By: Linda Staudt, Canadian Lay Delegate
At the opening of the Synod last October, shared with all the delegates assembled were the following remarks from Pope Francis.
“…You have come from different roads and from different churches, each bearing your own questions and hopes. I am certain the Spirit will guide us and give us the grace to move forward together, to listen to one another and to embark on a discernment of the times in which we are living . . . let us experience this moment of encounter, listening and reflection as a season of grace . . .”
And so, we did.
Upon entering John Paul VI audience hall, I located my first table group. Around the table were Bishops and Cardinals from France, Malaysia, United States, Cameron, England, Ethiopia, Singapore, Trinadad & Tobago, and India. At my first table I was the only lay delegate, the only woman and the only delegate from Canada.
As we gathered, we shared how we wished to be called. Each one of us indicated that we wished to be called by our first name. While not being asked, for the bishops and cardinals, I did precede their first name with ‘Bishop’ or ‘Cardinal’!
Our homework for each of the five modules required us to prepare a four-minute synthesis, providing our best thoughts and reflections to the questions previously shared with us.
Each module began with Mass at St. Peter’s Basilica, prayer, spiritual and theological input.
During the first round of Conversation in the Spirit, we shared our reflections (our homework). Each person had a chance to speak. We listened, we did not interrupt, we did not respond, we truly listened to each other. There was no discussion. Time was provided for silence, which allowed us to be attentive to the voice of the Holy Spirit.
For the second round, our reflection focused on, ’What struck you the most, what touched you the most from what others have shared? Striking during this round were the powerful insights that emerged from our discernment.
During the third round, the sharing was freer flowing as we identified the convergences, divergences, and actions to be taken that emerged from our collective discernment.
It was this process of Conversation in the Spirit that we followed for the four weeks of the Synod as we addressed the key questions in each of the five modules.
Since our return from Rome, delegates have shared that the most important takeaway from the Synod has been something we likely never heard of previously, something now described as the synodal process. I heartedly agree! I experienced and witnessed firsthand the power and potential of the Conversation in the Spirit methodology.
Over the course of the past months, I have had the gift of facilitating sessions, both in our Diocese and across the province, using the Conversation in the Spirit methodology. I have witnessed firsthand the many fruits that have emerged; fruits made possible by prayer, truly listening to one another and listening to the Holy Spirit.
“You only learn synodality by doing it. It is amazing how transformative it is to listen and to be listened to.”
Sr. Nathalie Bequart
