Written Form: 

"Brothers and sisters,
(This is Bishop Weisenburger) and I would like to speak to you today about the upcoming 2023 Synod of Bishops “For a Synodal Church: Communion, Participation, and Mission.” This means that the topic is, paradoxically, synodality itself.

Now, the word “synod” derives from the Greek word synodos, which means “to journey together.”  Pope Francis has made clear in the Synod’s foundational document that he … “yearns for our Church to engage in this synodal process so that we might discern together how the Church is called to respond to the Holy Spirit today, and to carry the Gospel to the world. Moreover, to prepare for the synod, the Holy Father has asked that the Church everywhere hold important “listening and dialog sessions,” beginning very soon.  He is especially hopeful that the voices of those typically not heard will be given an opportunity to speak of their hopes and dreams for the Church’s future.  But there is actually a rich history and background to synods.  So please allow me to explain a little of the context of what is unfolding before us.

The Catholic Church has been holding bishops’ synods regularly since the Second Vatican Council in the 1960s.  At that critically important event, all the bishops of the world (over 2000!) gathered in Rome for multiple sessions, with each session lasting several months.  It was a massive and complicated undertaking, and the bishops realized that it was much too complicated and cumbersome to repeat often. What was needed was a more streamlined way of gathering together groups of bishops from around the world, to share ideas with one another as well as to provide feedback to the Holy Father. The idea of small delegations from each country resulted in periodic, but much smaller gatherings of bishops representing the universal church.  While this process has known some success, it also has been criticized as heavily pre-determined by the Vatican’s offices and leaving little room for that deep and meaningful sharing of ideas, hopes, and dreams that the Second Vatican Council envisioned.
This is the background to bishops’ synods in modern times.  It’s also the backdrop in which our beloved Pope Francis was called, first, to priesthood as a member of the Society of Jesus, but then, to serve as a bishop, an archbishop, a cardinal, and eventually, our Pope.  But he is also a man of his own personal experience.  And in those decades of ministry at home in his native Argentina, Pope Francis was well known for his wonderful ability to listen, and to listen deeply. 

In one of many references to this, the writer Austen Ivereigh, in his wonderful book about Pope Francis first published in 2019 titled “Wounded Shepherd,” writes:

“ Francis likes to point out that Jesus always took time to stop and listen to the people.  At the 2018 synod [Pope Francis] called it “the apostolate of the ear: listening before speaking.” 

And so, reaching into the Church’s ancient storeroom of treasures, our Holy Father has drawn our attention to this ancient process of synod, or journeying together—an event which is built upon the foundation of the deepest kind of communication.  All of this starts with: listening.
Now, admittedly, some may be uncomfortable or nervous about reviving this ancient approach.  Some might be concerned that there are those who will want to dismiss the essential doctrines, truths, or teachings of our Church, and want to create a new understanding of Christianity—severed from its roots. 

Permit me to say that I do not believe that such a fear is founded.  While the Holy Father calls us to listen to all, such listening is done under the powerful invocation of the Holy Spirit as well as the lasting influences of God’s living Word found in Sacred Scripture and the stable teachings found in the Church’s Tradition.  But there is yet another source of truth and wisdom found in Scripture and Church Tradition and history.  Here, we discover the meaning of the sensus fidelium—that “sense of the faithful”—celebrated by the Second Vatican Council in which the Holy Spirit wells up powerfully within the baptized faithful themselves.  The Holy Spirit can (and does!) speaks in and through the baptized faithful, bringing forward the voice of God in our time.

Others might be concerned that these listening sessions could end up being sources of angry debate or marked more by criticism and negativity than the spirit-filled hopes and dreams of a new future.  My response to this concern is that the Holy Father calls us to speak with parrhesia!  While we have to remember that this a new word for many of us, it’s actually found often in the New Testament.  What this Greek word [parrhesia] refers to is the ability to speak clearly and plainly, and with courage and conviction.  While the Holy Father admits that this can sometimes lead to disagreement, for those under the influence of the Holy Spirit, even disagreement is marked by great charity.  Moreover, to speak with parrhesia is intimately coupled with the ability to listen to those with whom we do not agree … and to listen with exceptional charity and openness. I am mindful that one of the great gifts of Pentecost was not only the gift of the Holy Spirit, but we also see that the gift of listening was granted to those who heard the Gospel proclaimed in their own language.  This same gift is offered to the Church in our own time!

And so, I encourage you to check your parish and Diocese of Tucson news site in the weeks and months to come.  Opportunities will be offered in our parish communities during the months of November and December, so that a host of voices can be heard.  I’m exceptionally grateful to Sr. Lois Paha, our Diocesan Director of Liturgy, and Bro. Silas Henderson, of the Jordan Ministry Team, who are guiding this process for our Diocese.  They are joined by a steering committee comprised of catechists, educators, parish and lay ecclesial ministers, and deacons in facilitating a process that will be accessible and enriching.

Beyond the dynamics of parish listening sessions, we will welcome responses to an online survey that is available for those who feel isolated or cut-off from the life of Church, and for those who, understandably, continue to be concerned by the realities of the coronavirus pandemic and other considerations.  As Pope Francis has observed,

“Without real participation by the people of God, talk about communion risks remaining a devout wish.”

With this in mind, we remain committed to the patrimony of the Church while we embrace the necessity of a Church that is both attentive to the demands of Tradition and can meaningfully respond to the needs of the world today.  This means listening to and hearing! the needs of those who feel alienated from the Church and those whose voices are too often dismissed or undervalued!

Together we will invoke the Holy Spirit in our midst, give voice to our hopes and dreams for the future, and listen deeply and lovingly to one another.  I also ask that you pray for our Holy Father, for those bishops around the world who will be called to the Synod, and for the baptized faithful everywhere whose wisdom and love for the Church will help fashion the Church of tomorrow."

Bishop Edward J Weisenburger

Returning to Church - Updated Aug 3rd

Please read Fr Tom's letter on the 2021 Annual Catholic Appeal.
Click this link to read the MHT Annual Catholic Appeals letter
Persevering in Hope
Click this link to learn more and to donate to the ACA


 

A Message from Bishop Weisenburger
THE NEW OUTLOOK
Diocese of Tucson News Online
I would like to be able to share important news and updates with you directly. If you are not already receiving in your email the new Diocese of Tucson on-line news service, “The New Outlook,” then simply take the following steps to enroll. Text DOTNEWS to 84576 to automatically sign up for the free diocesan weekly news service. You can opt to receive all updates by email. Keep up to speed on what is happening in the local Church and the whole Catholic world. Join me for mass online and learn about Diocesan events. See you online.

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Mensaje del Obispo Weisenburger
THE NEW OUTLOOK
Noticias en Línea de la Diócesis de Tucson
Me gustaría poder compartir directamente a ustedes, noticias importantes y actualizaciones. Si ya en su correo electrónico no está recibiendo este nuevo servicio de noticias en Línea de la Diócesis de Tucson, "The New Outlook", entonces simplemente envíe DOTNEWS en un mensaje de texto al 84576 para inscribirse automáticamente en el servicio de noticias semanal gratuito de la Diócesis. Puede elegir recibir todas las actualizaciones por correo electrónico. Manténgase al tanto de lo que sucede en la Iglesia local y en todo el mundo católico. Únase conmigo en la misa virtual y conozca acerca de los eventos diocesanos. Nos vemos en línea.