The close of the first consultative phase of the 2023 Synod on Synodality on Aug. 15 has generated protests from a number of Catholic faithful and leaders in Europe, who assert that their views were not taken into consideration during this initial round of synodal discussions.
Initiated last fall, the so-called “diocesan phase” laid the groundwork for the rest of the two-year process that will culminate in the Synod of Bishops in October 2023. It consisted of popular consultations conducted by dioceses around the world, resulting in the assembly of national syntheses sent to Rome during the summer of 2022.
While open letters and articles questioning the validity of the methodology applied to this first phase are multiplying in Europe, synod officials have offered assurances that the Holy Spirit expresses himself even in imperfect processes and that the second phase of the synod is intended to remedy any inaccuracies and limits of the diocesan phase.
The main criticism surrounding the diocesan phase is the inadequacy of certain national syntheses with respect to concrete parish realities and the aspirations of the faithful. These reproaches were mainly formulated by young people from Western European countries, with commenters saying they did not identify themselves with the contents of the documents that their Church leaders sent to Rome, which in many cases called for radical changes in doctrines.
Open letters gathering hundreds of signatures of young people were recently released in Belgium, Ireland and Portugal, three countries whose national syntheses stood out for their claims calling for the ordination of women to the priesthood, optional celibacy or a change of doctrine regarding homosexual and transgender people.
The letters highlight the fact that the local Catholic youth were not consulted in the process.
“When I read the Synodal Steering Committee recommendations, I was disheartened,” Peadar Hand, one of the signatories of the Irish open letter, told the Register. “The recommendations therein seemed to be what is thought that young Catholics want, rather than what we actually love about our faith and the Church. I can’t speak for all the faithful of Ireland, but I am a young Catholic, and among all the young Catholics I know, there is no desire to change in the ways that the Synodal Steering Committee suggests.”
The question of the representativeness was also raised for dioceses calling for major doctrinal changes relying on low participation, as in the Archdiocese of Luxembourg, whose participation rate of baptized Catholics was estimated at approximately 1%.
In Portugal, the fact that the national synthesis didn’t faithfully reflect the substance of local diocesan consultations was repeatedly denounced, prompting two priests to rewrite the final text in a manner that they judged was a more accurate synthesis of the discussions in each Portuguese diocese.
Full story at ncregister.com
It’s over. It’s like the Church is false. Had a good run for 2,000 years or so, but it’s over now.
This is heresy.
It cannot be over just like God can’t be over.
Matthew 24
We Boomers, in our Church and in our nation, have failed subsequent generations. Thankfully, some Millenials and GenZers are not blindly following over the cliff of the sexual revolution and Marxism. Many young clergy and religious and a fair number of the young lay faithful have not bought into the pervasive lies of the media, Big Tech, leftist politicians and government bureaucrats, and Big “Education.”
Several times in history, opponents of Christ and the Church have written the Church off as dead. Yet, we’re still here.
By God’s grace, and in accord with His promises, though we may be in for a rough time and the Church may look different, she will still be on earth until His return. “Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.” James 1:2-4
Well I am glad to finally see one the members of the most corrupt generation admit its guilt. You guys destroyed EVERYTHING the previous generations gave you…
“Well I am glad to finally see one the members of the most corrupt generation admit its guilt. You guys destroyed EVERYTHING the previous generations gave you…” I will be 72 in a week or so, and that makes me part of the corrupt generation. But really bohemond, technological developments which would corrupt any generation just happened to coincide with the boomer generation. And by this I mean the pill first and foremost, and with this widespread corruption of morals, just as Paul VI predicted in Humanae Vitae. Also the financial position of America after WW II gave rise to a standard of living unknown in depression times that had the consequence of crass materialism. Pride and concupiscence will corrupt any generation, even yours, bohemond. By the way, if we destroyed everything bequeathed to us, how is it that you and I still live in relative luxury, compared with the rest of the world?
I will sum it like this,, Your generation had free sex, my generation got AIDS, your generation had experimental drug use, my generation got crack babies, cocaine wars and drug cartels, your generation had the “great society” my generation got a welfare state and country basically in insolvency, your generation had the “spirit of Vatican 2” my generation got lousy catechesis, closed schools and parishes, sex scandals, homosexual hierarchy and a Church teetering on the brink.. I challenge your supposition the technology advances lead the the corruption if we had functioning Church that enforced and guarded the moral law the results would have been different
Very few boomers had free sex, used drugs (except for alcohol). And those of your generation who got AIDS (with a few exceptions) got it from their own behavior. Same with the consequences of using drugs.
You are mis-attributing the cause.
Look for the direct cause.
When someone talks about the “Spirit of Vatican II” I think they are not well enough plugged in to their parish to know who actually caused the problems.
Boomers came of age in the 1960s decade. In that era, we had immoral, irresponsible, lawless SF Beatniks brainwashing millions of Boomers, getting them to lead immoral lives, on the “fringes of society,” like the Beatniks, and smoke marijuana, become a “junkie,” or heroin addict, use obscenities and pornography– no Marriage, “free sex,” no pesky “rules” of society and religion. Then, we had Dr. Timothy Leary and his psychedelic drugs– LSD and “magic mushrooms”— peddling dope to Boomers. Leary was a former Harvard psychology professor (Ph.D. from UC Berkekey). He told the kids to question and rebel against authority, and “turn on, tune in, drop out.” Pretty soon, we had lots of mindless, dope-addicted–and many died!– Boomers! Then we had the Boomers going to the dirty, sex-crazed, irresponsible, Freud-influenced psychologists, who were anti-society and anti-Christian. They urged the Boomers to pursue excessive, narcissistic self-introspection, and seek lots of brainless, irresponsible pleasures, “free sex,” and throw off all “constraints” of society and religion. Pretty soon, lots of kids lived in the gutter, no future, “brain-dead,” irresponsible, had VD and illegitimate babies, had drug-addicted babies, and lots of abortions. Many turned to crime to support the huge expense of dope addiction. And the many irresponsible, immoral, lawless rock “music” stars were a horrible influence on the kids! Millions of Boomers lives were totally ruined!
As for the Catholic Church and Vatican II– it was a disaster! A big, confused mess, to this day. And I don’t think the Synod on Synodality will help.
It seemed like after the horrific SF “Summer of Love” in 1967, America’s Boomers were on a destructive path of no return, and our country seemed doomed. 1967 is also the year Gavin Newsom was born.
Remember the moron, in the 1960s UC Berkeley Free Speech movement during one of their school riots telling a newsman, “Don’t trust anyone over 30?” Those Boomers all should have been permanently kicked out of school, prosecuted, and thrown in jail. And shipped off to a hard labor camp in Siberia– since many were anti-American, anti-Christian, Socialist/Communist-lovers. That is the problem, as I see it.
There is something kind of un-American about throwing people in jail for free speech.
Sorry– this was nothing but extremrey destructive, lawless, criminal rioting and looting, with vulgar, filthy behavior and obscenities, by ignorant, immature college kids, brainwashed by anti-American liberal- leftists– paid agitators–who turned the ignorant kids into criminals. Much university property, and areas nearby, were ignorantly destroyed. Some kids were even seen publicly urinating and defecating on university classroom property, as part of their horrific “war protest.” That is criminal behavior. Not “free speech.” Same thing with the filthy, lawless, criminal, dope-peddling, “Haight-Ashbury” hippies. Throw ’em in jail and throw away the key. Worthless garbage, highly destructive morons. “Worse-than-animals.” This is not intelligent behavior, nor intelligent “free speech” for a worthy cause of any kind. It is criminal behavior, with intent to destroy our Nation.
It was not just “free speech”. There was a lot of criminal behavior going on.
Originally, the radical activists of the UC Berkeley Free Speech Movement demanded that the university lift a ban on political activism on campus–the endeavors of the anti-American, radical “New Left” 1960s liberal leftists were prohibited, and they raised a ruckus about it. Kids could just join the college Democrat and Republican clubs. The anti-American, radical fringe leftist groups were Socialists, inspired by crackpot liberal, demented, radical sociologists and the like, in academia at Columbia and Harvard Universities, and similar places. They despised our country, and our government, labeling it as “racist” and “imperialist.” Some radical kids were connected with the Civil Rights movement, and some were with the anti-Vietnam War movement. However, the radical kids did not follow the strict, Christian, peaceful protest principles, of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
There were many good and decent people, all ages, who joined Dr. King in his peaceful protests. Some became martyrs, and were badly hurt, or even killed, marching with Dr. King. Dr. King loved and believed in America, wanted to make our nation better, held peaceful, non-violent protests, made famous, inspiring, intelligent speeches, and sought proper rights for his Black people.
He was not a boomer. He was older than that.
Of course Dr. King was a generation older than Boomers! Not saying he was a Boomer— just saying that people of all ages– including young Boomer kids– joined his marches, which were peaceful, to help Black people.
Thank you, ac.
It was the 2 generations before the Boomers.
There was a lot of anti-American, extreme liberal–leftist Socialist/Communist activity going on, with unstable, crackpot fringe people, as well as demented academic college professors, in the 1930s. Some of that garbage re-surfaced after WWII, and was very damaging to our country.
Mi comentario no fue publicado. ¿Por qué no?
Clicked on your identifying number and all comments seem to have been published.
Last one was about super soaker.
Dan:
Bravo for the most succinct summary and analysis
of “What Happened/” since circa WW II.
Couldn’t agree more.