Vatican City, Feb 7, 2022 / 13:00 pm
The Vatican acknowledged on Monday that the Church’s effort to listen to the 1.34 billion Catholics worldwide through a synodal process is facing challenges.
“Many of the faithful perceive the synodal process as a crucial moment in the Church’s life, as a learning process, as well as an opportunity for conversion and renewal of ecclesial life,” said a Feb. 7 statement following a meeting of the ordinary council of the Synod of Bishops on Jan. 26.
“At the same time, various difficulties have also emerged. In fact, fears and reticence are reported among some groups of the faithful and among the clergy. There is also a certain mistrust among the laity who doubt that their contribution will really be taken into consideration.”
The statement cited the pandemic as a further obstacle to gathering in person for communal discernment, underlining again that the local synodal process leading up to the 2023 Synod on Synodality “cannot be reduced to a mere questionnaire.”