ECCLESIAL SYNODALITY IN CONTINUITY WITH THE THEOLOGY OF VATICAN II

Abstract

Pope Francis envisions a missionary Church that is not simply for the People, but of the People, in continuity with the theology of the Second Vatican Council and the teachings of his predecessors. He emphasizes that the mystery of the Church is best understood by ordinary people, who experience it not through rational explanations but through their hearts. Drawing on Vatican II’s ecclesiological vision, Pope Francis underscores the Church as a mystery, the People of God, and a communion-mission, where every baptized member has a vocation in the foundation of the Church. The Church is always in a process of becoming, on a redemptive journey with both salvific and pilgrim dimensions. Synodality, for Pope Francis, is central to the Church’s nature and mission, moving beyond a feature of its life to the very way the Church exists. The practice of ecclesial Synodality, he believes, is key to fulfilling the Church’s missionary goals: reaching everyone and forming a fraternal, missionary community that serves the common good, as articulated in Evangelii Gaudium, Laudato Si', and Fratelli Tutti.