Courtney McGrailUS cardinal warns against ‘older brother syndrome’
Those who live the faith assiduously must resist temptations to feel neglected or upset by the Synod of Bishops’ emphasis on those who struggle more, according to Washington, DC’s Cardinal Donald Wuerl.
Recalling the parable of the Workers in the Vineyard, the cardinal said, “Yes, there could be a temptation to say, ‘Look, I've struggled in the heat of the sun all day and what reward do I get? Heaven. And this person comes along at the end of the day and what reward does he or she get? Heaven.’ What we need to say is, ‘Isn't it a blessing that Jesus died on the cross so that all of us could have Heaven?’”
Open-handed synod could help renew families – Cardinal
A “more open-handed” approach to the Synod of Bishops is helping to alleviate suspicions that the Synod is being manipulated, according to South Africa’s Cardinal Wilfrid Napier.
The cardinal, who last year criticised the publication of a midterm report which, he indicated, did not accurately reflect the views of the gathered bishops decisions and the decision not to release summaries of participants’ speeches, has praised this year’s greater emphasis on small-group discussions.
Input from the groups’ “free and open exchanges” were likely to bear fruit, he hoped, in “a document that we can put into people's hands” that would “make families really know where they fit in the church, how the church depends on them and in that way to really get themselves rejuvenated and renewed so they take on this role of evangelisation”.
Church unity crucial – WMF host
“Imprecise language leads to confused thinking”, the archbishop whose diocese hosted the recent World Meeting of Families has warned the Synod of Bishops.
Citing as examples the terms “inclusive” and “unity in diversity”, Philadelphia’s Archbishop Charles Chaput warned against devolving important disciplinary and doctrinal issues to national and regional episcopal conferences.
In a time of intense global change, confusion and unrest, Dr Chaput said, “our most urgent need is unity, and our greatest danger is fragmentation”.
Citing how 500 years ago Erasmus has written about the importance of Church unity, he said the consequences of how that need was ignored were indisputable. “In the coming days of our synod, we might fruitfully remember the importance of our unity, what that unity requires, and what disunity on matters of substance implies,” he said.
