In an address for the opening of the pastoral year for the Diocese of Rome, Pope emphasised the need for a broad-based Christia formation for families and young people.
“The words addressed to the Samaritan woman by Jesus, which we have just heard in the Gospel, in this difficult historical time, are now addressed to us, the Church of Rome: “If you knew the gift of God!” ( Jn 4:10),” Pope Leo began.
“To that weary woman, who comes to the well in the hottest hour of the day, Jesus reveals that there is a living water that quenches forever, a gushing spring that never runs dry: it is the very life of God given to humanity. This gift is the Holy Spirit, who quenches our burning thirst and irrigates our aridity, shedding light on our path. Saint Luke, in the Acts of the Apostles , also uses the word “gift” to indicate the Holy Spirit, the creator Spirit capable of renewing all things.
“Through the synodal process, the Spirit has inspired hope for an ecclesial renewal capable of revitalising communities,” he noted, “so that they grow in the evangelical way, in closeness to God, and in the presence of service and witness in the world.”
“The fruit of the synodal journey, after a long period of listening and discussion, was first and foremost the impulse to enhance ministries and charisms, drawing on the baptismal vocation, placing the relationship with Christ and the acceptance of brothers and sisters at the centre, starting with the poorest, sharing their joys and sorrows, hopes and struggles,” Pope Leo continued.
“Well, now it’s up to us to work to ensure that the Church living in Rome becomes a laboratory of synodality, capable—with God’s grace—of achieving ‘Gospel deeds’ in an ecclesial context marked by numerous challenges, especially in transmitting the faith, and in a city in need of prophecy, marked as it is by numerous and growing instances of economic and existential poverty, with young people often disoriented and families often burdened,” he noted.
“A synodal Church on mission needs to develop a style that values the gifts of each individual and understands the role of leadership as a peaceful and harmonious exercise, so that, in the communion inspired by the Spirit, dialogue and relationships help us overcome the many temptations toward opposition or defensive isolation.
“Synodal dynamism must therefore be nurtured in the real contexts of each local Church. What does this mean in concrete terms?” Pope Leo asked.
Participation bodies
“It is first and foremost a matter of working for the active participation of all in the life of the Church. In this regard, one tool for enhancing the vision of a synodal and missionary Church is participation bodies. They help the People of God fully exercise their baptismal identity, strengthen the bond between ordained ministers and the community, and guide the process from community discernment to pastoral decisions. For this reason, I invite you to strengthen the formation of participation bodies and, at the parish level, to review the steps taken thus far or, where such bodies are lacking, to understand the obstacles and overcome them.
“Today, as we know, in a more complex world and in a fast-paced city where people live in constant mobility, we need to think and plan together, breaking free from pre-established boundaries and experimenting with shared pastoral initiatives. Therefore, I urge you to make these bodies true spaces of community life where communion can be practiced, places of discussion where community discernment and shared baptismal and pastoral responsibility can be implemented.
“And what are we called to discern today? What has been achieved in recent years is valuable, but there are some objectives to be pursued in a synodal style that I would like to focus on.”
Three objectives
Initiation into Christian life is aN INTEGRAL process
“The first thing I suggest is nurturing the relationship between Christian initiation and evangelisation, keeping in mind that requesting the sacraments is becoming an increasingly less common option. Initiation into Christian life is a process that must integrate existence in its various aspects, gradually equipping people for a relationship with the Lord Jesus, making them confident in listening to the Word, eager to practice prayer, and working in charity.
“It is necessary to experiment, where necessary, with new tools and languages, involving families in the process and seeking to move beyond a scholastic approach to catechesis. From this perspective, it is necessary to treat with sensitivity and care those who express the desire for Baptism in adolescence and adulthood.
Young people and families
“A second objective is the involvement of young people and families , a field in which we encounter various difficulties today. I believe it is urgent to establish a pastoral ministry that is supportive, empathetic, discreet, and non-judgmental, welcoming to all, and that offers the most personalized paths possible, suited to the diverse life situations of those receiving it.
“Since families struggle to transmit the faith and might be tempted to shirk this task, we must strive to support them without replacing them, becoming companions on the journey and offering tools for the search for God. This is—we must be honest—a pastoral ministry that does not repeat the same old things, but offers a new apprenticeship; a pastoral ministry that becomes like a school capable of introducing people to the Christian life, of accompanying them through the stages of life, of building meaningful human relationships, and thus of impacting the social fabric, especially in the service of the poorest and most vulnerable.
Formation at all levels
“Finally—a third goal—I would like to recommend formation at all levels . We are experiencing an educational emergency, and we must not delude ourselves that simply continuing a few traditional activities will keep our Christian communities alive,” Pope Leo warned.
“They must become generative: a womb that initiates people into faith and a heart that seeks out those who have abandoned it. Parishes need training, and where they don’t exist, it would be important to include biblical and liturgical courses, without neglecting the issues that resonate with the younger generations but concern us all: social justice, peace, the complex phenomenon of migration, care for creation, the proper exercise of citizenship, respect in couples, mental suffering and addictions, and many other challenges.
Conclusion
“All this, I recommend, must be thought out and done together , in a synodal way, as the people of God who never cease, with the guidance of the pastors, to wait and hope that one day everyone will truly be able to sit at the banquet prepared by the Lord, according to the vision of the prophet Isaiah (cf. 25:6-10).
“The Gospel passage of the Samaritan woman ends with a missionary crescendo: the Samaritan woman goes to her fellow citizens, tells them what happened to her, and they go to Jesus and reach the profession of faith. I am certain that in our Diocese too, the journey begun and accompanied in recent years will lead us to mature in synodality, communion, co-responsibility, and mission. We will renew within ourselves the desire to proclaim the Gospel to every man and woman of our time; we will run toward them like the Samaritan woman, leaving our jug and carrying instead the water that quenches eternal thirst. And we will have the joy of hearing many sisters and brothers who, like the Samaritans, will tell us: ‘It is no longer because of what you said that we believe, for we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this is truly the Savior of the world” ( Jn 4:42)’.”
SOURCE
Pope Leo, Opening of the new pastoral year for the Diocese of Rome (Vatican)