THE 2014 SYNOD ON THE FAMILY

Abstract

Pessimists among Catholic liberals say the Synod will not come up with anything more than a repetition of the 1980 Synod’s outcome. Optimists remind us that we now have a different kind of pope — who will announce in early September a new set of his own appointees as members and auditors of the Synod. They could make a difference, linking perhaps to the 27 German bishops who would like to see the Church put its blessing on certain second marriages where the couples in question have arrived at a so called “conscience decision” to try marriage again. Some U.S. bishops might find themselves riding the same bandwagon, concerned over the fact that there are more than ten million American Catholics now settled down in their second marriages, many of them grown up enough to think they can still be good Catholics and go to weekly Communion without explicit permission from their bishop. Given the Vatican’s culture of secrecy, we can only wait and see.