The responses to the local Synod on Synodality listening sessions that took place this year were distilled into a regional report that was sent to the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops and eventually to Rome.
More than 100 similar summaries from 114 bishops’ conferences throughout the world had arrived by late August at the office of the Synod of Bishops.
Also submitting responses were Vatican discasteries, Eastern Catholic churches, religious congregations, societies for apostolic life, Catholic social media “influencers” and individuals or groups not recognized by the Church.
The synod process began in October 2021 with a first phase that focused on listening sessions and surveys taken from participants worldwide. That information was assimilated as part of the second phase that will result in the creation of a document in late October or early November summarizing the responses.
“We are facing an ecclesial dialogue without precedent in the history of the Church, not only for the quantity of responses received or the number of people involved but also for the quality of participation,” said Cardinal Jean-Claude Hollerich, the relator general of the Synod on Synodality, at an Aug. 26 news conference.
In the Diocese of Columbus, 12 English-speaking and three Spanish-speaking meetings were held in March at deaneries in Franklin County and in Lancaster, Portsmouth, Newark, Dover, Zanesville, Marysville and Marion. Sessions for university and high school students were conducted in April and May.
Those results were compiled by a team from the diocese into a 10-page report that was eventually incorporated into the regional document. Representatives from all Ohio and Michigan dioceses – which included Martha Bogue, a parishioner at Worthington St. Michael Church and a member of the Diocesan Pastoral Council – met during the summer to finalize the 10-page regional report, which was forwarded to the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops for inclusion in the final compilation sent to the Vatican.
Close to 1,000 people participated in local synods across the Diocese of Columbus.
The Church-wide Synod on Synodality listening sessions were conducted during a period when the diocese was immersed in its Real Presence Real Future (RPRF) planning initiative, creating logistical challenges to schedule the synod listening meetings while continuing to receive feedback from parishioners on Real Presence Real Future.
“The request for the synod sessions came at a time when we as a diocese were already scheduling RPRF parish meetings, sending out surveys and encouraging participation in many different ways,” said Father Michael Hartge, moderator of the Curia who led the diocese through both processes.
“I was nervous that this important topic would get lost in the shuffle or confused with RPRF.
“The volunteers did a marvelous job in devoting time to engage in the provided training and lead these unique sessions in each deanery. Martha Bogue was instrumental on the team in thinking of the details for the training sessions and meetings themselves. She was on the diocesan drafting committee along with other synod volunteers, which read all the comments and prayerfully discerned how we could faithfully represent the comments of everyone in a 10-page report.
“Martha was also chosen to be on the Region VI report committee, so her experience with this worldwide synod exceeds almost everyone’s in the diocese. I’m proud of the work we were able to accomplish all during that interim time period when we didn’t have a bishop.”
Bishop Earl Fernandes succeeded Bishop Robert Brennan, who launched the Real Presence Real Future project, when he was ordained and installed as the 13th bishop of Columbus on May 31. The diocese was without a bishop when the synod meetings were held in March.
Regional and national synod reports are expected to be published on the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ website, www.usccb.org, at a date to be determined.
At each local synod gathering, participants were divided into small groups composed of lay people, clergy and religious. Each was given an opportunity to respond to general questions that revolved around experiences in the Church.
“There were no surprises in comparing our diocesan synod report to the feedback I heard in the regional writing team meetings,” Bogue said. “The universality of the Church was communicated in the voices of the participants in the synod.
“The frustrations and joys seemed to be universally echoed throughout Region VI. Every diocese reported a consistent topic of feedback – we need to be more welcoming in our churches to the LGBTQ community, women, people who feel marginalized and those who have experienced divorce and have remarried.”
During many synod discussions locally and nationally, comments emerged on controversial issues questioning the Church’s teaching on married priests and the ordination of women.
It should be emphasized that the synod was not initiated to change Church doctrine but to provide a venue to listen to the people. Cardinal Hollerich was questioned about this point at the Vatican press conference.
“I fully believe in the tradition of the Church, and what I think is important in this process is not changing doctrine,” he said.
A second theme to emerge from Columbus – and nationally – focused on transparency.
“The issue of transparency seems to also be consistently on the minds of participants. People seem to feel like we need to have better communication from the pope to the bishops to the priests and to the laity, and that would alleviate feelings of frustration,” Bogue said.
“Most session participants related that scandals in the Church have created mistrust, and the way to build that trust is to just tell people what the reality is, about everything from issues of abuse to finances to pastoral changes.”
A related concern expressed across the country could be labeled as a need for co-responsibility. “Basically, the question repeatedly voiced in listening sessions was: Why can’t we all share in the decision-making process?” Bogue related. “We understand that there is a hierarchy, but instead of just saying no, can leaders offer the why, which would diffuse frustration and create understanding.”
Additionally, catechesis and evangelization came up repeatedly as concerns throughout the diocese and in the U.S.
“Another major theme was catechizing or passing on the faith to the next generation,” Bogue said. “At almost every session, there were parents sharing, ‘I’m just so sad. I tried so hard to pass the faith on to my children, sent them to Catholic schools, took them to Mass, and they just don’t practice.’
“How we pass along the faith to our children so that the faith remains alive and active, so that they maintain a personal relationship with Jesus – this is a significant concern, for parents and grandparents. Participants often took pause at the loss and confusion they feel when they see how their children have left the Church.”
Also mentioned were concerns about clericalism, but regional representatives from the Ohio and Michigan dioceses offered various definitions of that term. Another commonality in the reports highlights individuals taking issue with a return to tradition in the celebration of the Mass, incorporating more Latin into the liturgy and the embrace of tradition by young priests and seminarians.
But the prevailing sentiment among synod participants appeared to be gratitude for the process.
“Across the board,” Bogue said, “participants verbalized just how much they appreciated simply being heard. I was at a session where somebody said, ‘This is like free therapy!’ If a person has some long-standing, deep-seated frustrations with the Church, these sessions offer a place to be heard, without interruption. Even without the expectation of change, they appreciated the opportunity to talk.
“The way sessions were formatted, people had a series of questions, and each member was given three minutes to respond. Many realized, ‘I’m not the only one who feels that way. Our parish is experiencing similar frustrations,’ which seemed surprising and helpful to many.”
The Synod on Synodality now enters the “Continental,” or global, phase, which will be followed by the “Universal” phase in 2023. The goal, according to the Holy See, is to provide a path forward for Catholics to journey together as a Church as part of the mission to proclaim the Gospel.
“So many positives came out of this synod process,” Bogue said. “Like most participants, I didn’t know what to expect and was equally grateful for the experience. As we journey together in our faith, it is clear that listening to one another is beneficial and essential.”
