CSJP Synodal Listening Sessions
In early March 2022, the Congregation Leadership Team invited vowed members and lay associates to two listening sessions via Zoom. We pondered together the central question: What is the Holy Spirit saying to our Church today about communion, participation, and mission? Read the synthesis we have submitted to the Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life, the Bishops Conferences in both our countries, and our local Bishops.
Congregation of the Sisters of St. Joseph of Peace
For a Synodal Church: communion, participation, and mission
Listening Session Synthesis - June 2022
We, the Congregation of the Sisters of St. Joseph of Peace, contribute this synthesis to the synodal process in the spirit of our Constitutions:
“In accord with our tradition we commit ourselves to promote peace in family life, in the church, and in society.” – CSJP Constitution no. 11
“The spirit of obedience requires that individually and together we search actively to know God's call to us as revealed through scripture, the people and events of our world, the concerns of the church, and our charism of peace” – CSJP Constitution no. 58
We are grateful to Pope Francis for calling the global Church to encounter, listen and discern the Spirit’s call during this time of great challenge and opportunity for the people of God and indeed, all of creation.
CSJP Listening Process
In early March 2022, the Congregation Leadership Team invited vowed members and lay associates to two listening sessions via Zoom. There was wide participation by sisters and associates in the United Kingdom and United States. We brought our diverse experiences of the local church to the dialogue, including participants from the Archdioceses of Newark, Portland, Seattle, and Westminster and the Dioceses of Leeds, Motherwell, Nottingham, and Paterson. We used a simple 90-minute contemplative dialogue process following the pattern of encounter, listen, and discern. We pondered together the central question: What is the Holy Spirit saying to our Church today about communion, participation, and mission? Below we offer key insights shared during our geographically diverse listening sessions.
Key Insights - We believe the Holy Spirit is calling the local and global Church to:
Affirm, embrace, and expand the role of women. One of the participants asked, “What would it be like if no women turned up on a Sunday?”. In our local parishes, we encounter faithful women who are seeking meaningful ways to offer their gifts and participate in the mission of the Church. In our listening sessions, we shared a common desire for inclusive language that reflects the diversity of the people of God. We yearn to hear women’s voices and experiences during liturgical celebrations.
Be an inclusive church where all are welcomed. Too often we accompany people who feel otherwise excluded by the Church, whether because of marital status, gender, sexual orientation, race, culture, ability, or age. At our recent Congregation Chapter, we called ourselves to the intentional living of interculturality, anti-racism, and inclusion and to make room at the table where all are welcomed and gifts are honored.
Increase lay leadership and disrupt the clerical model. The Spirit is calling us to a renewed understanding of power, as power with and for, not over. What Pope Francis has named as the “scourge of clericalism” impedes the movement of the Spirit and prevents the people of God from offering their gifts and experiences in service of the Gospel.
Provide opportunities for ongoing formation—for all ages, ordained, and lay—in the spirit of the Second Vatican Council. We experience in our parishes a great desire for formation and spiritual opportunities for the people of God. Many of us also encounter priests who have been formed in and promote a more conservative theology that is not in keeping with the spirit of Vatican II.
Expand understanding and application of Catholic Social Teaching and the consistent ethic of life. Our faith tradition has a rich understanding of human dignity at all stages of life. Unfortunately, Catholic Social Teaching and the consistent ethic of life are often misunderstood or unknown by the faithful at large. At this time of extreme political polarization, these teachings can provide fertile ground for common understanding and dialogue. During our listening sessions, our sisters in the United Kingdom expressed surprise at the stories shared about the sometimes single focus of the United States Church on one particular life issue.
Speak out about and address the pandemics of racism, violence, and environmental destruction. Our Church’s preaching and actions need to respond to the needs of the world. We embrace the vision of Pope Francis for integral ecology and believe that the Church has an important role to play in the public square, both as a moral voice and collaborative partner for the common good. As a Congregation we have committed to the Laudato Si’ Action Platform and pledge our voice and action.
Renew and integrate the theology of sexuality with scientific knowledge and reexamine the Church’s stance on divorce and remarriage. The Church’s approach to these central human issues no longer provides a credible framework in relation to many people’s lived experience and desire for wholeness as persons created in the image and likeness of God.
Inspire and (re)build trust and promote healing. In our listening sessions sisters and associates shared stories of pain and sorrow among the faithful stemming from the dual crises of abuse and abuse of power in the institutional Church. The Spirit is calling for humble and courageous action to acknowledge the harm done and seek healing and right relationship.
Encounter diverse groups of people, including ecumenical and interfaith dialogue and work for the common good. Encounters of this sort expand our understanding of communion and bring us closer to the vision of Jesus that all may be one.
Utilize technology to increase access to spiritual resources and build connection. Our own experience as a geographically diverse Congregation during the pandemic taught us an important lesson about the power of technology to build and maintain connections. We also joined the people of God in experiencing new ways of prayer and participating in liturgy at home when it was not safe to gather in person. We are now live streaming our funeral masses so that family and community members at a distance can participate.
Conclusion
The synodal process is similar to the patterns of reflection, dialogue, and discernment that we engage in as a Congregation. Just a few weeks after our Synodal Listening Sessions, we gathered for the conclusion of our 23rd Congregation Chapter. The Acts of the General Chapter approved by the delegates include a call To Be Who We Say We Are. This is our hope as well for the global and local church, that we may live and act as followers of Jesus Christ led by the Holy Spirit. We end this document with the concluding words of our Chapter Act:
“It is time to be who we have always said we are. It is time to live our words. We embrace these promptings of the Spirit with courage, humility, hope, and trust.”