The Results of the Synodal Questionnaire: Uniting the Body of Christ by Listening to One Another

Currently, the Catholic Church is in the process of collecting information around the world in preparation for the next Synod on Synodality. Our parish, Immaculate Conception, has done its part to help the bishops and the pope. Recently, Fr. John Wakube initiated a campaign to collect feedback for the upcoming synod by preaching on the importance of synods, writing a pastoral letter, and circulating a questionnaire to all parishioners.

The campaign was a success! The feedback provided by parishioners will be instrumental in the Church’s goal of creating greater unity between its members by listening to one another.

Talk of synods and synodality is probably not a typical dinner conversation, and we need to understand specifically what these terms mean.

“A synod is a gathering of bishops that fosters a closer unity between the bishops and the pope, provides council to the pope on matters of faith, morals, and discipline of the Church, and studies questions concerning the Church in the world,” says Fr. Ben Riley. “The current synod is about synodality. Synodality is about the entire People of God placing their hopes, joys, sorrows, and concerns at the feet of the bishops who, along with the pope, decide matters of faith and morals in order to preserve the faith and strengthen the Church in the world.”

In essence, during this Synod on Synodality, the bishops and the pope will be gathering to discuss how the whole Church can discern the will of God together in communion with one another. The Church is faced with many new challenges that vary around the globe. The hope for this synod is to discover a way to overcome the various and modern challenges in a united manner, where every member of the Church has a voice.

Your voice matters and the feedback you have submitted is the first step in the process of unifying the Church’s approach to spreading the Gospel.

“We received a great deal of feedback,” Fr. Riley says. “The three most common topics brought up in the questionnaire were: first, a need for young adult ministry and more casual social opportunities in the parish; second, an expression of the hardship and sorrow many divorced Catholics experience as a result of the annulment process, and a desire to make the process easier and more expedited; finally, for the Church to reach out in more concrete ways and welcome the lesbian and gay community.”

The bishops will consider these topics as they discuss the difficulties facing the Church and formulate a synodal process of coming to evangelical solutions. The goal is that all of us, as members of the Church, have a share in the Church’s future and mission of bringing Christ to others.

Fr. Riley roots the work being done during this Synod on Synodality in 1 Corinthians 12:12-13: “As a body is one though it has many parts, and all the parts of the body, though many, are one body, so also Christ. For in one Spirit, we were all baptized into one body, whether Jews or Greeks, slaves or free persons, and we were all given to drink of one Spirit.”

Thus, you may understand the importance of the Synod and the profound value of your feedback. The Church is the body of Christ, and we should follow Jesus together by listening and learning from each other. “The current synod is about synodality. Synodality is about the entire People of God placing their hopes, joys, sorrows and concerns at the feet of the bishops who, along with the pope, decide matters of faith and morals in order to preserve the faith and strengthen the Church in the world.”