Synod Briefing – Day 6: 62,000 euros collected for Gaza Parish

By Roberto Paglialonga and Edoardo Giribaldi

A total of 62,000 euros was collected at the Synod on 7 of October for the victims of the war in Gaza. This was announced on Tuesday, by Paolo Ruffini, the Prefect of the Dicastery for Communication and President of the Synod’s Information Commission, during the daily briefing with journalists on the Synod’s proceedings  at the Vatican Press Office. Also attending the press conference, introduced by  Deputy Director Cristiane Murray,  were three of the 21 newly elected Cardinals: Archbishop Ignace Bessi Dogbo of Abidjan, Ivory Coast, Japanese Archbishop Tarcisio Isao Kikuchi of Tokyo, and Brazilian Archbishop Jaime Spengler of Porto Alegre

Funds already sent to Gaza

Ruffini reported that the sum collected was announced by Cardinal Konrad Krajewski, Prefect of the Dicastery for Charity.  32, 000 euros were donated by the participants in the Synod, and another 30, 000 euros were offered by the Apostolic Almoner. The total of 62,000  euros, the Cardinal said, has been delivered through the Apostolic Nunciature in Jerusalem and is already at the disposal of the parish priest of  the Holy Family Church in Gaza, Father Gabriel Romanelli. According to Ruffini, participants in the assembly responded with a round of applause to the video of thanks (which was shown at the Vatican Press Office) sent by the Argentinian priest. 

The importance of Christian initiation

Dr. Ruffini also reported that on Monday Cardinal Grech announced to the assembly that the Dicastery for the Laity, Family, and Life has appointed twenty new members to the International Youth Advisory Body (IYAB), which was established after the 2018 Synod. On behalf of all Synod participants, the Secretary General extended best wishes to “the young people who are committed to serving the Church.”

The central part of Tuesday morning – with 350 people present in the Paul VI Hall – was dedicated to electing 7 of the 14 members of the Commission for the drafting of the Final Document. Before the vote, its Secretary, Monsignor Riccardo Battocchio, reminded everyone that the Commission does not physically draft the Final Document but oversees the work project.

After the vote, Dr. Ruffini continued, there were reports from the language group tables, “the novelty of this assembly.”

Specifically, “the rapporteurs highlighted the importance of Christian initiation, and relationships in creating a more synodal Church, and of the necessary synodal and relational conversion.”

“The relationship between charisms and ministries” was also emphasized and participants reflected on “how to avoid clerical narcissism, the important role of consecrated life, the ministry of listening, differentiated discernment regarding ministries connected to missions, and cultural and local contexts.”

Diaconate, charity, and mission

Sheila Pires, Secretary of the Information Commission, then reported that during the open discussion 18 speakers offered their contributions on the theme of Christian initiation. Several of them expressed the need to put relationships and relational conversion at the centre, as has  already been done  by the  table group rapporteurs.

Some, she said, highlighted the need to heal relationships wounded by scandals in the Church, starting with abuses, stressing the importance of trust to strengthen the synodal path.”  Others proposed a deeper study of the diaconate to renew the Church, or  pointed to  “the ecclesiology of the People of God and the importance of charity and mission. “They emphasized that love for the poor is born from the Eucharis and that we must be caring as the Gospel teaches, especially towards those who are marginalized, rejected, and who sometimes feel excluded even from the Church,” Ms. Pires explained

Accompanying the newly baptized

Speakers also observed that “in a secularized world, the process of Christian initiation is becoming more and more essential. To be witnesses  of the Gospel, they said,  we must become prophets, and a process of faith formation is needed from a young age, involving the whole community.

They further noted  that the assembly must discuss the participation of women in the leadership of the Church.

Additionally, the theme of forgiveness linked to the love of Christ was addressed, and speakers reiterated that there can be no Christian initiation without community. For this reason, some asked for  greater commitment to accompany the newly baptized.”

Finally, Ms. Pires explained, some speakers pointed out that the Instrumentum laboris, the Synod’s working document,  doesn’t give enough attention to some ecclesial realities and movements, whose importance – they said – should be recognized. ”  They again asked that Church documents. including the Synod’s ones, be written in a comprehensible language that can be understood by everyone.

Cardinal-elect Ignace Bessi Dogbo of Abidjan

Changing the way experiencing the Church

Referring to one of the main topics of the Synod’s work, Cardinal-elect Ignace Bessi Dogbo focused on the Sacrament of Baptism. “Thanks to it, we are conformed to Christ, and we can all recognize ourselves as children of God and brothers in Christ.” This “allows each of us, in turn, to see and find in others the person and face of Jesus.”

Drawing a parallel between what happens in the universal Church and what is happening these weeks in the synodal assembly, the Archbishop of Abidjan highlighted the importance of mutual listening and the relationships experienced in the Paul VI Hall, “in an extraordinary atmosphere  of communion and sharing.” “We are aware that we are not materially changing the Church, but we are in a process that will lead to modifying the way of living the Church in the near future, he said,  noting  that the ability to listen –comes from mutual recognition, which “allows each person to have their place in the life of the ecclesial community.”

Cardinal-elect Tarcisio Isao Kikuchi

Building a common foundation in the path of synodality

Cardinal-elect Kikuchi also spoke about listening, focusing on the experience of the Church in Japan. “Between the two Synodal Sessions, in my country, we laid the foundations for true synodality,”  said the Archbishop of Tokyo.

The 15 dioceses held a national national meeting priests, laypeople, volunteers, and ministers involved in various activities, “during which our conversation in the Spirit, which we are also practicing here in the Vatican during these Synodal working days, was strengthened,” he said.

The shared goal, Cardinal-elect Kikuchi, who has been president of Caritas Internationalis since May 2023, concluded, is to “seek, find, and build a common foundation in the path of synodality.”

Cardinal-elect Jaime Spengler of Porto Alegre

Surprise at being elected Cardinal

Brazilian Archbishop Jaime Spengler spoke about his surprise at being elected cardinal, prompted by a question from his compatriot Christiane Murray.  “I was finishing reading a beautiful book by Carlo Maria Martini, titled Sequela Christi, when my phone started ringing and vibrating. I was receiving many congratulatory messages, but I didn’t know why. Then, many friends who wrote to me advised me to watch the Pope’s Angelus, because he was mentioning me, and that’s when I understood,” he said. “It was naturally a great joy, in the awareness that being a cardinal means serving the Pope and the Church. I am grateful to the Holy Father for the opportunity to collaborate at such a delicate moment in the history of the world, humanity, and the ecclesial community itself.”

The Governance of the Synod

The three cardinal-elects  then responded to questions from journalists. Asked about the governance style the Synod should adopt, Archbishop  Spengler pointed out the “complexity” of the question in a world affected by a “crisis of democracies,”  where, consequently, the “question of authority” becomes critical.

The Archbishop of Porto Alegre recalled the words of Pope Paul VI, who explained how human beings “listen more attentively to witnesses than to teachers, and if they listen to the teachers, it is because they are witnesses.” Therefore, he said, power does not derive from a “sociological factor” but from “ethical, moral, and religious” testimony.

This concept was echoed by Cardinal-elect Kikuchi, who emphasized the need to move away from a “pyramidal” style towards a “synodal” one. However, this must not result in decision-making based solely on “consensus.” “We must be sure we understand synodality in the same way,” explained the Archbishop of Tokyo. Even through “common discernment, there is still someone who must make the final decisions.”

The three cardinal-elects hailing from three very different part of the world, were asked to identify a distinctive trait of their communities. They all agreed on adhering to the synodal ideal of “exchange of gifts.”

Cardinal-elect Kikuchi noted that this “previously happened from West to East, from industrialized countries to developing ones,” but now there has been a change of  paradigm where the “peripheries” mentioned by Pope Francis have become an integral part of the centre which used to be the European continent.

Cardinal-elect Bessi Dogbo, for his part, emphasized the “spiritual” riches of African dioceses, where “faith is lived with joy.”  He  shared how, upon hearing of his election as Cardinal, his village community took to the streets and the local band played to celebrate. “Africa must share this simple joy of poor, humble people who are happy with small things,” the Ivoriqn Archbishop said-

Archbisop Spengler highlighted the contribution of “German, Italian, Polish, Ukrainian, and Japanese” migrants, among others, in the evangelization of Latin America. They were often “deceived,” “suffered,” but possessed “a very beautiful quality: determination.”

The hypothesis of specific rites for the Amazon

The Archbishop of Porto Alegre also answered to some questions about the Amazon and the possibility of creating a specific rite for indigenous communities where “months, even years pass without a Eucharistic celebration.” Within the Latin American Episcopal Council (CELAM), of which he  is president, groups are working on the possibility of such an integration. Alongside this hypothesis is the idea of an “inculturation” of the traditional Roman rite among local populations.

Cardinal-elect Spengler recalled the “dignity” of indigenous believers in carrying out traditional functions. “A value we sometimes no longer see in our own Masses, no matter how solemn they may be.”

There was also a question on climate change and the recent, significant damage caused by floods in Rio Grande do Sul, the worst natural disaster in its history. In 2024, fires in the South American country increased by 76%, marking the highest number in 14 years, with agribusiness under scrutiny.

According to  Archbishop  Spengler, among the various “relationships” analyzed by the Synod, great attention, must be given to the relationship with “our common home.” This consideration, he noted, goes beyond the mere threat to humanity’s survival, and takes an even more important dimension when considering the planet as  God’s creation

 The issue of priestly celibacy

Finally, the Brazilian Archbishop was asked about the “delicate” issue of priestly celibacy. Drawing on the experience of the “permanent diaconate,” the Cardinal-elect ,said that  “perhaps, in the future, these men could be ordained priests for a specific community.”

The way forward? “I don’t know, but we can approach it by keeping theological aspects in mind as well as the signs of the times,” he concluded.