Catholic bishops and other representatives of the world's more than 1 billion Roman Catholics are meeting in Rome on Sunday for the start of the Synod on the Family. This meeting will guide Church teaching on issues like marriage, divorce and contraception.
Lively and contentious debate is expected. The 279 bishops, from 120 countries, will tackle questions of marriage, divorce and homosexuality — hot-button issues in the U.S. and the world at large. They could fundamentally alter more than 2,000 years of Catholic understanding — "going all the way back to the Hebrews and the law of Moses," according to the National Catholic Register.
"They are discussing issues that go to the heart of what it means to be a Catholic living in a particular culture," says Kathleen Sprows Cummings, head of the Cushwa Center for the Study of American Catholicism at the University of Notre Dame. She spoke with NPR's Michel Martin about the synod, in the first installment of a new series, Words You'll Hear.
Only bishops can vote at the synod — a word that comes from a Greek term meaning "assembly" or "meeting" — but 17 married couples and 17 individuals were invited and can share their perspectives, Cummings says.
She says they'll be part of what's likely to be the defining moment of Pope Francis' papacy, she says.
"It's going to deal with some very contentious issues within the church," Cummings says. "Specifically, how to respond to Catholics who are separated or divorced, whether they'll have access to the sacraments or not — presently they do not — issues about how to respond to gay and lesbian Catholics. ... These are issues that divide us here in the United States very sharply — issues about gay marriage."
A working paper, the Instrumentum Laboris, released ahead of this year's synod has caused tension between traditionalists and reformers. Various groups have been lobbying — writing letters, circulating petitions — seeking to outline their positions. Gay Catholics, female theologians and African bishops opposed to homosexuality are among the biggest lobbying groups this year.
Cummings says Francis knows these issues are crucial for the church.
"Pope Francis — you know, I lost count of the number of times during his visit to the United States he used the words 'dialogue' and 'encounter,' " Cummings says. "He stressed it's important to have a conversation, and I think it's a conversation that people from a variety of religious backgrounds and traditions are going to be watching very closely."
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Transcript
MICHEL MARTIN, HOST:
We have a new feature we'd like to introduce today. It's called Words You'll Hear This Week. This is where we're going to try to help us all understand the stories we're going to be hearing more about over the course of the week. And today, our word is synod.
(SOUNDBITES OF NEWS SHOWS)
UNIDENTIFIED ANNOUNCER #1: Opening the synod with a solemn mass in St. Peter's Square...
UNIDENTIFIED ANNOUNCER #2: Well, we just completed the Extraordinary Synod on the Family in Rome.
UNIDENTIFIED ANNOUNCER #3: Pope Francis called for an Extraordinary Synod of Bishops to discuss the...
MARTIN: Catholic bishops and other representatives of the world's more than 1 billion Roman Catholics are meeting in Rome today for the start of the Synod on Family. This meeting will guide church teaching on issues like marriage, divorce and contraception. We wanted to find out more about a synod and what to expect at this one, so we called Kathleen Sprows Cummings. She heads the Cushwa Center for the Study of American Catholicism at the University of Notre Dame. Professor Cummings, thanks for joining us.
KATHLEEN SPROWS CUMMINGS: Thank you, Michel.
MARTIN: First of all, what is a synod, and am I pronouncing the word correctly?
CUMMINGS: You are pronouncing it correctly. A synod - small S - comes from a Greek term which means assembly or meeting. It's similar to the Latin word for - that translates as counsel. There are synods that take place in a variety of different denominations that are a meeting of church leaders. The synod with a capital S refers, in the Catholic Church, to a meeting of a group of bishops, and this particular synod is convened to focus on the family.
MARTIN: So are only bishops attending?
CUMMINGS: No. There will be bishops attending, but there are also other people who are invited as observers, and that includes 17 married couples, as well as 17 individuals. Now those people don't have a vote or a voice necessarily, but their perspectives are able to be shared. But it is the bishops are the actual members of the synod.
MARTIN: Now, some people are saying - some observers are saying that this particular synod could become one of the defining moments of the papacy of Pope Francis. Do you think that that's true, and why are people saying that? Why are the stakes so high, if indeed they are?
CUMMINGS: I think that's absolutely true, and it's funny. You know, we have all been so focused here on Pope Francis' visit to the United States, which was certainly very important for us as a nation. But when it comes to the whole church in terms of long-term effects, it's really the synod that is the big event of this fall.
MARTIN: Because why?
CUMMINGS: Because they're discussing issues that go to the heart of what it means to be a Catholic living in a particular culture and issues that are very central to Catholic teaching - issues related to the family. And there was another synod about a year ago called an Extraordinary Synod on the Family that laid out an agenda for this one. And it's going to deal with some very contentious issues within the church, specifically how to respond to Catholics who are separated or divorced, whether they'll have access to the sacraments or not. Presently, they do not. Issues about how to respond to gay and lesbian Catholics will be debated.
And I think these are issues that divide us here in the United States very sharply - issues about gay marriage. I mean, the sacramental question about whether separated and divorced Catholics can receive the sacraments - that might be something that's, you know, definitely much more insider. But I think these broader issues look at our international conversation about these issues and how much division they cause.
And Pope Francis - you know, I lost count of how many times during his visit to the United States he used the word dialogue and encounter. And he stressed it's important to have a conversation. And I think it's a conversation that people from a variety of religious backgrounds and traditions are going to be watching very closely.
MARTIN: Kathleen Sprows Cummings heads the Cushwa Center for the Study of American Catholicism at the University of Notre Dame in Indiana. And she was telling us about the upcoming synod, which starts in Rome today. Professor Cummings, thanks so much for speaking with us.
CUMMINGS: Thank you, Michel. [POST-BROADCAST CORRECTION: Our guest incorrectly says Catholics who are separated and divorced do not have access to the sacraments. In fact, it is only separated and divorced Catholics who have civilly remarried who are excluded from some sacraments, like Communion.] Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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