Synodality and the Exercise of the Judicial Power in a Patriarchal/Major Archiepiscopal Church Sui Iuris

Abstract

Synodality in the Church implies walking together in the path of the Lord with a prompt heart to listen to the voice of the Holy Spirit revealed through the fellow brethren so as to fulfill the mission the Lord has entrusted to her. Though there have been minor aberrations, the Church of Christ, especially that of the East has been synodal in its functioning from the very beginning. This is all true in the administration of justice through tribunals, where issues and conflicts are to be resolved and rights are to be vindicated. Functioning synodally with the rightful autonomy they possess, the superior tribunal and ordinary tribunal of a patriarchal and major archiepiscopal Church stand out as epitomes of collegial ministry in the Church.