October 10 | 
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A listening Church can still uphold God’s law, and love
The Church is not wrong in holding marriage up to be a lifelong commitment between a man and a woman that provides a safe and stable environment in which to raise a family. Anyone who wants the final outcome of the extraordinary synod on the family to be a Church admission of being wrong on that is not only misguided but is also setting themselves up for disappointment.
Nor, however, is the health and happiness of married couples and families here on earth an arena for point scoring among theologians and academics, as the Holy Father himself pointed out in his homily at the opening Mass of the synod when he said such gatherings were not ‘meant to discuss beautiful and clever ideas’ but to ‘better nurture and tend to the Lord’s vineyard.’
The most telling synod comments by the Holy Father so far, however, is his instance of frank and open discussions by the near 200 synod participants, which include Archbishop Philip Tartaglia of Glasgow and Cardinal Vincent Nichols, Archbishop of Westminster.
“You have to say what you feel the Lord tells you to say, without concerns of human respect and without fear,” the Pope instructed the bishops at the start of their first meeting on Monday.
In the spirit of his words, the daily summaries of prepared comments at modern synods have been scrapped to foster more free, candid discussion without fear of judgement or reprisals, or a media frenzy.
Catholic teaching is often at odds with modern life, just as the Magisterium of the Church and the Faith are sometimes labelled as ‘counter cultural.’ Nonetheless, Catholic couples and families are subject to the same stresses and strains of the modern world as everyone else, a world which knows marital and family breakdown. The Faithful, in a state of grace or not, require pastoral care and the family, the bedrock of our Christian society, needs support.
This month’s synod on ‘pastoral challenges of the family’ is in preparation for a larger world synod in 12 months time. Rather than looking for radical change in Church teaching, or fearing schism, perhaps we should look for radical change within our own hearts, our own families and our own relationships. Only then should he or she without sin cast the first stone.
Our God is a God of mercy and compassion. While absolute love, peace and happiness may only be possible when we return to our Heavenly Father, why on earth should His Church not look to help and support all kinds of families? A listening Church can still uphold God’s law, and share his love.
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