by Tom Magill

The Synod on Synodality completed its work last October. With the publication of its final document, the synod mothers and fathers invited the entire Church to begin the implementation phase – the work needed for a synodal Church. Pope Francis accepted this document in full and in so doing made it part of the Ordinary Magisterium of the Church. The document is weighty, therefore, not simply in terms of its length but more importantly in its status as part of the teaching authority of the Church.

We’re now six months down the road and it’s a moment when we can begin to take stock of how the Church in Scotland is engaging in this implementation phase. This takes on a certain urgency in light of the letter sent by Cardinal Grech and signed off by Pope Francis to all dioceses. The Cardinal urges a deep commitment to synodality and outlines a three-year process throughout the Church to build on what has been put in place by the synod. There will be an Assembly of the whole Church in 2028 to bring together all this work.

This essay will look firstly at the extent to which the Scottish dioceses are engaging with this process. This will be based on the information provided in their various websites. Separate lay initiatives will also be noted. Secondly, the essay will summarise what is requested by Cardinal Grech and outline the three-year process in which all dioceses must take part.

Limited engagement

Remarkably, some dioceses, Paisley, Galloway, and St Andrews & Edinburgh have no separate page for synodality on their websites. For information on synodality in Edinburgh, it’s necessary to use the search button. What is offered are some documents the synod process has produced from 2021. Surprisingly, there is no mention of or access to the final document of 2024. Paisley has nothing apart from a link to the Vatican Synod site (under Diocesan Directory/Structures and Collaborative Ministry). Galloway has only a short article in the diocesan newsletter for Advent 2024. This is a real pity given that Galloway provided such good materials during the synod process.

Dunkeld has a Synod Update page with the last entry in March 2024. As with Edinburgh, the search button is necessary for other information on synodal activities in the diocese. The diocese organised a Lenten day in the Spirit of Synodality in April 2024 and a Conference on the Spiritual Experience of Synodality in August 2024. Like Edinburgh, the Final Document is absent from the website. Aberdeen does have a specific page but it’s now very much out-of-date. Neither the Final Document of the first or the second session are available.

Glasgow is different from the other dioceses in that it has a dedicated website for the synod . It has collected together all the diocesan and international documents on the synod, it has good resources for parishes and useful links. Yet missing here, as with other dioceses, is the Final Document of the Synod process. Motherwell has a dedicated synod page with all the synod documents (the page Synod Documents in Chronological Order is particularly useful). Plenty of resources are given for leaders and participants in parishes. There has been a number of meetings for laity to reflect on the synod documents but become accustomed to the method of Conversation in the Spirit. This was the method used when the clergy of the diocese came together to listen to Bishop McGee’s experience of the synod. However, the focus of the diocese just now is on its diocesan renewal programme Wellspring which was developed and is being pushed out with no relationship to synodality.

Argyll & the Isles is the only Scottish diocese which at present is attempting to implement the teachings of the synod. The diocesan renewal plan, Led by the Spirit, with its six priorities, aims to deepen a culture of synodality throughout the diocese. Integral to this will be the establishing of a Diocesan Pastoral Council and pastoral councils in every parish, together with a diocesan synodality working group. It will be worthwhile keeping an eye on what happens in Argyll &the Isles.

Lack of vision

The Bishops’ Conference of Scotland website has been re-vamped and now there is a dedicated page to synodality. Unfortunately, there is very little there – a couple of definitions of synod and synodality and a link to the Vatican Synod site. Totally lacking is any in-depth teaching about synodality, any vision of how it might be implemented in Scotland, and any encouragement to the People of God to engage with this vision of Church.

It is near impossible to find out what is happening in individual parishes but anecdotally there does not seem to be very much. Nonetheless the Scottish Laity Network has done admirable work keeping synodality alive not least by the many important speakers they invite. Their on-line meetings may suggest a fruitful way forward for like-minded people.

This magazine, Open House, continues to promote a synodal Church with information on synodality in almost every issue. Last June there was a packed-out conference on synodality in Eyre Hall in Glasgow which showed very clearly the commitment to synodality among the laity. There it was suggested that a theology forum for the Church in Scotland be established where issues facing the Church might be discussed and reflected upon in a synodal manner. There will be a conference in Eyre Hall on June 14th to follow this up.

In general, from diocesan websites it’s possible to conclude that any initial enthusiasm for the synodal process has more or less disappeared. It’s noteworthy that most of the dioceses have not published the Synod’s Final Document, an historic teaching to the Church in our times. Also most websites seem to have fossilised, with no updating evident. Apart from Argyll & the Isles, no diocese has intimated any synodal event for 2025.

Most obvious is the lack of synodal teaching from the Conference of Bishops as a body.

Patchy implementation

Perhaps aware of the patchy implementation of the Synod’s teaching, the General Secretariat of the Synod led by Cardinal Grech has sent a letter to the bishops and people of God throughout the world. The letter was approved by Pope Francis who directed it be sent to all local churches.

By way of introduction, the letter reminds Church leaders that synodality must be ‘increasingly understood and lived as an essential dimension of the ordinary life of local Churches and the entire Church’. This is timely, since it does seem that some Church leaders in Scotland view synodality as optional or ‘not for them’.

It tells us that if synodality is ignored, then deep damage is being done to the Church as People of God, as institution and as a community of believers.

Dr Tom Magill is a retired priest of the Diocese of Motherwell.