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Some canonists contend that now that laypeople are able to vote, it’s technically not.
VATICAN CITY — As the current phase of the Synod on Synodality draws to a close, some of the assembly participants have questioned whether it is a Synod of Bishops given that, for the first time, lay members will have a vote and make up nearly one-fifth of the ballot.
Since April when Pope Francis made such a groundbreaking change, 70 laypeople now have a vote out of 364 voting participants, and so the assembly is no longer strictly speaking a Synod of Bishops, some observers contend.
Announced on April 26, the addition of laity was aimed at “restoring” the “constitutive relationship between the common priesthood [of the People of God] and the ministerial priesthood,” and “giving visibility to the circular relationship between the prophetic function of the People of God and the discernment of the Pastors.”
The change is significant as, in previous synods, only bishops and some clerical heads of male religious institutes had a vote and a two-thirds majority was required for propositions or other motions to pass.
Continued below.
www.ncregister.com
VATICAN CITY — As the current phase of the Synod on Synodality draws to a close, some of the assembly participants have questioned whether it is a Synod of Bishops given that, for the first time, lay members will have a vote and make up nearly one-fifth of the ballot.
Since April when Pope Francis made such a groundbreaking change, 70 laypeople now have a vote out of 364 voting participants, and so the assembly is no longer strictly speaking a Synod of Bishops, some observers contend.
Announced on April 26, the addition of laity was aimed at “restoring” the “constitutive relationship between the common priesthood [of the People of God] and the ministerial priesthood,” and “giving visibility to the circular relationship between the prophetic function of the People of God and the discernment of the Pastors.”
The change is significant as, in previous synods, only bishops and some clerical heads of male religious institutes had a vote and a two-thirds majority was required for propositions or other motions to pass.
Continued below.
Is It a Canonical Synod of Bishops or Not? Some Observers Express Their Doubts
Some canonists contend that now that laypeople are able to vote, it’s technically not.
