Before going over to the Synod Hall for our morning session, I was reading in Bishop Henry Granjon’s diary about his pastoral visit to southwest New Mexico in 1902. Father Greg Adolf, pastor of St. Andrew the Apostle Parish in Sierra Vista had given the diary to me on the occasion of the dedication of our new Archives.
Bishop Granjon had come to our Diocese as a young priest from France and became the second Bishop of Tucson. It was a delight reading his account of his ministry. He spoke with pride about his people. His descriptions of the land, starkly beautiful in its barren remoteness, reminded me of where I have come to feel at home – in our Sonoran Desert.
A bishop becomes one with his people and the place he is called to serve. I can see that here at the Synod as bishops talk about their particular local Church and the preoccupations they have with serving the pastoral the needs of their people. That was certainly true of Bishop Granjon, and it is still true today.
Today, we began in small language groups or what are referred to as circuli minores. There are three groups each for French, Spanish and English, two groups in Italian and one in German. Most groups number about 25 Synod Fathers and include several adiutores (specialists), auditors (observers) and fraternal delegates from other faiths.
The first session lasted all morning. We began by choosing Cardinal Francis George, O.M.I., as our Moderator. To my surprise, I was elected Relator, whose task it is to summarize the discussions of the small groups and present that summary to the Synod Fathers at various times during the Synod.
The groups are very diverse by continent. In addition to those of us from the U.S., our group has representatives from South Africa, Ghana, Kenya, Malawi, Nigeria, Indonesia, Philippines, Thailand, Taiwan, Ireland, Malta, Australia, New Zealand, Pacific, New Guinea and the Solomon Islands.
As each bishop talked, you could see the joy and struggle involved in pastoring their community and their great desire to enliven their communities with the Word.
It struck me how important proper disposition is in receiving the Word. We approach the Word with humble heart. So many things can get in the way of receiving the Word. People are busy, preoccupied, pressed.
I wonder in our Diocese how we can make the Word more accessible to our people. This was a big concern among the members of our Presbyteral Council when I consulted with them about the Synod. We need to encourage people to access the Bible so that they can love it and live it.
Much interest and attention exists among bishops to enhance homilies. Liturgy is the foremost place where people encounter the Scriptures. Yet, we all know how difficult it is for all of us bishops, priests and deacons to preach. Clearly, as those who preach we ourselves must be immersed in the Word, study the scriptures, meditate upon them, pray them. Unless we encounter Christ, we cannot lead others to Christ.
How we can strengthen seminary formation and the ongoing formation of our priests and deacons remains a challenge. Priests are very busy. Some lack the motivation to improve their preaching or pastoral skills. Yet, our efforts to make the Word more central must begin here with the preachers of the Word.
In some countries, especially where the Bible may be hard to acquire or even be forbidden, the Internet provides an opportunity to access the Scriptures. Some dioceses are making creative use of the Internet, especially to attract the young.
Clearly, our Protestant brothers and sisters have given us a good example. They have a strong desire to read the Bible. As well, the Second Vatican Council gave great encouragement to Catholics to read the Bible.
The afternoon session today involved a number of five minute interventions followed by an hour of free discussion.
Many of the same themes continue to surface. Some of the bishops are very practical and down to earth in their suggestions on how to improve the homily and the reading of the Word and on how to engage in the Lectio Divina. Other bishops are more theological, raising questions about the role of the Church in interpreting Scripture or the importance of Scripture, Tradition and the Magisterium. Still others reflect on the struggle to get people to read the Word and the obstacles in making the Word accessible.
The intensity of the Synod is tiring – I would say exhausting. But this experience also is very rich.
