Down the Rabbit Hole: I'm Reading the Final Document from the Synod on Synodality!

Within two paragraphs of starting to read the final document from the Synod on Synodality, I found myself laughing ruefully and shaking my head. Are these folks serious? Pope Francis says we all have to accept the document and the bishops must implement its recommendations because it “participates in the ordinary Magisterium of the Successor of Peter....as an authoritative orientation for her life and mission.”

Really? Not everything that comes from the mouth of the pope or his ghost writers bears an "authoritative orientation" for the Church's "life and mission." And this particular synod illustrated more of wokism than others:

Looking upon the Lord does not distance us from the tragedies of history. Instead, it opens our eyes to the suffering of those around us and penetrates us: the faces of war-stricken terrorised children, weeping mothers, the shattered dreams of so many young people, refugees who face terrible journeys, the victims of climate change and social injustice. 

It appears from the table of contents that there is not one word about babies murdered in the womb and the vulnerable sick and elderly being euthanized. Not one word about persecution of the underground Church in China or increasing persecution around the globe. Victims of climate change? Like Greta? How about children working as slaves in lithium mines to power Greta's electric cars. Is that an example of "social injustice?" How could I take anything in the document seriously after those woke sentences?

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Not only that, why should Catholics feel obliged to implement anything that was developed by a committee of people including those from different Christian traditions? The desire for the reunion of all Christians is certainly in line with Christ's desire expressed at the Last Supper, but He wanted all to come to the Church He founded. No apostles and disciples in two thousand years of Catholic history before Vatican II ever gathered material heretics together to discuss decisions for the Church. But that's what the latest synod did: 

"The whole People of God is an agent of the proclamation of the Gospel. Every baptised person is called to be a protagonist of mission since we are all missionary disciples" (ITC 53). For this reason, the synodal journey directs us towards a full and visible unity of Christians, as was witnessed by the presence of delegates of other Christian traditions. Unity ferments silently within the holy Church of God; prophetically so, for the entire world.

Wow! So we no longer need to actively work for the conversion of those outside the Church because unity "ferments silently." This fits with other statements of Francis demonizing the active missionary impulse among the faithful as "proselytizing" and a big no-no! 

Matt Gaspers, writing at OnePeterFive explains that The Key to Understanding the Synod: “It Is a Continuation of Vatican II”. This is confirmed in the document itself:

...the synodal journey constitutes an authentic further act of reception of the Council, thus deepening its inspiration and reinvigorating its prophetic force for today’s world.

Gaspers goes on to write:

This is the key to understanding the Synod, which, in many ways, was a continuation of the battle between what attorney and author Christopher Ferrara has called “the party of Catholic Tradition on the one hand, in continuity with all that the Church has handed down in her doctrine and practice through the centuries … and, on the other hand, the party of innovation, modernization, liberalization, adaptation, indeed revolution in the Church.”[3] This is the battle that was waged during the Council, and it continues in the Church today. 

 The interminable synod process seems oriented toward turning the church into a democracy where the majority may pitch out old, useless doctrines based on unchanging truth and introduce new ones based on the seven deadly sins, a staple of modernism.

Joseph Cardinal Zen

Joseph Cardinal Zen, bishop emeritus of Hong Kong, recently warned that the synod aims "to overthrow the Church hierarchy and implement a democratic system.”:

Since the beginning of this Synod, the two cardinals who lead the assembly and the new prefect of the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith did not stress the preservation of the faith, but emphasized changes, especially changes to the Church’s structure and ethical teachings; especially regarding “sex” ethical principles, most of all: same-sex relations. [N.B. 26% of synod participants were not bishops and laity were allowed to vote which deviates from the traditional definition of synodality with the hierarchy advising the pope.]

Catholic Vote, reporting on the Cardinal's critique wrote:

The Cardinal argued that three things must occur before the Synod can be said to have ended well. First, it must return to the traditional sense of the word [synodal]; second, it must resolve the confusion surrounding same-sex blessings in clear terms in light of Church doctrine; and third, the importance of Church hierarchy must be reestablished for the continuity of a universal Church.

Warning Catholics not to become discouraged or anxious about the crisis in the Church, Cardinal Zen advises, “Fast and pray (especially the Rosary)! Hope will never get disappointed.” And remember that the cross is always a blessing that brings about conversion. Instead of lamenting it, let us embrace it enthusiastically.

These days one has to be very careful about accepting Vatican documents. Many in the curia love the world, the flesh and the devil and they happily draw others to join them in their miserable state of rebellion. Jesus lamented, "When I return will I find any faith on the earth?" We need to be sure we study the faith and know the perennial and unchanging doctrines that offer the true guide to the heavenly city. 

Cardinal Zen is a faithful minister and guide who recently wrote, One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic: From the Church of the Apostles to the “Synodal” Church published by Sophia Press. We all need strategies to keep us from falling down the rabbit hole. We need wise guides beginning with Jesus, Mary, our guardian angels and the saints and spiritual masters of the past. We don't need novelties and synods that appear to aim at undermining the faith and turning the Catholic Church into another Protestant cult. God save us from that disaster! He will, indeed, since the Holy Spirit guides and protects the Church.

Keep the faith! Pray the rosary! Practice charity! And don't worry!