Pope Francis probably less concerned about the disagreement and much more concerned about entrenchment. Photo: Reuters/Andreas Solaro

The synod on the family has come and gone. For a while, people and press spoke about the issues discussed, mainly remarried divorced couples, homosexuals and contraception, but not for long. Many – probably forgetting that what had come to an end was only Part One – were expecting changes, but none were announced.

One note that struck most – and was cause of concern to many, including some prelates – was the amount of disagreement that the synod had generated. Pope Francis had invited everybody to express their beliefs with “boldness”. Most did, and this gave rise to two polarised camps: those inclined towards leniency and those who insisted on the need to submit to the “truth”.

The debate continued even after the session was over. Some participants expressed themselves in very strong terms. Cardinal Raymond Burke, at that time still head of the Vatican’s highest court, opined that many Catholics “feel a bit of seasickness, because it seems to them that the ship of the Church has lost its compass”.

The criticism of Pope Francis’ way of proceeding is unveiled!

A few expressed the opinion that the Pope was disappointed by the lack of total agreement towards mercy. Actually, Pope Francis himself said absolutely nothing during the synod; he only listened. According to Francis Rocca of the Catholic News Service, “The Pope got just what he asked for: a more assertive synod.”

In a previous article (‘Bridging the gap’, The Sunday Times of Malta, October 5), quoting Michael WintersWinters, I had asked: “Will it be, like previous synods, a series of canned speeches… or will there be real dialogue, time to question assertions, explanations of different cultural realities faced by the particular churches throughout the world?” It is difficult to tell whether there has been real dialogue because dialogue implies a lot of listening, but for sure it was not a series of canned speeches!

Entrenchment would sabotage the discernment process to the detriment of truth and of the Church

Now the Church has a working document on which to continue its reflection. The fruit of this reflection should reach the second session of the synod to be held in a year’s time. Probably, disagreement will continue during this reflection. To what extent is this disagreement worrying? According to Burke it is very worrying indeed: “For this to go on for another year, it can only do harm.”

However, in the opinion of many, the cardinal’s fear is unfounded. Disagreement in the Church is not new. On the contrary, it was there from the very beginning when the issue of whether obliging non-Jewish converts to Christianity to adhere to the Law of Moses was required. St Peter called the Council of Jerusalem and, through discernment, they arrived at agreement. Even though the Scripture does not talk about it explicitly, a few persisted in ideas in which they had entrenched themselves.

The same thing repeated itself many times over in the history of the Church. Often agreement was reached in General Councils. However, practically every council was followed by a schism. A few always entrench themselves! The latest example is Vatican II where disagreement reigned galore. However, little by little, the Council Fathers – more than 2,000 of them – arrived at quasi unanimity. Again, a few persisted in their ideas and we witnessed the schism of Lefebvre’s Pope Pius X Society.

However, a real danger does exist. The Pope had invited all not only to express themselves freely and boldly but also to listen to one another and to the Holy Spirit with great attention. Possibly, not all who followed the Pope’s first injunction followed also his second.

So in his concluding speech the Pope warned about the temptations that need to be avoided: “hostile inflexibility” and “a destructive tendency to goodness”. The balancing act must continue!

Any entrenchment would be detrimental to the Church because it renders listening to the other side and to the Holy Spirit impossible. Probably Pope Francis is less concerned about the disagreement and much more concerned that the entrenchment would sabotage the discernment process to the detriment of truth and of the Church. Entrenchment always does, and not only in Church matters.

alfred.j.micallef@um.edu.mt

Fr Alfred Micallef is a member of the Society of Jesus.