in groups, the process provided an opportunity to express anger, cynicism, hurt and rejection of the Church due to past experiences.

"The Church was named as a place of alienation and irrelevant, especially in its teaching on human sexuality.

"The responses from those who feel ignored, excluded or who have been deeply hurt made painful reading, but their desire to be part of a welcoming Catholic community was clear.

"Their responses are valued and we are learning from them," say the bishops.

New Zealand's Catholic Bishops Conference (NZCBC) says six themes have emerged from the diocesan phase of the 2023 Synod on Synodality.

These are: inclusion, gathering, leadership, education and formation, mission, and synodality and change.

Points from the six main Aotearoa New Zealand themes:

• Inclusion: We want the Church to be a non-judgmental and safe place of welcome and belonging. Church teaching which excludes some people from the Eucharist is causing pain and hurt. Awareness of those who feel marginalised or excluded can lead to new attitudes and action. Action on inclusion must be part of our synodal journey.
• Gathering: There is great love for the Mass, but also concerns about inclusion and lay participation. A new English translation of the Roman Missal is needed. Homilies must help people to encounter Jesus in the reality of their lives. If lay people are allowed to give homilies, they must have good formation. Small groups for prayer, formation, scripture study and mission to build community are needed.
• Leadership: Collaborative ministry should become the norm, with greater sacramental involvement for lay people. Co-responsible leadership with barriers to lay participation in decision-making removed. Women participate equally in decision-making and have greater participation in liturgical roles.
• Mission: Formation is needed for mission, and help with engaging in mission collectively. Ecumenical activity and interfaith dialogue need to be embraced as part of mission. Shame related to abuse in the Church makes evangelisation difficult. Prophetic leadership is needed in the community on social justice, ecological and bicultural issues. The only public voice of the Church for many is on euthanasia and human sexuality.
• Education and Formation: Further formation is needed for both lay people and clergy in discernment and synodality. There is a need for catechesis in Church teaching. Education and formation in safeguarding is essential for both lay people and clergy. Seminarians' formation should involve more community engagement and include biculturalism and cultural sensitivity. Both clergy and laity need formation in collaborative ministry and co-responsible leadership.
• Synodality and Change: The Synod process is exciting and transformative. We want to bring back those who are missing. Synodality and discernment can help us change while holding on to what is central to our faith. We want to learn to journey together in a synodal way.

The national document has been sent to Rome as part of the Pope's synodal path to the Church's future, which will culminate in the Assembly of the Synod of Bishops in Rome in October next year.

Similar national documents have been compiled by bishops' conferences around the world.

They will be used by the Secretariat of the Synod of Bishops to draft a working document in preparation for the October 2023 synod.

Bishops' conferences will also take part in "continental" gatherings, in New Zealand's case a gathering of Oceania conferences which will include Australia and Pacific island states.

Source

• NZ Catholic Bishops Conference
• National Synod Synthesis