Podcast: Play in new window | Download
iTunes | Spotify | Stitcher | TuneIn | Google Play Music
Querida Amazonia
https://www.deaconrudysnotes.org/
The Central Committee for German Catholics accused Pope Francis of a lack of courage for real reforms. Others from Latin America say the Pope’s document is demoralizing and painful. Still others say the Holy Spirit spared the Church from serious error. <1>
Welcome to the latest edition of All Things Catholic. I’m your host, Deacon Rudy Villarreal and I’m so happy be here with you today! Together we are going to explore what it means to be Catholic. Today we are going to build a little on our discussion last we “On Change” and briefly discuss Pope Francis’ post-synodal exhortation on the Amazon, “Querida Amazonia.” Bear with me tonight. I think I’m catching the cold my daughter had, but don’t worry! I claim healing by the most precious blood of Jesus.
Ok, so what the heck are all the people in the intro talking about? What are they talking about indeed!
In early February, the Holy Father issued an apostolic exhortation following the Synod on the Pan Amazon Region. It’s important to note that this podcast will not try to unpack the Synod or the exhortation. There are many, many great articles out there that try to sort all of that out. What I want to do is walk through the concept and some facts to help us all better understand the purpose of synods and how they help the Holy Father.
Before we get started, perhaps we should clarify some terminology. First, what’s a synod? As we discussed in the All Things Catholic episode “On Change,” a synod is an advisory committee formed to discuss specific questions or issues. Synods have been around for a significant part of church history but have been more widely used since the Second Vatican Council. Synods can be organized by a bishop to consider issues for a particular diocese.
But the popes have also called synods inviting bishops and others to discuss broader issues. Synods do not define doctrine and are not legislative. If a synod is called by a pope, then the pope will issue a document called an apostolic exhortation, which is another term we should address. How are exhortations prioritized? An exhortation is considered to be the third most important document a pope issues, behind apostolic constitutions and encyclicals. In general exhortations encourage a virtue or activity.
Why call a synod at all – ever? Well, synods, like a synod called by a pope, offer advice to the Holy Father. In order to do that, a synod will involve a lot of people across the church and perhaps from outside the church. There will be a lot of discussion and deliberation. But of course, another goal is to invite the Holy Spirit to guide the discussion to realize the will of the Father. The Jesuit term for this is “group discernment.” <2>
Discernment is a super important term for Catholics and one we will need to explore in more detail in a future episode, but the idea is that we discern as individuals, and we discern in groups. This is important because sometimes I encounter people who think the Pope sits on a throne and issues pronouncements and proclamations to suit his will. That is just not true.
Let’s apply these ideas to the Pan Amazon Synod. One of the things that made the synod so unique is that it was called to address the issues of an environmental region. That’s a first, I think, in the history of the church. But that explains why the Synod was comprised mainly of the bishops, clergy, consecrated religious, theologians and laity from countries making up the Amazon region.
Pope Francis announced the idea of the synod in 2017. Between then and the gathering in Rome in October 2019, the bishops held numerous listening and consultation sessions primarily in the countries that make up the Amazon. There were about 260 events were held in the Amazon attended by about 87,000 people. <3> That’s very important. No matter what you think about the Pan Amazon Synod or any synod, I think it’s important to know that the Church takes listening and consultation sessions seriously. The point is to make sure that the representatives who make up the synod referred to as the synod fathers truly understand the scope of the issues they will consider.
Why was the Pan Amazon Synod so controversial? There were three issues that drew quite a bit of attention: the environment, women deacons and married priests. Some bishops called foul because they correctly said issues like women deacons and married priests don’t just affect the Amazon, but the entire world. In other words, they claimed scope creep of gigantic proportions. Of course, the Synod was controversial to some extent in Latin America as well, not just for these three reasons, but also for the discussion around indigenous people and their lands.
What’s so interesting to me is the breath of concerns and disappointments expressed by people over the exhortation. Remember, a synod cannot change church teaching and is not legislative. So, at no point should anyone have believed that the Pope would announce sweeping changes based on the Synod. That would have been extraordinary.
Remember, exhortations often encourage virtue or a specific activity, and Querida Amazonia absolutely accomplishes those goals. Pope Francis calls the exploitation of the poor an “injustice and crime.” In calling for protections for the poor, the Pope is reinforcing a major them in Catholic Social Justice. Another virtue he encourages us to have is reverence and care for God’s creation.
The Pope also encourages greater theological creativity to address shortages of priests in Latin America. Now this is the part that has drawn significant reaction from around the world. But perhaps there are two other virtues between the lines of this exhortation: patience and prudence. In the meantime, it’s not business as usual. Remember the Pope is calling for creativity and that means the Amazon clergy and laity have a wonderful opportunity to present their bishops with creative suggestions to help meet the needs of Catholics in Latin America particularly remote parts of Latin America. So, hopefully we see from Querida Amazonia fits into the themes of synods and post synodal exhortations. It really meets the technical definition. But I think it’s an important thing to reflect on – how the Catholic Church processes change.
Do you got it? Do you get it? Good! Now go make disciples! May Almighty God bless you, Father, Son and Holy Spirit! +Amen!
I’m Deacon Rudy Villarreal and next time on All Things Catholic, in light of the Corona Virus, we’re going to discuss sensible precautions and the practice of spiritual communion.
You’re listening to All Things Catholic.
This episode was produced by deacon rudy’s notes. Our theme music was composed by Silent Partner. You can find all sorts of helpful information on the website at www.deaconrudysnotes.org. I’m your host, Deacon Rudy Villarreal. Join us again next time and don’t forget to watch for the weekend edition where we break open the Word. Peace!
Notes:
<1> Charles Pope, Msgr., “My Reaction to Querida Amazonia,” National Catholic Register, 16 February 2020. https://m.ncregister.com/blog/msgr-pope/my-reaction-to-querida-amazonia, (accessed 20 February 2020).
<2> James Martin, SJ, “Five Takeaways from Querida Amazonia,” America, 12 February 2020, https://www.americamagazine.org/faith/2020/02/12/five-takeaways-querida-amazonia (accessed 20 February 2020).
<3> Hannah Brockhaus, “The Amazon Synod, by the Numbers,” Catholic News Agency, 11 October 2019, https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/the-amazon-synod-by-the-numbers-11205 (accessed 20 October 2019).
References:
- Francis. Querida Amazonia: Post-Synodal Apostolic Exhortation of the Holy Father Francis to the People of God and All Persons of Good Will. Vatican.va. http://www.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/apost_exhortations/documents/papa-francesco_esortazione-ap_20200202_querida-amazonia.html, 2 February 2020, (accessed 8 March 2020).
- The Bible: A Study Bible freshly translated by Nicholas King. Buxhall, Suffolk UK: Kevin Mayhew, 2013.