I would like to begin by sharing a little bit about synodal methodologies. The scriptural story of the journey to Emmaus (Lk 24:13–32), used at the Synod on Young People in 2018 in Rome, was one that resonated with me and many participants in this current process for the Synod on Synodality. We had the experience that Jesus Christ was walking with us like he was walking with the disciples on the road to Emmaus.
This image of the road to Emmaus is a good expression of synodal methodology based on the “see-judge-act” approach created by Cardinal Joseph Cardijn because it begins with the reality: We start from our situatedness, from the very concrete reality where we are. Then we try to interpret that reality in the light of the Gospel, to discern a course of action. Then we are called to act.
At the beginning of the journey of Emmaus, Jesus is just listening to the disciples as they walk along, hearing where they are on their road, their disillusionment, their questions. We do something similar when we listen to the “signs of the times,” to use that famous phrase from Pope John XXIII’s document summoning the Second Vatican Council. And we are doing that today in our synodal process, and recognizing there is a strong link between synodality and the processes of Vatican II.
– Sr Nathalie Becquart XMCJ, Under-secretary, Synod of Bishops
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Nathalie Becquart, Like Vatican II, the synod is a dynamic example of the church in history (America)