The journey of the 16th Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops, which started last October, will reach its climax in Rome in October 2023. In each parish in Korea, efforts are being made in various ways to live the spirit of the synod with the themes of fellowship, participation, and mission. So begins the Eyes of the Believer column of the Catholic Times by a parish priest.
The handbook of the Synod of Bishops emphasizes listening and dialogue so that the People of God can have a voice within the local Church. The expressions 'listen attentively', 'give ear', and 'hear', which often traditionally appear in church documents have the same meaning.
According to the Hebrew meaning of the word 'truth' in the Bible, to 'hear', 'receive the word of God' means not just to listen carefully, but to open one's heart to the word of God. (cf. Acts 16:14) It also refers to the practice and obedience to God's Word (cf. Mt 7:24-26).
In the handbook, the word 'listening' in some form is used 141 times. 'Listen attentively' is used to emphasize the attitude of accepting each other’s opinions without prejudice and with mutual trust and an open mind and heart. 'Give ear' is used when it is necessary to pay attention not only to the words of God (the Holy Spirit), to the traditions of the Church, and to the signs of the times, but especially to the cries of the marginalized among the people of God. 'Hear' is used to emphasize not only the word of God (the Holy Spirit) but also the experience of various social classes, especially the open mind to the voices of the marginalized.
Shepherds are called to listen attentively to the parishioners entrusted to their care, and laypeople are called to express their views freely and frankly. The handbook also emphasizes that the synod process must go through the stages of listening, discerning, and participating. Pope Francis said that the main goal of the first process is listening to the word of God and hearing the cry of the people of God together with God until it is in accord with the will of God.
Man is a being who hears the word of God. Still, why do we emphasize listening in its many forms in the Bible as well as in church documents? This is because, in the past, humans did not listen to God, disliked hearing, and did not listen to God's appeal. As we can see from the biblical world, God often speaks through the voices of those whom we easily exclude, dismiss, or ignore.
So we must try to listen to the voices of those we consider unimportant and those who can change the way we think and give us new perspectives. The courage to speak out to others requires humility to listen. Even a good opinion is of no use if there is no one around to listen. Despite the barriers of age, gender, wealth, ability, and education that sometimes threaten to separate us, we must be willing to change our minds based on what we hear from others.
When the priest says Mass at dawn during winter he is very sensitive to the cold, so he puts on several different layers of clothing under his cassock. When he went into the sacristy to prepare to celebrate for an early morning Mass, as usual, two young altar boys were waiting for him. One of the altar boys told the priest he was cold.
When the priest asked: "Is it very cold?", they replied: "Yes, it's very cold." At a family meeting that week, they decided to buy cloaks for the altar boys. After the cloaks arrived, the reactions of the adults and the altar boys were quite different. "Father, what is the cloak?" However the altar boys: "Father, the cloaks are so warm. Thanks for listening to us."
