In recent years dioceses across Australia and around the world have been nudged into conducting synods. In the case of my diocese, Toowoomba, the synod I attended last week was the second in its history; the first was in 1948. In the intervening decades there have been diocesan pastoral councils and occasional broader gatherings to consider how a diocese that extends from the Great Dividing Range to the western border of Queensland might best serve almost 60000 catholics (around 5000 active) spread across 36 parishes with 24 priests in active ministry. The challenges here bring to mind the recent post highlighting an article about structural collapse.

The diocese worked hard to develop the foundation for a successful synod. Following the proclamation of the synod a year ahead of the event the secretariat promoted listening sessions in parishes across the diocese, in gatherings across multiple parishes, and online. Nominations to participate were invited and the participants, who were broadly representative of the diocesan demographic, engaged in a series of preparatory sessions which included online access for those unable to attend in person. Relevant facts about the diocese and responses from the listening sessions were distilled into a working document that was distributed to participants in advance of the synod sessions.

Despite all that preparation and abundant goodwill apparent in all who were involved, participants I spoke to were diffident about the likelihood of real change resulting from the synod. In my view a fundamental problem with the movement toward a synodal church lies in the gap between the clerical and lay classes. Decision making sits firmly with the clerical hierarchy who have, for generations, had no need even to consult the laity, much less actually consider what they might think or justify any decision that might not sit comfortably with those in the pews. On the other hand, most laity have limited or no experience of being engaged in significant decision making about church matters and, I suspect, many like it that way because it means there is no reason to engage with thinking about it.

Despite the obvious challenges, recent popes and some other members of the hierarchy seem committed to a synodal future for the church. A recent article by Rafael Luciani, Untangling the ‘consultative knot’ on laypeople, on the Global Catholic site offers an interesting analysis of the challenge and how things may be moving forward.