blessed sacrament church

1890 Washington valley Rd 

In the news, you undoubtedly heard about Synod For The Amazon held in Rome last month. Sixteen representatives from different indigenous countries shared their faith and cultural heritage with bishops, theologians, and experts on the plight of the indigenous people. Their discussion centered on the lack of availability of priests to minister the sacraments. In particular, the Eucharist and ecological trouble being brought on by climate change were discussed. As stated by Cardinal Czerny, S.J., “With the Amazon burning…many more people are realizing that things have to change. We cannot keep repeating old responses to urgent problems and expect to get better results.” Referring to the urgent need for ecological conversion at both the personal and communal levels, the cardinal said the ecological crisis is so deep that if we don’t change, “we’re not going to make it.”

Within the Catholic community, especially in social media, there was a robust adverse reason for the Amazon Synod. Critics of the Synod thought that the Synod For The Amazon was moving away from long-held traditions and customs. Critics faulted Pope Francis in his willingness to be too accommodating towards indigenous communities and their customs. As noted by the George Weigel of First Things Magazine, “Synod-2019 served the very useful purpose of casting in sharp relief the grave doctrinal and theological issues facing the Church, today and in the immediate future.”

One area of public discussion in and outside the Synod was the possibility of allowing “suitable and esteemed men of the community who have had fruitful permanent diaconate” to be ordained into the priesthood. The bishops approved the paragraph in the final document in a vote of 128 to 41. This particular change would not be totally unprecedented since married Roman Catholic clergy already minister.

Another area of anxiety on the part of some was the use of a particular image of a wooden statue of a naked, kneeling pregnant woman. In a violent act of thievery early one morning, two individuals stole two statues from a side chapel from the Church of St. Mary in Trasponna. These statues were a part of an opening ceremony of the October 4th Synod. The culprits made a video and posted it on social media. Their fury was especially aimed at the image of the kneeling naked pregnant woman.

Cardinal Blasé Cupich wrote an article that highlights the place of using various cultural images that aid in helping the People of God gain a closer relationship with the Divine, and how the church needs to embrace inculturation.

Check out the Cardinal Blasé J. Cupich article about the artwork that was thrown in the Tiber River. 

Blessings,

Father Brian