The current Synod for the Catholic Church, opened in October 2021, reflects both on where we are now, but more so which direction are we headed. Dioceses, parishes, and Catholic-affiliated institutions are all participating in this conversation to present feedback on how to continue this journey of mission, communion, and increased participation. The larger Bay Area Catholic community has held multiple opportunities for community discernment based on interests, identities, and affinity groups. The University of San Francisco held two synod conversations—-one for staff and faculty and the other for interested students during the Spring 2022 semester. Thanks to my duality as both a staff member in the Lane Center and a graduate student in the School of Education, I was lucky enough to attend both.
This ongoing synod conversation allows the church to come together in community in a different way—-even if we are holding these conversations on Zoom. The staff and faculty conversation had a great mix of ideas addressing how some came into the Catholic faith, the progressive nature of the Jesuit faith, and modernized pandemic practices. The biggest concern for this group was the misunderstanding of how their now adult children had no interest in continuing their Catholic rooted upbringing. Many were concerned about what this meant for future generations yet to come and the longevity of the Catholic Church. The ultimate question from this group: How do we get young people interested in the Catholic faith?
As someone who was raised in a Catholic home, with awards from the Archdiocese on the wall, this question struck me. I, too, had a Catholic upbringing, but do not find myself using the term “Catholic” when listing off my identities. I find myself longing for that spiritual connection, but am apprehensive due to the hierarchical structure of the Church and the lack of representation within its leadership. Sure, the Bay Area offers a diverse perspective on a multitude of perspectives, but when it comes to fighting for causes I care about like racial equality, the overall Church has been silent.
What our collective 2022 version of Catholicism looks like, is different from what our grandparents practiced. To sustain the Catholic Church, It simply needs to look different than what we are used to. We need to call out its history and become an inclusive practice to those who are called to Catholicism. How we practice our faith and connect the Gospel to the world around us, discerns alternatively to how our parents were brought up in the church. Our generation is one that has been of trial and tribulation—growing up through the attacks of 9/11, the 2008 financial crash, climate crises, presidential election scandals, and the ongoing global pandemic. With how much pain and pressure we have on ourselves as a generation, how do we know the Church is going to stand up for us in our time of need? The answer is we don’t.
Listening to some of my peers in a conversation on this topic hosted by the Lane Center and University Ministry, their shared conclusions here were not concerned with how the Church was listening in this process, but rather, who they were listening to. The Church is not asking us: what we would want our experience to be; how we can shape Catholicism to meet the needs of young people; where we can be more intentional about creating a positive Catholic community and who we would like to see included in our churches.
This journey is a collaborative one, so I interviewed some of my peers of Catholic faith as to their perspectives on the synodal process. Please note they have chosen to remain identified, but the opinions expressed in this piece are their own and do not necessarily reflect the views of the organizations they are associated or affiliated with.
Ana Karen Barragan is an international, doctoral student. Jesús de la Torre is an international, masters student. Caitlyn Rei is a masters student from California. All are currently attending the University of San Francisco.
Stephanie Felton: What voices would you centralize in the Church during this synodal listening period?
Ana Karen Barragan: The question I would ask to the Church is who will be the people that Jesus would [have gone] to talk to? For me, that would be the best way to understand who we should talk to in the synod. Examples [include] the migrants, parents of missing people in Latin America, [and] prison inmates…to better understand how it is that they [all] came to this point. Farm Workers. Indiegeous peoples. We need to center the voices of women, [who] bring another understanding of the world, a more integrated, more complex [ideology] with different sensibilities and [LGBTQIA+] people. I have seen many of my friends who are truly hurt by their own church and they believe in Jesus, the teachings of Jesus and the Gospel. [The Church] accepted you during your [formative] years, but is now rejecting you because you love who you want to love.
Jesús de la Torre: Everyone should be heard, and have a voice. We have to be mindful of those who have a voice but who are not usually heard. It is not a matter of giving voice to the voiceless, [but rather] paying more attention to those who are in the margins of our imagination and hearts when it comes to a process like a synod. Among [the groups to be centralized] are women, young people, migrants, refugees, and asylum-seeking communities, Indigenous communities, and LGTBQ+ Catholics, whose faith is exemplary but who cannot find a home in the Church. We are hurting a lot of people who want to be a part of this community.
Caitlyn Rei: Those of the LGBTQ+ community, and those who do not fit into the traditional male/female [binary] gender norms. Their experiences in the Church in recent history has been one of exclusion and un-acceptance of themselves –– neither of which are tenants that embody Jesus’ teachings. Also, those who have been harmed by the Catholic Church in the past.
SF: Why is there a disconnect between youth and the Catholic Church? How can the Church attract more young people to participate?
AKB: I am a millennial. I have been talking to younger students here. They were telling me that “we are hopeless, we are tired.” When I think about this, social media has opened an amazing space where we can see amazing truths and moments [all] around the world. [Social media] has also put us in a very difficult place. [We see] people being hurt every single day. All of the [information] we as young people are receiving is very, very painful. Adults are not making enough effort to come talk to us and are afraid we are breaking the patterns they grew up with. [Adults] say [to youth] that we “cannot handle this or that” because we are not willing to put up with it anymore in our lives. [The Church] needs not to be scared or afraid of new ideas or a new understanding of the world.
JDLT: We are in a transition phase. Catholicism has stopped being a social phenomenon in many societies and is no longer socially transmitted in many families. Those approaching Jesus through the Catholic Church do it moved by a personal and spiritual thirst. Many young folks tell me that they have had really bad experiences with Church members; they don’t see examples of lived faith; and they understand that the Church constitutes a break for the cause of many people rather than a fostering force. A person can be moved to Jesus, but still relinquish from the Church for all these reasons. The question [should be] how the Church can follow Jesus more deeply. We need first to live Jesus’ love, learn in prayer, and walk alongside those who are left at the margins.
CR: The Church is exclusionary. The one place I’ve found an incredible Catholic Community was at my undergraduate institution –– Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles, California. Whoever you are, whatever faith or spirituality you were called to, you could find a place in that church [on campus]. The words “All are welcome” weren’t just words. God isn’t cool, and faith isn’t easy. Loving our neighbor and seeing Jesus in the face of our enemies and the impoverished isn’t easy. The Catholic faith –– not necessarily the Church, but the real teachings of Jesus in the Bible –– ask us to do hard things. And that drives people away. To get more youth to participate, a lot of it has to do with marketing, and repairing respect between those in power in the Church and those who have felt hurt by the Church. But also lifting the veil on what it means to be part of the Church. Encouraging transparency rather than secrecy from all levels of the Church.
SF: What keeps you motivated as a person of (Catholic) faith?
AKB: My Ignatian spirituality and prayer, which has given me the tools of knowledge to understand myself in this world of faith; the Ignatian tradition grounded in social justice and how I connect this to the Gospel; and the community that I have found in the Jesuit Universities.
JDLT: Faith is an integral part of me. I couldn’t understand myself without that openness to transcendence. Many young people are open to that transcendence and believe in different things. Being Catholic for me means following Jesus, having a personal friendship with someone I cannot see but who is always there. [Faith] is not having a place to go when everything seems to fall apart. It is about what María (Mary) did, [and] growing in His love with others, in community. This understanding of faith informs my action in many fields of my life, including professional[ly]. Faith is a source of joy, confidence, and an engine for social justice.
CR: I lived my life without [faith] for two years, and felt lost. Faith is a part of me that I can’t turn off, and nor would I want to at this point. When I came back to the Church, it felt like getting a warm hug from someone I’ve been missing so, so much. And it was like she was saying, “You can have this hug whenever you want. You don’t need to do anything or change. You are loved.”
SF: What next steps do you hope comes out of the synodal process? Do you believe the Church will reach its potential?
AKB: It is a very difficult question because I try not to put all of my hope in this, [and] not be disappointed. I do believe that if we have Pope Francis for more years, he will continue this [effort], but it will not be a sudden change. It is not a linear process and it is beyond the Pope. My worry is that we are all divided in our society and these tensions will continue to hold us back because people are not willing to give up their power or security. I want to have hope, but also recognize that it will move in small steps. We need to be a more welcoming Church [both institutional and communal] that harvests love, flips the table of oppression, and brings us together. Jesus on the cross reminds us of the past not the future.
JDLT: Processes take a long time, engage millions of people, and conclusions are not as ambitious as the people expressed. The challenge of offering guidance for the universal Church, advancing in a direction that makes a change, and makes sense with the Church Tradition. It is not an easy task. There are issues where the Church needs a revolution based on the Gospel. The synods do not fully reach their potential because changes need to be made progressively, and their outcomes are not desired. Gathering millions of Catholics worldwide to discuss the issues that affect them and would like to change [is not an easy task]. The Church needs to [remember it is for the People, and] walk together in our different vocations and ministries.
CR: I hope the next steps are towards inclusion rather than exclusion, but since much of the progress was made in Vatican II and it’s been 60 years since then, it seems like change in the Church of Man takes a long time. I hope that the arc of the world bends towards justice, but at this point, I don’t know that I’m optimistic that the Church can reach its potential of inclusivity and acceptance.
Stephanie Felton was the program assistant for the Joan and Ralph Lane Center for Catholic Social Thought and the Ignatian Tradition at the University of San Francisco. She earned her B.A. in Religious Studies at Allegheny College in 2020 and is pursuing her M.A. in Higher Education and Student Affairs at the University of San Francisco. Prior to joining the Lane Center, Stephanie worked in the nonprofit sector for 5 years, including the Interfaith Sustainable Food Collaborative and the Order of Malta Clinic of Northern California.
