Mixed Reviews of Synod Expressed Ahead of Final Report’s Publication; More Updates

ROME—Tomorrow, three years of the formal synodal journey will end with the release of the General Assembly’s report. But before the report becomes public, many Catholics are already naming what synodality could mean for the church for years to come. Today’s post includes that news and other updates from the Synod.

Catholics Begin Looking Beyond the Synod—With Mixed Appraisals

On a positive note, America’s Gerard O’Connell notes that a strong message he hears from Synod delegates is “There is no going back!” O’Connell believes:

“[This phrase] reflects the deep-rooted conviction that the synodal process that was started by Pope Francis in October 2021 and has been experienced by millions of people in dioceses and parishes throughout much of the Catholic world since then, is destined to continue and spread throughout the Catholic Church in the 21st century. That process will be largely based on the fruits of the synod, some of which are likely to become church law.”

O’Connell, like other journalists, has not seen the final report. But he speculates that among those fruits will be an affirmation of being a synodal church—listening, consulting, forming relationships, and promoting co-responsibility. Other themes he believes will be included is an appreciation for Catholic women, a need for accountability and transparency, and an exhortation to seek justice in the world.

In a similar vein, Bishop Georg Bätzing of Limburg, president of the German Bishops’ Conference and a leading voice for LGBTQ+ inclusion, said this Synod “sets a new standard,” even as “we are not finished with our work when Sunday comes.” The bishop said that  concrete changes, including in canon law, still need to be made to allow synodality to develop at local levels. Bätzing also signaled that he wants the final report to include many issues raised even if no conclusions had been found about them. (He did not specify whether LGBTQ+ issues were among these.) His assembly table group  eventually and unanimously proposed 26 amendments for these issues to be mentioned, reported Katholisch.de.

Not all reform-minded Catholics, however, believe the Synod has been a success. Delegates have rarely made public criticism, but Swiss delegate Helena Jeppesen-Spuhler said the Vatican had disrespected the assembly’s members by its treatment of women. According to Katholisch.de, Jeppesen-Spuhler “feels betrayed by the Vatican with regard to the question of women’s ordination,” and this includes “not just us women, but also cardinals and bishops who are outraged that this important issue of offices in general and the role of women has not been addressed.”

Similarly, the U.S. reform group FutureChurch released a statement in advance of the final report that was harshly critical of Pope Francis and Synod leaders. Based on news reports about the synod, FutureChurch said it saw “a disturbing trend: that despite the 2023 Synthesis naming the topic of women in the Church as ‘urgent,’ Pope Francis and other members of the Vatican Curia engage in clerical tactics – delay, deception, and obfuscation – rather than adhering to the demands of synodality – transparency, discussion, and discernment – particularly on the issue of women’s ordination.”

Martha Ligas, a program associate for FutureChurch, added:

“It will be up to us – all of us – to keep the hope of synodality alive, to reimagine how to be Church. We all have a part to play – from those of us who continue to press the Church on the important issues, to the women who take the prophetic step of living into God’s call by seeking ordination, to members of the LGBTQ+ community who continue to advocate for their full dignity, to those who are creating new ways of living Church where they are.”

Cardinal-designate Radcliffe Clarifies Article Controversy

On Wednesday, Bondings 2.0 reported that Cardinal Fridolin Ambongo of Kinshasa said Cardinal-designate Timothy Radcliffe, OP, was “shocked” about an essay the Vatican’s newspaper which he claimed was authored by the Dominican theologian. The essay expressed the idea that some anti-LGBTQ+ attitudes in Africa were influenced by money from foreign conservative groups. The next day, Radcliffe issued a statement Radcliffe correcting the African cardinal’s claim:

“Cardinal Ambongo’s reply did not refer to the article published in L’Osservatore Romano, but one by Phil Lawler in Catholic Culture of 17 October. This was the article the cardinal showed me on his phone and which we discussed.

“Lawler’s reading of the Osservatore article misinterpreted what I had written. I never wrote or suggested that positions taken by the Catholic Church in Africa were influenced by financial considerations. I was acknowledging only that the Catholic Church in Africa is under tremendous pressure from other religions and church which are well funded by outside sources.”

This October, The Lack of Conservative Protests Is Notable

The National Catholic Reporter’s, Christopher White commented that what has not been happening during the Synod assembly this month is  conservative pushback. White notes that at previous Synods under Pope Francis, conservative groups protested and sought to disrupt proceedings, and yet, in 2024, “the resistance has effectively gone silent” in a “stark contrast to last year.” He continues:

“That sentiment seems to be matched here on the ground, where there have been no real efforts to organize synod side events by those who have typically opposed the process or sought to warn against its potential outcomes. Even reporters from right-wing media websites that have spent years sounding the alarm against the synod have gone quiet, both in print and inside the Vatican’s press office.

“‘The explanation is really very simple,’ said Jesuit Fr. Thomas Reese, a longtime Vatican observer who has covered synods since 1985. ‘Francis took all of the controversial, hot-button issues off the agenda, so the conservatives have nothing to complain about.’

“‘They can basically declare victory,’ Reese told the National Catholic Reporter.”

Pope Francis Publishes Fourth Encyclical on Love

Though not directly tied to the Synod, on Thursday, Pope Francis issued his fourth and likely final encyclical, Dilexit nos (“He loved us”), on the theme of the Sacred Heart of Jesus. Though no concrete issues are taken up by the pope in this more spiritually-oriented text, one section has stood out given the timing and desires at the Synod for change:

“[T]he heart of Christ also frees us from another kind of dualism found in communities and pastors excessively caught up in external activities, structural reforms that have little to do with the Gospel, obsessive reorganization plans, worldly projects, secular ways of thinking and mandatory programmes.”

Some observers have perceived this line as a subtle criticism of Synod delegates and other faithful who understood the process to be about structural reforms. Whether that was Francis’ intention or not is not yet known. For America’s review of the encyclical’s key points, click here.

Tomorrow, Bondings 2.0 will report live from Rome soon after the release of the Synod on Synodality General Assembly’s final report— and what it could mean for Catholic LGBTQ+ advocates. Stay tuned!

—Robert Shine (he/him), New Ways Ministry, October 25, 2024