The church has lived in synodality since its early days. Several examples of this can be found in the New Testament, such as the experience of the Disciples of Emmaus, the Council of Jerusalem and the life of the first community in Jerusalem as recounted in the Acts of the Apostles. In his letter to the Philippians, Paul encourages them to emulate Christ's humility, who emptied himself to become a slave. This is a well-known Christological hymn which we pray in the breviary.
5 Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus, 6 who, although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, 7 but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men. 8 Being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. 9 For this reason also, God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, 10 so that at the name of Jesus EVERY KNEE WILL BOW, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. (Phi 2:5-11)
This text provides important information about the divinity of Christ, his willingness to humble himself, and his obedience in accepting the plan of salvation, which required his incarnation and sacrifice. It is also a text that inspires humility and practical love for one's neighbour. When reflecting on synodality, it is interesting to read the words that introduce the hymn:
1 Therefore if there is any encouragement in Christ, if there is any consolation of love, if there is any fellowship of the Spirit, if any affection and compassion, 2 make my joy complete by being of the same mind, maintaining the same love, united in spirit, intent on one purpose. 3 Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves; 4 do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others. (Phi 2:1-4)
These words reveal that Paul is addressing the division affecting the Philippian community, which we see in chapter 4 verse 2: ‘I urge Euodia and I urge Syntyche to live in harmony in the Lord' (τὸ αὐτὸ φρονεῖν ἐν Κυρίω). (Phil. 4:2). This is an invitation to attain a common mind and though in Christ. The introduction to the hymn therefore explains why the Philippians need to follow Christ's example who was willing to give up his divine status in order to humble himself and become obedient: it is so that they too may attain the same mind, maintain the same love and be united in spirit, with one thought (τὸ αὐτὸ φρονῆτε, τὴν αὐτὴν ἀγάπην ἔχοντες, σύμψυχοι, τὸ ἓν φρονοῦντες Phi 2:2). They need Christ’s attitude. It is only by learning from Christ's kenotic disposition that the members of the community can find reconciliation and communion.
At the same time, we understand from those words that, for Paul, living together, supporting each other and sharing human resources for greater efficiency is not enough. The Christian community is more than just a superficial coexistence of individuals. The communion required of Christians needs to mirror the relationships within the Trinity in heaven. The aim is to achieve a common thought and soul in the love of Christ. This is a strong invitation to reflect on the quality of our relationships. We cannot merely tolerate each other and 'survive' in the same place.
In the Testament Letter n. 9, Saint Guido Maria Conforti says, ‘In my unworthiness, I pray the Lord to grant us that unity of mind and heart that the divine Master left as his final and treasured legacy to the apostles and those who would believe in him.’ And again, he in the same text he says ‘This will come about if the love of Christ, described by the Apostle of the Gentiles, governs our relationships and forms of all the confreres a single heart and a single mind.’ Conforti's words seem to echo those of Saint Paul, and this is probably the case. The founder desires deep communion in our communities.
Finally, the Christological hymn concludes by linking this communion to mission ad gentes. The fruit of embodying Christ's kenotic attitude is not only the well-being of the community's members, but also the conversion of the world to Christ: ‘so that at the name of Jesus EVERY KNEE WILL BOW, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth’ (2:10). Unity of the community and its mission ad gentes are strictly intertwined.
Conversation in the Spirit
The Synod on Synodality adopted the Conversation in the Spirit methodology to facilitate discussion and reach conclusions collectively. Synodality is a broader concept than simply finding solutions and discussing problems, but communal discernment is indeed one of its elements. Without delving into the technicalities of the Conversation in the Spirit method, I would like to make some observations about the spiritual attitude we need to maintain to ensure that this methodology, as well as other discussion methods, facilitates genuine collective discernment, with the aim of hearing the voice of the Spirit, who speaks both within the individual and within the community. In summary, here are some elements to bear in mind when discerning together:
- We need to be prepared to relinquish our ideas with detachment once we have offered them. We share the best proposal we can formulate, bearing in mind that someone else may have a better idea or a contribution that improves on mine.
- We should propose our ideas if we feel they are inspired by the Spirit. They are thus 'common belongings' to be shared, even if they are novelties that 'shake' the previous understanding of things. Dissenting opinions are part of growing in discernment. St Paul decided to share his inspiration to go to the uncircumcised with the elders in Jerusalem. He did not keep this idea to himself. The result was the transformation of an individual idea into a shared understanding: the spirit of mission ad gentes became a source of richness for the entire Church (cf. Acts 15).
- We do not share what we think so much as what we think the Spirit wants from us. This exposes us to the 'risk' of saying something that may be detrimental to our comfort, old habits and ways of seeing things. The voice of the Spirit may reveal the need for conversion.
- We accept the final decision, believing that we need to make a decision anyway, and that the outcome of our collective deliberations is more valuable than any individual idea that is lost in the process. It is better to be imperfect in communion than perfect in disunity.
- We keep in mind that the aim of the conversation in the Spirit is to listen to the voice of the Spirit. Paul says that we can understand what God wants if we think together: 'We [not I…] have the mind of Christ' (1Co 2:16).
Community discernment in spirit of Synodality brings to completion the individual discernment that has proved to be fruitful along the centuries in the tradition of the church (e.g. Ignatian discernment). This is what the church is proposing today.
Considerations on the Synodal Process
If the Spirit of Synodality is an experience of deeper communion with God and our brothers and sisters, then Synodality is a 'contemplative' experience undertaken collectively. For this reason, synodal communion is valuable in itself as the lifestyle of a church that walks with Jesus as its Shepherd. However, I have the impression that for some, synodality is reduced to a mere human methodology for discussing things, with at least three possible reductive visions.
- Synodality is seen as merely 'broadening participation' in the Church. While it is evident that greater participation within the Church is necessary, it is not sufficient. If this participation does not presuppose personal discernment in the presence of God, it will not be very beneficial. The real reason for greater participation is our belief that the Spirit can speak through even the 'youngest brother', as Benedict used to tell his disciples.
- Other people see synodality as an improved methodology for problem solving. While we hope that synodality will help the Church to find better solutions, synodality — walking together with Jesus — is an experience that goes far beyond a meeting to decide on a policy. It is enjoying the presence of Jesus in our midst, even when there is nothing to decide or work out. We can be synodal while watching a movie and enjoying a beer, or even when we pray together in the liturgy.
- There is a concrete risk of seeing synodality as a new set of human relationships in which we listen to each other more, value opinions and finally hear the voices of the marginalised... but in which Jesus is absent. The protagonist of synodality is Him. If he is not within us and if we do not first listen to him, our communion becomes homogenisation, mere democracy and possible domination.
Conclusion
Through the synodal process, we are increasingly discovering and experiencing that the Church is essentially communion. This is not actually something new, because the Church has always been like that. LG 1 reminds us that the Church is the sacrament of communion between the faithful and with God. In Novo Millennio Ineunte 42, John Paul II said that ‘the domain of communion (koinonia) embodies and reveals the very essence of the mystery of the Church.’ Therefore, the Church is simply reminding us of our identity and asking us all to undergo a process of conversion, so that we can become more and more in tune with our true identity.
As Saint Paul says, communion is only possible in Christ. He allows us to live in fraternity despite our differences. He is the Master because the game of unity in diversity (the trinitarian perikhoresis) has existed within Him and His Father in the Trinity since eternity and will continue to do so for eternity. The same applies to our cultural differences. It is only in Christ that we can find the way to live in communion. However, this requires a mental conversion. We must accept being Christian before our cultural identity (I am a Christian with Italian characteristics, a Christian with Congolese characteristics…). This was Paul's experience, who says: 'There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free man, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one [εἷς, masculine] in Christ Jesus' (Gal 3:28). Without Christ, differences will lead to conflict (e.g. what is happening in the world...).
Finally, let us not forget that synodality is not just a way of making decisions, but an experience of the Lord's presence among us. Sharing our lives, spiritual experiences, ideas and concrete love brings us to a deeper experience of God who wants to walks with us. As Saint Paul put it, we mutually build the presence of God in each other like a game of mirrors: ‘we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as from the Lord, the Spirit.’ (2Co 3:18)
Happy Synodality!