Diocesan Synod

A Pilgrimage to the Heart of the Gospel

On 23rd October 1997, Pope John Paul II told the bishops of England and Wales who were in Rome for the ad limina visit:
"the approaching Great Jubilee constitutes a pressing invitation to the Church's Pastors to guide the communities entrusted to them on a spiritual pilgrimage to the very heart of the Gospel."

It was from those words that the decision developed to make our pilgrimage to the very heart of the Gospel, a diocesan Synod.

Organisation and Structures

An early task was for the judicial vicar to prepare a memorandum on what convening a diocesan Synod in the year 2000 would involve.  In accordance with the Instruction of the Diocesan Synods, the Bishop took the initial step of consulting with the Council of Priests, followed by a full discussion with the diocesan consultors.  In addition, and to ensure a successful and effective Synod, the priests of the diocese were fully involved.  The Council of Priests identified a number of matters which needed to be looked at.  It also set up a process of consultation by which the views of all the priests could be obtained.

To ensure that there was as wide an involvement of all the Catholic people as possible, a number of Commissions were set up.

The Synodal Commission had responsibility for the overall preparations for the Synod; for bringing together the work of the Canonical/Legal & Pastoral Commissions; for ensuring the preparation of documents for Diocesan wide Consultation; for preparing a report of this consultation for discussion/ratification at Lampeter, and for the individual Lampeter sessions

The Procedural Commission was responsible for giving counsel to the Bishop or Session Co-ordinators when requested, concerning both the "Directory for First Diocesan Synod of Menevia", and the Code of Canon Law.

A Canonical/Legal Commission was set up to examine existing and suggested policies and procedures, in order to ensure their conformity with Canon and Civil Law; that they were internally consistent, and to suggest ways of systematising Diocesan Policies and Procedures.

A Pastoral Commission had responsibilities for examining existing and suggested policies and procedures from a Pastoral Perspective in order to raise topics and questions for Synod.  There were four sub-commissions on Teaching; Community; Sacraments; and Prayer.  These established the topics to be tackled, based on "Synod Guidelines & Standards ... " and the results of Bishop's Questionnaire; formulated questions for discussion for each topic; distributed material to parishes for discussion; and collated responses and drafted policies and documents for Lampeter.  At the Synod the sub-commissions helped finalise policy documents and to Chair relevant sessions.

Consultation

In October 1998 Bishop Mullins sent a message ‘to Every Home in Menevia’. 
The Bishop wanted as many people as possible to participate in the preparation for the Synod, and therefore in the planning for the future of the diocese.  A summary of the Instruction on Diocesan Synods was distributed within the diocese in booklet form.
Preparation for the Diocesan Synod began with 'Synod Sundays'.  During the whole of 1998, 1999 and in 2000, every parish in the diocese would on the first Sunday of each month, focus on an article of the Nicene Creed.  The Diocesan newspaper ‘Menevia News’ was used to publicise all aspects of the Synod.

A detailed questionnaire in English and Welsh, was prepared.  Its purpose was twofold; firstly, to invite as many people as possible to participate in the planning of the further development of the diocese, and secondly, to find out ‘our starting point’. In consultation with his priests, Bishop Mullins identified four major themes for the Synod. These were:

1. The Teaching of the Church,

2. The Community of the Church,

3. The Sacraments, and

4. Prayer

The detailed questionnaire was sent to every Parish inviting responses from Parishioners, and it was also published in the October 1998 edition of Menevia News.
The numbers who responded were encouraging.  Some 400 responses to the questionnaire were received, which provided some idea of the representative concerns of parishioners throughout the Diocese.

The diocesan questionnaire was an important channel for the Catholics of Menevia to express their concerns as to the future direction and growth of the Church in this part of Wales.  As a result of this survey, many new issues found their way on to the list of concerns which the Synod sought to address.

Parish topics

It was desirable that all the parishes should feel a responsibility for and an involvement in the whole Synod process and preparation, but to ensure a careful examination of each theme, groups of parishes were asked to concentrate on one theme in particular.

Deanery Meetings

The Bishop was especially concerned about the "lay members of the faithful" whom he may freely nominate and "whose valued opinion will undoubtedly enrich the synodal discussions" (p8).  In 1999 he sought the help of parish priests in getting to know those that he could choose.

Starting in September 1999, Bishop Mullins began his visits to each corner of the diocese to meet with representatives of the parishes of the area.  In that meeting, he spoke about the four central themes of our Synod, and listened to the hopes and expectations that the people had for the Synod and for the future of our diocese.  He sought to develop jointly a pastoral programme for a strengthening of Catholic life.

Election of Synod Members

In 2000, the Bishop announced that there would be an election in each parish of those who would actually be attending the Synod at Lampeter.  The number given was four for each parish.  It was felt important that every parish, even the smallest had a full representation.  To ensure that nobody would be excluded because of cost, the Bishop made approaches to various Trusts to cover the total cost of the days at Lampeter.  Those chosen would truly reflect the whole nature of the diocese, the social and linguistic conditions, the professions.

Bishop Mullins requested priests to supply him with the names and addresses of those chosen in their parish by the end of March 2000.  He left it to each parish to decide on the appropriate method of the election of Synod members with the proviso that there was a genuine involvement of the parish. Religious elected their own Synodal Members.

The Diocesan Synod

The first formal session of the Synod was held in the Cathedral on 4th January 2000.  At that Mass the packed Cathedral gathered around the Bishop to inaugurate the Synod, making the public profession of the Nicene Creed its motivating force.
Then, on the 11th September 2000, 221 delegates (Table 1.1) representing every Parish in the Diocese, the Religious of the different Congregations, Youth representatives and of course the Priests of the Diocese gathered at the University in Lampeter to discuss the Synod Document.
 

There were four themes, four headings for the Synod.  They were the Teaching of the Church, The Community of the Church, The Sacraments, and Prayer.  A committee had been set up for each one, to prepare material that could be sent out to the parishes.  As a result of this work, the document Synod Papers was prepared and sent to every Synod Member. Bishop Mullins noted that there was insufficient time to devote time to every aspect of our diocesan life and every topic in that document hence items were chosen that were of special relevance.

By way of illustration the Bishop referred to the first theme report, and the paper called Mission Statement.  Under that heading of Mission Statement, he wanted to identify some objectives that we could aim to achieve in the next five to ten years, and how to go about achieving those aims.  He hoped that as a result of the Synod, a document would be produced which would set out a programme of renewal that would be put into practice, with a programme whose implementation would be monitored.

On the Community of the Church, it was not the intention to spend time on administrative matters.  The diocese, and especially every parish in the diocese needed to be the genuine extended family.  It should be united in Faith and by its Faith, a community that makes present in our world a form of living together that presents a model of human and Christian virtues, a community that prays, a community of right‑living, of generosity, of putting others before ourselves, even as Christ put us before himself, even to emptying himself.  The job of the Synod was to give practical form to these wonderful ideals.

The Sacraments: When we appreciate the gift of new life in Christ which is baptism, there really is something to celebrate, for the family and for the whole parish.  We need to bring back the Sacrament of Penance, to see that the new rite of the Sacrament is essentially individual personal confession of sins in the context of the revelation of the Holy Scripture, of prayer and of guidance given and joyfully welcomed.

Prayer: An insistent feedback from the parishes had been an appeal for help with prayer.  Bishop Mullins observed that clearly something very right and good was happening in the parishes when they so insistently echo the appeal of the apostles, "Lord, teach us to pray."  He noted that when we find ways of effectively responding to that.

The 47 interventions on the first day gave proof of a healthy, vibrant and committed group of people anxious to contribute to the building up of the Diocese of Menevia.  The following days revealed even more enthusiasm, a deep prayer life and rootedness in the Faith and a readiness to share it. Bishop Mullins reminded participants that the Lampeter gathering was another, if a very important stage, in the overall plan, and our hope was that new life will emerge ever more insistently in the coming months as efforts were being made to bring alive what was experienced at Lampeter and during the preparation for it.

Later, recalling events at the Synod, the Bishop noted that ‘it was a very special occasion for us all.  We realised in a very vivid way what it is to be the Catholic family concerned together about the welfare and the future of our diocese.’

In the ensuing months the tapes were transcribed and studied in detail.  Experts examined each of the four themes so that the Synod Papers could be amended in the light of the deliberations.  It was a major undertaking.  The results were carefully scrutinised by the Bishop, and the final document prepared for publication.

The consultative process of the Synod was brought to a conclusion at a Solemn Diocesan Mass in the Cathedral on Friday, 2nd February 2001, the Feast of the Presentation of Our Lord.  At that Mass, Bishop Mullins publicly signed the Report
and the calls to action that had come from the Synod. By that solemn act they became our diocesan plan of action for the years ahead. Bishop Mullins expressed the hope that that closure, would mark the beginning of a great revival across the diocese.  He stated the need to put in place at parish and diocesan level, structures to ensure that the decrees emanating from the Synod were put to work.


Bishop Mark Jabalé OSB installed as Bishop of Menevia

It was because the implementation of the Synod was so necessary, that the Bishop asked the Holy Father for a Coadjutor Bishop in Menevia.  Bishop Mark Jabalé was appointed Co-adjutor Bishop of Menevia on the 31st October 2000.  He was consecrated as Co-adjutor Bishop on Thursday 7th December 2000 by Bishop Daniel Mullins.  He was installed as second Bishop of the restructured Diocese of Menevia on 12th June 2001.

Success of the Synod

As Bishop Mullins noted in the ‘Promulgation of the results of the Synod’ [Appendix 1], the Synod has provided a solid basis for a long-term plan for the diocese, created a greater sense of diocesan community, urged and given guidelines for the spiritual renewal of all the members of this local Church, and reminded us all that we are, all of us together, to be an evangelising community of faith-filled people.


The Menevia Youth Synod

The young people of the diocese were very much part of the preparation for the Synod.  On Thursday 8th June, an extremely exciting and innovative event took place at Bishop Vaughan School in Morriston, when young Catholics, aged between 14 and 18 years and from various parts of the Diocese, came together for the Menevia Youth Synod.  Large student delegations attended from Menevia’s three Catholic secondary schools – St Joseph’s, St John Lloyd and the host school, Bishop Vaughan – as well as young Catholics from other educational establishments.  Also present were Bishop Mullins, the Diocesan Director of Education, the Headteachers of all three secondary schools, the Diocesan Canon lawyer and several members of the clergy, all of whom took avid interest in the day’s proceedings.

One vital ingredient for the future of the Church is, of course, the youth – without them there will be no future.  Thus, the Bishop called the Youth Synod, so that the Diocese could take full advantage of knowing what our young people thought about the Faith and their part in the Church’s ministry.

The real work of the day began with each group of delegates being placed in the hands of a group leader who introduced the programme for the day.  The responsibility of examining such things as The role of the Church Today, Being a Young Catholic and The Social Aspect of Christianity meant that this was no easy task.  Each of the groups responded with increasing enthusiasm and it was wonderful to watch so many young people getting down to some genuine discussion and debate.

There can be little doubt that the Youth Synod was successful in collecting the views of the young people present.  The creativity and enthusiasm of the delegates highlighted the talents that are needed in the Church of today.  The bringing together of young Catholics from different parts of the Diocese was also of great value in showing young people that there are many other Catholics just like them.  It was wonderful to hear delegates sharing experiences and several saying that they had not expected the day to be as interesting as it turned out.  Most important perhaps, was the fact that the Youth Synod treated young people and their views seriously, with proper time and consideration.