Reclaiming synodality

Synodality in theology and practice

What do we mean by synodality and how does it work in practice? ³ Synodality can be defined as the formal gathering of the church, in a representative and constitutional way, and at various geographical levels – local, regional or universal – to take counsel, under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, for the well-being of the church and effective advancement of the mission of God (missio dei). But what do synods actually do? An observer might conclude that the business of synods is primarily to debate and argue and to decide and legislate. That is not how I see it. The synods and councils of the church have not always legislated (made decrees or canons), so such activity cannot be part of the definition of a council or synod. ⁴ I understand the work of synodality to be, in order of importance: listening, learning, consulting, discerning, deliberating, praying and only then perhaps deciding. But there is another stage, that of further discerning the long-term reception, positive or negative, of the results of its work. Synods do their work in the context of waiting upon God in Bible study, prayer, worship and Eucharist. Synods are a practical outworking of the inherent conciliar nature of the church, which is an ecclesiological reality. Pope Francis seems to be using ‘synodality’ as equivalent to ‘conciliarity’. Here I will continue to use the term currently in vogue: synodality.

Synodality belongs to the essence of the church. It is a key expression of the intrinsic nature of the Christian church as a Spirit-filled, cohesive and intentional community. Synodality refers to the practice of the whole church in gathering together, through its representatives, around the open Bible, prayerfully seeking the guidance of the Holy Spirit, and listening to one another and to its pastors and scholars. Whether we use the language of conciliarity or of synodality, the reality to which they refer belongs to the very nature of the church at all times. Synodality is an ecclesial reality that makes the church the church. Synodality, as a permanent dimension of the church, emerges into action in synodical events and processes when there are vexed issues to resolve or conflicts to ameliorate.

Synodality manifests the organic nature of the church considered as a coherent whole and as the Spirit-endued Body of Christ. Synodality aims at ensuring that every part of the church takes its share of responsibility for the discernment of truth (sensus fidei fidelium; the sense of faith of the faithful) and acts upon it. The desire that drives the synodal life of the church is a longing for wholeness, coherence and unity. Synodality involves a constant process of spiritual discernment, informed by moral and theological judgement. I do not see synodality as being primarily about the church taking policy decisions or about restructuring the organization, which is how it often appears, especially in the Church of England, but rather about a meeting of minds in the Holy Spirit, an understanding that is close to the Eastern concept of Sobornost. Synodality is engaged in a constant quest for convergence and consensus so that the church – though still tragically and culpably separated and fragmented canonically – can act as one as far as possible.

Consensus building

Consensus building is a key aspect of synodality and is mandated by the doctrine of the unity of the church, which is an essential attribute, confessed in the Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed at every celebration of the Eucharist. Synodality helps to bring the essential oneness of the church to expression. Although a critical mass needs to be achieved if a synod is to make progress, consensus may never be fully attained. But there are various methods for promoting and enhancing convergence between different viewpoints, and this can help a working consensus to emerge. I will touch on two of them. ⁵

One such method is ‘consensus decision making’, which is practised by the World Council of Churches at its major gatherings, such as the periodic Assembly and the Central Committee. ⁶ Consensus decision making involves pausing the debate from time to time in order to take the temperature of the meeting and to enfold any persons who feel disaffected by the direction of the debate. Those who are unhappy are asked to indicate that, and are then invited by the chair to speak, until all have had the opportunity to express their concerns. Others try to respond to those concerns before the debate continues. The concerns and any responses are minuted. Consensus decision making is one way of harnessing conflict by proactively incorporating diverse points of view into the ongoing discussion, so that no participant feels unheard or marginalized.

A second method of facilitating convergence and enhancing consensus is ‘differentiated consensus’. The essence of this approach is realism about the degree of consensus that is possible in any given circumstance, where convictions go deep and feelings run high. The ground-breaking Joint Declaration on the Doctrine of Justification, which was signed and celebrated by the Lutheran World Federation and the Roman Catholic Church in 1999 on Reformation Day (31 October), employed the method of differentiated consensus (although it did not actually use the term). ⁷ The Joint Declaration claimed that it represented a ‘basic consensus’ or ‘fundamental consensus’ on the doctrine of justification that had kept Lutherans and Catholics apart since the sixteenth century. This modest and nuanced claim of agreement was made possible by leaving several matters – which could be considered secondary and technical – unresolved, parked outside the consensus, though reserved for future study. The Joint Declaration claimed no more, but no less, than ‘a consensus on [or in] basic truths of the doctrine of justification’. It supported this claim by setting out seven areas of this historically disputed doctrine and under each heading, stating first: ‘We confess together …’ But this joint consensus statement on seven points was followed in each case by confessional statements by the Roman Catholic and Lutheran churches, alternating the order of presentation, of the way in which they would prefer to state the doctrine themselves, statements that did not call the consensus into question. The remarkable achievement of the Joint Declaration vindicates the method of differentiated consensus in ecumenical theological dialogue. But differentiated consensus, as a methodology, is equally relevant to internal church arguments and conflicts. It involves focusing energy on areas where convergence looks most promising in order to provide a foundation of agreement for discussion of more difficult areas, leaving the intractable issues to last or later. However, for any of that to happen, both parties obviously need to be willing to talk to each other around the table in the context of a prayerful spiritual quest.

The ecclesiological paradigm

Synodality, in any tradition, rests on a particular understanding of the nature and mission of the church. The ecclesiological basis of synodality is that all the faithful are called by God in their baptism to a full share in the privileges and responsibilities of Christ’s church, including a share in its governance. What does the phrase ‘a full share’ entail? I suggest that there are five imperatives implied in the notion of ‘a full share’ and they run through my argument: inclusion, participation, subsidiarity, solidarity and sacramental communion. I will expand on these watchwords as we go along.

The model of the church that is being presupposed and put to work here is the organic, realist and sacramental understanding of the church as the Body of Christ, consisting of its divine head Jesus Christ and its members united to the head by baptism and the Eucharist in the context of faith and under the care of their pastors. According to this model, the church is brought into being and held together by the ministry of the Word and the sacraments, through which the living Christ is present and active by the power of the Holy Spirit. The ministry of the Word, the sacraments and pastoral care is implied in the Great Commission of Matthew 28.16ff and is thus our mandate from the Risen Lord. It is reflected in the concept of the tria munera (the three ministerial tasks) of Vatican II: to teach by the Word; to sanctify by the sacraments; and to lead and guide by pastoral care. The church consists of all the faithful and their pastors in a differentiation of callings and roles. But, according to the principle of synodality, such roles and callings are for all, not only for some. All the baptized share, according to their calling, in the authority of Jesus Christ, and it is this Christological source of authority that requires that the faithful take their share of responsibility in and for the church.

Subsidiarity

Subsidiary is a structural element in synodality and gives synodality its aversion to hierarchy and centralization. Subsidiarity was promoted in papal social teaching during the twentieth century and has subsequently fed into ecclesiology and ecclesiastical polity. It honours the uniqueness and dignity of local communities, traditions, associations and practices. According to the principle of subsidiarity, the (supposedly) higher level exists to serve the (supposedly) lower level. It is the so-called lower level that has priority and knows what its needs are. It is not to be patronized by being told what is best for it and is not to be dictated to without its consent. Subsidiarity privileges the small, the local and the informal. It recognizes that the faithful have the sensus fidei, the homing instinct to the truth of the faith, taught interiorly by the Spirit of Christ. ⁸ In synodality, the faithful actively exercise their sense of the truth of faith and the will of God for the church. The synodical church springs up from the grassroots. Synodality sets aside the notion of ‘hierarchy’, which is often invoked in the Roman Catholic Church and does not go unmentioned in Anglicanism. Synodality also discards the spurious rhetorics of ‘leadership’ that have recently plagued the Church of England and perhaps some other Anglican churches. If there is hierarchy, it is upside down, an inverted pyramid (to use Pope Francis’s phrase). Where there is leadership, it is leadership of pastors and teachers to serve the community and build up the body (Eph. 4.11–13).

But who are ‘the faithful’ who are called to synodality? All baptized persons – laypeople, of course, but also clergy – are included among the faithful: Adeste fideles, ‘O come, all ye faithful!’ We are considering the church as the flock of Christ the Good Shepherd, and as his body, bride and temple, before any differentiation of callings into lay and ordained. The church is one equal community, for all have been baptized by one Spirit into one body and all have been made to drink of one Spirit (1 Cor. 12.13).

Solidarity

Because the church is one Spirit-filled body, the principle of solidarity comes into play to balance and complement the principle of subsidiarity. Solidarity arises from the wholeness of the body, binding all together in charity and mutual care. So, in seeking the mind of Christ in synodality, we still need our guides and teachers, our pastors and theologians. Their role is to feed into the synodical process sound biblical and theological reflection, pastorally applied, and offered to be discerned by the body. They cannot lay down the law for Christian people as used to be the case, because 99.99 per cent of the laity are willing volunteers. They will not take orders, but can be persuaded, motivated and encouraged. Leaders and teachers can influence the church by moral and spiritual example, by competence and expertise in their roles, and by reasoned persuasion in the context of dialogue, seeking to win minds and hearts. ⁹

The task and the challenge of synodality is to activate the innate authority that belongs to the baptized people of God through the indwelling Holy Spirit and which is distributed throughout the whole body. Synodality focuses that authority when the church comes together, in a representative way, to take counsel for its well-being and for the advancement of the mission entrusted to it. Synodality provides the concrete means by which all baptized Christians, gathered by Word and sacrament under the oversight of their pastors into a community, discharge their share of responsibility for the life of the church according to their various callings.

Participation

It is the birthright of Christians – as well as a biblical and theological imperative – that all should enjoy full comprehending participation in the life, worship and mission of the church. ¹⁰ The premise of synodality is that all the faithful are called to a full share in the privileges and duties of Christ’s church. It is their calling and their right. All have rights and all have duties; not rights without duties and certainly not duties without rights, which is often how laypeople experience the church – included for duties, excluded for privileges. In any sphere of social life, no one should be excluded (and no one should feel excluded) from the exercise of the rights and privileges to which they are entitled, or from the exercise of the responsibilities and duties that are inseparable from those rights, particularly participation in decision making. To facilitate the full participation of all persons in the means of grace is the first aim of evangelization by means of the journey of Christian initiation.

Evangelization

The principle of participation that underpins synodality also underlies the work of evangelization. In its mission of evangelization, the Christian church seeks to welcome and embrace all persons who accept the call of Christ through the proclamation of the gospel and then to guide them through the process of Christian initiation: instruction (or catechesis), baptism and confirmation (or chrism), participation in the church’s celebration of the Eucharist and the receiving of Holy Communion. ¹¹ The order of events may vary somewhat in practice, but they all need to find their place. Through the church’s proclamation in Word and deed, the Holy Spirit calls and gathers new disciples into Christ’s kingdom. The Spirit draws new converts into full participation in the graced life of the church, especially the means of grace – provided that we allow the Spirit to do so. Those who are gathered by the call of the gospel and the grace of the sacraments are thereby initiated into the synodical life of the church.

Christ our Prophet, Priest and King

Taking a full part, as Christian disciples, in the life of the Body of Christ also includes living out in practical terms what it means to be incorporated by baptism into the threefold messianic (or ‘anointed’) identity of Jesus Christ, our great Prophet, Priest and King. Sharing in Christ’s prophetic office, all are called to ‘proclaim the mighty acts of him who called you out of darkness into his marvellous light’ (1 Pet. 2.9). Sharing in his priestly office, Christians are called to ‘offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ’ (1 Pet. 2.5), especially the oblation of their whole being in daily life, together with active participation in worship (Rom. 12.1). Sharing in Christ’s royal or regal office, all the faithful are called to bear their part in the governance of his church through the corporate processes of discernment, deliberation and decision making, and the subsequent reception (positive or negative) of those decisions – in other words, synodality. ¹²

Spirituality and mystery

The pursuit of the consensus fidelium immediately suggests to ecclesiastical realists that unanimity among the many and diverse participants will rarely be achieved. But that fact does not scupper synodality. One reason why a synod does not need to achieve unanimity is because a synod is not ordered to the constant taking of decisions; decision making is not its primary raison d’être. Synodality involves many voices and often conflicting convictions, so full unanimity will always remain a remote possibility, and majority voting, which can be deeply damaging to unity, need not be the default method; it can be used more sparingly than it generally is.

Synodality is a function of the pilgrim church, making its exploratory journey into the divine mystery. Because the church is (to use Richard Hooker’s language) a mystical body as well as a political institution, its synodical life is tinged with the mystical. ¹³ Synodality, wherever it happens, may produce the first steps in clarifying and resolving an issue or it may simply facilitate an exploration of truth that is already in process. A formal synod, as a practical and political expression of church governance, needs to set its own rules (standing orders), or have them set for it, with regard to how it arrives at any conclusion or decision. But, to my mind, synodality is more concerned with facilitating convergence – the meeting of minds and hearts, previously divergent – than with taking binding decisions.

Synodality as a spiritual pathway

Viewing synodality in the context of divine mystery suggests a further dimension: that of spirituality. The fact that synodality involves sacramental communion, prayerfulness, listening to the Spirit and to one another, and the discernment of truth – the fact that synodality is a function of the Spirit-filled Body of Christ – makes it essentially a spiritual practice. Synodality will always be a spiritual and moral discipline (ascesis). In synodality we open our hearts and minds to the Holy Spirit and to the concerns and insights of sisters and brothers in Christ. So the practice of synodality demands the virtues of dedication, intentionality, humility, receptiveness, restraint and patience. As we all know, the word ‘synod’ comes from the Greek sun (together) and hodos (way). We travel together, as a pilgrim people, along the way of Christ, as we are led by the Spirit. Synodality, in all churches, is all too often politicized and polarized, treated in a mainly pragmatic, instrumental and manipulative way. The sight is not edifying and must grieve the Holy Spirit. It does not commend the faith and the church to outside observers. Synodality is always primarily a spiritual and ethical pathway, requiring the exercise of the virtues, especially truthfulness, respect, humility and patience, and the building of unity. Synodality belongs to God, not to us.

Conclusion

Synodality is vital to the well-being and flourishing of the church at all times because it activates and expresses the nature of the church as the Spirit-endued Body of Christ. It calls for the inclusion and participation of all the faithful in the means of grace (primarily Word and sacrament) in order to enable the church to discern the mind of Christ. We should constantly ask ourselves not ‘How can we draw power and prestige to ourselves and to the centre?’, but ‘How can we maximize participation and shared responsibility?’ Synodality draws out the spiritual gifts given to the baptized and puts them to work. It depends on the spiritual awareness and mutual sensitivity of the faithful as a body. It binds us to one another in charity and mutual care and to the Lord in the obedience and dedication of discipleship. In a word, synodality reclaimed has the potential to revitalize the church.