Colombo (AsiaNews) - For two Sri Lankan Catholics, a priest and a layman, the Extraordinary Synod on the Family that ended on 19 October in Rome should "be praised for paving the way for a certain freedom of expression" within the Catholic Church, but it "did not address the family and its problems in Asia, Africa and Latin America".
"The discussions and the final document were not a complete break with the past," Fr Reid Shelton Fernando told AsiaNews. "However, they still represent an invitation to orient themselves in a new way vis-à-vis people who have problems with the traditional context. Overall, it was an invitation to listen to the suggestions of the Holy Spirit. "
According to the priest, another break with the past was "the open discussion of the final document, not only among the bishops, but also among all the representatives of the Church. In view of the Ordinary Synod of 2015, I hope that more lay people are involved in the debate."
Ajith Perera Hadley, a teacher, told AsiaNews that "the Catholic concept of family is very influenced by Western philosophical and sociological categories. For this reason, I feel the Synod did not properly understand other types of family in Asia, Africa and Latin America."
People in "The poorest countries are more concerned with making a living than with communion for divorced and remarried people or same-sex couples," he said. "Third World families are endangered by poor living conditions and the restlessness of their members."