A Field Hospital in Synodal No Man’s Land
The Epistemological Battle at the Heart of the Synodal Process
In Europe and the United States, a bitter fight is taking place between two sides in the Church. Can the synodal process offer some space for people who have been caught in the middle of all this?
A field hospital in a church in France during the First World War (Source: wiki commons)
There is a little shopping street in Oxford known as North Parade Avenue. One mile to the north of this street lies South Parade. This odd constellation is not the result of a professorial mix-up but has often been attributed to the English Civil War. Both streets mark the side where the soldiers had dug their trenches. North Parade marks the city's defenses, whereas the South parade marks the furthest advance of the parliamentary army surrounding the city during the siege.
Between both systems of trenches was an utterly destroyed piece of no man’s land. Soldiers on both sides would regularly fire their canons without hitting the enemy. This was very convenient. It allowed both sides to present themselves as heroes to the public without taking any risks. However, anyone trying to venture into the no man’s land soon would find himself under heavy crossfire from both sides.
Recently, this image of the siege of Oxford crossed my mind when reading some of the internal discussions on the Synod of Synodality. With some popular support, some church leaders call for significant changes, even threatening to implement these regardless of the synodal process. With some popular support, other church leaders demand an immediate end to the synodal process.
A Synodal Stand Off
I think the standoff in North America and Europe is creating an ecclesial no man’s land that harms the People of God. Yet, oddly enough, both warring factions share a common epistemological approach to relating theological insights to everyday life.
On the one hand, some advocate significant changes. They are convinced of the need for change one way or another. Critical questions or doubts are being rejected out of hand. On the other hand, some hold that the church is not for change. They are convinced that everything has been said and that the people should be told what was, still is, and always will be. Again, critical questions or doubts are being rejected out of hand.
The Embattled Middle
What unites both groups is that they claim to know the whole truth and need not further debate their opinions. Instead of dialogue, they bombard the other side with solid rhetoric, claiming victory without making any substantial gains. In many places, this dynamic has created ecclesial no man’s lands in parishes and dioceses. At the fringes, we find self-declared holy remnants fighting each other from a safe distance.
In the meantime, empty pews point to the people caught in the middle that have left the church. Having been constantly fired upon from both sides with either theological or ideological rhetoric, they have been hurt, wounded, or lost hope altogether. No one welcomed them. No one represented the good news of the Gospel to them. Occasionally, one encounters someone still caught in this ecclesial no man’s land, anxiously praying for peace or looking for the exit.
A Field Hospital for All
The Synod on Synodality offers a chance to put an end to this dynamic. Just as soldiers in 1914, on Christmas day, climbed out of their trenches to celebrate Christmas with their enemies, the synod is challenging Catholics in North America and Europe to enter the ecclesial no man’s land they have created for a new dialogue. For in the middle of this ecclesial Golgotha, Christ can be found. Reconciliation can only begin when people and their wounds are mutually acknowledged. Pope Francis called for the church to become a field hospital: a tent big enough to house anyone looking for friendship with Jesus Christ. This will not be easy. Likewise, the peace of 1914 lasted only for a day until army leaders and politicians forced the soldiers to return to the trenches and fight for another four years. I hope and pray that we will do better this time.
A Dutch version of this article was published in Katholiek Nieuwsblad on 24-03-2023.