Synod update

by Father David Renne
05/05/2025

In his 2025 Lenten message, Pope Francis reminded the faithful that we’ve received a “summons to synodality.” He wrote, “Journeying together means…walking side-by-side, without shoving or stepping on others, without envy or hypocrisy, without letting anyone be left behind or excluded.”

The Diocese of Erie joined the universal church in engaging in the synodal process. One parish where that process seemed to bear much fruit was Good Shepherd Parish, West Middlesex, where Father Glenn Whitman serves as pastor.

At their synodal sessions, Good Shepherd had more than 90 adult parishioners and 30 teenagers participate. Bob Devlin, one of the parish coordinators for the synodal process, was amazed by the engagement. Devlin said, “The reason for the good turnout was the insightful and enthusiastic messages from the pulpit.” Lisa Dach, another of the synod coordinators at Good Shepherd, reflected on a fellow parishioner who approached her following the synod sessions, saying, “I don’t recall ever sharing my thoughts like this with others without worrying about being seen, being heard or being validated.” This underscored the sentiment that participants felt the sessions offered space to listen and collaborate.

The synodal process continues to be successful at Good Shepherd Parish. Some of the increased parishioner engagement includes parishioners cooking and serving meals twice per week at the Prince of Peace Center in Farrell, praying morning prayer before Mass during Advent and Lent, recruiting and training more adults to facilitate children’s Liturgy of the Word on Sundays and welcoming 37 adults to a Lenten Scripture study. There has been a 23 percent increase in Mass attendance from last year’s October Count statistics.

Father Whitman added, “A curious by-product of our experience was that something as tame as Parish Pastoral Council elections – where generally three people ran for three vacant seats – saw 10 people entering the race for the same vacancies.”

The synodal process is about listening to one another and recognizing that the Holy Spirit doesn’t speak only through saints or ordained ministers. Father Whitman noted, “There was no secret about what happened in West Middlesex – all the tools were readied for us by the diocesan team. Our culture doesn’t seem to be geared to do what the Blessed Mother did in moments of import, which was to ponder.”

This jubilee year challenges us as pilgrims to accept the Holy Father’s challenge to walk “in the same direction, tending toward the same goal, attentive to one another in love and patience.”