The church is on a journey and that journey is to proclaim God’s love and to proclaim Christ to a world in 2024, Vicar General, the Very Rev Fr Vincent Glynn has said.
More than 100 delegates from parishes, agencies and offices across the Archdiocese gathered for the occasion, Saturday 13 July, including nominated clergy, religious, and lay delegates.
The 2024 Assembly, operating within the framework provided by Canon Law, focussed on investigating, considering, and formulating practical strategies for pastoral works and initiatives with the diocese – namely on establishing a Diocesan Pastoral Council that reflects the way of synodality as emphasised by Pope Francis.
A Diocesan Pastoral Council, as outlined in Canon Law, is a consultative body offering support and advice to the Bishop. For Perth the aim is to create a council that embodies “synodality,” a collaborative approach encouraging participation from clergy, religious figures, and lay Catholics.
A key leader of the development and workings of the Assembly, Fr Vincent spoke about the task of listening and discernment in the light of Lumen Gentium.
“It’s a new period in the life of the church and once again, we are trying to be faithful to the mission that comes from the Second Vatican Council, but also particularly to what Pope Francis is calling us to be – a synodal missionary church,” Fr Vincent began.
Published by Pope Paul IV on 21 November 1964, Lumen Gentium is one of the principal documents of the Second Vatican Council.
Fr Vincent explained Lumen Gentium begins by saying, “‘In Baptism,’ we’ve all received the Holy Spirit.’”
“ ‘The Holy Spirit gives believers,’ – so gives to you and I, Fr Vincent noted,, ‘and therefore the whole church, a special gift’.
“So through our baptism, the Holy Spirit gives to you and I, all of us here, and the whole church, a special gift – ‘so that together’ – which is you and I, and the Church – ‘we can faithfully interpret and live the Christian gospel in the diverse circumstances of history and culture, the Sensus Fidei.’”
The eight chapters include teaching about the nature of the church and its historical existence, the different roles in the church, holiness and religious life, and finally the saints and Mary.
“Looking around the room here,” Fr Vincent expressed, “there is a diverse number of cultures. But it says in this document, and this phrase, that together, this special gift of the Holy Spirit, given to each of us, allows us as a group, in the church, in communion with each other, in communion with the gospel, and the tradition of the church, to faithfully interpret and to live the Christian Gospel today, in 2024,”
“It calls this the Sensus Fidei in that we, through our prayer, our reflection on the scriptures, through our understanding of the tradition of the church, that this gift of the Spirit works through each of us and through the church, so that we can faithfully live and express the Christian Gospel to the world today.
Continuing his speech by discussing the meaning of discernment and the work of the Holy Spirit, Fr Vincent, referring to Gaudium et Spes, one of the four pastoral constitutions of the Second Vatican Council, asked ‘What are the signs of the times?’
“Lumen Gentium says that you and I and the church, we must be aware of and understand the aspirations, the yearnings and the dramatic features of the world in which we live.
“And so, we come here today, in 2024, with our own history, our own lives, our own faith, our own cultural background. We come from families, we come from communities. And I’m sure if we would go around to ask those of you who are parents, you’d be very familiar with your own yearnings, your own aspirations, but particularly also those of your children, or the young people that you may encounter.
“So it says in Lumen Gentium, that the People of God – you and I – we believe that, if we’re led by the Spirit of God, who fills the whole world, and if we’re moved by faith, we’ve tried to discern in the events, the needs and the longings, which it shares with all humanity of our time, what may be genuine signs of the presence or the purpose of God.
“So today, as we gather, we will be discerning through our prayer, through our experience, through our listening, some of the signs of the times that we live in today, that we might need to bring to our discernment about what a Diocesan Pastoral Council might look like. But particularly how it might be synodal, as Pope Francis keeps reminding us,” Fr Vincent said.