What a mess that Synod on the Family turned out to be!

And that’s probably exactly what Pope Francis had in mind.

Remember when the Holy Father gave his parting words to the young people gathered on the beach in Rio de Janeiro for World Youth Day, 2013. He told them to go back to their home parishes and cause a mess. Get involved and stir things up was the pope’s advice. Challenge the status quo. Seek the truth by sharing ideas and be confident that the truth will prevail.

This pope is not afraid of differing opinions. Some people might look at that process as chaotic but he views such a difference of opinions as healthy and creative. Last year at the opening Synod on the Family, he asked the Synod Fathers to have the courage to speak their minds. He knows that the best way to arrive at the truth is to put all the ideas on the table and then to examine them one by one to test their validity. Out of that kind of chaos comes a meeting of the minds.

Things are about to change in the Church and we shouldn’t be afraid of that. The Holy Father tipped his own hand a bit last weekend in a homily at Mass when he spoke about change and reform.

He said that the Church must change with the times. Catholics must read the signs of the times and speak the Gospel message in terms that contemporary people can understand.

It’s the pope’s job to listen to all the wisdom of the Church from around the world and then, in his role as Peter, to sort out and proclaim the truth.

The Second Vatican Council recommended a synodal process that bring the bishops of the world together with the pope to search for the best way to proclaim the truth. And Pope Francis has said that the future of the Church is a synodal one. This is how he plans to proceed. He will listen to everyone and he will then discern the Church’s understanding.

For those of us who grew up in the pre-Conciliar Church, this is new. We want certainty. We want neatness and not the mess that discussion and exchange of ideas brings.

“The experience of the synod,” the pope said, “has made us understand better that the true defenders of doctrine are not those who defend its letter, but its spirit; not ideas, but people; not formulas, but the free gift of God’s love and forgiveness. This is in no way to detract from the importance of formulas, laws and divine commandments, but rather to exalt the greatness of the true God, who does not treat us according to our merits or even according to our works, but solely according to the boundless generosity of His mercy.”

As members of the Church, we are sometimes called to live in the insecurity of a mess. The presence of the Holy Father – whoever he might be – assures us of stability and that the Church is alive and well and constantly striving to understand the meaning of Jesus’ message and how it applies to our everyday living.

As the cardinals and bishops left the Synod, there was a lot of talk that the final document could say anything you want it to say. There seems to be something in there for liberals and conservatives alike. Some feel that since the document is so vague that it is worthless.

Keep in mind that every paragraph in it had to receive a two-thirds vote of approval to be written. The consensus of the synod is there and the Holy Father will now decide what that means.

It’s not a mess! It’s the working of the Holy Spirit, who works in strange ways.