Rome and reality

The title of the Synod itself (The Third Extraordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops) perhaps sounds curious, while the issue at hand - Pastoral Challenges to the Family in the Context of Evangelization - suggests intrigue. Despite there being no plans to make any decisions at this month's meeting in Rome, the change in leadership at the Vatican and the increased willingness to look at the Catholic Church realistically and express honest opinions is focusing attention on the event.

The two-week meeting, which began in the Vatican on Sunday, recalls the Second Vatican Council (1962-65) - a reminder of the courage shown then to hold open discussions before that courage waned in the following decades.

The Synod of Bishops was established by Pope Paul VI in an apostolic letter, just a few months before the end of Council. It could well have been in recognition of the council's unusually open discussions, which ranged from formidable theological discourse and deep conflicts to controversy and manipulation.

Pope Paul VI wanted to use the new Synod of Bishops to improve the relationship between the pontiff and bishops around the world and to create a common forum to discuss pressing issues. Since 1967, 13 so-called "ordinary" and two "extraordinary" Synods of Bishops have gathered together in the Vatican.

"Spontaneous and controversial discussions"

Albert Franz remembers the early years well. From 1967, the 67-year-old studied philosophy and theology at the Pontifical Gregorian University for five years - in which time three Synods took place. "It was a time linked with a lot of high hopes," the theologian told Deutsche Welle, adding that the principle behind the Synod was soon overcome by hierarchical thinking.

And today? "There was a time when expectations were very high. I still hold these expectations," said Franz, who is now the president of Germany's Catholic academic exchange service known as KAAD. "I refuse to discard them as a mere piece of history."

Although no decisions are expected by the end of the Extraordinary Synod, hopes for a new approach to the discussions are re-emerging. The chairmen of all bishop associations, of which there are currently 14, will come to Rome from across the world. Pope Francis has also invited the heads of Eastern Catholic Churches and the bosses of 25 Vatican authorities. Also attending will be experts, observers and prominent laypeople - some 250 participants in total.

Unlike many previous Synods where only pre-submitted written statement were read out and heard, the current Synod will hold spontaneous and controversial discussions. The pope, says General Secretary of the Synod Cardinal Lorenzo Baldisseri, is hoping for a revitalization in the Synod's way of thinking.

'Solutions need to be found'

The congregation of chairmen of the bishops' associations is somewhat unusual. They would never usually meet each other on such a large scale. One of the most controversial issues over the past few years, says German Cardinal Reinhard Marx, has been the "full participation" of Catholics in the life of the Church among those who have remarried after a divorce. In Germany, he says, it's clear that solutions are needed when it comes to the issue of whether such individuals can be welcomed back.

It's quite likely that bishops from other European countries are of the same opinion. 80 percent of participants in this Synod come from outside Europe, making them a little more unpredictable. Perhaps from the United States, the subject of homosexuals in the Catholic Church will be more pressing. For Africa, the fact that a significant number of male Catholics have more than one wife at given times will be the most important issue.

Pope Francis himself has expressed concern that the current expectations are incommensurate with what the Synod will actually have done by its conclusion on October 19. In late autumn 2013, he asked bishops from around the world for reports on the acceptance of traditional Church teachings regarding marriage and family. What was completely unusual was that the Church's laity, who generally have more experience in this subject than priests, were also asked for their opinion.

The results in Germany could hardly have been clearer. The Catholic population strayed far from the Church's strict sexual morality, which exclusively binds sex with marriage.

Cardinal Kasper: 'More mercy'

At the pope's invitation in February, 81-year-old German Curial Cardinal Walter Kasper gave a lecture on the topic of family in front of a consistory of Cardinals who had gathered in Rome. Kasper, who on many occasions has received public praise from Pope Francis for his theological approach advocating greater mercy, remained true to his plea to reconsider the current severity of the Church.

Since then, two sides have become clear. Various conservative bishops and cardinals have turned against Kasper in recent weeks and have warned against any change in policy. Several longstanding observers said, "They are referencing Kasper, but they mean the pope."

Evidence of controversy, the formation of two sides and open dialogue may well bemuse some spectators. For decades, honest debates and the tolerance of opposition in the Catholic Church were taboos of sorts. The most recent Extraordinary Synod of Bishops in 1985 under Pope John Paul II, which many experts considered the most important of the 15 Synods, put the catechism of the worldwide Catholic Church on its way. It represented a great deal of theological teaching, but an achievement of global uniformity.

Regional solutions?

Now, many await a signal showing Rome's deliberate efforts to take stock of various developments - or even enhance the individual responsibility of national bishop associations and major church regions. For example, in Eastern Catholic Churches, which are in communion with the pope, have long had married priests. In the time since the Council, there have also been married male deacons in several countries, though rarely in Latin America.

The present discussions will certainly show the direction that Rome will be taking to a second, but "ordinary" Synod on the same set of topics in the fall of 2015 - such as whether different paths are possible in different regions and how the laity should be involved in future discussions. "I hope that the principle of the Synod really does come back into play," said the theologian Albert Franz.

The long-serving 73-year-old Munich theologian Peter Neuner, who examined the concept of the Synod of Bishops in 1971, made particular reference to the term "communio" or "fellowship." For Neuner, the status of the Synod of Bishops remains, for now, the main problem. "The Council Fathers thought earlier that it would be a continuation of the Council's actions," Neuner told Deutsche Welle, adding that the Roman organization was soon set exclusively on deliberations at the service of the pope.

The organization today, however, remains largely the same, though no pope since the council has had such a distinctive and open theological style as that of Pope Francis.

The Third Extraordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops takes place in the Vatican between October 5 and 19, 2014. It is based on the theme" Pastoral Challenges to the Family in the Context of Evangelization." 253 participants are expected to attend the meeting in Rome.