Lay Synods: a Church Jesus would recognize
Excited about the ever-growing lay synod movement, Lena Woltering spoke of the importance of ordinary Catholics taking responsibility for the condition of our church. Quoting Albert Einstein, she emphasized that no problem today can be solved using the same consciousness that was present when the problem originated. “Clericalism is the consciousness we have lived in for centuries and it has limited the Church’s development.”
Calling most bishops “mutton farmers” rather than shepherds because they fence their flock in, she said it’s time to jump the fence into a new consciousness that recognizes our baptismal call to ministry. “We not only don’t need permission, we have an obligation to minister to one another and hold our leaders accountable when they fail to do so,” she said. “The people who have jumped higher and farther than any of us to clear the fences are the brave women from around the world who have been ordained priests and bishops in the Roman Catholic Church.”
Woltering insisted that if we truly re-vision who we are as Catholics, we will see that the context within which we operate changes drastically. “It’s time we hang our baptismal certificates on our walls along side all the other important documents proving our legitimacy. First and foremost, we are priestly people on a mission for the sake of our faith community. If we live that out, we will create a church Jesus would recognize.”
Synods continue second round in Florida, Texas and Wisconsin
The lay synod movement is spreading around the country. In recent months folks in Minneapolis/St. Paul, Madison and Manitowoc, Wis., and Southwest Florida, have begun gathering with a new sense of responsibility for the reform of the Catholic Church. They join the pioneers of Southern Illinois, Upstate New York, McAllen, Tex., Dallas/Fort Worth and San Francisco in making sure the People of God know their rights and responsibilities and begin actively working for the necessary changes that will bring our church back to its Scriptural roots. Folks in Orange County, Calif. will be holding their first assembly in March. Organizing is going on in Kansas for an April event and Michigan is scheduled for September 2008.
Because this movement is an “ongoing conversation”, second gatherings are scheduled in Southwest Florida, McAllen, Tex., and Wisconsin after the New Year. Folks in Southern Illinois are planning their seventh synod. It will deal with financial accountability within the Roman Catholic Church.
“Although there is a lot of work to be done, it is an exciting time to be a Catholic,” says Lena Woltering, organizer of the process. Anyone wanting more information or help in organizing can call on Lena for assistance. She can be reached at FOSILize@aol.com or by phone: 260 432-3661.