Liverpool Synod 202Ø1 The Long and Winding Road…
So now we’ve reached the finishing line, only to realise that there is another new journey opening up! Archbishop Malcolm, was clearly ahead of the game when he set us off as we now discover that globally the catholic dioceses will be called to undertake this same journey - or at least a similar one.
The final Zoom meeting- was a technical challenge for all involved-, incredible how we have all discovered new IT skills, joining virtual conferences, raising hands electronically and of course voting electronically! Archbishop Malcolm initially joined us in a live-feed from the cathedral and then joined the gallery of viewers for the rest of the meeting. We also had the Apostolic Nuncio, Archbishop Claudio Gugerotti to cheer us over this finishing line and then later in the day the General Secretary of the Synod of Bishops Cardinal Mario Grech spoke encouragingly too of our achievements. Members of other faiths including the Bishop of Liverpool from the Anglican cathedral spent the day with us. The day was calmly guided by Dr Jessie Rogers, lay dean of the faculty of theology at the Pontifical University, St Patrick’s College in Maynooth, Ireland.
We began with a time of prayer and reflection to consider the road we had travelled and the experiences gathered along the way. The creative team produced some fabulous animation as a visual reflection of our journey and generally the choreography of the day was very well organised despite the challenge of bringing together so many people virtually. There was even the opportunity given for people to voice any brief thoughts before we voted, which was led by Jessie, who encouraged us to ‘rest’ with the thoughts shared, pausing briefly after each sharing. An interesting and I felt very useful comment at this stage was that some of the 19 recommendations are actually stepping stones to others, so we should not feel overly stressed at the task of prioritising through our votes. We had then over an hour in which to actually cast our votes, this time was needed as the Tech team were kept very busy helping those who struggled to get online and even taking some voting over the phone.
After a lunch break, Fr Matthew and Fr Philip built on the excitement of the big reveal of the results comparing it to the Eurovision song contest! What a brilliantly colourful picture these results produced. Fr Matthew and Fr Philip then went through some of the reddest ones, which had gained most votes and also considered the bluest ones- least votes. Both emphasised that this did not mean that the blue ones would be ignored in the Pastoral Plan, rather that the more detailed analysis would take some time to fully appreciate what was implied through the voting. This was again repeated by Archbishop Malcolm, reassuring us that all areas will be carefully considered.
He also was pleased that there was a high score for wider inclusion of those who feel marginalised and felt that Love of Neighbour- was an aspect that had improved during the past year because of the pandemic. After this, it was then good to have the possibility to speak directly to other members face-to-face, in break-out rooms, at this final stage, sharing our initial response to the first views of the ‘results’ of our voting and expressing our thoughts on how we will move forward. Although I felt an initial disappointment in some of the voting, in particular the low ranking given to Care for Creation, which I personally see as #1, listening to the positive reactions of others, it was clear that this journey was leading us forward and that many changes were already happening, which is possibly why they didn’t rank as a priority for the future! Engagement of Youth/ young adults ranked as a top priority, so the question was raised whether this didn’t require a further Youth Synod to fully tease out the needs of this group, as unfortunately from the faces visible to me as I scrolled across multiple screens during our arrival in the Zoom meeting, there were very few younger faces to be seen! Lots of food for further thought; giving the Pastoral Plan team a mammoth task ahead. Now having reflected on this synodal path, I do have to say that this is definitely a positive way to develop as church; to truly listen to one another with heart and mind. I am extremely grateful to all those parish family members, who have been a regular source of encouragement along the way; having demonstrated an active interest at each stage of the journey. It is to be hoped that locally and globally our church will move forward to “become the church God is calling us to be”.
More details can be found on the Synod website, including the full list of results https://synod2020.co.uk/.