Es geht ums Konzil! Pastoraltheologische Anmerkungen inmitten der Umstellung auf eine synodale Kirchengestalt

On the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the Synod of Bishops in 2015, Pope Francis emphasised the mutual relationship between a teaching and a learning Church as an essential characteristic of a synodal ecclesiology. However, this raises questions: What exactly is or may be learned and thus be changed? With reference to the dominant antagonism in the post-conciliar period of the 'right of truth' versus a 'right of the person', the following article would first like to reconstruct historically and theologically how in recent decades during diverse situations of conflict in the church and in the context of various individual judicial processes, the 'right of truth' was often given preference within the church over the 'right of the person'. However, this would not be necessary against the background of the pastoral nature of the Council that appreciates contemporary contexts theologically and epistemologically. Rather, formative antagonisms, in relation to the gospel, can be brought together when understood as an instance of reflective theology. Which image of the church could finally be associated with a synodal church that understands itself as a learning church forms the outlook of the following reflections.