Cardinal Hollerich on Synod: ‘Catholics will see a Church where they count’
Cardinal Jean-Claude Hollerich, general rapporteur of the Synod, speaks to Vatican News following the closing conference of the second session of the XVI Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod on synodality, and observes how the fruits of the Synod can impact and strengthen the daily lives of Catholics around the world. .
Deborah Castellano Lubov
“Everyday Catholics will over time see a Church where they count, where they are important, where their talents, their gifts, their life experience are important because they belong to the people of the baptized.”
Cardinal Jean-Claude Hollerich, rapporteur of the Synod, expressed this to the Vatican media on this last day of the Synod on synodality, before the closing Mass tomorrow morning, discussing the impact of this meeting.
The final document of the Assembly was approved and presented Saturday evening to the Press Office of the Holy See, and the Cardinal was interviewed after the conference.
Your Eminence, what novelty does this Synod offer?
The novelty is that the Synod is a process. The Synod began in 2021, and in fact the 2023 and 2024 Synods of Bishops were only the celebratory phase of this process. Now we give discernment to the Holy Father who must continue it, and the Holy Father has given it, in a certain sense of the whole Church, to the local communities. The process therefore continues even if this 16th General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops has ended.
What impact does the Synod have for normal Catholics in their daily lives?
They probably won’t see change immediately, because changes take time, and the Holy Spirit needs time because He must convert our hearts. This normally takes time because you put in resistance. But over time they will see a Church where they count, where they are important, where their talents, their gifts, their life experience are important because they belong to the people of the baptized. They belong to the holy people of God and, through their baptism and confirmation, they have received a mission. And we fulfill this mission together as a Church, a local community, a small community, a parish, a diocese and beyond.
Do you have anything else to add, Your Eminence?
For me, it was a joy and an honor to have been able to participate in this Synod, and I hope that everyone can have the positive experience that I had of the Synodality.
