In response to the ongoing call for a more Synodal Church, parish priests are encouraged to actively engage in communal discernment to foster genuine communion among the faithful.
This was one of the central topics discussed during the National Meeting of Parish Priests for the Synod in Manila, Philippines, from July 29 to August 1.
Attended by around 250 clergymen from across the Philippines, this was a follow-up to the international meeting of parish priests in Italy held from April 29 to May 1.
The four-day gathering explored the deep connection between prayer and the mission to build more effective parish ministries.
In his talk, Pasig Bishop Mylo Hubert Vergara, Vice President of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP), explained how communal discernment helps priests to hear the Holy Spirit's voice speaking through other people.
“How many times have we heard the unexpected voices from our lay people whose words have been prophetic and jolted us to better serve others?” he pointed out.
The prelate also underlined how relational conversations can help maintain “Synodal dynamism” in parishes.
“‘Walking together’ in a true Synodal church indicates the reality of a ‘co-responsibility’ of laity and clergy, which means that pastors and lay people, without superiority of one over the other, carry together the life and mission of the Church,” he explained.
On the other hand, CBCP President and Kalookan Bishop Pablo Virgilio David said that the right discipline of communal discernment helps the clergy identify good spirits from the bad.
“You do not just suppose that it is the Holy Spirit speaking at all times, and the evil one is very clever… We need to learn how to distinguish the many voices that we hear,” he said.
Bishop David further said that conversations in the Spirit must allow parish priests to better guide the faithful in transforming God-given talents into charisms.
The National Meeting of Parish Priests for the Synod was organized by the CBCP and the Philippine Conference on New Evangelization (PCNE).
Among the key individuals present was French nun Sr. Nathalie Becauart, undersecretary for Synod on Synodality and the highest-ranking woman in the general secretariat of the Synod of Bishops.
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