Originally published at National Catholic Register
With hot-button issues sidelined and major changes seemingly off the table, progressive Catholics feel led astray by synod organizers’ grand promises.
For progressive Catholics hoping for dramatic changes in the Church, the Synod on Synodality was supposed to usher in a new springtime.
Instead, with the final document set to be approved this Saturday, those who have advocated for things like women deacons and the acceptance of same-sex relations are bracing for a “final cold shower.”
That’s the image used by Vatican journalist Franca Giansoldati to describe the widespread disappointment among progressives that seems to be setting in within and around the synod hall.
Stories of disillusionment within Paul VI Hall have trickled out to the media, including a minority of pro-women’s ordination delegates tearfully imploring for change and aggressively challenging those they perceive as resistant. Outside, reform groups have released critical statements about the fact that major shifts appear unlikely to happen.
And some are critiquing synod organizers for setting synodal expectations that have not been met by reality.
“We are told repeatedly that this synod is about a new way of being church,” wrote Zac Davis in America magazine, the U.S. Jesuits’ flagship publication. “I worry that
