Twenty Sixth Sunday of Ordinary Time (Philippians 2:1-11) “Walking Together”

Twenty Sixth Sunday of Ordinary Time (Philippians 2:1-11) “Walking Together”

        A few years ago, a bishop was appointed to a midwestern diocese.  A news conference was held.  One of the reporters asked, “What are your plans for the diocese bishop?”  The bishop surprisingly said, “I have no plans.  I can have all the plans I want but if I charge off in a certain direction, I might look back to find that no one is following.  The faithful of this diocese will make plans together.” The question of the reporter reflects the perception many outside the church may have.  The answer reflects the way the church must operate.

        You will notice at the end of Mass today that we will be using a solemn blessing that has been approved by the National Council of Catholic Bishops.  The blessing is really a prayer for the synod that will be taking place in Rome in October.  Church leaders will gather from throughout the world.  The synod has an interesting topic which is how synods should function in the life of the church.

        Most of us probably haven’t paid much attention to the news that there will be a synod.  The word is just some more church jargon.  People who work for the church are keenly aware of what is going on.  Other Catholics who are less involved probably don’t.  Synods are gatherings of Christians that have been around since the first century.  The first synod was the Council of Jerusalem which dealt with whether Gentile Christians had to follow Jewish religious practice.  Synods have continued for centuries.  Some were labeled ecumenical councils.  Others weren’t.

        The definition of the word synod tells us what they are about.  Synod comes from the Greek word, “together.”  The two root words are syn which means to see.  The other word is hodos which means road.  The word means to walk along a path that a group discerns together.  The hope is that there will be a common vision which has always been a challenge in church life.  Synods, including the ones held the last 50 years, have sought to listen to God’s people and to plot a course about aspects of church life.       

        We read a section of the Letter of Paul to the Philippians today.  Paul, as usual, is addressing pastoral concerns in the church.  He wants unity in the church, but there isn’t much.  What causes the disunity.  Paul says the disunity is caused by those who put their personal prestige above the good of the church.  If someone has power in an organization, it is hard for that person to give up that power.  In the Philippian church in the 1st century, there were all kinds of political maneuvers taking place.  The concept of the common good had been forgotten.

        The second cause of disunity at Phillipi was that there was a concentration on self.  The primary concern of many in the Philippine community was, what is in it for me.  We can catch ourselves falling into that trap.  If change happens, we can only ask the question, am I better off, rather than the question, are we all better off?

        We see another cause of disunity in story of the Gospel of Matthew which is close mindedness.  The religious leaders that Jesus debated with couldn’t see how sinners could become holy people.  The leaders couldn’t allow for conversion.  Nothing would change their ideas. 

It is like the story told about a biology teacher who was asked by a student if fish could think.  The teacher responded with the fact that he had a fishpond in his back yard.  He always fed the fish on the right side of the pond.  One day he decided to feed the fish on the left side of the pond.  When he threw the fish food on the left side of the pond the fish ignored it.  When the fish heard the food hit the water they swam to the right side of the pond.  The teacher kept throwing the food in on the left side for two weeks.  The fish couldn’t find the food.  One day a fish swam over when the food was being thrown in.  He went back to get the other fish, but they were so weak that they couldn’t swim over to where the food was.  Because of this they died.

Much will be written about the synod in the coming days.  We need to be careful with what we read in the media.  We could ask, do professional church people have their minds already made up about how the church operates in the world?   Is this a chance to listen to the Holy Spirit regarding the life of the church? We will be reminded by this process that we are a worldwide church.  People will have different experiences of church life.  We can bet the synod will be messy, maybe controversial, but the most influential synods have been.  The messiness is something we avoid at our own peril.  So that is why we pray for the clergy and laity who will be gathered in Rome this month.  May the humility of Christ who emptied himself for the world be the virtue that is practiced most often at the synod on synodality.

 Reflection Questions:

Have I heard about the synod in Rome?  What have I heard?

Has church life for me always been placid? Do I enjoy hearing others’ opinions about the church?

 Dear Parishioners,

         During the last year and half, we have heard a lot about the Growing Disciples process.  This is a strategic planning process for the Diocese of Peoria.  Bishop Lou has listened to the faithful who have encouraged him to do long range planning.

        The number of priests and religious is declining.  The number of parishes does not change as fast.  Populations in the diocese are shifting.  The question is how we serve more diverse populations with less ministerial personnel.  We can wait for things to unfold, or we can try to plan.

        The bishop wants the input of the faithful.  There will be an open meeting on Wednesday, October 18th, at 7 p.m. in the Gathering Center where we will share the model proposed for making the best use of resources in the Rock Island Vicariate.  The six leaders who have been providing input from our parish will be leading a discussion about the plan for our area.

        There will be videos that include a message from Bishop Lou.  There will also be handouts and a question-and-answer session.  We will ask for your reactions.  The program is slated to last an hour, but parish leaders will answer questions as long as necessary.  Come and see how this plan will affect our parish community and the diocese.

        May Our Lady pray for the future of our local church.

        Fr. Mark