VATICAN CITY, Rome — Stressing the importance of promoting respect for the rights of every person—both men and women—Pope Leo XIV enthused at the Jubilee of Synodal Teams and Participatory Bodies that the pursuit of synodality should strengthen the Catholic Church’s mission of proclaiming the Gospel and help all Catholics learn to collaborate to make the world a better place.
Speaking before several bishops from the United States and other countries, the pope expounded that the purpose of synodality “is to help the church fulfill its primary role in the world, which is to be missionary, to announce the Gospel, to give witness to the person of Jesus Christ in every part of the world, to the ends of the earth.”
“That witness includes speaking up for justice, caring for the planet and promoting peace,” he pointed out.
“The church has a voice, and we need to be courageous in raising our voice to change the world, to make it a better place,” he told Jubilee participants, who included about 150 representatives from the United States with 15 US bishops.
During the evening meeting, Leo listened to seven regionals reports on the implementation of the 2021-2024 Synod of Bishops on synodality and answered a question from each regional representative. He also took notes during the presentations and his responses appeared to be unscripted.
Two questions drew strong applause from the participants, a reaction Pope Leo noted in his responses: the first applauded question was about changing the minds of “bishops and priests who are concerned that synodality may diminish their authority as pastors” and the second was whether the pope believed “equality between men and women in the church can become a lived reality in the future.”
Canadian Bishop Alain Faubert of Valleyfield, Quebec, gave the North American report, which ended with the question about getting all bishops and priests onboard the synodal mission.
“There is a need to invite the priests, particularly, even more so than the bishops, I think, to somehow open their hearts and take part in these processes. Oftentimes, the resistances come out of fear and the lack of knowledge,” he noted.
He explained that the synodal process of listening to one another without immediately judging or defending one’s position has practical applications.
The American pontiff was apparently referring to the breakdown of U.S.-Canada talks about trade and tariffs even as he stated that the two countries, that were once considered as the closest allies, are experiencing even greater difficulties.
“Both countries have, at times, become separated from one another, and it’s another proof, another expression, of why synodality—listening and dialogue—are so important, and how they have concrete applications in our daily lives,” he asserted.
“We have to understand that we do not all run at the same speed, and sometimes we have to be patient with one another, rather than a few people running ahead and leaving a lot behind, which could cause even a break in an ecclesial experience.”