While in Rome a group of experts prepares the Instrumentum Laboris of the Synod from the continental syntheses, in India the parish of Uttan celebrated the meeting of its network of communities, an experience that has been taking place since the 1980s in the Archdiocese of Bombay. Father Godfrey Malu: “Our style is to listen to everyone”.
Mumbai () – In these days a group of experts from the five continents, who have participated in various capacities in the synodal process, will meet in the Vatican to begin the work of discerning the documents with the synthesis of the continental phase to write the Instrumentum Laboris which will guide the work of the Synodal Assembly scheduled for Rome in October. One of the features that is emerging with more force in the reflection is the idea that the Synod is not only a great ecclesial event promoted by Pope Francis, but a style of relations that all the Catholic communities of the world, even the most Little ones, they are called to live.
Certainly, the idea is not new: walking together, making everyone a protagonist, has always been a commitment for the Church in all latitudes. However, there are realities that have chosen to embody this style in a particular way. This is the case, for example, of the Small Christian Communities network in India, small communities of families who live their faith together in a small portion of territory, thus animating the life of the entire parish. In the Archdiocese of Bombay, they are the result of the local Synod that has been held since the early eighties, and since 1984 they have been actively promoted with a system that – taking the model of the Base Communities – aims to help live charity, the mission and community discernment from below. And precisely on April 11, in the atmosphere of Easter, the Small Christian Communities of the parish of Our Lady of the Sea in Uttan -a town north of Bombay- lived their meeting with the Auxiliary Bishop Mons. Barthol Barretto, responsible for this path at the diocesan level.
Around 1,600 parishioners gathered that day: each zone, with its own community, entered the compound with a banner with a motto. What made this meeting beautiful was not only the presence of so many people along with priests, nuns, and religious, but also the active participation of each community that staged performances, dances, talks, and songs to carry their message. For his part, Bishop Barretto, addressing those present, underlined the missionary purpose of Small Christian Communities: just as the first apostles reached many people by spreading the good news of our Lord, in the same way each of us is called to serve with the same zeal and enthusiasm to spread the word of God and reach as many people as possible.
In an interview with Father Godfrey Malu, from Uttan Parish, commented on this experience: “Synodality is the very spirit of our Small Christian Communities. For the listening phase of the Synod, they reached out to everyone making sure everyone had a voice in the process. From January to March 2023, we each expanded their tent space, making sure all of our 18,000 parishioners were included along the way.”
The April 11 meeting of each area was also the occasion to present the report on the activities carried out in the first three months of the year. Putting them together makes clear the specific contribution of each other’s stories and talents and the common path. In some areas, for example, a sports day was held followed by an awards ceremony. Another area dealt with visits to bereaved families, reducing wedding expenses and allocating the amount to good causes. Another area helped coordinate and organize a nun’s golden jubilee. Another zone dealt with the problem of music bands disturbing others late at night and tried to find a way to solve the problems.
Finally, all the zones met to choose apostles for the celebration of the washing of the feet on Holy Thursday and to discuss the selection and election of the new members of the parish pastoral council.
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