Synodality in a Stable
A synod is an event that takes place for a period of time, in a designated place, and for a purpose. An example is the 2014–15 synod on the family and its mission and vocation in the Church. That synod experience helped produce the post-synodal apostolic exhortation Amoris Laetitia (“The Joy of Love”), which encourages and animates family ministry in many parishes today.
Synodality is different from a synod event. It is a way of being and acting. It is the Church’s way of being and acting. Pope Francis never tires of repeating that synodality is “God’s style” and that the Church, by her nature, continues to live and move in that style. One place to glimpse “God’s style” is the stable of Bethlehem at the birth of our Savior.
The diverse cast of characters that filled the stable cannot be ignored: poor shepherds, townspeople, animals, angels, Wise Men from afar, and Mary and Joseph. In the stable, they experience closeness, unity, and they come to faith.
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