Pope Francis has promulgated a continuation of the Vatican II process (it was never formally ended) through a synod on the subject of synodality, this is essentially an attempt to address the fact that the Church operates with a predominantly top-down structure that may not successfully reflect the needs, desires and beliefs of the people of God within the context of the lives they lead in today’s world. So he has asked for a conversation that should include all of the baptised, encompassing all Christians whatever their current relationship (if any) with the “institutional” Catholic church, and even seeks input from those of other faiths, or none, who see the Catholic church as having a benign influence in the world and want to help the church in the transition that the Pope hopes to achieve.
Pope Francis asks that the process that he has started is not treated as a mere opinion poll. So we should approach the process with seriousness, sincerity and sensitivity and, in the case of Christian participants, guided by the Holy Spirit, however the Holy Spirit works through each of us. And, while we shall have a variety of views in relation to individual issues, we should try to avoid our individual prejudices diverting us from an honest and respectful approach to those whose views may differ from our own and ensure that our responses are balanced and considerate.
With those thoughts in mind, we do hope that you will wish to help in this laudable endeavour, whatever your history (if any) with the Catholic church. The questionnaire that follows attempts to honestly address as many as possible of the issues that are faced by the church. We apologise in advance for omissions but hope that any such omissions will not discourage you from participating. We have included an open text box at the end of the survey where you can express your opinion on any area you feel has been missed.
Respondents to the Questionnaire will remain anonymous. We welcome contributions from everyone aged 16 or over. Thank you for agreeing to participate.
The original date for completion of the survey has been extended to 31 March to permit further participants to take part. After which the results will be made available to the Conference of Catholic Bishops in England and Wales. It is also hoped that the results will be published. Individual participants in the survey will also have the opportunity to receive a copy of the results directly.