Document details

African Synodal Theology: A Tall Tree Is as Strong as Its Roots

Contains index

ISBN 978-9966-60-374-6

Other editions: Maryknoll, NY: Orbis Books, 2025

Signature commbox: 100:00-Catholic 2025

"As the Final Document and the lived experience of the Synod emphasize the beauty of cultural diversity and call for creative implementation of synodality in local Churches according to their context-while remaining in unity envisioned as pluriform harmony-this book offering plural reflections on African synodal theology is most welcome. It will surely inspire concrete pathways for the synodal journey to unfold as a 'path of spiritual renewal and structural reform' across this vibrant continent. What strikes me most profoundly is the embodied approach to synodality these essays offer, deeply rooted in African culture, values, symbolisms, and metaphors, while honestly naming some obstacles like challenges posed by patriarchal and hierarchical patterns. Rather than merely explaining synodal principles, the authors invite us to live them. This is precisely the spirit needed as we move from documents to transformed missionary communities. Throughout the Synod, Africa has made vital contributions, beginning with the vision of Church as Family of God that resonates powerfully with the synodal Church as relational Church. In this book, Father Orobator has gathered insightful voices that highlight the continent's rich traditions of spirituality, communal discernment, and participatory decision-making, offering invaluable wisdom for reimagining concretely what it means to be Church as People of God walking together to proclaim the Gospel and serve the people in Africa. These voices exemplify the 'exchange of gifts' at the heart of synodality." (Sr. Nathalie Becquart, XMCJ, Back cover)
Introduction: Of Roots and Trees / Agbonkhianmeghe E. Orobator, vii
1 A Spirituality of Synodality: Drawing from the Wells of African Spirituality / Anne Arabome, 1
2 Theological Foundations of Synodality / Marcel Uwineza, 25
3 Communication and the Synodal Church: Ngiga as an African Symbol of Synodality / Chijioke Azuawusiefe, 49
4 Scriptural Foundations of a Synodal Church / Josée Ngalula, 71
5 Synodality or the “Remodeling” of the Church / José Minaku Lukoli, 91
6 Dialogue, Discernment, and Trust— An Ethic for Synodality in a Global, Divided Church / Anthony Egan, 111
7 Religious Women Teachers of Synodality: The “Abundant Catch” of the Peripheries / Léocadie Lushombo, 135
8 The Gift of Authority in a Synodal Church / Ludovic Lado, 159
9 Consecrated Women Religious Journeying Together for a Missionary Synodal Church in Africa / Veronica Jemanyur Rop, 181
10 Theological Foundations of Co-Responsibility / David Kaulemu, 203
11 A Synodal Church of the Young and the Young at Heart / Sheila Leocádia Pires, 223
Afterword: Ubuntu, Dance, and Poetry of Synodality / William O’Neil, 245