Word: synods
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Diffusing power. A favorite word of the Vatican II years was "collegiality," referring to power sharing between the Pope and the 2,280 bishops across the world. Paul took the dramatic step of forming an international Synod of Bishops, then made it a forum without power. It met five times during his reign and never had any discernible effect on his thought or action. Last week a pillar of the conciliar generation, Belgium's Leo-Jozef Cardinal Suenens, said that carrying out the duties of the papacy is "humanly impossible." To ease the burden, he proposed a "synodal" Pope...
Sometimes Paul raised expectations, or at least allowed them to grow, then disappointed those who hoped for change. In the spirit of Vatican II's declaration on collegiality (the sharing of authority), Paul established a synod of bishops that would meet regularly to advise him. Five times during his reign, churchmen from round the world convened in Rome to discuss such issues as clerical celibacy and evangelism. But the Pope controlled the agenda (he vetoed a discussion of the family in 1974, presumably because it would raise such questions as birth control and divorce), and he insisted on having...
...seminary. The regime has tightly controlled overseas travels of the Rum clergy. Last September, officials even yanked the passport of Metropolitan Meliton, the see's chief envoy, just as he was leaving for talks at the Vatican. Meliton is also engaged in crucial negotiations for a historic Great Synod of the world's Orthodox bishops...
...final days, the Synod elected twelve members to the council that will prepare its next meeting. In a church whose central government is still dominated by Europeans, it was significant that the top vote getter was Aloisio Cardinal Lorscheider, 53, of Brazil, an energetic leader in preparation of Synod papers despite his undergoing open-heart surgery a year ago. Right behind him came Archbishop Joseph Bernardin of Cincinnati, 49, outgoing president of the U.S. bishops. As in 1974, not one Italian bishop was elected to the three slots reserved for Europeans...
During the Synod, backroom talk about who should succeed Pope Paul appeared to be virtually nonexistent, perhaps because the Pontiff, who turned 80 in September, looked so vigorous while celebrating a mid-Synod Mass in St. Peter's Basilica. Still, the 1977 Synod may play a role in papal politics. Of the 117 voting members of the College of Cardinals?which only meets to elect a new pope?51 were Synod delegates. Thus the Synod provided an opportunity for nearly half of the papal electors to observe one another in action for weeks. Given Paul's age, the 1977 meeting...