The Challenge of Synodality

While the Synod on Synodality (2023–2024) called by Pope Francis is meant to develop deeper unity within the Catholic Church, it has nonetheless provided an occasion to deepen tensions between the Church. While synodality has deep theological roots, its practical implications involve more than theology. Though the self-understanding of the Catholic Church and the meaning of synodality are naturally theological, they are expressed in historically embedded, socially constructed ways. The tensions experienced in the preparation and reception of the Synod on Synodality stem from implied structural changes. Conflict is normal when social change is involved, particularly when questions of power and meaning-making are involved, and all the more so when there is no certainty as to the outcome. Practical theology offers a means of understanding the Synod and the ways in which synodality may or may not be expressed within the contemporary Catholic Church. Such an approach brings theology and social science into dialogue for deeper ecclesiological understanding.