On the Synod...A woman’s view
Eberl, one of the few women personally invited by the Pope to take part in the Synod, was responsible for collecting the replies to the Vatican questionnaire in the Berlin archdiocese.
Oct 30, 2014

By Christa Pongratz- Lippitt
Eberl, one of the few women personally invited by the Pope to take part in the Synod, was responsible for collecting the replies to the Vatican questionnaire in the Berlin archdiocese.
Asked after the first week of the Synod by the German daily Der Tagesspiegel what she had told the bishops, Eberl replied, “I said, Let’s take a look at people’s living rooms first before we look into their bedrooms. We’ll witness their fears, joys and sorrows in the living room — and that’s what counts if we, as a Church, want to be near them. Life concepts have become more fragile. If one goes there wagging one’s finger, one won’t be taken seriously.”
What were the chances that divorced and remarried Catholics might be able to receive the sacraments? she was asked.
“One can feel that something is developing,” she said. “On this issue, it won’t be possible to turn the clock back, as marriages are not breaking down only in Europe. In Latin America, entire extended families are falling apart. That came out quite clearly in the first week. The subject was hotly debated. Some experienced participants of Episcopal synods even said they’d never known quite such heated discussions.” She said she was very pleased with the interim report, which was in a new tone and reflected a change of perspective, both of which she said she had wished for. When she was asked a week later by the German online portal katholisch.de whether she was disappointed by the final report, Eberl replied, “I was surprised that the interim report had been changed to quite such an extent by the many interventions. In the first week, bishops from all over the world described family life very realistically, but in the second week, I had the impression that family life as it really is had been pushed into the background in favour of the question: ‘What does the Church say?’ Insofar, yes, I am a little disappointed.”
However, she said she was very impressed by the Pope’s final words.
“He encouraged us to have controversial debates. In short, his message was: ‘Of course you can quarrel. That won’t make the Church fall apart. I’ll see to that.’ I find that most encouraging for the coming year in which the bishops’ conferences and the dioceses are to continue working on the Synod results.”
Source: The Tablet
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