Father Timothy Radcliffe OP urges listening, learning and prayer in church dialogue ahead of Canberra visit
Father Timothy Radcliffe OP, renowned international guest speaker, author, theologian, and English Catholic priest, is once again visiting Australia and the national capital for a brief speaking tour in mid-March.
Fresh from his role as the spiritual adviser to the General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops (the “Synod on Synodality”) in Rome, the former head of the Dominican order will speak to the question of “Where to next with the Synod?” at Canberra’s Merici College on 14 March.
On 13 March, he will give the keynote presentation at An Evening of Dialogue at Marist College Canberra hosted by local media personality Genevieve Jacobs.
The global Synod on Synodality is described as being one of the most significant events for the Catholic Church since the Second Vatican Council. On the eve of his departure from the UK for Australia, the Catholic Voice touched base with Father Radcliffe and invited him to share his thoughts on the Synod and what lessons it might hold for us so far, for our Archdiocese.
Catholic Voice: Father Radcliffe, the Archdiocese of Canberra and Goulburn, is currently in the midst of its Year of the Holy Spirit. We are moving to a synodal way of discernment, walking together and listening to each other as we head towards an Archdiocesan assembly in October this year.
Are there any insights you would like to share that would guide our journey on where the Holy Spirit is taking us?
Fr Radcliffe: That is so good to hear [about the Archdiocese’s new direction]. The Australian Church has given an example to the whole Church in what it means to synodal, to listen and learn from each other. I have the impression that even the tough moments of the Plenary Council [Fifth Plenary Council of Australia 2021-2022] were eventually fruitful. Often it is the times of crisis that yield fruit if we are open-hearted with each other.
I was struck by how the first assembly of the Synod on Synodality summoned us beyond pursuing just our own agendas and fighting for our hot-button topics. As we Westerners listened to our brothers and sisters from other parts of the world, often crucified by war and poverty, most of us realised that having what St Paul calls ‘the mind of Christ’ means opening ourselves to other cultures and traditions.
At the Council of Jerusalem in AD 50 – often called the first Synod of the Church – the earliest Christians accepted to be propelled beyond the Jewish world to embrace us Gentiles, free from the Law.
At this latest Synod, we found that rather than just fighting for our agendas, we had to listen deeply to the profound challenges of our brothers and sisters. This does not mean we should drop our concerns and hopes, but see them through other eyes and sensitivities.
CV: You are on the record as saying Catholics generally need to be “profoundly prayerful” to resist the temptation to succumb to “party-political” ways of thinking”. What are the chances of success for dialogue in the future of our parishes and the church if that is not the case?
Fr Radcliffe: First of all, a radical opposition between so-called traditionalists and progressive Catholics is deeply unCatholic. It is precisely the gospel and the tradition of the Church that summoned us forward at the Second Vatican Council. This polarization derives from the Enlightenment, perhaps especially the politics of the French Revolution and would seem stupid to our ancestors in the Faith. Of course, there are differences of conviction and temperament. For example, my father was delighted with the changes brought by the Council, whereas my mother wanted nothing to change. But this in no way represented a bitter chasm of belief. They each had the intelligence and imagination to understand why the other saw things differently.
This polarization is, alas, now embedded in Western culture. One only has to glance at the United States as it moves towards an election to see how Democrats and Republicans find it hard to even talk to each other and engage in the culture wars rather than in debates seeking the truth and the just way forward.
We can only be truly countercultural, as we need to be, if we are indeed profoundly prayerful and listen in deep silence to the Lord and each other. Not everyone will be so prayerful, as you recognise. But I hope that the prayerful people, whether lay or religious or priests, will be recognised as having a certain authority.
At the centre of their lives will be a hint of the peace of Christ, for which we all long.
CV: You’re no stranger to Australia. Have you been to Canberra before?
Fr Radcliffe: I first came to Canberra in 1985. I was a scholar in residence at Sancta Sophia College, the University of Sydney, at the invitation of the wonderful Sister Mary Shanahan. I took a bus from Sydney to Melbourne, passing through Canberra. I have been back many times since.
For further information and tickets to Fr Radcliffe’s events in Canberra, see:
An Evening of Dialogue with Fr Timothy Radcliffe OP, Marist College Canberra 13 March