Collins moved by world synod

'A spectacular experience' of the universal Church

By GLEN ARGAN
WCR Editor
Edmonton

The Synod of Bishops on the Eucharist left Archbishop Thomas Collins with "a profound experience of the universal Church."

But the high point of the Oct. 2-23 synod was Pope Benedict's meeting with little children, said Collins who was one of five Canadian bishops attending the synod at the Vatican.

"He was so simple, deep and profound," the archbishop said of the pope.

One boy gave a talk to open the session and described his own experience of the Eucharist as "Jesus came to me."

Pope Benedict later spoke of his own First Communion and said, "It really comes down to what that little kid says," Collins related.

Another child asked what he should do when his own parents do not attend church regularly. The pope's response was "delicately handled." He urged the child to love and respect his parents, but told him that he does need to attend Mass.

The archbishop returned to Edmonton with a deeper respect for the new pope. "He is very quiet and very simple for a guy who is so smart and has such learning. He has gone beyond the learning into the depths of understanding."

A bishop now for eight years, Collins got his first exposure to a world synod. "It was a spectacular experience. It was a joy experiencing, sensing, the eucharistic love throughout the world."

The synod delegates, of course, did not recommend changing the Church's teaching on the Eucharist, he said. But they spontaneously placed great emphasis on Eucharistic Adoration, the proper celebration of the Eucharist and how to lead people to a sense of the wonder of the Eucharist.

Contemplation

"There was a great stress on the contemplative foundation, (but also) on the going out to the world. There was a tremendous appreciation for the priests of the Church who go through great struggles so people can celebrate the Eucharist."

The bishops also reasserted the value of priestly celibacy, he said. They see a need to teach people, especially in the Western world, of that value.

Celibacy "goes right back to Jesus himself. It wasn't thought up by canon lawyers in the year 1100.

"It goes very deep into the spiritual tradition of the Church. It's not just a discipline you can flip around."

The most important point raised during the three weeks of meetings and speeches was that "The Eucharist is so central to our life. Every father of the synod stressed that."

The synod as a whole "was a profound spiritual experience about the extraordinary importance of the Eucharist in the lives of the Christian people. The Eucharist is at the heart of our vitality as Christians."

Collins, like the 250 other synod delegates, gave a six-minute talk. "I worked on mine a lot; I'm sure every bishop did."

He also turned in a 15-page paper to synod officials that laid out the theme of his talk in greater detail. And he spoke at some of the open discussions that were a new feature of this year's synod.

The archbishop was also an active member of one of the 12 language- based working groups which developed and revised "propositions" on the synod theme to be presented to the pope.

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