Bishop Synodality

[Eric_Olsen]

Sorry if this had been discussed before in other threads.
Question, what is the latest on this from the Vatican? My understanding of it is, that the pope will allow the Bishop conferences govern the church on most matters than having it come from the Vatican. in other words, decentralized.

I don’t know if this is a good thing givin the tract record of many Bishops we have had lately. I see a lax in church doctrine, more not-needed experimentation with the liturgy and the tossing out of the EF form of mass. I don’t want the church, especially here in America turning out like the Episcopal church did. If anything, the tightening up of the church from JPII and Benedict was needed because of all the the liturgical free for all and lax and loosening of church morals.

thoughts?

 

[Brendan]

Sorry if this had been discussed before in other threads.
Question, what is the latest on this from the Vatican? My understanding of it is, that the pope will allow the Bishop conferences govern the church on most matters than having it come from the Vatican. in other words, decentralized.

If so, it would have to be a change in Canon Law. Local Bishop’s conferences have very little governing authority under the current Canons.

I honestly doubt that there will be much change.

An interesting example is the recent Bishop’s Synod on the Year of Faith. They produced a draft of what their concerns and what their decisions were. Under previous Popes, that draft is used as the basis for the following Papal Exhortation, such as Pope Benedict’s Verbum Domini

Pope Francis choose to disregard the Bishop’s draft and do an Exhortation on his own. That was the recent Evangelii Gaudium.

So it would seem that Pope Francis’ model is still very centralized.

 

[MorEphrem]

I can only sincerely hope there is not a move towards the Byzantine national synod model… However, I think a more synodal form of governance for the entire Church might be fruitful, i.e. give the sui iuris Churches actual autonomy as opposed to having Papal Nuncios prompt Synods and conclaves before their commencement.

 

[malphono]

If anything were to come of this “initiative” (which I think is about as likely as chickens growing lips), it would most like be in just that direction. Seems to me that’s how the stage is set now. But it also seems to me it would be worse because of the “democratic factor” in electing presidents, committees, etc.

It could, of course, happen that the Primatial Sees and their prerogatives, ever whittled away for the past millennium, could be restored, but that’s just about as likely as a blizzard in the Amazon rainforest.

 

[jimkhong]

And may the respective synods develop into Rites in their own right, with the autonomy over its own affairs, its own liturgy and its own way of witnessing to the local culture.

 

[YoungTradCath]

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