SYNOD
SYNOD ON SYNODALITY - Response from St Joseph's Parish, Rustington - January 2022
Comments about the Process
Limited time or opportunity to engage in the process due to change-over of Parish Priest and COVID restrictions. Some strong feeling (based on previous experience) that we are wasting our time and we won't be heard.
Too many questions and some didn't seem to relate to the overall subject.
The ranking exercise, was seen to be inappropriate for the nature of the subject and the audience.
Process
One discussion meeting, attended by 15 parishioners, where we prioritised the questions or areas where we felt able to contribute. Wider parish encouraged to submit individual responses.
Conclusion
We welcome and support Pope Francis's attempts to move away from a top-down, clerically dominated model of church to a more horizontal 'walking together' way of being church. The best way for us to contribute to supporting Pope Francis' vision of a ‘Synodal Church' is as follows:
Comments about the Process
Limited time or opportunity to engage in the process due to change-over of Parish Priest and COVID restrictions. Some strong feeling (based on previous experience) that we are wasting our time and we won't be heard.
Too many questions and some didn't seem to relate to the overall subject.
The ranking exercise, was seen to be inappropriate for the nature of the subject and the audience.
Process
One discussion meeting, attended by 15 parishioners, where we prioritised the questions or areas where we felt able to contribute. Wider parish encouraged to submit individual responses.
Conclusion
We welcome and support Pope Francis's attempts to move away from a top-down, clerically dominated model of church to a more horizontal 'walking together' way of being church. The best way for us to contribute to supporting Pope Francis' vision of a ‘Synodal Church' is as follows:
- In many ways we recognise ourselves as an example of good practice. The experience of our parish community is one of genuine welcome, where people look out for, love and care for each other. We listen to each other and work together, using our skills, experiences, gifts and resources to keep our parish functioning. We are sustained by our prayer with and for each other, and our regular Sunday and weekday Masses. We work alongside and support whatever priest or deacon is appointed to our parish. We work in partnership with other Christian communities in our locality.
- We have few young people or families in our parish and believe it is important to reach out to and listen to what young people want from the church. They are the church of the future. We know from our own family experience that many young people don't go to church, but do have a strong sense of social justice and are passionate about the environment. We recognise as a small, mostly ageing parish, it may be best if we collaborated with other parishes to develop a common local youth programme.
- Although we acknowledge the importance of the Eucharist as central to our faith, attendance at Mass is not the only measure of people's faith. We may have to recognise that this may come later in people's faith journey. Our experience during the COVID Pandemic has highlighted this for us.
- It is important that the church is welcoming to all categories of people, especially to LGBT, Divorced Catholics and others who may have moved away from the institutional church.
- Once COVID restrictions are over, we need to fully restore our programme of taking Holy Communion to the frail, elderly and housebound members of our parish, to make sure they are not excluded or forgotten. We have a well established team of Eucharistic Ministers who have been carrying out this ministry for many years.
- In relation to the wider Church we would like to see our Bishop spending more time listening to parishioners in more informal ways, not just the occasional busy pastoral visit or event.
- We would like to see the church (especially at Diocesan level) move away from the centralised, bureaucratic and top-down model of relating to parishes and to practice subsidiarity. Enabling parishes to organise, manage and decide on how best to ensure that they flourish, based on their lived experience, resources and commitment. A business model, where a one-size fits all approach maybe administratively useful, does not feel helpful. We are diverse faith communities trying to build the Kingdom of God.
- Listening should not be confined to ‘people to people, clergy to clergy, bishops to bishops’ we need listening between these groups.