(Prof. Jose Vidamor B. Yu, Manila) 

 

The most profound expression of Ecclesial life and sensus fidei is communion. Communion is the warp and woof of the Church especially in manifesting its unity, vitality and catholicity. The College of Consultors projects a Church that is in communion (communio) with the faithful in a diocese. 

Canon Law provides the role of the College of Consultors as a necessary institution for governance in the diocese. It is a council, not fewer than six and not more than twelve, (CIC 502) which is convoked to give advice to the bishop continuously particularly on matters of governance that are especially important. The judgment of the college of consultors is binding and the bishop has the obligation to consult it. This consultative council expresses sensus fidei because its collaborative function shows the wisdom of the Spirit working among the entire people of God. The Spirit guides the council through faith by means of creative decisions and advices.  

Authority in the Church is expressed through necessary participation. This necessity springs out from the understanding that the Church is communion. The sense of faith (sensus fidei) among all believers is manifested in the exercise of their duty and right to actively engage themselves in setting the direction of the local church. Participation in the exercise of Church’s authority takes various forms like the college of consultors who formally share in the decision-making processes presided by the bishop. In the local churches, consultation is an authentic _expression of participation and the community’s proper role in the exercise of authority. At the diocesan level, the college of consultors engages a serious pastoral challenge in policy-making and deliberations. It represents the collective voice of God’s people as well as signs of the promptings of God’s Spirit within the local church. 

The task of the College of Consultors is a challenge and a ministry. Ministry implies flexibility. The workings of the Spirit among various groups of people in the local church are evident in the exercise of the ministries. The Second Vatican Council envisioned to bring back the primordial meaning of the exercise of authority as service. "Ministers who are endowed with sacred power are at the service of their brothers and sisters, so that all who belong to the people of God, and therefore enjoy real Christian dignity…" (LG 18) Ecclesial life is both cooperative and collaborative. This makes the sense of communion in the local churches more free and flexible. "Catholicity" goes beyond the symbolic presence of the Church in various cultures. It is the active and mutual participation of all the members of the Church in ecclesial life. Inculturation can never be possible if flexibility has been curtailed in the local church. For the church to "take root" and the ecclesial life be celebrated in a particular culture, a large amount of freedom is required to bring about the articulation of the Christian faith as well as the discipline of how the practice of the faith be carried out.