RAOEN shares this article from CIDSE on their contribution to the synodal process, articulated in a nine-page document with global solidarity and social justice as key messages. Journeying together and working in partnership as sisters and brothers also means an active consciousness that some voices are louder than others and that there must be more listening with humility.
CIDSE’s contribution to the synodal process includes a deconstruction of the current integrated crises: ecological and human, calling for a systemic and integral way to address the emerging questions and themes: climate crisis and the loss of biodiversity, land grabbing and deforestation, indigenous rights and position as guardians of the forest and oceans, decolonizing systems of power and upholding women’s voices and leadership, and transforming economic and political systems and the urgent need to act and engage.
After the Synod on the Amazon, which brought in the spotlight key issues such as those affecting indigenous peoples and their land in the Amazon region and in the rest of the world, Pope Francis opened the 2021-2023 Synodal process in October 2021. For two years the entire People of God is invited embark on a far-reaching process of reflection on the theme For a Synodal Church: communion, participation and mission, which has the potential to affect the future of the entire Church, in its broadest sense and also her place in the world.
The consultation process is divided in different phases: national consultations through the Church (diocesan and episcopal Conferences level), continental phase, and the universal phase.
The CIDSE family and network has been attentive to the call to integrate synodality as a structural principle of the Church and has used every opportunity to continue this inspiration. We have embraced the process and the synodal approach in our new organisational strategy (2023-2028) and in our way of meeting and encountering others. We have understood this process to be a continuation of the call for integral ecology, ecological conversion and a culture of encounter and solidarity.
And this is why global solidarity and social justice are the key messages that CIDSE is putting forward in its contribution to the first phase of the consultation process. We offer our experience and practice in outreach and social action as expressions of our solidarity with people and communities in all parts of the world. Through our members and partners, we work together for a welcoming, listening, and prophetic Church, where all voices are heard and we can help ensure care and justice for all people sharing this Common Home of ours. Our approach to working in partnership embodies the spirit of accompaniment that Pope Francis calls us to realise – we are journeying together with our sisters and brothers, but we are also conscious that some voices have traditionally been louder and we welcome this opportunity to listen to one another with humility.
Synodal process on Synodality – a CIDSE contribution can be accessed here.