Fr Merlin Rengith Ambrose –
The second session of the 16th Synod of Bishops concluded on 26 October 2024. A Final Document consisting of 155 sections was immediately published as per the Pope’s directive. There will be no subsequent Post-Synodal Apostolic Exhortation since he decided to adopt (ratify – Canon 343) the Final Document drafted by the participants, marking another demonstration of synodality.
Stable Lay Ministers – Instituted and Non-instituted
A missionary synodal Church would promote lay ministries that do not require Holy Orders. They can be instituted or not instituted. Instituted ministries through ritual are lector, acolyte (Motu proprio Spiritus Domini), and catechist (Motu proprio Antiquum ministerium). Instituted ministries are complemented by those not instituted that are exercised with stability as mandated by the competent authority. Such ministries include coordinating a small church community, leading community prayer, organising charitable activities, and so forth. They have a great variety of expressions depending on the local community. A public mandate should be established to promote its recognition within the community. Extraordinary ministries of the Eucharist, leading Sunday liturgies in the absence of a priest, and administering certain sacramentals need to be fostered.
Participatory Bodies
The lay faithful should be given greater opportunities to participate in decision-making processes with co-responsibility primarily through Diocesan Synod (cann. 460, 466), Diocesan Pastoral Council (can. 514 §1), Parish Pastoral Council (can. 536), Diocesan and Parish Finance Committee (cann. 493 & 537). It must be ensured that bodies that are optional hitherto must be made mandatory, and other bodies that Canon Law mandatorily envisages must be established to ensure lay participation. The particular law must provide for it.
Organs of Evaluation for Accountability and Transparency
The Assembly recommends recognising the diocesan Synod (cann. 460-468) as vital for regular consultation between the Bishop and his community. The diocesan Synod also must provide a platform for the Bishop to report accountably on pastoral activities, including implementing the diocesan pastoral plan, receiving Church synodal processes, safeguarding initiatives, and financial management. Strengthening the Canonical provisions to make this body meet regularly is necessary.
Rejuvenation of Particular Councils and “Sound Decentralisation”
To realise a “sound decentralisation” (EG 16), it is necessary to rejuvenate the institution of provincial and plenary councils. The periodic celebration of councils has been an obligation in the Church’s history and is required by Canon Law (cann. 439-446). The Apostolic Constitution Praedicate Evangelium allows Bishops and Superiors of Consecrated Life to address familiar issues while preserving the Church’s unity of doctrine and communion. This should be done in line with the recent Motu Proprio Competentias quasdam decernere, which modified 11 canons (cann. 237 §2; 242 §1; 265; 604; 686 §1; 688 §2; 699 §2; 700; 775 §2; 1308; 1310). These canons, which, until 2022, reserved the power to the higher authority, have left it to the lower authority to resolve.
Formation in the Seminary
There was a widespread request for the discernment and formation of candidates for ordained ministry to be done in a synodal manner. There should be a significant presence of women, an immersion in the daily life of communities, and formation to enable collaboration with everyone in the Church and how to practise ecclesial discernment. The Assembly calls for a revision of the Ratio Fundamentalis Institutionis Sacerdotalis (can. 241) in order to incorporate the requests made by the Synod.
Non-diminishing the Voice of the Consulted
According to Canon Law, those in authority are, in several instances, obligated to consult before deciding. Those in authority ought to listen to those who participate in the consultation and may not act as if the consultation had not taken place by departing from the fruits of consultation that produce an agreement without an overriding reason (CIC can. 127, §2, 2°; CCEO can. 934, §2, 3°).
Lay Participation in Other Ecclesial Avenues
Apart from participatory bodies envisaged by Canon Law and this Final Document, greater access lay people to positions of responsibility in dioceses and ecclesiastical institutions, including seminaries, institutes and theological faculties, is required. There should be greater recognition of the charisms of the consecrated and more qualified lay judges in Canonical processes, along with improved respect for the rights of employees in ecclesial institutions.
Abrogation of the word “Only”
In Canon Law, the word “only/merely” (tantum) is added in many places wherein a consultative vote is envisaged by the parish priest or Bishop to make decisions. It is not appropriate to set the consultative and deliberative elements in opposition to each other: in the Church, the deliberative element is undertaken with the help of all. For this reason, the recurring formula in Canon Law, “only/merely” consultative vote (“tantum” consultivum) should be reviewed to eliminate the possibility of ambiguity.
Rev. Dr. Merlin Rengith Ambrose is a professor of Canon Law at St. Peter’s Pontifical Seminary, Bangalore, Executive Secretary of the Commission for Canon in the CCBI; and Executive Member of the Canon Law Society of India (CLSI).