Studia Koszalińsko-Kołobrzeskie

The aim of this article is to show some issues of a theological reflection on the meaning of synods in Orthodox, Lutheran, and Catholic theology. Orthodox theologians justify the synodal dimension of the Church by the teaching of Christ, the practice of the apostolic period, and the development of synodality in the first millennium of the Church. In the Orthodox Churches, synodality is episcopocentric and is expressed both at the local church level with the bishop in the lead and at the regional one. After breaking up of the unity with the Roman Church in 1054 the Orthodox Churches did not hold any council of an ecumenical dimension. What is characteristic of the Eastern theology of synods and councils is the conviction that their decisions are not obligatory ex sese but acquire their validity after acceptance by the faithful. In the ecclesiastical communities dating back to the Reformation, we have various forms of synodal organization. German Lutheranism had a state church model until the 20th century in which the affairs of the Church were managed by the lay rulers of the bishops. This form of Church governance was due to a number of factors including Martin Luther’s theology of the universal priesthood and the lack of bishops who were replaced by princes. In the 19th and especially in the 20th century the Lutheran churches in Germany developed synodal structures in which lay people play a central role. Decisions made at synods are not considered infallible so they can be changed. The Lutheran communities are also unaware of the ecumenical dimension of synods. In the Roman Catholic Church, as in the Orthodox Churches, the source of synodality is considered to be the practice of the Apostolic Church especially the Apostolic Council described in Acts, chapter 15, and the period of the first millennium of the Church in which synodal and conciliar structures developed. In the Roman Catholic Church, we have two levels of synodality: the first concerns the primacy of the pope and the college of bishops who are in communion with him, while the second is based on the participation of all the baptized in the life of the Church, which consists of their advisory function. Thanks to the pope who convenes councils it is characteristic of the Roman Catholic Church to maintain all three levels of synodality: local, regional and universal. In the Roman Catholic Church conciliar decisions do not to be approved by the lay faithful, but they are considered binding once adopted by the conciliar assembly and the Pope. Currently, there is a discussion on the bigger inclusion of the lay faithful in making decisions regarding the life of the Church.