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Why Does Synodality Only Go One-Way?

Why Does Synodality Only Go One-Way?

Last updated on: July 16, 2026 at 8:21 pm by Dennis Knapp

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Why Does Synodality Only Go One-Way? 2026-07-16T20:21:35-06:00 Dennis Knapp

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“A synodal Church is a Church of listening,” the late Pope Francis declared in a 2015 address commemorating the fiftieth anniversary of the Synod of Bishops.

The Synod’s official Vademecum later affirmed:

The heart of the synodal experience is listening to God through listening to one another, inspired by the Word of God. We listen to each other in order to better hear the voice of the Holy Spirit speaking in our world today.

As a Catholic, I fully accept the sentiment behind these words. The Church ought to listen—to Scripture, Tradition, the bishops, the faithful, and, above all, the Holy Spirit.

But if synodality fundamentally involves listening, then a simple question follows:

Why does it seem to listen in only one direction?

And do all Catholics within the synodal Church truly feel heard?

A Neutral Process Should Produce Mixed Results

If synodality truly centers on listening, dialogue, discernment, and openness to the Holy Spirit, then over time we should expect it to produce a variety of outcomes that reflect the concerns of the whole Church. At times, the process might conclude, “We have become too permissive.” At other times, it might conclude, “We have become too rigid.”

Instead, the questions that receive the greatest attention tend to concern Communion for the divorced and remarried, women’s ordination, LGBTQ issues, decentralization of authority, inclusion, and governance. Notice the pattern.

What we never seem to get are questions such as:

Have we lost belief in the Real Presence?
Should Eucharistic discipline become stricter?
Should Catholics return to more frequent confession?
Has catechesis become too weak?
Should annulment practices become more rigorous?
Should Communion in the hand be reconsidered?
Should the Church renew traditional devotional life?
Should preaching place greater emphasis on sin, repentance, and the Four Last Things?
Has liturgical experimentation weakened belief?

I hope my critics notice that none of these questions concern sexual morality—despite the frequent claim that I spend too much time writing about it. The issue here is not sex. It is whether synodality consistently directs the Church’s attention toward one set of questions while leaving another set largely unexplored.

Is This Really Listening?

Now, I do not have strong opinions about receiving Communion in the hand versus on the tongue. Many faithful Catholics, however, do. Do they feel that the synodal process has listened to their concerns?

Instead, we continually hear proposals—pastoral proposals, of course—that seem designed to accommodate modern Western assumptions about sex, gender, and the decentralization of ecclesial authority.

Consider a simple thought experiment. Suppose the next synod concluded that Communion in the hand should cease, the use of Latin should become more widespread, priests should more frequently celebrate Mass ad orientem, and the Church should renew traditional devotions. Would those who celebrate synodality today embrace those conclusions as equally inspired by the Holy Spirit? Or would they suddenly begin to question the process itself?

Final Thought… Synodality’s Singular Direct

Pope Francis described synodality as “a Church of listening.” If that is truly its purpose, then every faithful voice in the Church deserves to know that it has been heard.

Yet many Catholics who long for greater doctrinal clarity, stronger ecclesial discipline, deeper Eucharistic reverence, richer devotional life, more robust catechesis, and a renewed emphasis on holiness often struggle to see their concerns receive the same attention as proposals for pastoral adaptation. Whether one agrees with those concerns or not is beside the point. The question is whether the synodal process gives them a genuine hearing.

The trajectory of synodality appears remarkably consistent. The questions that rise to prominence almost always concern the Church’s relationship to contemporary cultural pressures rather than the recovery of neglected traditions or the strengthening of existing discipline.

Perhaps there are examples that prove me wrong. If so, I would genuinely like to hear them.

Until then, I remain with a simple question:

If synodality is truly a process of listening, why does it so often seem to listen in only one direction?

Thank you!

If you liked this article, please leave your comments below. I am very interested in your opinion on this topic.

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