Most of the time our minds are centered on what is going on in our world. We are involved in what thoughts and feelings we are experiencing, in what we will be dealing with in our day. We are concerned about how successful we might be or what mistakes we can avoid. Are we able to let go of what is going on in us long enough to be present to the world that others might be experiencing? What are their thoughts and feelings? What are their hopes and fears? What are the challenges that they are facing?
It is Pope Francis who taught us the meaning of the term – “synodality.” It is also the method that Pope Leo is said to be using. It means that what is key to an understanding and necessary in making decisions is the ability to listen to the other, to enter into their world. It is to open oneself to acknowledge and appreciate what others are experiencing. This is what Jesus did. “Where two or more are gathered in my name, I will be in their midst.” It is in the meeting of two or more worlds that something new can be born in our relationships, in the Church and in our world.
- Are you a good listener?
- Have you had an experienced of someone really listening to you?
- What happens when two people really listen to one another?
O God, give me the ability to enter into the world of another.