Linz, August 31, 2024 (KAP) Salzburg Archbishop Franz Lackner described the Synodal Process with the second part of the World Synod of Bishops on synodality, which is due to take place in October, as a “very important step”. The Catholic Church has thus embarked on a path, “and this path will continue, no matter what happens next,” said the chairman of the Austrian Bishops’ Conference in an interview with the Kathpress news agency on Saturday. The occasion was a three-day working meeting of the European synod participants, which took place from Thursday to Saturday in the Linz seminary.
Just as Pope Francis represents a surprise for the Church, the processes he has introduced also come as a surprise to many, “and the surprises will not stop,” said Lackner, who described his basic attitude to this with the “principle of hope”: “Hope is faith in what one does not yet see.” This also applies to the Church itself.
Of course, a “realistic view” is needed to make progress, which is why in Austria some people with overly high expectations – “some of which were also pushed” – have given way to disappointment and frustration. This was helped by the fact that certain topics were removed by the Pope from the Synod and thus also from the working paper (“Instrumentum laboris”) and delegated to working groups. The fact that this is the case must be respected, “but I would be interested to see how things develop,” said the Archbishop.
Flower meadow instead of monoculture
The working document presented in July was “really good,” said Lackner, who particularly praised the chapter on differentiation. The church has learned a lot about “distinction,” and the meetings and sessions of the workshop in Linz confirmed this for him. Basically, the step called for by Pope Francis is about seeing before making decisions that “there is not just a yes and a no, but that you also see the differences and let them shine. The differences make up the diversity; they are, figuratively speaking, a meadow of flowers, not a monoculture.”
The diversity was certainly expressed in Linz, noted the Archbishop. “That is important, because it is dangerous when people just remain silent.” Lackner also praised the fact that an open, honest conversation had been held in Linz, which should also be practiced at the World Synod in October, but also at all levels below. Metaphorically speaking, synodality must begin “in a nutshell” and the temptation to always want to move on to the next level must be resisted, said the Bishops’ Conference Chairman.
The Salzburg Archbishop said that he himself had reported on his experiences with young people during the consultations in Linz. He was often bombarded with questions from young people when he met them and tried to give answers, but never quite managed to do so. But then he asked a question himself: “How are you really doing?” In the silence that followed, he asked his young guests what the church should do for young people. The tenor of the conversation that followed was: “The church should be a place where people can speak out, where what is said does not spread immediately, as it usually does on the Internet.”
Understanding secularity positively
It has also become clear to him that the church in Western Europe must introduce a “positive concept of a secular world”. Lackner: “Secularity is not just a waste product. Man has grown to a level where he can do good things on his own. We as a church are experiencing this when we have to say: we no longer have preferential treatment, there are others. We believers do good things for good reasons, because God is good, but man has the ability to be good from his origins – which is reflected in secularity.”
Another aspect noted by the Bishops’ Conference Chairman, who belongs to the Franciscan Order, is the realization “that we ‘Westerners’ should come empty-handed.” Europe has set the tone in theology for centuries, but that is now over. “I believe we should continue on our path, make an effort, take steps and dare, but we should no longer come and explain to the world how it’s done.” The “emptiness” should be understood in a positive way – “not a gaping emptiness, but one that opens one up to other things,” said Lackner.
A total of 43 representatives of the European local churches at the World Synod took part in a meeting that began on Thursday afternoon in the Linz seminary and ended on Saturday. The basis for the three-day workshop was the working document (“Instrumentum laboris”) for the Synod of Bishops.
Among the participants were the President of the Council of Bishops’ Conferences of Europe (CCEE), Archbishop Gintaras Grusas (Vilnius), and his deputy, Archbishop Ladislav Nemet (Belgrade). The Presidents of the Bishops’ Conferences of Italy, Austria and Switzerland, Cardinal Matteo Zuppi (Bologna), Archbishop Lackner (Salzburg) and Bishop Felix Gmür (Basel), also took part.
(Royalty-free photos from the Synod Workshop at www.kathpress.at/foto, all other reports from the workshop at www.kathpress.at/synodenworkshop)
