Synodality, Sacramental Renewal, and Mission: Interdisciplinary Perspectives on Ecclesial Transformation

Dear Colleagues,

The recent Synod on the Synodality of the Church (2021–2024), aware that synodality, in its many expressions, is aimed at supporting sacramental life and ecclesial mission, offered in its Final Document (FD), For a Synodal Church: Communion, Participation, Mission (26 October 2024), numerous points of theological and pastoral relevance. In particular, the text recognises “a close link between synaxis and synodos, between the Eucharistic assembly and the synodal assembly” (FD, n. 27), highlighting how this connection is fundamental to promoting a missionary transformation of the Church.

In the period before, during and after the Synod, numerous studies explored the theme of synodality. Among the most significant contributions prior to the Synod is the document of the International Theological Commission (ITC), Synodality in the Life and Mission of the Church (2 March 2018), which offered a systematic and authoritative reflection on the nature and ecclesiological implications of synodality. The concept of synod is the result of a process of doctrinal fermentation that only later took shape and became individualised in canonistic and theological doctrine (cf. Fantappiè, 2023, p. 24). From the Greek σύνοδος, ‘composed of a preposition συν (with) and the noun όδός (path), it indicates the path along which the People of God walk together’. Consequently, the terms ‘synodality’ and ‘synodal’ that derive from it express ‘how the disciples of Jesus were called together as an assembly’ (ITC, n. 3).

Although synodality has been the subject of increasing theological and ecclesial attention in recent years, with the emergence of expressions such as missionary synodality (cf. Amaglo, 2025, pp. 77-84), reflection on the profound meaning and practical implications of these concepts in the context of the life and mission of the Church remains open.

In the synodal, sacramental and missionary journey, ‘the plurality of religions and cultures, the richness of spiritual and theological traditions, the variety of gifts of the Spirit and roles in the community, together with the diversity of age, gender and social conditions present in the Church’ not only constitute an essential hermeneutical key for the growth of a synodal and missionary Church, but also represent “an invitation to each person to recognise and accept their own partiality” (cf. FD, nn. 40, 42). This recognition paves the way for theological reflection that draws on interdisciplinarity, valuing the plurality of perspectives and promoting an authentic shared journey based on the harmonious integration of knowledge (cf. Veritatis Gaudium, Foreword, n. 4c).

This Special Issue, entitled Synodality, Sacramental Renewal and Mission: Interdisciplinary Perspectives on Ecclesial Transformation, aims to offer an in-depth theological reflection on the sacramental and missionary dimension of the Church in a synodal key. The proposed approach is interdisciplinary in nature, aimed at fostering dialogue between different areas of theology.

In this Special Issue, original research articles and reviews are welcome. Research areas may include (but are not limited to) the following: Sacred Scripture, Canon Law, Church History, Sacramental Theology, Systematic Theology, Ecclesiology, Ecumenism, Moral theology, Practical theology and Missiology, the latter considered in its intercultural and interreligious dimensions.

By way of guidance, we present some thematic proposals, which are subject to reformulation or expansion, with a view to a broader exploration of ecclesial transformation in a synodal key:

• Walking Together in Scripture: Biblical Foundations of Synodality
• Trinitarian Communion and the Logic of Synodality
• Canonical Pathways to Ecclesial Transformation: Revisiting Governance, Co-responsibility, and the Law of the Mission in a Synodal Church
• Synodal Practices in the Church: Historical and Contemporary Perspectives
• The Church as Sacrament in a Synodal Age: Foundations for Ecclesial Renewal and Liturgical Reform
• Synodality and the Ecumenical Imperative: Towards Unity in Diversity
• Synodality, Witness and Dialogue: The Church’s Mission in a Pluralistic World
• Forming Synodal Communities: Pastoral Strategies for Participation

We request that, prior to submitting a manuscript, interested authors initially submit a proposed title and an abstract of 200-300 words summarising their intended contribution. Please send it to the Guest Editor or to the Assistant Editor of Religions, Dr. Ana Vujković Šakanović (vujkovic.sakanovic@mdpi.com). Abstracts will be reviewed by the Guest Editors for the purposes of ensuring proper fit within the scope of the Special Issue. Full manuscripts will undergo double-blind peer review.

We look forward to receiving your contributions.

Rerefences:

Fantappiè, Carlo, Metamorfosi della sinodalità: Dal Vaticano II a papa Francesco [Metamorphosis of Synodality: From Vatican II to Pope Francis], Venezia: Marcianum Press, 2023, p. 24.

Amaglo, Komlanvi Samuel, La missione della Chiesa in uscita: verso una Teologia sinodale e interculturale per la missione [The mission of the outgoing Church: towards a synodal and intercultural theology for mission], Roma: LAS, 2025, pp. 77-84.

Francis, Apostolic Constitution Veritatis Gaudium, On Ecclesiastical Universities and Faculties, 8 December 2017, Foreword, n. 4 §c.

Prof. Dr. Samuel Komlanvi Amaglo
Guest Editor

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