INTRODUCING FIELD NOTES FROM FERNS - GRASSROOTS SYNODALITY

By Sean O'Leary, Director of Pastoral Development, Diocese of Ferns

In the Diocese of Ferns, a historic Christian community stretching back over 1,400 years to the monastic foundations of St. Aidan, the call to synodality has not arrived as an abstract directive from distant synodal halls. Rather, it has taken root in the lived soil of rural heartlands, coastal towns and urban centres across Counties Wexford and parts of Wicklow. Here, amid 49 parishes and 96 faith communities, synodality manifests as a quiet, persistent pilgrimage: people of God (Pobal Dé) walking together, listening deeply to one another and to the Holy Spirit, and allowing the Paschal Mystery to reshape structures, relationships and mission.

The recently compiled resource 'Field Notes from Ferns: Journeying Together in the Spirit' offers a compelling pastoral-theological witness to this reality. Far from a formal report or systematic treatise, this collection of 20 grassroots stories - gathered from pastoral care teams, choirs, liturgy leaders, youth pilgrims, family carers, Traveller women, pastoral councils, reflection facilitators, Jubilee teams and diocesan supporters - favours testimony over analysis. It captures synodality not as a programme to be implemented but as a way of being Church already emerging in the ordinary, the messy and the meaningful.

Synodality as Conversion of Heart and Communal Discernment

At its core, synodality invites a profound conversion of heart, as Pope Francis has repeatedly emphasised. It is anchored in the Paschal Mystery - Christ’s Cross and Resurrection - as the compass for walking together. The Field Notes vividly illustrate this through stories that prioritise presence over programmes, vulnerability over victory, and mutual enrichment over unilateral direction.

Consider the recurring motif of hospitality in scarcity or the urban pastoral care team that accompanies the lonely, sick and bereaved, discovering that visitors often receive more than they give. These narratives echo the theological insight that communion (koinonia) flows from the Trinitarian life and the Eucharist, spilling outward as the “altar extended” into homes, kitchens and bedside vigils. As Vatican II’s Lumen Gentium affirms, the Church is the sacrament of intimate union with God and the unity of humanity (LG 1).

In Ferns, this sacrament becomes tangible when the Body of Christ gathers around a parish table or a shared cup of tea.

Such stories model discernment as a spiritual art: slowing down to listen until the way opens. Whether in stormy parish meetings transformed into consensus through patient facilitation, or in collaborative Jubilee planning where lay and ordained voices discern together, the resource shows that the Holy Spirit speaks through the shy as well as the confident, the young as well as the experienced. This aligns with the sensus fidei of all the baptised (LG 12) and the Synod on Synodality’s call for structures that foster co-responsibility rather than clericalism or passivity.

Participation: The Baptismal Dignity of Every Voice

A key theological thread in the Field Notes is the radical equality bestowed by baptism, which incorporates every Christian into Christ’s priestly, prophetic and kingly office (Lumen Gentium 10–13). Lay leadership flourishes not as a substitute for ordained ministry but as its essential complement: lay people leading Rosary groups, facilitating pastoral reflections using the SPIRIT model, or coordinating diocesan celebrations of the Word.

Stories of amalgamated choirs bridging historical divisions, new pastoral councils navigating tensions to renew hope, and youth pilgrimages where no one is left behind, reveal participation as co-responsibility. Priests and people discern side by side, sharing leadership without losing unity. This reflects the Synod’s Final Document (2024) emphasis on mandatory synodal bodies and formation to empower the peripheries - women, youth and those on the margins - as active agents in the Church’s mission.

In Ferns, this finds concrete expression in the diocesan pastoral plan Our Future Church (2024–2030), which clusters parishes into 12 pastoral areas, promotes team ministry, fosters shared leadership and envisions greater lay-clergy collaboration. The Field Notes serve as post-synthesis, implementation-oriented snapshots: early fruits of listening sessions, communal discernment reports, and formation programmes that surface themes of belonging, healing and outward mission.

Mission: Accompanying the Margins with Hope-Filled Witness

Synodality turns the Church outward as a “field hospital” (Evangelii Gaudium 20–24). The resource’s stories bear hope-filled witness to this missionary conversion: family carers holding broken hearts at kitchen tables, Traveller women restoring a holy well as a place of integration and peace, retreat teams awakening children to the gifts of the Spirit already alive within them.

These grassroots efforts - rooted in humility, prayer and everyday hospitality - proclaim the Gospel anew in a changing world. They remind us that mission flows from communion and participation: when hearts are formed in the circle of reflection and trust, the Church becomes better equipped to carry Christ’s light to the lonely, the wounded, and the seeker.

An Invitation to the Wider Church

The Field Notes from Ferns are more than a diocesan archive; they offer an ecclesiological invitation. In an era when the universal Church discerns the implementation phase of the Synod (2025–2028), these humble snapshots testify that synodality is alive where people dare to listen courageously, hold tension charitably and trust the Spirit amid fragility.

They stir hearts to reflect: What surprises might emerge in our own communities if we favoured testimony over analysis, presence over perfection and shared discernment over solo decisions? How might our vulnerabilities become bridges of hope?

As the closing reflection in the resource affirms, synodality is the prayerful art of letting spaces between us transform into vibrant communion, joyful participation and bold mission. May these Field Notes inspire parishes, dioceses and formation programmes everywhere to journey together - with Christ walking alongside, freeing, healing, and making all things new through this fragile, beautiful People of God.

For more information see www.ferns.ie

The resource below is designed to support ongoing reflection and dialogue at parish and pastoral area levels, offering “field notes” from our shared path that can help guide our future steps together.

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD:

Field Notes from Ferns – Grassroots Synodality – Diocese of Ferns