He read a post on Facebook by a Bishop a while ago. He said that synodalitas (walking together) resembles the word "accompaniment". He meant that the Church's history is in this accompaniment. In the Old Testament, God accompanied the Israelites liberated from Egypt. In the New Testament, Jesus promised to accompany his disciples when he ascended to heaven, saying, "I am with you always, to the end of the age" (Matthew 28:20). Another biblical basis for talking about synodalitas is often the story of the two disciples on their way to Emmaus (Luke 24:13-32).
No one should take the lead or be the main character in the accompanying Church. In other words, to walk the path together, we must carefully observe our neighbors who are walking together. To observe well means to wipe their sweat, rest with them, and adjust our steps to theirs. These things may seem easy, but they are difficult. This is because we are not accustomed to living a life accompanying others. Observing our neighbors is possible when humble. Humility is the essential condition for the Church that walks together. We must be humble to understand our neighbors' situations and accompany them accordingly.
There lived a very humble king in India. He often bowed his head to those inferior to him, even though he was a king. One day, a subject saw this and earnestly petitioned the king, saying, "Your Majesty, you are the supreme ruler of this country. The head is the most precious part of the body, and you are the king and the head of our society. You should not bow your head to others so carelessly." Then the king gave the subject a 'cat skull,' a 'horse skull,' and a 'human skull' and told him to sell them at the market.
The subject did not know what was happening but went to the market as instructed and began selling them. People bought cat skulls because they thought that if they hung them in their homes, rats would disappear, and purchased horse skulls because they thought they would protect them from diseases. However, no one bought human skulls, so the subject took them and returned to the king's palace. After hearing the story, the king said to the subject, "A person's head is precious when it contains goodness and righteousness, but if it is an empty skull, it is worse than a cat or a horse's skull," he said, teaching his subject the wisdom of humility.
The priest remembered an Indian with whom he worked who said that the remnants of caste culture still exist in Indian society and in the Church. The development of the Indian Church depends on eradicating the hierarchical norms of caste culture.
He told the priest a story from Indian mythology. In the beginning, when God created humans, the highest class came from God's head, and the lowest class, Harijan, came from God's feet. In any case, the important thing is that all people are noble members of God."
All of you who have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, neither enslaved person nor free, neither male nor female. You are all one in Christ Jesus. And if you belong to Christ, you are Abraham's descendants, heirs according to the promise." (Gal 3:27-28)
We must walk together because we are all precious members of God. Only when we can walk together with humility can the holy image of God be revealed to this world.
When St. Augustine asked his disciples, "What is the most important virtue of a Christian?" he answered, "Humility". Many people blindly run toward the highest places to be exalted. Even on the path of the Church that walks with Jesus and his brothers and sisters, people try to run as in a race.
A race is one in which one must run ahead of others with all one's might. We cannot walk together by running. Even Christians are anxious because they cannot attain a high position worthy of their name and a place that shines brighter than others. It seems to be the same inside and outside the Church. The time has come to choose between companionship and racing. The Synod of companionship is where joy is doubled, and sorrow is halved when shared.
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