The current synod, whose title may seem abstruse — a "Synod on Synodality" —, is perhaps best expressed by the three words that follow its title: "Communion, Participation and Mission".
I want to emphasize the call to mission. This is indeed what the Lord asks for in the final lines of the Gospels, including that of Saint Matthew.
We suffer when we see that there are people in the Church who are obstacles to the encounter with God.The urgency of a more faithful Church was received with such force that the synodal consultation began at the same time as France's Independent Commission on Sexual Abuse in the Church (CIASE) published its report was published.
As for the whole of society, the difficulty lies in the exercise of authority.The Church is suspected of abuse, of not respecting minorities and even of covering up abuse, and Pope Francis has expressed this well by pointing out that the three types of abuse – abuse of power, as well as spiritual and sexual abuse – often feed off each other.Many words, or writings, conclude that the cause of all this is the specificity of priests and bishops, meaning both their lifestyle, including celibacy, and the authority they exercise in the Church.They say that changing both would be the remedy for the excesses that have produced so many offenses and crimes.
Many congratulations to Vincent Doyle, founder of Coping International, who features regularly in The Tablet. A BBC radio documentary on the thousands of children fathered by catholic priests has won this year’s journalism prize at the Sandford St Martin Trust awards.
Of course, there are those in the Church who have become disillusioned, not least among the overstretched clergy; and it’s clear why some might feel defeated by the demands of their role, as the age profile of the clerical workforce creeps up, their numbers fall and yet the demands increase, simply in order to keep the system going – however unsustainable it may be.
But alongside the question of clergy morale there is this. I would wager that there’s scarcely a Catholic parent in the country who would take the initiative to encourage their son to become a priest, any more than they would encourage their daughter to join a religious order, even if in time they might become supportive of their child’s choice.
The symposium, entitled “Towards a Fundamental Theology of the Priesthood”, is to take place in the Vatican City between 17 and 22 February next year and will discuss issues such as the role of women, the priesthood and multiculturalism.
