It is the world’s oldest continuous international organisation, yet the Catholic Church can hardly be described as a democratic institution. When it comes to selecting the leadership of this top-down organisation, there has been little attempt at democratic participation. Of course, there has long been a process of consultation of clergy, while various governments have attempted to encroach on the selection of bishops – especially one government right now – but future bishops, archbishops, cardinals or even popes are not expected to put forward manifestoes which Catholics (lay or otherwise) get to vote on.
This makes the recent Synod on Synodality somewhat striking, being as it is a key aspect of Pope Francis’s legacy-building agenda. Due to be completed in 2023, it is a consultation process with huge variations by diocese in terms of engagement. Overall, however, the numbers underrepresent the true faithful while seemingly overrepresenting liberal groups. Take England and Wales, for instance – the 30,000 estimated participants represent under 10 per cent of all Mass-going Catholics and under 1 per cent of all Catholics. These figures are no outlier, and compared to France, quite generous.
Apart from being unrepresentative, the Synod on Synodality’s findings – whatever they may be – need not be accepted nor implemented by the Pope. This is aside from ongoing debate about the Synodal Path in Germany, where participants will soon vote on whether to create a permanent council to oversee the German Church, a move likely to concern the Vatican, which recently came out swinging against the Path, claiming the movement lacks the authority to instruct bishops on doctrine, amid warnings of a schism.
German bishops have, in particular, stated a desire for greater inclusion of laypeople when it comes to liturgical celebrations, parish administration and a say in who becomes a pastor. In Germany, there have also been calls for the laity to have a greater say in the election of bishops. Meanwhile, reform of the Roman curia – including the role of the laity – was discussed recently by cardinals, with Praedicate Evangelium having paved the way for laypeople to serve at the highest levels of the Holy See, even though this could potentially undermine the relationship between ordination and governance. That said, laypeople have participated in limited governance of the Church for years.
But there is a wider point. As the television era gives way to the internet and social media era – the age of clerics like Bishop Barron and his widespread internet visibility – can the Church leadership really cloister itself away, given the social media presence of clergy and laity alike? In an era of mass participation, where democracy is considered the global standard of how societies are governed, can an organisation like the Catholic Church not adopt at least some democratic tendencies? That said, if it ain’t broke, why fix it, and the corporate world tends not to open leadership up to mass participation either, suggesting the model need not be adopted across all organisations.
Meanwhile, given ideological divides within the Church, would greater lay involvement and participation not lead to destructive tendencies and infighting? It is notable that most attacks on clericalism come from progressives even though many traditionalists have also felt marginalised in the Francis era. When it comes to choosing a successor to the Pope, given the visibility of today’s candidates, many Catholics would like their opinions to be heard rather than leaving the entire process up to a body of cardinals.
Most importantly perhaps, how can the Church reconcile the lack of direct engagement by lay Catholics with the fact it is allowing not just any government – but a brutal regime like the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) – to meddle in its affairs? Through a 2018 deal, the Vatican and CCP have agreed to cooperate in the selection of bishops of a united Catholic Church in China. In effect, the Vatican has the final say on clerical appointments, but can only select from CCP-approved candidates. This can only undermine attempts to not involve laypeople in the wider business of the Church. How can the Church let the CCP encroach on decisions but not lay Catholics?
Of course, political figures and monarchs have busied themselves with Church affairs and appointments for years. Over in Nicaragua as well, the government is attempting to, at least, influence the local Church very strongly. But so long as the CCP gets to control the Church within China so any claim against lay involvement will ring hollow. The CCP is not even non-Catholic, it is officially atheist, and many of its practices could be described as objectively evil. How can lay Catholics be deprived of power and a voice then while the Vatican has empowered the CCP within the Chinese Church?
The role of the laity and democratisation of the Church is an ongoing debate. While its major proponents are to be primarily found on the progressive wing, many conservatives (a lot of whom are visible on social media) would like their voices to be heard as well. In an era of mass participation and visibility, are moves against clericalism inevitable, even though greater involvement of the laity may fly in the face of canon law? Crucially, calls to limit the role of the laity are undermined so long as the Vatican gives the CCP a free hand in the selection of clergy within China: how can the Church accommodate an atheist communist dictatorship but not fellow Catholics also guided by the Holy Spirit? Any move to limit lay involvement would need to address that first.
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